I SAID YES!

On 12.12.17...a Taco Tuesday unlike any other...I SAID YES! 

Back in December, we spent a week in the Happiest Place on Earth. We lucked into front row viewing spots for the World of Color show in California Adventure and Jarad asked me to be his wife with my DREAM ring! 

Life has been crazy lately, but more wedding posts are coming soon! 

Only 361 days until we say "I Do"! 

Essential Oils 101 - The Basics

I know that all of you have that friend that posts about the voodoo magic of essential oils. I'm one of those posting friends. The oils work like magic, but they are definitely not voodoo. They work. I love them and I know you will love them too! I thought it would be fun to do a little Essential Oils 101 series on the blog and in the future I can share fun recipes and ideas. Lets start with the basics.

What are essential oils?
Essential oils are naturally occurring aromatic compounds that are found in the seeds, bark, stems, roots and flowers of plants. After the oils are extracted from the plants, they can be used to help with emotional and physical wellness for ourselves, our families, and even our pets!

I cannot stress enough - not all essential oils are created equally. Please do not go out tonight and buy the oils you see at Target, Walmart or even the health food store. I am a doTERRA wellness advocate and firmly stand behind their quality.

Three ways to use:

• Aromatically - diffuse, inhale, etc
• Internally - putting a drop under your tongue, mixing with water, use for baking/cooking or taking in a veggie cap
• Topically - applying directly to the skin - some oils should be diluted before applying topically!

I have to admit...I was super skeptical of essential oils at first. I had a stomach ache at my sister's house one evening and she said "I have peppermint oil in the bathroom, go rub it on your belly." I half expected my skin to fall off. Plot twist : it didn't and five minutes later my stomach ache was gone. It's 10 months later and I am a firm believer. I cannot wait to share more about oils with you guys! 

There is an oil for EVERY problem and I am here to help! Sleep, allergies, immunity support, digestion, sore muscles, dry scalp, stretch marks, sun burns, bug bites, flea/tick spray for your pets, anything you can think of! 

If you want more information, email me at mermade.essentials@yahoo.com. I also post on instagram over at mermade.essentials. 

Five on Friday 9.22.17

Man oh man, it has been TOO long since I've done one of these. Life has been so busy and fun lately. Lets jump right in!

1. 

My coworker and I got a fish for our shared cubicle and she is PERFECTION. The prettiest little unicorn fish and her name is Petunia. We obviously don't get out much.

2.

I took a trip to Disneyland with my dad and little sister this weekend and I am dreaming about the next time I get to have a Jack cake pop. 26 days! 

3.

I am a bridesmaid in a wedding in November and I was having the hardest time finding cute silver shoes. I found these babies on Amazon for $25 and they are perfection! Comfortable and not too tall. They have a lot of colors that would be perfect for work or going out. The perfect "lady shoe". 

4.

After waiting a literal year for this chair to go on sale, I scored it for 50% off. I CANNOT wait for all the new home decor coming to Target. Goodbye paycheck, hello Chip and Joanna! 

5. 

Last but not least, stay tuned for fun essential oil stuff coming soon! Follow along on my essential oil insta - @mermade.essentials

I am so happy to be blogging again and cannot wait for all the fun posts to come! 

A Weekend Trip to Disney

Main Street Disney! 

I absolutely love Disneyland. The magic is undeniable. #Disneymylife

I finally got an annual pass!

This past weekend, my dad took my little sister and I for a quick weekend trip. We drove down Friday and came home Sunday. We never go on the weekends and now I remember why. It was PACKED. Some of our favorite rides were closed for hours during the day, which was annoying. BUT! Disneyland, California Adventure, and Downtown Disney were all decorated for Halloween and my Halloween loving heart exploded. This is the first year that California Adventure has been decorated and it did not disappoint. Downtown Disney had a bunch of pumpkin towers everywhere and massive pumpkins in all the planters. So cute.

stoked off Cars Land!

Cars Land!

I mean how perfect is this!?

I can't even.

me and my baby Maddie twinning

This was our first time staying at the Disneyland Hotel and it did not disappoint. We have stayed at Paradise Pier and the Grand Californian, so this was the last of the trio for us. I LOVED IT. I honestly expected it to be tacky Disney, but it was the perfect amount of Disney magic and class. We ate a bunch, walked a bunch, and soaked up a stress free weekend for as long as we could.

