Showing posts with label summer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label summer. Show all posts

6.08.2015

Beach Weekend

Friday morning we packed up and headed three hours south to Destin, Florida. This was our first time getting out of town in almost a year. Yeah, a year! It was much needed to say the least. It was also Sadie Ann's first long car ride, first time in a different state, and first time to the beach. 

We spent the weekend with Chris's parents and grandparents at their family condo. Since there were plenty of hands that wanted to hold, love on, and take care of Sadie Ann, we were able to relax and have some time together. 






We spent Saturday morning and afternoon on the beach - drinking cold drinks and taking in some vitamin sea (and D). Since it was early June, the beaches weren't cluttered and were fairly quiet. It was so relaxing to just stare at the water, listen to music, and not have a care in the world. However, as most parents know, we spent quite a bit of time talking about our Sadie Ann. 

After a few hours on the beach, we headed in for an obligatory post-beach and pre-night out nap. Once the sun began to go down, we took Sadie Ann out to dip her toes in the water for the first time. We all assumed she would not (yet) be a fan of the water and sand, but much to our surprise, she seemed to enjoy sitting in the sand and having the waves run up around her. 





Her great grandaddy decided he wanted to take a dip as well! 



So after introducing Sadie Ann to the ocean, Chris and I headed out for date night. Before getting on the elevator I said, "Let's snap a picture." This was the result. He's pretty notorious for having his eyes closed during pictures, 


We ate dinner at Dewey Destin's and it was delicious. We had the perfect seat on the top deck that overlooked the water. After dinner we walked down the boardwalk. We listened to some live music, did some people watching, and drank frozen beverages. 



It was a quick, but wonderful beach weekend!

5.20.2015

Happy Place



Jacket: JCP {J Crew version}
Clutch: GiGi NY
Wedges: similar

Now that Sadie Ann is home, I typically only leave the house for doctor appointments and occasionally on the weekends. So I'm trying to take advantage of those outings and wear something other than a tee and jeans (and maybe sometimes sweat pants - ok, mostly sweatpants).  So here I am, wearing a complete outfit and sharing it! Go me! 

Since I've already admitted my sweatpants problem, I'll go ahead and admit I was one of those women who went a little cray-cray for the Lilly for Target line. Honestly, I've been a fan of all theTarget collaborations, but most of them have been designers that aren't as well known as Lilly. So when I first heard about the collaboration, I thought two things: 1) Awesome! Affordable Lilly and 2) This is going to be bananas (Gwen Stefani bananas). And it was. I started following all the online hype and quickly realized if I wanted anything, I needed to stay up to order online and be at the store before it opens on Lilly Sunday. So I did and I was. 

It paid off - I was able to get a lot of items I wanted. This romper was high on my list and I love it! Actually, I ordered it online and right before I placed my order, the site crashed. When the site was back up, almost everything was sold out already and I was certain I didn't get it - but I did! A few days later I received an email that my items had shipped - and I was thinking, What items?? The order went through and now it's mine! I can't wait to wear this comfy beauty on long car rides and at the beach. So perfect! Did any of you go cray for Lilly?

Lots of lightly worn and new items on my Shopping blog:

7.07.2014

Creamsicle Stripes



shirt: Crown & Ivy
heels: similar

Hope you all had a fabulous holiday weekend. It's back to the grind today. This week I am definitely working for the weekend as we have plans for a mini-vacay to the gulf coast starting Thursday night. Here's hoping the week moves quickly. Happy Monday! 

9.23.2013

TOP TEN: Summer to Fall Transition Pieces

Fall has arrived! Excuse me while I do a happy dance and sip my Pumpkin Spice Latte! 

Unfortunately, there's not a switch to flip and suddenly we have highs that only reach the 50's. Some of you may already be enjoying cooler weather, but here in the deep south, we're not. So I would say this list of summer to fall transition pieces is relative to the climate of the south. It's a mix of balancing a desire for cool weather and the reality of warm weather. 

The thing I love about all these pieces is that they can be layered. I can wear shorts and a gray tee during the day, then, as the sun sets, layer on a sweater, scarf, and close-toe flats. These are pieces I'm rotating and/or wanting. 


05. {Gray tee}

9.10.2013

TOP TEN: Summer Beauty Products


Summer is winding down and we are {finally} approaching fall again. Before summer is completely over, I wanted to share with you products I found myself using pretty consistently this summer. 

First of all, these smell incredibly clean and fresh. Second of all, in the summer when there's a little more perspiration and you're typically outside a bit more than usual, your face can pick up extra junk. I find that giving my face a gentle wipe with these before actually washing my face really helps out. 

