1 Tim Butron Blog Party!!!

It's here! The Paper Sparrow Time Burton Blog Party! What better theme for the month of October? I'm really excited about this party and even more excited that I was able to take part in it. I'm doing a giveaway which will open at 10pm tonight and my guest post will appear tomorrow at 5 so don't forget to check it out!

0 Guest Post//All Gussied Up

Hola and happy Saturday friends. If you are on the East coast I hope you are surviving Irene. I know my parents think the world will be ending today as for me I bet its just a little bit of heavy rain. I guess we shall see... either way my sister and I are stalked up on lots of wine and having a slumber party weekend at her house while her hubby is away for a bachelor party. So blah blah moving on..

Today I have a guest post from Amanda over at All Gussied Up. I'v mentioned before that I have the pleasure of knowing Amanda in person. We went to WVU and graduated from the fashion design program together. She is one of the sweetest and most talented people I know and I'm so happy to have here here at The Peanut Gallery. Amanda took part in Baltimore fashion week last week and is here today to tell you a little bout it!

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I just finished up with Baltimore Fashion Week and I thought it would be fun to discuss some trends for Fall.  Although Baltimore isn’t a fashion capital, some collections hit the mark, while others straggled far behind.  Here are a few of my favorite styles to get you all gussied up for Fall.

Plaids and Tartan Wool.  The wool skirt is a staple.  From subtle plaids to oversized houndstooth, express yourself with the plaids of your choice.  In the Gilly Lynn collection, the oversized houndstooth worked perfect on a mini skirt, while a vibrant plaid complimented a traditional cape.  Be mindful of proportion.  A floor length, wool coat in oversized plaid would be a mistake.

Gilly Lynn Collection
Jen Jackson Photography

The Poncho.  A true 1970s statement piece is back in full swing.  Ponchos and capes add a great amount of volume to your outfit.  Be sure to keep your flowy skirts and super wide leg pants in your closet on the days you dawn your poncho.  You don’t want to be swimming in a sea of fabric.

Deep Rich Blue.  The beauty of sapphire is gracing the collections for Fall.  This rich jewel brings out skin tone and adds a sophisticated mark of color to your wardrobe.  Integrate it into your daily look with dresses, clutches, and baubles.

Chunky Knits.  Move over scarves, the knitted and crocheted look is perfect in coats, sweaters, and skirts.  Although it could be tempting, be very sure to avoid the crocheted jumpsuit look.  A few at fashion week did not follow said advice and let me just tell you, it wasn't the most flattering thing in the world.

Charlotte Hess
Charleston Fashion Week
Photographer: e-sy-lum

Thank Amanda!!! 

Now go stop by her blog and show some love! 

Stay safe west coasters! 

Also don;t forget to enter the Chili's Tshirt giveaway!

3 Guest post//delirious rhapsody

Deanna from Delirious Rhapsody is here today to talk to us about her weight loss method and let me tell you gurl looks good! I'm so happy to have her today and I love her topic because as most of you know I'm on a mission to lose this never ending baby weight and inspiration like Deanna is always welcome!

Hi! I'm Deanna and I blog over at delirious rhapsody.

This used to be me:




And this is me now:




Six years ago I stepped on the scales and was absolutely horrified. I was dating this guy and between school and work, all we had time to do was grab some fast food. So that's what we did. And let me tell you, month after month of Burger King and Arby's does not do the body good.

I was always a kinda chubbier girl, but over the course of three months I gained about 25 pounds. Yikes! So when I stepped on the scales I knew enough was enough. Something had to be done.

Over the next five months I lost 65 pounds. And have been able to maintain my weight throughout two pregnancies. I know everyone has their tried and true weight loss method. I'm here today to share what worked for me. And if you're struggling with your weight, maybe something that I post will work for you. :)


1.Give yourself a daily caloric limit, and keep a log of whatever you eat. I have a problem with being a constant grazer. And a handful of goldfish or a couple oreos really do add up. Once you eat up your daily calories, that's it for the day. (Just don't make it anything unrealistic, like 600 calories or something. Then you'll just make yourself too weak to do anything. I try to stick to around 1500-1600 calories a day.) This way you can also eat whatever you want, just as long as you don't go overboard. You can have that slice of cake, just not the entire thing.

2.Eat breakfast. I actually cannot stress this one enough. I know some folks swear by skipping the first meal, but for me, missing out on breakfast only lowers my blood sugar and makes me shaky. For breakfast I make sure that I always have some eggs included. I've found that the extra protein keeps me from grazing throughout the morning.

