And the Award goes to...

Before we get to the "important" stuff, can we all just give it up for Seth MacFarlane?!
Even though the show ran long (shocker!) and became quite the snoozefest towards the end, he really did entertain - come on, he got Sally Field to make out with him on TV! And as much as I would've loved to see more of his work spread throughout the show, it just would've made the damn show that much longer.
And of course I woke up this morning singing "We Saw Your Boobs"

click for the full song

Stuck in your head too? You're welcome ;)

Now let's talk Red Carpet, shall we?

BIG thanks to Jessica Chastain for giving us some instant gratification! She was the first major player to hit the red carpet, and she did not disappoint.

Jessica sparkled in Armani Prive, but I think it's how genuine and gracious she seems in interviews that really shines through, makes me want to invite her over for tea.

Next to arrive was Amy Adams in a grand Oscar de la Renta gown

Amy really can pull off the princess look (A+ for the casting director of Enchanted). I'm loving the easiness of her hair, make up and even her jewels - she really held back and let the dress do the talking.

So after these seeing these first two looks, I was wondering if pale muted colors were going to be a trend for the 2013 Oscars, and then BAM! Reese Witherspoon stepped on the carpet in vibrant blue Louis Vuitton.

While I think the fit wasn't great (in some pics she was actually stepping on the front of her dress), I do think that the color was amazing on her. And I am always a sucker for black accents with blue.

Speaking of blue, I am on a major navy kick, so Jennifer Hudson immediately caught my eye her navy sequined Roberto Cavalli

My only critique would be to lose the slit, just not a fan, it sort of cheapened the look.

Another lady in blue was Helen Hunt

Helen chose to go with an accessible dress from H&M to support their global green initiative. Props to her for that. Go green, go affordable, but just don't go wrinkled (cue the Debbie Downer music).

I loved Jackie Weaver in Silver Linings Playbook, but I just wish that someone would have stepped back, looked at her dress as a whole, and said "let's NOT do a nude illusion bust"

Since we're going there, here are my least favorite of the night...

Amanda Seyfried in Alexander McQueen

Now by no means does she look terrible, but I'm just not a fan of the neckline (which, btw, does not fit properly - and by now, you know I am a stickler for fit!), and she just kind of looks blah, for lack of a better word.

Now I know I am probably going to get a lot of backlash from this, but I was not a fan of Jennifer Lawrence's dress pick.

While this is a beautiful Dior Haute Couture gown, I just felt like it was a little redundant and expected. I was hoping for something a little different.

Speaking of letdowns...

Anne was probably one of the ones that I was most excited to see - major star power, coupled with the styling of Rachel Zoe usually combine to create a feast for the eyes. From the moment I saw Anne step on the red carpet, I was greatly disappointed (cue the Debbie Downer music again - and I'm pretty sure that exact sound byte is what I heard when I saw her).

This pale pink Prada reminded me of Calvin Klein from the 1990's, and the necklace - oh that necklace (shaking my head), I can't even, I mean I just can't...

Catherine Zeta Jones in Zuhair Murad

This is just too much. Not a fan. Enough said.

Now this one pains me - and for a couple different reasons

1. I really do love her, and I know how hard it can be to dress a not so perfect figure

2. Her stylists should have NEVER let her even entertain the thought of this dress and that hair! Shame on them.

So here it goes, the worst dressed of the night - Melissa McCarthy

On the bright side, I think her make up looks great! But I'm pretty sure that they used a trash bag for that peek-a-boo panel :(

Ok, let's turn this around!

Major props to Halle Berry for resisting the urge to wear a one shoulder gown!!! Did she read my Golden Globes post???

Halle said that she wanted channel the Bond girl vibe, and this Versace gown definitely did not disappoint.

Now I may have gasped a little when I caught my first glimpse of Charlize Theron on the red carpet - I only spotted her cropped pixie, but that was enough for me!

With a face like that, does it even matter what she's wearing?? The answer is NO, it does not, but she knocked it out of the Kodak Theatre in a white Dior Haute Couture.

I have had a major girl crush on Charlize since she walked her first Oscar red carpet back in 2000 wearing Vera Wang.

I am a sucker for a black dress - you just can't go wrong in black. End of story.

Les Miserables' Samantha Barks smoldered in this sexy black Valentino - now that is a dress that is cut to perfection!

I was pleasantly surprised to see Stacy Keibler step it up and demand some of the attention that George usually commands.

Stacy oozed Art Deco glam in this Naaem Khan dazzler.

My favorite couple of the night, and of all of Hollywood, is Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck - could they be any cuter?

