Friend Makin' Monday

How was your Thanksgiving? Did you remember to count your blessings?? My Thanksgiving was super fab. I got to spend Thanksgiving Day with my big 'ol family. Friday I was in Black Friday shopping bliss. Saturday we went to Bedlam (aka OU vs. OSU) game. There was a little snafu. I'll tell more later. BUT my Sooners won...it was a shut-out! Can you say "BOOMER SOONER"?? Saturday night we had Thanksgiving at my in-laws. It was a really great long weekend and I'm counting down the days until Christmas! Pocket Edward joined me on some of my ventures over the weekend...I'll share some pics in a post later this week. Now on to today's FMMs.

Miss Amber over at {aefilkins} hosts Friend Makin Mondays. I haven't joined in the fun in a few weeks, so I'm back! If you don't participate, you should. It's a fabulous way to get to know your fellow bloggy friends and make new bloggy friends...and don't we all want more bloggy friends?! They're what make our bloggy world go 'round. Without further ado, here's this week's FMM task:

1. Favorite website: hmmm...there are so many. I would say the one's I'm on the most are Blogger and Facebook...and my Twilight blogs.

2. Favorite color: red

3. Facebook? Yes, I do. Jenny Altman. Look me up.

4. Favorite Christmas song? I have two. Silent Night and The Christmas Song

5. Christmas tree: Real or fake? Fake because I like to leave my tree up too long.

6. Hottest celebrity? It's a toss up between Rob Pattinson and Taylor Lautner

7. Favorite restaurant? PF Chang's

8. Favorite magazine? For my latest Twilight news and covers - Entertainment Weekly and Fantasy Films. For crafts and domestic ideas - Real Simple and Family Living. For parenting - Parenting. I'm a magazine junkie.

9. Favorite thing to drink around the holidays? Starbucks' Peppermint Mocha

10. Favorite Christmas movie? This is a toughy. I like so many. My top favs are Miracle on 34th Street, It's a Wonderful Life, Christmas Vacation, The Grinch, and A Christmas Story..."you'll shoot your eye out!"

Join in to FMMs at {aefilkins}!

Hope everyone has a marvelous Monday!!

Black Friday Confessions

So, here it is...once again it is BLACK FRIDAY!!! I'm so flippin' excited. I have a few confessions regarding Black Friday. I'm sure a few of you will nod your head in agreement, while others will for sure be thinking I'm crazy. Regardless, here they are:

• We've mapped out our stores. Seriously. My mom and I literally have a map of where we want to go, when we want to be there (according to what time they open), and how long we can spend there.


• We have a list of each item we want to buy at each store.


• I have coupons and I'm not afraid to use them. It just occurred to me that I can use a coupon with a Door Buster Deal...I'm all over that!


• We will hit Starbucks at least 3 times before the day is over.


• We have our own shopping basket. It can fold flat...like the ones people take to craft fairs. We take it to haul all of our goods around the mall. Wal-Mart and Target have baskets, but not the mall! Have you ever tried to carry 20 bags around a mall for 10 hours? Your hand will go numb and you will start to feel like you might lose a limb. It's brutal.


• Sometimes we take a shopping break and see a Holiday movie. If my mom and aunt decide to catch a Holiday movie at the theater, I will probably bail and catch one more viewing of New Moon...a date with Edward and Jacob is just simply irresistible.


• My uncle is our chauffeur. If you haven't tried it, you should. He drives us to the door and we call him when we're ready to leave...and he drives back up to the door to retrieve us and our bags. All he requires is food! It's fantastic!


• We've been known to call my dad and have him drive to Tulsa to unload our vehicle so that we have room for more purchases.


• We've also been known to stay out almost a whole 24 hours. Now, that's what you call marathon shopping.

Don't worry. I won't be doing this.

Do you shop on Black Friday? If so, what's your confession?

Thanksgiving Thankfuls!!