This stuff. I've re-purchased this stuff three times already this summer. My first experience with a BB cream was through Birchbox last year. I was instantly in love. But as I ran out of the product, I realized I didn't want to spend $30 on a small tube. So I decided to try out a drug store brand BB cream. This happened to be the first one I saw, so I bought it. Much to my surprise it was equally as impressive as a product that was more than three times expensive. I know a lot of people say BB creams are just tinted moisturizers, but I beg to differ. BB cream is magic. I don't know how, but it does amazing things and I like it. I've been giving my foundation a break and wearing this cream with a bit of eye concealer and finishing powder. It's quick, easy, and great quality. 

I've come to realize that stains work best with my lips; however, the thing with lip stains is that they can be extremely drying. Problem solved. Theses balm stains give me the stain I like and the moisture I need. 

The smell of grapefruit is so clean and refreshing. I typically use ProActiv as my acne defense, but lately I've been incorporating this scrub. I love the smell, the foaming action, and the scrubbing beads. 

Spoiler Alert. I didn't actually use this product for my spray tan, but I didn't want to mess up my collage with a picture of a Palm Beach Tanning Salon. This summer I decided to purchase a membership to get spray tans as needed. I really only needed some color twice this summer. Once when I went down to the beach and again when we had a summer pool party at our house. So was it worth it? Mheee... probably not, but I'm not a fan of excessive sun bathing or tanning beds. I'm also not a fan of blinding people with my lily white skin color, so I did what I had to do. 

I could put this stuff in any beauty top ten list I make. I've been using it for over two years now. I've gone through who knows how many bottles. And I will continue to purchase it. I've tried other high end dry shampoos as well as drug store brand dry shampoos and I can never find anything comparable. In the summer, when our hair collects a bit more oil and dirt, this stuff takes care of business.  It can get me through four to five days without having to wash my hair. Some may call that gross, I call it really convenient. 

I've used this every day this summer. It's my go-to product for contouring or just adding a hint of color to the face. Being in scrubs all day, I can dust a bit of this on and fool all my co-workers into thinking I'm super active and that I spend a lot of time outdoors when I'm not at work. 

Maybe I'm weird, but I feel like I tend to get a bit dry during the summer. Right before bed I lather this all over my face and neck and let my skin drink it in throughout the night. 

During the summer, my typical go-to nail color is some form of coral; however, this summer I have been obsessed with hot pink. This color satisfies my hot-pink cravings. 

I fight a never-ending war with finding the perfect mascara. I can pay $5 or $30 for a tube and see no difference. A lot of finding the right mascara depends on matching up your eyelash type to the right mascara consistency - and right now, this is what I'm liking. It's lightweight, it's does all the separating and lifting I want, and it stays in place all day - which can be pretty annoying at the end of the day when I just want it all off. But, beggars can't be choosers. 


6.21.2011

Daily Threads: Hello, Summer




Happy Summer! It is 90+ degrees everyday, with humidity out the wazoo, and it's only day one. I'll get through it, though - with a water bottle in my hand and a spot by the pool on the weekends. It really feels weird to be welcoming summer today; it's been summer here for months already. 

Oh, also, if you squint your eyes and turn down the brightness on the computer, it kind of looks like I'm welcoming summer with a slight tan. I worked hard this past weekend laying out by the pool. I hope my efforts are noticed. 

6.17.2011

Summer Essentials

So I was recently featured on Good Life for Less sharing my summer essentials, and I thought I'd share those favorite summer items with all of you as well! 

1. Easy and loose clothes. I'm from the south. Last year my husband and I made the move from NC to Alabama - I thought summers were rough in NC... they are nothing compared to the hot, humid air here in Alabama. When I'm hot, I want clothes that are easy to wear, will allow a nice breeze through my body, and that are simple. 

2. Bright nail polish. Essie is by far my favorite nail polish brand. I love the way the formula goes on my nails and I love all the colors they have to choose from! One of a Kind is perfect for an indecisive mind like mine - it's a blend of red, orange, and coral which are all colors I love for the summer. It's on my toes all summer long! (I'm also currently loving Cute as a Button)

3. A moisturizer that provides color and SPF.  This DDF Enhancing Sun Protection moisturizer is perfect. Not only does it moisturize and protect your skin from the sun, it also has "self-blending" color spheres that give you a more even skin tone and a hint of color. During the summer I usually skip foundation and lather up in this!

4. Lip Butter. Anything that will keep my lips moisturized is in my bag - no matter the season. This particular lip butter provides the perfect pink-coral tint you want during the summer months. 

5. A fishtail braid. Much like my clothes, I like my hair to be easy. I like it to be easy and out of the way. A fishtail braid is the perfect way to keep your hair out of your face and off your neck, but still looking fabulous. I honestly love a fishtail during any season of the year, but summer time just screams fishtail braid - for me, anyway!

What are your summer essential items?