Five Things on Friday

1.  Ibotta App

One of my future goals that I am already starting to work on is to become a little bit better with deals and coupons as it relates to our groceries.  The issue is..I hate going to the grocery store, so I have major room for improvement in this area.  But!  I recently discovered a new app called Ibotta where you can get rebates back for the groceries you by!  Just scan the bar code of the item and your receipt and you are close to rebate central!  This week I got $11.50 dollars back!  Interested in how much money you could save? Use the link to check this out: IBOTTA

2.  Biking to Work
 

Rich has my car for the week due to an unfortunate little street accident in our neighborhood with his car, so I am taking the old school route of riding my bike to work.  Living 1 minute from the office has some major perks!  

3.  Blonde for the Summer

 Remember last week when I said I was loving some summer balayage hair?  Well, a few hours at the hair salon later, I did it!  I have never been this blonde and probably will never do this again, but hair is hair and it grows and fades, so for a few weeks I will be blonde for the summer.  So far I think my dogs are still trying to figure out who I am, but I am joining Ellie for a bit on #teamblonde.

4.  Atler'd State

Last weekend I stumbled upon a new store opening in our area.  Atler'd State is a faith-based clothing store for women.  I had the BEST customer service experience there-every lady in the store working called me by name throughout my shopping experience and they were so helpful as I was trying on clothes by suggesting belts and different ways to wear the clothes.   The store had the cutest lace slips you can throw under a tunic to make it a dress.  I also loved that you could leave prayer requests in their notebook.   Here are my favorite recommendations: Great for Summer Days / Love a Great Swing Dress /   Great for Spring, Summer, and Fall

5.  Shutterfly: 50% off and free shipping for Mothers Day

I am scrambling at the last minute to finalize our wedding album as a potential Mothers Day gift for my mom and mother-in-law.  I am not going to miss this great extended Shutterfly Deal! Also, putting together this book is a fun way to look back on photos and memories from our big day like the one above!

As always, linking up with Carolina Charm for this week's Five on Friday!

Bellami Hair Extensions

There is a funny little story regarding our engagement and my hair.  Back in October of 2014, Rich and I had talked here and there about getting  married in the future, but I really had no idea when that may happen.  A few days after we got back from the Dominican Rich mentioned something about wanting to wait another year to get engaged.  Like any South Carolinian girl with long hair will tell you, it was work to keep my frizz-proned hair save from the low country humidity.    So knowing I wouldn't need bridal hair anytime soon, I did what any girl would do-I chopped my hair off.  You can actually see how short my chop was here with this photo I took after I walked out of the salon:

It wasn't but a few days later when Rich popped the question on Folly Beach.  After saying yes, one of the first thoughts that popped into my head was "oh no my hair!"  I knew I wanted long hair for our wedding and all the events leading up to them!  

It wasn't until my hair trial when the stylist doing my hair recommended I try hair extensions for the wedding.  I thought that was surely way too expensive given all I had heard about them over the years.  Much to my surprise, she recommended and I discovered clip in hair extensions that blend so well.  I bought the ones at Bellami (the same ones Kylie Jenner uses for that funky blue hair she has sometimes) .  What I loved most was I was able to submit a photo of my hair and they recommended the color perfect for my hair type.  They come in different gram sets so you can find the thickness that is best for your hair.  

I loved them so much I  used them for our engagement pictures and of course the wedding day to give my hair the bulk and thickness it needed to pull off the style I wanted.

                                 

I would never have been able to get the hair I wanted for our day without using extensions and I loved the fact that it took so much pressure off me to grow my hair in 8 months! Has anyone else had any experiences with extensions and big events?

Weekend Recap

Ever have one of those weekends where Monday really sneaks up on you?  This morning I could've hit that snooze button a few times and still not have had enough sleep this weekend.  I am trying to live for the Monday but my internal clock says, how many more days until Friday?  

Rich had a good buddy in town visiting for the weekend which was a great chance for the fellas to go do some boy stuff.  You can see what a great time the girls had too with the boys.  Sophie has always been really terrified of Rich's friend Ryan and this trip was no different.  Ellie on the other hand was a committed friend to Ryan and did not want to leave his side much at all the entire weekend. 

 

At work on Friday we had a mini work retreat that ended with a staff lunch.  Our waiter upsized our pizza to this massive 24 inch pizza.  It's hard to tell in the photo, but the pizza takes up the ENTIRE table.  

 On Saturday our neighborhood had a little carnival as a school fundraiser.  You know what's really fun? Mini horses, and this little fair had them for the kids to ride!