Today on this Thanksgiving Day, I am oh so thankful for all the blessings in my life. The most obvious ones are

• God
• Jesus, my Savior
• my amazing close-knit family
• Michael
• Isaiah
• my cousins who have been like sisters and brothers to me through the years
• my brother Josh and niece Gracie living in Oklahoma
• the best friends a girl could ask for
• old friends
• new friends
• friends who live in my computer...ALL of you...I'm so thankful for each and every one of you
• my church family
• knowing what is important in life
• a home
• a job
• that my Grandpa is here to spend another Thanksgiving
• my Granny's pies
• plenty of food
• resources to help others
• Christmas is around the corner
• coffee
• Black Friday shopping (it's like a holiday all in itself!)
• New Moon...I'm serious y'all...I love that movie
• Eclipse will be here in 216 days
• party planning because it makes me so happy
• time off to spend with my family
• the sun
• the moon
• the seasons
• my new cranberries and spice candle that makes my house smell like the holidays

I'm sure I'm missing something. I'm pretty much thankful for everything around me...it's hard to list everything...well, I guess I could just say I'm thankful for EVERYTHING! That's what Isaiah put on our Blessings Tree in our Sunday School room...if a 5 year old can do that, then so can I. I'm thankful for EVERYTHING! How about you? What are you thankful for?

Happy Thanksgiving!!! Love you guys!♥

JennyKate's New Moon Review

New Moon has come and gone.

Here I sit all alone.

No New Moon countdown to make me happy,

Just thoughts of Edward that make me sappy.

No party planning to attend to,

Just lots of clean-up left to do.

No excitement, no thrill, no anticipation...

Just memories of a night when New Moon was our destination.

*****

I have to say that I've been in somewhat of a lull. I miss the hubbub that surrounded the last few weeks...putting together decorations, making goodie bags, nailing down a menu, discussing New Moon with my friends, counting down the days and hours...I miss it all...oh, and my date with Edward and Jacob. To put it in a nutshell, it was AMAZING! The party was so super fun. Everyone showed up. Everyone had a good time. Everyone played along w/ my silly games...and they liked it (or at least they pretended for my sake...and because they knew there was prizes involved). The movie was beyond words. I don't even have the right descriptiveness to tell you exactly how I feel. I LOVE that movie.

*****

OK, my review...I thought that Christ Weitz did a fabulous job. He's a directing genius. I'm a lover of the books and I treasure those words that Stephenie wrote and the characters that she brought to life for me through those words. Chris definitely honored the book and held true to the feeling of the book. I felt like he didn't skip anything...although I know he did or we would have been there all night (or morning). I loved the cinematography. I loved the warm feel of the colors. The make-up artists should get huge props for making the Cullens look a hundred times better than Twilight...no more pasty Wal-Mart Halloween make-up...they were all gorgeous! Rosalie looked absolutely beautiful. Jasper was not quite as weird. Bella looked more mature (which she should b/c she's a whole year older in NM). Edward looked rock-hard and sparkly, just as he should. Jacob had me in a trance with his rippling chest and abs, his bulky shoulders, and that beautiful smile. He is his own sun. It ended with the proposal, and went black...just as it should. All is right in my Twilight world...except for the fact that I'm in a slight state of New Moon depression. When I walked into my office this morning, there was no huge party box overflowing with Twilight stuff...no Edward and Jacob behind my door. It was sad. I've seen it twice already and have plans to see it for a 3rd time on Wednesday! Maybe that will help. I know what would really help...I'm thinking Eclipse. Just when you thought all this was over...think again...Eclipse will be here in 218 days! We've already started planning!

*****

OK, now onto the winner of my New Moon Giveaway...

I transferred each person's comments over to a word document and gave each of you your appropriate number of entries in order of when you commented. Then I numbered each entry...

and went to the random number generator (RANDOM.org) and plugged in the number of total entries w/ random number result of 15...

And the winner is...

Michelle from Tickled Pink & Fabulous...and I am tickled pink that she won! She is an awesome blogging buddy, fellow Twi-hard (true true fan), and sister from another mister. We share tons in common (even outside of the Twilight realm). She has a fabulous blog, so be sure to stop by if you don't already! Congrats, Michelle! I think the *crossed fingers* really worked! ;)

*****

Lastly, I've got a few more pics from my party that I stole borrowed from people who were there. I wasn't able to take as many pictures because I was busy hostessing, so I'm glad others had their cameras. I'm sure they won't mind me sharing.

