Lana Lately

Hey y'all!

Want an update on my life?

BEEP BEEP BEEP

This post is being interrupted for a short, public service announcement.

PLEASE go check to make sure your email is visible on Blogger.  I love all of you and love reading your comments, but it makes me sad when I can't respond to your lovely comments because you're set as noreply-comment@blogger.com

Now back to the regularly scheduled post...

For clarity sake, I'm going to break this update down into sections (feel free to skip over the ones that don't interest you).  

Foster kids: As of right now, we still have three under the age of 3.  

Baby C is still with us because they haven't been able to find a Tribal home for her.  

March will mark one year since we took G & J into our home.

Grad School: I'm halfway done!! August can't come soon enough...

Work: I love the company and am hoping to go full-time (an additional 5 hours) soon. 

Mini-Vaca: I rearranged my schedule and spent a long weekend with a friend in Phoenix.

Friday, we went to a book singing for one of the authors my company represents, which allowed me to mark meeting a Holocaust survivor off of my Bucket List.

Saturday, we went to a Medieval Festival and got hit by a biker on the way home.  Yes, you read that correctly--the biker hit US.  Luckily, everyone was okay.

Sunday, we spent some time with his family and he dropped me off at the airport.  

What I thought would be a short layover at LAX turned into a paid overnight stay in LA (and a $500 travel voucher). Gotta love overbooked flights!

I finally made it home on Monday.

Overall, I had a blast and can't wait to go back : )

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

Awkward & Awesome Thursday

AWKWARD

This dating profile picture.  

Really though...?

Get on it girls, before it's too late!! hahahahaha

Mind you, he isn't bad looking.  I'm just disturbed by the right side of the picture...

When I got sick last week, mom handed me a bottle of nose spray and said 

"DON'T get addicted to this. Use it with caution."

Yep mom, you guessed it.  I was planning to get addicted to nose spray...it's right up there on my list with sniffing Sharpies. 

Realizing halfway through the day that your underwear are inside out.  

Guess there's a first time for everything...

 I saw this car tag and snapped a picture real quick (while I was sitting at a stop light).

Now let me show you what a NORMAL Oklahoma car tag looks like...

That guy scratched off the Indian part of his tag!

I mean, I'm a white girl to the core but Oklahoma is KNOWN for Indians--why deny the heritage of the place you live?  That would be like living in Mexico and denying Mexicans... 

AWESOME

The new room divider I bought (for my apartment someday).

I'm seriously, in love with it!!

If I can't live in New York City, this is the next best thing!

Being halfway done with my MBA (with a 4.0, might I add)!  Woot woot!  Only 5 more months...

My weekend getaway. More on that later : )

 My crepe making skills.

I'm gettin so legit, y'all!!

Strawberry & Kiwi Crepe

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

February Sponsors, Part Two

Because I know you're all busy and don't like reading long posts, 

I'm going to try something new with this Sponsor Post...

We're going to do a Blog Hop! I want you to go down this list and visit every blog.  

Spend a minute or two at each Blog, read their most recent post, and leave a comment.

If you like what you see (which I'm sure you will), click that little button that says follow!

And let me know what you think of the Blog Hop; If you like it, I'll do it more often!

Ready, set, GO!

Time is running out to reserve your Button space for March--make sure you send me an email if you want to swap!

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

Pet Peeves

Linking up with Recently Roached to share a few of my pet peeves!

1.  People who think that because I look young, I'm a teenager. 

When I was about to graduate college, people would assume that I was graduating from High School. FML.

2.  People who devalue my education, simply because I'm "young."

3. Obsessive cursing.  

It just makes you sound uneducated when every other word out of your mouth is an obscenity. 

4.  People who air their dirty laundry on facebook, or better yet, people who list everything they did that day in their status:

Today, I woke up, ate breakfast, went shopping, met so and so for lunch, took a nap, and fixed dinner for my honey.

BLAH. Who cares.

5. Slow drivers.  I admit it, I do like to pretend I'm a NASCAR driver, but if the speed limit is 65 and you're going 40... YOUR LICENSE SHOULD BE REVOKED.

6.  One way friendships.  

If you won't be there for me when I need you, why should I be there when you need me?

7.  The word verification box on Blogger.  I tend to get mad at them and refuse to leave a comment. 

8.  What I Wore Posts. While some people enjoy these, if you post more than one a week, I will not comment.  For the record, yes, you dress WAY better than me and yes, you look amazing.

Now, do I really need to say that on every post?

9.  Hanging up laundry.  

Hence why there has been a pile of laundry on my bedroom floor for two weeks...

