books

Post-Valentine’s Day Fun

While Valentine’s Day itself was pretty uneventful, I cooked up a plan with some fun with some ladies on Saturday afternoon to celebrate the holiday a little more. What’s funny is that I’ve never really been into Valentine’s Day, but I think all the sweet treats have lured me in this year… they’re just too cute!

With the same group of ladies who I got together with for tea last month, I planned an event centered around the Valentine’s Day holiday. Afterall, everyone deserves to have a Valentine… and I thought it was a great idea for a get-together + gift exchange.

I spent Friday night getting my gift together for the exchange. I had found some fun Pink Hot Chocolate at Sur La Table and paired that with a cute mug from Target. I added in chick flick – - Valentine’s Day (of course), and voila! My gift was born!

Oh wait! What is that cute bag of goodies on the left, you ask??? Well, it wouldn’t be a gift from NTTC if it didn’t have a little something homemade. I did a spin on the Easter Pretzel Hugs I made for my grandpa last year… and transformed them into a REALLY yummy V-Day version made with Dove hearts and pink, red, and white M&Ms. BEYOND DELISH!

The event kicked off at the mall, where we had plans to see a movie. Since Nicholas Sparks had released his latest book-turned-movie on Valentine’s Day, that’s what we planned to see. And, even better… the matinee was only $5! The best!

AND… also amazing, the movie theater had a HEALTHY snack option! Seriously! Have you seen these?

Inside this box was the following: Chiquita Fruit Chips (No Sugar Added), Popcorners Kettle Corn Chips, an Odwalla Trail Mix bar, and a 20 oz. Dasani water! The price tag was a little steep at $7, but what great options… and I had snacks to bring home as well! This DEFINITELY makes me want to choose AMC theaters in the future. So nice to see theaters starting to cater to healthy folks like us!

Now that I’ve told you about my snacks… Let me tell you about the movie!

I adore Nicholas Sparks novels. I just do. They’re cheesy and romantic, but they tug at the heart strings and make me cry every time. I REALLY thought I would make it through Safe Haven without the waterworks starting… but oh no, good ol’ Nick got me again.

I just loved the couple in the story. They had great chemistry and they were pretty cute. Seeing Josh Duhamel’s abs a few times during the movie were also a plus, and even allowed me to forgive him for his 80′s haircut and the ‘stache he was rocking at the beginning of the movie. Julianna Hough was perfect as Katie, and beared a strange resemblance to Lindsay Lohan. I never would have guessed that… but just another observation during the movie.

Overall, it was a sweet story. A little cheesy at times, but definitely worth seeing… Go with the girls though. Leave your man at home. (He’ll appreciate that I just said that, trust me!) I definitely recommend the book, too… you can’t go wrong with Sparks. As my dad says, he’s a fantastic story teller.

The lovely ladies who joined me for the movie… I took the pic, so I’m not pictured as a result.

After the movie, we moved to the food court area to exchange presents! I set a $15 limit for each present, and the ladies got really creative with what they put together.

I ended up picking my friend Alyssa’s bag, and got a mani/pedi kit, a cute nail file, and some Essie polish! LOVE! Considering that my nails looked a hot mess on Saturday, it was the PERFECT gift! Thanks, Alyssa!

I finished up my Saturday with a trip to the Apple store to give my MacBook a little TLC and some quick shopping at H&M before I headed home.

How was your weekend? Have you seen Safe Haven yet?

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Just Read: The Carrie Diaries

It’s time for the 2013 debut of one of my favorite features… Just Read! While I don’t always have the time to do it, I absolutely love to read!

And today’s book is one that I really enjoyed!

The Carrie Diaries by Candace Bushnell

I fell in love with Sex and the City like most Americans when the show was still new and on HBO. My fascination with the series intensified when I purchased the DVDs.. and I’d say it hit obsession when they started running episodes in syndication.

How can you not love these ladies??

When I heard that the CW was going to start running a show that was the prequel to SATC based upon Candace Bushnell’s books, I knew that I wanted to watch… and moreso, that I wanted to read the prequel stories before I watched the show.

When the book begins, the lovely Carrie Bradshaw was just a high schooler in a small town. Envisioning a young version of this fabulous fashionista, I was immediately intrigued. I read page after page about Carrie growing up in the 80′s and reminisced a bit of my teenage years. Not because I was as fabulous as Carrie, but remembering a time when life was so much simpler – - when phones were connected to a wall and when the world was wide open with possibility.

Much like her adult character we grew to love on TV, Carrie meets boys and dates them… and struggles through relationships. The one thing that is very different is that she hasn’t found her “soulmates” yet. The young women she hangs out with in high school offer a world of drama, which is also extremely relatable. So young and immature, we see Carrie experiencing many a sticky situation especially with her friends Maggie and Lali.

As with any great heroine, Carrie always ends up on her feet. She powers through and finds her passion… and finds herself heading to the big city as the first book comes to an end.

After reading The Carrie Diaries, I immediately purchased the second book, and jumped right in. I truly believe the second book is going to be where all the action happens… and where she meets an intelligent redhead, a conservative brunette, and a promiscuous blonde. I’ll keep you posted as to how book 2 goes!

Have you read/or watched The Carrie Diaries?

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