Halloweekend

Happy Halloween, everyone! I’m about to let you in on a little secret. One that will make me quite vulnerable and susceptible to many a prank joke. But hey, in the spirit of Halloween {no pun intended} I shall let you in on one of my biggest fears. However, not yet!

First we need to talk about COSTUMES! In case you didn’t guess it last week, I dressed up as…

POCAHONTAS!

I never find the costume, the costume finds me and that was certainly the case this year! The entire costume {minus the boots and necklaces} cost me under $25!

The costumes we wore this weekend sure made for awesome conversation and quotes all night.

We had to find creative ways to try and cover up my friend’s reflective tape, haha!

From me being tempted to go barefoot the classic Pocahontas way {don’t worry I didn’t} to everyone yelling “CABS ARE HEEEEERE” in their Jersey Rhode Island accent all night – it was hilarious!

Once we got to the party, a guy even said to me, “Oh, Pocahontas! I like your costume… because I’m a Redskins fan.” My response? “Oh. Me too!”

These ladies were tweeting all the funny things going on throughout the night so I had to catch them in action. They totally need to become bloggers! ;)

Everyone loves Pauly D!

And just in case you’re wondering, I only sang a small part of “Just Around the Riverbend” :) The Pocahontas soundtrack is amazing.

It was a great night {minus the political debate that I somehow got sucked into thanks to Pauly} Never talking politics again. Aside from that though, I wish every weekend could be Halloweekend! Dressing up as Pocahontas was a blast. I think it’s my favorite costume to date! {Probably because she’s a fellow Virginia girl, ha} But, just for fun, here’s what I may have looked like in past years:

So, now I get to tell you about that big fear of mine. Yes, I’m a huge scaredy-cat and many things like take-off in a plane and lightning scare me. However, there are only a few things that haunt my dreams and hinder my actions at certain points. Tornadoes, spiders, and… Michael Myers.

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I’ve seen so many scary movies it’s not even funny. Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th… those movies are “eh.” I spend more time laughing at the special effects. But Halloween? I can’t handle those movies, all because of Michael. His height, that white face, the hair, the creepy way he just randomly appears and tilts his head to the side. No can do.

Here’s what I mean:

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Seriously, you guys. This is what happens in my dreams. He appears, I fight to kill him, and then he secretly rises up like the above picture, ready to slay me. So, what do I do? Something like this:

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And I end up letting him kill me.

Anyway, today is Halloween. That means Michael comes out tonight. Fingers crossed that I make it out alive and I’m back tomorrow to blog. Hopefully I do because I have the rest of my Halloweekend to share with you!! Air and Scare was a blast and I’ll show you the Halloween goodies I made, so be sure to check back tomorrow for Part Two :)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

P.S. I’m listening to Christmas music right now.

A Fancy Halloween

It’s Halloweekend, all! Again, I’m blaming all my acting/theatre/drama days for my love of Halloween and dressing up. Okay, so I played dress-up pretty much every day of my life until I was thirteen ten years old. And when I wasn’t playing dress-up, I was in a dance competition or play in some elaborate costume. True story. So, you must understand that walking around in non-costume clothing is just too boring for this lass. I promise I’m normal.

ANYWAY.

{av} over at {long distance loving} has given us the chance to design the costume we’d wear if we could wear ANYTHING at all. So, of course I assumed I’d have a never-ending budget and be going to some fancy-schmancy NYC costume event. I’ve always wanted to go to a masquerade ball. There’s something about the mystery and intrigue of those masks and the glamour of the dresses. {Clearly this didn’t work out for Jeff in The Bachelorette, eh?}

But, it would work for me. Or so I’d like to imagine :)

 

I wish I could be a masquerading princess everyday of my life, wearing glorious whites and golds like above. However, I’m sure I’d get a few odd glares.

 

So, because my budget is NOT limitless, I stepped my real-life costume down a notch or two or ten.
I’ll give you a hint…
This guy may or may not be my “boyfriend”

 

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I can’t believe how little I had to spend on my homemade costume! The Bargain Blonde would be proud ;)

 

I’ll be back in DC on Saturday to go with my baby niece to the Air and Scare event at the Air and Space Museum. Gosh, I hope none of those ghouls sneak up on me. I know they can smell my fear. They always do. I have stories. Keep your fingers crossed for me, will ya?

 

What are YOUR Halloweekend plans?

New Look and Bloggy Business

Ta-da!

What do you think of the new header? I figured since this life of mine has been going through some changes, why not spruce up the ole header too? I’m sure it’s kind of hard to tell what my favorite colors are! Ha. So, just keep that in mind for my birthday coming up in ohhhh… two months ;)

Also, you know my little blog button over on the right-hand sidebar? I just wanted to re-mention that the code used to be wrong for it and has since been corrected, however, it looks like some of you sweet ladies still have the broken code :( If you do have my button, when you get a chance, could you update it with the code below? It’d make my day :) You know… just a little necessary blogger maintenance!

