just add coffee

A while back I shared about my plans for our kitchen, the brief process of painting and now here is just a small peek at one piece of the make over.

I pride myself in the fact that I have converted Taylor into a total coffee lover since getting married and now he's better at brewing than I am. We installed some open shelving and since this space is mainly used by Taylor prepare my daily cup of joe, I thought why not devote the shelves to mugs, tea cups and the like.

My in-laws gave us the witty sign as a Christmas gift and it always makes me smirk thinking about what Taylor has to deal with in the morning (me, Mrs. Grumpy Pants). While sipping on my cup of coffee, I thought I would start a little wish lists of things I would like to add to our sweet & simple kitchen:

Wood + glass storage containers

How do we not own a French press?

I love these mugs

A single serve blender for all the fruit smoothies we want to make

xoxo

building a habit

If you had asked me a month ago, the topic of working out could have brought me to tears. I knew I needed the exercise as a stress reliever, but my stressful schedule meant no time to work out. And the vicious cycle continued...

Until one day, my dear pal Carol Anne told me that she considers work outs to be appointments...with herself. Meaning when she's asked if she can stay late at work, she simply says, "I have an appointment." I took this revolutionary way of thinking and ran with it. Literally.

Once the time is penciled into my planner there is no turning back. After a recent trip to the doctor for a routine check up, I was reminded of my concerning cholesterol (thank you genetics!) so it's back to the work out grind for me. Building the time into my schedule so that I go to the gym out of habit is never easy at the start, but it's slowly starting to feel like the norm. And it helps when you have this kind of eye candy working out next to you:

I hope everyone is having victories in their new year's resolutions so far!

P.S. If anyone in the Athens area is looking for a great gym, I highly recommend checking out Tribe. Taylor works there so I might be biased, but overall the have a nice facility with helpful employees that care about their job.

pleasant purchases

For the past month I have been restraining from shopping for a few reasons. First, because I wanted to refocus my heart on being content in all circumstances and secondly, because Taylor and I were trying to be wise with our money.

By making the conscious decision that I was not going to buy anything new for a month I couldn't excuse away any purchases. Of course it wasn't easy walking through Target. Or when my friend Carol texted me about an amazing sale at a boutique downtown...needless to say it's been refreshing!

Surprisingly (and generously!), Taylor asked me if I would like to go on a little spree this past weekend. Naturally, I said YES!!! So here are a few things that found their way home with me:

A yellow dress for Jessica's wedding! Y'all I'm not gonna lie...I don't own a single piece of yellow clothing (besides a mustard sweater), so I was a little fearful as to how this would look on my transparent skin. With a decent spray tan I might look halfway decent.

I picked up these $20 rocker boots at Fab'rik and with a 20% off coupon they came out to $17. Candice had to coerce me a little, but you just can't beat that price tag even if Georgia won't stay chilly for long.

And I am probably light years late on this trend, but I finally bought an Emi-Jay hair tie. I like the fact that when it's not keeping my wild mane away from my face it can double time as a bracelet :)

Have you had any exciting bargain buys recently?

protecting your joy

I would like to kick off this week with a little mental inspiration. And to begin this tradition I thought we should talk about one of the biggest battles we face as women: comparing ourselves to others. Working in the event planning industry and saturating my brain with blogs and Pinterest has definitely led to some "I want her life!" moments.

In such a visually stimulated world it's easy to make simple assumptions based on what someone looks like and judging someone's life based on a blog post is probably not very accurate. Naturally, when I lose my sense of personal joy I go to a place of jealousy and bitterness. The truth is there is so much to be joyful for - life, health, family, friends and purpose (just to name a few). If I can cling to those truths this week I know I won't feel the need to compare myself to anything or anyone.

Where do you find your joy and how do you protect it?

"Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days."

Psalm 90:14

// Photo via Pinterest //

have a rockstar weekend

Hip hip hooray for the weekend! Tonight our church is hosting an all-night prayer as a way to break our 21 day fast (which means this time tomorrow I will be blasting music in the car while eating donuts, on my way to a shopping spree...I'll explain later). Taylor and I will probably take it easy this weekend and try to catch up on cleaning around the house or spending time with friends. I hope everyone stays warm this weekend!

