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October 28, 2010

I'm Alive!

Hello sweet blog friends! I promise that I AM ALIVE! After a good 3-4 days of being ridiculously ill and doing nothing but sleep and watch awful daytime TV, I have rallied from my tissues and cough drops just in time...

{ I made it to San Francisco! }




For those of you sweet enough to send me kind e-mails wondering if I was okay, I appreciate your thoughtfulness so much! I am such a lucky girl to have such wonderful, active blog friends - ya'll are the best!

So now that I've ventured back to this lovely city by the bay, where will my adventures take me today? I woke up to the sound of the Powell-Hyde cable car right outside my window, and now I'm exited! What to do, what to do?


+ H&M shopping is most definitely a given!




+ Perhaps a visit to the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Co. to watch them hand fold fortune cookies? I can even add my own fortune!




+ Maybe a stroll to the Embarcadero Ferry Building?




+ I foresee a Ghirardelli hot fudge sundae in my future - yum!




+ A trip to the piers to watch my favorite sea lions blub around - they make me giggle!




+ Tonight's adventure is the Museum of Modern Art and then dinner on the rooftop terrace... so amazing!




We've already done so much in the last day! A wonderful tour of Anchor Brewery (Anchor Steam is my favorite beer!), shopping extravaganzas at REI and CB2, and lots of relaxing in our posh hotel (photos to come!).

We ended the evening by watching SF Giants fans yelling and high-fiving everyone they passed on the street below after winning game 1 of the world series. SF was wild last night!




No matter what today holds, I know it will be such a blast being back in my old stomping grounds
just adventuring with my cousins!



Wishing you an adventurous day!



October 22, 2010

Sweet Weekend Wishes

Sweet weekend wishes to you, dear friends!
I saw this delicious spiced carrot cake on Mary Ruffle and just had to share... perhaps a decadent, rich carrot cake will be my next culinary feat?




Anyway, I am so happy that it is Friday and thankful for so many wonderful things...


+ morning puppy kisses
+ seeing my sweet family
+ my wonderful BF who takes care of me
+ ricola cherry & honey cough drops {go away yucky sickness!}
+ our Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk event
{almost done... I can see the light!}
+ going on my San Francisco getaway in t-minus 5 days
+ casual Friday
+ FB wall posts that make me smile
+ good friends
+ another amazing weekend!!




.:: What are you up to this weekend? ::.





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Attention: Guest blogging opportunities are here! To find out how you can be a guest blogger on [Life of Meg} please click HERE! :)

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Fabulous Must Reads

I woke up this morning and I had this hunch. I just knew deep down in my gut that all of you were looking for 3 new amazing blogs to follow... well you're in luck!!

{ Three Fabulous Blogs for You! }





Weekly Must Reads


Tiffany @ The Apple Doesn't Fall Far

This blog is nothing but stuff I love: fashion, reality TV, family and giveaways! Her recnt post on her unhealthy addiction to Ann Taylor Loft (amen sista!) and how to redesign 1 shirt into 3 completely amazing outfits got me excited! I also loved her post on the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders show, "Making the Team"... thanks to Tiffany I am now DVRing the show to watch as another guilty pleasure!


Karissa @ Love Like Flowers

This girl is crafty and ambitious!! I am convinced that she can conquer anything from reupholstering chairs to whipping up an amazing dinner! Her post on making chocolate croissants using Nutella had me drooling! I promise if you stop by, you will definitely not leave uninspired!


Adrian @ Hair By Adrian

I absolutely love the variety and spontaneity of her posts! You can find anything and everything from her adorable bulldog to hair product giveaways! She always uses adorable photos to spice up her posts {which I love!}. Her post on adorable headbands and trends left me wanting to shop for some fun new styles!

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.:: To the three of you ::.

As always, a million thank you's for passing on the word about Mingle Monday! I hope you all really enjoy it and are gaining so many new followers every single week!

I have so mnay people tell me how much they look forward to Mondays, but I just really enjoy hearing from all of you, my favorite bloggers! Thanks for making my day!

_____________________________________


Want to find out how YOU can be a Weekly Must Read? Click here for details and we'll see you Monday to mingle it up!


Happy Weekend!



October 20, 2010

I Need YOU!

Hello wonderful blog family!
As many of you know, I am the proud daughter of a breast cancer survivor. My Mom was diagnosed in 2006, and now 4 years later we are CELEBRATING her survivorship!


