Help a girl out!

Hi dolls! I need your help! Or I guess a better way to put it is a fellow blogger needs your help. She is Megan from Style Me Swanky and she and her fiance Brandon are finalists in a contest to win money towards their dream wedding. They are so cute and such a deserving couple! Megan's blog is one of the first I ever started following and I just love her style! Please click on the link below and vote for Megan and Brandon at the bottom of the page. You can vote once a day! I know she would appreciate it!

Thanks guys!

xoxo Olivia

http://nathanpeelphoto.com/check-it

Raleigh Favorites

Hello lovelies! I thought I'd share a few of my favorite things in Raleigh. I don't know how many of you live here, but for those of you who do, these are some places you just must check out. For those of you who don't, bear with me, and hopefully you can visit one day to check these goodies out!

Let's start out with my favorite restaurant in Raleigh. Sono!

Check our their website and yummy menu!

This is no surprise to those of you who have read any of my previous posts. To say I'm obsessed with Sono would be the understatement of the century. I choose to go there for my birthday, special occasions, nights I don't feel like cooking, and I even force Dave to go get takeout from there when I'm sick. Thankfully, all my friends and family share in this obsession with me, so I always have someone to go with me when I get the urge....which is weekly. Their sushi is TO DIE FOR. Seriously people, best sushi I've ever had. They have something on their menu for everyone, even those of you that aren't sushi fans. ( I will never understand these individuals) My favorite at Sono is the Piano Roll.

Piano Roll. Mouthwatering.

I get two every time and inevitably devour mine in about 2 minutes while everyone else is slowly and normally eating theirs. Whoops. Dave's favorite is the Crunchy Diablo and my dad always get the Sono Roll and the Screaming O. If you live in Raleigh then for the love go there for dinner this weekend. You will NOT be disappointed!

As for shopping, if you haven't checked out Gena Chandler in North Hills then you have missed out in your life.

Borrowed these cute photos from their Facebook page.

1. They have the best clothes in all the latest styles and most coveted brands. They carry DVF, Tibi, Alice & Olivia, Haute Hippie, and many others just to name a few. The clothes are always to die for and you are sure to walk out in something unique and special and that brings out your inner fashionista.

2. Every time I go I inevitably find something that I convince myself I cannot live without...and I'm usually right. Most of my favorite items in my closet have come from GC and I always receive compliments on the pieces I've purchased from there.

How cute are the bags they put your newly purchased goodies in??

3. Not only are their clothes perfection, but the girls that work there are always SO sweet and helpful, just like the owners Gena and Chandler. You feel so welcomed from the second you step in their boutique. It makes your shopping experience so much more enjoyable and you makes you want to go back.

If the outside of their boutique isn't enough to make you go in then I dont know what will.

Also, their boutique is SO cute. I love it. Go there and get yourself something cute to wear this weekend to Sono. You'll be hooked!

I could not possibly leave out Gigi's Cupcakes in my Raleigh favorites list.

Check out their website so you can see all their yummy cupcakes!

Oh my heavenly. These cupcakes are so decadent. Nothing makes my weekend feel complete like a trip to Gigi's. It's the perfect place to go with your girlfriends for an afternoon treat or for after dinner dessert with your boy. The shop is so adorable and the cupcakes are just as cute. My favorite is the White Midnight Magic. YUM.

White Midnight Magic Cupcake. Get in my life!

They always have so many yummy options to choose from, you'll definitely find the one the calls your name as soon as you walk in. Go there after Sono for a cupcake, you will thank me later.

Look at that, I've just give you an entire day of things to do on your Saturday. Start with shopping at GC, follow it up with dinner at Sono, then grab a cupcake from Gigi's to end your perfect day. You are welcome girls!

xoxo Olivia

It's been a long time but I'm back in town...

Hello queens! Sorry I've been so MIA lately...I've been so busy with working and being sick (which I still am. BOO) All of a sudden winter is upon me which is giving me a terrible case of Spring fever. ( and a sinus infection ) Thought I'd share of few pops of color pieces that I need in my wardrobe come Spring time.