A quote to push me through feelings of doubt or worry

Our house needs a map of North America

Natalia shares her girl crush. Mine is here :)

I love a rustic bench

Time to break out the cast iron skillet for this recipe

Emily knocks it out of the park with this neutral look

xoxo

// Photo via bippity boppity boo //

wedding wednesday : color palette crush

Today I am starting a new feature within the realm of Wedding Wednesday's - color palette crush! Now I am in no way reinventing the wheel here, but I thought it would be fun to just focus on colors since they probably play one of the biggest roles in wedding planning (besides season and venue).

Poppy, Clementine & Gold:

If you haven't heard by now, 2013 is all about citrus and I'm crossing my fingers that this trend sticks around for a while (or long enough for me to see it make an appearance in a friend's wedding). When applying it to your color palette and decor, I say keep it subtle and surprising.

Invitation // The invitation is the first peek into the vision and theme for your big day and I'm a strong believer in paper goods making a statement.

Bouquet // It's easy for fruit to look and feel heavy so I appreciate the way this bouquet was arranged with smaller clementines. It also has a natural balance of greenery in various shapes and sizes while looking perfectly plucked from a garden on the coast.

Aisle Marker // Double timing as a new plant to bring home after the big day, this potted citrus tree could be used as an aisle maker in smaller versions or for your alter arrangement in larger versions!

Centerpiece // Like the bouquet, you can keep an arrangement balanced with greenery but still offer an unexpected pop of color and shapes. I recommend keeping the container simple too!

Cake // The citrus topper and playful groupings on each layer make this cake look elegantly fun and rich.

Bringing poppy into this palette is easy through bridesmaid dresses, nail polish, groomsmen ties and linens. I would reserve the touches of gold for flatware, rimmed china, and Chiavari chairs. What makes this palette so practical is that it works with rustic or elegant events- the options are endless which explains why it is my current color crush :)

// Photo Sources: 1. by Feather Love Photography via 100 Layer Cake, 2. J.Crew, 3.Cocoa & Hearts via The Sweetest Occasion, 3. by Studio Choo via Design*Sponge, 4. Indian Summer by Wedding Paper Divas, 5. by Gabriel Ryan via Jesi Haack Design, 6. by Studio Choo via Design*Sponge, 5. by Jim Smeal via In Style Weddings //

winter woes

Without fail this year is already moving right along and I am still trying to figure out how to catch up on work, blogging, grocery shopping, cleaning...the list goes on :) By not offering too many excuses, I will just say life has been busy (as we can all relate too) and I want this little blog to get back on my list of daily priorities.

over the weekend

This past weekend was jam packed with fun and laughs. On Friday night we hosted a team dinner for Taylor's flag football team (who are traveling back to Tampa this weekend). I couldn't think of much that pairs better with football than down-home Southern food so I made pulled pork, broccoli salad and mac & cheese. I also enlisted the help of Candice to complete the food spread and I think all the guys were full and happy :)

Saturday morning included a walk with my boys and then breakfast at Mama's Boy. It was the 19th anniversary of my dad passing and Taylor brought me to tears at the table with a sweet and thoughtful card. The rest of the day consisted of a quick trip to Marietta and dinner at Last Resort Grill to celebrate another best's birthday.

While I do not claim to be a fashionista in any way, shape or form, I must say having an iPhone has made #ootd posts more appealing...this particular outfit was for church on Sunday (we go to a pretty casual church) and Taylor told me I looked like cowboy disco. Oh good, exactly what I was going for.

How was your weekend? I'd love to hear!

reflections and resolutions

This year I did not make any New Year's Resolutions. Not that I wanted to go into 2013 as a big pessimist, I just wanted to be a little more realistic with my goal setting. I think this year I would rather pleasantly surprise myself with productivity...

However, if there is one area of life I am going to beat into submission it will be my time management. I am going to get to bed earlier. I am going to wake up earlier to eat breakfast and read The Word. I am going to mentally prepare myself for a long work day and I am going to come home with a plan for dinner and any other odd jobs around the house.

Now don't call it a resolution! Call it my "daily time management expectations" :)

// Photo via A cocktail in her hand & confetti in her hair //