Anyone else wondering what Jennifer's ruffled Gucci looked like after sitting on it for 4 hours??

And now for the moment that you've all been waiting for - you have been waiting for it, right?

The award for the Best Dressed at the 2013 Oscars goes to...

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Naomi Watts in Armani Prive!!!!

She was the ONLY one on the red carpet that took my breath away - she just got it all right - hair, make up, jewels, and the dress! She may not have walked away with Oscar gold (even though her performance in The Impossible was award-worthy - I teared up when they showed her nominee clip - that scene was pure raw emotion - do yourself a favor and see The Impossible), but she gets my vote for the Best Dressed.

A little disclaimer ;)
Now I am by no means a fashion expert, I have no credentials that qualify me or that would make you value my opinion over someone else. I have just been a lover of all things pretty since birth. There's an old tale of me mortifying my Nan in a department store before I could even walk - I was like a moth to a flame when I spotted a mannequin's shoes - there may have been some loving strokes given to those pretty shoes, but alas I was too young to remember so I plead the 5th.
And I'm pretty sure that I fell in love with The Wizard of Oz because of a certain pair of ruby slippers...

Stay Golden

The Golden Globes are my absolute favorite awards show of the season.
You may ask, not the Oscars? Nope. The Globes combine my love of TV & the movies, which doubles the number of pretty dresses walking that red carpet! Plus the Globes are a bit more informal, everyone sits at tables instead of the traditional auditorium seating. Champagne is flowing and stars are mingling and table hopping during the breaks. Together these elements combine to create the perfect night!

Last night I missed watching the red carpet live, due to poor planning on my part. I made plans to see Silver Linings Playbook with my friend Mel before realizing that it was Globes night. Boy am I glad that I didn't reschedule! I absolutely adored SLP!!! Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence were just outstanding! I could gush on and on, but let's get down to the purpose of this post - the FASHION.

I heard a lot of buzz about expecting to see a lot of color on the red carpet, which I must say excited me. Did I miss something? With the exception of a few, I would say the bulk of the gowns were shades of nude and blush.

Now don't get me wrong, all of these ladies looked lovely, but they all left me wanting something more...

Red is always a classic red carpet look, and Jennifer Lawrence, Claire Danes, Zooey Deschanel and Marion Cotillard stun in this fiery hue.

P.S. - Did someone mess up at the House of Dior? Why on earth would they have let both Jennifer Lawrence and Marion Cotillard were the exact same belt and shade of red???

A special kudos to Jackie Weaver (loved her in SLP!), Jessica Alba and Julie Bowen for standing out in COLOR.

Emerald is Pantone's Color of the year, and to be honest, I was really hoping to see it make an impact on the red carpet - I'm predicting some beautiful Emerald moments on Oscar's red carpet

This coral Oscar de la Renta gown looks gorgeous on Jessica Alba and that necklace is amazing! I just wish they would've given her a smokey eye and a nude lip, and ditched the Veronica Lake hair in favor of either a sleek look or a messy chignon - that would've created a home run for sure.

While I'm not in total love with Julie Bowen's teal Halston, I do love that she paired it with bronze shoes and jewels, plus teal is a great color for her. And this is one of the few dresses that looks like the comfort level might actually be bearable (Amy Adams - seriously, were you able to even sit??)

Can we just stop for a moment and talk about Lucy Liu?

She looked fabulous! I'm a sucker a Carolina Herrera gown, but this was a gown that could have gone seriously wrong on the wrong person, and especially with the wrong styling.

Her stylists nailed this look - her make up was so fresh and her hair kept the look modern and young. Overdone jewels and fussy hair would've turned this into a disaster, which leads to our next group: looks gone wrong...

Alyssa Milano needs to fire her stylist. The color. The fit. Just WRONG. This dress looks like an oversized sack. And what was with everyone's dresses being too long? I felt like every other starlet was seconds from getting caught in the hem of her dress. (p.s. - do I spy a baby bump? I love a bump, and I especially love when you flaunt a bump, not drape it in extra yardage)

Ariel Winter's stylist is also going to be joining the unemployment line. That headband is just all kinds of wrong.

Poor Juilanna Margulies, this is just a case of the the wrong dress on the wrong woman - this was meant for Rooney Mara.

A couple more honorable mentions in the worst dressed department

You can't have a Worst Dressed list without tossing Helena Bonham Carter's name in the ring - but to be completely honest, she really doesn't look that bad (you know, relative to what she usually comes to these events looking like)

Taylor Swift - I'm pretty sure I remember Calvin Klein making that dress in the 90's, probably before you were even born (seriously, did I really just say type that? What am I, 80??)