Chip (or Dale?)  watching TV when we walked into our hotel

Cotton Candy Lemonade from the Cove Bar in CA Adventure!

the most DELISH lobster nachos from the Cove Bar

My favorite time of day at the parks is first thing in the morning and later at night. The best!

Oogie Boogie Takeover! 

this is blurry but Carthay Circle!

the coolest ears! they also have orange bats.

Stay tuned for more Disney Halloween magic next month when I go to Mickey's Halloween Party (for the 3rd year in a row) with my best friend!

no detail was left out!

10 Things About Me!

I can't remember if I've done one of these posts before, but I thought it would be fun to do a little re-introduction since it's been so long since I've blogged regularly...or at all really.

1. My name is Miranda. (surprise!)
2. I am 25 years old. 
3. I have a dog named Matilda aka Tilly that I am OBSESSED with. 
4. My boyfriend Jarad and I have been dating for 4 1/2 years. I'm indoorsy. He's an adventurer.
5. We commute together, work together and live together. (we didn't meet at work)
6. We bought a house together a few months back and owning a home has been the best! We've moved 5 times in the last 3 years, so it's nice to actually get set up somewhere.
7. I love baking cupcakes, crafting, decorating, all things Disney and planning parties.
8. I also love essential oils. They have had such a big impact in my life since I was introduced to them in January. 
9. Halloween is my JAM. 
10. I like to live everyday like its Taco Tuesday.

WE BOUGHT A HOUSE!

Hellllllllo from the other siiiiiiiiiiide! 

I lost my blogging spark for awhile... My  creative light went out temporarily... But I'm back! With news!

WE BOUGHT A HOUSE! 

We had originally planned on buying a house in the Fall, but the stars aligned, we found the perfect house on my favorite street in town, and it's ours! We get the keys on Tuesday and I cannot wait to share all about it! 

The inside is completely remodeled but the house was built in 1955 and it's so charming. I can't wait to show you how we decorate it and make it our home! Think industrial meets Joanna Gaines farmhouse. Eek! We will also be doing a ton of work to the front and back yard. If you have any tips, tricks, or ideas - shoot them my way! I have ZERO experience with yard work/planting things/anything related to the outside at all pretty much.

Here's a sneak peek to hold you over until I can take pictures of the whole house :)

2017 Goals

 

I really need to get back on the goal bandwagon. I decided I want to set goals for the year as a whole and then do smaller goals every month... or so ;)

 

I've decided my word for the year will be INTENTIONAL. I want to be intentional in everything I do. I want to simplify. I want to figure out what really matters and be all there.

• de-clutter and simplify my spaces - mental and physical
• exercise regularly
• cook at home more
• learn to cook and bake new dishes
• squeeze in travel whenever we can
• save money $$$$
• buy a house toward the end of the year
• get engaged ;) ;) 
• go on adventures with Jarad (he's into tactical training, outdoors, and his bow right now)
• read more books

I feel like 2016 was kind of a bust for me and I really want to make 2017 count. Here's to taking chances and making it happen in 2017! 

Worst Blogger Ever?

Jarad sent me these beauties for my birthday

It's been months since I've been on Blogger. If I'm being perfectly honest, I didn't think I missed it much. Random blog ideas would pop into my head and I would be jealous of all the awesome posts my blogger friends were writing, but I just didn't think I missed it. Funnily enough, the second my Blogger page loaded...my heart skipped a beat. Say whaaaaat? This doesn't happen often, but I'm going to say that I was wrong. I did miss this. And I'm back. Hopefully.

How about a quick update?

• I turned 25 this week. Insert quarter life crisis here.
• Jarad and I moved in with my dad to seriously save money for a house. 
• My brain is overflowing with future business ideas that I hope to put into action over the next year.
• I leave for Hawaii in 15 days. A vacation with my dad, boyfriend, little sister, older sister, brother in law and four nieces. Lawd! That's a guaranteed blog post right?? 

I have a couple drafted posts that I hope to get up next week. I've missed you guys and I can't wait to start this back up again! 

