12 Days of Christmas: Cole's Favorite Christmas Songs

There's one sure way to get me in the Christmas spirit, Christmas music. There's lots of wonderful music but when I want to get in the spirit there are two I always turn to.





What are your favorite Christmas songs?

PS Don't forget to sign up for the giveaway! And if you can't wait to win be sure to use the code LOVEANDHAPPINESS10 for 10% off!

Vlog Friday: What are 3 Things You'd Grab if Your House was on Fire?

Happy Friday, Lovebug! I'm going to apologize now for the length of this post, I have so many things I want to share with you!

It's time for another Vlog Friday! This week Kate & I have joined up with the Vlog of the Month Club to answer the question What are 3 things that are *you*/What are 3 things you'd grab if your house was on Fire?

Just in case you don't normally watch my vlogs I want to let you know that there is a sneak peek of our living room in the first couple of minutes that you should definitely check out!

Sorry for the shaky footage, I used our Flip to film

If you play along with this topic be sure to leave a comment so I can link to you and then head over to the VOTMC's site & add your link! I can't wait to see what's most important to you!

Next Week's Prompt:
Who/What/When/Where was your first kiss?

We Vlog Fridays, do you?
Marshmellow Goodness
Folly Life
Heart on Homestead
Of Food and Friends
Forget me (not)
Blogimony

~~~~~~~~~~~

And now that you've all watched my vlog....

You watched my vlog, right?

The winner of the amazing Murwati clutch is

Dana Richards from Exploring the Unknown!

Dana, send me your address so I can send your clutch!

And one last thing before I go...

This year for Christmas Jus & I agreed not to spend any money on presents, as it turned out we both broke this rule but the best gift I gave Jus was a free one.

Our family friend is in charge of the local college run public music radio station and after some begging he agreed to give me a radio show that I could give Jus. 

Since Christmas Jus has gone through training and tonight is his first show!

I'm beyond excited for him and can't wait to hear Jus on the radio. If you'd like to listen in tonight Jus'll be on the radio from 9-11 PM Eastern Time. Just click this link and then click Listen Live!

Have a happy weekend, 

give extra smiles, 

lots of bear hugs, 

and some sloppy kisses!

Our Weekend & the Case for Live Music

Happy Monday, Sweetpeas.
That weekend went too fast, don't you think?

Jus & I spent Saturday night at an Avett Brother's concert.

Sorry for the crappy iphone pictures 

I'll admit that I am a bit of a bandwagon fan, I have only gotten into the Avett Brothers following the release of I and Love and You. So I was a little surprised at the volume of people who knew all of the words to all of the older songs as well as the new ones. (Naive, I know) The show was wonderful and I look forward to exploring their older music.

By now I'm sure you've noticed that Jus & I have a propensity for going to concerts. We liked going to shows in our younger years but in the four years we've been together we've made a habit of it. We've decided that rather than go on one big trip a year we'd rather go to a concert every three months. (Well, we'd rather do both, but our bank account doesn't agree.)

The perk of liking to go to shows but living in a small town is that every time you go to a show you get a mini vacation, the downside is that you miss all the wonderful smaller shows. Still, in the four years we've been together we've seen over 40 shows (we even named the tables at our wedding after concerts we've seen together).

I know many people that don't put a priority on seeing live music but I'm not one. Seeing live music is equatable to reading a book instead of seeing the movie. To understand the band, to feel the music you need to be in the same space. You need to feel the bass move through you, loose your voice from screaming, and feel the chills when the artist stops singing but the crowd continues.

Jus & me at Bob Dylan 

(Please excuse the drunk eyes, it was a long weekend)

I know I'm biased, but when it boils down to it, I'm a live music type of gal. Whether it's one guy plucking away at a guitar or a full stadium singing along with the band I have a smile on my face & chills running down my spine. To be able to experience music being made is one of the most enjoyable experiences a group of human beings can have together.