Miss Manda

Me and Allison - her and I are already consipiring for Eclipse! Can't wait!Telena, Edward, and I
Edward, Allie, Me, and Jake...I think I was checking out his biceps.
Getting ready to go see New Moon...party was coming to a close. I love this group shot...wish everyone would have been in it.
Hope everyone has a marvelous Monday!!♥

New Moon Party Pics

My New Moon party was a HUGE success in my book! I'm just not sure how it could have been any better...unless of course Edward would have shown up in flesh and blood...er...stone cold sparkly skin.

Here's an overview of the party *warning: picture OVERLOAD*


LOTS of GREAT friends showed up...my bloggy friend Dawn and 3 of her friends came. It's so great to now know Dawn, Jen, Michelle, and Dana IRL! Thanks for coming girls!
Jacob kept staring at me the WHOLE night.

The Candy Bar

The Edward Room

The only picture I have of my outfit

OME!

I think I was biting Jacob....I really have nothing to say to this

Me and my girl, Amanda, waiting patiently for 12:01

We played Pin the Kiss on Jacob

and Edward♥

My banner that I made

Pocket Edward showing where the band-aids are in case you get a paper cut. He's so helpful like that.

My red Chuck Taylor's

Me and Amanda at the 10:15 showing this morning...yep, true fans...we've seen it twice in 10 hours.

My cousin Allison, Me, and Amanda...don't say anything about the bags under our eyes...we were working on about 3 hours of sleep and NO coffee...that's the price we were willing to pay for one more date with Edward and Jacob.

Hope everyone who went to New Moon last night had as much fun as I did!!! If you're going in the near future, you're in for a treat...it's yummy! You're going to love it! If you're not planning on going...change of plans...GO SEE IT! It was AH-MAZING!

Have a superFABULOUS weekend♥

You can find my new Eclipse Party Plans by clicking HERE!

ANOTHER super FAB New Moon Giveaway @ Tatertots and Jello

Jen @ Tatertots and Jello is hosting another FABULOUS New Moon Giveaway!!!



Here's what you can win:

Aren't they so so cute! I wish I had one for tonight!

Go to her blog (click HERE) and find out all the details!



Don't forget to enter my giveaway HERE...it ends tomorrow at 12:01am!!

IT's HERE!! New Moon is HERE!!

I don't have to say TOMORROW...because in my mind it is TODAY @ 12:01 (am...Friday, but let's not get technical)...NEW MOON is here!!! WOOT!

I might pee my pants. I'm just that excited.

I just asked Jacob (over there <----) "Do you love me?" And he said, and I quote, "It's tough to tell. Sometimes you're a little strange. Oh, sweet innocent Jacob, you know me so well.Have you asked Jacob or Edward about what's on your mind today? Do it and tell me what answer they give you in my comments be cause I like to be entertained). If you do, I'll give you an entry (or an extra entry, if you're already entered) in my giveaway that ends tonight (OK, tomorrow at 12:01 am...but remember we're not getting technical). So...what are you waiting for...ask them a question!

Here's some drooling material to wet your palette for tonight or whenever you're going to see new Moon!!

Several things to be very very thankful for...
I'm thankful that New Moon is finally here.

I'm thankful for shirtless Jacob pictures.

I'm also very very thankful for shirtless Edward pictures.

Don't forget about my New Moon Giveaway...comment w/ Jacob or Edward's answer to your question (Click HERE to leave a comment for another entry)

Hope everyone has a totally awesome TWILIGHT day!

Peace, Love, and Twilight

Holiday Giveaway @ The Paper Note

My friend Lisa is having a FABULOUS giveaway at her blog, The Paper Note! She makes beautiful jewelry and art...and sells them in her Etsy stores! Lisa makes the BEST stuff. She has an eye for art, is super creative, and adds beauty to anything she touches. (Love you, Lis!) Go over to her blog (click HERE) and see what all she has to offer in this giveaway! I promise you will LOVE it!

New Moon Countdown!!!!

It's here...the day has finally come...we can now countdown to New Moon in HOURS people! It's THAT close! Is anyone out there as excited as I am? OK, stupid question. I think if you were more excited than me, you would be committed. I just asked Edward (on the little box to the left <---) if HE was excited to see me in a mere 38 HOURS...you want to know what he said? And I quote, "Can't concentrate. Shall I explain how you are tempting me?" The feeling is mutual, Eddie.


Here's the clip from the Ellen Show on Monday!!! Good stuff!


