I Guess It Could Be Worse

Can we just talk about how insane this week has been??

First things first, I've been super busy at my full-time job (why is everyone selling their houses this week??)
I cannot even tell you how many brochures and postcards and flyers (Oh my!) hat I have made for our agents this week. Plus, I'm taking over some of the corporate marketing since another marketing production assistant is going part-time. This week has been CRAZY.

Then there's the fact that I've been trying to get better about eating at home, so every night when I come home I spend probably an hour cooking when I would usually be relaxing on my sofa with a quesarito. And that relaxation would be accompanied by a few hours of watching The Big Bang Theory Re-Runs.
Well, NOT ANYMORE!
My roommate and I recently decided to get rid of cable, so every time I turn on the television I get a screen full of fuzz and a heart full of disappointment.
But don't worry too much. We might be getting Directv by the end of the month!

To make all of this even worse (is that even possible??) I started coming down with something Wednesday.
And it has progressively gotten worse and worse and today I feel like death.
Hopefully I'll be able to make a doctor's appointment for when I get off work.
One of my lovely friends agreed to cover my shift at Mellow Mushroom so I can go! Hooray!

My focus for next week?
Less stress.
More relaxation.
Less sickness.

Let's hope I can see it through!

Future Endeavors

 Okay, so I'm thinking of starting a little Etsy shop!

I paint, design, do paper crafts (think invitations, thank yous, paper boxes) and a bit of sewing, so I think it might be a good idea!

I have to set up a sort of "business plan" and starting working out when I'll work on the projects and stuff before I even set the shop up, so there's plenty of work for me to do. I also think I might wait until I get a new computer so I can better run my programs and such (I'm looking at this one. What do you think?)

Once I have everything finalized and I have the shop all set up, I'll be sure to post about it! 
This will be a way for me to have a creative outlet AND make a little extra money on the side! I'm pretty excited.

Has anyone else set up an Etsy shop? I definitely need some tips before I hit the ground running!

Think Pink!

As I'm sure many of you know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month!

I'm not able to participate in fundraisers like I usually do, because of my job, so I'm sporting the pink in the office!

I'll be wearing my "Think Pink" ribbon that the ZTA chapter at my University chapter passes around every where for the rest of the month.
And I'll definitely be donating to Susan G. Komen!

Be sure to look around your area for any fundraising participation options so that you can help increase awareness and join the fight for a cure! And don't forget to make a statement by sporting your pink!

Handling The World's Worst Coworker

I'm sure we've all been here.

There's that one person in the office who just doesn't sit with you. She's rude; she's obnoxious; she's just flat out AWFUL.

Or he. 

(It just happens to be a she in my case)

How do you handle the person who speaks so condescendingly toward you and your fellow coworkers? How do you get her to stop stealing your desk supplies? And how do you get her to realize that the world doesn't revolve around her?

Well, I haven't quite figured it out yet. 

But I think I'm on my way!

My main firepower right now? Being as nice as I can be.

We've all heard it: "Kill them with kindness"

Well, so far it's working. She seems pretty startled and occasionally returns  the kindness. 

WEIRD.

My other method? Honesty. I tell her what she can and can't do in our office. She is slowly coming around and realizing that this isn't her old company; she is not the boss anymore and she needs to learn how to deal with that.

Does anyone else have a coworker that is extremely difficult to deal with? (I'm sure you do!!)

Let me know your best methods for handling them so I can try to apply them to my current situation.

I appreciate any suggestions!

My Sunday Funday!

Do you remember this post about budgeting that I posted just yesterday?

Well, in that same day I managed to reinforce the reason I need budgeting help!
Between my trips to TJMaxx, Michaels, WalMart, and IKEA, I spent entirely too much! But I saved a bundle too, so that counts, right?

Okay, not really.

Despite my obvious lack of self control, I did a lot of crafting this weekend! SO excited to show you!

First, I made up this cute little centerpiece using a craft pumpkin and some artificial floral picks! It looks super cute on my coffee table and matches my leaf garland! How perfect.

My other project?

Turning this:

Image from IKEA's US Website

Into THIS:

Okay, so it wasn't much of a change.

But it's amazing what a few coats of gold paint can do!

Aaaand the final touches:

It's perfect!! In the little drawer I've got the rest of our shot glasses (you didn't think we only had four, surely!) and our bottle openers and wine corks. 

I'm sure everyone else has a DIY project that they've been working on! Tell me all about it! I love getting new ideas for decorating my apartment; it's pretty dull at the moment!

Fall Fashion

I recently read this post over at allisonleighann.com about what she's anticipating for Fall and it got me thinking about my favorite aspects of Autumn!

1. First and foremost, fall flavors. Especially pumpkin. Yep, I am that girl. Give me some pumpkin pie, a pumpkin muffin, and a pumpkin spiced latte and I am one happy woman.
   Then, of course, there's the seasonal beers.
   Sam Adam's Octoberfest?
   Hands down the best part about Fall. No contest!
   
2. Bonfires. Yep. Who doesn't love sitting around a bonfire, preparing to roast marshmallows? No one? That's what I though. The smell, the crackling, and the beautiful light; what's not to love?
   
3. Corn mazes! Now, I'm not one for those haunted corn mazes. There are very few events in which I'm okay being scared willingly (see below,) and corn mazes are definitely not it. I just love getting all snuggled up in my Fall clothes and wandering through the corn maze with friends and family. Bonus points if there's a hay ride!!
   
4. Scarowinds!! Scarowinds is when Carowinds becomes absolutely festive for Halloween and it is perfect. Everything is decorated and they have "cast members" who wander around the park and scare you, plus they have little "haunted house" type things that you can walk through all over the park! My favorite thing to do is talk to the monsters; some of them get a little startled and that's a nice turn of events! Oh, and I definitely can't forget to mention: the rides are open. Want to wander through a haunted high school and then hop on a thrill ride? GO FOR IT.
   
5. Fall fashion. I will be the first to admit how much I hate cold weather. If it could be 80+ degrees every day for the rest of forever I'd be mostly happy. But I would miss Fall clothes. I am so in love with the sweaters and boots and scarves and everything in between. Give me a good Fall wardrobe and I'm one happy girl...as soon as I get over that nip in the air.

Now I know everyone else out there has their favorite things about Fall! If you post your own to your blog, don't hesitate to share the link in the comments so I can go take a look! I'd love to see it!

Budgeting?

You may have noticed that there's a question mark following that.

Why, you ask?

Well, this isn't a post full of suggestions.
It's a post full of questions.

I have no idea how to budget.
You see, I'll think that I'm doing really well and I'll have a budget set up for the month.
But then the month actually happens.
And I don't stick to the budget.

I am the queen of impulse purchases. And that is starting to wreak havoc on my finances!
I definitely need to get my stuff together so I can actually start saving (instead of buying that cute Kate Spade bag that I want. But it was the surprise sale, so that makes it okay, right? Yeah, not really.)

So here I am. Asking you.
What do you recommend?
How do you budget?
And more importantly, how do you stick to your budget?

That is probably the biggest struggle in my life right now and I seriously need to get this budgeting thing under control!