Link Up: 5 on Friday

Today I'm linking up with  A. Liz Adventures, Caroline Charm, Hello! Happiness, and The Good Life Blog for 5 on Friday. 

<ONE> My favorite YouTube beauty guru, Talia Joy Castellano earned her wings Tuesday morning at the young age of 13 years old. Despite battling cancer for 6 years of her young life she was able to leave behind a legacy, a story that has personally inspired me.. Talia has taught me that no matter what life throws at you, you always have the choice to be happy, to make your dreams come true and watching her has been amazing. I will always be thankful to Talia for sharing her life with me through her YouTube videos and other social media sites. Thank you Talia for all that you've taught me. Rest In Peace Sweet Angel! 

<TWO> I can't believe Intervention on A&E had it's series finale last night. I've been watching this show since Season 1 and each time I cry. Sometimes I cry tears of joy and other times tears of sadness. If you've ever had an addict in your life you can relate to the people in this show. The tears start flowing the most when the song starts playing and the show the person clean and sober. It's so touching. I know the show has run it's course... you would have to live under a rock not to know that you're on Intervention, but I will still miss it. 

<THREE> I finally sent in the paperwork to get a new passport, since I got married and have a new last name. Jonathon told me last night that he's been looking at places to go on vacation! So, hopefully that means we'll be going somewhere out of the country very soon!

<FOUR> I'm having the hardest time trying to find a coffee table and end tables to go with my sofa and chair. Everything I see is either way too expensive or doesn't look chic enough. I'm at a loss. I don't want to settle for something unless I absolutely love it. Jonathon and I both would like to have a cocktail ottoman for our coffee table, but I am having a hard time finding one. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

<FIVE> Stir fry! This is our easy to make, go-to meal. We've made it a few times and I think we finally have the stir fry perfected! The hardest part is waiting 20 minutes for the rice to cook. Does anyone know if it's easier to use a rice maker versus cooking it in a pot on the stove top? Let me know!

Have a safe and fabulous weekend my friends!

RIP TaliaJoy18

I was truly heartbroken to hear of Talia's passing yesterday. This little girl has inspired millions of people around the world including me. Even though I never personally met Talia she captured my heart with her spunky personality and ability to live life to the fullest despite battling cancer. I adored every minute I spent watching Talia in her YouTube videos. Thank you Talia for all that you've taught me and for allowing me to get to know you through YouTube. I'll forever hold you in my heart and always remember to "just keep swimming".

Dining Room Wish List

I long to have a beautiful dining room filled with my precious little treasures. Unfortunately, those precious little treasures are oh so expensive! Here are a few items that I would love to own someday:

One I inherited the most charming fine china from Jonathon’s grandmother, but if I could buy another set of china I would most definitely get this set by Kate Spade.

Two I really LOVE the Kelsey Waterford crystal glasses. If I ever have money to blow it will most definitely be on this set!. I love how feminine and elegant they look. I know my future daughter or granddaughter will love to inherit these… now I just need to convince Jonathon that these would make the perfect heirloom!

Three Again, if I fall into money I will purchase this most elegant pitcher by Arthur Court. Isn’t it just beautiful?

Four Everyone needs a soup tureen right? I registered for the Flutes and Pearls Wilton Armetale serveware and sadly did not receive this, but I do love the other pieces I own. The thing that I love about the Wilton Armetale serveware is that it is really quite functional unlike many other serveware with the same look. You can put Wilton Armetale on the stove or in the oven to warm your food and you can even put in the fridge… all the while the pieces still look fabulous. If you’re getting married, I would highly recommend registering for this item. You won’t regret it!

What are your favorite dining room treasures?

Wilton Armetale Serveware, Flutes and Pearls Soup Tureen
macys.com

kate spade new york June Lane Five-Piece Place Setting
katespade.com

Arthur Court Grape Pitcher
macys.com

Waterford Kelsey Goblet
scullyandscully.com

Weekend Update

Happy Monday! Boy did this weekend really fly by! It felt like the weekend was here and then gone all in a split second. I so wish I didn’t have to go back to work today.

