Party, Party, Party....

Dishing about my blog, y'all!

I just popped over to see Nancy at Nancy's Tidbits and she posted about a really fun blog party. I went to check out the scoop over at Serenity Now. The party is called, "Dishing It." Love the name. It's sole purpose is to get -to-know-your-bloggy-neighbor party. What a great idea! There are a few questions that you must answer....

1. How long have you been blogging?

I've had this blog for a little over a year now.

2. Why did you start blogging?

At first it was a way to keep all my family/friends updated. But it gradually turned into a retro 50's blog. And now I have new friends from all over the world. Not my intention but love the outcome.

3. Tell me about your blog title. Why did you choose it?

I'm married to a Southern man (New Orleans) and everyone knows Nawlins loves their pralines. The title is what I'm normally remembered as, Guitars and Pralines. My husband plays guitar so I just put the two things we love most, Guitars and Pralines.

4. What do you blog about?

Mostly retro things and life events. I really love the retro feel of the 1940's-1950's. I'm just a retro housewife that loves her marriage, home, and chatting with her new blogging friends about anything.

5. What is your favorite thing about blogging?

I love to be able to meet new and interesting people. I love being able to chat when my schedule allows me. It doesn't matter if it's 2 pm or 3 am you can always find a new blogging friend or see what your fellow blogging friends have been up to. I love learning about areas that I haven't visited or new ideas regarding decorating or cooking. There's so much out there in blogging land.

6. If you had to choose one famous person to become your blog's next devoted reader, who would you pick?

That's a difficult question. Perhaps it would be Paula Deen. She would be fun to chat with.

Update

Is anyone out there?!! I don't know if y'all have given up on my little retro blog or not but I'm still here. It's been a long time since I had the opportunity to sit down and write a post. I've had good intentions to sit down and catch y'all up but it just seems like my life has been a bit out of control this past couple of months. My whole life has literally changed overnight.

Let me explain what's been happening. A few months ago my husband was contacted by a big law firm based out of San Antonio to work on a few cases. They wanted to use his expertise in the health care field. My husband loved it! What shocks me is that this call came out of left field and he had previously discussed a dream of going to law school. Well, this entire thing just ignited his passion and so after serious consideration and prayer, we decided to go for it.

My husband enrolled into the Princeton Review to help prepare him for the LSAT. The week of the LSAT was insane. We had two state inspections show up on two different accounts and the day prior to the LSAT we were in a car accident (thankfully nobody was hurt). I felt horrible for my hubby as he was under tremendous stress but he still scored really well. Praise God!!!

That was just one of many hurdles yet to come. Next we had to get accepted into law school. My husband researched and found a particular school he wanted to attend. It was a private law school that had an amazing health care law program. The odds were totally against us getting into this private school but again we went for it. We jumped in the car and drove over to the school and my husband met with the dean. He explained why he felt he would make a good candidate for the upcoming 2011 class. The dean showed no emotions/expressions so we had no idea if he was going to give my husband a chance or thought he was insane for trying.

On December 3rd my husband checked the mail and.....HE GOT ACCEPTED!!! Not only did he get accepted but he received a personalized letter from the dean himself.

As if the holiday season isn't busy enough, we've been preparing to move out of state. It will feel so weird not to be living in the Lone Star any longer. We've been calling Texas our home for nearly 6 years. But I'm excited about returning to the deep South. We will be moving to the Magnolia state. For those who don't know the Magnolia state it's Mississippi.

My husband has a lot of roots in Mississippi and Louisiana so we will be pleased to be returning and being around all of our old friends and family once again.

As for Christmas, we'll be spending it home this year. Our very last Christmas in Texas. It's hard to imagine. I've been swamped trying to get all my holiday shopping done. We've been on the road a lot this past month, Dallas, Baton Rouge, San Antonio, etc. I planned on shopping before the big rush but time got away from me and I've had to deal with crowds this year (blah). That's the one thing I don't like about the holidays (crowds). Houston is a the 4th largest city in the United States. The last census reported 7 million but that was nearly 10 years ago. With all the people moving to Texas in the past decade I know we are pushing at least 2 million more in this city alone. That's a lot of holiday traffic, y'all. Makes me crazy. That's one thing I will not miss...not one bit...Houston traffic. I almost prefer L.A. traffic over Houston traffic. Yes, it's that bad.

Today is also my Anniversary. My husband and I are headed out on the town. I found the most beautiful black dress. As every woman knows, it's impossible to own too many black cocktail dresses. We are heading into the city to celebrate at a little German restaurant. Can't wait! I'm proud to say after all these years of marriage bliss I still think my hubby is adorable. I'm proud to be called his wife.