I'm Starting Weight Watchers?!

Oh, hi guys! I'm still alive and well although it would be hard to tell from the lack of posts over here. Let's just say life has been CRAZY. My coworker moved to a different department at work while my boss was still out on maternity leave. Now my boss is back and the two of us are killing it. I barely have time to breathe while I'm at work and I'm exhausted when I get home, so that's the main reason why I've been lagging in the blog department.

I've been surviving and thriving - baking a lot of cupcakes - and counting down the days until we move back to our hometown.  (36 days in case you were wondering)

The point of this post is to tell you about my newest adventure...Weight Watchers! My boss and I are doing it together and we're starting this week. Eeeeek. I've tried multiple weight loss solutions and quit before ever really giving it my best shot. I'm excited to try WW because it seems like a good option and I'll have a support system. Our "smart points" are actually exactly the same, so that will make this even easier. We signed up for three months - so our subscription will end September 20th - at that time I will assess whether or not I think WW is working for me. If so, I will continue! We are hopefully going to New Orleans in November and definitely going to Hawaii in December, so this is the perfect amount of time to lose weight and figure out what works for me. I want to be able to enjoy my vacation(s) without worrying about my taco food baby.

I've heard good things about Weight Watchers and I'm interested to see how it works for me! I'm thinking of it like a game and I'm thinking that will make it more fun. I don't know if this will be a long term thing for me or if it will be just what I need to jump start my weight loss. (for the 76th time)

So, stay tuned for more WW posts. Have you done WW before? What did you think? I would seriously love to hear your opinions on the program - the good and the bad!

Kate Spade Home Haul!

Let me start by saying - if you're trying to save money, just leave this post now.

I'm so stoked to show you the things I picked up from Home Goods and TJ Maxx. It all started when Tracy from Tracy's Notebook (best insta page for deals ever) posted this photo

FLAMINGOS? KATE SPADE? It just so happens that my niece wants a flamingo birthday party in June and I love all things Kate Spade. I obviously had to go on a hunt for that table runner. Her party couldn't possibly be complete without it!

Now...picture this. Stoked, full of hope Miranda turning down the aisle of Home Goods where the kitchen linens are kept, only to be met with a mother and daughter taking every single Kate Spade thing off the shelves. Yo girl was MAD. Granted, they got there first and blah blah, but still! Didn't they know I was coming for these things?? Didn't they know my niece needed that flamingo table runner!? I tried to get into the aisle a couple times with no luck. These women were ruthless. I did a lap around the store hoping to find SOMETHING Kate Spade. I went back to that linen aisle. They were gone. Aw yeaaaah. I did a quick look around and saw only a few remaining Kate Spade things. None of which had flamingos on it. Much to my dismay, the daughter decided to come back into the aisle and see what else she could buy. (I think she was planning a wedding or something.) Anyway, I stalked their cart hoping to see something flamingo. I'm not really sure what I would've done... ask for it? grab it and run? Who knows. Luckily, under a pile of ugly place mats, I found Kate Spade flamingo place mats! A 4 pack! I clutched those things to my chest and walked with them lovingly around the store. Yaaaasssss. On my way to the register, I saw Isaac Mizrahi table cloths that had flamingos on them for $4.99. I was going to buy that, but J confessed that he had bought me the table runner online while we were walking around the store! Insert heart eyes here.

After Home Goods, we hit up TJ Maxx. J was such a trooper. I went straight to the kitchen linen aisle and TA DA! I found every single thing I had hoped for. And there was no one to figuratively rip them out of my hands! I found the table runner I wanted almost immediately. (J cancelled his order because he paid full price).

 

Floral dishtowels : $9.99

3 piece flamingo set : $14.99

 

Flamingo placemats - set of 4 : $14.99

Flamingo table runner : $12.99

Icing dishtowels : $7.99

Christmas placemat : 30 CENTS. (I was looking for this during the holidays and never found them. It was my lucky day)

The items were priced a little higher than I had wanted, buuuuut a little splurge never killed nobody! I've actually really wanted these items for awhile now and I knew I wouldn't find them any cheaper! All of the items are super good quality and I cannot wait to put them to use. Confession : I think the icing towels are so cute. I don't even want to use them. I just want to stare at them all day. 

