Seattle's Grossest Wall

The Gum Wall

Seattle is famous for many things, being home to the first Starbucks, the Space Needle, Sleepless in Seattle and even the grunge of the 1990s. The grossest thing they may be known for... the now famous Gum Wall.

Located in Post Alley right across from the famous Pike Street Market you'll find yourself cringing in disgust from the leftover pieces of gum located on several walls of the alley way. What may have started with only a few pieces of gum has grown and spread thickly over several of the alley brick walls. The walls are now colorful from the different flavors and brands of gum left behind my locals and tourists.

 

Along the other walls of the alley you'll find local graffiti, art and posters. Right now the most famous posters are chronicling the 2016 Election. The major party candidates were depicted on the walls both receiving the same amount of street cred.

 

 

 

While it was interesting to see the famous Gum Wall, I wouldn't say it's a must see when visiting Seattle. We wanted to see it and since we were at the Market we thought ok, why not? We are already here but if you are on the other side of town don't make the trip just for the wall. It really wasn't that great. It was fun to see though and it only takes about 5 minutes to visit.

Seattle Sunsets

For my husbands birthday we headed to Seattle to celebrate! We have been wanting to go to Seattle for forever and we finally made it happen. We had a great time and loved it. We can't wait to go back! The weather was amazing the three days we were there. The first night we have maybe five minutes of sprinkling rain and then it was dry the rest of the trip. We were also blessed with an amazing sunset the first night.

 

Our hotel was right by the Pike Place Market so we had an amazing spot to just stand there and stare at the horizon. It felt very surreal to finally be in Seattle. I grew up loving and still do love the movie Sleepless In Seattle. So to actually be walking around the Market where some of the movie was filmed and to be in the city was so cool.

We explored the city until are feet were aching. Thank goodness for Uber and Lyft! We also discovered the monorail which was cheap, clean and took us from point a to point b. We hit the majority of the major tourist attractions since this was our first trip. We saw the Gum Wall, went to Pike Market, ate at The Metropolitan Grill, visited the Space Needle, saw Escala, visited the Columbia Center Sky View, got coffee from the first Starbucks and toured the Chihuly Art Glass Museum. And of course I'm going to share all of our travels on here.

When I'm not writing up my reviews of all the amazing stuff we saw and did in Seattle, I'll be planning my next visit to Washington. Next time we want to fly into Seattle and then drive further north and visit other areas of the state. Have you ever been to the Pacific Northwest? If so what's some of your favorite places in Washington?

Happy Birthday Boo!

Today is my husbands 34th Birthday! Today we are celebrating his birthday together and beginning his 34th year while having fun. I love you boo and I can't wait to celebrate all of your birthdays together!

 I love you!

Two Movies For Tonight

 

Looking for something to watch tonight? Time is precious and you don't want to spend time searching for a movie to only be disappointed with it in the end. So that's why I've brought you two movies for tonight. The movies I review here give you an idea of what's good to watch any time you want to quickly get a movie and start watching it. This week I'm giving you two movies that are totally worthy of your time. 

The first movie... Man On Fire.

 

John Creasy (Denzel Washington) is an ex-CIA and ex-military officer turned mercenary turned bodyguard. If you need protecting then Creasy is your man. His latest job is protecting a nine year old girl Lupita, living in Mexico City with her wealthy parents. When Lupita is abducted and taken from him in a large gun fight, Creasy goes on a rampage killing anyone who gets in his way to find the young girl's abductors.

 

I had never seen this movie until recently and I was surprised how gruesome it was but in reality, I'm sure people do those things that John Creasy showed us in real life. A young Dakota Fanning as Lupita also had me wondering what she's up to nowadays. I thought this movie was actually really entertaining and I found myself on the edge of my seat. It's definitely worth watching at least once.



The second movie... The Chase.