Oh Robert Downey Jr., I think you and my 9 year old have the same sneakers, and guess what? I hate them on him too! Not to worry, you will always be my favorite Avenger, what can I say, I'm a sucker for a sarcastic sense of humor...

File the next three looks under "I'm just so over it"

We get it Jennifer Lopez, now can we please move on?

Eva - Why on Earth would you want to draw Angelina Jolie comparisons?

Halle - enough with the one-shoulder gowns!!!!! (BTW - Versace needs to fire the seamstress that fit that bodice - the bust lines are cra cra)

Here are a few examples of a poor fit

No one can debate the beauty and talent of Jessica Chastain, but I have a couple problems with this dress. What woman wants to look like her breasts can touch her waist? I'm not a fan of the saggy boob look (I'm talking to you too Jennifer Lawrence - the profile of your Dior Haute Couture gown was less than flattering in the bust department). And again with the dress that is too long, poor Jessica was constantly yanking that thing up so that she could walk!

Kristen Bell is just too tiny for this Jenny Packham gown, it over powered her petite frame.

My problem is with the bodice lines of Debra Messing's Donna Karan gown. They are creating a very wide look on Debra, and I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that I don't think that is the look that she was going for...

 These are examples of makeup gone wrong.

Penny, Penny, Penny your lips are just too dark - were there no mirrors available?

I just am not a fan of Nicole's eye color matching the color of her Naeem Khan gown, and the Old Hollywood waves are just bringing this look down. She could have rocked that dress and made it look so modern and new with a few hair and make up tweaks.

And Heidi, oh Heidi, this is just the wrong shade of nude lip for you.

Here are some of my faves in the hair and make up department:

Anne Hathaway defines understated perfection. Hair, make up, jewels - all spot on (kudos on the styling Rachel Zoe)

Rosario Dawson really knows what colors complement her beautiful warm coloring.

Julianne Hough rocked that hair, and how can we not mention those piercing blue eyes - stunning!

Now this is a perfect example of not having the full picture

When I first spied Rachel Weisz in the crowd during the Globes, I immediately wanted to see more. Who was that dark haired beauty in the black swiss dot?? I needed to see more! I searched for a red carpet pic, and I must say I was completely shocked by what I found. Louis Vuitton really missed the mark on this one. From the bow on down it just got worse and worse. (And yet another hemline tripping fiasco in the making) This was one of those moments when everything was heading in the right direction - hair, make up, jewels, from the waist up this could have been a winner, but then someone dropped the ball...

I really loved the ladies that donned some deeper hues like oxblood and eggplant

Amy Poehler wore one of my favorite gowns of the night, I really wish that I would have been able to find a better pic of it.

Naomi Watts proved that you can been sultry without showing skin in this Zac Posen stunner.

Lena Dunham's good friend Zac Posen designed this figure flattering eggplant gown to shape her body perfectly.

Jennifer Garner glowed in her shimmery Vivienne Westwood gown - I'm pretty sure that I would glow too if Best Director winner Ben Affleck were my arm candy!

My favorite trend of the night were the black gowns with the gold embellishments - can you say super chic?

Kate Hudson in Alexander McQueen

Helen Mirren in Badgley Mischka - seriously, she is 67!!

Nicole Kidman in Alexander McQueen

Honorable Mention must go to these leading ladies

Olivia Munn stood out in this turquoise beaded bodice gown by Giorgio Armani.

Julia Louis-Dryfus in Vera Wang gave us a glimpse of what Zooey Deschanel might look like in the future.

Anne Hathaway chose Chanel to pick up her Best Actress award. The fit is just slightly off for me, maybe she is trying to hide a baby bump? If not, I wish this would either sit flat or be a true peplum.

And without further ado, Best Dressed

She may be on the small screen, but Emily Deschanel proves she is a major fashion contender in this exquisite Badgley Mischka gown.

Downton Abbey's Michelle Dockery looks AMAZING in this Alexandre Vauthier stunner.

And my top honors go to Julianne Moore - she just won me over in this black and white Tom Ford gown. The hair, make up, bag, jewels and gown came together to create the perfect storm of elegance.

Oh those Bulgari earrings...

So what did you think? Who were your favorites??

All photos courtesy of PopSugar

Schooooooool's out for SUMMER!!

It's that time of the year again - time to clean out the lunch boxes and backpacks, and pack them away, time to turn the alarm clock off for the next 3 months, and time to reflect on how much the kids have grown and changed over the last 9 months!

A lot of those amazing changes can be credited to their wonderful teachers (don't forget to give yourself a little pat on the back - you're not too shabby either!).