So there's my soliloquy on live music, do me (& yourself) a favor and go to a show sometime this year, I promise it'll be worth it. And if you need some company Jus & I can come, but be ready, cause I tend to dance all night long.

What a Wonderful Weekend

Happy Monday, darlings!

I hope you had as wonderful of a weekend as we did.

Saturday morning we got a late start and ended up arriving in Milwaukee at 2:50. We frantically made our way to the Lakefront Brewery so we could take a tour. (We had heard this is the best brewery tour and their last tour of the day was at 3:10.)

As we pulled up I tried to convince Jus to hop out and get us tickets, he denied my pleas, we parked and walked in the front door only to be told that the tour was sold out. We decided to head to our hotel and make our way to dinner from there. After sushi we walked to the wonderful Turner Hall Ballroom, grabbed some $4 PBRs and got ready to see Grace Potter.

Excited kids

Grace had gorgeous sparkly booties

And a hot, sparkly mini dress

Grace rocks the piano & guitar

And the whole band gets in on the act

And I got a set list!

Grace is seriously amazing, she embodies everything that a female rock star should be, she is powerful, talented, and all sorts of sexy. Grace dances & sings in 4" heels and definitely has the chops to back up her sex appeal.

The bottom line is, if GPN is coming anywhere near you (we drove 213 miles) go and see them. Even if you don't know any of their songs you will enjoy this show. The energy of the band, the excitement of the crowd and the show that gets put on is absolutely amazing. Seriously, go, you won't regret it, cross my heart.

We woke up Sunday, ate lunch at the Milwaukee Ale House and hopped back on the highway in order to be home in time for B.B. King.

There isn't much you can say about seeing a living legend other than just that, we got to see a living legend, the king of the blues, and it was pretty awesome.

Lucille

And the king, himself

(Sorry about the lack of photos, all I had was my crappy iPhone camera)

So tell me, sweetpeas, how was your weekend?

PS Super congrats to my baby sister, Banan, for being elected Treasurer of her sorority!

This Weekend...

Tomorrow Jus & I are headed to Milwaukee for the first in our series of Christmas concerts.

I'm really excited to see Grace Potter & the Nocturnals again. The last time we saw them was the night BFF Beth got engaged and the Saturday before Jus proposed.

Jus & I are pretty excited to be going to Milwaukee again, we stopped there on our honeymoon (I know, I know, I'm working on a recap!) and loved the city, we also loved touring the Miller Brewing Company and I think this time we'll swing by the Lakefront Brewery for a tour.

Sunday we're headed to another of our Christmas concerts.

We'll be seeing the king of blues, Mr. B.B. King himself! Jus is pretty ecited, especially considering that our seats are in the orchastra pit!

Do you have anything fun planned for your weekend?

PS Be sure to stop by at 2 this afternoon! I'm starting a fun new series & would love for you to play along!

To Know You

Yesterday this little bloggy hit 200 followers and I can't tell you how excited that makes me! (What makes me even more excited is that I know there are more readers that registered as followers!)

While I can go on and on about how much I heart & appreciate you and host giveaways to thank you, one of the most rewarding things is getting to know you a little more. I had lots of fun reading through your answers here and here and can't wait to read your answers to today's!

Lately I've been listening to:

Grace Potter & The Nocturnals; Florence & The Machine; Bon Iver; Sigur Ros; Jack Johnson; Brett Dennen.

Honestly, I haven't found anything fabulous lately and would really like to, so if you have some suggestions I'd love to hear them!

Reading:

I stayed up way too late last night finishing The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest, I haven't decided what my next read is.

Wearing:

Dresses, I have to wear a uniform at work so when I get done I live my life in dresses.

Watching:

Not a ton of TV, we've been pretty busy lately, but I love Intervention & Criminal Minds (in addition to some trashy shows like Teen Mom and Sixteen and Pregnant)

Eating:

BLUEBERRIES! Jus & I love frozen blueberries and we go through them like crazy. And ice cream, I always try to get Jus to make a meal out of ice cream and we eat ice cream 4 or 5 times a week.

Working on:

Wedding stuff, wedding stuff, wedding stuff, and a little on our back hall.

Ok, your turn!

PS Don't forget to sign up for the giveaway!

