4.30.2014

Currently Craving: Mid Week Muse Link up

I am currently in the middle of a major closet clean out.  My closet is a complete disaster.  Between work clothes, maternity clothes, clothes that no longer fit, clothes I will never wear again, etc it's time to start making cuts.  

I'm not very good at getting rid of stuff but I'm working through it slowly and allowing myself to keep only stuff I currently wear and packing only one large storage tub of winter clothes. 

Of course now that I'm doing all this purging my mind can't stop dreaming of all the items I want to refill my closet with. 

I'm tall so I'm always on the hunt for cute shirts that are long enough to cover a bit of my backside.  This one is perfect and I love the simple black!

Now that I'm home with a baby I'm constantly looking for comfortable clothes that are still cute.  This dress just screams comfort, doesn't it?


 Love the color of this one!  I'm trying so hard to incorporate more color into my mostly neutral wardrobe and this would be perfect.  




I posted about these a few weeks ago and I'm still obsessing over them. I can't get them out of my head.  I even skipped the Tory Burch friends and family sale because I think I want these more.  I may just have to treat myself to a pair for Mother's Day ;)

This bag. Ugh. I'm in love. 
I know I white bag is completely impractical right now but I can't help myself.   I may or may not be sending my husband emails pretending they are from Miller saying that he would like to buy me this bag for Mother's day since I'm such a good mommy.  Pathetic? Yes.  Will it work? Probably not, but I have to try right? 

So what are you currently craving these days? 



Linking up with Ann Elliott and Pampers and Pearls to Share my Mid Week Muse

Feel free to join the fun if you want!
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4.29.2014

This dress: Need Advice

Hi Ladies and Gents (if any males read this blog) I'm looking for advice on a dress.  It's been a long time since I've done one of these posts but I always love reader feedback. 

I completely forgot I have a bridal shower this weekend followed by a graduation party in two weeks so I'm on the hunt for a cute dress!   I came across this one while browsing Nordstrom online and they have it in my store so I'm going to try it on tomorrow but would love to hear what you all think!




The brand is Tildon and it's only $48 so I'm not sure if it's going to be completely see through and cheap looking in person but you never know.   It also comes in blue and black but I'm partial to the pink. 

Do you think it will work for a bridal shower and graduation party?  Does it look too casual?  Would you were nude heels?
I'm a little nervous that it might not be warm enough here yet for it but I'm going to make it work somehow!! 

Thanks all! 


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4.28.2014

Scenes from the Weekend and a Baking Trick

Happy Monday Y'all!

We had a wonderful weekend.  The weather was absolutely perfect so we took every opporunity to spend it outside.   

We celebrated my mom's birthday on Friday night at my parent's house with pizza and cake. It was low key and perfect.   Is there any better way to celebrate?  


My mom and Miller  
(a little blurry but still cute)

I was in charge of making a birthday cake for my mom and didn't have time for a cake from scratch so I decided to try a Pinterest trick that my sister used on Easter. 

How to make boxed cake taste like a bakery cake 
 1. Look at the directions on the box
2. Add one more egg
3. Instead of oil use melted butter and double the amount 
4. Instead of water use whole milk (I only had skim so I used that)
5. Mix well and bake for time indicated on the box
*the batter will be really thick but that's normal 

Verdict:  Success!  The cake was moist and dense like a bakery cake- it was so good!   I think this will be my go to from now on when I used boxed cake mix. 

On Saturday we were able to enjoy our new deck and we took trip to a local state park which has a beach right on the Chesapeake Bay.



While it was a bit windy and cool on the water it was still nice to relax on a beach and already has me dreaming of our vacations this summer.  

On Sunday Miller and I joined my sister at the Federal Hill Spring Festival in Baltimore while Kyle and my brother in law went golfing.   The weather was gorgeous and the festival was small but fun.  Live music, fun little shops, fried food, and big beers.   In shocking news I took zero pictures yesterday!! That has to be some sort of record for me but I'm happy because it means I was in the moment and not stressing about documenting it.  I'm trying to work on being more present instead of always trying to take a picture.  

I woke up today with a pretty bad cold, I thought it was allergies but I'm afraid it's a cold that might turn into a sinus infection.  Ugh.  So I'm sipping some lemon tea and hoping it's just a cold I can fight through.   Hope you all had a great weekend!
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4.25.2014

Five on Friday: Spring and Summer Cocktails

TGIF!! I am so happy the weekend is here!   It's been a doozy of a week around here with my little man fighting sleep and teething.  Not fun at all. 


