Last Minute Craft Time!!!

So, Christmas is just two days away!!! I know 99% of you have your trees up and decked out, but if you're apart of that last 1% that's still squeezing in last minute decorating into these final hours, then you may find these quick and easy ideas pretty useful.

If any of you are friends with me on Facebook, then you may have already seen this pic of our family's first Christmas tree...

I'm not your traditional Christmas kind of girl. The red and green do nothing for me, since it's not really my style. I just think your tree should have the personality that your house and family have. I admit that our tree probably has a little bit more of my personality than Mr. Marcus's or Davin's, but they love it just as much as I do.

Y'all know I'm always looking for a bargain. I found this actual tree at Goodwill for just $25 dollars! It wasn't pre-lit (boo), but I did find three sets of white lights with green cords at the same Goodwill for just $5 for all three. That's $30 for a lush 6.5 ft lit tree! I'm sorry, but you just can't beat that. Most of the ornaments on the tree came from Walmart and Hobby Lobby at dirt cheap prices (usually $5 for a set of 12). This year, I wanted the tree to coordinate with the rest of the living space, so I went with a navy blue, lime green, brass, gold, silver & natural theme. I really love how it all came together.

Now, I get to tell you how those funky pieces came to be. Funky pieces, as in the the rope-wrapped ornaments, the string balls & the yarn balls, of course. They were soooo easy to do that it's almost ridiculous to tell you how to make them.

For the rope-wrapped ornaments, I just took one the store bought ornaments and hot-glued some 1/4 in rope I had on hand around and around and around and around the ornament until there was nothing else to cover up. It looked a little something like this:

For the string balls, all you need is some yarn (in any color you choose), some Elmer's or clear drying glue, a tiny bit of water to dilute the glue, and a couple balloons. This one is just as simple as the first. You only pull about 8-10 yards of yarn, dip in your slightly diluted glue, then wrap it randomly around the balloon. Tie a loop around the knot of the balloon and hang them to dry out over night. Once their completely dry, use a chopstick or even a pencil to gently separate the string from the balloon. Then all there's left to do is just pop the balloon and pull out the pieces. Here are a few pics of how this all looks.

The last and easiest tree ornament is the yarn ball. Seriously, all you need is yarn and a balloon. That's it! First you blow up the balloon. Then you wrap it in yarn until you can't see the balloon any more. There's nothing more to it. See below.

These ornaments are fast, cheap, and easy to do. If you guys don't try these out this Christmas season (the next couple days), keep them in mind for next year!

Mr. Marcus, Davin & myself would like to wish all you amazing people a wonderful, blessed & merry Christmas weekend. We pray blessings upon you and yours!

UNCOMMON GROUND: Video FAIL : (

Hey guys. So Uncommon Ground was supposed to make a come-back today with a new video feature, but go ahead virtually roll your eyes at me...yeah...you already know...

So what had happened was:

1. Mr. Marcus and I made a video, "Honesty: How much is too much?" We even broke out his video camera and set up our own version of a Good Morning America sound stage to record the 10 minute long masterpiece. But when it was time to upload the vid to my laptop, an all-important cord went missing. And who knows how long it's been missing...maybe even a couple years. So, needless to say...fail.

2. I was a little bored with the honesty video, so Mr. Marcus and I made another video... about acceptance. This time, with my iPhone, for easy uploading. Everything went well; we squeezed out another 10 minute long session; and while watching the playback, I HATED it. It was 10 minutes long because I was talking all slow and rambling about things that weren't even relevant to the topic. It was so bad.

3. I talk to Mr. Marcus about a re-do, he obliges, we start the redo, I stop the redo, I make a few "suggestions", and Mr. Marcus decided he didn't want to do it anymore. We went to bed.

4. I start to write a post about acceptance...had a little inspiration from a real life situation. And out of respect for a few people, that post got tossed.

Call it the domino effect. Or just call it what I call it...an atomic FAIL.

But since I couldn't leave you with another empty post, I decided to at least leave you with the partial redo that I mentioned in #3. What little bit there is to this video is way better than the 10 minute original. Only thing about it is...I don't talk at all. But whatever, that's why it's called a FAIL. And here it is in all it's failing glory...

