Saturday Smiles

Every Saturday, I try to post 5 things that made me smile during the week. Often I find myself getting caught up in the small stuff but this year I'm making an effort to be conscious of it. This year is about being happy and finding happiness even in the small things! Want to join me? Go ahead and post your Saturday Smiles!

 

1. Debuting my Ornaments.

I have been making these ornaments and I couldn't wait to share them with all of you! I have been having so much fun making them. I can't wait to do a display! I've also been asked if I do custom orders and the answer is YES!

 

2. Bike Rides.

Last weekend we got my husband and bicycle and since then we have went on several bike rides. It's fun and doesn't feel like exercise. I just cruise around on my cruiser and he speeds along on his road bike.

 

3. GGG.

This guy is a machine! He recently fought in LA and rocked it! Knock out king!

 

 4. The Martian.

I saw this movie a few months ago and ever since then I feel like my passion for space has came back to life. I check the location of Mars, I look up the daily news on it and I sit and plan out trips to Houston to visit the Johnson Space Center. Plus I watch the movie over and over... now I just need a T-shirt haha!

 

5. Vacation.

I am in full vacation countdown. We have our flights booked and our rental car reserved. I'm lining up attractions and we are finalizing our accommodations. I can't wait!

 

What's making you smile?

2 Movies for Tonight

 

Looking for something to watch tonight? Maybe you don't have time to watch anything tonight but you'll be bored stiff over the weekend? Well don't worry! Here's two movies that will get you through it! Recently watched and now reviewed by me so you'll get a better idea if it's something right for you.

 

The first movie... Deja vu.

Denzel Washington stars as Special Agent Doug Carlin from the ATF. He finds himself on Fat Tuesday in New Orleans dealing with a ferry boat that has just exploded and in turn killing 543 people. The boat was carrying families and hundreds of U.S. Navy sailors across the Mississippi River into the city. When he gets on the scene he finds evidence of a bomb planted by a domestic terrorist. He also finds a body identified as a woman named Claire that was murdered and made to look like one of the victims of the bombing.

Impressed by Carlin's eye to detail, the FBI lets him in on a project that they've been developing ran by a small team. Using a machine they are able to go back in the past and see events leading up to the bombing. Carlin works with them on trying to locate the bombing and stopping it before it ever starts. At the same time Carlin becomes emotionally investing in keeping Claire alive.

I had not seen this movie until recently and I thought it was intriguing and entertaining. The story line was a little hard to understand at first because of the group going back and forth in present day and past. I really liked it though and it's not like your typical movie.

The second movie... The Siege.

 

The Siege happens to be another Denzel Washington movie. This movie pre-dates 9/11 and some of the references to terrorist were long before we would be involved in a war. I had not seen this movie until the past week and I didn't plan on reviewing two Denzel movies but it was pretty good and worth watching.

FBI Agent Anthony Hubbard (Washington) is working in New York City with his Lebanese-American partner Frank shortly after a Military installation in the Middle East was bombed. The USA found and captured the mastermind behind the attack. When Hubbard gets word that a bus has been hijacked and is fully loaded containing a bomb they go out in search of the culprits. The bomb turns out to be a paint bomb and the attackers get away. Searching for the terrorists hiding in New York City they begin working with an agent Elise Kraft (Annette Bening).

While Hubbard, his partner and Elise are searching for the terrorist, they begin striking out against the NYC population. They bomb several huge targets and the FBI is brought to center stage on having to root out the terrorist cell and stop the chaos that has been brought to NYC. When things get out of hand, the U.S. Military comes into town and starts calling the shots.

I thought this movie was really good and I thought that it was spot on with things that were really happening before 9/11.

4 Shows Recently Discovered

Crossing Lines

We just discovered this show on Netflix last week and it's so good! I can't believe I had never heard of it before. It originally aired overseas and is available for everyone online. This show takes detectives from all around the world to make up one team. They've got officers from Berlin, London, New York, Ireland, Paris and more making up this international team of Detectives who track down cross border crimes. Each episode they'll be in several cities following, tracking and investigating their cases.