{ I need your HELP! }





I am very honored to be an American Cancer Society staff member. Every single day we are working so hard to ultimately put ourselves out of a job... a world with no cancer and more birthdays!

My amazing family is signed up to walk this Saturday in our Making Strides Against Breast Cancer event! I am so excited to see them! We are going to have thousands and thousands of people walking together to raise money for breast cancer research.

We ARE getting closer, but we do have a ways to go... this is where you amazing people come into play!




I come to you today to humbly ask for you to consider donating to my team! The American Cancer Society is the #1 leading organization nation-wide that funds cancer research. We have dozens of Nobel Prize winning scientists who have already advanced this research due to the funding ACS has provided.


.:: Please Consider Donating! ::.


... $1 for your parking toll
... $5 for your afternoon latte
... $15 for your dinner restaurant outing
... $30 for your movie date





Please click HERE to donate on the secure
American Cancer Society official page.


______________________________________________

.:: Saving Lives is Rewarding! ::.

All amazing people who donate $5 or more to my team, will be put in a drawing to be one of 3 [Life of Meg] guest bloggers! That's right... all the attention on YOU, your writing, your ideas... and tons of new followers!


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To You Donating Superwomen...

Thank you in advance for your overwhelming kindness and generosity. My humble giveaway of featuring you on my blog is nothing compared to the life saving cure that you helped fund.

Bless you and thank you from the bottom of my heart!

_______________________________________________



Every dollar could be THE dollar that funds the cure!








**To enter, please donate at the American Cancer Society page and then e-mail me your full name:

{ megnificentlife@gmail.com }

October 19, 2010

Go Be Sunshine

Do you ever have those terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days? Just plain yucky. All of a sudden when you feel like you've hit rock bottom, someone does something ridiculously nice for you for no apparent reason or motivation. Just sweet and simple niceness.


{ What a day changer! }





Recently, one of my many amazing co-workers knew I was having a stressful time and simply left a note and a coffee on my desk. It may have seemed small to them, but it was so thoughtful and unexpected. In fact, I was so moved that I almost cried. She made my day.

I can't help but be inspired by this and many other sweet random acts of kindness. Just knowing how the little things made me smile, I want to be the person to add sunshine to someone's day... even if I don't know them.

{ Sunshine Challenge }

Find one way today to make a difference...


+ pay for Starbucks of the person behind you in the drive-thru
+ send someone a hand written thank you
+ put some coins in someone else’s parking meter
+ walk your friend’s dog
+ give a compliment about your waiter
+ send someone a small gift anonymously
+ treat a friend to the movies for no reason
+ leave a huge tip to someone when they least expect it
+ hold the elevator door for someone
+ pick up litter on the sidewalk
+ smile... a lot


Go be someone's sunshine today... and I promise it will make you smile!





___________________________________________________

PS- Looking for new followers or fun new blogs? Don't forget that the Mingle Monday blog hop is open until Wednesday at midnight.
Stop by and get your blog some exposure!

___________________________________________________

October 18, 2010

Mingle Monday

Hello sweet blog friends!
I sure have missed you this past weekend... excited to see how your weekend went!

Do you need a boost in your manic Monday? I know I do! Looking forward to visiting your amazing blogs and reading your super wonderful comments - ya'll make my day!


{ Time for the fun to start! }







.:: Pretty Please ::.

...keep spreading the word about Mingle Monday!

I want to make sure that it keeps growing so that everyone gets new people visiting their blogs every single week!



.:: Helping Has Rewards ::.

See end of post for details on how YOUR BLOG can be featured on
my Weekly Must Reads!


_________________________________________________


How To Play:



1) Must be a [Life of Meg] follower to participate.

2) Scroll down to the bottom of this post and click on the link to enter.


3) Go visit 2 blogs saying hello from Mingle Monday!


4) Come back to [Life of Meg] and leave an encouraging review of the visited blogs and answer the weekly fun fact:

This Week's Q:

{ What is your favorite healthy snack? I need tips!! }


_________________________________________________

** PLAY FAIR -- all blog & runs (not commenting) will be deleted. **




** Open until Wednesday at midnight (CST) **

_________________________________________________



.:: SWEET BONUS EXPOSURE! ::.