Livermore Wine Trolley // Livermore, CA

I'm pre writing the intro to this post. It's currently Friday at 6:48 am. Tomorrow around 10:30 am, me, J and 6 of our friends are embarking on the Livermore Wine Trolley. I'm so excited and a little nervous. 6 hours of wine tasting...should be interesting! The rest of this post will either be written happy and carefree or hungover and miserable.

The consensus...not hungover!



Post Wine Trolley : so much fun! The weather was perfect. Our driver (Annie) was so funny and personable. I would highly recommend it. However, I was barely buzzed. So if you're looking to DRINK, do so before hand. Be advised that there is no drinking on the trolley either.

We visited the following wineries:
Garre - their Rosé is delicious. loved their white wines.
Rios-Lovell - beautiful outside area. we ate lunch here.
Ruby Hill - cutest winery/cute home decor items to buy
Tenuta - my favorite. very personable staff. they have a cat named Butters.



The lunch that you pre-order when you register is SO GOOD. I chose the turkey, apple and brie sandwich. Chips and a drink were in the box too. Beverage was wine of course.



If you're in the area, you should definitely check out the Livermore Wine Trolley. It's $99 a person. You visit 4 wineries, pre-order lunch, and get chauffeured around in a cool trolley. (This post isn't sponsored, but if anyone wants to sponsor a wine tasting trip, I won't say no!)

I'm Lucky To Be This Tired

I'm constantly tired and I'm constantly wallowing in a puddle of self pity for being sooo busy and sooo tired all the time. Recently, I have experienced a change of heart. I've realized that I'm LUCKY to be this tired.

I'm lucky to have friends that want to hang out with me.

I'm lucky to have a job that allows me to pay my bills.

I'm lucky to have nieces that want to play with me.

I'm lucky to have a dog that won't leave me alone when I'm trying to sleep.

I'm lucky to have a boyfriend that ensures I take advantage of my free time.

I'm lucky to have a family that loves me and wants to see me all the time.

I'm lucky that people choose me to make cupcakes for their most cherished days.

I'm lucky to be alive.

Next time you're feeling tired and like you're at the end of your rope - just remember - you're LUCKY.

The Wisdom Teeth Struggle

All I wanted for Christmas was for my wisdom teeth to be taken out.

I got all 4 wisdom teeth out on Thursday of last week. 2 were impacted. PARTY! I had originally wrote this super negative, horrendously long post about how much I hated life. I decided to delete that and write this post instead :) My overall thoughts are: It was sort of fun for a second...LOOK AT ALL THE ICE CREAM I CAN EAT...LOOK HOW LONG I CAN NAP...but then you get a stomach ache and can't sleep at night. And then it's days later and you still can't really eat and then you become depressed. Who knew I would miss chewing?

Here are my tips for handling this SUPER AWESOME procedure:

-drink lots of water the night before, so they can find your veins for the IV.
-make sure someone is videotaping you.
-ice your face for the full first day...I didn't swell at all!
-hide your cell phone, so you don't send HIDEOUS selfies to your friends. (see bottom of post)
-learn to love soup and learn to love it quick.
-don't gorge yourself with ice cream because you probably won't feel good.
-eat lots of yogurt while taking your penicillin, ladies.
-have a super awesome sibling that stays with you all weekend long to keep you company.
-pick a show. any show. and binge.
-close your eyes during food commercials. don't torture yourself.
-have a god send of a mother who makes you endless amounts of soup/jello/pudding/potatoes.
-DO NOT USE A STRAW...they tell you this though.
-when you think you're ready to start laughing and chewing, just don't. you'll regret it.

my mom made delicious mashed potatoes.

All that being said, it really isn't as terrible as I thought. Just be very careful. And embrace the inevitable weight loss. Silver lining, people!

and lastly, that selfie I mentioned. 

Sorry if that picture scared you, but I felt like everyone should see me and all of my drugged up glory. I didn't even remember sending that picture to my friends! Also, I don't have that many chins in real life.


Do you have any wisdom teeth stories? I've heard some funny ones and some crazy ones. I want to hear yours!