Fathead-Larger Than Life, For Real

Please note: In exchange for this review, we received a Fathead of our choice through Canopi to display in our home. No further compensation was received; all opinions expressed are my own.
I’ve always been curious about Fathead, but never took the plunge to look into one…until now!

As a promotion through Canopi, Fathead recently gave 25 bloggers the chance to review their very own Fathead of choice, in a Larger Than Life, For Real campaign.

It’s no secret that my husband is an LSU fan - he even has his own game room dedicated to LSU (we call it his man cave). A few years ago, I painted every room in our home – except his game room. We attempted to find wall colors that matched his room décor but were unsuccessful. What better object to use on the open wall of his room than a larger than life Fathead?



The Fathead arrived in a triangle shaped box and was wrapped tight. Along with the Fathead itself, we also received a utensil to help apply the Fathead to the wall. The borders of the picture also included several smaller LSU emblems/logos which was a nice touch!



After carefully reading the instructions (which said to allow the Fathead to lie flat on the ground for several hours prior to application), we removed the photo and attempted to hang it on the wall. Notice I said “attempted”.



Despite a few mishaps…yeah, THAT happened….



…with just a little bit of teamwork, we were able to apply the eye of the tiger to the wall without any problems!  The Fathead image actually peeled apart without much effort. We also didn’t have it straight at first so we had to reposition it a few times – and still, our Fathead stuck like a charm! 



We smoothed out the photo…



Then posed for a picture with our beautiful new Fathead!

In all, the application process took about 30 minutes or so, plus time for the Fathead to lay flat for several hours.



That’s one happy LSU fan! :0)



He also applied the extra stickers to his door/wall of his game room!

Check out this collage of other bloggers who were a part of this campaign and their Fathead’s of choice. I love the portrait ones! Who knew Fathead created more than just sports emblems? I didn’t until now. Some of the photos to choose from are absolutely beautiful! You can even upload and order your OWN photo of choice…the possibilities are endless! As a runner, I can envision so many different ways to utilize Fathead on my “medal wall”. I’m definitely going to look into another Fathead in the near future!



I’d say overall, our Fathead of choice was a huge success! We’ve received a ton of compliments and everyone absolutely loves it!

Have you used Fathead as a décor option in your home? What photo/emblem did you choose?

2013 American Cancer Society Gala

Saturday night, I attended my 4th American Cancer Society Annual Gala event, and this happened to be my 2nd year as planning committee member.

Gala 2010 – Celebration of Life
Gala 2011 – A Night in Tuscany
Gala 2012 – Candles & Cocktails

Our 2013 theme played off of last year’s Candles and Cocktails theme with the subtitle, A Birthday Under the Big Top!



My husband and I got all spiffed up and really enjoyed our evening!




The ballroom



Bows made out of tickets! Too cute!



One of the most popular parts of the evening – the funnel cake station!



Delicious food!

Of course the main goal of the night was to fundraise for cancer research and have a good time while doing so – mission accomplished!

We also decided to take a few pictures by the photo booth!



My husband is a bit ridiculous at times.



We make quite a crew!



Bottoms Up was our evening entertainment. They are a band from New Orleans and totally rocked the house!

To see more from our evening, check out the video below!

Thanks for watching! 

Have you ever been to a non-profit organization Gala/Ball? What were your thoughts/favorite part of the event?

Surprise Birthday Party

On Friday, I eluded to a few special events happening in my neck of the woods over the course of the next few weeks. The “surprise” happened to involve my mother, her 60th birthday, and a surprise party. She reads my blog at times, so I didn’t want to post anything to give our secret away!

Surprise parties are something my dad and I enjoy throwing, together. We surprised my grandfather on his 90th birthday a couple of years ago and we surprised my mother on her 60th birthday just a few days ago.  Two for two, I’d say we’re getting the hang of this!

 

We had decorations…

…lots of balloons…

 

…a ton of food….

…party guests…

…cake…

…gifts…

…a birthday girl…

…and one incredible surprise!

Success! She had NO idea of what was going on!

 

We had a great night and really enjoyed spending it with friends, family, and special party guests!

Have you ever thrown a surprise party or had a surprise party thrown for you? Did the special party guest/you suspect anything?

Fitness Friday–July 26th

It’s been rather quiet around here and I have to admit, this week has not shown much for extra fitness related activities. I’m currently in planning mode – 3 events in 2 weeks, I’m fully in charge of 2 of the events and it’s INSANE. Let’s just say, I’ve gone without much running, hardly any sleep, and coffee has become my best friend.

Here’s a look at this past week:

Currently training for: Dumbo Double Dare – August 31/September 1st, Disneyland, CA

Saturday – 10 mile run with my running group
Sunday – Rest Day
Monday – A lot of walking, just not in fitness clothing or outside
Tuesday – Yardwork, lots of it
Wednesday – 2 mile run before work
Thursday –Walked most of the day, so much so my feet burned by the end of it!
Friday – Rest Day before long run Saturday

I have a new friend in my flower garden! :0)

I also worked a bit on my entryway setup. I’ve looked for wall scones for a while and finally found some I liked! Yay!

My 2 mile run before work on Wednesday was in 91% humidity which left me completely drenched. Despite the heat, it felt great to squeeze in a run!

Yesterday, I had a Mickey Mouse Rice Crispy Treat – he’s been hiding in the back of my pantry for a while now….and I’ll be able to resupply my stash soon (yay)!

So, that’s the gist of my week. I can’t wait for the weekend – two of my events are this weekend and I’m looking forward to both! One is a surprise (I’ll be able to share more next week) and the other is the American Cancer Society’s Annual Gala! Let the weekend begin! Hope you have a great one!! :0)

Blog Business Cards

Please note: Signazon provided me with a set of business cards at no cost. The opinions expressed here are my own.
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Interested in creating business cards for your blog? Read on!

