Tim Mcgraw + Faith Hill + 2 Huge Fans (and their husbands) = One Incredible Night

You would have thought I died and gone to heaven. Thursday afternoon Chad's friend Jake called and asked if we wanted to see Tim and Faith in concert in Las Vegas! Umm is that even a question??? I LOVE and I mean LOVE both of them, and to see them perform together, get out of here! But wait, it gets better. We are standing in line before the concert starts and I get a wristband put on my wrist, I don't ask what it means I jsut thought it was the ticket to get in. Nope, that lime green wristband was a ticket to pure happiness, which translates to backstage meet and greet with the fantastic couple. I couldn't believe it, I still can't believe it. I owe Jake forever, he was even willing to give up his spot to go backstage so that I could! It turned out we were all able to but the fact that he was going to is so generous.

Move forward in time to about 30 minutes (Faith was running a little behind) we are now backstage and walking up to meet them. All 4 of us shook their hands, introduced ourselves, "Hi I'm Whitney, you don't need to tell me your name, I already know it! ( i didn't really say that). Chad:  "You did a great job in your role as Dallas in Four Christmases." Tim: "Thanks, I loved all the food they served us before we would go on set."

Kristi to Faith: "I was at your concert back when I was 8 when you guys kissed for the first time!!!!" I just sat in awe of how beautiful they both were. We snapped a photo with them, that I will FOR SURE post when we get it. Both Kristi and I are sure that our smiles are about 100x too big!

The concert was amazing, our seats were awesome and I was one happy girl. Both Kristi and I danced to our favorites as our husbands sat next to us and enjoyed the concert for us.

    

We ended the night with a walk down the red carpet!

Garth Brooks is undeniably more popular than Tim McGraw

This might be the most random post ever on this blog but its a semi-important topic (not really) so I figured what better place to post than Whitney's blog. Just to warn you, this post is about Garth Brooks and you might get Garth-fever, which I have heard is way worse than the Bieber fever. The weird thing about this post is that I do not like Garth Brooks at all, in fact, I can't even name a single song of his. Although in this post I am "pro-Garth but not a fan of his at all, I think deep inside there is a part of me that is yearning to become a fan of his music and here is why...

We went to Vegas this past weekend for a country music concert with Jake and Kristi Stocking. We stayed at the Palms in a sky villa (which is why I was so excited to go to Vegas to listen to country) and also were able to have a meet and greet with Tim McGraw and Faith Hill at the Planet Hollywood hotel. To answer the question on everybody's mind: YES, Faith Hill is hot. We went backstage, shook their hands, exchanged a few words, took a picture, then we were shuffled back into our seats. Then, Tim Mcgraw came on followed by Faith Hill and did their thing and our wives danced and sang the night away. Now, to the important part of this post:

Afterwards, we ate at the Earl of Sandwich (which might be one of the greatest sandwiches of all time-but that's not what this post is about) and the dinner conversation we had was about who is the most popular/successful country artist of all time. The girls who are heavily biased towards Tim McGraw seem to believe that he is the biggest name in country right now and will be of all time since he is still producing music. Jake and I agreed that the fact that Tim McGraw starting in movies is boosting his success and popularity BIG TIME, however, he will NEVER be bigger or more successful than Garth Brooks. Now, I am not saying that I am a Garth Brooks fan but not being a country music fan at all, if someone were to ask me, "who is the most popular country singer of all time?", my answer without even debating would be...

Garth Brooks.

Without even talking about his numbers and accolades, I am convinced that if there was 1 recogonizable name in country worldwide, it would be Garth Brooks. Now to the more juicy part-Garth Brooks's stats:

Since 1991, he is the #1 best selling-albums artist in the US

He had 36 billboard top 10 hits, 20 of those were #1 hits

He has sold over 168 million albums; Tim Mcgraw has sold 40 million

Garth Brooks net worth: #$325 million; Tim Mcgraw net worth: $60 million

The trend we are seeing here is pretty obvious which brings me to my (and Jakes) point: Garth Brook is undeniably the most popular country music artist of all time, in terms of worldwide following, albums sold, and accolades acheived. Tim Mcgraw does have a few things over Garth though: he is married to Faith Hill, is a movie star (he was great as "Dallas" in the movie "Four Christmases"), and he isn't chubby like Garth (FYI--Garth is only 5 years older than Tim). Even with these, he just can't touch Garth and he will be the most known, popular, mainstream country artist of all time.