Rebecca Minkoff Becky Jacket

How perfect is this Rebecca Minkoff pink jacket? Oh how I die for you. Pair it with a white tank, skinnies, a nude heel and some gold jewelry. Love at first sight.

Kenneth Jay Lane Enamel Branch Cuff

Look at this gorg cuff. How bright and springy. I'd like to pair this with tan skin. Who knows when I'll be able to make that happen...sigh.

J.Crew 3" Chino Short

These bright pink neon shorts are perfect for Spring!

DV by Dolce Vita 'Archer' Sandal

Dolce Vita always makes the best sandals, and this lovely turquoise makes my mouth water. These will be mine this weekend. And for the price, these sandals are a steal!

Franco Sarto 'Rizzo' Sandal

How could I not share this perfect sandal? I saw these in Nordstrom yesterday and I was immediately drawn to them. I like the the thick strappyness it has going on, the heel is not too high (which is perfect for us tall gals) , and the color is to die for. Once again, I would like to pair this with tan legs. Sun, where are you?! Franco Sarto has made some of my favorite shoes. I already own three other pairs of his heels and they are all fab. They are super stylish yet comfy. That my friends is not an easy combo to come by.

What are some of your must haves for Spring?

xoxo Olivia

Survey Monday

Hi queens! I have such a busy Monday today since I don't have the day off of work...therefore I have no time to be creative...whoops. So here is a little survey so you can get to know me a bit better!

1. What time did you get up this morning? 7:30am

2. How do you like your steak? I rarely eat steak...but when I do I order it medium

3. What was the last movie you saw at the theater? Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Holy intense movie. Mom and Dad you would NOT enjoy this movie.

This is Rooney Mara before her Girl with the Dragon Tattoo transformation...

And here she is after...now that's an insane makeover!

4. What is your favorite TV show? I guess if I had to only pick one it would be Modern Family.

This show is so hysterical! So glad they won a Golden Globe last night!

5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? Richmond, Va or Charlotte, NC. Hint Hint Dave

6. What did you have for breakfast? I have the same thing every morning...I'm definitely a creature of habit. Special K Red Berries cereal all the way!

I get the massive box from Costco. Delish

7. Do you wear glasses or contacts? Nope. I have great vision. Lucky me. Even though I remember wishing I had to wear contacts when I was young because I wanted a different eye color....ridiculous.

8. What food do you despise? Mushrooms. Nastyyy.

9. Favorite Place to Eat? Sono in Raleigh. I know I've blogged about this twice already but seriously you guys...best. sushi. EVER!

10. Favorite dressing? I'd have to say balsamic or honey mustard. Really just depends on what kind of salad I'm eating. If it has chicken on it (minus a caesar salad) it has to have honey mustard on it!

11.What kind of vehicle do you drive? Mazda Tribute...hopefully I'll have to change this next month to a Hyundai Sonata!

12. What are your favorite clothes? I love cold weather clothes wayyy more than warm weather. I'm obsessed with leggings, oversized sweaters, and scarves.

13. Where would you visit, this weekend, if you had the chance? DC. I LOVE DC. So many things to do and so many shops and great restaurants. love love love.

14. Where would you want to retire? Probably wherever my family was...so lets make that the beach future kids and grandkids, ok?

This view will do I suppose...

15. What is your desktop photo? Random photos of places and things. One of the ones that come on the computer.

16. Where were you born? Nashville, NC

17. What is your favorite sport to watch? Basketball. I used to only enjoy watching college basketball.GO HEELS!. But now Dave has gotten me into the NBA. GO BULLS!

18. How many siblings? My gorgeous younger sister. She's all I need :)

19. Favorite pastime/hobby? Shopping. Cooking. Reading. Cleaning (yes cleaning...thanks mom)

20. Coffee Drinker? NO. You do not want to give me caffeine. My body literally rejects it and I shake and talk about 90mph. Embarrassing.

21. Are you a morning person or a night person? I'm not really either. haha. I get sleepy around 10:30 and want to go to be immediately. I'm not a joy in the mornings either. Wake me up at your own risk.