Let’s travel back in time for a moment – back to the Princess Half Marathon of 2012. I attended my first ever blogger meet-up hosted by Heather. The bloggers who attended were SO nice and I really enjoyed meeting them. I knew before hand that others would bring business cards (I didn’t have any at the time), so I made up a few “taste of Louisiana” baggies, complete with a completely bootleg cardstock cutout of my blog name/url.

LAME-O. By the way, I’m sorry if you were a recipient of one of those.



Can you imagine the first thing I did when I arrived back home? Yep, I made business cards online.
Prior to creating the business cards, I searched and searched online for ideas of things to include on my card (easier said than done, there’s not a lot of information out there!). :0) It took a while (because I can be incredibly in-decisive about silly things), but I finally figured out a style/design/wording that I loved.

Things I chose to include on my blogger business card:

• My Name. If you don’t want to divulge your personal info, you don’t have to – have them printed with your first name only, or use your blog’s name instead!
• Email Address
• Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, & Pinterest info – no, these are not all necessary, but I decided to include them anyway.
• Blog URL – that one’s kind of important! :0)
• Favorite quote, picture, emblem – make it personal!

Since that time, my stock pile of business cards has dwindled….from races to expo meet-ups to giveaway packages, my cards have come in handy more times that I can remember!

Lucky for me, Signazon contacted me and asked if I would be willing to review one of their products. After digging through their website, I stumbled upon their business cards and decided to make a new set of my own!

A few design methods for creating business cards were offered - I chose to use my blog header and design both sides of the business cards on my own. I  then uploaded my designs into their design template. Apart from creating your own design, Signazon also offers several pre-made templates for creating business cards..

How did they turn out?

The design printed perfectly and the cards are beautiful! I absolutely love these cards.



Corner style is an addition option that’s offered – I chose round.




These babies fit perfectly in my business card holder! Perfect for on-the-go at race expos, conferences, and meet-ups!

Are business cards a necessity? No. However, they definitely come in handy when you want to exchange information with a fellow blogger in person, send your follow information along with a giveaway prize, or simply have on hand when the occasion calls. Who knows when you might need to swap Twitter handles with someone – it’s the important things in life, I tell ya! :0)

I cannot say enough good things about Signazon. Their website and design tools are easy to use, their team is prompt to answer questions or help with any needs, and their work is beautiful! 

Do you have business cards for your blog? Have they come in handy at a random, unsuspecting time? 

Trains & Sunrises…& Closet Space!

There’s not a lot going on around here at the moment, so I am going to share a few photos from my weekend with you!

An early morning Saturday group run left Heather and I laughing about a train incident several years ago. (In 2010, we were waiting for a train to pass and it stopped on the tracks, blocking our way – so we went under it….scariest moment ever!) Back to Saturday, we were approaching the tracks as the lights turned on and the bars came down. Heather asked where the train was and if we could outrun it – unfortunately, it was too close and we wouldn’t have outrun it anyway.

It did lead to a few good laughs and several “I’ll never do that again”!  That train was flying!

As we approached the lake (different from the other part of the lake you guys see all the time), we witnessed one of the most gorgeous sunrises ever. 

I was in awe of the beauty of it all! Have I mentioned that I LOVE early morning runs? …because I do…just incase I haven’t mentioned that before! :0)

On Saturday afternoon as I was folding clothes, I had a GRAND idea. I began debating how to maximize the use of available space in my closet?

Until now, all of my running clothes…skirts, shirts, tanks, shorts, etc. were stuffed into drawers in my closet. Unfortunately, that means my shirts were always wrinkled. Not anymore! I realized I had plenty of space to hang another bar under my t-shirts for my running clothes! Genius!

My husband is SUCH a good sport. He worked all weekend, but still came home and installed my harebrained idea without complaint! He’s awesome!

Someone on twitter mentioned that my next race expo should be scared…I have a ton of extra hangers now! Yay!

All done! Tanks, shirts, and running skirts…oh yeah, and my Eeyore slippers! :0)

Yet another fun and adventerous weekend behind me! Wonder what this week will bring?

How was your weekend? Any races? Family time? Vacations? Hope it was great!

Fitness Friday–July 19

It’s Fitness Friday yet again! Weren’t we just here? This week has flown by!



Here’s a look at this past week:

Currently training for: Dumbo Double Dare – August 31/September 1st, Disneyland, CA

Saturday – 10 mile run with my running group
Sunday – Rest Day
Monday – 4 miles – felt a twinge in my right thigh so I took it slow and iced after
Tuesday – Rest Day – still felt a twinge, continued icing 
Wednesday – 3 mile run before work – twinge gone! Yay!
Thursday – 4 mile run with Katie
Friday – Rest Day before long run Saturday

 

I had a great 10 mile run on Saturday despite the heat/humidity. I made a goal of staying beneath a 10 minute pace and I couldn’t believe I did it!

Yesterday, I met up with Katie for a run after work. Katie signed with our local college’s track team and needed someone to run her endurance run with her. Of course I obliged! Running with a long time pal vs running alone? Hello!



We had a great run and I really enjoyed the company! :0)

I took her by my favorite home along the lake. Seriously, if I could pick ANY home in my town to live in, it would be this one.



Guess it doesn’t help that this home has a cute little water fountain for humans and dogs across the street :0)



I had a great week and really enjoyed my training runs, despite the funky twinge. Thankfully after ice and a rest day, my thigh felt much better!

Hope you had a great week, too! What was your favorite moment this week?