Afternoon Delight

Did the title scare you a little?

This afternoon I got an email about a really awesome deal that I thought I should pass on to you.

You've heard me go on and on about how much I love Grace Potter & the Nocturnals and I hope that you've checked them out for yourself, but if you haven't here's your chance.

via

Amazon is offering their new album as a download for $2.99 today only. I'm always a little leery about getting albums if I'm not familiar with an artist but $2.99 is pretty hard to beat, plus, GPN rocks and you do too.

I promise I don't get paid to write stuff like this.

I got an email and thought I'd pass it along to all my lovely bloggy friends.

Two Things To Know

Happy Monday, Lovebirds!

Did you have a good weekend? Jus & I took his little brother to Chicago Saturday for some pizza and touristy things and then we spent Sunday being lazy bums, alternating naps while watching the world cup.

I wasn't sure whether or not to continue the Two Things to Know series, I haven't been feeling it too much lately, let me know if you like it or if you think I should scrap it. But for the time being, here are this week's Two Things to Know.

1. If you have a blister you should pop it and then put vegetable oil on it so it doesn't dry out. Ok, I know this is a little gross, but I think it's super helpful! I got the biggest blister on my toe after walking approximately 500,001 miles in Chicago and Jus told me this is how his doctor told him to remedy a blister.

2. Groups that cover pop songs are awesome. I've told you how much I love Pomplamoose and this weekend I discovered The Baseballs. The Baseballs are a German 50s-rockabilly group and I love their take on pop songs. Don't you think it's refreshing to hear songs that are super popular done in a different and more unique way? I have a feeling that this is one of the reasons Glee is so popular, people are tired of the same old thing.

Isn't it fun? Pomplamoose is just as awesome and if you haven't checked them out pop on over and do it!

3. Don't forget to sign up for the Color Me Happy swap if you haven't already!

Now I'm headed into work on my day off to prepare for a huge pie order we have tomorrow and then to the grocery store to get ready for the dinner we're making for our new friends!

What are you up to today?

Hello Tuesday

Hello lovelies!

Sorry for the lack of a post yesterday, blogger was being a weenie and not working so I took some time to work around the house. Jus & I set up some shelves I had gotten at an auction when we first moved into our house.

They aren't perfect, they're not super sturdy, one is taller than the other, and they aren't the prettiest but they're big enough to organize our books and all of my random etsy stuff. (Which all needs to be added to the shop!)

I thought I'd do my "Two Things to Know" today since we missed yesterday. As always, if you'd like to play along just leave a comment letting me know!

1. If you want your cut peonies to last longer add sugar or Sprite to the water. This is probably a couple of weeks late for most of you but I promise this works, I always add sugar to mine and I think they last longer.

2. Grace Potter and the Nocturnals new album is being released today! I've mentioned our love for GPN before but I am so incredibly excited to get their new album. Grace has a killer voice and I think she is a great example of an entertainer that is sexy, talented & real. So go on, go buy GPN's new album and dance around your living room tonight (I promise they aren't paying me to say that, except if Grace wanted to be my friend I'd be down).

3. I'm hosting another package swap! Check back in at 2 EST for the details!

Two Things To Know and Two Things I Know

Happy Monday, Sweet Peas!

I hope you all had a lovely weekend and were able to spend some time with your moms. I got to spend some time with my mom at the lake and had fun just being with her.

And now on to this week's Two Things to Know, hopefully you don't think I'm too scattered with today's post, but sometimes I have trouble focusing on Mondays!

1. If you want to see Jus smile like this take him to a Pearl Jam concert. Pearl Jam is Jus's favorite but sadly he had never seen them before, and let me tell you, they were awesome. Any life show is fun but this was a really great show.

2. Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight" & "Layla" and The Beatles "Something" were all written about the same woman, Pattie Boyd. Pattie Boyd was married to George Harrison and after they split up she married Eric Clapton. Our dog, Layla, is named after the song; coincidentally Edie the Basset puppy's last name is Sedgwick* after Edie Sedgwick who was one of Andy Warhol's muses.

