5 for Friday!

Hi, lovies!

 Have you been enjoying the wedding posts? I’ve sure been enjoying posting them. I plan to do a post on the honeymoon as well, but I figured since it’s 1) Friday and 2)November 1^st, I’d do a 5 for Friday of all of the many wonderful things going through my head this Friday.

First, let’s start with a week recap, since all I’ve been doing is lazily uploading pictures.

Monday night…{it’s sad that I have to think so hard to try and remember what I did on Monday…I’m getting old..}  Oh yes, nothing too fun. I cleaned, cooked dinner, took a bubble bath…that’s about all folks! Typical, uneventful Monday night.

Tuesday  night we had a going away dinner for a co-worker of mine. We all went out to dinner at BWW, and Charles tagged along as the world’s most handsome date. He hasn’t really gotten to meet my coworkers, so it was a good chance for him to do so. We had a blast! It’s fun to hang around people you work with in a different setting {it’s how Charles and I fell in love..}

Wednesday night – The night before Halloween! It started off with my awesome sissy bringing me a Starbucks drink and some breakfast! After work, I rushed home to put some baked potato soup {that homemade recipe I posted a few weeks ago..divine} in the crockpot to bring to my old next door neighbors because her husband {and the kids father} passed away. My mom and sister and my mom’s best friend all brought food to go with it, so we were able to provide them with a full dinner and got to indulge in some great conversation with them. It’s also a tradition that my mom and I make Dirt Cake the night before Halloween and watch The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. We have done it since I was little and this year was no different. We had a blast, my sister and Ann even jumped in this year!

 

Thursday night {HALLOWEEN!}: Charles and I cooked dinner, had a few cocktails, and watched Monsters University {his choice, and SO adorable}. We only got one trick or treater and I was super bummed. The church down our street does Trunk or Treat so all of the neighborhood kids go to that instead. Note to self, change neighborhood…

 

Now that we are all caught up…here goes 5 for Friday!

{ONE}

My Sweetie Pie Nephew!! I haven’t gotten to meet him yet, but I will soon. Here’s some of the latest photos I have of this cutie pie! I love him already.

 

 

{TWO}

Houses, houses, houses! Charles and I are starting the staging process for getting our house ready to rent or sell, and looking at houses to purchase. We are weighing all of our options and are having a blast! It’s been hard work making sure our house is up to par for the selling process, and will continue to be difficult. We have a meeting with a realtor in a few weeks to they can tell us exactly what we need to get out of the house, how to stage it, if anything needs to be fixed, etc. It’s a very exciting time in our life and I can’t help but smile to think about the possibilities in a new home!

{THREE}

The holidays! My holiday bucket list will be up soon, and I can’t stop thinking about the greatest time of year! It’s November 1^st, y’all! When did THAT Happen? It’s insane how fast this year has gone by. In fact, one year ago tomorrow, Charles proposed to me. Now, I’m his wife! I have a lot of great holiday ideas in store, so stay tuned. My heart is a little happier, my family is a little closer, people are a whole lot friendly, clothes are a whole lot cuter..I’ll go on if you’d like. These holiday feelings are real, y’all.

{FOUR}

You might need to sit down for this one. This product has kind of saved my life.

Let’s back up.

Whenever I get out of the shower {even though I keep a wide tooth comb in the shower and make sure I have no tangles when I get out of the shower}, my hair turns into some knotted mess in about 3.1434554 seconds. I cringe every time I look at my comb after I try to get the tangles out of my wet hair {no matter how much product I put in it to prevent that very thing…sigh}. I don’t care what they say, wide tooth combs still cause pain when trying to detangle my hair, and I still think I lose way.too.much hair when detangling. Let me introduce to you my very new BFF in the hair world.

Introducing the Conair Wet Dry detangling brush. I didn’t think such a miracle brush could ever be possible but it just is. It detangles my hair, doesn’t pull, and works on wet and dry hair! It’s AMAZING. If you don’t go get one right now, shame on you. It’s incredibly inexpensive {I think about $5 at Wal-Mart} and you just won’t be sorry. My hair thanks me every day and I no longer dread leaving the shower and combing my hair. You’re welcome in advance.