10.  Kissing pictures.  I don't know why, but they literally make me cringe. 

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

Headlines

Why yes, I would like 2 cartons of ice cream FOR FREE!

At least they spelled everything correctly...

Now this one just cracks me up!

And this, my friends, is why I'm a firm believer in education! haha

On another note, if you want to swap buttons with me for March and haven't contacted me yet, you better jump on it!  

Also, speaking of sponsorships, this girl speaks the truth.
I couldn't agree with her more. 

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

Awkward & Awesome Thursday

AWKWARD

Having a girl offer to go lesbo for me to make my Singles Awareness Day better.

I told her, by my no means, would that make me feel better. hahahahaha

Having to track down the flowers that were (much to my surprise) sent to me.
Yep, I was "that" crazy girl who went around asking people if they'd seen my flowers that were "supposedly" delivered. I'm sure they all thought I was a just bitter single girl begging for flowers.

Underdressing for work when there was tons of snow and ice on the roads. I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting to have to come to work today...be happy I'm here & not in sweat pants.

I assumed everyone else would dress down, too...

My sister in law trying to set me up with a young Fabio.

Want proof?

Umm...thanks, but no thanks...

In her defense, he is RICH and FROM GREECE...

AWESOME

My multi-tasking skills.  Having to do homework sure sucks, but holding baby C (because nothing would soothe her except being on my chest) sure does make it a little better...

The sugar cookies I made for Singles Awareness Day!

The gorgeous flowers that I was surprised with (and the card)

In case you can't read the card, it says:
"Didn't want you to be left out! Maybe this will make some b*#$@es jealous."

Clearly he understands the true meaning of V-Day!  Man after my own heart, right there : )

My Valentine from Anna:

Oh how I love that girl...

Mallory's awesome giveaway! Go over to Pink Kisses & Wishes and check it out!
But don't enter, because I want to win ; ) 
kidding...kinda

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

February Sponsors, Part One

I hope you have a great Valentine's Day, but I'm going to completely ignore the fact that it's Singles Awareness Day and share with y'all my regularly scheduled post for today : )

It's that time of the month again...

(no, not that time)

time to meet some of my lovely sponsors!!

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First up, we have Miranda...

Hi I'm Miranda and I blog over at Aimless Translation.  I am a stay at home Mom and I live with my husband and my crazy but lovable toddler Mason in Wisconsin.  I love football, food, wine, and TV.  I blog about literally everything going on in my life.  Hope you stop by. :)

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Meet Sarah...

Hey hey lovely lady friends of Alana! I'm Sarah and I write about life over at simply sarah. Some of the first things you will notice about me are my loves for Eli Manning, margaritas, pink, and my little man Toby Jack. This is my first year of single-hood in a while and I'm definitely making the most of it. Life is way too short to be anything but happy :)  

I'm so glad I get to swap with Alana again! She's seriously one of the funniest, sweetest girls I've met!  

So head on over and say hi!  

{and don't forget the margaritas!!} ;)

xoxo.

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Meet Kristen... 

Hey loveys! My name is Kristen and I blog over at WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot. I am a stay at home Army wife, new to Army life, and currently living back home with my parents while Hubby is training! I love blogging about my Hubby and our journey, my crazy brothers, and anything else that comes my way. I also do custom blog designs and love helping fellow bloggers create a blog layout they will love looking at everyday. Come on over and and say hello!

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Meet Natalie...

Hi new friends! I'm Natalie and I blog at Living and Learning. I'm from the great state of Texas. Currently, I'm an interior design student at Texas Tech University. As for the rest of it, God has given me a pretty great little life. It's nothing outrageous or exceptional, but it's definitely awesome. My blog is a place to share all of my moments, the good and the bad, with the world. It's filled with tons of happy, crazy, ridiculous things, and the occasional sad post, but mostly, it's full of me. I hope to see all of you soon!

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Meet Stephanie...

My name is Stephanie.  I am a 26 year old special education teacher.  I work with kindergarten-aged students and I could not be happier.  I'm your typical southern belle.  I'm driven, passionate, loving, friendly, funny (or at least I laugh at myself a lot), down-to-earth, simple, and very adventurous.  I love traveling...it's my biggest passion in life.  I also have the best friends and family a girl could ask for.  I love the blogging world and love meeting new people.  I blog because it's fun...the day that is stops being fun is the day that I stop blogging.  I have been blogging for 3 years and it keeps getting better and better.  I'm a die hard Alabama fan....National Champions baby...sorry I couldn't resist, but I am NOT an obnoxious fan.  In fact, I am usually the one at tailgates making friends with the opponent's fans.  I just like meeting new people.  I love working out, eating, cooking, and crafting.  This is by far the longest I've ever made it with my New Year's Resolutions and I am not about to stop now. Join me as I venture through 2012, checking things off of my list(s), yes many of them, as I go.

