Friday Five {link up}

I've been racking my brain lately trying to come up with new topics for this little blog. I usually do a random thoughts post somewhere during the week. My fellow blogger friend Joy does a weekly Friday Five link up- so I thought I'd jump on board.

1. Sleeping Beauty

My sweet daughter has slept until 9:00 every. single. day. this week. Heaven. While I'm still up at 4:30 training, I so enjoy those two precious hours between 7-9 where I can shower, drink coffee, read, and catch up on the news. I love that she loves sleeping late!

2. TV Woes

The only thing on television these days are reruns and bad reality shows. I have been going bananas trying to find something to watch. Normally I don't have much time for TV, but since it's summer break I was hoping to enjoy some wasted time watching a little TV. Wrong.

3. Fresh is Best

During the hectic school year when my meal preparation time is basically nonexistent, I tend to stray from the healthy to the quick-and-easy. Now that I'm home for summer, I spent yesterday afternoon stocking up on fresh fruits and veggies. I'm so thankful that Mary Grace loves fresh fruit just as much as I do. Sweet girl loves some cantaloupe and watermelon.

4. Lovey Drama

We have been in crisis mode as of late. Somehow Mary Grace lost her lovey puppy while at Nanny J's. Poor Nanny has turned her house inside out looking for it - she even went through the trash. We assumed she threw it away because lovey bunny went missing too, and when we asked MG where it was she pointed to the trash drawer. Sure enough, she had thrown lovey bunny away. You'd think this could be the beginnings of separation from the loveys, but no, come nap time the lovey is a must. We did what any parent would do, we called Granny for help :) She picked up two new loveys and shipped them to us. About 20 minutes after talking with Granny and hearing that the new loveys were on the way, Nanny called to say she had found lovey puppy. And there you have our lovey drama.

5. Pool Days

We have a little fish on our hands. Sweet MG loves the pool and I foresee many summer days spent swimming away.

Head on over to The Sowell Life and link up with us!

Check back Monday for a fun little giveaway!

Happy Friday, Lovelies!

Summer Reading List

 1. The Forgotten God - One of my sweet church members slipped me a copy and so far it's wonderful!

 2. Gone Girl - Everyone has been talking about this book and I'm hoping it lives up to the reviews.

 3. A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet - I stumbled across this from one of my favorite fellow bloggers, Joy. I cannot wait for it to hit shelves in a few weeks!

4. Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald- With this being the summer of Gatsby, I thought I'd jump on board and read more into the intriguing life of Zelda.

Summertime Bucket List

Although the official start to summer is still a few weeks away,  for me Summer makes its grand entrance when school is out. With today being my first official day of Summer vacay, I thought I'd put together a fun little bucket list!

• Read a book {or two, or three}
• Go the the pool
• Visit an aquarium
• Make ice cream
• Eat to much watermelon
• Eat a sno-cone
• Watch fireworks
• Make artwork with MG
• Blow bubbles on the back porch
• Dedicate a day to my best friends
• Ride a horse
• Create a family cookbook
• Drink more water
• Have a family barbeque
• Watch the sunset at the beach
• Drink coffee on the front porch in the morning
• Run. Run. RUN.
• Actually do things on my bucket list! 

What's on your Summer bucket list?

Frame It Friday

Confession time.

• There is not one single photo of my child hanging on my walls.
• As a matter of fact, there isn't a single thing hanging on my kitchen or living room walls.
• I have so many things I want to display to help warm our home but never seem to tackle these projects.
• We have pictures taken every 3 months, yet I have not ordered any prints. Ever.

Please don't judge me to harshly. They say the first step to recovery is admitting your problem. Honestly, when it comes to framing pictures I really don't have any excuses- other than it has snowballed and become so large that I'm not sure if I'll ever catch up.

Baby steps, dear. Baby steps.

While browsing through Pinterest {where would we be without it, right?} I stumbled upon this link which gives 5 ideas on things to frame. Along with pictures, adding these are a sure fire way to warm up any home.