 

{FIVE}

It’s the freakin’ weekend baby I’m about to have me some fun. What a throwback.

Charles and I plan on taking advantage of this beautiful fall weather and grilling out with some new friends! Can’t beat making memories like that. Tomorrow, after I sing at a funeral for our dear neighbors, we are making the trip up to Fayetteville to see Charles’ grandmother and to tailgate! Then we will be heading to a friend’s house to watch the HOG game! Fun times with fun friends in store.

Sunday will most likely be spent getting the house in order. We are trying to go through each room one by one to get all of the unnecessary items out and throw away junk that we have saved due to our hoarder ways {I blame this on Charles.}

 

I hope you all have a BLESSED and relaxing weekend!

At least it's ALMOST Friday..

Hey, y'all!

Ok. You caught me. I'll admit it. I stayed out too late last night {...yes, 10pm is too late for me when I wake up at 4:30am..}. I'm not feeling my best or most productive this morning. I wanted to throw my iPhone when the alarm went off {mental note to change the alarm music, it's way annoying} but I got right up, brushed my teeth, picked out my clothes, did my hair and makeup, albeit not to my best abilities..and shuffled on in to work. Typically I don't get my morning cup of coffee until 7am..I'm a creature of habit y'all, but I couldn't resist grabbing a cup to wake me up. Plus I'm sitting right under the air conditioner at work and I'm FREEZING, so I needed something to warm up my body and to warm my soul. Coffee is a game changer, I don't know where I would be without it..

Here is the reason for my "too late" night:

Bonfire nights are clearly the best kinds of nights. Plus, how can you really beat a fire like this? Answer? You can't.

I opted for my wine colored long sleeve Piko top with my Liz Claiborne cheetah print scarf from JC Penney. I paired it with my columbia jacket so I could stay warm ;) I love these nights!

 

 

We headed out to a neighboring town {because they don't let you have this much fun in the city limits} and had a few drinks, ate some good food, and engaged in great conversation while sitting by the fire. I needed that escape after my horrible, horrible Wednesday. It was a truly gorgeous day, but I had a long work day and I left with a headache and a to-do list. Never fun...but look at the pretty sunset I captured while we were heading out to the fire!

The husband informed me that he had a potluck at work today, so I whipped him up a dessert to bring, and I doubled the recipe so I could bring something to the bonfire last night {because a lady never shows up empty handed..thanks mom}, so I made this quick and easy {cut me some slack, remember, I had a horrible day and I was in a hurry} dessert that I used to make for all of my little boyfriends in high school..behold the "magic bars":

Yummo! Here's the recipe:

• 1/2 cup {1 stick} butter
• 1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1 {14oz} can Eagle brand sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup butterscotch chips
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 1/3 cups coconut flakes
• 1 cup nuts {optional}

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, or 325 for a glass dish. Melt butter and pour in a 13x9 dish.
Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs on top of butter
Pour condensed milk over crumbs
Pour butterscotch and chocolate chips over condensed milk
Coconut flakes over chips
Nuts over coconut flakes
Bake for 25 minutes or until slightly browned! Cool for best taste. Cut into bars and voila!

Have a blessed Thursday {here's hoping for a better day}!

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. It is not as the world gives that I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, and do not let it be afraid.”  John 14:7

Mid week treats!

Happy Hump Day, y’all!

When I leave work on Wednesdays, I always feel amazing, because the work week is already half over! Which means only 2 more mornings of waking up at 4:30am…yeah! I also usually try and treat myself to a Wednesday treat. Just a little something to say “congratulations for making it through the beginning, here’s a treat to hold you over until Friday..” Usually it’s a Starbucks Captain Crunch frapp {if you haven’t had one, shame on you} or maybe I’ll treat myself to a mani or pedi {or maybe pick up another one of the game-changing lip gloss from Walgreens…right, Katie?!} Do you guys have incentives to spoil yourself? I’m always looking for more excuses.