 

 Sunday we ventured up to the air show near by and got to take in the sights and sounds.  It was my first air show and I had a blast.  Even though I could not keep up with the boys at all (they talk in military acronyms), it was a really fun time walking around to look at both new and old planes and have the two fellas teach me a few things.    The boys had actually worked on this plane pictured below during their time in Charleston!

 

After the air show we spent a portion of our evening at our church's spring picnic at a park near our house.  One of the most amazing things about finding a church so close to our house is how many events we are able to go to through the church. Between being close to work and our church, I am going to have to really get adjusted when we eventually move and have any sort of work or life commute!  

Five on Friday

 If you all are anything like me, this has been a long week and I sure have earned a nice spring weekend!  It feels like I have so many things on my mind it is so hard to limit them to just five this week!  Check back in next week to see all that our weekend entailed, I sure thing it's going to be a BIG one!

One: Southern Style

All this beautiful weather and memories of beach days in Charleston have me all sorts of nostalgic for the low country.  I am so excited that in less than two months we will be back for a week.  I am already making lists on lists of things I want to see, do, eat, and smell!  I am so grateful that my parents chose Charleston for a family vacation this year and giving us a great excuse to get back here.  So, until we get ready for our visit, I am going to be playing this little jam on repeat and remember sailboat cruises in the harbor in my soul-city.

Two : Pendant Lighting

Since we bought our house in December the one thing I have been most anxious to do is replace some of the light fixtures in the house.  Nothing in our house light wise is particularly bad I just have been dreaming about some of the great light fixtures I've seen in other houses and felt that were more in line with the style of our house since we've updated it.  Nothing gives a room a great splash of personality like a new paint job and updated lighting.  This past weekend Rich and I had a Lowes impulse buy when we snagged a great clearance deal on a pendant light for our kitchen breakfast nook area.  I am hoping this weekend or very soon Rich can install it to see what the new space looks like! I think it will be an insta-upgrade in making our house new and fresh.  It looks like Lowes is not selling the one we bought online, but I do love this little number they have in stock right now: 

/pendant light/

 Three: Balayage Hair

I know I am a little late in the game on this, but on Monday I am taking a bit of a leap with this old hair of mine and going to a new to me stylist for a little balayage.  It's been three years and two cities since I paid someone to dye my hair, so I feel like I am more than ready for some professional treatment on these locks.  I am loving the fact that this style should be pretty low maintenance.  

Four: Jen Wilkin Led Bible Study

My girls bible study on Monday nights just wrapped up a Jen Wilkin led Bible Study on Judges and I cannot recommend her studies anymore for you Bible loving ladies.  She has amazing work books available for free download (!) or can easily be printed at Kinkos for an entire group at such a low price.  Each week she has a podcast to cover much of the reading and provides great teaching and leadership on the study.  We are launching our Hebrews study Monday night this week and I cannot wait! 

 /Jen Wilkin Bible Study Materials./

 

 

Five: Air Show Weekend Fun

 

I am just thrilled it is the weekend.  It's been a long week and we've got a friend from Charleston coming into visit.   I am hoping we can all go to the air show locally here and see some amazing air power.  It's a free event and includes a Craig Morgan concert, and I am very much in the mood for some dancing in the spring weather!

On Dog Birthdays and the Joy of Pet Ownership

This weekend our little Ellie-bellie turned five.  It is not lost on me that she won't live forever-though I slip that in my prayers at night just in case God takes mercy on this dog mommy's weak heart.  I love her.  I wish I could have 15 just like Ellie, despite all her challenges.  She loves to carry things in her mouth, she's never met a human she didn't like, she'd chase every tennis ball you throw, she lives for a good walk, and has never once been mad at me.  She's a winner of a dog.  I remember the day I got her crying in the car because I thought, what did I just do?  

Having a dog has completely changed my day to day freedom and I remember a great group of friends who gave me "the real deal dog talk" before I got Ellie.  It's true, you do have a huge responsibility for the next 10-15 years.  But, what I got was so much more than I ever gave up that day.  Thanks Miss Ellie for being the best gal pal I could ever ask for.  Here's a quick look at how we rang in the big five with a c-ELLIE-bration:

 Dad came home for lunch and we all hung out on the porch.  It was a gorgeous day.

 We leashed up the girls for a car ride and took them to a delicious (human) frozen yogurt bar that serves dog yogurt treats too. 

 The Birthday Girl loved it, just as we thought she might.

 Sister Sophie got one too of course and actually finished it BEFORE Ellie. 

 Happy Birthday my girl, may God grant my prayer and you live forever!