So anyway, now that that's over, I know Christmas is only three days away. But if you're a procrastinator like me, you're still working on you're Christmas tree and other holiday decor. Well, come back tomorrow to see a craft-tastic post that includes handmade ornament and what not. And if you're not a procrastinator like me, just come back and see how we procrastinators roll. Boom.

Wah wah, Charlie Brown

Hey guys. Hope everyone's having a great hump-day. Sorry about the lack of post today, but between running errands and being trapped in Walmart for almost THREE HOURS, I didn't have much time at the computer. Buuuut, be sure to tune in tomorrow for a new Uncommon Ground post! See ya later!

Xoxo,
Coco

Recipes from a NON chef: Meat & Taters

I don't claim to be a chef. Nor do I claim that I can "throw down" in the kitchen. However, I will tell you that I can, indeed, cook. And very well, might I add. My husband loves my cooking...even before he was my husband and had to tell me that everything I served was the best thing he ever tasted. ; ) So, with that lengthy list of credentials, I thought I'd share with you a recipe or two of what I cook here at the Hamilton House. You might even see recipes pop up on CR every now and then.

Now, I'm not your conventional "soul food" cook, and I don't really follow the "like-my-grandma-made-it" handbook. I'm one of those that can dress up a can of green beans or sweet potatoes and make them taste like they're homemade. I'm, also, one of those people that hate to go to the grocery store, so I improvise a lot with what I have on hand. Now that I think about it, I don't think I've ever followed a recipe to the letter. It's just not my style...or that serious.

So, on the menu this week: meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans, mac & cheese and cornbread.

Make-em-come-back-for-more Meatloaf:

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• 2 lbs of ground beef/chuck
• 1 small finely chopped or grated onion (or a lot of the dried chopped onion you find on the seasoning aisle)
• 1 can of diced tomatoes
• 2 eggs
• 8 saltine crackers (or 6 or 10 or breadcrumbs...whatever)
• 2 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tbsp of regular salt
• 1/2 tbsp of seasoned salt
• 1 tbsp of black pepper
• a little onion powder
• some garlic powder
• some dried (or fresh) chopped parsley

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Mix up all your ingredients in a bowl with your hands (be sure to crumble your crackers before mixing). Transfer the meat mix in a loaf pan. Put it in the oven for about 30-45 minutes or until the center isn't pink anymore. Boom.

Red Meatloaf Sauce (it ain't just ketchup):

• 1/2 can of tomato paste
• 1/2 cup of ketchup
• 2-3 tbsp of brown sugar
• 1 dash of Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cap full of apple cider vinegar
• a little bit of onion powder
• a little bit of garlic salt

About 5 minutes before you call your meatloaf done, take it out of the oven, spread your sauce on top and put it back in the oven just until you see the edges start the caramelize from the sugar (or turn golden brown).

*I PROMISE you...this is the best meatloaf I've ever had. No lie...even better than my mom's or grandma's.

Buttery Mashed Potatoes:

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• Just follow the directions on the box and at the end, add more butter, a little sour cream and salt & pepper. Done.

Greatest Green Beans: (recipe from Sweetie Pies...but, blessed by me!)

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• 6 cups frozen green beans (or 2-3 cans of green beans...drain the liquid)
• 1 small russet potatoes peeled and cubed (or any white potato)
• 1 1/2 cup of water
• 5 tbsp chicken stock
• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 1/3 tsp granulated garlic
• 2 tbsp chopped onions
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (or not)
• 4 tbsp sugar
• Salt and pepper to taste

In a medium pot bring water, butter, and chicken stock to a boil. Add garlic and potatoes. boil until potatoes begin to soften, approx. 10 min. Reduce heat and add green beans, onions, red pepper, and sugar. Simmer for 10 minutes or until green beans are tender.

Cheesy Mac & Cheese:

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• Follow the directions on the box and add salt, pepper, a little paprika & a palm full of Parmesan cheese.

