Giving THANKS....

This year has been a year of great change for me. It started off slow and depressing but I have gained SO much since then. My confidence is up. I have friends that I LOVE. My family is so supportive that I have no clue what I would do without them. But most of all I have the best relationship with GOD that I have had in a long time. SO I wanted to list a few things that I am thankful for:


GOD- For having mercy on me and loving me when I was doubting that he even existed. He was there to show me that no matter what he had my back and that he ALWAYS will love me.


My family- They have put up with so much crap from me and still loved me. Still kept giving to me and for that I am SOOO thankful. I will do my best from this day forward to be the daughter that you love and deserve. I would like to give a special thanks to my mother. She really has become my best friend and confidant and I don't know what I would do without her. In the past year she has helped me strengthen my fashion sense, see people for who they really are, cut the bad strings of things that were hurting me, and overall be a better woman. She is so giving, loving and kind. But at the same time she ain't taking no junk, and that is what I aspire to be. I love you mama, more than words can express.


My church family- I know. I know... Some of you who are reading this are rolling your eyes and wanting to click off... But you're here now, so you may as well keep reading. Yes we have some that their intentions are questionable... I'm not going to lie about that. But in the last few months I have seen so much love from people that I thought I was invisible to. And that was because I was in my own little bubble. I am sooo thankful to every elderly woman who has put me in their prayer book. I was so far and your prayers helped bring me back. And for THAT I will forever be grateful.


My Pastor- Johnny Godair is an AWESOME man. I can't even put it into words. I never want to be on his bad side. When he smiles I know that everything is alright. I want my future husband to be like him and I want to be like his wife. They are great people of GOD, that stand for what they believe in and don't back down and for that I am forever grateful!




My FRAAAANNNSSS!!!!- I will say this... I have had some challenges when it comes to friends. I have had a lot of them. I have lost some, tried to hang on to some and lost them, and others just lost em. But to you all I am so thankful that you were in my life in one way or another. Wither we parted on good terms or not, I have learned something from you. And I thank you for your friendship. And to those who I am still close to... THANK YOU for being there. The friends that I have now are much more special because they see the value of friendship and they don't want to mess that up. I love you guys!!!


My country- YES there are things that I would like to change. And there are issues that I wish this nation DIDN'T have to address but I am thankful that I live here. There is no other place I would rather be.


SOOOO... This afternoon I attended the "Missfits" Thanksgiving at my friend Teri's house. It was AH-mazing!! and so much fun!! Here are some pictures...

My sweetie and good friend Adam... He sang and it was AH-MAZING!!!

The hostess, Teri, making sure everything is just right. And it was!!!

Emily... She thought she could get out of the picture by covering her face... Silly girl!! She should know that doesn't work for me!!lol smh

This is our youngest partier, Daniel. He was standing up there head banging to Creed...lol

 My best, Xiomi... Always on the phone..lol

Overall it was a really good day!! I hope all of you had a good day full of love, food, family and friends!!!

Until next time...  Duces...

30 Days of ME!! Day 22...

Day 22- What makes you different from everyone else


Well... This I really don't know...lol There are several things I guess...lol


For starters I am the only one and the oldest one among my friends circle to have NEVER had a boyfriend. I mean NEVER. I wasn't allowed to have one til I was 16 and then when I turned 16 there just hasn't been anyone. So... Yeah...


I am very giving, gullible, and BLONDE... This is something that all of my friends can agree with. When you talk to me I do not sound like an typical African-American woman. I am very proper or "white" (as they call it here where I'm from) and when I use hand gestures they are very prissy. It takes me FOREVER to get the punch line of a joke. Sometimes it has to be explained to me...lol Giving is a good thing. Gullible is not. Like one friend, when she moved here told me that she was pregnant and I believed her for like 3 months when she first came!!! I was terrible!! You have to be obviously sarcastic for me to know that you are kidding...lol


Yeah soooo... I guess that's it...


