It's Friday, Y'all!

After a short week of school (but hooray for back to school), we have finally made it to Friday.  We had a good week but are looking forward to celebrating our little man this wknd with his big birthday party.

So today's post is sort of a random one!

~ONE~

Our first day out of the house early this week I bundled up in my wrap cardi. I could seriously live in it!! And because of that, I'm really really tempted to buy another one.

How great is this turquoise one??

~TWO~

I also had a glorious morning out by myself this week. I had a hair appt but also made a quick trip to Target (and maybe a pit stop for some McD's fries! #sorrynotsorry).  And, oh Target, why must you get me every.single.time?? I managed to find some things for the kiddos, my niece, and the hubs. Nothing was essential but it certainly was fun!

~THREE~

My little man had his first dental appt this week. He did such a good job (as he's been going for years now with me/my daughter and even sitting in the chair at times).  But I thought it was the sweetest thing that he wanted to hold my hand during the entire visit.

~FOUR~

I can't get enough of Ed Sheeran lately!! I find myself dialing up one of his albums and listening while I'm blogging, cleaning, cooking, etc. Isn't he great??!

~FIVE~

Last, but not least, please be sure to check out my post from Wednesday. I'm highlighting a few of my friend's jewelry pieces from her newly opened ETSY site. She's offering a FREE PAIR OF EARRINGS to one lucky reader, so be sure to enter the giveaway!

So I guess that's all I have for now! I hope you have a wonderful weekend!!! And be sure to check back next week as I have some exciting news to share!!


As always, my fun link ups:
 Darci, Liz, Natasha, and Christina.

Erika, Narci, and Andrea.  

 Hill Collection.

Short and sweet

Good morning!! I don't have much to report today other than the fact that it snowed more last night. UGH! And today I am off to work ten hours.

The #1 reason I dislike the snow so much is b/c I'm always sitting at home worried sick about my hubs driving to and from work. Today it's my turn.  Wish me luck!

And don't forget to check out my post from yesterday and enter my giveaway for a free pair of earrings!

Have a great day!!

Gray Sun Gifts (And Giveaway!!)

Recently, I was contacted by a sweet friend, Angie (who I actually went to high school with), to see if I'd be interested in checking out her newly launched Etsy page. I quickly replied "yes" because I love supporting people (especially friends) in their personal businesses. After browsing for just a few minutes, I instantly fell in love with the pair below. My eyes always gravitate towards pink and then when it's paired with green, done deal! I knew they'd be perfect for Apple Blossom (and we are actually planning to attend the festival this year).  That being said, I quickly ordered this pair and couldn't wait for them to arrive.

To my surprise, Angie included lots of other goodies. Three more pairs of earrings (including a matching daughter set) and an adorable hair bow for Cate for The Bloom. I was ecstatic with all of my new earrings.

I absolutely LOVE the turquoise pair below. I think they are a perfect accessory for Spring and will add a perfect POP of color to a simple white t-shirt and jeans.

Y'all know I love ANYTHING monogrammed, so I was over the moon for the "C" pair.

And then my favorites -  a matching pair for Cate and myself. Even better, they are Apple Blossom colors! (And obviously one of my favorite color combinations.)

So just for fun, we had to try them on!

Love my mini-me and our new earrings!

And then this bow, oh my! If it doesn't SCREAM Apple Blossom (for the Winchester locals) or Spring (for everyone else), I don't know what does!

I was so pleased with the items Angie sent me from GraySun Gifts. And in addition to the earrings I have showcased, she has a much bigger selection on her ETSY page. Be sure to check it out! You won't be disappointed. I'm also fairly certain she will do custom orders.

And furthermore, she has also offered to giveaway 1 PAIR OF EARRINGS (winners choice!) to one lucky reader. Be sure to enter the giveaway below!

Oh, and one last thing (mainly for local Winchester readers), be sure to get those Apple Blossom orders in soon because she will become one busy little bee in the very near future. The Apple Blossom Committee chose some of her items to be sold in the souvenir store!!! I couldn't be happier for her! 

Have a great day!! And be sure to enter the giveaway below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

St. Patty's Day (Decor and Outfit Inspiration) - Tuesday Talk Link Up

I showed you a sneak peek last week of my newly decorated bar cart, so today I thought I'd show you everything else. We don't have quite as many decorations for this St. Patty's Day, but we still manage to do the best with what we have. (And when I say "we", it's b/c my daughter is always fully involved with the holiday decorating.)

The bar cart (hot cocoa on top and it's been a highly used spot this winter!!) / hutch

A plate in my kitchen / welcome sign hanging on door as you walk up from basement / kitchen towels / shamrocks that my daughter randomly hung throughout the house

My mantel (remember from VDay - Business on the top, party on the bottom) I decorated the top, my daughter took over the bottom complete with shamrock lights.

I typically change out the pink candles for white ones, but I love the pink and green combo and thought it would just add more color!

My main bathroom on the first floor is looking a little bare. I was hoping to make a shamrock  craft with the kids over the weekend to hang, but we ran out of canvases. If/when we do get one made/hung, I'll be sure to show it off!

I jazzed up our entry way mirror with more shamrock garland. I filled our candy jar with plastic shamrocks (no candy this time!). And I displayed our Irish Blessing.

It's one of my favorite prayers.

 So there you have it, just a little shamrock love in our house!! Do you decorate for St. Patrick's Day at your house? Do you do anything fun to celebrate this day? I have additional posts planned with more on how we celebrate this holiday.

And just for fun, I thought I'd include an outfit that I would love to wear downtown for the annual St. Patty's Day Parade.