Just Jiffy Cornbread:

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• Use 2 boxes of Jiffy cornbread mix. ALWAYS!
• Follow the directions on the box.

That's all there is to it folks. And it's soooooooo goooooooooooood! Mr. Marcus will request this meal, eat it for dinner, eat it for lunch the next day, and then eat it for dinner again. It's that good. Not to mention, you're done in 30-45 minutes start to finish. And what's even better, you can't mess it up. That is, unless, you're that person. Poe thang. smh.

Anyway, try this meal. Make it for someone special, whether its your significant other, roommates, parents, whoever. They'll love it, I promise. You just gotta come back and let me know how it went.

Hamilton House

We've been in Poplar Bluff for three whole months now, so I figured I'd show you what our "new" digs are looking like. Now, I don't have a lot of before pictures...primarily due to the fact that upon our first meeting, the house and I didn't become fast friends. Long story short, my wonderful hubby picked out the place all by himself, without me knowing/seeing anything about it before he signed the lease. In his defense (from me), I must add, we were on a super duper short timeline. He literally found out he was being relocated on a Friday, had to report to work that Monday, I visited him and the new town that following Sunday, we got married the next weekend, and the entire family made the move about three days later. Throw in two emergency room visits for Davin and you've got yourself a PAR-TAY!!! Just kidding...but, it was crazytown.

So anyway, when I first got to see the house, it wasn't my favorite. You couldn't get into the house from the garage. The floors were uneven (I'm talkin about roller-coaster-ride-uneven). There were a couple chipped/broken windows. And the bathrooms not only looked like they hadn't been updated in 30 years, but they didn't even have electrical outlets or anywhere to store towels, toiletries, etc. But it does have its ups. Its nice and open with ample living space. The kitchen has been updated and has great storage space. The laundry room is huge (actually bigger than both bathrooms put together). The master does have an on-suite. And we sit on a huge lot!

Once we got our furniture in (which was about a week and a half after moving...ughh...hotel living...uuuggggghhhhh), I started to feel a lot better about my honey's pick for our first place. Of course, I instantly went to work placing what we had and then making a wish list of all the things I felt like I wanted we needed. Haha.

I would like to warn you that I did NOT stage, prop or clean any of these spaces before I decided to take all of the pics, so...sorry in advance. I promise to update these with better, cleaner, properly staged photos as I dig further into decorating this place. So, without further delay..............

This is our first nest! I took this picture standing at our mailbox near the street. No, its not the Taj Mahal, or even our dream house by any means, but it does beat out my old apartment and my hubby's bachelor ROOM by a long shot!

This is what you see as soon as you open the front door. I'm so proud to say that that console table was my first DIY project in the new house! I built, sanded, stained and finished it all by myself! It took a bit longer than I would've liked, but polyurethane takes a while to dry. Anyhoo, I'll show better pictures of it later.

This is our living room (I'm standing at the front door). I love our TV stand and will definitely show some detail shots of it later (we got it after not being able to live the one I had in my old place...about a month after move-in day).

Here's our bomb-digidy Christmas tree!!! I'm kinda obsessed with it, so imagine my reaction when my little Davin knocked it over...yeah...I'll let you paint that picture...............sorry, I was woo-sah-ing. I've been afraid to touch it up since we picked it up off the floor. The base broke when it fell, so it starts to fall again when you blow on it too heavily. (Don't ask me how I know that.) I'll talk more about it, the ornaments and the non-existing topper later on this week. *Update: I'm already making new ornaments so the tree doesn't even look like this anymore. New pics coming soon.

That little reindeer is Davin's first "hand-made" ornament that he brought home from daycare. I'm contemplating making a whole bunch of them for a reason I have yet to determine.

Now, we're in the dining space and its pretty straight forward. Please, don't mind the mirror on the floor or the too-small wreath hanging above the credenza. Yeah, they really bother me, but not enough to do anything about it yet.

Here's the kitchen. It's pretty junky. Don't want to talk about it, really.

Yeah, more kitchen. And another mirror that you should ignore.

Here's one side of our ENORMOUS laundry room...

...and here's the other. Fun, right?