Keep it SPICY people!!lol

30 Days of ME!! Day 21...

Day 21- A picture of something that makes you happy


Children make me happy... No matter how upset or angry I am when I play with children I am like a totally different person...lol


Recently I had a friend of mine link me to a local photographer here in North Carolina. I love linking to people like this because I want to see what they do so I can call on which ever one I think is best. So she does a lot of children's photos so when I was looking through them this is what I came across... LOVE IT!!lol

In all of her photos she captures the personality of the child.

This is actually a friend of mine's daughter named Madalyn. She is such a priss.lol

hahaha when I saw this I said I HAD to share it!! Too funny!!!lol

Thanks for reading and I hope these pictures made you happy!! :)

Until next time... ((raises hand)) GO WITH GOD!! 

OOTD: Black and White Stripes :P

I know it has been a long time since I have done an OOTD. I actually have been wearing some really cute outfits but I haven't had anyone to take pictures of them. So this week I promise I will be better :)

This is what I wore this morning to church. VERY excited about this sweater!! It actually came in this week and it was employee discount week so I said I'd be broke for a couple of days so I could but it and I'M GLAD I DID!!lol It's really warm and rich color. I got a 26/28 and usually I wear a 30/32. So if you get it you may want to try a size smaller. The sleeves fit perfect but were a little long over my hands. Overall it is a great piece and if they were to make this in another color I'd buy that too!!lol

Black and White Striped  Side-Zip Sweater- LaneBryant

Pink Lace Cami- LaneBryant

Black Ponte Pencil Skirt- Avenue

I actually wore boots with this and they are from Macy's but I don't have them on here :P

I also wore my pink block glasses. They were fabulous... I hate I didn't take a picture of them. I got a lot of compliments on them :)

Here's the top shot... LoveLoveLOVE it!!!

I also would like to UNOFFICIALLY inform everyone of LaneBryant's sale for this coming Black Friday. They will have everything in store BUY ONE GET ONE FREE... excluding Spanx and panties. Yep FREE... I know that at our store there was a lot of sucess with this sale so I guess they figured they would have it again. But if you really want to get in early you can check out the sale on Wednesday. It starts then.

((raises hand in air)) GOD SPEED EVERYONE!!

30 Days of ME!! Day 20...

Day 20- Someone you see yourself marrying/being with in the future


hahaha!!! Well.... right now that is.... No one... But I do want to be with someone. The man that God has for me. It's funny that this was Day 20. Last night I had a dream that I had met the love of my life. And though I saw his face I can't even remember what it looks like. The dream was so real that I'm even afraid to tell to much here. So I know there is someone for me out there I just don't know who he is YET... SO... I'm going to wait for him...lol ;)


I have been wearing some pretty awesome outfits to school, work, and other places... But I haven't been taking pictures of them because it is hard to get someone to take them for me... I promise I will try to do better!! Today I bought a sweater from LB that is SOOOOOO fabulous and I can't wait to wear it tomorrow! SO come back and have a look at it.


I must go now... The morning always comes too early...


((raises hand in air)) GO WITH GOD!!!lol

30 Days of ME!! Day 19...

Day 19- Nicknames you have; why do you have them.




This is going to be a long one because I have sooo many Nicknames...lol


Nikki- This is my name that everyone calls me. When I was younger NONE of my teachers could pronounce my first name (Shaniqua). Actually none could til I got in HS. So my mom decided that this would workd.


Nikki doodle- Remember the little kiddie song "Yankee doodle went to town, riding on a pony..." Well that is where my oldest brother decided to change "yankee" to "Nikki" and they would tease me for hours singing that song. Then somewhere along the line my father started calling me that and it stuck for a few years.lol


Nikerdoodle- This was from my friend Jenny. Just another way to say Nikki-doodle.


Nikkates- This was from my friend Celia. It combines Nikki and my last name Cates.


Nikkate- Another version of Nikkates. Again from Celia.


Nikkill- Yet ANOTHER version of Nikkates but this was whenever I was mad about something...lol


Sha-Nikki- A combo of my first name and nickname.


