Hello Monday, Hello James

Wow. To say this past week was busy is a total understatement. I feel like my calendar has never been so packed and now I'm ready to just rest and relax. Now that we're living back near friends and family, there are always people to see and things to do. This week was crazy. 

Monday I had a friend over who I used to work with for breakfast, Tuesday we had our Price Is Right viewing party, Wednesday my friend came over for lunch on his lunch break (he works in Pasadena) and our dear friends and their kids came over for dinner that night. Thursday James and I went to meet a sweet Instagram friend of mine and her new baby for lunch and had a great time. I love meeting my Instagram friends!! Friday James and I went to Disneyland and met up with one of my friends from High School and her son who I haven't seen in years and then spent the rest of the day at my family's house. Saturday we spend the day as a family exploring Colorodo Blvd and saw Despicable Me 2 at the dollar theater at night because James loved it so much the first time. Sunday we went to church and then my aunt and cousins came over to see our new place. So yes, this week has been both crazy and fun all at the same time! Plus on top of that add errands, house decorating, and several playground visits!

I've also been getting back into the swing of running at least two miles a day. I was doing really well and this move just totally threw me off. No excuses so now I'm back at it. 

This week I left our calendars a lot more open so we can take things easy and not be on the go every day. Don't get me wrong, I love staying busy and going out, but you've got to have a balance! So instead of having something planned everyday I only have things planned for five days. Hey, that's a start! 

Everything in our home is pretty much done. I will always want to add more things but for the most part, we're all settled and done. At this point I'm just waiting for a gazillion purchases to get here so I can get them up! 

Anyway, here are some photos and tid bits from our week. 

Hello to just because flowers. The best kind of flowers. 

Hello to my city having the most beautiful city hall of all. Also the city hall used to film my favorite TV show, Parks and Rec. 

Hello go me on TV. Everyone always says TV adds ten pounds so I was presently surprised with how I looked. I think I need a talk show now. Who do I call to make that happen!?

Hello to nightly walks with Peter Pan and Nana. 

Hello to keeping it classy. I stole this picture from my husbands Instagram. 

Hello to meeting one of your long time Instagram friends in real life, meeting her precious daughter, hitting it off, and having a great time! 

Hello to fun family outings. 

Hello to Starbucks on National coffee day Sunday. Best holiday ever. 

Hello to bringing your sword with you EVERYWHERE. 

How was your week? What did you do? Leave me a comment and let me know!

Meow And Neon

Just some recent photos from a trip to the park with Hook. 

Outfit Details- 

Cat Tee- Hello Apparel

Leggings- Little Hipsqueaks

Chocolate Moccs- c/o Freshly Picked

An Explorer Is A Friend To All

I can pretty much say with confidence now that we are done with most of our new house stuff. I mean, there's always going to be more to do and more things I want to buy and add to our home, but everything is in its place now. This means that we've had more time to explore our city. It's also getting much cooler here and I think fall is finally upon us (thank goodness).

We've had the chance to check out some new playgrounds, do some shopping, and just get out and explore our new city. Anyone catch the title of this post and know where it's from? One of James' favorite movies!

Today I'm sharing some photos from a recent playground adventure. We took an evening walk to a playground as a family and I kept thinking it was like Peter Pan and Nana on a walk. Take a look- 

Right?!

Outfit Details- 

Tank- C/O Hello Apparel

Leggings- Candy Kirby Designs

Sandals- Salt Waters

RAWR

This particular Disney trip was one of those perfect Disney trips. You know the ones I'm talking about? The ones where there aren't any waits, no lines, and all the cast members stop your kid to tell him he looks just like Peter Pan. Those are the kind of Disney days we like, and honestly, that's pretty much how it is every time we go. That's why I drive there twice a week. Because its magical, as corny as that sounds. It's the truth. 

The sweetest thing happened this day. We were watching the Disney Junior Live On Stage show in CA Adventure where they have characters from Jake, Doc McStuffins, and Sophia the First and out of nowhere James leans over and kisses me on the cheek twice. It was just the sweetest thing and my heart exploded. 

James is such a sweet kid. I think in that moment he was just so happy to be there and so thankful that I took him and it will go down in my book as one of our best days. 

I've really been enjoying going to Disneyland just me and my boy. It's so special to me. These are the moments I will treasure in my heart always. 

Outfit Details- 

Tank- c/o Hello Apparel

Harlem pants- Indie Nook

Moccs- c/o Freshly Picked

And now for some of my Baby Gizmo blogs... 