Boardwalk Empire

 

I know I'm a little late on starting this show but I am loving it! We are currently in the middle of season one and I find it so interesting. They've taken real life events like prohibition and real people like Al Capone and ran with it. I can't wait to see what happens because I'm hoping that two of the characters get together. Set in Atlantic City we see how people were really affected with prohibition and how both sides lived with it.

Game of Silence

This a new show on television and has only had three episodes air. I'm always a little leery of spring shows because you never know if their going to make it. This show is about a group of adults who use to be childhood friends. When an accident sent the boys of the group to juvenile prison that's where everything in their lives would change. Flash forward to 20 years later and we are learning what really went on in that prison and how it's effecting their lives today. Each episode we learn something new about their lives and what they've been going through. Now that one of their own is dead they'll stop at nothing to get revenge and set things right in the world for others who were victims.

The Catch

This a new show currently airing on ABC. I watched the pilot and wasn't really that impressed with it. Now that a few episodes have aired it's getting better. We originally watched it because the main actress was the star of one of our favorites shows, The Killing. The Catch follows Alice (Enos) as a private investigator in Los Angeles who's planning her upcoming wedding. Her fiancé Benjamin has been with her over the last year and they are buying their first house together. When a case that she's investigating hits close to home, she rushes home and all around town looking for her missing fiancé.

She arrives home to find him gone and all of her money along with him. He scammed her and it turns out that Benjamin never really existed. Now before she's embarrassed and ruined in the investigation business she's got to find him and get her life back together.

Know a good show? Recommend it! I'm always looking for something new to watch!

5 Days of Summer Fashion

My week of starting off my summer fashion (we are in the high 70's here every day) didn't go as planned. Monday was surprisingly chilly so I busted out the navy sweater from my most recent Stitch Fix box.


Monday Blues

This navy, crochet sweater was thick enough to keep me warm but thin enough for me to wear once the day warmed up.


Petal Pusher

These skinny printed pants made me feel like I was in the 1950s. The fun pattern and slim fit made me feel like I should get out on the dance floor and do the Shag! Can you believe they were only 14 dollars? Crazy! I paired them with some nude wedges that have quickly become my new favorite shoes for the summer. 

Casual Stripes



When it's the weekend and I'm just running around doing errands, I typically put on casual shorts or jeans. This casual, light weight dress is another way I'm trying to vary my wardrobe. Plus have you ever been in California in the summer? It's hot!

Vintage Inspired

This green and navy dress is vintage inspired. The skirt has pockets and a side zipper. This dress is a little thick but it's a fun dress to wear to the office.

Hot Pants

These shorts take me way out of my comfort zone. I have always been a person who has bigger legs. I've also been a girl who rocks Bermuda shorts and wears them to the knees. In the last few months my legs have become slimmer and I thought I'd try wearing some shorts that are actually short. SO let's see if I have the courage to leave the house in them!

2 Movies for Tonight

 

 

Looking for something to watch tonight? Maybe don't have time for tonight but your lining up your weekend? Well don't worry! Right here is two movies for tonight or any other night in the week that will entertain you.

The first movie... Creed.

I am a deep lover of the Rocky series. I have fond memories of growing up and watching these movies. Stations like TNT and TBS would pull Rocky out for every holiday and do marathons so in my house it was pretty common to be eating thanksgiving turkey with some Rocky Balboa on in the background. While some may view and label these movies "just about boxing" they are in reality about so much more. It's the heartache, the daily struggle and about finding the strength within to go for your dreams. 

The latest installment in the series brings us someone new. We learn that Apollo Creed had an affair and with it came an  illigetimate son named Adonis. While Adonis never got to know his father because of that fateful fight, Adonis loves to be in the ring. He is a fighter. While Apollo's wife has taken care of Adonis since she found out his existence as a young child, she can't support him in this dream considering it's what took Apollo away from her. Alone, Adonis leaves Los Angeles and travels to Philadelphia  in search of his "uncle" Rocky Balboa. He has a dream of him training him and helping him reach the level of his father. When he realizes that Rocky refuses to have anything to do with the boxing life again, he begins training in Philly on his own. When Rocky comes around the whole game changes...

I really enjoyed Creed and thought it was a great installment to the series. Stallone completely deserved his Academy Award nomination and in my eyes should have won for best supporting actor.
 

The second movie... Aloha.