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Meet Breanna...

Hello Ladies, my name is Breanna and I blog over at My Beautiful, Crazy Life. I am a sophomore in college majoring in Human Nutrition, although I am a complete food junkie. I am saved by God's grace and for that I am eternally grateful, which is why I strive to live each day for His Glory. My blog is a hodge podge of things ranging from fashion to daily encounters in my life. I hope you'll stop on by and stay a while :)

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/My-Beautiful-Crazy-Life/199212663495746?sk=wall&filter=1

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/Breex3333

Blog lovin' http://www.bloglovin.com/en/blog/3403835/my-beautiful-crazy-life

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And that's not all, folks...

I have one more group of lovely ladies to introduce y'all to later this month!

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

About the Intelligent Blonde

Hi y'all!

I'm Alana (more formally known as the Intelligent Blonde).

I decided to link up and share a few things about myself:

I am an education snob and am currently working on my MBA in Marketing.

I am a foster-mom.

I go through guys like I do mascara (okay, that's not completely true...in fact, I rarely date).

My blog is a reflection of my life, which means it's very random.

I have LOTS of awkward moments.

My biggest annoyance is ignorant people.

I workout as much as I possibly can in order to justify eating large quantities of junk food. 

I LOVE to travel.

oh, and I hate Singles Awareness Day Valentine's Day.

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

V-Day Swap

Linking up today to show you what I got in the V-Day Swap.

I was paired up with the lovely Valerie!

I had high hopes for this girl, and she didn't disappoint!

She made me the cutest Valentine ever--see how she's "holding" the Blow Pop?!

In addition to that, she bought me "dinner" (fruit snacks shaped like food),

bronzer, chap stick, a mud mask, and chocolate.

On each item, she wrote a cute little note:

In case you can't read them...

The package of fruit snacks said "everyone deserves a nice dinner on Valentines Day!  Light a candle"

The Valentine said "Hey Girl! I'm so excited to be your Valentine!  Just in case you are single, (highly unlikely!) and this V'day "blows" (witty eh?), I've got all your necessities!"

The bronzer & chap stick said "The makeup is random, I just love this bronzer & nivea!  (Soft lips for kissing, right?!)"

Finally, the mud mask & candy said "tonight is a night to relax, kick up your feet, grab a chick flick, I'll provide the chocolate!"

This girl is seriously too cute for words.

Definitely the best Valentine I've ever had! 

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

GlassesUSA.com

We’re going to do things a little different around here today—I’m going to share with y’all a website that you really need to go check out!

Did you know that 60% of all adults wear eyeglasses and most of them are over paying for their eyewear. Glasses USA.com would like to change the way people buy glasses!

GlassesUSA.com not only has high quality frames and lenses, but they also offer a 110% lowest price guarantee and a 100% satisfaction guarantee!  In addition to their already low prices, they have a generous refer-a-friend program.

I’ve worn glasses (off and on) ever since I started Elementary School.  To this day, I still need to wear them when reading. I’ve tried contacts, but wasn’t a huge fan.  I love the flexibility of glasses and the fact that like my shoes, I can match them to my outfit.  In the past I would just order glasses from my eye doctor, but after looking at the great prices GlassesUSA.com has to offer, I’ll be ordering online glasses from now on!

My favorite thing about GlassesUSA.com is their Virtual Mirror!  You simply upload a picture of yourself and you can try on the glasses of your choice.  I seriously spent about an hour the other day finding my favorite pairs…and because, I KNOW you want to see which ones I liked, I took screen shots of my favorites:

If you’re looking for the perfect gift for yourself or that special someone, GlassesUSA.com is the way to go; you can order glasses without breaking the bank!

For an even better deal, you can use one of these discount codes…

Buy one pair of glasses and get any other pair for FREE! Code: VAL2012

Take 10% off any order of prescription glasses.  Code: Blog10

After you check out the website (and fall in love), you can stay up-to-date on all GlassesUSA happenings through their facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/glassesusa) and their Twitter feed (@GlassesUSA).

Now go play with the Virtual Mirror, because I know you're dying to do so!! 




**Update: Check out the new shareable virtual mirror!

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

Awkward & Awesome Thursday

AWKWARD

Being sad about eating my last lemon Girl Scouts cookie : (

Taking pictures at work...I always feel like people are judging me.