Ok, so this is our third bedroom. Most people would be embarrased by this space, but I'm actually proud of it. I have a space inside the house that we can just throw stuff in and then have a pretty good idea of where it is when we need to look for it again. This rooms holds all of my clothes, shoes, jewelry, hats, scarves, purses, belts, etc. that don't fit in our bedroom, all my arts, crafts, tools & stuff, Mr. Marcus's stuff that doesn't have a place in the house yet, stuff we haven't unpacked at all, and stuff that needs to be trashed or donated.

I love this space, cuz it's kinda a dressing room for me, so it's my own little space, kinda. But, if I never go in there, all I have to do is close the door and everything disappears! It's magic!!!

Here's the hall bath (or Davin's bathroom). I had to go and buy that shelf thing the day we moved in since there was absolutely NO WHERE ELSE to put absolutely anything! It's not the most stylish form for bathroom storage, but it works! And since this place is only temporary, I probably wont do anything to make it any better. Just no point.

Here's the other side of the hall bath. I had to call our landlord to make them have someone come out and put the outlet in here. I promise you, there was no where in this bathroom to plug up your air freshener, clippers or flat iron! Who does that??? Anyway, we got one. And it works. So no more complaining. 

This is Davin's room! Not cool for a three year old. : ( Momma is slacking in this room.

Luckily, Davin is like his daddy and doesn't really notice. There's a bed, a TV and a Wii gaming console. He's a happy camper.

And sadly, ladies and gents, this is the master bedroom. It kinda makes me cry a little bit to walk in here and see it like this every day. Of course it looks a lot better when the bed is made, but its still lacking A LOT! Like color, a headborard, and lamps that actually work.

Luckily, the marrital romance has not been affected by the room's lack of personality. But, like I said before, the hubby doesn't really notice that it's not finished. I think he's just happy to be able to put his clothes in a real dresser and not a tupperware container. (typing that just kinda made me giggle a little...why is tupperware so funny? oh, it's just me? got it.).

I tried loading pics of our master bath, but my laptop decided to go on strike. Luckily, the bathroom isn't special enough to even be shown to the world. I mean, it may make an appearance on the blog one day, but like it's almost identical brother, the hall bath, it won't be seeing any upgrades. Totally not worth it.
So that's the place. Again, I want to apologize for these pics and their quality. Trust me when I say, "IT WILL GET BETTER!" And, also, like I said before, I got started making a list of needs (wants) right away, and I thought it would be "fun" to share it all with you guys. Here they go!

Entry Area

• Runner or bigger rug

Living Area

• New sofa (preferably this one)
• Huge rug (like this one)
• Coffee table (this one exactly)
• A lounge chair or two
• Side Tables
• A couple lamps
• Lots of pretty stuff that ice the cake : )

Dining Area

• Bigger table (to hopefully seat 6)
• 2 cool chairs to use as captains chairs at the new table
• A bar cart (or something like it) to house our stemware & adult beverages
• 2 or 3 counter stools

Davin's Room

• Headboard (DIY, duh)
• TV stand/dresser (I really like this one)
• New rug
• Art
• Wall shelves for books (another DIY???)
• Some kind of window treatment (roman shade, maybe)

Master

• Headboard (a DIY must)
• Rug
• New lamps
• Art
• A bench for the foot of the bed
• Curtains
• More pretty stuff!

Yes, this list is crazy long, but you have to remember the following: #1. We're not loaded, so we won't be buying all this stuff at once. #2. I live on finding a bargain, so everything possible will be on clearance, thrifted, traded, or whatever to save as many pennies as possible. #3. The stuff we do splurge on will be things that will last us a good long while (5-8 years minimum). #4. I love nothing more than to make something out of nothing, so a lot of things I plan to do myself. And last, but not least, #5. If any of you are in the mood of giving, we welcome all gifts, presents, and other acts of kindness ($$$). Hope y'all can take a hint. ; )

So, since I didn't get the chance to "make over" my last place, I hope you guys join me as I work to make this place our home. Are you guys working on livening up your spaces? Need some help from a designer? I might know one that's available.

Now, back to our regulary scheduled programming...