I think it is safe to say that this case can be arrested, anymore talk would just be like beating a dead horse. For anyone who has spent their time reading this, I appreciate it and apologize since it is something that we already knew. To put this to rest, we must put this topic to the ultimate test by asking who would win in a battle royal between Garth Brooks and Jack Bauer:

Undeniably Garth Brooks.

Chevron Nails

Yesterday I talked about the OPI Nail Pens, I liked them but wasn't CRAZY about them, the lines were fairly faint and did not last more than 24 hours. I had heard about using scotch tape to make stripes on your nails and as I was cutting the stripe out the tape tore and made a "v" shape. I instantly thought of the ever so popular Chevron pattern, its everywhere right now, and why not put it on your nails too. Here are some pictures of the process i did to create a new nail pattern along with tutorial instructions below. Enjoy! If you decide to try email or comment below so i can see how they turned out!

(going from left to right, top to bottom)

1. Pick two colors and a top coat. (The white nail polish was pretty cheap and didn't work very well, I had to switch colors a few time)

2. Apply two coats of the lighter of the two polishes and let them dry completely

3. Cut 20 strips, i did one hand at a time. You will need 2 strips per nail

4. Put them on the back of your hand so they are not too sticky

5. Place 2 strips on your nail equal spaced apart.

6. Apply one generous coat of the 2nd color and allow only a few seconds to set

7. Remove tape while polish is still wet and repeat each nail

8&9. The finished product. The grey color is Essie Master Plan and the Pink is Essie Peach Daiquiri.

I've got Nail Pen Fever

Have you seen this OPI nail pen at Sephora? I needed to try out some new liquid foundation and am always captivated by the nail selection there. I tried it out and loved how they looked the first day. However you are supposed to let dry then apply a top coat to seal. I didn't have time to do that and the next day my nails weren't looking so hot. I want to try this kind for Sally Hansen as well. Have any of you tried them? Have they worked for you? Did you use the top coat? The color on my nails is Chanel Inattendu, I love it for the summer, but as you can see it chips fairly easily. I'm excited to show you some other ideas I have been working on for your nails. Stay Tuned.

Lake Combie 2011

I uploaded all 325 pictures I took while we were in Lake Combie and have uploaded a few of them. I know Chad will put a movie together with all the videos and pictures, I will post that when he does. But for now you can check out a small portion of the pictures I took.

The Entertainment

Thanks to all of our friends for the fun, food, and excellent memories. This is definately one of the most fun vacations I have been on. I hope to keep this tradition going until we are all old and grey.

Back to the Grind

For the past 5 days, 4 nights I have been able to relax, play and have no schedule whatsoever. The only things on the intinerary were, wakeboard, wakesurf, tube rides, eat A TON, sleep, play games and lay out. Needless to say that my schedule today has been a little depressing: Wake up early, get ready for work, and well work. At least I have a few hundred pictures and videos to go through and remind me of the fun time we spent with our friends on Lake Combie. I will be posting pictures of the trip over the next few days. I can't wait until next year to do it all over again.

Dress Dilemma

Last week I was on a hunt for a cute dress to wear to a wedding, i didn't want anything too fancy, just cute, summer-y, under $50, and not a MINI dress. Is that really too hard to ask? Apparrantely it is. I went to a few stores, nothing. Instead of wasting my time searching for something that met my specifications I just went to the first sales associate I could find and asked. I couldn't believe in one store the associate had to think for a minute and then points me over to the most hideous, frumpy skirt I have ever seen, and says thats all we have. SERIOUSLY! I ended up buying nothing and wearing a dress I already had. I have decided that I'm going to need to spend a little more money and time looking for a dress that is close to the knee and has sleeves. Not all of us have a wallet like Princess Kate (whose style is amazing). I have found a few things via Nordstroms website, not OVERLY expensive but more than what i normally spend.

