High Five for Friday!

1 - The clouds have been GORGEOUS lately!

2 - My girls' night last Friday was so much fun.  I found a Melissa & Doug Deluxe Magic Kit for Liam.  I paid $4.50 for it and later found it online for $40!  That was definitely the most exciting deal I've found in a long time (as far as kids toys go).

3 - Cinnamon bun pancakes.  A must for Sunday morning.

4 - I've worn these shoes almost every day this week.  They are so comfortable!

5 - I want this bag.  WANT. #kathleenkelly

High Five for Friday!

1 - Polkas and bubbles.  Love it.

2 - Sometimes rushing to get the kids ready for church leaves me with zero time to get myself ready.  And so it goes.  Jeans it was.

3 - I love cooking on Saturdays. LOVE.  I went all out this particular Saturday and made shrimp/bell pepper/onion shish kabobs (with the left over bell peppers from the garden), shrimp/bell pepper/onion stir fry, and spicy rice.  We had some veggies on the side and I know I made another main dish for the kids (since only one of them likes to eat shrimp), but I can't remember what it was.

4 - Coffee and Austen.  The perfect way to spend a lunch hour.  I've since finished Pride & Prejudice and might do a Rebecca Reads on it.  I hesitate only because it's a classic, so it's not like it's an unknown treasure.

5 - I've had a thing for blues and turquoise this week, haven't I?

How was your week?  I'll be starting off my weekend right with a girl night in Greenville with a good friend.  Well, I say "girl night," but we're really going to Once Upon a Child to sell some of our kids' clothes and stuff like that.  So, while it's not what a "girl night" usually entails, it will be fun nonetheless!

Linking up with The Lauren Elizabeth today.

High Five for Friday!

1 - I might have picked the last tomatoes and peppers from my garden!  On to the fall planting...

2 - Still thumbing through this.

3 - Don't you hate it when a train stops right.there?  It was comical finding this picture on my phone after the fact.

4 - I turn my back on the freshly made chocolate chip cookies for one second, and someone comes along to take two sneaky bites!  :)

5 - I had one of those "I have nothing to wear days," which is really an "I don't know what to wear" day.  I threw on all my favorites and it was business as usual.

How was your week?  Any fun plans for the weekend?  Soccer has started up again, so we'll be at the soccer field bright and early tomorrow!

Today, I'm linking up with The Lauren Elizabeth.

High Five for Friday!

1 - Finally broke out these sandals from Target.

2 - Trying a drugstore BB cream!  I've only ever used Dr. Jart, so this will be a fun comparison.

3 - I've been wanting to make naan pizza for a while.  When they were buy one get one free at Harris Teeter, I got a couple (or four).  They were so delicious!

4 - The hubby and I celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary last week.  We went to our favorite Japanaese restaurant, Sumo.  We ate entirely too much and had leftovers for dinner (for all five of us that night) and a lunch the next day!

5 - I made broccoli parmesan meatballs and they were delicious.  Recipe here.


Since this post is so food-centric, I thought I might pose a question to you all.  How do you feel about recipe reviews or menu posts?  I don't write my own recipes, but I love to cook and try new food.  It's been on my mind lately to do something like a menu post where I feature recipes I've made that would work well together for a meal.  Thoughts?  Let me know!

My Recent Youtube Videos:

ROUTINE: Morning Skin Care

LOOKS: Get Ready With Me #2

ROUTINE: Skin Care Treatments

FAVORITES: August 2013

REVIEW: Birchbox August 2013

I'm linking up with The Lauren Elizabeth, Coffee Beans & Bobby Pins & FACE IT Catalog, and Life Rearranged.

High Five for Friday!

1 - More beach pics!  We spent last weekend in Oak Island.  On Sunday morning, we took the Southport ferry to Fort Fisher and visited the aquarium there.

2 - Snack time on the beach!  Barbecue chips are a requirement for this.

3 - When we got back home from the beach, my Everlane order was waiting for me!  I ordered a black v-neck and a navy crew neck.  They fit perfectly.

4 - We call these her Bono sunglasses.  She likes to wear them upside down.

5 - I kind of numbered the pictures backwards somehow.  This is a picture of the sunset while we were driving through Wilmington to Oak Island.  We drive over quite a few bridges on the way, and bridges freak.me.out.  So, I stare at the sunset instead!

Today, I'm linking up with The Lauren Elizabeth.

My latest Youtube videos:

UNBOXING: Birchbox August 2013

NEW IN: Bareminerals, Ulta, MAC, etc.

High Five for Friday!

1 -Drove home with these.  11 made it home. We'll consider that an accomplishment.