Great Crafts To Do With Your Toddler

10 Delicious Dessert Bars

14 Great Carrot Recipes

15 Gorgeous Boots For You

12 Great Potato Recipes

Meet Candy Kirby Designs

I've got mad love for Candy Kirby Designs. Erin is the mastermind behind this shop. She has three amazingly cute kiddos and she lives in my old neighborhood. Gotta love that. 

Candy Kirby Designs is full of bright and beautiful colors, amazing designs, and the cutest leggings you ever did see. 

James has a few pairs of her leggings and they are the softest he's ever worn. 

Her signature "plus three" design is major and I adore it. I want it in every color but for now I will settle for just a few. When I win the lotto I will own every pair. 

Leggings are $38 a pair. 

Here are my favorites-

 

You can shop Candy Kirby Designs here.

Have A Nice Day

I love this Have A Nice Day tee for three reasons. 

Reason 1- It's a Bon Jovi song. I love that song. I love Bon Jovi. I once sat second row at one of his concerts. True story. 

Reason 2- Who doesn't want to have a nice day? It's friendly. 

Reason 3- It's made by our favorite company, Prefresh. 

So now that we are living back in my hometown, we've been averaging Disneyland three times a week. Call me crazy but it's our favorite place to go. James actually wakes up in the morning asking to go now. He is at such a fun age and enjoying the rides and characters more than ever. 

I've come to realize that we really only go to Disneyland for the characters. I mean ya, the rides are awesome and we go on them, but not until after we've hunted down and taken pictures with every character that's in the park that day. 

Also, now that it's September, kids are back in school and the parks are EMPTY. We walk on all the rides and there are no waits to see characters. That's the Disneyland I know and love!

^^ James' first ever photo with Daisy. Weird but she is NEVER in the parks. I chased her down like a mad woman when I saw her!! 

Hope you're all having a fabulous week like we are!

Outfit Details- 

Tee- c/o Prefresh

Suspender jeans- H&M

Sandals- Salt Waters

The Price Is Right

Did anyone catch me on The Price Is Right today? 

^^ Here's me on the day of filming as soon as we got home. 

Here's some fun facts for all your Price Is Right Fans and my story. 

- My sister wanted to go on the show on her 18th birthday. When you get tickets for The Price Is Right, you either get Priority Tickets or Line Vouchers. Tickets are free but you should request them WELL in advance. Well we apparently didn't request in enough time to get priority tickets so we were given line vouchers instead. Priority means you are GURANTEED a seat. Line vouchers mean you get in IF there are enough seats. You want the priority tickets bottom line. I'll explain more on that later. 

-Get to the studio EARLY. We got there at about 7am and there was already a line. If you have priority tickets, you can waltz in at call time and don't need to bother getting there early. 

-There are usually ALWAYS empty seats. Once all the priority people are inside the studio, they go in order of the line formed outside (granted you have a line voucher) of who will get in. Let's say they let 500 people into the studio and 400 of those seats are priority. That means there are 100 empty seats up for grabs. Get it?

-Paige and I waited in line for about two hours with coffee in hand. I had to use the bathroom bad. No bathrooms outside. Paige also didn't have an ID (just a school ID and a birth certificate) so we were praying that would be ok. Once the line started moving we were praying there would be enough seats to get us in. 

-We JUST made it in. We were literally at the very very back of the pack. The school ID and birth certificate worked. Yes! We were in! We were so excited. 

-After everyone is in, you wait some more. They give you paperwork to fill out, they take your picture, they give you a name tag, they take a group picture with everyone you came with.. And you wait some more. At this point there's bathrooms to use and food and snacks to buy. Hooray. 

-Leave your cell phone in the car. We parked at the Grove and if you take your phone you have to hand it over to security. That means more waiting and more hassle. Bring cards or magazines to keep busy. 

-Affer lots and lots more waiting the interview process begins. Yes, every single person is interviewed and the producer HAND selects who is going to appear on the show. It is not luck. It is not random. Those 9 people are chosen by the Stan the Man himself. 

- You are interviewed in groups of about 12. We were the LAST group to be interviewed so we got to see every other group be interviewed. Most people are SO boring during the interview, of course they aren't going to be chosen. Basically it goes like this- "What's your name and what do you do?" Most people answer like this- "I'm candice and I'm a stay at home mom."  Really?! That's not going to get you on the show. 