Three Dots sheer dress, $114
Ella Moss short dress, $177
Maggy London wrap dress, $79
Donna Morgan sheath dress, $118
BCBG Max Azria shift dress, $148
Donna Morgan silk dress, $158
Adrianna Papell sheath dress, $118
Adrianna Papell purple cocktail dress, $98
Suzi Chin for Maggy Boutique jersey wrap dress, $98
Donna Ricco black sheath dress, $98
MICHAEL Michael Kors michael kors dress, $140
Max Mia maxi dress, $88
Also from around the web I found this striped dress that I love for the fall and winter, this flirty black dress, this tan dress. I love the sequin detail on this knit dress.
A few skirts that I also liked is this striped skirt, this black skirt, this floral skirt.
If  you have any other places you shop PLEASE let me know, I am sure there is more than just me out there looking for something not short and sleeveless.

A Wedding and Reunion

I've said it before but I will say it again, I love weddings. This past weekend my friend David got married in the San Diego temple, (same place and weekend 4 years ago Chad and I were married). We were able to go to their wedding and then attend the reception later that evening. This wedding was also like a 6 year high school reunion. I am so lucky to have such a great group of friends, most of which still live in Southern California. It is always so much fun when we all get together, I always can count on laughing at the boys who love to dance and catching up and taking tons of pictures with the girls.

The Groom, who had this biggest smile on his face all day. Congrats David and Lauren!

Girl Pictures!

These guys sure know how to dance, always entertaining

I am a candy addict, me and Ashlee made sure to hit the Candy Bar.

Sparklers for the exit, may or not have been a little dangerous...

The Grand Exit, David sure looks in a hurry to get going!

My husband was great, he knows how much I love my friends and love having pictures to document when we are together. He spent the whole night with the camera around his neck taking all these pictures. I sure do love this guy.

Love Notes

There really is nothing more that I love than a love note.
Especially when it is unexpectantly left in your car, with a full tank of gas.
Nothing more that I hate than going to the gas station.
Double whammy right there.
I love him.

1,2,3,4!!!

Today marks 4 years of marriage for Chad and I. I can't believe that he has put up with me for that long :). I am very lucky girl to have such a fun, loving, entertaining husband. Chad really does make everything more fun. I love being with him and am grateful to go through life with him. Marraige is definitely a lot of work, and can be tough, but since Chad always lets me be right it makes it a lot easier for the both of us, haha. Our 3rd year of marriage brought on a lot of changes, we moved 4 times, reversed roles, spent countless hours at the beach, and fell in love even more. I am excited to see what year 4 has in store! The San Diego Temple is a special place for us, we love being able to go back there.

Engagement pictures.

Wedding Day August 11, 2007

November 2010

April 2011

Hunger Games 2012

Today has been a LONG day. I am the only one in the office, which I was hoping that it would be slow and relaxing, but it hasn't. It has been super busy and my brain feels like it is fried. Along with it being busy at work I have a lot waying on my mind as we are in the process of making some big decisions. At 4:00 I decided to take a "internet" break. And I found  THIS article, and for just a few moments I escaped reality.

Did you read The Hunger Games? If you haven't please do yourself a favor and go read it. This is the 1st of 3 books in the series. And they are making them into movies. I was so excited to see the pictures of the cast. I think they casted Katniss perfectly, this is what I thought she would look like. I love when that happens. When Twilight came out I did NOT picture Edward to look like Robert Pattinson, and the moveis just werent as exciting, because I did't think he was cute at all.

So I am really excited to see the movie in March 2012. Get reading the books if you already haven't so we can all enjoy the movie when it comes out. For a complete cast list you can check out the link here.

Dinner and Dancing Water Show

I'm a little behind on posting, we had a busy couple weeks. Chad's sister and her 3 kids came in to town for a few weeks and we were able to go out and enjoy California with them. It is always fun when we have visitors because then we really start exploring and doing things other than volleyball (like we do E.V.E.R.Y. Weekend :))

There have been a lot TON of new babies in the family, we met up with Chad's cousins in San Predro for dinner on the harbor, followed up with a water show. It was so fun seeing all the little babies so close in age and even the difference from 3 to 6 months. The 3 month olds were just chillin and Cordelia who is 6 months was grabbing at all the food :)

Ashley and Cordelia (6 mths), Kristi and Lily (3 mths), Kim and Preston (3.5 mths)

Claire (3) and Luke (5) were excited to pose for the camera.

Claire and I have birthdays 1 day apart so we both got princess bday hats and everyone sang to the both of us. She was laughing throughout the whole song.

Josh and Cordelia, Wesley, and Chad (i'll leave out the ages on this one)