Before Charlie Sheen went off the rails, he starred in a little known movie called The Chase. The movie at the time was a complete flop but over the years since 1996 has become a comedy for pop culture fans to watch. While the film is suppose to be serious in some scenes you can't help but laugh and it's a mindless movie to watch. It's actually very funny and entertaining to watch. If you haven't seen this classic Charlie Sheen movie, then take the time to watch it because it's worthy of a laugh or two.

Jack Hammond (Sheen) knows his days are numbered before he's set to serve 25 years in prison. He says that he didn't commit the crime but the evidence said otherwise. Fed up with the system, he goes into a gas station for a pack of cigerettes on his way out of town to start his life on the run. When two police officers walk in he panics, takes a hostage and takes her car. Now police are in a high speed chase with Jack and his hostage. He's got one plan- to get to the border of Mexico! Does he make it? Watch and find out!

67 Days Till Christmas

We are getting closer and closer to my favorite season!

 

I can't wait to bust out all of my Christmas decorations and Christmas trees. This year I'm putting up a Christmas Village for the first time! I've been collecting pieces for a little over a year now so I can't wait to display it. I'm also putting up a new Christmas tree this year. It's a black pencil tree and it will feature all of our wedding ornaments that guests signed at our wedding. I'm very excited to display it as well.

Christmas trees are labors of love for me. I will be putting up seven Christmas trees this year and with each and every one, I love seeing all of the ornaments come out of the boxes. I love seeing each tree take shape as the decorations get added. My trees all have themes and this year will be no different. My themes for the trees...

White Candy Tree

Blue Beach Tree

Gold Elvis Tree

Red & Green Tree

Black Wedding Tree

Red Movie Tree

Purple Travel Tree

 

On November 1st all of these trees will start going up. The first falls on a weekday so I'm hoping by the weekend I'll have them all up! This year, I'm adding some of my Fabric Christmas ornaments to my trees because they'll fit perfectly in with some of my themes.

 

 

So what kind of trees will you be putting up this year? If you see something you like on my Fabric Christmas website let me know and I'll give you a discount. I'm a sucker for helping decorate people's Christmas trees!

Wordless Wednesday

Tomorrow marks 10 months of marriage for us!

Work Travel

In the past year for my job, I have started traveling more frequently for work. I think the first year that I was in my drive I travelled twice. This past year, I've flown 40 times on work trips.
Yes... 40.

To some people that might not seem like a lot but for me it has been. This past year I was promoted and with that came more responsibility. While I welcome the challenge and don't mind the travel sometimes I just feel worn down. As an example... one week I was in three different cities on 4 flights all within 5 days. While the traveling can be tiresome it definitely comes with it's perks. My work contracts with Southwest so I only fly on that airline. They have free checked bags. They send my drink coupons (not that I ever use them) and I rack up the frequent flyer points. That leads to free personal travel because my work allows me to keep the points! But the best perk of all...

I've flown so much that I've earned a Companion Pass!

I am so over the moon excited about this! I found out at the beginning of July that I was going to make it happen by the end of October. Well this past week I hit it! Now what's a companion pass? It's a pass that you earn if you've flown 100 Southwest flights in a year, you get to designate someone who will fly for free with you for a year! How exciting! I obviously  designated my husband as the person to fly for free. Now if you're doing the math like me then you know that I'm only at 40 flights so how am I getting it if you have to do 100 flights? Well in July they offered me a promotion that if I had so many flights within a four month period they would reward me with one. SOLD!

I'm already trying to plan the trips we will go on! I have this list so far...

New York City
Memphis
Houston
Cabo San Lucus
Gatlinburg
Toronto
Chicago (but worried about the crime rate)
Washington D.C.
Philadelphia
Wyoming
New Mexico

If you could fly for free... where would you go first?

Dreaming of Hawaii

I've been to Hawaii once and that was two years ago. I want go back. Take me back! We went in July of 2014 to the big island. While it felt like it had the least amount of beaches due to the lava rock it was still amazing. I really want to go to Maui or Honolulu. But hey... beggars can't be choosers. I wouldn't snub my nose to a trip back to Kona.

