Day 10...my favorite things about summer...

Day 10...my favorite things about summer...

Happy Thursday and welcome to Day 10 of the 31 day challenge!! If I haven't said it yet, thank you Faith, Allie & Juliette for introducing me to this challenge!!! We are a third of the way there and so far it has been awesome!! Today I am going to share with you my favorite things about summer. This list was super hard to narrow down because I honestly love everything about summer…except for the mosquitoes…and the smelly armpits…and the swamp ass…but seriously, other than that, I would be happy if it were summer all year long!

My favorite things about summer are.....

*Baking in the sun until my pale vampire skin turns golden brown…or stop sign red*

*Being in the pool…especially when it involves lazily floating around for hours*

*Playing washers…if you’ve never played before, you are missing out*

*Wearing maxi dresses & maxi skirts without freezing my tush off*

*Bar-b-ques…hosting them, attending them, smelling them from my neighbor’s yard…yum*

*Drinking fruity frozen drinks…ok if I’m being honest I enjoy that all year long…sue me*

*Going to the beach…and I just so happen to live 20 minutes from one of the most beautiful beaches in the USA…seriously, be jealous*

*Going on vacation…less than 2 months until our cruise!!!!!!!*

*Just being outside…swimming, sitting in the garage, enjoying a campfire, taking sneak attack selfies while the hubs is on the phone…pretty much anything*

*Eating juicy de-lish watermelon…omg I love when it’s in season!*

What about for all of you lovely ladies that are not taking part in the challenge? What are your favorite things about summer?!

<3 Oh sweet summer, how I will miss you when you're gone... <3

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Summa-summa-summa time

Summa-summa-summa-time!!!

It's Friday!!! And what better to do on Friday (ok other than go to the beach and bask in the glorious sun) than a Five-on-Friday post?!?!

Here are 5 things I am loving right now:


1. Milani Quick-Dry Polish in Teal
I have been looking everywhere for this color, and I finally found it at Walgreen's the other day!! Best part? It was 50% off!!! Second best part? It drys in like 45 seconds!!

 

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And here it is on my nails:

SUCH a fun color for the summer!!!

(Jamberry black lace on my ring finger)

2. Three Day Weekends!! 
They come so few and far between, but they are SO worth the wait!! A whole extra day to do nothing!? I'm in!!

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3. The Weather
Speaking of 3 days weekends, how about this amazingly exciting weather forecast!!:

That's right...it is currently 90º outside right now!! And it will be 93º all weekend!!!! Seriously, I am having trouble containing my excitement!! You should now better understand the title of today's post...

4. The Walking Dead!! 

We are almost done with Season 2 (OMG what am I going to do!?!) and I am on the edge of my seat!! Like, obviously, I know what happens (in part because my momma told me, in part because certain characters are no longer on the show!) but I am so anxious and excited about the next few episodes!!!!

 

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5. Cornbread Hot Dogs

So I found a recipe for Mini Corn Dog Muffins here and they looked so yummy!!! I figured since we will be having a Memorial Day bar-b-que this weekend, what better time to try them out!?! Seriously, how cute are they:

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 I hope everyone has an amazing weekend!! And I hope that wherever you are, your weather is half as good as ours is going to be...if not, move your tush down to the sunshine state!!!!

TGIF!!!!

Linked With:
That Friday Blog Hop
Five on Friday
No Rules Weekend Blog Party
High Five for Friday

Summer Business Attire

Summer Business Attire

As the weather slowly inches towards the 90's and our thoughts drift more and more towards the beach, sometimes it can be hard to differentiate between "professional" work attire and "OMG it is 100 degrees outside and I want to wear a bathing suit" attire. Having worked in a professional environment for the majority of my career, there are a few tips & tricks that I have found when it comes to "professionalizing" your wardrobe (I may or may not have made that word up...I'll get back to you later on it) in the summer. These may not work for everyone, but if I can save even 1 person 10 minutes in the morning then I have succeeded.

THE RAINY DAY

When most people think of Florida, they picture sunny skies, bikini-clad bodies strolling down the street and lounging in the pool day in and day out. While that may be the case in the movies, the reality is that it rains every.single.day in Florida. It may not rain all day, but at least once a day the sky will darken, the clouds will roll in, and for a few minutes you are in the middle of a monsoon. To get through those rainy days, I recommend the following:

A black and grey color scheme will match the rainy-day mood perfectly, and they are always office-appropriate colors. A pulled-back ponytail is a must, otherwise you are dealing with frizz, soaking wet strands and that wonderful wet-dog look. Boots are also necessary as it tends to flood in about 45 seconds here. Round it out with some leather leggings to add a little flair and sass, and you have a great go-to summer office staple.

