Houston with my Bestie

As noted in my previous post about her baby shower, my best friend is pregnant!  I am overjoyed for them but I also know life is about to get really busy for them once their baby girl arrives in just a couple short months.  My work changed our PTO carryover policy so I had to plan for 5 extra days off work to get below the new carryover limit.  I knew right away another trip to Texas was in order and due to the extra days I got to make it a four day weekend instead of a three day weekend. 

One of the things I love most about our friendship is that we can have as much fun at home in our PJ’s (if not more) as we would during a night out on the town.  While I was there we ate lots of yummy tex-mex food, planned the nursery (paint color, layout, etc.), and just spent a lot of time relaxing and talking.  We are great about making time to talk on the phone but it was so nice to have so much time in person.  It made it easier to catch up on a lot the little or less obvious things that sometimes you forget to mention on the phone.  It was such a wonderful reminder that no matter what change may come in each of our lives that our friendship is something special to both of us and we’ll always find a way to make time for one another. 

I can’t believe that the next time I will see her she will have a beautiful baby girl.  I can’t wait to meet her!

Closet Edit

I found a great article with a 4 step process to editing your closet.  Living in a loft has helped cultivate my skills for regularly purging items to keep our space from getting cluttered.  We have really begun to master this with lots of the spaces in our house.  One place I have always struggled to keep streamlined and uncluttered is my closet.  I have emotional attachments to clothes based on where/when I wore them and I take pride in the deals I score so I often struggle to let go of clothes even after they are out of my rotation of items I actually wear regularly.  Over time I have gotten better at this but it’s still a more painful process for me then organizing other areas of the house. 

Step 1: Take it all out! This step was a true reminder of how much I had and how much potential I had to streamline.  It also made my house look like a disaster zone.  I’m thankful Kyle wasn’t home for this step because goodness gracious it was a mess.  I really should have taken a picture during this step but I was a bit overwhelmed by the mayhem that had become our bedroom and living room couch.  Step 1 involved categorizing into Keep, Donate, or Trash.  It also recommended that for special items with emotional significant that you fit them all into one box and store them so you don’t take up space in your closet but still have those sentimental items.  I took this advice and got a beautiful green box from the Container Store and put my bridesmaid dresses, rehearsal dinner dress, my veil, and my Georgette uniforms in it. 

Step 2: Put the keepers back!  Once you have decided what should stay then it suggests putting those items back in your closet organized by article type.  This was hard for me at first since previously I color coordinated my tops instead of grouping them by the type of shirt.  Once I went with the logic it started to make sense to me.  I much more frequently know what type of shirt I’d like to wear on a given day then what color.  On a chilly day I would want to wear a knit top and a blazer.  Within the article types I organized by color to satisfy my OCD tendencies and to make it easier to find certain pieces. 

NOTE: I got everything back in but was sad that I didn’t feel like I cut enough items to have a noticeable increase in the space in my closet.  I have gone back through quickly twice and pulled a couple more items to donate.  I hope to do this a few more times to further unclutter my closet and to make room for the purchased items from step 4.   

Step 3: Get inspired! This step was fun and helped me get through my backlog of fashion magazines that I hadn’t looked through yet.  It took me back to my middle and high school days clipping pictures out of magazines for a collage.  I cut out my favorite items that matched my personal style and a few pieces that pushed my boundaries to liven up my wardrobe.  I tend to stick to classic styles but like to try some of the trends each season although I try to get those items for a very reasonable price since they won’t be wardrobe staples that last multiple seasons. 

Step 4: Go shopping!  Let’s be honest, this is the most exciting step.  I made a list of 10 items I would love to add to my wardrobe.  I could have made a much longer list but I really do want to keep from cluttering my space and I don’t want to spend too much money on new items since I already have a closet full of keepers.  Another way I’m making this more fun is by hosting a clothing swap party, it’s a fun way to hang out with friends and shop for free.  Each person brings items they are no longer wearing or that don’t fit on hangers.  The evening begins by people viewing the items and trying them on while enjoying some libations and snacks.  Each person draws a number to see which order people will pick in.  Then people pick an item one at a time until the most coveted items are picked and then it opens up to a free for all for any of the remaining items.  It makes it more fun to donate items when you see them go to a new home where they will be enjoyed. 

Here are my 10 items for the fall and my progress in purchasing them:

• Black & White Knit Skirt – Catherine by DesigNation at Kohl’s – will go on sale on 9/27
•  Black & Brown Leather Boots
• Satchel Purse (color block design if possible) in Neutral Colors (black, grey, tan, cream)
• 3/4 Sleeve or Long Sleeve Maxi Dress
• Crew neck Sweater (s)
• Striped Blazer – purchased from Target Navy & Red Plaid for $30 – inspiration version was $118 from Banana Republic
• Oxford Button Up Shirt (s) – purchased 2 from Old Navy for $30 (one light blue and one red floral) – inspiration version was from J. Crew
• Brown Leather Jacket – purchased with a couple from Old Navy for $26 – inspiration version was $395 
• Decorative/Glam Sweatshirt – purchased from Target for $15 – inspiration version was from TopShop
• Skinny Jeans with Ankle Zipper – purchased from Gap for $35

Times they are a changing. . .

I have moments when how much I've grown up over the last few years alarms me a little but in general I absolutely love my life exactly as it is now.  I hope that I continue to feel this way at each new stage in my life.  I've had a few “a-ha” moments in the last few weeks that really show how much I have grown up and settled down since I started the back end of my 20’s. 

