My Favorite Things: The Ellen Degeneres Show

Every morning, right after I wake up, I make a smoothie and settle down on the couch to check my e-mail and watch The Ellen Degeneres Show. I love this part of my day because the house is quiet (except for Ellen's infectious laugh) and I'm starting the morning with positivity. The Ellen Show for me is kind of like everyone else's Modern Family or Grey's Anatomy—I watch it religiously and never miss an episode. It's kind of embarrassing how much I talk about the show. Almost every day, as soon as Nathan walks in the door, I'm regaling him with something that happened on Ellen. You would think I knew the lady personally. I want to be like Ellen when I grow up and have fun no matter what the heck I'm doing.

If you need a Thursday morning pick me up (or you just want an excuse to laugh), here are two of my all-time favorite Ellen clips. Ahhhh, they never get old! :)

Ellen pranks spa-goers:

Ellen talks to a 6-year-old solar-system expert:

My Favorite Things: December 2012

Hello, friends! I took a week off to spend the holidays with my family and it's been SO refreshing. My batteries are recharged and I'm ready to tackle 2013 with gusto. :) More on that tomorrow; right now I want to share my favorite Christmas presents with you all as my final Favorite Things of 2012!

1. Fine Art Wedding Photography by Jose Villa. Ohhh I have longed for this book since Jose (we're on a first-name basis) announced it's arrival on his website! I adore his work and am so excited to get a peek into his creative process and business perspective.

2. Couples Massage at Solaire. Nathan got tired of me asking for a massage after every, single wedding and decided to splurge on a massage for BOTH of us. :) I cannot wait!

3. Sweetie Fry Gift Card. I'm pretty sure I'm one of Sweetie Fry's #1 sources of advertisement. I'm not kidding you, if you Google Image "Sweetie Fry, Cleveland Heights," Nathan and I pop up in the first few rows. It's pretty embarrassing actually. But it's no surprise that one of my favorite gifts is the chance to do another late-night run in the near future. :)

4. J.Crew Fair Isle Sweater. This is the coziest sweater! I could wear it to bed. :)

5. The Smoothies Bible. One of my New Year's resolutions is to eat more balanced meals, aka more fruits and veggies. I love smoothies, and this book is giving me so many fabulous (and HEALTHY) ideas!

My Favorite Things: June 2012

1. My new office light. Can you believe that Nathan made this mason jar chandelier?? Maybe you can if you saw all the amazing stuff he did in our master bedroom. Obviously, I’m a huge fan of mason jars, so this light—the first big thing we’ve done in my office—fits my style perfectly. Click here to learn how he made it.

2. Off Balance by Dominique Moceanu. In 1996, my friends and I used to “play Olympics.” We were all obsessed with the Magnificent Seven, and I loved Dominique Moceanu most of all. So I was excited when I saw that Dominique published a new book. I’m only a couple chapters in and already I’m transported back to my childhood.

3. Birthday cupcakes. Nathan made me (side note: Do I say “Nathan made me … ” way too much? Maybe that's a hint I need to do some more around the house) ice cream cone cupcakes for my birthday. Cupcakes? Good. Ice cream cones? Good. Sprinkles? Good. What’s not to like here?

4. Zero-gravity lounger. This chair? It’s so comfy. I’ve only ever had those cheap plastic lounge chairs and this thing is waaaay better. I think I may go take a nap …

5. Anthro birthday coupon. Do I post about Anthropologie every, single favorite things? I think so. That’s OK because I love it. And that’s why I was stoked when a birthday discount showed up in the mail. I have a hard time paying full price for a lot of stuff in that store, so this was a good excuse to peruse and not feel quite so guilty picking up a thing or two.

My Favorite Things: April 2012

 

1. Downton Abbey. I know, I know, another TV show. This one is really different from anything else we watch though! It's set in England and the first two seasons (all that's out right now) span from 1912-20. The aristocratic Crawley family owns Downton Abbey and the show revolves around their lives at the estate, as well as their servants'. Lots of big, historic events make their way into the show and affect the characters, like the Titanic sinking, WWI and the Spanish flu. Nathan and I burned through the first two seasons at record speed and then realized season three wouldn't be out until 2013. Quite honestly, I'm not sure if I can make it that long.

2. Anthropologie Volcano candle. Have you ever walked into an Anthropologie store and wanted to bottle up the delicious smell to take home with you? I have! And I finally asked one of the employees about the scent. It's this Volcano candle. I don't know exactly what it is, but it's to die for. Citrus-y, fresh, a little bit exotic and lovely. Our bedroom now smells like an Anthro store. Which is totally fine with me.

3. Klean Kanteen. I'm really bad about drinking water. I'm the girl who never drinks anything with her meals, just because I don't think of it! I've really been trying, however, to be better about getting hydrated and my Klean Kanteen helps. I keep it filled on my desk and typically go through two a day. Not sure if that meets my water quota for the day, but at least it's better then where I was!

4. Carry On by Fun. I've listened to this song 20 times a day for the last week. And I'm not sick of it yet. Take a listen!

5. The Hunger Games series. OK, I'll admit it. I was that person who was realllllly skeptical of this series. I never got into Harry Potter or Twilight, so it's kind of amazing I even picked up the first Hunger Games book. But once I did I was HOOKED. The stories are so addicting, just like everyone says. I'm on book three now, and I'm going to be sad when it's over. I'll be doing a GoodReads review soon!

So what are YOUR favorite things this month?