 

I had been meaning to watch this movie since I saw the previews for it being in the theater. Then life happens and you get busy. Well this past weekend I finally watched Aloha. I'm a big fan of Emma Stone and Bill Murray and in all actuality most of the cast for this film. So when I saw it on HBO the other day I knew it was meant to be to finally sit down and watch it. I thought it was different. It wasn't exactly what I thought it was going to be aka your normal romantic comedy. It was tricky and you had to watch what was going on so you would catch things in the relationships. I liked it though.

Aloha stars Bradley Cooper as Brian, a military contractor who's came back to Hawaii after being gone for thirteen years. He's there on behalf of Billionaire Carson Welch (Bill Murray) to secure a blessing from Hawaiian natives for a new pedestrian gate. He's assigned to a military liaison Captain Allison (Emma Stone). While Brian doesn't want to be babysat by Allison he realizes that her love of Space reminds him of his own childhood. One kink in his trip back to Hawaii is his ex-girlfriend Tracy (Rachel McAdams). Tracy now has two children and an Air Force husband.

While Brian meets up with Tracy for dinner and gets to know her family. He also starts to see his baby sitter Allison in a different light. Allison who is climbing the ranks in the Air Force is loved by all of her co-workers while Brian is not well liked among people who he use to know in Hawaii. Along the way, kinks will come up for Brian and things from his past will affect his future. Will Brian regret going back to Hawaii after being gone for so long? Watch and find out.

It's A Fabric Christmas

You guys... I am SO excited to share this news with you! If you've been reading this blog for awhile then you already know that I am a huge lover of all things Christmas. Well I've taken my love of Christmas one step further. I've started making unique fabric ornaments! Yes that's right! I'm making Christmas ornaments in April! Technically I started making them in March but I wanted to get several under my belt before I shared them with all of you.

Fabric Christmas

Each ornament takes hours to make. Depending on the elaborateness of the design and fabric choices it can take awhile to complete each one. It has be perfect to hang on any tree. Making each ornament is a labor of love and I know that I'm creating something that people will hang on their trees and use as decorations for years to come. I can remember hanging ornaments on my moms Christmas tree when I was a kid that we still hang on the tree decades later. These ornaments become memories and fun items to see year after year when you open the boxes and see them again after having them put away for months.

These ornaments are hand made and no two are exactly alike. Since there's so many fabrics out there the possibilities are endless. Even when using the same fabric the way they are made by hand doesn't necessarily mean they'll look exactly the same. So if you see an ornament that you love don't wait because it could be gone forever!

Now here's the fun part! You can see the ornaments as I create them by following the link that I have above! Here's also a few of my ornaments that I've recently created...

These are just some of the designs that I've been working on. I've got new designs coming each week and I have so many fabrics to cut that I just can't work fast enough! I am just so excited to share these with all of you! I really love making these ornaments and I hope that you love them just as much as I do!

3 Days of Fun Pants

I had a short week on my fashionable outfits this week. I was out of town for two days in Los Angeles on business and when I'm on business I typically wear dress clothing for meetings and jeans for travelling on the plane. While I was in the office this week, I wore some printed pants that livened up my cubical.

 

Burnt Orange

These printed pants are festive! I saw them in H&M for only 14.99 and had to have them! They have so many colors in them the possibilities are endless. Depending on what top you pair with them you've got tons of different looks. The pants have orange, peach, brown, white, khaki and more. Their very lightweight so they will be great for summer.

Blue Print

These blue printed pants came in my April Stitch Fix. I paired them with my silver metallic flats and casual shirt. They are light weight and fun! The pants feel almost like pedal pushers and make me feel like it's the 1950s. Their very fun and the print in the pants isn't flat so you can feel the design with your hands in the thread.

Sailor Pants

 

I found these Sailor Pants in store and was so excited! I'm pretty short and these pants made me feel really tall and thin! Their high waist sailor pants and have that vintage look and feel. They are a navy color and go perfect with my burnt orange shirt!

Next week I'm going to bust out some new printed pants, casual dresses and new shoes! Who doesn't love new shoes?

2 Movies For Tonight

Looking for a good movie to watch tonight? Well I've not only got one movie for you to watch, I've got two! Don't have time to watch a movie tonight? Watch them over the weekend!

