Spotted on my walk last night...♥

Looks like there is hope after all! 

Happy Wednesday dear friends! ♥ 

My top 10 favorite classic movies ♥

You know the parts of award shows where they show the classic movie montages? Those are always my favorite parts because I love old movies! I always have. 

The Golden Age of Hollywood! ♥

When I was little I can remember watching classic movie marathons on Saturday afternoons.  After all the cartoons were over, the movies would start.  Sometimes there would be Jerry Lewis, sometimes Bing Crosby, sometimes Elvis.  For me, it didn't matter.  I soaked it all in no matter who it was.  I'm sure by watching these movies as child it shaped my love of the fashions and music of the times. Also values. Wholesome, some say "corny" is just my style.  As Kate Winslet beautifully puts it in The Holiday "I like corny. I need corny in my life". Well said, Kate. Don't we all ♥

It was really had for me to come up with just 10 movies. There are so many to choose from and sadly I could not list them all.  These are the ones that I thought of first because they had such a positive effect on me.  Off the top of my head, these stood out the most. 

For the purpose of this list I'm going to define "classic" as a movie that came out before 1974, because that's the year I was born.  If it's older than me, I'll define it as a classic....which is a very good thing!

Off we go...

#10. Pillow Talk (1959)  This is my favorite Rock Hudson and Doris Day movie.   I remember thinking how gorgeous Rock Husdon was and well, Doris Day is simply perfection. The plot revolves around a "party line" (as most 1950's movies should) and a series of misunderstandings. I love everything about it.  Especially the clothes (that style!) and the way the apartment is decorated.  Oh, and Doris Day sings 3 songs!  Love! ♥

#9. The Wizard of Oz (1939)  As a child this movie scared the life of out me, but there was NO way I was going to miss the one night a year that it was on. That's right.  Once a year. 

The witch terrified me, but I loved it so much.  I still do.  When you think about it, it's such a crazy story - flying monkeys, magic shoes, talking scarecrows - yet we can never get enough.  This movie is pure magic. 

#8. The Million Dollar Mermaid (1952)  How on Earth could Esther Williams look so beautiful after all that swimming?  Emerging from the pool with perfect hair and makeup.  I guess as a 12 year old I hadn't even considered "special effects".  Either way, she was perfect.  I love the synchronized swimming scenes AND those bathing suits.  Swoon! Why did the styles have to change? 

Also, this was a true story which I don't think I realized until many years later.  It's the story of real life swimming star Annette Kellerman.  She was the first woman to wear a one piece bathing suit (among many other things!).  I adore this movie.

#7. Gone with the Wind (1939)  There's probably not much I say about this movie that hasn't been said before. I will say that I do remember the first time I ever saw it.  It was New Year's Eve of 9th grade.  I was spending the night at my friend's house (who was babysitting).  We had decided that even though we were staying in for the evening we would get "dressed up" and have a fancy dinner.  We both wore dresses and had shrimp cocktail and it was all very nice.  After dinner we watched Gone With the Wind which was one of her favorite movies (I'm sure you can tell by this story that clearly I ran in the fast lane in high school : )  Anyway, the movie was amazing and I loved it just as she knew I would.  This was my first introduction to Clark Gable and I finally realized what all the hype was about.  Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara...It doesn't get much better than this ♥

#6. Gentleman Prefer Blondes (1953) Speaking of high school, back then I went through a heavy Marilyn Monroe phase.  I saw Gentleman Prefer Blondes and after that I had to know everything about her. I read every biography I could get my hands on.  She was darling in this, as was Jane Russell (the brunette!). They play best friends and showgirls traveling on a cruise to Paris.  I love all the songs in the movie and have them on CD (yes I do!).  The most famous song is of course "Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend", but my favorite is "Bye Bye Baby".  Marilyn was very good singer! Again, I love the clothes in this movie (are you seeing a trend?).  The girls wear the most beautiful dresses! And the makeup - look at that lipstick ♥

There's singing, and dancing, and comedy.  I love every second of it!

They just don't make them like this anymore ♥

#5 An Affair to Remember (1957) I was first introduced to this movie by my other favorite movie of all time Sleepless in Seattle, which references this one several times.  Naturally after all that teasing I had to rent the movie.  Oh dear.  It was all I expected and more ♥  Can anything be more romantic that meeting the love of your life on a cruise to Europe and then promising to meet each other at the top of the empire state building six months later? Aaaaand that true love being non other than Cary Grant?  I honestly can't take it. 

#4 The Long Long Trailer (1953) Ok, this one should come as no surprise to anyone who knows how much I love LUCY. This time, Lucy & Desi play a newlywed couple who buy a 39 ft house trailer and travel across county -which isn't as easy as they anticipated and hijinx ensue.  Of course it does....and it's hilarious!  They are so funny AND we get to see Lucy & Desi in color! My favorite scene is the one song they sing in the movie " Just Breezin' Along with the Breeze" 

 Here's the link on Youtube if you want to see it and get a full dose of corny.