I like to send in a little token of my appreciation for all that the teachers do, and luckily Pinterest is there to inspire my procrastinating butt :)

Seriously, are you on Pinterest yet? If not, do yourself a favor and sign up already!!!
There's a little board that I created called Gift Ideas - I know, such an imaginative and creative title...

Anywho... I knew that over the past year I had pinned a few teacher gift ideas, so I took a look through my pins for some ideas.

At first this crayon monogram jumped out at me - loving the bright colors, great for hanging in the classroom and it's just so darn cute!

photo credit: Chic & Cheap Nursery

But then a teacher friend of mine was tagged in this pic on facebook...

So back to the Gift Ideas board I went...

That's when I came across this, this, and this - I figured that I could marry these ideas together, throw in a gift card (sans the liquor...), a nice little thank you note and call it DONE!

1st & last stop - Target!

Honestly, does it get any better than Target? I think not.

The cute clear paint cans were bought  forever ago, I just knew they would come in handy for something ;)

Each boy picked out a fun summer beverage tumbler in the color of their choice - Pink for Mrs. Geiger and Blue for Mrs. McGraw.

Then I stumbled upon these fun single serve drink mixes - Blackberry Blueberry & Strawberry Dragonfruit were the winning flavors.

Eight single serve packets came in each box, so each teacher got four of each flavor inside her tumbler along with a surprise - a Target gift card (this seemed a little more PC to me than a gift card to the liquor store),

and how cute it that "Thank You" gift card? again, praise Target!

A giant bag, "party size" to be exact, of M&M's filled each paint can (there may, or may not have been a little bit leftover for this mom to snack on...)

The poem was found here, but I actually prefer the wording here, but at 11pm last night I just didn't think it was worth reprinting, although I am kicking myself now because it's not "perfect" - moving on...

Want to see the final product one more time???

No need to scroll back to the top, here it is!

p.s. - the adorable orange gift bag is also brought to you today by the letter T - Target rocks my socks!

p.s.s. - Jack came home yesterday with this sweet gift from his teacher, Mrs. Geiger. She is an extremely special teacher, and we had the great fortune to have her as Matthew's 1st grade teacher two years ago, and as Jack's 1st grade teacher this past year - fingers crossed that Sam will have her in a few years!

Here's what the note on the bag says:

Jackson,

In this bag you will find some things

That hold the key to what your future brings.

It is with great sadness that I watch you depart

Because you have a special place in my heart.

Love,

Mrs. Geiger

And the note inside reads:

A water balloon to remind you to make a splash wherever you go.

A piece of chalk to remind you to leave a good mark in the world.

A pencil to remind you there are still many things to learn.

A penny to remind you to use good sense.

An eraser to remind you it's all right to make mistakes.

Bubbles to remind you to always have fun!

Kisses to remind you that you are loved.

 I think I just got misty eyed all over again...

This week I am linking to:

{Sweet Sam}

Yesterday was Tuesday, which meant that Sam and I travelled up to my Nan's house for a little lunch, Mad Men (we're only on season 3, so no spoilers please!), Super Why for Sam, a cup of tea, and a knitting lesson.

Normally, it only takes about 30 minutes for us to make the trek up, but the universe had other plans...

photo courtesy of the Pocono Record

This monster decided to take a bit of a snooze in the middle of the highway this morning, causing quite the commotion (no worries - no one was hurt). Rumor has it, the flammable material that it was carrying was vanilla extract - mmmm...

Sam and I sat, and sat, and sat, and then we sat some more... It took over an hour and a half to move just a few miles, and my sweet little boy just sat there quiet as could be! Since he was born, Sam has always been a great travel companion - unlike his brother Jack. From the day Jack was born, he has been a pain in the neck to travel with, out of the 3 boys, he is the only one that consistently asks "are we there yet???"

But back to Sam, this little baby took the standstill traffic in stride, and the highlight of the trek was a little Boston terrier in the car in front of us - this boy LOVES a doggie!

tweetjolie on Instagram

{coffee}

this is what keeps me sane...

{and the pretty cup just makes me smile}

and can I just tell you that it totally made my day to find out that Instagram is now available for Android - now I will never be jealous of an iphone again!

"Well, paint my front door red..."



source: Pinterest

 "... and change my name to Elizabeth Arden!"

I've been thinking about changing the color of my front door for some time now, and that quote by Truvy from Steel Magnolias keeps popping into my head. This, of course, led to a google search for the exact quote, which then led to me pouring over page upon page of Steel Magnolias' quotes. My favorite being "...if you don't have anything nice to say about anybody, come sit by me!" by the perfectly southern Clairee Belcher. I have a ton more, but this is supposed to be about colors for my front door, not my undying love for all things Steel Magnolias - how about blush and bashful? too much? ok, I will stop now...



source: Wikipedia

 back to the door...