The decal on this car:

Sorry if you have to zoom/get your face two inches from your computer to see it.

AWESOME

Sending a Press Release to Scranton, PA. I instantly thought of The Office!

Making a 98 on my Finance test. Did I mention I SUCK at math?! haha

My new blog design--thanks Anna : )

Baby C's first nail painting: 

Of course I painted them pink--what else did you expect??

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

SOS

Everyone in my office is contaminated with some kind of infectious germs.

I need a hazmat mask, ASAP! 

Did I mention that germs disgust me?

Like, make my skin crawl, disgust me...

(that's my disgusted face)

Not to state the obvious mention the fact that I don't have time to get sick. 

I think I'll put myself into quarantine to prevent contamination...

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

Super Bowl > Life Groups

Mom's phone rings, 

she notices that it's the church calling,

she answers

long pause

hysterical laughter

Me: "What's so funny?"

Mom: "That was a prerecorded message saying Life Groups 

wouldn't be meeting because of Super Bowl Sunday."

WFT?! 

Glad to know we have our priorities straight...



On another note...
What do you think of my new layout?
HUGE thanks to Anna for helping completely redesigning my blog.
She's awesome!!
I even gave her a trophy as reward for her awesomeness!

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

Sunday Confessions

The other day at work, I listened to Super Bass 

on repeat 

for like an hour

AND danced in my seat...

I've been driving around with a nail in my tire for at least a month.

Not because I didn't know there was something wrong with it,

but because I was too busy lazy to get it fixed. 

I've just been airing it up having other people air it up for me. 

Because of the locking my keys in the car ordeal, 

I got a spare key made that will unlock my doors.

Said key now has a permanent home in a magnetic box on the bottom of my car. 

I ate an entire box of Girl Scouts cookies in TWO DAYS.

Thanks to my brother, I now know that the one box of cookies 

was about 2 days worth of Weight Watchers Points.  

Good thing I don't count points...

A wise woman once told me that she couldn't 

be on Weight Watchers AND be a Christian.

Sounds like a valid argument to me.

At least that's what I'm going to keep telling myself...

Seriously though, have you tried the new Lemon GS cookies??

They are TO-DIE-FOR.

It's like a crunchy lemon bar. 

I'm hungry just thinking about them...

I talk to my blog friends more than I do my 

"real" (for lack of better terminology) friends. 

I just love y'all! 

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

Product Review: Hairspray

TGIF.
These past two weeks have been Hell on Earth.
(okay, probably not that bad, but it sure seemed like it)


On to the purpose of this post...

I wanted to take a few minutes to do a product review on
L'OREAL
Elnett Satin Hairspray

I have my favorite freezing hairspray for when I scrunch my hair,
but I needed something for my bangs that wouldn't make them
crisp and heavy.

*Enter Elnett Satin*

This is seriously, my new favorite hairspray.
It has the ability to hold all day while still feeling soft.
You can run your hands through your hair without ruining the look.
Who knew that was possible?

Beginning of the day: 

End of the day:

Go getcha some, ladies!



But before you run to the store,
go check out Miss Ally's giveaway,
I'm super impressed with her choices!

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde

Awkward & Awesome Thursday

AWKWARD

Having to call a locksmith to come break into my Jeep.

Why?  Because I locked my keys in my car 

FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER.

I felt so, incredibly dumb.

There went $65 I could have spent on shoes...


Mom got shingles.

The bad thing is, I think I might be breaking out with them now : (

Only a few days into February and two people in my office
have already gotten engaged (not to each other--just to clarify).
Just call me the Grinch who stole V-Day...

What is this world coming to?

Having a coworker (who I talk to every day)
stand right in front of my desk, look me in the eye
and say "I don't think I've met you before."
I just kinda gave her a dumb look.
Then it all clicked for her. hahaha
Apparently I look like a completely
different person with curly hair and glasses?
She had to have been high.

AWESOME


This workout that I'm going to do:

Being 3 weeks away from finishing my horrifically boring classes.

Who knew Information Technology & Finance would be this awful. 

Okay let's be real...everyone knew. hahahaha

That I finally have my planner how I want it.

No, it's not one of those $50 life planners 

(I can't bring myself to spend that much money)...

It's a customizable notebook by arc.  

I can't live function without it.

Baby C is now over 6 pounds!

Woot woot!

That means she's gained 2 pounds 

since we got her a little over a month ago.

My rotating sponsor buttons.
Go click refresh and watch what happens.
Thanks Alyx and Anna!

Until next time, 

The Intelligent Blonde