Doodle-bug- A version of Nikki-doodle. Not sure how we got to this.smh


Punkie- this is an endearing name my mother gave me. She call me this for most of my teen years. 


Beautiful/ Gorgeous/ Glamor doll- These are endearing names from different people. My aunt has taken a liking to glamor doll because she is finally seeing how prissy I am. She never has seen it before now b/c she was all ab my cousins in TX that never had anything to do with her. Nice to meet you auntie...lol


Chick/ Dudette- a name my dad gave me when he's being playful.


Lil brown girl- this one is actually from my friend Angie's oldest son. When he was little (like 5) he gave me this name for like a year or so because he couldn't remember my name. It was always "Mommy when is the brown girl coming?" OH! Then I became "sis. kim's (my mom) kid".lol He was so cute and still is now at 13!! (WOW! That just made me feel OLD!)


 Bugga/ Toota- These were names given by my grandmother, of whom I was her favorite. She died before I could remember her but my mom said if she was alive now I would be 10x more spoiled than I am because she would give me everything I wanted.


Jersey baby- my dad called me this because I was so proper when I was little.


Ni-Ni- this is the latest one...lol And it comes from a little guy named Collin Wills because he can't say Nikki. 


Blackblonde- because I'm black and as ditsy as a blonde. 


The broke daughter- another name that my father has given me in the last 3 years because I never have money and am asking him to buy me stuff all the time... WHICH he does ;)(mind you I am the ONLY daughter he has!!lol).


Pepper- When I was little my bestest Holly and I was called Salt and Pepper by her dad because we were always together.lol Oh the good ol days!!!


Oreo- This is another version of the blackblonde. Chocolate (Black) on the outside, Creame (while) on the inside...lol




****I have had a lot of my friends say that they like my blog and I was thinking that no one was reading it... So thanks for reading!! It makes me feel like I actually have a little attention in my parts of the world :)


(Raising hand in air) To everyone.... GOD SPEED!!!lol

Being generous is a good thing...

So I have been getting alot from eshakti.com about getting money off my next purchase... and the good thing is:

I GET TO SHARE IT WITH ALL MY FRAAANNNNSSS!!!!lol

Soooo... I was trying to copy the thing they sent me and paste it here like i did last time but of course yahoo mail wanted to be LAME and not let me... SOOO here it is...

From not until December 15, any of my friends can use this gift voucher to get up to $25 off their purchase!! Here is how it works:

Gift Certificate code: ZRDMUZ I think this is a GOOD deal as seeing that the last time I bought something from them it was $90 BEFORE tax. But of course well worth it!! I just wish I had more money now to buy things that I see because I am dying to get another dress!!!lol To shop with me click here. I hope everyone has a good hump day and a good end of the week!!!  mwahhh.... Tootles!!!

Five Favorites and Lessons Learned...

This is something that I thought I would try to do at least once a month. It is a way to keep things into perspective and see things that make me smile. Check em out...

Five Favorties

1. TRESemme's 4+4 Hair Care products-
I have had some horrible experience with hair care products in the past. I love to style my hair and make it look nice for church but I only would find hairsprays that would dry out my hair. No matter how much oil I put on it, it wouldn't look any better. A friend told me about this line that TRESemme has that I was a little afraid to try. But after I did I have been totally HOOKED!!lol Here is what the bottle looks like but it says 4+4: 4 vitamains/ 4 mineral vitamins on it. (or something like that...lol)

2. Matty B.

Now I wasn't going to do this but this kid has got some FLOW!!!lol He's funny and sarcastic. He even dances in one of his videos...lol I first saw him last week in a "Whip my hair" prodgy. Then I looked him up and found this one... Too cute!!lol