This is one of my FAVORITE clips! LOVE IT!


Don't forget to go to yesterday's post (click HERE) and enter in my New Moon Giveaway!

Until tomorrow...
Peace, Love, and Twilight!

New Moon GIVEAWAY

2 days 14 hours 24 minutes...it's almost close enough to start counting down in hours only!!


New Moon is rising and in honor of that I have a giveaway just for YOU (well, one of you...a very lucky one of you. =)


Here's what you'll get:

1. New Moon 2010 Calendar
2. Harper's Bazar December issue w/ KStew and RPattz on the cover
3. Vanity Fair December issue w/ RPattz on the cover
4. Ghiradelli Twilight Delight chocolate bar
5. sparkling red lip gloss
6. New Moon soundtrack
7. Goodie Bag from my New Moon party
8. a personalized Starbucks travel mug w/ your favorite...Jacob, Edward...you choose!

Here's how you can get an entry:

1. Leave a comment telling me who you choose...are you Team Edward, Team Jacob, or perhaps you're Team Switzerland. (This has no bearing on who will win the giveaway, just something I would like to know for the fun of it.) (1 entry)
2. Follow me, if you don't already. (1 entry) All of my current followers who comment will automatically get an additional entry.
3. Repost on Twitter or Facebook and come back and let me know. (1 entry)
4. Post about my giveaway on your own blog. (2 entries)

The giveaway will close on Friday at 12:01 am! I'll announce the winner on Monday, November 23! Good luck to everyone!

Peace, Love, and Twilight

New Moon Giveaway @ Tatertots and Jello

NEW MOON giveaway today at Tatertots and Jello! Jen went to LA and brought back some awesome NM goodies!! Hurry over and take a look, leave a comment, and become a follower...not just because she's giving away some totally fabulous New Moon stuff (but it really is fabulous), but because she's the sweetest person and has an incredible blog full of adorable things, easy to follow tutorials, and crafts galore! The giveaway ends Wednesday so she can get the winner their New Moon goodies by the time the movie premiers at 12:01 FRIDAY!!!

3 DAYS 13 HOURS 37 MINUTES!!!!




Come back tomorrow for a glimpse of my very own New Moon giveaway!!! *You won't want to miss it*

New Moon Party Links

Here is a list I've been putting together of all of the websites I've used for inspiration, ideas, and supplies while planning my Twilight/New Moon party (click any RED for a link):

• Hostess with the Mostess - AWESOME...like the coolest FREE printables and party ideas...I mean, after all, she IS the Hostess with the Mostess!
• Maggie's Dinner Dates - great ideas for decorations, party supplies, table settings...you name it!
• Tatertots and Jello - our beloved Jen had her very own Twilight party back in March to celebrate the release of the Twilight DVD! I found lots of inspiration and ideas on her blog post!
• Tara's Twilight Party - inspiration
• Etsy - tons of Twilight/New Moon crafts, gifts, party supplies
• Twimom - printable invites and party supplies
• Buycostumes.com - New Moon party supplies
• Oriental Trading - wax vampire teeth, personalized margarita glasses, and general party supplies
• One of my fav parties I read about in blogland was from Ashli's blog. I'm going to try my hardest to replicate a City of Forks welcome sign like she did! I love that! I also really love her tissue flowers that she decorated with!

I hope these help!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend!

I'll be back tomorrow with more Twilight/New Moon...see ya then! 4 DAYS!!!

New Moon Party Decorations, Menu, and Candy Bar

I'm just getting soooooo excited! I can hardly stand it...I can hardly stand the excitement and the anticipation. 5 days!!!

Yesterday I said that I would show you some more of the decorations I'm using at my NEW MOON par-tay. I'm so flippin' excited. So, here are a few pics of things I will be using to decorate.

Of course these guys will be there...
I have a dozen or so quotes that I printed off of the Hostess with the Mostess blog site. (I'll give you the link tomorrow) While looking for some red accents, I found these cute little red paper lantern lights on sale at Wal-Mart. I'm also going to use a couple of strands of white Christmas lights as well as battery operated tea light candles (I'm trying to keep it fire safe, since we'll be at the hotel) I needed something to draw in the wolves, and I found this on the clearance aisle at Target the week after Halloween, along w/ some 75% off black napkins, cups, and table clothes.
I've made a couple of these paper flowers that I think I'll hang around somewhere. I found the instructions on Martha Stewart's website...leave it to Martha to think up something this cute and cheap too!
I've also got a few gold accents I'm throwing in there, along with some red and white tulle (you can't ever go wrong with tulle). I'm also using some red, gold, and either black or chocolate brown balloons. Balloons are cheap and so festive. They add a lot of ambiance to any party. I have a few other things, but I want to save some to show you after it's all put together. I hope it turns out like I want it to!