3.DO NOT drink your calories. I drink tons of water, but I also drink diet soda as well. And black coffee. (Yes, I am hardcore.) Actually, it's really not so bad. We buy either a hazelnut or a vanilla bean coffee, so it does have a bit of flavor. You could also add some cinnamon to your coffee to jazz it up a bit.

4.Celebrate the small victories. Let's say you stepped on the scales and were expecting to lose a big number of weight that week, and it was only half a pound. That's ok! Only weigh yourself once a week. Do it the same time every week, and record it in your notebook. It might be a bit of a bummer to see that you only lost half a pound one week, but when you total it up in your notebook, you might realize that you actually lost 10 pounds in 6 weeks, which is great! Crash dieting rarely ever works. You end up putting the pounds back on. But if you lose them gradually in a healthy way, more than likely they will stay off.

5. Screw up. Yep. Cheat on your diet. I allow myself one 'cheat' day a week. That way I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything good. (And boy do I have the biggest sweet tooth ever.)

6.Just say 'No' (to the midnight snack.) I don't eat after 7 pm. Nothing good can come of this, because I'm not really active in the evening, so it basically just turns to sugar and fat anyway. If you think you might have trouble sticking to this rule, how about brushing your teeth? I don't know about you, but that chocolate cake doesn't sound as exciting with my minty fresh breath.

7.Mini meal it. I eat 4 or 5 smaller meals throughout the day to keep myself from getting too hungry in between meals. Uhh...and I love food. So this way I get to eat...all the time.

8.Get moving. Oh boy, so I hate the word 'exercise.' It seems like such a chore, and I've got enough of those as it is. However, I do love taking bike rides and walks with my family. I love to dance around my house, and my four year old really likes playing Just Dance with me. And let's not forget stepping outside for just 30 minutes and playing a game of tag or soccer. Just getting your body moving for a bit is going to work wonders for your mind and your energy level.


Well, I guess that's about it. I hope you were able to take a little bit from these tips. And if you're looking for someone to cheer you on in your weight loss journey, just stop by my blog and say hello.

-Deanna
delirious rhapsody

Thanks lady! Stop by her bloggity and show your love and support!!! She's pretty much fabulous!

3 Guest Post//I Fight For The Phoque

Todays lovely guest poster is the mastermind behind I Fight for the Phoque. Like i'v said maybe 10983901283 times her brutal honesty and openness about sexuality is one of the main reasons I love visiting stalking her blog. Girl has no shame and she's not afraid to tell it like it is. Her guest post is no different. So sit back relax and enjoy as she dives into a controversial and rarely talked about subject... circumcision...

Every girls night out and after the first glass of wine, the classic question always finds its way to the table. The topic has shifted to love, relationships, and that all time favourite, sex, when someone puts her hands on the table and says “circumcised or uncircumcised?” The answer is almost always unanimous in support of the former, but, honestly, most American women, myself included before coming to France, had never even met the later. Why so much hostility for the unknown? I admit I was one of the strongest anti-uncut advocates at the table, but I'd have to be honest: I all ready found the penis quite horrendous to behold, so who was to say it was capable of being worse?

My only exposure to the dreaded au natural before coming to France was some frightening looking drawings in an everything-you-need-to-know-about-sex book written and illustrated in the 80’s. They were scary, droopy things that looked like long hanging socks, and my friends and I were fairly convinced we wanted absolutely NOTHING to do with them; nor could we really fathom how the dang things even worked.

Welp, I have been to the other side,(only 14% of the men in France are circumcised) and I have, after several months and several sizes, shapes and temperaments, tamed the turtle-necked beast.

I find them rather agreeable, actually. The little sheath is actually kind of a protective cover for the upper sensitive tip. If pulled down, the penis looks exactly like its supposed to- but it has a magic trick. Once, I was lying in bed with TMI, and, pretty much like always, he had an erection. We weren't planning on doing anything about it this particular instance, so, while I happened to be watching, TMI reached down, and, casually and careless grabbed hold of the skin on his penis and yanked it up to cover the tip. I gasped. “Doesn’t that hurt?!”

He didn’t even realise he had done it as it was apparently second nature. Wow! They can actually put the things away when they're not in use. Something about that is just a little too practical and.. cleanly for me to not be in support of. Lets be honest: the penis is hardly something enjoyable to look at,(unless you’re a man, as they undoubtedly find them magnificent,) and the sheath sort of hides it; covers up the blunt details. This pleases me!

