things to love: february 2013

Another month has gone by, which means it’s time for this month’s Things to Love post! I’ve already declared these posts to be (one of) my favorite, so I get excited every time I sit down to write one. Some months it’s harder than others to think of ideas, but for this one, a lot has come to mind! I’ll get right to it.

#01. Valentine’s Day

I know Valentine’s Day is a little cheesy, and it’s definitely over-commercialized, but I like it! As some of you know- any excuse to get festive, dressed up, or eat chocolate is okay in my book. I’m an affectionate person and I like giving gifts, cards, and letters, so an extra reason to do something like that is always a good thing. Plus, did I mention there was chocolate? And can we just take a second to pause and laugh at the fact that the picture above contains a conversation heart that says “fax me”?? Loves it.

#02. The Bachelor: Sean’s Season

I think this is a perfect segue to talk about The Bachelor. (Valentine’s day…flowers…roses…Chris Harrison: “Ladies, Sean, there’s one rose left this evening”…there’s a logical connection there.) This show is essentially a street drug. Yes. The Bachelor and The Bachelorette are your television equivalents of crack cocaine, heroin, and meth. What I mean by that is this: once you start watching, you. cannot. stop. I dare you to try. It will eat up two whole hours of your life every week (sometimes two days in a row) but it’s just unavoidable. Despite the fact that every season is basically the same (helicopters…bungee jumping /free falling / cliff diving [complete with some kind of comment to the effect of: "If we can do this, we can do anything"], and one person in the house being a total fake), it feels like a new ride each time. This is basically how I feel whenever a new season starts:

Sigh. Sean Lowe, who will you pick this season (and then consequently break up with 6 months later?)

#03. Annie’s Bunnies

I tweeted this today, because basically I am a child, but I adore these crackers. They are kind of like teddy grahams, but a zillion times better. And then there are the cheddar / wheat ones that are like goldfish crackers. I mean, who wouldn’t love a little bunny?

#04. Girl Scout Cookies

Similarly to #3, it’s Girl Scout Cookie time of year. I usually try to avoid the Girl Scout table at the grocery store because really- who needs a box of those things in their kitchen? But this year it was just too hard to resist. The girl at the table was all alone with her mom, and it looked like she hadn’t had any visitors/customers in hours. I decided I was doing a good deed by going over there, making conversation, and then purchasing a box of cookies. Good karma results in delicious cookies, right?

#05. Homeland

Totally addicted to this show! I’ve mentioned before that Boyfriend & I divorced our cable company, so now we rely solely on Netflix and AppleTV/iTunes for our favorite TV shows. And we LOVE it. Honestly, I don’t know how I’d go back to cable again. After just a couple episodes of Season 1, we were completely hooked. A true 90′s girl at heart, I can’t deny anything with Claire Danes. We are at the start of Season 2 now and I can’t wait to find out what happens next!!

#06. Mascara Pick of the Month: Lights, Camera, Lashes by Tarte

I’m always on the hunt for a good mascara. My daily makeup ritual consists of neutral eyeshadow, a swipe of black liquid liner, and a few layers of mascara. Paired with a bit of blush and light pink gloss, and done. I used to be all about the Buxom mascara by Bare Escentuals but my current favorite is Lights Camera Lashes by Tarte. I have a tiny little sample from Sephora (Beauty Insiders Club what whaaaat) and I need to go back and get a big one.

#07. This New Handbag

After a trip to TJMaxx the other day, I came out with this new handbag. I’d been carrying around a pink bag since the summer, and while I love it, I thought I needed something more “wintery”. This new bag definitely is not more “wintery” but it is cute and I just can’t resist bright colors. Besides, I’m justifying it like this: In the middle of winter, when it’s dark and gloomy, and we’re all wearing our blacks / greys / navys, a pop of color is desperately needed. I feel like that is good logic.

#08. Celeb Twitter Interaction

I’m not gonna lie- my heart did a little jump when I got this notification today: Mae Whitman aka AMBER HOLT FROM PARENTHOOD favorited a tweet of mine. I feel like I have permission to be a little starstruck when the actress who plays one of my favorite characters from one of my favorite TV shows has somehow acknowledged my presence on the interwebs.

#09. Vanilla Blonde Coffee @ Starbucks

The blonde roast is my absolute favorite coffee at Starbucks, hands down. Paired with a little soy milk – amazing! It’s hard to believe that this coffee could get any better, and then bam! Starbucks introduces the vanilla blonde roast. I tried it the other day and absolutely love it. Warning: it is super sweet and has a very strong vanilla flavor, so if it’s not your cup of tea (coffee?) stick with the regular.

#10. Pre- Blend Retreat  Excitement

Ok, I know this isn’t technically until the month of May, but I have to put it on the list because I am SO FREAKING EXCITED! The blend ladies recently put up a list of all the attendees for the 2013 retreat, and it’s been so fun checking out their blogs and sort of getting to know all the girls prior to the event. As mentioned in an earlier post, I’m rooming with Kate @ Quarter Century Southern Living and Ashley @ Cupcakes ‘n’ Crunches and we recently added Sara @ Fitcupcaker to our room– it’s totally going to be a blast! I can’t wait to meet all these awesome bloggers.

Aaand that’s it for my list this month!

Reader Question: What are you currently loving? Any category! Food, tv, movie, etc….