Friday night we went to the Barenaked Ladies concert. Ben Folds Five and Guster were the openers. I had never seen any of these bands live before and wasn’t sure what to expect, especially considering they were much more popular in the late 90s, but I can honestly say that I was pleasantly surprised. These bands put on a great show! I love it when bands engage with their audience and Barenaked Ladies were great at it. Everyone in the crowd was cracking up and having a good time. This was probably one of the most entertaining concerts I’ve been to in quite a while. I highly recommend checking them out if you get the chance.

We had so much fun Friday night… we forgot to take pictures. Bummer! We also had so much fun that we slept in until 1030 am on Saturday which is reeeaaaallllly late for us. It was great being able to sleep in, but when you sleep in that late it feels like you’ve already missed half the day. Other than the concert we had a fairly laid back weekend and didn’t do much else.

How was your weekend? 

Turkey Stuffed Peppers

We recently tried a new recipe that I found on Life with Elizabeth. Although this recipe was a little time consuming it was delicious. My advice to you would be to cut the peppers and everything the night before instead of doing it all at once like we did.

All in all this recipe was great and  we will definitely make it again. 

5 on Friday: Link Up

Today I'm linking up with A. Liz Adventures, Carolina Charm, Hello! Happiness, and The Good Life Blog for 5 on Friday.

<ONE> Our new sofa and chair have finally arrived! I am so obsessed with them and can't wait to fill up the rest of the room!

<TWO> We saw This Is the End on our anniversary (which I forgot to mention in our Anniversary Weekend post). It was so hilarious! We were laughing nonstop and even after the movie was over we were still laughing. 

<THREE> My southern monogram that I ordered from GroopDealz finally arrived. Should I paint it white or give it a punch of color?

<FOUR> I discovered TedTalks on Netflix after a recommendation from a YouTube video. The videos are educational yet interesting and sometimes inspirational. I highly recommend it. I think you can watch some of the videos on www.ted.com. The videos can sometimes be so moving that I find myself crying. Check it out!

<FIVE> I also discovered Pretty Little Liars on Netflix. I'm already on season 3. I know this show is probably for teenagers, but I just can't help myself. I must give you this warning... since I've started watching this show I've been a little more jumpy than usual and panic anytime I get text message. So you've been warned this show may make you a little paranoid. Ha!

I hope everyone is having a fabulous day.

Lots of love,

Melissa

Anniversary Weekend

We kicked off our anniversary weekend by attending our dear friend Zhi's baby shower. That's right! Jonathon went to a baby shower! Co-ed baby showers are becoming more and more popular, but this was the first one we've ever attended and we honestly had a great time. It was cute how some of the guys got excited when Zhi opened their gifts.

For our anniversary we went to dinner at Michael Symon's Roast at the Westin Book Cadillac in Downtown Detroit. 

I had the Walleye with bacon, potato, peas, herb salad. 

Jonathon had the Smoked Pork Chop with polenta, pickled chilies, and BBQ onions. 

For dessert we had Blueberry and Peach Crisp with ice cream.

The food was truly amazing! It's rare that I'll eat and entire plate of food, but this place made it easy. We literally had nothing left on our plates. 

After dinner, we cut into our one year old wedding cake. Neither of us couldn't believe how well it had held up over the course of a year. Surprisingly it still tasted pretty darn good too. Jonathon actually had a second helping the next day. Ha! 

Overall it was a wonderful anniversary spent with my favorite person ever. Life can't get much better than that. 

Our First Anniversary

June 30, 2013: 365 days later
Jonathon…
It's here, our 1 year anniversary! My how time flies. I feel like it was just yesterday we were getting ready to tie the knot and I had a stomach full of butterflies in anticipation of seeing you that day-I couldn't wait to walk down that aisle. If someone had told me what all would transpire during our first year of marriage, I would laugh at them and tell them no way! These past 12 months have been an absolute whirlwind.Though I may not say it all the time and I might drive you crazy sometimes, just know that I thank my lucky stars each and everyday for you... as long as we have each other, there is nothing we can't overcome. Cheers to our first year of marriage and I hope we have 50 more just as exciting as this one.
I love you.