It's really rather amazing how circumcision has become the norm to such an extant that many women of my and even the generation before have never even run into the the natural version. What do you think? Is it really fair that the uncut get the short end of stick?


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Thanks so so much Audrey! Don't forget to stop by her space on the webz and show her your love! 

1 Guest Post//Rock 'n' Roll Hideaway

My fabitty sponsors will all be sharing a guest post with my lovely readers through out the month and I'm so excited to announce the first one!

Today Alaythea from Rock 'n' Roll Hideaway is here to share some of her advice/life lessons in love and marriage! I love her choice of topic and it's always so refreshing to hear that marriage/relationships are hard for everyone! sometimes you just read about the rainbows and butterflies and think you may be crazy for how much effort you have to put fourth to make it all work and then you read posts like this from real people and realize we have all been there!

Blah blah enough about me! Take it away Alaythea!

Hi, lovelies! I'm so excited/nervous about guest posting over here at The Peanut Gallery. It's absolutely one of my favorite blogs now and Ashley is just so fun and sweet! 

I've spent the last week trying to figure out what I should guest post about - ya know, should I pick a hobby or pastime or do a "day in the life of...." kinda post. But I decided instead to just share a few things I've learned about marriage. My hubby and I met back in 2001 when we were both very young and we fell in love right away although no one believed us! After some time apart, dating other people and growing up we decided to get back together and get married at the ripe old ages of 18 and 21! From there we had so much to learn about ourselves, each other and most of all marriage. We love each other more then anything and we knew that no matter how tough or rough things got we wanted to make things work. It hasn't always been easy or "sunshine and rainbows" but we have a great marriage....now!

1. The first and most important thing we've learned is that marriage is NOT, and I repeat not, 50/50! It's not about getting anything from the other person. It's about giving as much as you can. And in return, when they are giving of themselves as well you are getting but in a much more fulfilling and meaningful way. I spent the first two years of my marriage trying to make my hubby "give" to me emotionally, physically, mentally. You name it. I was demanding and wasn't getting what I wanted in return. It was when we both realized that it was about doing for the other person and if you focus on that in the end you both get what you were wanting all along!

2. Compromise isn't a bad thing. For us, compromise is key. We are both opinionated, strong willed people who want our way. There are things we have learned to do his way, things we do my way and things we meet in the middle on. You have to learned when it's time to back down and when it's time to hold your own. For instance, as silly as it may seem, I fold clothes like he likes now versus how I was taught. Silly but it wasn't that big of a deal for me to change my ways and he likes the way things fit in his drawers better. My hubby is a little OCD and a neat freak and over the years we have kinda met half way - he's not nearly as uptight as he was and I feel like I try a little harder to keep the house up, organize and keep things neat (he may or may not agree! Lol!). Finding a balance is key!

3. Take time for each other - especially once you have children. Our daughter was born a year and a half after we got married. We weren't planning to have children for awhile but she "happened" and we went with it. But at the same time, we were still getting to know each other as spouses. Throw a baby in the mix and whoa! So it's essential for us to take time to go out and do something, just us, without worrying about the kiddo. We try to get out every couple of weeks or at least once a month. We get "dressed up", go eat somewhere we love, listen to tunes in the Jeep, talk about anything from serious issues to ridiculous stuff, go see a movie, walk around a book store, etc. Those moments a lone help rekindle love for each other and appreciation for each other!

I'm happy to say my hubby and I will be celebrating our 6 year wedding anniversary tomorrow (Aug. 5th) and we are still going strong!

Cheers, loves!

Alaythea

Thanks so much gurrl and HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! 

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0 Check it out

Hey franns I made a little dress for precious baby Rowan a little bit ago and I FINALLY sent it over to her! Jess took some beautiful pictures of her in it and did a little post so go check it out! 

Ill hopefully have a few more posts today if the little ones cooperate but until then have a great Tuesday! 

0 Lets Get Real

The lovely Melissa over at 'Hi Baby' has the awesome newish feature where she gets real with moms. We talk about the disaster area that is our house, what we would do if we has 2 free hours to ourselves, and who we would spend some guilt free elevator time with... wanna know what I said? HEad over to her bloggity and check it out! I also get to shore the spotlight with two awesome mommas! Chelsey and Alli!