Hello out there to the dwellers of blogland! How all y'all be? Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and are looking forward to more happy holidays! Any new news? Any upcoming graduates this December? New baby announcements? Any cold-hearted playas out der dat just dumped their significant other right before Christmas to get out of buying a gift? Anybody holdin on to their relationship by it's last string in hopes of getting a gift before its all over? Y'all so wrong...so, so wrong. (lol)

Anybody keeping up with the new TI reality show on VH1? I think it might just be my latest addiction. I'm just excited to see a reality show look real!!! No prompting or staged arguments. Just cameras catching the life of a celebrity in real time (except, of course, those horrible "confessional" interviews that Tiny gives...does that bother anyone besides me?). Then, on top of that, it follows right after my guiltiest pleasures...Love & Hip Hop!!! It can't get any better than that!!!

So, these past couple (uhhh, four) weeks have been crazy!!! OK, wait...they started out crazy. : /  So for Thanksgiving, the fam and I loaded up and traveled south, hoping to spend some time with our beloved family members. The trick was to see how many visitations we could cram in only about an 18 hr span of time. Why, you ask? Well, Mr. Marcus is such a vital component to the well-being of his work environment, that he was only given Thanksgiving day as his time off. Which meant we couldn't leave the Bluff until he got off at 8:00 pm the day before and had to be back in time for him to get some rest before being at work ultra bright and early the day after. IKR!!! Pure RIDICULOUSNESS! Thankfully though, and despite its briefness, our turkey day was filled with love and laughter and smothered with pure amazingness, to say the least. It was sprinkled with a little flu bug on my part, but thanks to my amazing husband and mother-in-law, I was nursed into a fully functioning state just in time to participate in all the dressing flavored festivities! We were able to see about 90% of all of our family members that lived in the area, which was great considering we had to travel to two different cities. And we ate just until we were on the brink of diabetic comas. Like I said, smothered with pure amazingness!!!

Upon return to The Bluff, we've had/been to two birthday parties, "decorated" the house for the holidays, Davin was a part of his school's Christmas program, the hubby's company threw their Christmas party, I started a new Zumba class (love it!!!!), and we've found a new church that I think we're really gonna love, appreciate and really get to work in. It's really been a busy and eventful couple (uhhh, four) weeks.

But as busy and eventful as these past weeks have been, they have been quite unproductive when it comes to this blog. I know I sound like a broken record, but actually have now gotten a handle on what I know you want to see...REGULAR POSTING!!! That's why I've already taken the initiative (something I fail to do every now and then) and written out ALL of next weeks posts!!! (and the crowd goes wild!!! "YAAAAAAYYYYY!!!!!"). And you know what...this is really gonna make you go nuts...next week, I'll be writing the next week's posts! YEEESSSS!!! And you get a car and YOU get a car and YOU GET A CAR!!! OK, not really, but feel my excitement! Cohesive randomness will now have a more cohesive and less random posting schedule. And it's safe to believe me this time...my husband is holding me to this...which kinda makes this all real, instead of just throwing some words out into the infinite space of the Internet. So, if you would, please, give him a virtual pat on the back...for me. Thank you kindly.

So, be sure to come back next week and check out our House Tour, a couple recipes, an easy Christmas craft, and a special treat: an Uncommon Ground VIDEO!!!! I know; I can hardly contain myself!!! Here's looking forward to good times!!!

P.S. Send us any requests you want us to cover in our relationship posts. Yeah, we do this for fun, but ultimately, we do this for you guys. So hit us up!!!

Introducing...UNCOMMON GROUND!!!!

Well, now that the cat's out of the bag and you all know that I'm officially Mrs. Mr. Marcus, I think it's time that you guys finally hear from the man himself! Mr. Marcus will be making a grand appearance right here on CR!!! But, I'll even do you one better...he'll, actually, be here at least once a week, chiming in as the other half of what we're calling Uncommon Ground. Don't you love that??? Are you excited???? I'm so excited about this that containing myself isn't an option!