(click here please♥)

#3 How to Marry a Millionaire (1953) Another Marilyn film, this time she's paired with Betty Grable and Lauren Bacall! YES!  Three single ladies in the city looking for husbands! They move into a New York penthouse they can't afford, shop at Bergdorfs, and mingle with high society in hopes of finding millionaire mates.  They will eventually have to decided what is more important Love or Money....and I think we all know the answer to that question.  This is basically the 1950's version of Sex and the City and it's pretty spectacular. The ladies are so charming.  I adore Betty Grable in this! And I won't even mention the fashion again.....but it's also pretty spectacular!!!! 

#2 East of Eden (1955) Of the three films that James Dean made before his untimely death in 1955, this is by far my favorite.  Based on the John Steinbeck novel, James Dean is absolutely chilling as Cal Trask.  I don't know if it's because there is so much mystery surrounding James Dean but when I see him I can't take my eyes of him.  He's smooth, and talented, and the definition of "cool" in my opinion. I was obsessed with this movie as a teenager and had a huge James Dean poster on my wall for many years.  He's so sad in this film and does a really good job at making me cry.  I wish he got an Oscar for this.  He certainly deserved it. 

#1 Some Like it Hot (1959) My favorite classic movie and possibly of all time is Some Like it Hot.   After witnessing the St. Valentines Day massacre Jack Lemon and Tony Curtis disguise themselves as women and join and all girls band to escape the mob who is after them.  Marilyn Monroe plays Sugar Cane, the lead singer of the band and the object of the boys desires.  The problem is that Sugar knows them only as Daphne and Josephine!  It's a hilarious movie with so many funny scenes.  My favorites are the ones with Jack Lemon (Daphne) and her elderly rich suitor Osgood.....you must see it ♥  This is the predecessor to movies like Tootsie and Mrs. Doubtfire.  Some Like it Hot did it first and in my opinion, did it better.  This is a feel good, Saturday afternoon, feet up on the couch, movie. 

Let's do that!

So there is my list of my top 10 favorite classic movies! Do you agree with me? What are your favorite classics?  I would love to hear your list! 

Weekly wrap up ♥

Hello Friends! Happy Friday!

They seem to come faster every week, don't they?  I hope you had a fun and productive week.  Mine was good.  School and work kept us very busy, but I managed to sneak in a few little treats for myself.  I'm enjoying my new book The Sweet Life in Paris very much!!!  I read a little every night and every night I go to bed hungry, dreaming of Paris and chocolate mousse! Not a bad way to fall asleep, right? 

The weather has been unpredictable.  One minute we have freezing rain and I'm in my winter woollies, and the next day we are teased with sunshine and sixty degree goodness!  I guess that's just the norm these days.  You never know what to expect! I'm not putting my winter clothes away just yet ♥

Anyway, here are a few random snaps of my week....

Even though it doesn't feel like spring,  we are pretending ♥

I replaced my heavy runners with lace doilies.  

Also, all plants are doing well.  I haven't managed to kill any yet : )  I found out the reason for the brown tips on leaves was due to over watering and poor drainage.  I'm learning new things every day! 

I got a new runner for the kitchen.  I never thought of putting this type of rug in this spot. 

 I really like it ♥ 

 (Yes I still have Christmas twinkle lights around the window. I can't bring myself to take them down. We are using them as a nightlight )

In other exciting news... I  picked up a new  lamp for the hallway.  Only $5!   I love a bargain!

Lemons in a wood bowl, says spring to me!

As does this little rosebud ♥♥♥

In the beauty department, there are two products that I'm currently loving.  

The first is L'Oreal Paris Wrinkle Expert day/night cream.  I always have good luck with L'Oreal products so I wanted to give this moisturizer a try.  It's very hydrating and feels super smooth on my skin. 

It's nice and light and I love it for spring!

Also, the Revitalift eye cream is working wonders these days. 

I'm getting my money's worth out of this one ♥

I'm enjoying the early morning light in the house.  Makes me long for summer days.  

Soon enough....♥

Meanwhile, at the office....

Coffee and working hard as usual.

*Note the cardigan :)

  

And then there's  this....

Literally me every night.

Have a wonderful weekend my friends! Tomorrow I'm getting a much needed cut and color! Yay! 

  The grays are seriously taking over! Eeek! 

The weather might be nice on Sunday (but really, who knows these days) so maybe a walk and a little outdoor time.  Fresh air sounds wonderful about now. We'll see! 

Enjoy! xo 

My 4 tips for easy weeknight meals ♥

Hello Friends!  How is your week going so far?  All in all, things are well with me.  I spent most of the day yesterday cleaning and organizing.  I love that feeling of starting the week off on the right foot.  The days sometimes rush by so fast, the only way I can stay ahead of the game is to be prepared.  Specifically, dinnertime.  Why is it that all the chaos has to happen between 5 - 7 pm? Probably because by that time we are all tired and hungry. I know I am. 

Mondays are the only day of week that I have off from work so I use that day to do some kitchen prepping.  I wanted to share with you a few things that I do on Mondays to help make my weekly dinners a little less chaotic.  