Whenever the weather starts to warm up I start to dream of cocktails that I would enjoy while lounging by the pool or sitting on my deck after a long day.  I decided to share with you all my favorite spring and summer cocktails and I suggest you try all of them! 

1. Moscow Mule
     - this is hands down my favorite cocktail these days and I cannot get enough of them! So easy to  make and the copper mug makes it taste that much better 
Recipe: 
2 oz vodka 
6 oz ginger beer
1 lime, juiced 
1 tsp simple syrup

 Pour ingredients over ice in a copper mug- garnish with a lime and mint 

2. Skinny Sparkling Margarita
    - I stumbled upon this last year in Shape magazine and it's perfect for me.  I love a good margarita but who wants all the calories and I love my drinks with some bubbles in them! 
3 ounces Sparkling ICE Lemon Lime
1 1/2 ounces tequila
Fresh squeezed orange juice
Fresh squeezed lime juice
1 lime slice, for garnish
 
Shake first four ingredients and pour into a chilled rocks glass rimmed with salt. Garnish with lime slice.

3. Vodka Soda with a Lime 
     - this is my standard wedding cocktail and was my bar order for years back when I could handle drinking liquor all night!  I'm not big on too many ingredients or too much sugar so this simple drink is perfect for me 
Recipe: 
1.5-2 oz vodka - pour over ice
Fill the rest of the cup with seltzer or club soda of your choice 

4. Sunset Champagne Cocktail 
    -this may have another name but this is a cocktail I invented with my dad at my parents pool two summers ago.  I was in the mood for something fruity so we worked with the ingredients we had on hand.  Again I like to keep it simple. 
 Recipe:
Fill a glass with half champagne, half orange juice
Add 1 shot vodka (this is optional, it's good without it too)
Add 2 oz grenedine last (should sink to the bottom) 

If you're feeling fancy you can garnish with an orange and cherry 

5. Pink Flamingo Punch or the punch we served at every bridal shower hosted for the past 5 years 
    - My sister invented this concoction when she was looking for a punch for my bridal shower in 2009 before Pinterest existed (remember those days when you had to be creative yourself?!).  It's so good that it has been served at everyone of my friends bridal showers since!   
Recipe:
2 jugs of Minute Maid Pomegranate Lemonde
1 bottle champagne 
1 cup vodka 

Stir all ingredients in large punch bowl.  Garnish with lemon slices 


Tell me about your favorite spring or summer cocktail!  I'm always looking for new drinks to add to my selction. 
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4.24.2014

Tory Burch Friends and Family Sale

Have you all been hopping on the Friends and Family sales shopping bandwagon these days?  I  LOVE when stores do this I just wish they were spaced further apart so I could enjoy all of them instead of picking and choosing ;)

I've been patiently waiting for this one to appear so I can add to my ever growing TB addiction.


Here is what's on my list this season:


Tory Burch Friends and Family Picks


I really want a black pair of Miller sandals because I love my nude pair from last summer and I'm drooling over that Brooke Tote- I see it as the perfect summer tote!   

What are your picks from the sale?  Are you a Tory Burch fan?
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4.23.2014

Easter Weekend Recap

Happy Hump Day!  Sorry for my lack of posts lately but I've been outside with my little guy soaking up all of this great warm weather we've been having!  We've also been spending time with my grandmother who has been staying at my parents house the past week. 

I'm back today to drown you all in tons of our Easter which was 100x more special now that Miller is part of our lives :)

 We started off the early Sunday morning with Miller and his Easter basket.  Poor kid was still half asleep but I was just so excited for him to open it :)


My family came over around 11am for brunch.  I had such a fun time getting set up for brunch this year and the menu was delicious. 


Menu: 
Honeybaked Ham
Egg and sausage casserole
Hashbrown Casserole
Butter Crossiants 
Crumb Cake
Cheese Danish 
Fresh Fruit


 I made all of the adults mini easter basket full of candy.  I had planned to add a little bottle of alcohol to them but ended up forgetting because we were so busy Friday and Saturday. Oh well there is always next year! 

 Miller with my grandmother and Kyle

Me and my little guy

My sister and brother in law 

My grandmother, My mom and Miller

The best family pic we could get!  

Easter Basket from Grammie and Grandpa Chuck

 Trying to read Miller a story but the kid rarely sits still

The End! 


It you made it to the bottom- thanks for sticking around!   The holidays have become so much more fun and meaningful now that we have a baby- it's amazing to see the holidays and times with your family through your child's eyes.  There really is no better feeling.   I hope you all had a great Easter!
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4.17.2014

Miller's 1st Easter Basket

I decided to link up with Darci's blog hop and share Miller's 1st Easter Basket. 