Weekend Recap

This weekend, y'all, restoring.  From the weather to the massive amount of things we checked out our "to do", I loved. every. second.  This little weekend was one of those weekends I just want to freeze time, because right now, things are just really good.   We got so much done.  And in all of that, truly enjoyed some time together.  Did I mention I love hanging out with my husband, doing....yard work, dishes, church, eating....cleaning...LOWES!  I love it! So, without much delay, here is a bit of a "weekend life" for our life right now. 

Yard work was the name of the game this weekend.   We de-weeded (is that a word?) the front flower bed area of the house and put some more mulch down.  Most of our front yard, minus the whole grass thing, is complete!  Oh hey curb appeal!

Last weekend I finally got around to planting some herbs in the boxes on our deck.  I am not entirely sure how green my thumb is, but I figured with herbs this close to the house, I have zero excuse to not take care of them. There is so much more to come on this little porch this summer that I can barely contain myself!

The girls love hanging out with us on the porch.  They are pretty clingy (the food helps) and it makes for some great family time together after all our hard work. 

 After all the yard work, Rich and I got to throw a bit of catch in the backyard as he gets ready for softball season.  Is there anything more American dream-y than playing catch with your husband in the back yard in your first newlywed home?    We even got Ellie involved, and turns out she is equal lover of tennis balls as she is baseballs now.  Too bad she can't throw :)

A few weeks back Rich surprised me with an awesome fire pit.  We've tried three times now to get a decent fire starting.  Why is this so hard folks? We've tried everything (any recommendations would be so appreciated y'all).  We finally got a bit going this weekend, just enough to get our s'more on and enjoy a cooler spring evening. 

We have a bit of a brunch after church habit these days, and we've had Toast on the top of our places to try.  We finally got to take a visit Sunday.  Just as their name says, everything is served on Toast.  Rich got something that looked like buffalo chicken almost, while I got a pork based taco type deal on toast.  It was great!  It had a very funky-Charleston foodie type feel and is owned by the same folks who own a great biscuit place here in Virginia too, so you know its good if they serve biscuits!

 

 After brunch we ran to my new favorite store (what?!) Lowes and returned some items and grabbed a few must haves for the house as well as some plants to plant on our porch.  Our porch gets very limited sun, so it's a real toss up if these flowers will do much for us.  

While I planted away, Rich had his first practice with the church softball team.  They played for over two hours!  It was a gorgeous day and a wonderful day to be playing some softball.  They have their first game this coming week and I can't wait to get to watch some of the games.

After he came back we met up with our Lifegroupies to celebrate the 31st birthday of one of our friends at no other place than...Chipotle.  Yes.  Afterward we headed back to their house and hung around the fire a bit for stories and friends.  It was a BUSY weekend, and with a friend coming to town this weekend, I know we will be in for another around the clock weekend this weekend.  But, this is life right now, and its pretty dang good.  

Spring Cleaning: Because Joanna Gaines Told Me So

 

 

FRIDAY! It's Friday, hands down the best day of the week.  Some folks are keen on Saturdays, but I love the excitement that a good Friday brings.  I love the atmosphere around work and the anticipation of a bunch of free time to work on projects that Friday weekend joy brings me.  

 

We've got another weekend of so-so weather (where is spring?), so when I came across Joanna Gaines' spring cleaning "must do" list, I think I found the perfect weekend project.  Our house is clean but sometimes dirty if you ask my husband, most of the time , but I LOVE the smell and feel of our house when it's up to his standards, so he is going to be delighted  to see this list on the fridge.   So, what's up for your weekend?

 

 

Washington DC Recap: Day 3

 We were having such a great time in DC we decided to extend our trip a few hours, which was the perfect decision as it gave us a chance to have an almost four hour brunch with our dear DC friend Kim.  Kim is a great gal pal from my time at Wake and most famously remembered by the large hot dog she was given in Vegas (but that's a story for another blog post I think). 

We met up with Kim in Georgetown, which is not the easiest of locations to get to from where we were staying but oh-so-worth it!  Kim was sweet enough to treat us to the most amazing brunch at Sequoia in Georgetown, right on the water.  The only tough part of this day was that weather had drastically changed and we were ill prepared for near freezing temps and wild wind.  

As unflattering to us as this top photo is, it really depicts our level of cold and tiredness on our commute to Georgetown.  

Do you see that? That amazing-ness?  Yeah, thats a PORTION of the brunch table of sweets.  

 

 Georgetown, you are adorable.  If you want a Charleston-esque, King Street feel in the DC area, look no further than this cute little neck of the woods. 

It was a GREAT three days in our nation's capital.   We cannot wait until our next visit!