If any of you follow the “Pretty Little Liars” series, you know that every year there is a “between seasons” Halloween episode, and every year, my good friend Jaclyn and I watch this episode, cook an amazing fall meal, and carve pumpkins! Last night was the night of the episode, so this happened:

 

 

THE most incredible beef stew {made by Jaclyn} and the greatest chocolate chip banana bread {made by me!} to go with our pumpkins {our men helped us, and carved some of their own, such cuties.} Such a great time with great friends! Cholla and Milli wanted to help eat the pumpkins..Milli even ate a seed {I told her if she drank water now, a pumpkin would grow in her puppy tummy!}

 

If you’re going to do fall like activities, you have to dress like it. I give you my pumpkin carving attire: Steve Madden cognac boots, cheetah leggings from Rachas, a cute, local boutique, and an oversized zip cardigan from Old Navy. Helloooo, fall!

I’ve decided that now that I’ve got some extra time on my hands {wedding planning is done!!}, I need to get myself in shape! I used to do cross country running, so I decided I needed to start back up with my running! Now I’m not the type to have a ton of tennis shoes in my closet {I have one pair of baby pink Nike shox to my name}, so I had to go out and get a pair of shoes. After trying on what felt like half of Academy, I chose the FILA women’s memory therapy gradient training shoe. This shoe has great reviews and it is SO comfortable. It is also light, which is something I look for because I have very weak ankles. I’m excited to take these shoes out for a test spin, it’s always such a great escape to go for a nice run, and it’s even better when I’m wearing a shoe that doesn’t weigh down my foot.

 

I’m pleased to inform you that BBW is having their 2 for $22 candle deal starting again today. It only lasts a few days each time it comes around, so take full advantage! I need a few more fall candles to get me through November {on Black Friday every year, I go to BBW and stock up on holiday candles, and I start burning them on Black Friday while we are decorating for Christmas!} Be aware of Black Friday ad’s coming out. My sweet friend Jaclyn told me about the Black Friday app for iPhones that is already starting to post some Black Friday deals. You don’t want to miss out on the great deals J

This week, something on my mind is family. Charles’ grandfather became pretty ill, and his family is all coming in to see him. Some of the family I haven’t even met yet, so I’m pretty excited to meet everyone. Family doesn’t only apply to people you are related to. My parents best friends are people that I consider my family. They are all like aunts and uncles to me, and I’m proud that they are in my family. Charles parents also have similar friends who are like family to us. In fact, we are going to a bonfire at “Aunt Donna and Uncle Richard’s” house tonight {I’m so thrilled..what to wear, what to wear? And on a work night..I feel like a rebel. It’s good to break the rules every once in a while..}Bonfires are just plain good for the soul. The smell, the friends, the drinks..absolutely on my fall bucket list. I have “my family,” which consists of my parents, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, etc. Charles also has “his family” consisting of the same. Now that we are married, it is becoming a reality that now, my immediate family is Charles, and will someday be our children. We have branched off to form a totally new family, which is a little scary to think about, but also excited. I can’t wait to start our own family traditions, and to go through everything in life with my greatest, most true friend. Marriage is NOT for everyone and it certainly isn’t to be taken lightly. When you know, you know.

 

 ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”  Mark 10: 6-9.

 

I hope you have blessed Wednesday! <3

 

DIY No Sew Dog Bed!

Hey, y'all!

I can honestly say yesterday wore.me.out. But I had such a wonderful fall evening at home with my babe! Homemade potato soup, a little decorationg, crafting, cuddling...Can't get any better! I know I say this in every single post, but THIS WEATHER!! <3 it! Can't get enough. Perfect "drive with the sunroof down" kind of weather {and trust me, I have been}. I was at the grocery store picking a few things up for my soup recipe, and saw the prettiest of mum's sitting out. I decided I had to have some. While perusing the aisles, I found a mini hay stack {only $7!} and some cinnamon smelling pinecones and mini pumpkins. Of course, I wanted needed all of these things. Here's what I created:

It's tutorial Thursday over here! I've been needing to make Cholla a little dog bed, because her and Milli aren't the biggest fans of sharing the razorback bed I made for them {I guess they didn't read the "sharing is caring" post from yesterday...}Anyhow, I figured I would use up some extra fabric and polyfil I had and make Cholla her own princess bed {because dogs are family, after all}. I won't keep y'all waiting. Without further delay, let's make a DIY No Sew Dog Bed!