One of my fav things I've been putting together is the candy bar. I thought it was fitting since we are going to watch the movie right after the party. This way everyone can put themselves together a bag of candy to sneak in to the theater (we're rebels like that). Here is a list of candies I'm including in the candy bar:

• Hot Tamales (you know, because they're red and because Jacob is HOTT!)



• Hershey's Kisses (to represent the kiss that Jacob and Bella share and the kisses from Edward - some w/ silver wrapping and some with red wrapping)



• Jelly Belly Jelly Beans - Root Beer (brown), Cherry (red), and Banana (a golden yellow) to go along w/ the color scheme



• Twizzler BITES =)



• Twizzler (regular ones...like the one's Bella and Jacob are eating in Twilight)



• Dark Chocolate Raisinettes...because they're good =)
  
  

  
  Here's my menu for the party...

Nothing fancy, but it should be yummy!

Tomorrow I'm going to have a comprehensive list of all the helpful and fun websites and blogs I've found while searching for New Moon party ideas. It may save some of you time when/if you decide to throw your very own Twilight/New Moon party.


I hope everyone is having a super Saturday!! 5 DAYS!!!

Peace, Love, and Twilight

New Moon Party Centerpieces and Goodie Bags

This week has been crazy. I was out of the office yesterday due to Isaiah being sick. I had to take him to the doctor. I've been spending all of my spare time working on party stuff. Even though I started so early, I feel like it's coming down to the wire and I'm scrambling to get everything finished. Part of the reason is that I have too many ideas floating around in my head, and not enough time to finish all of them. I keep reminding myself that there are two more movies to premier, so I can always save things for an Eclipse Party or Breaking Dawn Party (can't wait for that one!!!). Every day this week, I had things I wanted to post, but here we are...it's FRIDAY! (way way early Friday for me...so pardon any grammatical errors) AND it's 6...six...SIX days away from New Moon!!! Woot!

I finally downloaded some pics of a few things I've been working on.

Like these fork arrangements...

I know they're a little different, but I really love the forks! What do you think? These were super easy and way cheap. I just bought some clay pots ($0.50/each), foam oasis ($1.50/each), gold forks ($1.99/24), and moss ($5.00/bag). Then I gathered some twigs to give the pots the "Forks" effect.

I just used my handy dandy hot glue gun and started putting the twigs around the pot, pushed the forks into place (after writing "I ♥ Forks" on them), and added some moss. In retrospect, I should have added the moss first. It was a little difficult getting it down in between the forks.

I'm also making these cute little pocket-size tissues for my goodie bags.

I just measured the tissues (8"x4 1/2" - in case you were wondering) and cut a piece of card stock that would wrap all the way around it. I then made creases at the folds, put a little dab of glue where the card stock meets, and embellished them with ribbon and some New Moon phrases/terminology. TA-DA!

One last thing I wanted to show you guys today...

Bookmarks. These were so easy. I went into Microsoft Publisher and used the bookmark template. I just started changing out the pictures and inserting text...and filling in the background (on some)...until I came up with a few I was pleased with. I think they turned out pretty cute. I was going to laminate them, but haven't...yet. I'll show you the final product, if I end up finding the time to laminate.

My goodie bags are going to include, but not limited to:

• Pocket Tissues (because, let's face it, we're all gonna cry when Edward leaves)


• New Moon Bookmarks


• plastic vampire fangs


• mini vampire teeth soaps


• pocket hand warmers (to represent Jacob's constant 108.6 degrees...He's HOT...literally)


• Ghiradelli's Twilight Delight chocolate squares


• New Moon chocolates

Tomorrow, I'll show you some of my other decorations, the menu, and what I've picked out for the candy bar. 6 DAYS!!!!


Hope everyone is having a FABULOUS Friday!!