3. Food-

Food and I are having a love affair. I know that sounds bad. I'm trying to loose weight. Not to be ulta skinny, because that is DEF not me, but to be healthy. Because I am really starting to see effects of being this big and they aren't good :/ And this love affair is not helping me achieve that.lol It's like the more I try the more I want to eat. Like Saturday, I went to this really ritzy Italian restaurant called "Pop's". The dish that I had was ok. But I tasted like 3 peoples dishes and they was spactacular!! Bread was great... Made me feel real fancy. Then last night (Sunday night) some friends and I decided to go to Cosmic Cantina. Which was ok because I got a low-fat burrito (if that is possible lol). But that burrito was better than it was the last time I went and I was sooo in love with it. So I have decided. I am going to eat whatever I want but in moderate portions and exercise. I can't not eat something because then I will see it as a diet and I won't stick to it... We shall see how this works this week :)

4. Eating with friends

This is something that I haven't done much of in the last couple of months because I have been on a self-pity streak. But Saturday night and last night I was able to get together with some friends and have dinner and it was SOOOO refreshing. There was no "I wish you would shut-up" looks, or people over here whispering secrets. We were all adults and we all were having conversations together. That is soooo REFRESHING... I can't even tell you how much better I have felt because of it.

5. Following "Skinny-Girl" Blogs-

I must say I was a bit skeptical at first. I didn't want to do it. But I am finding that many of them have ideas that I can use. They all aren't bashing big girls or trying to make big girls look bad. Here are a couple I have found...

 B. Jones Style

I mean how many women do you know can wear a pencil skirt, t-shirt, hoodie and blazer and still make it all look fabulous?? None here in NC!!!lol

 Sample Style

Now this I can work with... I have the blue dress I just need some boots and a matching belt... I'm not sure an the jacket. I would want to do a different color if I could. And the braid in her hair is FABULOUS!!! Def have to find this stuff and make it happen!!lol

Five Lessons Learned

1. Stockings and tights are not plus-sized women's worse enemy...

2. Getting off the computer for 5 hrs to hang out with friends is better than chatting online...

3. Conversations with a group of 8 without people whispering and sharing secrets are less painful for everyone. If there is something that you need to say and you don't want the group to hear it then wait til later to tell them.

4. Taking pictures is not a bad thing. So hop on over and join that group of people that your hanging out with in that picture.

5. There will have to be some type of sacrifice to make yourself a better person or the person you want to be...

Bloglovin'

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Get it while the gettin is GOOD!!!

Soooo... I was checking my email today and guess what I found?!?!?!?!

I was VERY pleased with my purchase from them. If you want to see it click here and check it out!! I don't think you'll be let down by buying something from here... Note this discount ends on November 15 which is tomorrow... Sorry for this to be such short notice :/

To shop with me: www.Eshakti.com

Hope everyone has a GRRRRREEAATTT Sunday!!!

30 Days of ME!! Day 18...

Day 18- Plans/dreams/goals you have




Currently my #1 goal is to finish Undergrad. I have been working at this thing for a while. and it makes no since what so ever!! So my plan and goal is to finish that in Spring 2012. Getting there is going to kill me but I am going to make it!!lol


My #1 dream is to find something that I will LOVE to go to work to everyday. So far all I have done is work small jobs that have no room for advancement and little pay. But I want to have a job that I will feel like I accomplished something. That I am making a difference doing it.


#2: I know all the married women are going to look at this and go "GURRRLLLL don't dream of that!!" But my #2 dream is to be happily married. There have been so many times that I have wanted to share something, but there is no one to share it with. I want a best friend. And every married woman that I know says that their husband is their best friend. I want that. 


So there... All of these are probably so simple that you all are like "Really???". But I'm a simple girl in need of simple things... Hopefully I will get them... one day...

Believe it or not...

... If you take my hand and lead, I will follow...

I know this is probably the worse couple to picture but it moves me for some reason... Idk...