THE BRIGHT MAXI

I am a HUGE fan of the maxi. In fact, I have one on as we speak. Most people would stray away from the overly bright colors and crazy pattern for the office, but I welcome it with open arms! Take this outfit for example:

Pairing a colorful maxi with a structured blazer instantly tones it down.  I also added a gold statement ring (which I picked up for A DOLLAR at a flea market...score) and a long necklace, taking the focus away from the blinding colors. Since my nails were also pretty funky, I went with a basic hairstyle and minimal makeup, and Voila! An office-friendly maxi!

THE SASSY

Who doesn't love a good animal print every now and then? I personally feel like now matter how bold the print, it can always be brought down a notch with some neutrals. For whatever reason, animal print has pretty much stayed out of the professional realm of fashion. Well I am on board to bring it right in!

 

For this outfit, I paired a bold leopard blouse with some boot cut grey slacks. I added a grey belt with some gold accents, and then threw on some gold jewelry to match. For makeup I went with more of a neutral/brown theme to match the blouse, and of course I added some sparkle with my glittery gold shoes!

So there you have it. 3 different ways to keep your office wardrobe professional without losing the fun, summer feel. I hope I was able to provide some tips and insight! And I hope everyone is having a fabulous week so far!!!!

Oh April, how I love thee

So you know how everyone looks forward to certain months for certain reasons? For example...The start of November puts me in the holiday spirit. In less than a month I know that there will be turkey, sweaters and Christmas trees everywhere! Then comes December, and the rush of Christmas excitement kicks in. The shopping, the wrapping, seeing the hubby's face when he opens all of his gifts--it's the best! Well that's kind of how I feel about April. I know that the cold weather is hopefully done, which means that I can finally pack up the sweaters and whip out the bikinis! April means planting flowers and getting the garden ready. April means flip flops. all.the.time. April means that our weekend beach trips and afternoons lounging in the pool are only a stone’s throw away. No more defrosting windshields and grabbing a just-in-case cardi EVERY day. Ohhh the sweet taste of April.

On a side note---there is a particular shade of pink nail polish that I wear like all summer long. I call it summer pink..mainly because I don't know the real name of it, but also because it is the best shade of nail polish for the summer. It is literally the brightest neon pink you can buy, and it makes your feet look about 100 times tanner than they really are. It has been my go to shade for years. Reason for telling you this? It is April 1st and I have officially debuted the summer pink. And I'm not even a little bit sorry. I would snap a picture of my toes but considering feet are one the ugliest things ever created, I'll pass on that. And I would share a picture of the bottle with you but considering I am like the worst beauty blogger in the world, I'll just tell you again that I call it summer pink.

In keeping with the pink theme, I threw on one of my new pink maxis (yes, there are multiple) and hit the road. Ok, not really the road, but I did go buy new patio furniture and a wind chime! Here is a look at my weekend attire:

 

Dress: Rue21 (here) 

Shoes: Bongo Flats...can't find them online anywhere!!!

Watch: Kenneth Cole

Bracelets: Rue 21

I hope everyone is having a great week so far! Stay tuned tomorrow for my newest fashion find---a palazzo romper!! Yep, sure did!

What I'm loving Wednesday!

Since I seem to see the "5 on Friday" a lot, I decided to write my own..and since it's not Friday, today's post is about the seven things I'm loving right now..on Wednesday...

 

1. The number 1 thing that I am loving right now is that Steven and I have been married for 542 days! That means that in 5 days, we will have been married for a year and a half!! In that year and a half, we have been through so much--we have had plenty of amazing days and more than a handful of days where strangling each other seemed like a splendid idea. Each day that passes makes us stronger & brings us closer together, and I can't wait to spend the next 25,000 days by his side!

 

542 days ago today I married my best friend <3 <3 <3

2.Cotton Candy Body Spray--I found it at Walgreens a few months ago on my lunch, and every time I would go in I would spray it all over. Well I finally caved and bought it, and it smells delicious!! It's not too sweet to the point where it makes you gag, and it lingers just long enough that you can still catch a faint trace of it at 5:00. LOVE!

 

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3.My newfound interest in Yoga--Hopefully by the end of the summer my flexibility will increase dramatically (considering I can BARELY touch my toes right now) and I will feel better and more energized.

 

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4.Graffitti Nail Polish. If you haven't seen it, check out my Instagram here for a picture. It adds the perfect amount of flair to your nails without being overpowering, and it makes it look like you actually took the time out to do them, when the reality is that it took you 4 minutes during the commercials of TWD.

 

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5. The weather!! It has finally reached gardening/power washing/cleaning up the outside season and I am thrilled!!! At the close of every winter the hubby and I are chomping at the bit to mow the yard, mulch the garden, plant some flowers and get ready for summer!

 

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6. These fence frames that I found on Pinterest. This will make our first official summer project and will look adorable on the fence out back! 

 

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7. TWD--I am literally jumping out of my skin excited for Sunday night! Is Terminus good or bad? Who's getting hacked? (My guess is Maggie---foreshadowing with the picture much?) Will they all meet up?? So many questions!!! 

 

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I hope everyone is having a great week!! What are you loving this week??!