Glasses / Blouse (available in navy and white too!) / Earrings / Bangles ($25!!) / Purse (it's reversible and comes with the accessory bag) / White Denim / Flats ($22!!)

However if it doesn't warm up, I'll be bundled up like Ralphy's brother from A Christmas Story.

Have a great day! And don't forget to check out the sweet hosts from Sweet Little Ones for Tuesday Talk link up.

Weekend Recap

Happy Monday! And yes, I say "happy" b/c hopefully we will be back to our normal routine today. I'll still use the word "happy" but only b/c I dried/curled my hair this morning and I'm wearing real clothes (for the first time in over a week)! #truth  This excessive snow has gotten unreal. The first storm (which started last Monday) dropped around 10 inches, then it started again Saturday. By Saturday evening we were up another foot. Again, I thought I lived in the South?? The kids haven't been to school since Friday, Feb 13th!

 Anywho, we had a pretty uneventful wknd which only involved leaving the house once on Friday morning. We braved the single digit temps b/c my little guy had his 3 year checkup.Where did my baby go??

While the kids played, I took advantage of some "free time" and worked on my son's upcoming party.

Oh yeah, and I started potty training my son! lol These ecards cracked.me.up! I just had to share. There are certainly (obvious) differences in potty training a boy and a girl!

 

It was a rough start and I almost threw in the towel. But I'm so glad I didn't. I stuck with it and my son finally caught on by the afternoon on Day 1. (Below he is making tally marks for every time he uses the potty.)

And having my daughter home from school has been such a help. She adores her brother and will do anything for him (including washing out his dirty undies). She was such a big help, despite being sick herself. Poor thing spiked a fever on Friday. She's been under the weather for what seems like a week. I sure do hope she feels better soon and turns back into the bubble little girl I know.

On Sunday afternoon when I realized the kids hadn't napped and we were all a bit stir crazy, I decided to take them outside.

The sun was shining and the temps were in the high 40's! (It was a minor heatwave and I was ecstatic!)

It was definitely an odd thing to be playing in the snow w/o hats and lots of layers on. I could probably handle the snow if it was like this more often.

I do have to brag on my kiddos though, they were super good all week. They played really well together and I actually thoroughly enjoyed the week (minus the snow). BUT, I can tell my daughter is somewhat ready to go back to school. She'll tell you she's not, but I think she misses the structure and learning (she actually loves school).

It's going to be somewhat of a busy week with school (hopefully), dental appts, hair appts, dance, church, etc, but I am looking forward to things returning to normal! Be sure to check back tomorrow for a look at my St. Patty's Day decor and link up!



Oh, and one more thing, how gorgeous did G look last night in PINK?? I couldn't stay wake for the whole show, but I loved this dress. She looked stunning!

It's Friday, Y'all (Snow Edition)

Happy Friday!! This week has been an interesting one b/c we haven't had school all week! The kids were previously scheduled off Monday and Tuesday, but we were hit hard by a snow storm on Monday and therefore school was canceled every day. (It dropped 10 inches the first day, then a few more inches here and there.) The temps yesterday were high 10, low -2!!! And that's not even considering the wind chill. Talk about COLD!!! I haven't been a happy camper this week, as I'd rather be in sunny Charleston, but at least the kiddos have helped make it fun!

For today's post, it only seemed appropriate to show what we've been up to this week with the SNOW!

I've been hitting the treadmill lately (which i dread) instead of running outside b/c it's been so cold. However I did skip today. I figured between shoveling our entire driveway and walking up the hill multiple times carrying a 35lb toddler and a sled, I was good to go!

~ONE~

Snow gear 
It's such a production to get kids dressed and ready for the snow. Luckily my daughter can do most of the things on her own, so it just leaves me with my son. But i swear I'm always breaking a sweat by the time it's all said and done. Those darn waterproof gloves/mittens are such a challenge! But aren't they cute when they are almost ready to head out?

Thankfully once we step outside, we cool off pretty quickly!

~TWO~

Sledding
After two days of not having much fun playing around the house, our neighbors invited us to go sledding with them. Not only do we live in the Blue Ridge Mountains, but we live on a golf course that has some crazy hills. We ended up sledding down the driving range! We were sledding some serious hills! I was so proud of my daughter. This was her first time ever sledding and she was so brave. She definitely flew out of her sled multiple times and face planted more than once, but it never seemed to phase her. She did complain about it back at home, but I explained to her that it's just a part of sledding. Everyone does it!

My son was less than entertained by it. After going down once with me (and snow being thrown up in his face the entire time), he told said "me never ever going down that hill again". Lol!

~THREE~

Naps
We've had some great naps this week!! Nothing wears you out more than walking up a mountain multiple times a day, then getting cozy with warm clothes and hot cocoa. Naps are a must and oh so great!

~FOUR~

Bounce House
Hands down best purchase we've ever made for the kids. They were asking to jump by 7am some days. Thank goodness they have this outlet to blow off some energy, since it's been in the single digits in the mornings!

~FIVE~

St Patty's 
I also spent some of my free time taking down the Valentine's decorations and decorating for St. Patty's Day. More on my decor in an upcoming blog!

So that just about wraps up our week of being snowed in! In case you missed my post from earlier this week, be sure to check it out. I highlighted some MINT colored items you might want to add to your closet.

And don't forget to check out the awesome hostesses of the link up; Darci, Liz, Natasha, and Christina.

And also my Friday Favorites (favorite "happenings" throughout the week) with Erika, Narci, and Andrea.  

And Astleigh, from Hill Collection.