30 Days of ME!! Day 17...

Day 17- Someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why


Honestly... I don't really know!lol It's funny because I would want to be a mother for a day. To have my own children and husband and just do that for a day. I just want to experience it to see what it will be like. So I can have some hope. Because right now I don't have much.lol But I know it isn't possible so... Whatev... Today went great and I'm hopping that tomorrow is just as good... Keep smiling!! :D

30 Days of ME!! Day 16...

Day 16- Another picture of yourself

This is actually a pic of me wearing a dress from ehakti.com... I was so in LOVE with it!! My mom was TOTALLY in love with it. When it first got on the site I knew it was going to look good on me!!! I wore this to East Coast Conference at my church. With a pink cardigan from Fashion Bug and an on sale belt from Lane Bryant. The shoes that I have on were from Springshoes.com and i am totally in love with them too!! So here is a pic of the whole outfit.

I asked for the dress in a below the knee length and it came right at the knee so I had to have some more material added to the bottom. But other than that I was TOTALLY satisfied and LOVED the fit and cut of the dress!!! I am DEF looking at buying another dress from them!!

To shop where I got this dress from Click here. Happy Shopping!!

30 Days of ME!! Day 15...

Day 15- Put your iPod on shuffle: First 10 songs that play


So I'm currently doing an overhaul of all my music. So I don't have much.




I have really fallen in love with this song... It is the theme of my life right now...





This song... I. Just. Can't. Seem. To. Part. With.







This is an amazing song... Gives me CHILLS!!

30 Days of ME!! Day 14...

Day 14- A picture of you and your family




It's sad that the only pics that I have is of my dad and I... I have a couple of my mama...None of my brother :P

The beautiful baby makers... Love em!!

30 Days of ME!! Day 13...

Day 13- A letter to someone who has hurt you recently




Dear Lovie,


So... Here we are... Not seeing each other. Not talking. Nothing. I will say it has been a long road for us. I think back to the first time I saw you. I was totally caught off guard by you. You were the type of guy that I wanted and feared to get to know. So for the longest time I denied the way I felt about you with hopes that it would go away, or you would do something to make me hate you. But you did the direct opposite. You were kind, caring, hard-working and always there to talk to. It had been a long time that a guy was able to soothe me by just listening. I was drawn to that. Drawn to you and the possibility of what we could have. I was so afraid to hope.


We got closer and closer. People were even talking about he connection that we had. How real it was. How we both acted when the other was around. Again, I was afraid to hope. But I took the step to try to get to know you. Because after all, I was more into you now than ever... As I got to know you, you stayed the same. I had never seen a man like that. Like the song said "You see right through me" When I look back I am so awestruck how we could have such a connection that people that are dating for years never have. And we never became intimate. Never. Then one day you said exactly what I wanted to hear. I was so afraid at that moment. Because I knew that I was well on my way to giving you my heart and I had that feeling that you were going to break it. But I kept trying anyway.


It seemed the more I tried the less you cared. I found myself doing things that I promised that I would never do. Immature things. Acting like a teenage girl because in my teen years I was never able to do those things. All along so afraid that I was going to loose you. Oh you were there. Saying what I wanted to hear. I think you wanted to give me what I wanted. What we both wanted, but I was so afraid of what we could have. In a way I think we both were afraid. I will be honest. I did send mixed signals. There were times that I said things that I was so mad at myself for later. I was hoping that you would see my uneasiness and try to help me work through it. Show me how it all was supposed to work, after all, I had never been in a relationship before. But you didn't. You just kept me on a rope that I wasn't able to keep holding on to. There was no "will you come see me??" or "can I come see you?"s. And it hurt. It hurt me bad. Because no matter how much I wanted to be in your life, you didn't want to be in mine.


So, I gave you up. And you let me. You didn't fight for what we had. Or what we COULD have had. And you know what?? I respect that. You are where you want to be. So now I have to get to where I want to be. And for once I can say that I am. Happy. For once in 4 years I am happy. I don't cry when I think of you. Nor do I think of you all the time. Last week was crazy but AH-MAZ- ZING. And though I would have loved to share it with you, you are where you want to be. And I respect that.


And without taking any cheap shots at you (because you aren't able to give a retraction. Not that I didn't try, and delete about 3.) I am going to say this: I have learned a lot about this experience. I wish you well in all of your future en devours. Maybe one day we will have a chance. Hugs and kisses.


Sincerely,
Me