We really didn't want to go overboard and turn Easter into the next Christmas so we tried to purchase some fun practical gifts for Miller.  He's only 9 months old so there is only so much we can do. 


I opted for the small basket from Pottery Barn Kids and had the liner monogrammed (obviously).   The basket is a little smaller than I thought it would be but the large one is gigantic and he does not need one that size yet so this works well for now.  


Close up of the Basket

Another shot of the rest of the basket

So here is what we put inside starting from the back of the basket:

1. Rabbit Ears from Target- these are more for me for fun photo ops on Easter Day :)  Miller will probably hate them. 

2. Books-  Books are always important and we tried to get some Easter themed books to add to the collection as well as one we know he'll like.  
 - It's Not Easy Being a Bunny
 - Little Blue Truck Leads the Way
 - The Tale of Peter Rabbit


3. Sunscreen- This is a practical one.  After everyone's suggetions on Monday I opted to get the California baby to use on his face and the Coppertone Water Babies Pure and Simple to use on his body. 

4.  Stuffed Rabbit-  As of right now Miller could care less about stuffed animals but I decided that he had to have a bunny on Easter no matter what but I didn't want to spend a lot.  I found this adorable bunny at Target for about $5! It's cute and soft and I won't be upset if it sits on a shelf forever. 

5. Summer Sandals-  I picked these up at Old Navy this week and they will be perfect for summer.  My parents are getting him a pool/beach themed Easter basket so these go with that. 

6. Green Toys Airplane-  We have the Green Toys Dump Truck that he loves so we picked this one up last time we were out.  I'm hoping it will be a hit!  

I also plan to add some plastic Easter eggs filled with cherrios and puffs for fun!  They will probably get thrown all over the floor but I think he'll enjoy it ;)

 So how do you do Easter Baskets in your house?  Do you go all out or try to stick with practical gifts?  
 
Tomorrow I will be back with more about our upcoming Easter weekend brunch and adult Easter basket that I'm making for everyone. 

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4.14.2014

Weekend Recap and Birthday Party and Sunscreen Questions

Happy Monday Y'all!!   My sister is on spring break this week so we have some fun things planned.  Like a trip to Ikea and lunch today.  Woohoo!!

The weather here was so beautiful that I cannot say one bad thing about the weekend.  It was 75 and sunny on Saturday and 80 and sunny on Sunday.  It was magnificent.

On Friday Miller met the Easter bunny and it was a total success.  I wasn't sure how he would react since he seemed a little pensive when we arrived but he absolutely loved him!  It was actually a woman in the costume so I think that helped.





I picked up this navy and white stripe tank top from Old Navy last week and I'm obsessed!  It only cost $15 and it's comfortable and flattering.   It's also long which is a plus for someone who is tall like me.




On Saturday we spent most of the day at the park.  Miller absolutely loves the swings and can't get enough of them.  Kyle and I had a night out with some friends which was so fun! As much as I love my little guy it's so nice to get out and have some adult time and real conversation.  




I've already starting working on Miller's birthday and since I only have 2.5 months left (AHHHH!!) I was looking for advice on the following:

-What's a good party time for little kids? Miller takes a set morning nap from 8-10am but his afternoon nap is all over the place- it could be 12-2 or 1-2 or 3-4.  I'm trying to find a good time to start the party that would work for most parents with small babies/kids.

-Activites for older kids- we will have ages ranging from 6 months to 5 years old so I want to make sure that I have some activities for the older kids.  We are planning for a late June weekend so we hope to be outside.  A lot of people suggest moonbounces but I'm not sure how I feel about those so I would love to hear some suggestions!

My next question is about Sunblock for Miller- as you can see he has very fair irish skin!
I have a tube of the Honest sunscreen and it did a great job keeping the sun off of him this weekend but it's so greasy.  I'm not sure if this is common for the more natural sunblock but I felt like this was greasier than many others I've used and I had a hard time getting it off of him in the bath.
I would love to hear your sunscreen suggestions!
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4.09.2014

Currently Craving


**First off I just want to say thank you for everyone's responses on Monday's posts, I loved hearing from each and everyone of you and I'm still working on emailing everyone back**

Now here are some things I'm craving this week...

{Food and Drink} 

A Strawberry Margarita and Nachos... preferably outside somewhere warm



{Fashion}
This bag...


{Home}
This rug for my family room...


{For the Mini}
Yes I actually want obnoxious toys in my backyard
 
{Vacation} 

Aruba... we went here on our honeymoon and I am dying to get back there


What are you craving this week? 
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