My favorite moment was enjoying girl’s night with my friend Stephanie and her absolutely adorable little girl Emilee.  Stephanie and I danced together as part of Georgettes and Pamoja.  We also lived together for a year at college.  She is part of a lot of my favorite memories of Georgettes and going to school at UGA in Athens.  We have always had fun when we were together.  This past Friday I drove to Athens to spend the evening with her: we picked her daughter up from daycare, ate at Panera, and then hung out at their house and played games.  It also included a small fashion show and Emilee dancing for us.  It was a very different evening from our nights out in the past but it was so much fun and it was so special.  I think getting older for me has meant that I appreciate the little things a lot more and don’t need big flashy plans to appreciate the company I am with. 

Before:

Now:

At times I get nervous that so many of our friends are transitioning into the parenting stage of life and that we plan to be a few years behind them.  I worry that I won’t be able to relate to their experiences in the same way other parents would.  In some ways this is a valid concern but then I remind myself that we are not friends because our lives are the exact same, we are friends because we love one another and support one another.  I got married before several of my friends but it never hurt our friendship so I must trust that this will be the same way.  I try and remind myself that I will be thankful to have so many people to look to for advice and guidance when that time comes for us.  For now I will just enjoy spoiling and loving on their wonderful kids!

My Best Friend’s Baby Shower

Here is my Pinterest inspiration board: 

Here is the update from the actual shower.  I was so excited to help host this event.  There were 5 of us working together since it was a large couple’s shower and we all wanted to help plan this special event for Alyssa.  I was tasked with decorations and games which I was thrilled about! 

I loved all the inspiration pins I found so I got to work trying to make them a reality.  The most fun about making décor yourself is that you can really personalize it the guest of honor.  Alyssa’s favorite color is purple and she plans to use Purple and Grey in the nursery with elephants as part of the décor.  I made sure to include these in the shower decorations.  My favorite projects were the photo display, the paper pennants, and the fruit loop centerpieces. 

The photo display was very simple.  I bought command hooks and hung wide ribbon on them.  I used clear stretch cord to create a loop to attach to the command hooks.  Then I mounted all the photos of their baby pictures and their maternity pictures on safari animal paper in pastel colors which I bought at Hobby Lobby with a 40% off coupon.  To hang the pictures on the ribbon I used clothespins which I picked up at the dollar store.  It was such an easy project and the guests loved it because as they walked around and got food they could enjoy looking at all the pictures.  It also started conversations with people sharing memories with Alyssa and Will.   

The paper pennants were fun and whimsical and very reasonable to make.  I used the same safari paper bought in a paper pack from Hobby Lobby (with a coupon of course).  I create a guide using thick cardboard so I could cut the triangles on the exact same angles.  After creating the guide I cut all 120 pieces of paper into triangles using my guide and my paper cutter.  I cut the paper in smaller batches of 5-10 sheets at a time so that they would cut easily.  Then I bought thin ribbon that had colors to match the paper and cut them into 4 and 5 foot lengths.  I lined up the triangles in varying orders so that no two stands of paper pennants were the exact same and glued the triangles to the back of the ribbon – starting with the middle to ensure that the strands were centered.  On two of the paper pennants I added letters including “It’s a Girl” and “Gifts” for the gift area.  

Game Day!

It’s always bittersweet to see the summer come to an end.  Any sadness is eased by the beginning of college football season and the changing of the season to fall.  I am a huge UGA Football fan and my husband is a huge fan of any kind of football (high school, college, or NFL).  This year UGA began the season playing an away game against Clemson in Death Valley.  We didn't have tickets but since it was a night game and ESPN college game day was reporting from Clemson we decided to make the drive to tailgate for the game.  The Clemson campus is beautiful and reminded me in a lot of ways of the UGA campus.  It was fun to spend the day with friends and then late afternoon we started the drive home so we could watch the game at home.  Traffic had other plans so we missed the first half but all in all it was a really fun day!  The only thing that could have made it better would have been if the Dawgs could have pulled off a win, it was a back and forth match but Clemson ended up winning the game.  

10 Year High School Reunion

In some ways I can’t believe it’s already been 10 years.  In other ways I feel like high school was a whole lifetime ago.  There was quite a bit of drama leading up to this event.  The person planning it was faced with some complaints and so decided at the last minute to completely change the location for the event.  This drama was definitely a factor in some people opting not to go and the low turnout resulted in ticket prices being pretty high for the event which resulted in less interest.  I’m still glad that we decided to go.  Honestly I never considered not going, I think it’s important to stay connected to your roots and was interested to catch up with everyone.  Admittedly there was less mystery around what people have been doing thanks to Facebook but I still enjoyed catching up with some old friends and acquaintances.  As someone who never felt completely comfortable in their own skin in high school it was nice to go to this event as a confident and successful adult.  It was a reminder of how much we have all grown and matured over the years.  Sometimes being a grown up feels like it’s not all it’s cracked up to be but then I remember back to how dramatic and unsure we all were in high school and feel thankful for changes and people in my life.  

Endless Summer Sale – Lilly P

I love these twice a year sales from Lilly Pulitzer.  It’s the only time I purchase Lilly since their regular prices are too high for me!  I was a little disappointed this year since the sale prices seemed to be higher in general and they faced a lot of issues with their website due to such high web traffic.  I did manage to score a few pieces that I love.  My absolute favorite is the Love Note clutch.  It’s a metallic gold clutch with an enamel elephant on the front.  I love that it can transition through any season and how the metallic fabric really dresses up any outfit you pair it with.

I got the full outfit including shirt, skirt, necklace, and clutch for less than $80!  These pieces had an original retail value of $345 so I scored them for over 75% off.

Pencil Skirt (regularly $118)
Cleo Ruffle Top (regularly $49)
Sea Shell & Sand Dollar Necklace (regularly $68)
Love Note Clutch (regularly $110)