You'll Need....

• Scissors {make sure they aren't dull or they will fray the fabric}
• Two layers of fabric {you can use whatever you'd like, but I've found that the fleece material or anyother kind of soft material works best}
• Polyfil

{Step One}: Place fabric evenly on floor, one layer over the top of the other. I usually pick two different colors, typically I go with black on bottom because it will be mainly sitting on the floor, and will get dirty.

{Step Two}: Once fabric has been perfectly aligned, Cut a square out of each corner. These don't need to be big squares, just big enough to make the edges. {Tip, one you cut one square out, use an excess square of fabric to make the other edges the same size}. Look at my handsome helper!

 

{Step Three}: Cut slits in the fabric approximately 1.5-2 inches wide. along the perimeter of the fabric.

{Step Four}: Tie the two slits together {I would double knot it so that your pups can't untie it and get all of the stuffing out. Our dogs just love stuffing.

{Step Five}: When you're tying the last row of slits, leave a few slits open and start stuffing the dog bed with polyfil {or, if you don't want to stuff the bed, you can continue tying and it will create a blanket}. Once you have stuffed with polyfil, continue on to finish tying the rest of the slits.

{Step Six}: Let your princess enjoy her new puppy bed!

We actually put this at the foot of our bed last night and she slept on it the whole time! They love the beds. I will be putting it by the window in the bedroom so that she can be comfy and cozy while she looks outside and waits for us to come home.

Stay tuned tomorrow for 5 for Friday! XO

Michele






Why must the weekend end?!

It’s official, Monday has come around once again! Monday’s are just not my favorite. In fact, Sunday afternoons aren’t my favorite either, because it just feels like a pre-Monday! I feel horrible complaining about Mondays, because if I dread Mondays, I have a job. A good job. A job that I love and am proud of. Yet I still dread Mondays..

Even though I haven’t fully hopped on the Monday bandwagon, I’ve decided to embrace this Monday. It’s a nice, chilly morning, I’m wearing my favorite fall leggings and my olive Piko top {both from Suite One…go figure} and I’m enjoying a nice cup of coffee. This Monday just isn’t so bad afterall, it’s all in your perspective.

How was your weekend? Mine was a much needed lake getaway. Friday, right after the husband got off work, we headed straight down to the lake and cooked a nice dinner and enjoyed the beautiful sunset on the deck, and we hit the hay early {which is typical for me anyways, getting up at 4:30 every morning for work doesn’t make staying up until midnight quite so appealing..}.

I woke up at about 4am on Saturday morning to the sound of pouring rain and thunder, and saw a beautiful lightning show at the window. Needless to say, that put me back to a peaceful sleep for another 2 and a half hours. When I woke up, it was still sprinkling, so I opted to write thank you notes inside with a cup of coffee, half watching “Almost Famous” while I worked. Finally the weather cleared up, and  Charles and his brother and father worked on various tasks around the lake house, as well as Charles removed a bunch of oxidation from the back of the boat, as well as changed the boat name and put a metal looking Razorback on the back of the boat, what a handy man!

 

After piddling around for a little bit in the afternoon, and having a few cocktails with the neighbors, we started working on dinner, which was incredible! Ahi tuna steak, grilled asparagus, and pasta. Delish! And the best part? Charles cooked it all. He’s a man of many talents, but sorry ladies, I snatched this one up and he is off the market! After baking a batch of chocolate chip cookies and watching Home Alone 2: Lost in New York {the best Home Alone in our opinion..} we hit the sack early again! Married life, I tell ya!

Sunday morning Charles and his brother helped their dad with a few more projects, and I packed up and cleaned up as much as possible, and played puppy wrangler to make sure they didn’t get in the boys way. We headed home and unpacked and did some chores at home {it never ends} and then met up with my family for dinner at Olive Garden. I knew I didn’t wanted a big glass of Sangria, and lo and behold that’s just what my parents ordered. They are people after my own heart. If you are ever at the OG, try their Berry Sangria. It’s amazing, just what I needed to wrap up a nice weekend!