2 - If you know me, you know what this bag means.  Goodwill!!

3 - This is my current "mom" read.  It's really, really good and gives tangible advice that you can apply to your parenting strategies.  I know not all my readers are moms, but thought I'd throw it out there!

4 - How ironic that I wore my H&M skirt on the same day they opened their online shop?  Have you ordered anything yet?

5 -  I had a bad day this week.  Well, it has really been a stressful week that culminated into one bad day.  Hubby knows how to fix things . . . food!  Emotional eating much?  #yeahimguiltyofthat

Today, I'm linking up with The Lauren Elizabeth.

I hope you had a great week.  Any plans for the weekend?  We're headed to Oak Island tonight for one last beach hurrah before school starts!

Items of note:
+Don't forget to check out the giveaway I'm hosting over on Head to Toe Chic!
+Also, I would love if you would vote for me in the Chippmunk Expert Shopper contest!!!  You can see my outfit here.

My latest Youtube videos:

REVIEW: Birchbox July 2013

UNBOXING: Julep Maven July 2013

NEW IN: E..L.F., Clothes, Shoes

ROUTINE: Evening Skin Care

ESSENTIALS: Summer Beauty

TAG: I <3 a="" summer="">

High Five for Friday!

1 - I wore this outfit to a blogger event last weekend.  Sadly, I didn't get a picture of it.  This will definitely (definitely!) be a repeat, so I'm sure I'll have another chance to document it.

2 - I did my monthly clean out of my purse.  Seriously, how do I collect so much junk and paper at the bottom of it?

3 - Wore this outfit to see The Heat with a friend last weekend.  That movie is SO funny!  It was so funny, I would pay to see it again.  This outfit is the first time I've successfully half tucked a shirt.  Small victories, folks!

4 - So.  Let's talk about Target.  I purchased a pair of the Sam & Libby Kelly wedges at regular price (crazy, right?).  I was considering doing a return, because I don't usually pay $35 for a pair of Target shoes.  Well, as I was shopping at Target for these skinny jeans, I saw that the Sam & Libby shoes were on clearance!  I immediately went to the customer service counter with my receipt to get a price adjustment.  Did you know you could do that at Target?  I don't know what the time frame to do an adjustment is, but it had been 13 days since my purchase of the wedges.  The different between the regular price and the clearance price was $11, so I applied it to these skinny jeans and I paid $15 for them!  Win-win!!

5 - I found my new favorite summer nail polish.  This is Rimmel's 60 Second Nail Polish in Instyle Coral.  Yes, I will try to stop talking about this nail polish.  No, I can't make any promises.

How was your week?  I hope you have a great weekend!!

Today, I'm linking up with The Lauren Elizabeth.

High Five for Friday!

1 - Last weekend, we traveled to the Outer Banks (specifically Swan Quarter and Engelhard) to do some geneaological "digging."  My mom's side of the family lived in Hyde County in the late 1800s and early 1900s.  We found a family cemetery that has my great-great-great-grandfather and grandmother, a great aunt and uncle, and my great-great-great-grandfather's second wife.  It was so interesting!  We also found the spot where my great-great-grandfather's house and blacksmith barn used to be.  It's gotten me interested in filling in the holes in my family tree, so I made an account with Ancestry.com so I could keep track of what we find.

2 - Do you ever get those free Shutterfly coupons when you go to Target?  I do, and this is the first time I've ever redeemed one.  This is one their set of four 2x2 magnets.  All I had to do is pay for shipping.  Uploading my photos was so, so easy and they turned out so cute!  I could've added text, but I like them without.  They're looking good up on our fridge.  p.s. I used to have really short hair.

3 - After watching Bri's over night headband curls tutorial, I had to do it myself.  It turned out really well!  There were, of course, some wonky bits that I had to curl the next day.  All in all, it gave my hair tons of volume.  I completely recommend it!

4 - Another blogger recommendation!  This is my new Everlane v-neck tee.  Fran has raved about the fit of these tees, and for good reason.  I purchased one, since I could get free shipping on my first order after joining.  You guys.  It feels so good.  It's incredibly soft (hello, pima cotton!), the sleeves don't cut my arms off at a weird spot, it waist area is tapered in slightly so I don't look like a box, and it goes over my hips easily (no easy feat).  I am sold on them and I will be ordering more.

5 - So, Boden's Autumn 2013 catalog arrived in my  mail box the other day.  The pages are already stuck together from my drool.  (joking, of course!)

Today, I'm linking up with Lauren from The Lauren Elizabeth.