Let's relive my one and only trip to Hawaii... If I can't be there physically then I can at least be there mentally.

  

 

 

 

Top September Outfits

In September I came up with some outfits that had to contend with the never ending heat. While some areas are already experiencing cooler temps, northern California was still in a heat wave. We had a few random days that weren't in the 80s so I broke out my long sleeves. My house is always freezing so I'm comfortable all day in my long sleeves and only sweating on my way home in the evenings. While I don't always post my outfits here, I do on instagram. Come follow along to see them as I post.

These were my top 5 Outfits posted in September on Instagram.

1. Mustard Pants.

I got these pants and shirt for that matter from Forever 21 and I love the fall colors.

 

2. Dress Shirt and Pencil Skirt.

The shirt is from New York & Company. The skirt is from H&M.

 

3. Black & Grey.

The pants are Just Black from Stitch Fix and my sweater is from Macys.

 

4. Burgundy Pants.

My grey top is from Stitch Fix and my pants are from Forever 21. This shirt is so soft!

 

5. Going Green.

The top is from H&M and the pants are again from Forever 21

I'm crossing my fingers that October brings the rain and cooler temperatures!

October Stitch Fix

My October Stitch Fix box is here! This is my 19th fix! I can't believe I've received 19 of these in the mail! This month around I asked my stylist to send me a few specific items. I wanted to see a jean jacket. I asked for something plaid. I asked for dark jeans preferably grey or black. I also asked for a pair of shoes and that I would really like some loafers. When I saw my fix, I knew they had listened. I've now learned to be very specific in my stylist notes! Before I show you my fix here's a little information on how it works....

 
Start by filling out your style profile. You will complete questions on sizing, pricing, preferences, colors, etc. You can also write notes about likes and dislikes. Make sure to link your fashion board on Pinterest so your stylist can see what you like. This really helps! The notes to your stylist can really help determine what you get in your box. Take the time to write your stylist a note! I feel that's one of the most important things to getting the items you really want to see in your fixes.

Next, order your first fix! You will be charged a $20.00 styling fee however, if you keep any item [one or more] you will be credited back the $20.00 towards that purchase. I always recommend keeping at least one item or you are essentially giving away $20.00 and getting nothing in return. You will receive 5 items (made up of clothing, jewelry, and handbags). I personally never want jewelry in my fix so I just always let my stylist know! If you refer a friend you get credit so your styling fee could potentially be free.

 

When your box arrives decide what you want to keep and what you want to send back (in the pre-paid postage envelope)! You have 3 business days  from receiving your fix to decide so use this time to try everything on and see what works best for you. Go out of your comfort zone! This is what makes Stitch Fix fun! It's like being a celebrity and getting clothing sent to you! I've chosen to receive monthly fixes but remember it is in no way a subscription service and you are able to decide when you want another fix, whether that be in 6 months or 2 years from your first fix! As always, if you have any questions feel free to leave them in the comments section below. To save some cash on future fixes they offer an awesome referral package, if you use my referral link I'll get to bypass the styling fee at least once!

Let's get started! Remember - If you see anything that you like below, feel free to pin it and/or ask your stylist in the notes section of your next fix for something similar!

1. Octavia. Tina Checkered Infinity Scarf.

While I love this scarf I think the price is a bit much. It's priced at $35.00 and for that price, I could buy 2 or 3 scarves from a different store.

 

2. Loveappella. Bailey Color Block Knit Top.

This top is very soft! I just don't know how often I would wear it.

3. Just Black. James Skinny Jean. Size 28

These jeans feel like butter on my skin! I may have already ripped the tags off them to keep!

4. Liverpool. Bradford Moto Denim Jacket. Medium.

 

This jacket is a black denim. I have so many black jackets similar to this one that I think it's going back.

5. BC Footwear. Flash Tassel Loafer. Size 6.

I wear a size six but these shoes were just a little too big on my feet and would slip off as I walked so their a return for me.

What would you keep and what would you send back?