 

Now I’m usually not too big on the country music fad, however, there are a few songs you just can’t keep out of your head. I’m starting to become more of a country music fan {as long as it’s not that honkytonk, way too country music. That is not ok.} Here’s a few songs I’ve been singing along to in my car for weeks!

 

Sunday was also made wonderful because of the text I got from my dear friend Katie, and it went a little something like this {see below}. In summary, MAC cosmetics is coming to our local Dillard’s! I know, I know, how could it have taken this long for a MAC to come to our mall, and trust me, I’ve had similar thoughts, and often. Just in time for the holidays, my birthday, etc…looks like I know what to put on MY wish list! Hint: All Things MAC.

 

She also made my day by informing me that Old Navy is having a boot sock sale, and I’m in desperate need of some good boot socks, because you can never have too many, and for $3.50 a pair? Can’t beat that and you can’t say no. She made the great point that these would be great stocking stuffers, or maybe part of a small gift for a friend!  Maybe even a dirty santa gift, the possibilities are endless. I’m going to raid this sale right after work {and you should, too!}

I’m pleased to report back that I completed ALL of my thank you cards {it took forever and I had a sore hand and a headache, but they are done}. I accomplished most of my “to-do” list, with the exception of the Christmas lists! That’s going to be my primary focus for today. Charles has a board of directors meeting for the Blues Fest this evening, so I’ll have some time to get some work done on the lists after work. I’ve started working on them early enough that I’m not in panic mode trying to get it completed.

The Christmas Cards I created and ordered via VistaPrint have ALREADY shipped, y’all! Jump on the bandwagon and get yourself some. Mine should be in today, which gives me optimal time to address them and get them out to people and not be in a rush. How great is that?! I’ll probably get them addressed and ready to send out in the next few weeks, so that I don’t have to worry about it closer to the holidays. Getting ahead of the game is kind of a rush for me, if you hadn’t noticed.

I hope you all make the most out of your Monday! Go check out the amazing Old Navy sale! XO

Michele

Hello, Friday! You're wonderful

Hey, y’all! Happy Friday =)

I hope you’re all as ecstatic for the weekend as I am. Big plans? I’d love to hear. I’m slowly but surely trying to kick the rest of this sickness in the booty {keyword: slowly. Painstakingly slow, in fact} in order to fully enjoy my weekend. Cheers for Friday!

Friday’s also mean 5 for Friday!! Here’s 5 things on my mind today:

{One}

My arm’s length to do list is on my mind this Friday. Albeit yes, my life has calmed down significantly since the wedding, I still have so much catching up to do. Throw in the holidays coming and us trying to fix up the house to sell, I’ve hit a point where I eat, sleep, and drink in to do lists in order to function like a normal and productive human being. No, I don’t want to be “that lady” who obsesses over list making. I’m not someone who makes lists to do lists, I’m not certifiably OCD, but the lists help me to remember what I need to do, and they remind me to stay on track. I really think it has more to do with writing things down. If I write something down {no, typing them into my phone calendar does NOT count as writing something down, it will never work,} I feel like I remember things better.  Surprisingly, my to do list for this weekend isn’t too terrible. My “to do before the end of the year” list is out of hand.

 

{Two}

If you know me, you know I’m not the world’s biggest red meat fan. Not that I don’t like it, not that I won’t eat it {because I will}, I just seem to always gravitate towards grilled chicken, fish, etc. Sometimes it’s difficult when Charles wants to grill a nice, big, juicy steak. He gets extremely excited, and I’m always sitting there thinking “Okay, I’ll eat this, it will be great I’m sure, so why am I not as excited as this guy?” I found my substitute for steak. It’s even BETTER than steak in my book. Get ready to go buy some immediately. Ahi. Tuna. Steak. SO GOOD. Yes, you can buy this at Wal-Mart of your local grocer {frozen…}, but it is SO much better to go get some fresh. Where I live, we have a local seafood shop that gets fresh fish flown in every Friday morning, and they have extremely reasonable prices {Shout Out to See’s Seafood!} You can prepare them however you’d like, but I like to keep it simple: a little olive oil, a little creole, some george’s seasoning {a special, secret seasoning that is pretty good fabulous that is made by a family here in Fort Smith}, and some lemon juice. Toss that puppy on the grill, it doesn’t take long to cook in the slightest. Enjoy a glass of wine while you wait {I know I will}. Anyhow, this is on my mind today because I have four of these beauties ready to throw on the grill tomorrow at the lake. Yes, I will be sitting on the deck enjoying a glass of wine while my husband grills the meat! This weekend’s weather will be amazing, I am SO looking forward to it.