Hello inspiration!

 Music
Smile is one I always sing to Mary Grace when she cries, Shall We Gather At the River is my favorite hymn, Precious Memories was hung on my grandmother's wall and always reminds me of her, and Beautiful by Dee Carstensen is sung to Mary Grace each night {it was also played at our wedding}. Simple, easy, and meaningful!
 







Maps
I plan to frame a few maps of places I'd love to go as well as a map of our small hometown.

 

Personal History Documents
Love notes, Mary Grace's future artwork, cards from my great-grandmother,  letters from my dad..... anything meaningful. Right now, these precious documents are hidden away in a hat box in my closet. Soon they will have a new home where I can see them often and reminisce.

Toys
I'm going to add to this- childhood items. Whether it's Mary Grace's handmade smocked gown or her favorite book, or first birthday invitation -  these would be great to place on her walls!

{Love this idea of framed book covers}

{L.O.V.E how they framed the gown, bonnet, and shoes}

Recipes
Genius I tell you. I always struggle with what to hang in my kitchen. Problem solved.  My Granny's recipe for homemade cake icing, Nannie's bread recipe, Aunt Betty's hamburger pie {which she always baked for me in a heart shaped dish}....

There you have it - the top 5 favorite things to frame. I'm going to add one more category below.

Quotes & Scripture
I love quotes and have one for every occasion in life. While in college I started a quote book - just a simple little notebook where I keep my favorite quotes and scripture. It's great  to look through when searching for that perfect line to add to a card, or during those valleys in life.

 

What are some other fun ideas fit for frames?

Happy Friday, Ya'll!

Sweet Emma Marshall

I've mentioned before- there seems to be a bit of a baby boom going on amongst my friends. Tuesday morning - right on schedule I might add- Miss Emma Marshall made her grand debut into the world. I cannot wait to get my hands on her this weekend! We are excited to have another sweet girl to add to our play dates!

Happy Birthday, Miss Emma!

Monday Blues & Giveaway News

Hello Monday! Being as how this is the last Monday I have to work for quite a while, I'm feeling a bit  more fond of my normally least favorite day.

That's right lovelies- we are entering the last week of school. Confession: I may be more excited than the students. Though it's the last week, it's gearing up to be as hectic as ever - fun day, school play, awards day, oh my!

 On to the bigger topic - the giveaway winner is Morgan. Congrats!

Thank you to everyone who participated :) I hope to have a fun little Summer giveaway soon.

 

Happy Monday, Ya'll!

{Giveaway} Chevron Pocket Tee

The weekend is so close I can taste it. What better way to kick it off than a fun little giveaway?

Okay lovelies, you have a chance to win a Monogrammed Chevron Pocket Tee. These are super cute and oh so hot right now.

{Shirt colors are either hot pink or lime green / chevron print is black & white }

Winner chooses:

• Color of shirt {hot pink or lime green}
• initials to be monogrammed
• monogram font is Graceful Monogram {as shown in picture}

To enter,  log in using either facebook / email on the below rafflecopter. Follow the instructions, then simply leave a comment on this post with your name & email address. You may have to choose the anonymous option- so be sure to leave your info.

Winner will be announced Monday.

Happy Friday & Hello Weekend!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Mary Grace is One {Lifestyle Shoot}

A few weeks ago our go-to photographer approached me about doing a lifestyle shoot. She was looking for something new to try for her portfolio and thought our home and family would be perfect. I was excited about the idea of capturing our daily life in pictures- those little moments that I want to remember.

The shoot was wonderful and Chelsea truly captured Mary Grace's personality and our home atmosphere.

I did wonder if that is what it must feel like being on a reality show :)

So, without further adieu- here is a day in the life through pictures. Enjoy!

{yummy cheese grits for breakfast}

 

{she loves to have her feet tickled}

{her fishy face}

{love}

{sweet times}

{oh my- simply beautiful}

I hope you enjoyed this sweet treat on this Monday morning.

Happy Monday, Ya'll!