We have a pretty traditional looking house, a colonial with red brick, black shutters, black front door and white trim. Don't get me wrong, I love this look, but we will have been here for 10 years this July and I am ready for a change! Holy cow - did I just say 10 years??? Not to be cliche, but it really is amazing how time flies - this was supposed to be our 5 year house.
We built this house and moved in right after we celebrated our 1st anniversary, sans kids. Boy were we naive, we moved from this tiny little apartment that couldn't even fit a full-sized stove to this 3 bedroom house that seemed so big - I couldn't even imagine filling all of those kitchen cabinets - HA! such a silly girl...
Fast forward 10 years and the cabinets are bursting with STUFF!!! let's not even talk about the closets...



2003, 2010, 2009, 2005 - apparently we really like to take pictures of our house when it snows...

 Where was I going with this??? oh, right, the front door - what can I say, I love a tangent ;)

Not sure if this post by Young House Love lit the spark, but I must admit that I was not initially in love with their color choice. I've never been a big fan of yellow, especially in place of my beloved black. Now I know that yellow is very on trend right now, and I have to admit I am developing a fondness for it. Take a look for yourselves, there's something about this yellow door that keeps drawing me to it. Maybe it's the dark hardware they've paired with this sunny color, it seems to ground it.


source: Young House Love



Not only am I growing bored with the black door, but there is a bit of method to my madness. The front of our house gets full sun ALL.DAY.LONG. Think summer, 90 degree temps, and little boys getting burnt when they accidentally touch the door, instead of the handle. We have had quite a few tears shed throughout the years due to that black door.
We are also in need of a new door handle and lock, no worries, I won't get into that story... Right now it is shiny brass, which does pair well with the traditional vibe of our home, but this could be my opportunity to change things up a bit!

Red is another option, but I worry about the red door next to the red brick. Maybe the white trim surrounding the door would break it up enough?

Getting the husband on board with the color change may be more challenging than actually picking a color, but I've never let that stop me before!

stay tuned... I may make a decision sometime this year...

Happy St. Patrick's Day

feeling a little Irish guilt (is that a thing??) today as I scroll through facebook seeing everyone's leprechaun visits, green pancakes, tales of corned beef cooking, etc.
with the maiden name Meagher and the married name Mullen, to say we're a little Irish in this house would be like saying that there's only a few legos in our house...

many moons, and 3 kids ago, we used to go into NYC to celebrate St. Patrick's day with my dad & step-mother - with a name like {Patrick Meagher} my dad takes "his" holiday very seriously...

Cindy, {Patrick} aka dad, Megan, me & Chris waiting for the train into the city

how pathetic is this - I just realized that this pic is in a folder that says St. Patrick's Day 2002, but I think it might be 2001, getting old stinks...
anyway... we have some great memories from those Paddy's days of yore, and one day we will do it again!

for the past few years my dad & Cindy have become famous for their gigantic Irish blast, and for a non-Celt Cindy really makes a mean corned beef!
and because I am such a last minute rose, I just gave some thought to what I should bring to the party (surprised aren't you?).
I've been seeing lots of Chocolate Stout cupcakes with Irish cream frosting floating around Pinterest. I must admit, I am not a Guinness fan (sorry dad!), so the stout part does not appeal to me, and I'm a bit selfish when it comes to my baking - I don't usually waste my time baking anything that I don't personally want to eat.
since time is not on my side, and I'm a big fan of making everything easier, I decided to let Betty help - the one and only Betty Crocker. I'm a BIG fan of a box cake mix - I love to doctor them up a bit, but this time I just grabbed a box of Chocolate Fudge cake mix and baked them up.
here's where the Irish comes into play...
I checked out 3 different Irish Cream frosting recipes that I found on Pinterest - 2 called for cream cheese, and 1 was a buttercream. they all had the same basic ingredients, just differing amounts of each, so I decided to wing it - and you can too!

{Bailey's Irish Cream Cheese Frosting}

• I creamed together 1 stick of softened butter and an 8oz block of softened cream cheese
• next is the fun part - add some Bailey's Irish Cream - I put in somewhere between 4-6 TBS (totally up to you how strong you want them to be)
• now for the totally unmeasured part - I gradually added powdered sugar until my frosting was to the desired consistency (I like it stiff enough that I can use a decorator tip, but not so stiff that it's too sweet)

so without further ado here are my lazy man's {St. Patrick's Day} cupcakes!