(I wrote about my love for Monday's in a post here if you want to read why I love them so much! ♥)

I wouldn't exactly call myself a "meal planner" but I always have a loose idea of what I'm going to cook during the week.  For example, this week I know I'm going to have chicken, burgers, and steak,  I'm not exactly sure which nights yet, but I have all the makings for those meals. 

That being said, here are my top 4 tips for weekly meals....  

#1. At the beginning of the week do a meal prep.  Wash and chop all fruits and veggies in your fridge.  John  has a love/hate relationship with veggies.  I never know what he's going to like or not like on any given day (ugh).  One thing I do know is that he'll eat carrots & celery sticks dipped in ranch dressing.  I'll take that any day of the week so I always have them ready.

♥

I've learned to wash fruit right away too.  If I don't rinse the blueberries and cut up the strawberries they will go bad by the time I get around to.  Now we can just grab a handful and not worry about it. 

#2. Next, prepare a few things ahead of time that you can pick on during the week.
It will make dinnertime quicker if you already have done half the work. 

I like to make a big pot of pasta, a homemade pizza, a bean salad, and chicken cutlets.  These are all good starters for hearty dinners. Prepared chicken cutlets can easily become chicken Parmesan or sliced up and put on top of salad for lunch!  Also, Rob will eat pasta as a side dish to any meal. In the winter I'll make a pot of soup on Sunday that we can eat during the week.  When the nice weather finally arrives I'l start making pasta salads.  They are so versatile ♥

#3. (a biggie!) It's OK to make brownies from a mix! There, I said it.  It's totally fine.  Cakes too.  They come out delicious and look at all the time you save ♥  

Perfect for an after school/work snack or add a scoop of ice cream, chocolate sauce, and whip cream and you've got brownie sundaes for dessert! YUM!  

Don't let Pinterest make you feel bad.  This is perfectly acceptable! Trust me :) 

And finally....

#4. Once a week, have breakfast for dinner.  .

We do this every week and it's literally my favorite night of the week.  I usually opt for breakfast dinner on nights when John has a lot of homework or time is tight for some reason.  Maybe I got home late from work and everyone is hungry.... glaring at me as I walk in the door.  What can be whipped up in a snap? Breakfast!  I give John the choice of eggs, French toast, or pancakes.  All are yummy to me.  I beef up the meal with extra fruit (that's already washed : ) or sometimes baked beans on the side. 

And there you have it.  Four easy tips to make the dinner hour easy peasy!

What do you do to make your dinner hour less hectic?  I would love to know!

Have a great day, my friends!

What's for dinner tonight? ♥

Weekly wrap up ♥

 

Hello Everyone! 

 

How was your week? I hope you enjoyed a nice Easter!  Mine was busy but very good!  We were on the go all day and I think that's why I was so tired this week.  Everyone should have the day after a holiday off, don't you agree?  I feel like I'm still recovering : )

 

 

This was one of those lovely weeks where nothing much really happened.  I didn't bake or cook anything special.  I didn't go anywhere exciting.  I didn't buy a new outfit or a new lipstick.  I didn't blog about anything. John didn't do anything particularly special in school.  We had easy dinners, ate a lot of candy, went to bed early, and basically loafed around.  It's my favorite kind of week and I loved it ♥

 

 

Did you see the full "blue" moon on Saturday night?

Here she is hovering above my neighbors house.  It was freezing out but I was determined to get a picture.  So far I'm 3 for 3 this year. I'm trying to get a collection of all 12 for the entire year ♥

 

 

 

 

 

 

Easter treats on Sunday morning from a certain bunny!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Eggs & candy for breakfast : )

And then it was off to a beautiful mass followed by dinner with my family and dessert with my in laws.

 

 

 

 

We can't resist a good snapchat filter! LOL

 

 

 

 

 

 

The beginning of the week brought snow! Ahhhh!

 

Luckily it didn't really stick, but man it's cold! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Friday I met my best friend Jen (who I've known since 1st grade!!!) for coffee and it was so awesome to catch up!  She lives in Ohio now and was home visiting family for the weekend. 

We had the best chat ♥

 

(PS if anyone ever comes to visit me I'm taking you here.  I love this coffee shop!)

 

 

 

 

 

And...she gave me this book to read!  It combines two of my favorite things - dreams of Paris & cooking! She knows me well.  It has recipes included. I can't wait to make the chocolate mousse ♥

 

 

 

 

 

 

I can't make it yet though because we still have so many sweets in the house.  

 

 I've been "rewarding" myself with afternoon treats! : )

 

 

 

 

 

 

I updated my screen saver at work. 

 

This is from our last Disney trip in 2016 ♥

 

It reminds me of warm weather, because.....

 

 

 

 

 

THIS *

 

 

 

Yup!

 

 

And there you have it.  My real, unexciting, life! LOL

 

 

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend with your peeps! 

 

 ♥

 

 (I'll let you know if anything exciting happens ; )