The first movie... The Mocking Jay Part II.

I'm a firm believer that the books are always better than the movie but in this case I felt the Hunger Games movies were right up there with the books. The final instalment of the Hunger Games Series is here. It stars  Jennifer Lawrence as our heroin Katniss, a teenager from District 13 who has survived two hunger games. Katniss has found herself as the face of the rebellion to the Capitol and is determined to see her rival President Snow defeated. In Part II, the rebellion has made it's way through the districts and is at the Capitol gates. Katniss and her long time best friend, Gail are working their way through the Capitol trying to get to Snow. Along with them is her camera crew, Petta (who still can't be trusted) and a few guards to help fight off any surprises. Will the rebellion bring down the Capitol and stop the Hunger Games once and for all? Watch this final movie and find out!

I thought Part II was well made but it could have been added on to Part I and finished in one movie. I do love The Hunger Games series and I'm sad that it's now over.

The second movie... Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

 

Star Wars is back! 30 years after the destruction of the second Death Star, Jedi Luke Skywalker has disappeared. Now the First Order has risen from the fallen Galactic Empire and is determined to find and kill Luke and the New Republic. The resistance backed by the Republic is led by Luke's twin sister Leila (Carrie Fisher). On the planet of Jakku, resistance pilot Poe Dameron is meeting with the village elder and has a driod BB8 that holds a map leading to Luke's location. When the village is hit by storm troopers, Poe is captured by the First Order but BB8 escapes and travels to the other side of Jakku.

BB8 runs into a scavenger named Rey (Daisy Ridley) who's living in a junkyard settlement. She helps BB8 out of a jam and the droid takes a liking to Rey. At the same time Poe is escaping from the First Order with the help of a storm trooper fleeing named Finn. Poe tells Finn they must go back to Jakku for him to get his droid. Unfortunately, they crash and Finn is left alone on Jakku. He finds the droid and Rey and together they must find the resistance and get BB8 back to them. Rey who takes control of a piece of junk flies into space with Finn and they run into Han Solo and Chewbaca.

Together they will find the resistance and help them in destroying the First Order.

I loved the original Star Wars movies so when I found out that the original actors were coming back then I knew this one might be a good one. We saw it when it was originally in the theater and it did not disappoint. When it came out on dvd this past week we watched it again and it was just as good as it was in the theater.

Our Wedding Video

 

The final piece to our wedding came in the mail last week. We are thrilled with how it turned out. It was such a special day for us and we hope that everyone who was able to attend remembers the day with love and happiness. For those of you who couldn't make it, here is the video...

 

Here is a small glimpse into our special day.

5 Days of Springing into Spring Fashion

In my fashion quest to not wear jeans every single day of the week, I busted out some vibrant, prints and kept advancing towards summer fashion. We had a few days of 75+ degree weather so short dresses and sandals was a must.

 

I started out my week by getting my nails ready for spring/summer. This is a DND polish called Kinky Pinky and I love it! It's so bright and summery. 

Short Overalls.

These short overalls are super comfy and I'll be packing these for vacation. I can see myself walking around Dollywood in them. They also have pockets and my fanny pack will fit right over top of them. I paired them with a pair of Jessica Simpson wedges.

Orange Plaid.

I've had this dress forever but only worn it maybe once. It's really light and made from a linen fabric which keeps me cool when it's hot outside.

Pink and Brown.

This dress is perfect for work or going out. It's comfortable and long enough for either occasion.

Blue Floral.

This dress is a little short for me but it's cotton and really comfortable. It's also perfect for super hot days because it's breezy. I love the bright colors and blue is one of my favorite colors to wear.

Want to see my weekly fashion daily? Come follow me @jmomiller

Saying Goodbye to Arco

On Saturday, April 9th we said goodbye to the Arco Arena. If you are a fan of basketball or follow the Sacramento Kings then you know this has been home to the Sacramento Kings for decades. Next year the Kings will be moving to their newly built arena in downtown. So on Saturday with a sold out arena we bid farewell to an era.

 

 

 

 

The Kings played the Oklahoma City Thunder and won at the final buzzer. It was a great way to say goodbye to the arena. We have been season ticket holders since the first year we started dating. All of our first dates and hang outs were at this arena together. So it's bittersweet to say goodbye to it. We have tons of memories in our relationship there and while we are excited to make new ones in the new arena we are a little sad to leave the old place behind. But hey, we will always have our engagement photos that were taken there!