<center><a href="http://lifeisasunset.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="Life is a Sunset" src="http://i1178.photobucket.com/albums/x372/lifeisasunset/SunsetBeachButton.jpg" /></a></center>

Speaking of bloggy business, I just want to take a moment to say how grateful I am for this community. I’ll save the reason I started blogging for another post, but let me just say this:
I’ve chosen to really take my time with this blog.
When I started it, I was married and living in Utah.
Life has since changed. The roads are still rocky and the pathways unclear.

 

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I have felt the same about my blog.
I wanted to gain a firm grip on my “voice,” my blogging goals, and what I wanted this blog to be and become.
That has taken some time for me and I had decided that until I knew where this blog was headed and had a solid foundation {like, really solid}, I wasn’t going to spend a dime on a blog makeover. This has also been the reason why I haven’t sponsored other blogs yet.
I knew that in an intro post, I wouldn’t be able to say, “Hi, my name is Chelsea and I blog about A, B, and C.” And, I know that’s okay. Because my life has been ever-changing lately.
Every day is different which means every week here on Life is a Sunset is different.

But, while I figured all this out, I knew one thing for sure:
I didn’t want my blog to turn into day after day of giveaways or guest posts. Even if that meant I’d get 100 followers in one day.
I don’t want that.

I want this blog to be me.

The fact that by being me and by writing or sharing my latest desires and passions brings so many of YOU to this blog to comment or to write me an email…
Now, that’s a blessing.

Another blessing is finding so many of your blogs and building relationships with you through in-depth email conversations and chit-chat on Twitter.
I can’t even tell you how much I appreciate those of you who’ve been there for me during this time of building a new life for myself. You know who you are :) Who KNEW I’d find so many amazing women who could relate?!

Aside from this blog and this blogging community, this whole life is a blessing. I’m grateful for everyday. And every new sunset.

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If you’re just now finding me through the Fall Followers Fest, welcome! Hopefully this little blogging recap has given you an idea of the things I love most about this bloggy world and where I want this blog of mine to go :) Feel free to browse around and read about the ups and downs of my life! It sure has been a rollercoaster but along the way I’ve found the sweetest animals to foster, driven cross country, had reunions with friends, and learned some huge lessons about this life. I’d love for you to join me along this journey!

 

The Last Pins/Loves of October

Gosh, I love Pinterest. I’m so glad I’m back on board with it. It truly amazes me to see some of the things, ideas, and facts you can learn and discover on there. Why didn’t I think of that?!

I’m linking up with The Vintage Apple to show you some of my random favorites this week!

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Crown molding painted and hung up on the wall to hang your heels on. Genius!

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I mean, do I even need to say anything? I love this shower!

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1st ballet slippers. I love this idea! {Mom, we need to dig these little puppies out}

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I saw this home theatre on HGTV years ago and found it again. I mean, who doesn’t want this in their dream house? I’d be worried about the candles on the steps though!

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This has been a staple meal for me. It’s fresh, filling, and delicious! They threw some granola in too which I can’t wait to try :)

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This is absolutely amazing and true.

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I need this for next season!

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I’m totally sappy and sentimental this week with Pinterest, huh? But, seriously… how adorable is this bride with her little flower girl in the tutu? The cutest part is that she is on her tippy-toes!

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I know, I’m literally the only girl in the entire world who is not obsessed with Rachel Zoe, but I do admit, this outfit rocks. Question: Are boots like that comfortable??

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Today, I’m also linking up with Jamie for What I’m Loving Wednesday!

I’m loving closets that are not my own but that maybe {just maybe} I can have someday?

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I’m loving challenging myself with weights at the gym

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I used to only care about cardio but now I focus on both. I’m fascinated with seeing the definition in my muscles as I lift!

I’m loving my faithful bloggy commenters/emailers who show me love on every post even when I’m 700+ items behind on my Google Reader :( I’m like, pretty sad about how little I’ve been able to blog lately, but, life just gets in the way sometimes…

I’m loving that {av} from {long distance loving} has put together some amazing blogger meet-ups and that I’ll be attending the #bloggerblitz right here in DC! That pretty lady has some serious talent :) DC bloggers, hop on over to her blog to find out the details!

That about sums it up for this Wednesday. Feel free to find me on Pinterest :)

It Was Great C-N-U

What a weekend! I realize that the only people who are going to get the punch-line in this title are the people I went to college with! C-N-U… get it? Seein’ you! Anyway, it was definitely nice to see everyone after SO long and to see how much our campus has grown. I also had the chance to meet some new sorority sisters that had joined since I graduated. So, that was amazing :)

Here are some of my favorite pictures from Saturday!

This is how you take a “family pic” in a sorority! Can’t believe how much my family has grown since I’ve been gone!!

The new Ratcliffe building! What the heck?!

It was definitely bittersweet to be back. College was a chapter in my life and I’ve met some of the greatest people there at that college of 5,000 students in Newport News :)

Oh, and it also made my entire weekend to find out that some of my sorority sisters love to stalk my blog :) It’s the little things! {Love you girls}

Fun Ideas to Try

Hi friends! I hope everyone had a great weekend and a great Monday since it’s almost over. This is the longest I’ve gone without blogging since I started. It feels weird! However, I still couldn’t skip a weekday without posting something. Tomorrow I’ll have some pictures from my college visit for Homecoming!