My sister and I pepped each other up and knew we were going to nail that interview. Paige did a whole thing about looking like Taylor Swift, it was her 18th birthday THAT DAY, and she needed $$ to get a new car because she is headed to UCI in the fall. She wore a UCI tee. Then it was my turn. My interview went something like this- "Hi! I'm candice! I'm a stay at home mom and I'm an amature yodler so I need to get on this show and play cliffhanger so I can yodle!" I said this while jumping around, screaming, and clapping my hands. Then I began to yodle the cliffhanger game song as loud as I could. That did the trick. He loved it. Instead of going on to the next person like he had been doing.. He followed up with me- "What are your favorite games?" I rattled off about 10 different Price Is Right games (know your stuff!) and he said he was impressed and I must really love the show and then went on to the next person who was boring like 90% of the people there. 

The thing is, go crazy! Know the games. Love the show. Be creative. Make him laugh. Scream, clap, and go crazy! I am really good at making myself look like an idiot so this was a piece of cake for me. There were two cheerleaders behind us and they said- "were cheerleaders." Heck, I used to be a cheerleader for five years and I had more pep. It's all about that interview and selling yourself. When other people were answering questions I would clap, hoot and holler for them, I think I even threw in some high kicks. Who's the cheerleader now? 

-Also, they really don't care about your homemade tee or that you're from out of town. I live 20 minutes away and wore an Urban Outfitters top and they chose me. 

-Aftet we were done my sister and I were feeling great. There was no way one of us wasn't getting called up. 

-They play a funny blooper reel and then you go in the studio and get seated. 

-We were seated right behind the announcer George and he was hilarious. He interacted with us most of the show and made it really fun. Several times during the show the producer comes out and looks around at all of the audience. I made sure to really whoop it up to remind him to pick me. Remember those solo pictures I said you take? I could tell he was using those to see where people were sitting so the cameras knew where to zoom in at once people were called up. 

-So the show starts and four people are called down. And I'm not one of them. Paige isn't one of them. To be honest, I was a little ticked. Had the producer lost his mind? (That sounds conceited and terrible and I'm sorry but those were my thoughts!) 

--- Here's what I realized afterwards and why I stress to get a PRIORITY ticket. If you are one of the lucky nine chosen, IT GOES IN ORDER OF YOUR PLACE IN LINE OF WHEN YOU GET CALLED DOWN! Meaning this- if you were in the first group of people interviewed, you will be the first called down. If you were in the last group of people interviewed , you will be the LAST person called down. It's totally true. We saw every person interviewed and it was in the exact order of how they got called down. The first four contestants were at the front of the line with priority tickets And so on and so on until you got to me, who was the last person interviewed. 

-Bla Bla they keep calling contestants and I'm thinking WHAT THE HECK but were having a great time anyway. It's so loud in the studio that you really can't hear when people get called down. There's this guy who's job is to hold up a huge card with the names of who's getting called down so you can see... 

-"We have time for one more contestant..." And then I see the cue card flip to CANDICE WILLIAMS... Come on down! You're the next contestant on the price is right!

I was thrilled, excited, screamed, jumped, you name it. 

I had one chance to bid.. On video games none the less. I thought my husband would kill me if I didn't get this right. I bid 575 and retail was 630. Not a terrible bid! Who bids 630!? Well the girl next to me did and she got $500 for the correct bid and I was pretty bummed that I didn't get to go on stage.. But I had a front row seat for the rest of the show, talked to Drew and shook his hand, he went and chatted with my sister all about her going to UCI and I got cash money! If you're one of the three left on bidders row, you get a nice amount of cash that they don't tell you about. Paige and I split it (it was her birthday after all) and called it a day. Prizes roll in after your show date airs. 

-Honestly, I had a great time even if I DIDNT get to go on stage. Do I wish I would have gotten on stage? Ummm duh. But I was so ESTATIC that I got chosen as a contestant and I KNOW that I would have been one of the first four if I had a priority ticket. So GET PRIORITY PEOPLE! So many more chances to bid.. One bid is tough! 

And honestly, I don't need a brand new car, or money, or a TV, or a bunch of bags because I already have all of those things. I told my husband I was more disappointed that I didn't get more TV time. I guess I'm a camera whore? Haha. If you're a contestant they mail you a DVD copy so I can watch it every single day for the rest of my life... I mean... Maybe just once or twice more?

We had a BLAST and I really really encourage anyone who has ever thought about going to GO! It sounds lame and cheesy but it was one of the best days I've ever had. My sister and I had such a good time together and I would do it again in a heartbeat.. Only CBS won't let me for another ten years... So in ten years I will be back baby. I will be back with a priority ticket in hand and that showcase will be MINE.