I've been trying to think of a way to spice up Two Things to Know so I thought I'd add a part for you to play along with that is half fill in the blanks half affirmation. I'm not sure if this will be a permanent inclusion, but I'd love to hear your responses!

1. I know should... go to bed earlier on Sunday nights, since I have Mondays off I tend to stay up late doing silly things like watching Titanic.

2. I know I am... the kind of person who will make my kiddo's birthdays & first days of school huge holidays that will involve cake for breakfast and silly dances.

To play along leave a comment with your Two Things I Know or post it on your blog and leave me a comment with a link so I can check it out!

Have a Happy Monday!

*Yes, we call our puppy "Edie Sedgwick" but only when she's being especially naughty.

Two Things To Know

Happy Monday! Sorry I missed this weekend's "Weekend Wedding," we were busy doing wedding things. (Hint hint: ENGAGEMENT PICTURES!)

And now, on to this week's Two Things to Know, as always, if you'd like to share your two things leave a link and I'll be sure to check it out!

1. An apple has more caffeine than a cup of coffee. I think this is fairly common knowledge but on my especially sleepy days I try to eat an apple before downing my usual 3 cups of coffee.

via

2. If you want a song or two that will make you smile be sure to check out She & Him's "Volume Two." I know I don't need to exalt the wonders of Zooey Deschanel but this album puts me in an instant good mood. Volume Two has been in my car's cd player for a couple of weeks and isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

I'm spending the morning at the doctor getting some blood work done but promise to be back tomorrow with our engagement pictures!

Haha, you didn't think I'd totally leave you hanging, did you? Here's the picture our photographer texted me Saturday night as a sneak peek.

Two Things To Know

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a fantastic weekend, I'm still in Indianapolis visiting Banan, but promise I'll fill you in on all of our adventures tomorrow.

I initially started this blog as a showplace for the beautiful inspiration I found around the web, but as it has progressed Adventures in Love & Happiness has become less of a showplace and more of a conversation. I love collecting random tidbits and facts and I can't tell you how many times during the day I hear/see/read something and think "I need to store that away so I can tell all my bloggy friends."

And so, my new series "Two Things to Know" was born. (I've gotta tell you I'm still not the craziest about the name, but that's all Banan & I could come up with). Every Monday I'll fill you in on two things you should know. They could be a fact, something I've read or heard, or just something that I think you should be aware of.

And now on to this week's Two Things to Know:

1. Every night you go to bed with makeup on it ages you by 27 days. I've gotta tell you, this freaked me out a bit because I have a history of being super lazy about washing my face at night. Ever since I heard this I have made sure my face is clean when I hop into bed, no matter how lazy I am feeling.

2. Grace Potter and the Nocturnals have a new single out called "Tiny Light". Jus & I have seen GPN twice and we both want to be her when we grow up. "Tiny Light" sounds a little more country than GPN's previous albums but I have a feeling this song will be amazing live. Just trust me and listen all the way through.

If you'd like to play along and write your own two things be sure to leave me a link to your post so I can cram some more knowledge in my brain.

100 Photos: Day 77

Giving "I love you presents" is the best. Especially when those presents are concert tickets!

Monday Monday

Happy Monday!

Did your weekend go as quickly as ours did?

We woke up earlier than normal Saturday which meant our day was significantly longer than Saturdays normally feel. We spent most of the day shopping at antique malls.

We found some things we had to bring home...

And some things that were just a little too crazy...

Sunday we went and saw the movie Crazy Heart, which was great and Jeff Bridges' Oscar is well deserved.