You know how when you sit down with a bunch of friends, especially when both male and female are present, everyone always ends up in a debate about "how there are no more good men left out in the world" or "why do females front about their level of sexuality" or "why does he have to play the video game aaaaaall the time" or "what turns you on" or my all-time favorite, "...cause that's what a man's supposed to do". Well, Uncommon Ground will be where we share our perspectives on these never-die topics. There's never a dull moment when these things come up when we're with our friends, so I figured the same would apply right here in blog land. DISCLAIMER: We are not proclaiming or pretending to be experts on the social/emotional interactions of the human male and female (well, Mr. Marcus might, but I sure in the heck am not!); these are only the intellectual endeavors shared by two non-common people that enjoy the thrill of the debate when it comes to "he vs. she". You can take some of it as advice...maybe some as entertainment...or take it with a grain of salt. No biggie! But you'll regret not tuning in every week to see what we got up! It's gonna be huge! It's gonna be epic!! It's gonna be Oprah worthy!!! [if she was still on air, of course] Just tune in...you won't be disappointed.

We're about to jump into one of those illusive topics, but before we do, y'all know I have let my honey formally introduce himself! So without further adieu, I give you Mr. Marcus:

Wow, ummm how do I began?  First, I guess I'll say, baby I love you; second, hello to the readers of Cohesive Randomness and thank you for supporting my wife; third, I'll say, if you want to have a healthy and enjoyable relationship or marriage, you should forget everything you think you know about how it's "SUPPOSED" to work; and lastly, have an open mind about everything we discuss in these segments.  I know some of you will hate me and some of you will love me, but all of you will enjoy the experience of being a part of Uncommon Ground.  I want these to be interactive sessions, so please Facebook us your questions, concerns and experiences and let's walk through this Male vs Female thing together.  I hope you all are ready because I've been waiting a long time for an opportunity like this. (Evil Laugh) 

OK, so for our first topic, we'll start at the beginning....

WHAT ARE WE actually LOOKING FOR IN A MATE? REALLY???

COCO: The argument always goes like this: women are looking for Mr. Tall Dark & Handsome/Knight in Shining Armor/Prince Amazing/Captain Save a H*% or whatever you want to call him. We want a good looking man that can rescue us from whatever situation we're currently in (whether it be emotional, financial, etc.) and give us the life that we grew up seeing in all of the Disney princess movies. He only needs to give us everything we want and defend our honor when it's at stake. Men, on the other hand, are looking for Ms. Halley Berry/Betty Crocker/Michelle "Africa" Tucker (Google her [parental discretion is advised] mmhmm). They want the trophy that can cater to his belly and the bulge in his pants. And if she don't talk, that's even better. Point blank period! Now I know this is the beyond extreme version of this argument, however, one can not deny its truthfulness. Even I had to sit in deep thought and ponder my thoughts and beliefs before today. Now, never would I ever say the things I said above. But after thinking on it a while, I realized that it was exactly what I believed subconsciously. And I know a lot of you may disagree with my statement, but a lot of your actions prove its undoubted point...we want what we think is best for us...THE BEST. And it's as simple as that.

MR. MARCUS: It's funny that my wife made a reference to Michelle Tucker (a female porn star) and introduced me as Mr. Marcus (who is also a porn star) and I like to think we have some common traits (grin).  OK I say that women don't know what it is that they are looking for.  They know what sounds good or what looks good on paper but I can tell you that over half of the women who say they know what they are looking for are with someone who completely fails the pre-employment pre-relationship screening.  Somehow, Mr. tall, dark, handsome and financially stable looks more like Mr. light bright, broke with 3 kids, and unemployed.  Men on the other hand don't want Halle Berry or Michelle Tucker for a mate, we just want the experience.  Men want Mrs. Honey I cooked dinner/Mrs. Baby here's the remote/Mrs. sex is not a gift it's a part of the "deal" (the "deal" being marriage).  OK so now that we have a general idea of what men and women want from a male a female perspective why is it that the majority of people don't find it?  It's because we choose a mate based on the impressions of those around us.  How many of you are in a relationship or have been with someone that your friends approved of and you are dreading it?  I can bet a lot of hands are up.  Nobody knows what makes you happy but you.  Who gives a s#!t if he is not 6'2 or that she has a little back fat, it's called character lol.  If they make you feel differently than any other person and they are willing to put their flaws in front of you, they deserve a chance.  A fair chance, not a BS sympathy chance, which is really no chance at all. For real.