 

{Three}

2 for $22 candles from Bath and Body works are never constantly on my mind, but especially today! These 3-wick candles run around $20 on a normal day, but in typical “always looking for a sale” fashion, I wait for these wonderful candles to go on the 2 for $22 sale, and then I stock up! I also save all of the $10 off a purchase of $30 or more, and then I get 4 candles {which on a normal day would run me $80} for $30! That ends up being $50 of savings. I’ll take it! Well as I’m sipping on my coffee this morning, casually scrolling through my email as normal, I saw the coupon for the 2 for $22 sale going on now. You better believe that I will be heading straight to BBW for some more candles, because honestly, you can NEVER have too many. Have extras? Save them for next year. You’ll always need them. Life is too short to not buy the candles. Right now I’m obsessing over “Leaves.” It’s always my fall favorite.

 

{Four}

The Children’s Emergency Shelter has been on my mind a lot lately, especially with the holidays coming up. This shelter in my town provides shelter, food, and care to children who found themselves in bad situations. This shelter is someone everyone needs to support when they can, find them on their website here, or on facebook! They often post what they need support with {whether it be food, laundry detergent, someone to stop by and fix a leak, etc}. If you have means to donate to a charity, please choose this one. It takes a special kind of person to run an organization like the one they are running. Please consider them when you’re at the store, or buying presents this holiday season! I know we will be thinking of them in the Alley household this holiday season.

 

{Five}

After work, I am headed to the beautiful and peaceful Lake Ouachita. Although I won’t be in a bikini sitting on a boat, I can’t wait for a peaceful weekend, sitting on the deck, and enjoying the cool fall weather. It will be SO nice to sit on the deck with a cup of coffee and a stack full of thank you cards. It’s hard to get things like that done at home, because I always feel like I should be cleaning something, or someone always comes over, or we want to get out of the house…I could think of about 50 excuses to do something at home, but when I’m at the lake enjoying some peace and quiet, I can get things done! Hopefully I can get finished early and enjoy a nap in the new hammock, and then enjoy some wine and a nice dinner on Saturday night. Ok, ok. The wine will happen regardless of me finishing. Let’s just be honest about that. In fact, it might be required just to keep me sane while I’m writing the thank you cards and doing various other things. Oh, and sleep is a priority this weekend! I have not slept well ALL week, and I really need to let my body rest and recover in order to kick this sickness. Here’s hoping I get some good naps in ;)

 

I hope you all have a splendid weekend, full of friends, family, and if you’re lucky, some peace and quiet! & don’t forget to come back around for a weekend recap in a few days! XO

Michele Alley

 

Weekend Take Away

Hey, y’all!

It’s Monday…. Again. I promise, I just needed 5 more minutes in bed before Monday happened. Only 5. Possibly 10. An extra hour would have been great.

Fall is officially here, complete with cool enough weather to open the windows and very chilly mornings. So chilly, in fact, that getting out of my warm bed, snuggled up with my husband and the two fur daughters is all the more difficult. I've overheard several people at the office today saying things along the line of "If I could have taken a personal day today, I would have.." Agreed. Amen to that!

How was your weekend? Was it just a tad too short like mine? Well here’s some information to make your Monday go down a little bit easier, a spoon full of sugar for your Monday, if you will:

v  24 days until Halloween

v  52 days until Thanksgiving {and 53 until Black Friday…yes, it’s important}

v  78 days until Christmas

It really is the most wonderful time of the year. I feel like people have better behaviors, the air feels crisp, leaves are falling, Starbucks is booming..not to mention the holiday market comes around, my birthday comes around, I get to spend lots of time with family, and I get to meet my new nephew all this holiday season! Happiness overload.