I also spent much of this weekend getting into Bon Iver. Jus had tried to have me listen to their before but I never really paid attention. I know I'm pretty late hopping on this train but I love. Bon Iver's sound and haven't listened to anything else this weekend.

It makes me wonder what else I'm missing.

So help me out, what else should I be listening to?

100 Photos: Day 24

Jus & I spent last night at a Gov't Mule concert. Live music is something we never turn down.

When I Love Jus the Most

Well, honestly, I love Jus all the time. Sometimes not as much as others (like when I have to nag him to take the dirty laundry downstairs-which is NOW SweetPea!) but in general I get the warm fuzzies when I look at his cute little butt (and the rest of him).

One of the times I love him the most is when he puts on Fleetwood Mac's Rumors* album for me. I know this might cut down some of my credibility but Second Hand News is one of my favorite songs to dance around the living room to.

What's that? You don't know Second Hand News? Well, here it is...but be sure to dance or else we can no longer be friends.

Done dancing? Ok, so I know it's not Fleetwood Mac's best song but it's really fun to sing the "down de down down down" part.

So on that note have a great weekend, do some fun silly dancing for me because there's gonna be a quiz on Monday.

*As if I need to prove my coolness more: When I was little my best friend and I had a choreographed dance to "Don't Stop."

Happy Weekend

I love concerts, I would choose to go to a concert over almost everything. I've always said the moment when the singer stops singing and the crowd keeps singing is spiritual, it just gives me the chills.

This weekend I am really excited that I get to see this guy

and this woman

with this guy

(Jus)

and this girl.

(Banan)*

Brett Dennen is my favorite. Jus & I saw him at Rothbury last summer and his show was the only one I knew every word to every song at. I'm not sure if it was the sunshine or the beer or the music or the combination of it all but this was the best show ever. I am so so so very excited to see him again.

I'm also extremely excited to see Grace Potter, Jus & I only caught the last little bit of her show at Rothbury and were very sad that we had missed out, cause she kicks serious booty.

It will be fun to be in Chicago too. Especially cause I'm gonna try to see the Marshall Fields/Macy's Christmas windows!

*I'm going to take lots of pictures with my little sis this weekend cause I realized I don't have any recent ones of us.

A Bit of an Obsession

Last week I spotted the lovely music of Pomplamoose over on Claremont Road and let me tell you I haven't been listening to much else since.

Here's the deal (stolen from their facebook) Jack Conte and Nataly Dawn started making music together in the summer of '08, and decided to form a band. Pomplamoose thus represents the collaborative efforts of the two aforementioned musicians. It also means grapefruit in French.

Pomplamoose makes awesome videos which you can check out on their youtube channel and Jack & Nataly are way too cute not to love, they're the type of people I wanna be friends with.

So why don't you do yourself a favor and check them out?

Agh, I just realized I've posted two versions of Single Ladies....grrrrr, I promise this isn't my favorite song.

My Love for today: Jus, because without him the outlets in the bathroom would be painted green.

My Happiness for today: The bathroom is about 80% done!

Tricks and Treats

I hope you had a fun Halloween weekend. Jus & I headed to Bloomington to see one of our favorite live bands, Autovaughn.* We love to see them when they come around our local watering hole and since there wasn't too much happening around here this weekend we decided to make the trip.

Now, I have a confession to make, Jus & I repeated our costumes from last year since A) we knew that no one would have seen them last year and B) we were feeling incredibly uncreative and couldn't think of anything good.

So here we are, two young Amish people, out in the world for Halloween.

(Just a reminder, Amish people aren't allowed to have their pictures taken thus we wouldn't look at the camera)

Even though we thought it was fairly obvious that we were Amish Jus was asked if he was Jewish and I was asked if I was a pilgrim or Sarah Plain and Tall (which is really pretty creative).

While we were eating dinner we saw a dozen guys in all white with red scarves go running by followed by a guy dressed as a bull but sadly, that was really the only creative costume we saw.

What was the best costume you saw?

*If you haven't seen/heard of Autovaughn check them out