friday happiness

Reminiscing on our wonderful Labor Day in Montgomery - snuggling Anna, laughing at all the funny things Audrey says, and celebrating Mims' birthday.

My first [of hopefully many] cake toppers for mom's cake!

I'm officially a nanny! I'm really looking forward to looking after three sweet little boys twice a week. Complete with car seats and preschool pick up! There is also a slight perspective florist apprenticeship. Still hoping and praying. And waiting - waiting is the hardest part.


A successful Pioneer Woman recipe. And by successful I mean D's favorite thing I've cooked since we've been married. Must have been a nice break from all of our quinoa and broccoli. Make it for a feel-good food kind of night [cause it ain't light].

A surprisingly nice JC Penney and really inexpensive favorite new shirt. Besides the neon and "leather" details, it's button down with camp sleeves. You know, my uniform.

This very exciting grand opening. I think I'll go back when there is a little less hype. Too many housewives with shopping buggies.

And, most importantly, an encouraging prospective church visit this Sunday. It is hard to be without this community, so we are continuing to pray for the Lord's direction while we search. And search and search and search. 


Happy Friday to you! I'm off to unpack our suitcase. From last weekend...

looking forward to... [summer 2012 edition]

Happy first weekend of Summer to you! Here are some things I'm looking forward to/dreaming about for our first Carolina Summer.

Eats: blackberries and feta // grilled corn salad // torte // summer spaghetti // popsicles

Projects: inspiration board // herb garden // headboard // photo gallery

Wears: hat // dress // tunic // necklace // shoes

What are you looking forward to for Summer 2012? Plan something really fun, ok?

wheelin' and dealin': you should go to Loft today

I'm currently luring my dear old computer into uploading the bagillions of photos I took of Miss Anna Morgan Stone. A much deserved and belated post is coming ASAP. I blame it on all these cardboard boxes. And my elderly hard drive.

Just in case you find yourself out shopping with you mom or sister [which I would be jealous of] or your girlfriends [which I would also be jealous of], swing by the Loft. On Thursday, I took the morning off from packing tape and the monstrous pile of packing paper that is currently filling up our entire porch and checked out one of Columbia's malls. At Ann Taylor Loft, everything on sale was an additional 50% off and there were some of those wonderful final sale items as well.

I came home with a few great summer shirts and this skirt that I've been pining for ever since I laid eyes on it.

Mine for $22! And its a tall. Can you believe that?

Two things that made me extra excited about this: 1) My in-dressing room calculations were actually more than the actually total [that never happens] and 2) my amount saved was more than my amount spent! One thousand and three cheers for summer savings!

if you want to have a great weekend...

...you should fly through two neighboring states in order to pick up your four-going-on-fourteen-year-old niece from her [beautiful] preschool.

Make sure you bring her some ever-so-pink fingernail polish so that you can have mani/pedi conversation where she begins her stories with "Well..." and uses shockingly large words. Oh, and sparkles in the polish are good too. 

Then it wouldn't be a bad idea to chalk up some serious sister points by working a fundraiser with her in the blistering cold. Don't worry, the [FREEZING] weather is worth the seven hours of sisterly talk time. And chapped lips.

For your Grown Up Girls Only day out, I'd suggest picking a sunny Saturday. And cool too. But mainly sunny. 

Pick a perfectly picturesque neighborhood with great shopping and even better eateries [Our pick: Homewood, AL. Favorite stops: AtHome and Three Sheets]. 

If you happen to be near a place that sells 2,000 pounds of your mutual favorite lunch food per week served with about thirty different kinds of fruit and the best limemade you've ever tasted, it's worth a try. 

Bonus points if it's comfortably crowded with history-splashed walls and layers of mementos on top of serving dishes on top of produce. 

Even if you eat the best chicken salad you've ever had at one o'clock, it's good to go to dinner too. A dinner with high ceilings and clinking glasses and white napkins and wedge salads and rosemary flatbread. Oh, and handmade pasta. Handmade pasta is required [source: Brio].

Go early so that you can have plenty of time to talk about life and kids and spouses. Enough time to be reminded how beautifully linked your lives are even though you will soon be living in three separate states. Enough time for the serious and enough time for plenty of laughter. Enough time to offer much needed rest with two people who know you so deeply. And always will.

Then you will be glad you ate early because there is a Jimmy Buffet concert in the arena next to your concert hall. You wouldn't want to be late for your third viewing of the best Broadway show there ever was and probably ever will be. Awesome seats come highly suggested, as well. 

After three hours of laughter and tears and breath-stopping high notes, your cold walk back to the car won't be bad at all. You'll be on a Wickedly green high. And after the seat warmers make you forget how cold your legs were, ice cream makes for a great ride home. 

When you've dragged yourself home in the early hours of the morning, say goodnight with an unexpected group hug. There is no better way to end the night before you crash into bed. And I mean crash. 

If you want to officially lose all inhibition of the fact that you were eating light, go to brunch with your family and order apple cinnamon granola pancakes. They were whole wheat, OK?

Enjoy a Wicked-filled drive home to a hard working husband who you missed very very much. Be sure you tell him. 

Any questions?

wheelin' and dealin': a love for anthro

I am really assuming that you've heard. On the off chance that you haven't, I felt compelled to post this:

This is a rarity, folks! And the sale closet and tables are full. Go check it out! You'll be the star of the Dirty Santa game at your next Christmas party. 

the impossibles

We took that love language test. And, I have to admit, it was pretty enlightening/accurate. To Dustin's horror, gifts is one of the ways that I both show love and feel loved. Which, like many things, is opposite for D. That's alright - a bigger challenge means bigger growth, right? Maybe that will comfort him.

I can honestly say that I thoroughly enjoy the thinking, the remembering, the planning, and the purchasing of gifts. I jot down ideas throughout the year in my phone or planner. Its a good thing too because Dustin couldn't think of one thing to put on his Christmas list.

The only thing that I don't enjoy is whenever I'm stumped for an idea. It's usually whenever that person has everything they could possibly need [which is most of us] and/or you've used all of your mental notes for him or her. That leaves me in a crumpled, tearful ball on the floor and feeling like an utter failure. I'm sure you can understand. No? Just me?

What I'm about to tell you makes me sound like a big gift-giving, shopping dork. But its a proven method. Yea, I just said proven method. In those seemingly hopeless gifting situations, I think about what that person is really interested in or what they might use the most on a day to day basis. And then, thanks to the incredible and steadily increasing creative community, I try to find the updated and sometimes extraordinary version. Let me tell you that my ceramic measuring cups from Anthropologie make baking so much more exciting than the white plastic ones.

[1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12]