 

Farewell Arco! You were great to us for so long!

2 Movies for Tonight

Looking for a good movie to watch tonight or over the weekend?  Maybe you had one but burned through it in just those few short hours it takes to watch something. Well guess what? I've got two movie recommendations for you to watch tonight! If you've already seen these, have no fear, I'll be back next week with another two movies for you watch. Leave a comment and I'll recommend some different ones for you!

The First movie... Spotlight.

Based on the new story that not only shook Boston but the entire world, Spotlight is the true story of the Boston Globe exposing the Catholic Church for hiding the molestation by Priests. In 2001, The Boston Globe got a new editor in chief, Marty Baron (Leiv Schreiber) who then meets the editor (Michael Keaton) of a section of the paper called Spotlight. The Spotlight section usually spends a year or more researching and developing a story focusing on one thing of interest. Marty tasks Spotlight with focusing on the story of a priest who's been found guilty of molesting young boys. While they are researching the story it appears there could be other piests who are guilty of the same thing. Spotlight reporters realize that not only could there be multiple priests guilty but the Catholic church could be covering it up. In 2002, Spotlight broke the story and their findings.

I was a little leary of watching this movie. I don't like to see bad things happen to people when it wasn't their fault. I knew the movie had to be good though because it won the Oscar best Movie of the Year award. I thought it was very good, well made and informative.

Favorite Quote- They knew and they let it happen! It could've been you, it could've been me, it could've been any of us. - Mike.

The Second movie... The Big Short.

In 2005, a California hedge fund manager Michael Burry (Christian Bale) discovered the U.S. housing market was extremely unstable. The market being based on subprime loans that were high risk and providing fewer and fewer returns. He predicted that the market would collapse sometime during the second quarter of 2007. He got on a plane and went to New York and began making investments with credit default swaps with several large banks. The banks took the money thinking the housing market was stable. Michael's investors are upset with the way he's spent his money and as time draws closer to 2007 with no return the investors want their money back. Michael freezes all of their withdraws because he believes he is right.

 

A New York trader named Jared (Ryan Gosling) gets wind of what Michael is doing and starts to invest in the credit default swap market. A wrong number dialed by Jared leads him to another hedge fund manager Mark Baum (Steve Carell). Mark hears Jared out and realizes the housing market is in for a collapse. Mark and  his team begin investing in the swaps and while hoping the market doesn't crash also set themselves up for a huge payday if it does. When the second quarter of 2007 rolls around, the market is going crazy and dropping. They all soon realize that Michael Burry may in fact be right.

 

 



I liked this movie but for me it was very hard to follow. I'm not a market trader and at the time I wasn't a home owner so I didn't understand it all. The movie does try to explain things as it goes because they rightly so expect that the average American doesn't know all about credit market swaps. I thought the movie was interesting and since it affected everyone so much in real life it was worth watching. My husband lost his job because of the 2007 crash and everyone knows at least one person who was affected by it.

Favorite Quote- If we're right, people lose homes. People lose jobs. People lose retirement savings, people lose pensions. You know what I hate about banking? It reduces people to numbers. Here's a number - every 1% unemployment goes up, 40,000 people die, did you know that? - Ben.

Have you seen these movies? What did you think?

Wedding Finale

Recapping our wedding has been something fun to look back on week. I tried to share all of the major details from our wedding using the photos from our photographer. Since he sent us over 1100 photos we will have those memories forever captured in them. The next thing that we've been waiting to share is our wedding video. Our videographer warned us that it would take about 6-8 weeks before we would see the final product. Plus with the holidays it could take a little longer.

 

Last week I finally heard from him that he was finishing up the footage and sending it to us. We should have it any day and I can't wait to see it. Our videographer is giving us all of our major moments un edited and then a 8-10 minute edited video of the entire day from start to finish. I just can't wait to see it! He is a genius when it comes to wedding films and that's one the reasons why we booked him. Once I have it I'll share it will all of you!

 

In the mean time let's take a look at some images that fell through the cracks of all the details of our wedding recaps...