Today I just wanted to share a couple neat things I’ve recently read:

Lemon Water Every Morning

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I think we all know how beneficial drinking water is for our bodies, but, did you know all the benefits of drinking lemon water in the morning? I had heard that it helps in weight loss but had no idea until I read this article that it can help with several other things as well.

To briefly summarize for ya:

It balances pH. Well, in case you’re wondering having a safe pH level, helps our body heal itself. There are stories of people who have fought cancer by focusing on their body’s pH level. Crazy!

It helps keep your skin clear!

Drinking a glass of lemon water in the morning helps kick-start your digestive system for the day!

It helps with weight loss, like I mentioned. How? Well, there are a couple different reasons which you can read about in the article. One reason that was mentioned is that lemons have a fiber in them that help us stay fuller longer!

It helps control “the coffee habit” – apparently this lemon water even makes some people feel more awake than coffee. The same thing was mentioned about kicking the soda habit.

Not bad, huh? Who else is with me on trying lemon water every morning? I was a huge fan of it a couple years ago and definitely think I should get back into it. Taking good care of our bodies is so important. I’ve also been wanting to try seltzer water with fruit instead of soda! Any recommendations?

Here’s another fun thing:

DIY Scented Plug-in

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This website, Holy Crickey has a ton of DIY stuff on it, including this DIY Wallflower. If you’re familiar with Bath & Body Works, you probably know about the wallflowers – yummy plug-in fragrances. You’re also probably aware that they’re not “cheap” and can definitely add up in price after a while.

Well, thanks to this website, you can save your wallflower as soon as it’s empty, buy an oil in your favorite scent {peppermint, jasmine, rose, etc.} pour the oil into the bulb to fill about 1/3 of it and then fill the rest of the bulb with water. It sounds like an amazing, more cost-effective option if you’re on a tight budget! I’m sure you could experiment and try mixing scents together too!

Has anyone tried this before? I’m curious to know if it works as well!

Back to College

I’m SO excited! Tomorrow I’ll be headed down to my Alma Mater for Homecoming Weekend :) It has been three years since I’ve been on campus so this trip is long-overdue. Here’s a look at some of the past years at Homecoming:

 

Hmm, yeah there are three years missing but the first two years I was on the sidelines for dance team anyway and my senior year, I couldn’t find any decent pictures. Ah, well! Anyway, I’ll try my best this year to NOT wear my hair half up. Anyone see a trend with that?

My senior year, a bunch of us went on a cruise for Spring Break. Besides us, EVERY other college student was from Florida. So, when we told people we were from Virginia, we constantly were asked, “Oh, which college do you go to? Virginia or VA Tech?”

A) We don’t call the University of Virginia, “Virginia.” We call it UVA.
B) There are other colleges in Virginia besides those two. Crazy.

I went to CNU {Christopher Newport University!} A pretty newish university of about 5,000 students located in Newport News which is about the halfway point between Williamsburg and Virginia Beach aka the best place you could choose to go to college! It also just so happens to be the hometown of this guy:

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Or maybe you recognize him better here…

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But, hey we won’t get into that. He’s a “local legend.” There’s a reason why they call it Bad Newz, VA, ha.

However, you’d never know it because my school is absolutely gorgeous!

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I’ll even share a video of how far my school has come in just 50 years :)

I shall return with more pictures of the newly transformed campus and a ton of shenanigans I’m sure :)

It’s crazy but, being away from college and my college friends really made me realize how much I loved that place. I spent four years of my life there and I’m proud to say it has played a significant role in the woman that I am today. If you can’t already tell, I’m ridiculously excited to get back there this weekend! I’ll be surrounded by friends and beautiful Fall weather near the coast!

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Speaking of Fall, I’m linking up with Lauren to fill in some blanks!

1.  Nothing says fall like   crisp air and the smell of hot apple cider.

2.  My favorite autumnal tradition is     in the process of being made into a tradition. I used to have traditions when I was younger, like, saving a lot of my Halloween candy and eating it while watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade :)

3.  My favorite fall treat is    anything pumpkin really :) Maybe with a little chocolate too ;)

4. Fall makes me think of    happiness and memories   because    of all the wonderful things I’ve listed here. There’s so much to look forward to! Holidays, yummy food, awesome warm clothes, and curling up with a glass of warm or cold apple cider!

5.  Autumn free form word association, go!    Brisk air, crunchy leaves, warm/rich smells, a forest of colors, harvest, pumpkin.

6.  My go-to outfit in the fall is    dark jeans, brown boots, layers of a long-sleeved shirt, a long sweater and a jacket, with a scarf!

7.  My favorite fall holiday is (Halloween or Thanksgiving)    I’ll probably have to go with Thanksgiving because it means family, delicious food, and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Not to mention, it’s a holiday when I truly can look back on all the things I’m grateful for!

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I hope you all have a safe and wonderful weekend! I can’t wait to report back about Homecoming – too bad my CNU bloggers won’t be there!