My recent videos:

Walgreens and Target Haul

A Super Chatty Get Ready With Me

High Five for Friday! +1!

1 - Last weekend, I was part of a TriFABB shopping event/fashion show for a new boutique called Apricot Lane that opened up in The Streets at Southpoint in Durham, NC.  Our fashion show on Saturday got rained out, but we TriFABB bloggers had so much fun hanging out in the store, chatting with customers, and getting to know each other better!  Molly did an awesome (awesome!) recap here.

2 - I may or may not have purchased a few pairs of clearance sandals at Target and a couple pairs of regular priced shoes (gasp!!  full price!  what?).

3 - My tomato plants have gotten crazy tall.  They're taller than me!  (this is no challenge for most people or things)

4 - Before the (rained out) fashion show last Saturday, Lee and I wandered around the mall together.  I picked up a few things that I'll be hauling on my Youtube channel in the next two weeks.

5 - Our kids crack me up all the time.  This is a picture of what they do when we drive down hills (no matter how small).  Basically, every hill is a roller coaster to them.

6 - My tomatoes haven't given me any tomatoes yet (they're still ripening), but I've finally gotten a squash!  Ironically, I think all this rain is "killing" my tomatoes.  It's not hot enough for them to ripen!

My recent videos:

What's in my bag?

Drugstore, Sephora, & Birchbox Haul

Birchbox Unboxing: July 2013

Five Product Face

High Five for Friday!

Last weekend, we spent a few days at our favorite summer destination, Oak Island.  It's a non-touristy island south of Wilmington.  It's perfect if you just want to go to the beach and not be bombarded with tons of tourists (well, unless you go during a holiday!).  It's laid back and so relaxing!  Here are a few pictures from our trip.

1 - I wouldn't mind living in this house.

2 - It wouldn't be a proper beach trip without a boogie board or two.

3 - ...Or a PB & J, for that matter.

4 - Ahhhh, I can hear the waves now!

5 - The weather was perfect during our trip!

How was your week?  It was tough going back to work on Monday, but it makes me appreciate our down time at the beach even more.

Today, I'm linking up with The Lauren Elizabeth for High Five for Friday!

High Five for Friday!

Please pardon this slightly obnoxious collage.  :)

The highlight of our past week was the Angry Birds party we threw this past weekend.  Our son loves the Angry Birds game, so I consulted my party planner* to collect some ideas for his party.

1 - Obviously, a cake.  I did this myself, using box cake and store bought frosting.  Ohhh, yeah.  We do things the easy way 'round here.  I dyed the frosting with Wilton's Sky Blue dye.

2 - He wanted a pinata, but our local party story didn't care any that were Angry Birds themed.  At first, I tried to convince him to get a pinata that was brightly colored and generic enough that it wouldn't be immediately obvious that it wasn't Angry Birds (like a sun with sunglasses), but then I realized that making a big deal over something we were, literally, paying to beat with a bat was ridiculous.  He picked an Optimus Prime pinata.  And that was that.

3 - This is the sling shot that my husband built in the back yard.  It was so much fun!  We used eye hooks and bungee cords for the sling shot portion.  I sewed the bungee cords into a rectangle of fabric.  And, I blew up approximately 500 water balloons for the kids to shoot at the boxes we set up.  One night last week, my hubby and I painted some pig faces on a few of the boxes.  It was a lot of fun!

4 - Here he is, posing with Optimus Prime's arm.  Like it ain't no thang.

5 - He received a pool from my parents, so of course we had to break it out during the party!  It was so hot, so I know they enjoyed playing in the water.

And that's about it!  His birthday is a major highlight of our summer every year.  It's really fun, to me, to plan birthday parties.

How was your week?

Today, I'm linking up with The Lauren Elizabeth for High Five for Friday.

High Five for Friday!

I am happy and sad that today is Friday.  First of all, it's Friday so that's always awesome.  But, it's also the end of my staycation.  This was originally supposed to be my week off from work so I could do some spring cleaning around the house, but this ended up being week 2 of Izzie's tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy/ear tubes recovery.  It's been a girl week!  And it's been awesome.  I'm not looking forward to work on Monday...

1 - But!  We're having an Angry Bird birthday party tomorrow.  My hubby actually built a sling shot.  I saw the idea on Pinterest, and he built it!  We'll stack up card board boxes and shoot water balloons at them.  We painted some of the boxes with pig faces.

2 - I'm kind of sad that we won't have a soccer game to go to this weekend.