In need of a break

In need of a break

I'm writing this post when I should be working. I have a pile of work that needs to be completed by Thursday afternoon. That's less than 24 hours away!!! My husband and I landed another big account two weeks ago. It took a week for the company to sign the contract and then the contract had to bounce back and forth between legal council (amendments). We are literally drowning at the moment because a huge inspection will be set for the end of October (not much time to prepare). My husband and I have been working on 5 big contracts and I told him no way can we bring on another without leasing out an office and hiring staff. Currently it's working out where we have little to no overhead. He's out in the field servicing the accounts most days and I work out of our home office. It was working out great because I had time to work on the house, run errands, do my shopping, and blog a bit. Now, no such thing as down time. I'm grateful for the work and success God has blessed us with but I need to find a balance. I'm overdue in the pedi/mani department. Perhaps I can slip away for a few hours Friday afternoon.

Day Off

Yesterday I took the day off. Well, sort of. I jumped out of bed and made breakfast for my hubby, then started a load of laundry, went jogging on the greenbelts, came back and worked on my yard (pulled weeds), cleaned off the porch, wiped down the front porch rocking chairs, ran to the grocery store, made dinner, cleaned the fridge, took out the trash, and washed my car. Yep, I'm exhausted today but at least my car will look nice and clean while running errands. Thank goodness for my restful day off.

My Favorite Fall List

Pumpkin Pie Bubble Baths

Carmel Apples

Apple Cinnamon Spice Candles

Favorite Slippers

My favorite OPI fall color "Boris & Natasha"

Cheering on LSU Football Team

What are some of your Fall Favorites?

Coolest Barbie Evah!!!

I came across this Barbie and couldn't wait to show my hubby. I collect retro Barbies and I must have this one. Does anyone remember watching this movie?



I remember spending my summers at my grandparent's house in central California. After spending countless hours swimming in the pool my sister and I would cuddle up on the couch with our Papa and watch The Twilight Zone. One afternoon the movie The Birds came on. It was my first horror flick I ever saw. I was pretty young, my sister and the neighborhood kids were all about 5 years older than me. Everyone had seen The Birds but me. I begged my Papa to see it and told him I was old enough and I wasn't scared. My Papa said alright but he would have to watch it with me.



My Papa loved to play jokes on us and right before one of the attacking scenes he left the room. I was so enthralled with the movie I didn't notice. However, when the shot came of the birds swooping down to attack my Papa threw a wet washcloth and stuck to the side of my face. I nearly jumped out of my skin. To this day I'm terrified of black birds and crows.

What Do You Believe...

This blog has become sort of a online journal for me. It's a way to keep track over the year of events that have played out in our lives. This year has been overwhelming and downright exhausting at times. We've had a lot of things going on but all in all they have been true blessings. My husband started his own consulting business at the beginning of the year. It was something we'd discussed but scary when we actually put it into action. We started with one account and nearly 9 months later I'm pleased to report business is booming. We have clients that we've had to put on hold because we have too much work. That's a good problem to have. I feel extremely blessed considering the state of the economy. We actually have seen our larger competitors shut their doors from lack of business. However, we keep prospering and growing like a weed. My husband just landed another HUGE account. I honestly do not know how he'll be able to take it on. His calendar is bursting at the seams already. I've taken on more and more responsibilities but I think we are going to have to start considering hiring staff soon.


I shared this with a individual who asked me, "do you think this is a good time to hire? You know with the economy and all." To tell you the truth, I wanted to shake that person. I wanted to scream, "stop watching the news and live life!" Oh, I too have seen the news reports on the failing economy but I refuse to be fearful. Not irresponsible but fearful. There is a BIG difference.

Companies are laying people off and establishing hiring freezes due to what the media is reporting. Consumers are not spending money due to what the media is reporting. The Gulf Coast lost millions of dollars in tourism because of what the media is reporting. When did the media have so much power over the way we live our lives? I don't know about you but I put my foot down. I don't go to the media for guidance and provisions. I go to the Almighty God. I'm not going to put my future in the hands of CNN or Fox News. No way! Our nation was founded on faith. If you look back to the Revolutionary War the odds were against us. We were colonies fighting an established country with a large army. But even with the odds stacked up against us George Washington lead us to victory by his faith and perseverance. It's a shame that Americans no longer have the passion we once had. We didn't become a strong nation out of fear so why is everyone all of sudden so scared? Sometimes we have obstacles in life but we can overcome them if we believe we can. I'm not willing to give up because we have a bad economy or place stipulations on what we can achieve.

If you have a desire in your heart and want a better future, a better education, a better career, a better life, etc.. GO AND GET IT!!! Don't allow anyone, especially the media, to convince you otherwise. A lot of people in history have prospered during hard times. The difference is that never quit, believed in themselves, and kept working hard. Your future is what you believe you can do not what the economy allows you. Now excuse me as I step off my soap box and get back to work.