22. Do you have any pets? My tiny queen, piper!

I mean come on...it doesn't get cuter than that!

23. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share? I wish!

24. What did you want to be when you were little? A lawyer. That didn't pan out...but now I'm thinking of taking classes to be certified as a paralegal...that's kind of close, right?

25. What is your favorite color? Blue and purple. However my favorite color to wear is black.

26. Are you a cat or dog person? Dog, duh. Sorry cat lovers...

27. Are you married? Nope.

28. Always wear your seat belt? Absolutely!

29. Been in a car accident? I had someone back into me once while I was parked in the driveway...does that count?

30. Any pet peeves? Where do I begin? Shoes in the house, dirty mirrors, dirty kitchen, people singing songs they dont know the lyrics to...I'll stop there.

31. Favorite Pizza Toppings? I'm so boring...pepperoni!

32. Favorite Flower? I have a few favorites: succulents, hydrangeas, roses

Most people aren't super familiar with succulents so here ya go...aren't they awesome looking?

33. Favorite ice cream? I don't really eat ice cream very often...but when I do I love Ben and Jerry's Phish Food FroYo

34. Favorite fast food restaurant? Chick-fil-A

35. How many times did you fail your driver's test? Passed on the first try

36. From whom did you get your last email? Megs. I love you!

37. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? Nordstrom, Pottery Barn, or Uniquities!

Hope you all have a fabulous Monday! Happy MLK Day!

xoxo Olivia

Friday Fun

Who doesn't love Friday? Am I right? I have a couple of things happening to me today that I'm just so excited about!

First off, my dad is coming to Raleigh just to take me and my sister out to dinner!

How handsome is my daddy??

How sweet is that? I can't wait to spend some quality time with him. I definitely don't get to see my parents as often as I would like,(move to Raleigh you guys!) so I think it is so special he is driving all this way just for dinner with his two girls. Now that's a great dad!

After dinner with my dad I get to bring my sister back with me for the weekend! YAY!

I also have a supermodel sister...no big deal.

She goes to school only half an hour away but I still don't get to see her often enough. It will be so nice getting to do sister things all weekend. She lets me be weird and I let her be weird. It works out well :)

I also get to prepare for a very special visit tomorrow! My sweet and gorgeous friend Dawn and her husband Luke are coming to Raleigh for dinner tomorrow night! I haven't seen Dawn since her wedding which was almost a year ago!

All us bridesmaids dancing with the bride :)

(Minus the 30 min I saw her in November while I was in the hospital...but that doesn't count!) Dawn and I met years ago under very odd circumstances but became instant friends and have stayed friends ever since! I just can't wait to catch up with her and Luke and spend some quality time together! It's so nice to have a friend where you can go months without seeing each other but then just pick up right where things left off :)

I hope you all have wonderful weekend plans!

xoxo Olivia

Weekend Recap

Hello lovelies! Hope everyone had a fantastic weekend! Mine went by too quickly as usual.

Friday I got off work a little earlier than expected so I went with Dave to look at cars. Mine is going to have to be put down in the next few months unfortunately, so I thought I'd get a head start on the process. I have narrowed it down to what I want. A black Hyundai Sonata. I test drove this baby and just loved it!

Saturday I went to the mall to go into Sephora. I am OBSESSED with this store. I have to limit myself to what I buy in there because I could just go crazy! This trip I picked up 3 goodies.

Number one:

Sephora Collection colorful pallet in Taupe Model 06.

Number 2:

The Naked Eye eyeshadow kit by Too Faced.

Number three:

Brow Duality by Anastasia.

Saturday night Dave and I had a double date with Matt and Megs. You remember them from my NYE post, right? We always have so much fun with them. Saturday we chose to go to my very favorite restaurant, Sono.

Sono is an amazinggg sushi restaurant in Raleigh that I'm a tad obsessed with. I always get the piano roll and Dave gets the crunchy diablo. If you live in the area you should go. You will NOT be disappointed. BEST SUSHI EVER!

