{"Pack Your Bags"}

I am SOOOO excited. I am packing my bags and heading to THIS city.



I will explain everything next Monday when I arrive ... but It's going to be FABULOUS!!!

{New VINTAGE Items}

The other day Ryan and I stopped at a storage unit garage sale. And if you have ever watched Storage Wars, you know they can get a little crazy. This was a truck unit, so it was very large, jam packed full of items. It was a free-for-all and we dug in just like the rest of them!

Here are the items I purchased ...





All the items came to a grand total of $14.00! The old typewriter was $10.00, the fan was $3.00, and the vintage scrabble game was $1.00. I love bargains!!

{Accent Vlog}

I have been seeing a lot of thses Accent Vlogs around the blog world lately, and I wanted to join in the fun too!

Here is the deal, you have to say a number of words and then answer a few questions. You can find the list of words and the questions below.



List of Words to Say Out Loud:
Aunt, Route, Wash, Oil, Theater, Iron, Salmon, Caramel, Fire, Water, Sure, Data, Ruin, Crayon, Toilet, New Orleans, Pecan, Both, Again, Probably, Spitting image, Alabama, Lawyer, Coupon, Mayonnaise, Syrup, Pajamas, Caught

And Here are the Questions:
•What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house? •What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball?
•What is the bubbly carbonated drink called?
•What do you call gym shoes?
•What do you say to address a group of people?
•What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs?
•What do you call your grandparents?
•What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket?
•What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining?
•What is the thing you change the TV channel with?

What do you all think, do I have an accent or not?

{Fall Tablescape}

I love fall, it's beautiful weather, the leaves start to change and it's football season! This week I brought out are fall decorations, which are not many, but I love them! The rich colors just make our home feel warm and inviting.

Here is our fall tablescape...





This place setting includes TBS gold chargers, our wedding china (PB Emma), earth tone water goblets, apples, a fall wreath & TBS's gold hurricane. To complete the look I added a pumpkin spice candle.


I got this fall wreath at Hobby Lobby, I love the gold glitter that was added ... also note we painted our front door a couple of weekends ago!



And, not that it's fall, but I bought this rug last week ... I am in love with it! Guess what? It was $11.00!! YEAH!




I haven't gotten around taking pictures yet, but around the house I have barrels of fake red apples, and baskets of fall blankets ... I heart fall!!

{Digital Office)

I am getting ready to "re-due" my office space. It's imperative for me to have a clean space where I can bring my brides to discuss their wedding. I played around tonight, and here is what it will look like. I have one bookcase, the chairs, accessories and the desk, so it wouldn't be a huge cost to me.



I'll be sure to post before and after photos of the completed project!

{Organizing Spices}

Raise your hand if you have ever wanted to pull your hair out because of the mess in your pantry? ME ME ME!! I have very little cabinet space, and so for me, organization is key.

I have the cute Martha Stewart Spice rack at home which I love ... BUT, it didn't come with all the spices I use. In the past, I would stuff my spices into the designated area in the pantry, and hope nothing fell out when I opened the door. I FINALLY got around to adding a spice rack and it made ALL the difference. It's a $1.00 change that makes me smile every time I open the door ... instead of ducking :)

{A Touch of Paint}

Over this past holiday weekend, Hubby and I really started talking about home improvements. We are in limbo. We have outgrown the house we currently own, but are satisfied at the moment. I haven't found anything on the market that I just have to have, and until that point, I am not going to put my home on the market. Thus, it's time for some changes. I made a list tonight of some things I wanted to change ... these are the "little" changes ...

1. plant fall flowers
2. new door initial wreath
3. paint mirror frames in bathroom
4. take down address number and replace mailbox
5. kitchen counter tops
6. bathroom counter tops
7. fresh coat of white paint throughout house
8. paint front door

And below are the outside "larger changes."

1. Paint brick
2. paint shutters
3. new soffits/gutters
4. planters

I know what a lot of you are thinking ... paint brick? umm, yes. We have been toying with the idea for quite some time. We hate the color, and that with the brown gutters and soffits ... we're over it. To "paint" you a before and after picture ... here is what we have come up with.




Obviously the first house is what it currently looks like, except we have already replaced the roof. What do you think? Have any of you painted brick? Any suggestions? All are welcome :)

Thanks to the weekend, the front door has a freshly new coat of paint, the address has been taken down, the mailbox is replaced, and fall flowers have been planted. I'll be getting estimates later this week for the rest of the larger projects!

{State Fair Fun: 2011}

This year I decided to take the kids to the State Fair ... by myself! I know what you're thinking, especially if you have met my two boys ... but I was feeling really brave!

I packed the burb that morning with everything I could possibly need, and to an outsider, it probably looked like I was leaving on a 5 day trip out of state. Nope! Just a couple hours away :)

My dad works at the Fair in the Beef House, so it's an easy place to meet him for a quick lunch, and let the boys run around. It was an absolutely beautiful day, low temps for the most part, and hardly any clouds in the sky.

We took a few trips around, heading to the children's zoo, the forestry department to see all the fish, and stayed just long enough to give Smokey Bear a high five. The kids absolutely loved it! And the perks of knowing someone who works there? Getting taken on a tour of the fair in a Gator ... heck yes! The kids thought they were fair royalty!

I am still working on my photography skills, so please be nice when looking at the photos :)












And the best part was when Ryan showed up around 5:00 and had dinner and took Braeden on a few rides!







Also, I have found one of my photography muses ... I love photographing ferris wheels! I could take pictures of them all day!







Aren't they beautiful? LOVE