3 - So, last week I got my hands on these Rimmel "Apocalips," but that's not even their name!  I was so excited that I found them, I didn't realize that the US version is called Rimmel Showoff Lip Lacquer.  How weird is that?  The exact same packaging and the same names for the colors, but it has a completely different name for the line.  I get that companies switch names and packaging according to the country it's being sold in, but it completely caught me off guard, haha!

4 - We have made approximately one billion trips to Lowe's since the beginning of spring.  And we even went back the day after I took this picture!

5 - I tried a salt spray from Not Your Mother's, and I really like it.  It will probably make it into a favorites video this month.

How was your week?

Today, I'm linking up with Lauren Elizabeth for High Five for Friday.

High Five for Friday!

1 - I made so.much. strawberry jam last weekend.  We won't have to buy and/or make jam or jelly for a very long time!  Most of the strawberries were local, but I did have to buy a couple pints from the grocery store to finish out the second batch.  Before Will and I were married, I didn't like strawberry jam.  It's his favorite, and now I like it, too.

2 - One should always match one's kitchen, am I right?

3 - I finally (finally!) got my hands on some of the Rimmel Apocalips.  I've heard about them from nearly all the UK beauty bloggers/Youtubers and I've been wanting to try them pretty darn bad.  I got Big Bang, Luna, and Celestial.  I might go back for Stellar . . .that one was pretty, too!

4 - TheBalm Cosmetics was on Hautelook last month, and I snagged the Hot Mama blush and the Mary Lou-manizer highlighter.  I haven't "dug" into them yet, because (1) I'm still working through my Hot Mama sample I got through Birchbox and (2) I want to photograph the Mary Lou-manizer unused so I can write a post about it.  It's so pretty in the pan, I know I'm going to love it.

5 - Ahhh, this week was a hard week.  Izzie had her tonsils and adenoids removed and also had ear tubes put back in.  It's been a rough, rough week and it's going to stay rough until the end of the next week, when she should be fully recovered.

Today, I'm linking up with The Lauren Elizabeth for High Five for Friday

High Five for Friday!

1 - We signed up Ethan for kindergarten recently.  How?  Why?  What?  I can not believe he's (almost) old enough to go to school.

2 - The half-sized replica of the Vietnam Wall came to town a few weeks ago.  Along with it, came around 500 freedom riders escorting it!  It was crazy and touching to watch them come down the road.

3 - Car washes can be scary.  'Nuff said.

4 - I ran out of my Soap & Glory Hand Food.  This was a sad day.

5 - This is basically what our bed has looked like for the past two weeks . . . well, the two weeks before this week.  So much paper!

How has your week been?  Do you have any fun weekend plans?

High Five for Friday!

Ain't nobody happier than me that it's Friday.  High five!

1 - We've had the most gorgeous skies and the most bipolar weather.

2 - The tres amigos love watching a good bonfire.  :P

3 - Had lunch with a friend in the next town over-ish.  Love McAlister's!

4 - I can grow 'maters like it's noboby's business, but give me a house plant (with one of those watering stick things!) and I can kill it like it's nobody's business.

5 - Roasted cabbage with our orange chicken and teriyaki salmon!  I pride myself in cooking/serving a decent variety of food, so you can imagine how happy it made me when our oldest son requested "fish, homemade macaroni and cheese, and apples" for his birthday dinner tonight.

Today, I'm linking up with Lauren on From My Grey Desk for High Five for Friday!

High Five for Friday!

 

Happy Friday!  This was one of those weeks wherein it felt like it was passing at light speed and simultaneously at a stand still.  Like, Friday could.  not.  get.  here.  soon enough.  But, I also was spinning my wheels all week trying to stay on top of things.  Weird how it works out like that.

Are you excited for the weekend?  I know I am.

I present to you the most highest of fives for this glorious Friday!  *high five*  Here are five things I hope to accomplish this weekend:

- Meeting our oldest son's soccer coach.  This is our first venture into sports.  I can officially call myself a soccer mom.  But, I will never call our Mazda5 a mini van.  BECAUSE IT ISN'T ONE.  Can you tell I'm in denial about being a soccer mom who has a van?  (IT'S NOT REALLY A VAN)

- Starting the cutest of hats for our soon-to-be-born "nephew."  I say "nephew," because he will really be a second cousin to my husband, but it's kind of weird to call a baby your cousin.  Right?

- Doing some research for one of my final papers that will be due at the beginning of May.  Yeah, I'm working a little ahead . . .