I spent this weekend doing various things. As promised, I did go straight to Kirkland’s after work on Friday and I bought that monogrammed “A” doormat, as well as another cute doormat, which I put on the back deck, right where you walk into the French doors to go inside the house. Both of these doormats were an additional 20% off {have I mentioned that I like love Kirkland’s}. I also scored these two cute wine goblets for a mere $5 each. Kirkland’s autumn sales right now are insanely awesome, as they are gearing up for Christmas. I then took said wine goblets to my sister’s house for a nice glass of white wine, while we cooked up some delicious food for her husband’s going away dinner.

Another Kirkland's purchase. Excuse the wet spots around it. It rained ALL day Saturday! Not too shabby for a $9 doormat.

I'm dying. Seriously. $5 from Kirkland's. I'm a believer.

 

Saturday was one of those picture perfect, cozy Saturday’s. We opened the windows on Friday night when we went to bed and we woke up to the sound of rain beating against the window and a wonderful breeze was coming through the window. I tiptoed out of bed just to snatch up my iPad and a steaming cup of coffee, and I was right back in the warm bed, enjoying a little pinterest and the weather I’ve been dying for. Happy gal right here! After we begrudgingly got out of bed to start the day, we went to my parent’s house and got to watch the wedding video! I swear, y’all, I could have watched all day. I can’t wait until the copies are made so I can get a closer look ;)

Since my parent’s house is right down the road from Wal-Mart, we decided to go ahead and get our grocery shopping done for the week. {I know better than to bring Charles grocery shopping with me , we always end up with $50 more of food than we needed, not my brightest idea}.

After cleaning the house, we felt that we deserved a nice mojito and some company, so some family and some friends came over to watch our beloved Razorbacks, bless their hearts. It was pouring all day, but that didn’t stop us from grilling out some chicken and sitting on the deck that evening! To polish off the rainy day, we decided to make an apple crisp, topped with vanilla ice cream! So good for my soul!

 

Sunday was spent writing thank you cards! I’m almost not even close to being finished, but at least I made a dent! It was also “switch your summer and winter closets” day, and it was a complete disaster for a while. I have too.many.clothes. I know, a girl can never have too much clothing, but I either need a bigger closet or I need to drastically reduce my clothing {I vote both!} This pretty much consumed most of my afternoon…oh yeah, and we got a new bedspread because our demon angel dogs decided that while we were on our honeymoon, they needed to panic and try to get ALL of the stuffing out of our comforter. You know, no big deal. This comforter is not my dream comforter by any means, but we needed a new one quick, and it was the prettiest one we found at wal-mart while we were there. Meanwhile, I’ll browse online to find a better suited bed set for our room!

Not even all of it! Underneath it all is the new bedspread, not too thrilled, but it's cozy and it does it's job, for now!

 

If you’re a Shutterfly fan like myself, you need to go to their website ASAP {like, yesterday} and get your free gift! You can choose from 101 free 4x6 prints or a free 16x20 print. Christmas is coming, and photo gifts are always a good option. Print out some pictures of your favorite friends or family, and while you’re on the site, go ahead and order some holiday cards or maybe a coffee mug for one of your friends gifts. I have a feeling I’ll be ordering some photo coffee mugs and filling them with cocoa mix and marshmallows for some friends this year, what a great gift! Check out shutterfly now! It’s where I got my guestbook for the wedding, and it was a HUGE hit. So many guests asked me where I got the guestbook, and here is the answer!

Something that is going to be a theme on my mind this week is going to be Christmas Lists! Not only do I need to create my “wish” list for my family, but I need to make a list {and a budget} for all of my family members and friends this year. Any suggestions for how you guys budget for Christmas shopping? What kind of gifts do you enjoy giving to friends? Any holiday shopping traditions or amazing sales on your mind? Please. Share! Sharing is caring and it can be very, very rewarding for all parties!

How about holiday cards? Charles and I are starting a tradition this year of sending out a holiday card to friends and family with a written letter about what we have been up to that year. Where do you get your holiday cards printed? We are thinking of using our professional pictures and using an online website to order our holiday cards. What good websites are out there?

Some pictures of my cutie pie nephew to start your week off with a smile!

