Holidays: Entertaining

The holidays are upon us. Whether you are ready or not!

We've had a whirlwind couple of months. Lots of changes.

The husband started his new job, we moved temporarily and I've been crazy busy with Holiday Portrait sessions.  And now Thanksgiving is next week. How did that happen?

Are you hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year? Do you already have a plan? 

One of my favorite magazines "Real Simple" put out their holiday issue. I was able to sit down and drool over every page today. (My quiet time.)  

It makes me wish I had a house and was hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year.

It has some gorgeous decor inspiration as well as delicious recipes. 

Go out and pick up your copy today!! 

Autumn

It's Autumn y'all. Well, it won't feel like Autumn here in Houston for a while, but we can dream right? Hope everyone has a wonderful Labor day and enjoys time with your family. I've been getting inspired for Autumn. Boots, scarves, candles... you know the drill. Today's post is full of all of the beautiful things that have me inspired and ready for Autumn. 

What has you inspired? 

I found this fun Autumn Essentials printable illustrated by Emily over at Jones Design Company.  It's free so go get your copy today. Print it, put it in a pretty frame and hang it somewhere in your home to bring daily inspiration this fall. 

Paige Tall Riding Boot | 'Rosepoint' Bell Suede Wedge Boot | 'Myste' Boot

'Anna' Lace-up Boot | 'Patty' Leather Riding Bootie | 'Courtney' Boot

Lightweight Perfect Scarf | Morgan Cowl Neck - Sugar

Autumn Outfit Inspiration

Happy Autumn! 

Weekend Recap in Photos

I love the weekends. It means I get to spend lots of uninterrupted time with my family. This weekend was extra special.  Darren went on a deep-sea fishing trip on Saturday which meant a whole day with my girl.  Macelyn helped clean her room which earned her some "points" (coins) for her piggy bank.  After all of our chores were finished we went out to find some adventures. We met up with Gram and my nephew for some bowling.  The Texas August heat called for snow cones, which was our next stop.  Macelyn ordered a bubble gum snow cone which turned out to be BRIGHT blue, not light pink like I assumed it would be.  She was immediately stripped of her shirt so as not to turn it blue.  My husband later informed me that bubble gum snow cones are usually blue.... still seems weird to me. Her little tummy had blue lines running down it. Haha so cute.
We worshipped together at church on Sunday morning, then enjoyed a wonderful home cooked lunch with some friends.  (I should use my crock-pot more often. haha) Sunday afternoon called for a nap with Daddy and a visit to the park.
I love our weekends together.
Hope everyone has a wonderful and blessed week.

August Stitch Fix

I received my August Stitch Fix last week.
This time I kept 3 of the 5 items. One dress, and two tops.
I returned a top and a bracelet. The top was orange, and I didn't love the color with my skin and hair color.  I really liked the bracelet that came, but it was just a little more than I like to spend on my jewelry ($88).  I was able to tell them all of that in my check-out survey, so next time they won't send me anything that color or that price-point.
I love Stitch Fix! This is my 6th or 7th fix, and although I haven't kept every single one, I usually keep 1 to 3 items from each fix.  Each fix gets better as you continue to fill out the survey about the fix. They learn what you love or don't love. I definitely recommend this to anyone... and especially those busy moms or young ladies who don't have a lot of time to shop or you don't really love shopping. (i.e. ME) I love clothes and fashion, but I hate the process of shopping and looking for outfits. Sometimes I wish outfits would magically appear as I see them in my head. So Stitch Fix is perfect for me.

If you're interested in checking it out click HERE and I will receive an awesome referral bonus. :)

Another great feature are the style cards.  Stitch Fix includes a style card for each item in your fix.  These style cards show you two different ways to style the piece.
Each stylist includes a personal note, such a cute detail.

Here are the latest pieces I received.

Dress: Under Skies - Roseanna Hi-Lo Abstract Print Dress (Navy) | Top: Marshall's
Such a fun dress for summer. I think it will also be a great fall piece with a sweater or jacket and boots.

Top: Renee C - Ivanka Crew Neck Lace Detail Blouse | Jeans: Gap  

I love the detail on this blouse. It is a great summer piece and will also look great under my leather jacket with boots this fall.

Top: Daniel Rainn - Tara Abstract Print Roll Tab Blouse | Jeans: Gap

This was my favorite in this fix. I love flowy tops. They are great with a pencil skirt for work and then make a great casual comfy piece when paired with your favorite jeans.

Day trip to Austin

OUR GIRL IS HOME!!! This past Saturday, Darren and I woke up around 6 am and drove to Austin to pick up our sweet Macelyn.  She left us two weeks earlier for her annual summer visit at my parents.  Usually it is only for a week, but she was able to stay an extra week this summer and she loved it. She had a blast and was spoiled rotten. Her days were spent playing with her cousin Jaxon, swimming and going on adventures with her Bea & Poppy... usually to get ice cream. We were so happy to see her and glad to bring her back home with us.  Although, she said she wanted to come see her surprises (her new big girl room, post coming soon) and then go back to Bea and Poppy's.  I am happy to report I think she is happy to stay with us for a while.

Before we headed back to Houston, we met up with a friend of ours who happened to be in Austin for the weekend.  We headed to Kerby Lane for lunch.  I had never eaten there before (which is sad, I lived in Round Rock for 6 years).  I ordered the Tomato pie - Fresh roasted tomatoes, green onions, fresh basil and garlic all baked together in an individual pie crust and topped with kalamata olives and feta cheese.  It was amazing. The guys stuck with breakfast, pancakes, eggs, sausage & bacon, you know the usual.  I definitely recommend going by and checking it out if you've never been.  Next on our to do list was Gourdough's, at my husband's request.  He had the Blackout donut. Brownie batter, chocolate fudge icing, chocolate covered brownie bites and topped with chocolate syrup.  

So rich! I saved my appetite for our next stop.

The last time we were in Austin we discovered a cute little ice cream shop called Lick Ice Creams.  So of course I had to stop in and try it again. Just to make sure it was as good as I remembered of course. I went with the Goat Cheese, Thyme and Honey and the Caramel Salt lick. Delicious doesn't even begin to describe the explosion of soft creamy flavors on your tongue. Highly recommend popping in here for an afternoon treat during these hot summer days. And for all of my Houston friends, good news... they do sell pints of some of their flavors at Central Market.

We ended our day in Austin meeting up with a few more friends and visiting. It was such a wonderful and relaxing day with good conversation, good food and wonderful friends.

Now to get back to our normal schedule now that Mace is home.  I am thrilled to pieces to have my morning snuggles and kisses back.

Macelyn Grayce Rose

Our sweet girl went to stay with my parents for 2 weeks.  This is the longest she has been away.  She usually goes every summer for a week.  We are now a week and a half into her stay and I am READY for her to get home.  She is having a blast.  Getting spoiled by her aunts and uncles and of course her Bea and Poppy.  While she is gone we are converting her room into a "big-girl" room.  We've replaced her toddler bed with a full-size bed, got pretty new bedding for her bed, added a big bookshelf and will organize all her toys.  I will do another post with pictures once we have it finished.  I can't wait for her to get home and see her new room.  Also so I can hug her for 2 days straight. I've missed my silly little girl. 

*as of today's date, she is obsessed with purses and lipgloss*