- Relishing in the fact that this semester will be my last for a while.  That's right, I'm breaking up with graduate school.  Don't worry, grad school, it's not you, it's me.  Oh, wait . . . maybe it is you!  Haha, just joking.  No, in all seriousness, I've done a lot of soul searching and heart searching and crying.  Maybe some snotting.  Lots of tears and discussions and all that.  And, I think the best thing to do right now is to give school a break.  And here's why: Three kids.  One full time job.  One husband.  The usual life responsibilities.  Oi!  Something had to give, and it's taken me almost two semesters to realize that since school isn't the most important thing right now, that it has to go.  So, in May, I will have completed a graduate certificate in Multicultural and Transnational Literature.  What does that mean job wise?  Nada.  What does that mean personal wise?  Lots . . . sort of.  I didn't want these past two semesters to amount to nothing.  I put a lot of work into my classes, and it will be nice to have a fancy piece of paper to show for it.  But, yeah, that's about it.  :P

- Going through my beauty/medicine cabinet thingy and putting some things to the side that I know I won't use or don't work for me or whatnot.  I have a coworker that enjoys beauty products just as much as I do, so I feel fairly certain that whatever leaves my mess of makeup/skin care/etc will find a good home.

And that's about it.  That got a heavy for a quick minute, didn't it?  Ahhh... it's all good.  I'm looking forward to having more time to work on my Etsy shop and my blog.

What about you?  Any plans for the weekend?

I'm linking up with Lauren on From My Grey Desk for High Five for Friday.

High Five for Friday!

1 - Big kid was sick, but we still had homework to do.  The show must go on!

2 - Tried some emerald nail polish from my Birchbox.  The jury's still out.

3 - I won a giveaway on Twitter!  REN sent me their entire Radiance line.  Woop woop!

4 - I may have ordered a few things from Sephora and Ulta.  Only one thing got returned -- the Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation.  Nice formulation, wrong color.  Sephora doesn't carry their lightest color, which I suspect would be perfect for me . . .

5 - So that led me to get Nars Sheer Glow in  . . . wait for it  . . . Siberia.  As in snow.  It was pretty funny, actually.

Despite most of us feeling sick again (when will it end???) and crappy weather, we had a pretty darn good week.  I swear, this blog isn't turning into a beauty blog.  It certainly seems like that, doesn't it?  I'm a total beauty junkie, so it's nice to have an outlet to talk about it.

What did you do this week?  Do you have plans for the weekend?

I'm linking up with Laura over on From my Grey Desk for High Five for Friday.

The most ridiculous High Five for Friday

Sunglasses  /  Tote  /  Nail Polish  /  Bracelet  /  Pumps

Y'all.  We had a rough week.  It was just crap-tastic.  Nothing serious, just ... well, parenting can be rough sometimes.  And this week was just that.  Rough.  Moving on!

So, to make myself feel better, I made the most abso-freaking-lutely ridiculous mood boards.  I present to you an extravagant Valentine Day's wish list.  If my husband bought me these things for the impending holiday, all my wildest dreams would come true.*

Today, I'm linking up with Lauren from From My Grey Desk. 

*not really.  but, do say that outloud like Pedro from Napoleon Dynamite.  :)

High Five for Friday!

1- Trying a new pomade for my hair.  I used to use Alterna's Hair Concrete and, sadly, it's been discontinued.  This Semisumo from Bumble & Bumble smells so good and I like it so far!

2- I learned this week that I carry too much stuff.  Why do I do this?

3- Made some white chili last Friday.  Yum!

4- Library studying face.

5- This candle smells so good.  It's one of the limited edition Christmas candles from Target, and I got it for a steal after the holidays.  My only complaint?  They need to add a wick.

What did you do this week?

I'm linking up with Lauren from From My Grey Desk for High Five for Friday!

High Five for Friday

1 - Found this sweater at Goodwill.  To upcycle or not to upcycle?  That is the question.  Repurposing it as yarn would be cool, but ... just look at it!  I'm sure you can see my dilemma.  A knitterly crime, for sure, would be committed if I ripped out all this beautiful work.  Thoughts?

2 - Baby girl was sick this week.  She's a trooper, though.

3 - Found these hearts in our oldest son's back pack.  How cute!  They had all our initials on them.  The large heart is a necklace and says 'mom' on it.  My heart.  Oi!  It melted.

4 - Finally hung this awesome tea towel in the kitchen.  It was my grandma's, and it still smells like her house.  Makes me miss her.

5 - My latest skin care purchases from REN.  One word: LOVE.

How was your week?  Are you back into the swing of things, too?

Don't forget!!  Eliza and I are starting a 15 for 15 on Monday.  Every day is going to be a link up of our Winter Remix.  I hope you'll come join us!

I'm linking up with Lauren at From My Grey Desk for High Five for Friday.