 

 Time to get back to work, always keeping busy, busy, busy! I hope your weeks fly by! Until next time!

Michele Alley

 

5 for Friday!

Happy FRIDAY, y’all!

I’ve seen this been done on an increasing amount of blogs lately, so I thought I might try it. It’s called 5 for Friday. Basically, you just talk about 5 things that are on your mind as Friday rolls around. How fun!? I feel as if I could be a regular 5 for Friday blogger, so let’s start with my first 5 for Friday post!

{One}

Coffee is something that is sometimes always on my mind, but especially today. For starters, I’ve been SO sick all week, and haven’t been sleeping at all, which means coffee has been a Life. Saver. No joke, I wouldn’t have made it through my first week back at work post wedding and honeymoon  at all, especially being sick, without coffee. My pal coffee has also helped me out this week by soothing my throat with its warm coffee goodness. Coffee will continue to help me this weekend as I sit under a blanket Saturday morning {HOORAY for cooler temps} and write a billion thank you notes! Here’s a few new fall coffee flavors you all might want to give a try…

 

{Two}

Starting Saturday, it’s officially Sweater Weather! Insert happy dance here. I have so many new and old sweaters that I can’t wait to dig out and fill my closet with. I’m fairly certain Sunday will be dedicated to laundry / switching my closets! {I have a closet for winter clothes and a closet for summer clothes. I switch the closets according to seasons to the closet in the bedroom} It makes my little heart happy when I switch my closets; it feels like I get a whole new wardrobe, which in a sense, I do. Here are some sweaters I am lusting over this fall / winter!

Oversized sweaters. I need no explanation why I am loving this for fall!

Tribal print sweaters! There are so many ways you can dress up and down a tribal print, fun sweater!

 

 

Studded sweaters are probably my favorite sweaters this fall. Rock and Republic for Kohl's has an amazing studded sweater I grabbed last season, and I'm looking forward to transition it into this fall!

 

{Three}

Kirkland’s holds a new, special place in my heart. I was looking for the perfect new monogrammed doormat {I know, I know, Bed Bath and Beyond has them, but they aren’t very cute in my opinion…a little too simple} and lo and behold, I found the most wonderful of all doormats. I give you the Kirkland’s monogrammed doormat! That’s not even the best part. The best part is its price tag. You might want to take a seat. This puppy is only $11.99 at Kirkland’s. I just can’t. TOO amazing! Not only odes Kirkland’s have these amazing and inexpensive rugs, but they have THE best {and most budget friendly} home décor and the yummiest smelling candles ever. Plus, they are always running some kind of sale or special. Blows my mind, I’ll be there most likely right after work.

The detailing on this doormat really sets it apart from others that I have seen. Thank you Kirkland's for such amazing and affordable products!

 

{Four}

A friend recommended that I start reading Erin Hilderbrand books if I wanted a good juicy beach read {I was about to head to the beach for my honeymoon, so of COURSE I wanted a nice juicy beach read!} I bought a few of her books, one of them being Barefoot, and fell in love!  I can’t wait to read ALL of her books. They are available on the Kindle also, for all of you tech savvy gals!

 

{Five}

It’s the weekend, and I’m Happy Happy Happy!  I started the weekend off right with a frozen Cinnamocha from Sacred Grounds, a local coffee shop. It is literally heaven in a cute little clear to go cup, and is making this Friday afternoon fly by!

 

My plans for this evening will start out with a going away party for my brother in law {he is joining the air force and will be shipping out for basic training later this month} at my sister’s house. I am SO looking forward to a night with family, food, and hopefully a huge glass of wine.

Tomorrow is a day of thank you cards and football! Charles’ brother and his girlfriend are coming over to watch our beloved Razorbacks play Florida, and I am going to try out a new mojito recipe {I’m on quite the mojito kick since Mexico…have a good recipe? Comment below}

I’m sure at some point this weekend we will watch Iron Man 3 {Charles is dying to see it, and I like to keep him happy} which means puppy snugs and cuddles with my husband. You can’t really beat that.

 

What’s on your mind this beautiful Friday? Big plans? I’d love to hear. Be a blessing today, and have a fabulous weekend!

Michele Alley