Alright. Have we stepped on any toes? Are we speaking to anyone directly? Tell us! Let us in. We'd love to hear what you have to say. We just want to know...what are you really looking for in a mate?



Got any topics you want us to discuss on UNCOMMON GROUND? Feel free to leave it in the comment section, message us on Facebook (Coco = Carmeon Andrea & Mr. Marcus = Marcus Hamilton) or shoot us an email at cohesiverandomness@gmail.com. Nothing's off limits!!!

If this isn't love...Part...???

Hello. My name is Carmeon Hamilton and I'm married and living in "Big Mayberry", MO.

If you're new to Cohesive Randomness, then welcome to my favorite pastime!!! If you're a follower of Cohesive Randomness (which is about 12 really nice people), you're probably thinking right now, "WHAT THE HELL?!?!" I know, I know. And I'm sorry. But please allow me to thoroughly explain myself.

Now, I know that everyone loooved reading all of the "If this isn't love" posts (at least that's what I heard). And trust me, they were my favorite posts to write. So much so, that every time I attempted to write the next installment (i kid you not, it was about 12 times...no lie), I just felt like it wasn't good enough. That part of my life is so freakin hard to chronicle due to all of the twists and turns that took place. Not to mention that my life, in real time, over the past 8 months or so, was so crazy that I barely had the time to even pick up my laptop. But, please, don't go into cardiac arrest just yet. My spidey senses are telling me that a few of you are having hearts palpitations, thinking I'm just going to skip over the most important part of the story. Breathe honey. Breathe. Woosaah (sp?). Anyway. Like I said, don't fret my dears. I promise to divulge every little micro detail from that time in my life all the way up to now.

I had an "ah ha" moment today after really taking the time to think about this blog in comparison to the current state of my life right now. I realized that not only am I about 9 months behind on my blog...as in really keeping up on my posting schedule of a least one post a day...I'm actually about 2 years behind in the timeline of my relationship story! Do you know that if continuing at the rate I'm going, it would take me almost 2 years to get you all up to speed with me in present day!!! Heeeeck naw! I know y'all love me and all, but ain't nobody gone be comin back here every 9 months to see if I've given an update!!! It just AIN'T GONE HAPPEN!!! I wouldn't do y'all like that. I love y'all too much!!! Fo real!

So I thought to myself, "Why don't I tell them about what's going on now, and then work my way backwards while telling what's going on everyday?!?!" (Did you get that?) It's the perfect solution!!! I get to tell you about my past, shed light on the good and bad of my relationship, sharing my lessons learned; and simultaneously, share the life lessons my present day relationship...and whatever the hell else I feel like talking about. Boom! Bam! Pow!!! Problem solved. Everybody wins!

Side note: now that I'm thinking about it, I should've given this post a different title. I'm not actually talking about my love life in the post. I feel like I'm rambling. Am I rambling? I just might be. I bet you $5 I'm rambling. Bet 5.Ooookaaay...where's the beef? Lmbo!

Confused? OK. My bad. Here we go...

Hello. My name is Carmeon Hamilton and I'm married!!!!

I, finally, married the man of my prayers and dreams. Yeeesss, daaahling, Mr. Marcus and I have officially tied the knot! The magical occasion happened on 9.10.11.

We had a small (and I mean, very small) ceremony and dinner reception at one of our favorite places in Little Rock, AR, called Brave New Restaurant. There were only about 35 of our closest family and friends in attendance, but that's exactly how we wanted it. Small, intimate, personal. Our wishes were to be surrounded by the people that not only loved and cared for us, but also had a personal investment in our relationship.