Feature Mingle Monday in a blog post for your chance to be featured on my Weekly Must Reads - where I choose 3 blogs of the week to endorse!

Leave a comment with the URL link to your blog's Mingle Monday
post to enter the Weekly Must Reads raffle!




.:: Who wants lots of new lovely followers?! ::.




Hope your day is full of wonderful surprises!



October 16, 2010

Ooey Gooey Cinnamon Rolls

My zebra mug is filled to the brim with my favorite amaretto coffee and the sweet smell of cinnamon lingering in the air. Yes, I am still in my jammies. This is my absolute favorite way to do Saturday morning. Lazy, cozy and happy.

My home is full of my very favorite girlfriends, who are in town visiting for the weekend. I wanted to make something special while they were here, so I made the most amazing ooey gooey cinnamon roll recipe.




After trying out several recipes, I've combined my favorite parts and added my own fabulous flair!

Don't be intimidated by this recipe... I've made it easy breazy!

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Ingredients


Dough:

1/4-ounce package yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup scalded milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter or shortening
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg
4 cups all-purpose flour


Filling:

1/3 cup softened butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
3 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon


Frosting:

1/4 cup softened butter
3 oz. softened cream cheese
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt


Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
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Dough Directions:


1) In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water and set aside.

2) In a large bowl mix milk, sugar, melted butter, salt and egg.

3)Add 2 cups of flour and mix until smooth. Add yeast mixture.

4)Mix in remaining flour until dough is easy to handle. Knead dough on lightly floured surface for 3-5 minutes.





5) Place in well-greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in size, usually 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

6) Wait until dough has doubled in size and roll out on a floured surface into a 15 by 9-inch rectangle.

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Filling Directions


1) Spread melted butter all over dough.

2) Mix sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over buttered dough.

3) Beginning on the longest side, roll up dough and pinch edge together to seal. Cut into 12 to 15 slices.

4) Place cinnamon roll slices close together in the pan and let rise until dough is doubled, about 45 minutes. Bake for about 30 minutes.

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Yummy Frosting


1) Beat butter and cream cheese together until blended thoroughly.

2) Add powdered sugar, salt and vanilla.

3) Whip until fluffy.

4) Spread on warm rolls.

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These cinnamon rolls are such a hit! Perfect for holidays, family occasions, and out of town relatives. I've got nothing but amazig compliments with this all-star recipe, so you have to try it out!

This last time, I tripled the recipe, made them as directed and let them rise. I them placed seran wrap directly touching the doughy rolls, covered the whole pan and added the lid and froze them.

All you have to do is move the pan of frozen rolls to the fridge the day before. Take them out 30 minutes before you want to bake them and they come out freshly made! Sounds lke a perfectly domestic way to impress your guests!


Bon Appetit!



October 15, 2010

Count Your Blessings



Hello wonderful friends! I could not possibly welcome this weekend with bigger open arms. This week has been so chaotic, emotional and stressful. Time for a much needed and very lovely break!


So thankful for...


+ pay day
+ my girlfriends coming to town
+ baking yummies
+ wine, dessert and funny stories tonight
+ sleeping in
+ lots of fun shopping
+ going out to eat
+ not worrying about work
+ blogging it up
+ giggling about our boys
+ de-stressifying (yes, it's now an official word.)
+ sunday girly brunch in our jammies
+ surprise date planned by BF
{so curious/excited!}



Wishing you a weekend full of blessings!



October 13, 2010

Recycle Your Blues: 40% off Gap

Headed to GAP this week to cash in!
Yes, you heard it right, GAP's facebook group announced their Recycle Your Blues deal. Bring in any pair of old jeans to get 40% off new ones!

I don't know about you ladies, but I absolutely can't get enough of GAP's 1969 jeans... skinny, bootcut, long & lean. Mmmm... They fit perfectly, look great and last forever!





.:: Get Your Deal ::.


1) Bring any pair/brand of your old denim to recycle.

2) Mention 'JEANS40' at the register to get your 40% off.

3) Voila! New jeans! Cute little tushy!


{ Can't go wrong! }





You'd better hurry in, offer expires on October 20th...


{You're welcome!}







___________________________________________________

PS- Looking for new followers or fun new blogs? Don't forget that the Mingle Monday blog hop is open until tonight at midnight.
Stop by and get your blog some exposure!