Matt and Dave talked about sports at dinner while Megan and I obnoxiously whined about how hungry we were and made hand gestures as to how we were going to chop our sushi up and shove it in into our mouths the second it was put on the table. Standard and not at all embarrassing... I somehow managed to eat 14 pieces of sushi. For shame. Whatever it was delish.

Sunday I spent most of the morning relaxing and doing laundry. SOO exciting. Then I met up with my mom and younger sister at Southpoint, a mall in Durham.

How gorgeous are my mom and sister?

Mom was dropping sister off at UNC so we met up for a little while and walked around the mall. I found a pair of shoes I desperately want for working out on machines.

The New Balance Minimus.

They are mainly for walking but can be used on the elliptical and bike. They are so light weight and comfy. I'm definitely considering this purchase. What do ya think?

My Monday has felt extra long since I have a migraine. BOO. Can't wait to relax on the couch and watch some recorded Modern Family.

Obsessed with this show!

Hope you all had a fabulous weekend and were able to fit in lots of queen things!

xoxo Olivia

"These are a few of my favorite things"

Can't you just hear Maria singing this to the Von Trapp children?

Hi dolls! Now that Christmas is over, there is a little emptiness left inside of me. I miss the lights, the smells, the music...but the one remnant of Christmas that still remains are my Christmas gifts! I thought I'd share with you a few of my favorite things I got this year, as some of you might want to add them to your list as well.

I must say, Dave did quite well this year. Two of his gifts make my list! The first would be the Kindle Fire.

The Kindle Fire is seriously awesome. You can watch movies, tv shows, play games, check your email,twitter, facebook, (my blog) and the most obvious would be read! It is so nice to not have to run to Barnes and Noble and search through all of their books and try to find the right section and right row and ask for help etc. I love just being able to search "Bestsellers" or "Books you might like." It's wonderful. It is also in COLOR! This gift is a WIN altogether. You want the Kindle Fire. You NEED the Kindle Fire.

Second gift from Dave that I love would be my Oster Electric Wine Opener. Yes people, I cannot open a bottle of wine the normal way. I mess up the cork, the wine tool is confusing... it's just bad in general. The only time I can have wine is if there is someone around to open the bottle for me. For shame. Enter this handy little invention.

Nifty, right?

All I have to do is place the wine opener directly over the top of the bottle, push the down button and once it has drilled all the way into the cork and stops, I just press the up button and VOILA, I have myself an opened bottle of wine. Magic.

I love pjs. In fact, I change into pjs the second I get home from work. I'm sure everyone around me appreciates this... However, a good pair of pajamas is hard to find for a tall girl like me. Hellooo Victoria's Secret The Dreamer Flannel Pajama.

(I do not look like this when I wear them)

Not only are they insanely comfy and come in so many adorable patterns, but they come in LONG girls. You have no idea what that means for us tall girls. I got a pair from my grandma last year and wore them out. I'm talking holes in the shirt. Cute right? No. I needed a new pair, and I was so happy to get the adorable red and white polka dot ones under the tree. I have worn them every night. Don't worry, I wash them during the day. (sometimes) Apparently now they are on sale so get yourself a pair of these! You will be so glad you did!

I also got 2 new pieces of luggage from Mom and Dad! This was desperately needed. My old suitcase had a broken handle due to the lovely airline people and could only roll if I bent down and pulled the attached fabric handle. This was awkward and made people stare at me. So for Christmas I received...

the lovely 28in. Expandable Upright

and the 17in Roll Along Tote by Vera Bradley in Mocha Rouge.

So cute! The smaller size is the perfect carry on and the larger one will be perfect for my overpacking habit. These suitcases are awesome because they come with a warranty and are tear resistant...which is great since the airlines seem to throw luggage around like it can't be damaged. I cannot wait to use these! Maybe this gives me an excuse to plan a trip somewhere...

Why yes, I would love to go to the Four Seasons in Bora Bora!

I hope you all have lots of goodies you are treasuring now that Christmas is over! Valentines is up next, so maybe add one of these to that list! And if you don't have a valentine then buy them for yourself because you're awesome! I have done that more times than I care to admit :) Happy Thursday queens!

xoxo Olivia