Now, you gotta know that we had lots and lots and LOTS of people upset with us for not inviting them to the wedding. And, I can definitely understand where they're coming from. However, I felt and feel that so many people get caught up in the tradition of a wedding: a over-the-top production with a huge reception, lots of food, drinks & dancing...basically, an overly expensive party; but, they tend to forget that some marital celebrations are just about the people that are actually getting married and their wishes. Don't get me wrong thought; it would've been nice to have a huge and extravagant shindig with over 250 family members, friends, classmates, co-workers, associates, and crashers, but it just wasn't what we wanted. We tried to stay true to our gut feelings; not tradition or what other people thought it should've been. And that's all there was to it. [insert Kanye West shoulder shrug]

We've been boom-tasticly (hehe) married for 2 months now and are living our new lives in the wooonderful state of Missouri. Poplar Bluff to be exact. It's quite the start for a pair of newlyweds and their kiddo. My honey's job transferred him here only two weeks before the wedding, so we've been drifting on the good Lord's wind ever since.

I can't wait to tell you about the town...show you guys the house...tell you what I do everyday, especially since I work from home now! So y'all come back now, ya hear!!!!

XOXO,
Coco

My Birthday Outfit!

Hey peeps! So my birthday was last week, but I had to come back and show you my birthday outfit! It was completely inpsired by two of my favortie things: TheBudgetBabe blog and my best buddy, Kim Kardashian!

via

I came across a photo of Kim similar to this one on BB's blog and instantly thought about my new blazer that I scored at Forever21 this past summer.



via

I'm completely in love with it, but due to sweltering summer heat down here in the south, have never had the chance to wear it...until my birthday!!! Here it is!



Sorry about the photo quality...this was just a quick camera phone pic. But you get the picture, right? I really loved how it turned out. And even though I had it on for all of three hours (remember, I work from home :), I was really feeling myself! Ha!

My outfit breaks down as such:

Coral Blazer & Oragami Crane Necklace - Forever21

Neutral Blouse - Gap

Distressed Skinny Jeans - Abercrombie&Fitch (my 1st pair, btw)

Caged Heels - BCBGirls

And just between you and me, my entire outfit, including eeeevvveerything you see here, only cost me about $105!!! I kid you not! Cross my heart!!!

So what are you guys rockin, now that the weather is finally getting an identity? Share, and share alike!

XOXO

Happy Birthday to MEEE!!!

On this day, over a quarter of a century ago, the dear Lord decided to bless this old earth with my presence! Today's my birthday and I turned a glamorous 26 years old! And even though I'm still in bed and not looking so glamorous, I figured I'd treat myself to a little glamour with a little online shopping!
Now, before I even conceived the thought of starting my own blog, I was a mad stalker of so many others. Design, fashion, lifestyle...you name it; I read it. So last week, while doing my morning internet rundown, I came across a post at one of my favorite blogs, The Budget Babe. *S/N: I love this blog and you should definitely check it out sometime. Who wouldn't love a place where you not only can peruse high fashions, but also be pointed in the right direction to get the look for less??? I love it!

via TheBudgetBabe

Anywho, so I came across this post about an amazing pair of Chanel riding boots, worn by the always fab Kourtney Kardashian. *OK, another S/N: I'm secretly in love with the Kardashians. No not eeeeverything about them, like their potty mouths and fascination with boobs and vajayjays, but definitely their sense of style. And yes, I've seen every episode of Keeping up with the Kardashians and I google photos of them when needing some inspiration for an outfit. So there.

But back to the boots. I love me some boots! You can never have too many. So when I saw these beauties, I instantly broke out the credit card!!!

via Endless.com

These are the Corso Como Richmond Knee-High Boot in the Black & Ginger Burnish Calf color selection. Yes, they're listed at $199 but if you order them any time soon, you get an additional 30% off and FREE overnight shipping! My total came to just under $140. That's less than some of the synthetic material boots that I love at places like Bakers and Aldo! The Chanel boots would cost me more than a grip. Probably an amount that I wouldn't even consider spending on any article of clothing in my lifetime (even if I had it to spare), so I think these are more than worth the price.

The true test will be putting them on and dancing around the house! They are due to arrive tomorrow, so I'll definitely be letting you know soon how things turn out! Until then peeps...I'm going off to enjoy my day!!!

XOXO