___________________________________________________

October 12, 2010

Mingle Monday (Tuesday)

No no, I didn't forget you {I promise!}.
I had a long 3 day weekend and didn't have to work yesterday, so I was planning to blog then.

Unfortunately my little laptop is on the fritz, so Mingle Monday had to move to today - hooray internet access!

Thank you to all of you sweet friends who sent me e-mails and left comments wondering if I was okay and that you missed Mingle Monday... you're the sweetest! And a BIG WELCOME to any Mingle newbies!


{ Let's start the madness! }






.:: Pretty Please ::.

...keep spreading the word about Mingle Monday!

I want to make sure that it keeps growing so that everyone gets new people visiting their blogs every single week!



.:: Helping Has Rewards ::.

See end of post for details on how YOUR BLOG can be featured on
my Weekly Must Reads!


_________________________________________________


How To Play:



1) Must be a [Life of Meg] follower to participate.

2) Scroll down to the bottom of this post and click on the link to enter.


3) Go visit 2 blogs saying hello from Mingle Monday!


4) Come back to [Life of Meg] and leave an encouraging review of the visited blogs and answer the weekly fun fact:

This Week's Q:

{ What is your lovely Halloween costume?! }


_________________________________________________

** PLAY FAIR -- all blog & runs (not commenting) will be deleted. **




** Open until Wednesday at midnight (CST) **

_________________________________________________



.:: SWEET BONUS EXPOSURE! ::.

Feature Mingle Monday in a blog post for your chance to be featured on my Weekly Must Reads - where I choose 3 blogs of the week to endorse!

Leave a comment with the URL link to your blog's Mingle Monday
post to enter the Weekly Reads raffle!




.:: Who wants lots of new lovely followers?! ::.




Have a Lovely Monday/Tuesday! ;)



October 10, 2010

Weekly Must Reads

It's past overdue for me to feature three amazing blogs... you would be a silly nilly not to stop by to visit them!

This week, I selected three new, very special blogs for my Weekly Must Reads! Please go visit them, say hello and tell them I sent you their way!





Weekly Must Reads


Laura @ A Pretty Plethora

The number one thing that I love in a good blog is solid, beautiful photos. You too? You have to go visit Laura! Not only are the photos invitng and creative, but her content is so interesting. So girly and inspirational!


Katie @ Spirals & Spatulas

This newlywed is such the domestic goddess! Not only is her blog design beautiful, I am addicted to her recent post about fall decorating and have bookmarked several of her tasty recipes! Cute, fun and crafty!


Rachel @ Simple Little Joys

I absolutely love the variety and spontaneity of her posts! You can find anything and everything lovely on her blog. From sweet inspirational posts to the amazing posts inviting us into her pretty home... absolutely love this blog.

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.:: To the three of you ::.

A million thank you's for passing on the word about Mingle Monday! I hope you all really enjoy it and are gaining so many new followers every single week!

I have so mnay people tell me how much they look forward to Mondays, but I just really enjoy hearing from all of you, my favorite bloggers! Thanks for making me smile!

_____________________________________


Want to find out how YOU can be a Weekly Must Read? Click here for details and we'll see you Monday to mingle it up!


Happy Weekend!






** If I missed any must reads for the raffle, it's because I didn't get a comment from you leaving the URL to your actual post {oopsie!}. Be sure to leave it next week and I'll happily add you to the raffle!

October 8, 2010

Hot Date Tonight!

I promise I am still alive!!
Life has been pretty crazy since October (aka: breast cancer awareness month) rolled in, but I'm hanging in there - love my job!

All week long I have been looking forward to BF and my belated anniversary celebration. Tonight, I have the most handsome date ever and I can't wait to spend the evening celebrating with him.




First on the agenda is primping. After work, I am going to rush home to beautify before BF comes to pick me up. Super excited to break out the Urban Outfitters dress I bought 3 weeks ago!

Next up, we're headed to a quaint, cozy little restaurant called Cafe Europa for some amazing food, before venturing to the top of the Hyatt for after dinner drinks + dessert {he treats me like a princess!}.



Benton's has been voted Kansas City's most romantic restaurant, as well as the restaurant with the best view, several years ina row.

Nestled right in the downtown area, we should have an amazing time together just enjoying the ambiance of the open fireplace as we look out on the amazing city views!




Counting down the hours/minutes until date time...

{ Happy Anniversary, BF! }



Wishing you a lovely weekend...



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