House Remodeling: Paint it Coral!

With our renovations, the hubs gave me free reins on our master bath - so let's just say I had some fun!

Coral is one of my favorite colors - clothes, jewelry, furniture, you name it, I love it! So, the very first time I walked in my then "brand-new BF's" bathroom I knew we were meant to be!  Not only was it coral, but the decor was key west inspired. haha. Which, sounds crazy saying at the moment - but then I thought it was totally awesome. My brother was living in Key West and I just returned from one of my favorite vacations ever.... a week in the keys with my bro!

Long story short - when cleaning out the closet of paint of my hubs, I found the half-full can of coral and got pretty excited!  Here was my inspiration.

I also came across this neat blog with 20 great coral projects. Lots of inspiration for our master bath. 

Now, I just need to figure out lights, a mirror and tile. Would you go more with white, silver, or rustic?

Goodbye to 204!

It's moving week! I can barely believe that it's finally here. We have been working overtime the past week to get things ready... and they are slowly getting there. The painters will finish up this week and the last of the move is Saturday. I'm super pumped about more space, room for visitors, and all the new fun renovations. But, I'm kinda bittersweet about leaving my cute little house. It's been my first house to have on my own and it's been our first home as a married couple.  It's held so many fun parties and gatherings. I'm going to miss the creative stacking, filing, and hiding away all our goods.  

It's been fun 204. We'll miss you!!! 

This is a sweet anniversary gift my sister-in-law. Girl is crazy talented!! 

I can't way to hang this on the all in our new Lyons' Den.

Five on Friday

Howdy Friends!! I have so much to catch you up on!  I've been on the go for the past few weeks, prepping for a move and planning a huge work event that is T-24 days away. Eeek!!! Wish me good luck - lots of patience - and most of all, grace. I wanted to join in today for Five on Friday and catch up on my busy life.

{one} My wonderful Husband. The hubs and I celebrated 3 years on Wednesday! Part of me can't believe it' been 3 years and the other feels like it's been forever. I thank God every day for giving me such a fun-loving, caring and sweet man to stand beside me every step of the way. I am truly blessed! Here are a few of my favorite pictures from our wedding day.  

{two} Peonies and Good Friends. There are few things I love more than beautiful flowers and time well-spent with gal pals. Like I said, work has been a doozie - and between it and work on the house - this gal was in need of some girl time, which is exactly what I got this week. The gals planned a golf outing for us, picked up range balls, bevs and had us ready to go by the time I pulled in the parking lot. We had the best night!! Then, Erica surprised me with these beauties today - so, so sweet!  

{three} Coral Lista Lilly. I am loving this fun summer pattern from Lilly. How cute is the little ruffle bag? I'm sure I cold find something to use it for. One thing is for certain, I am in need of some new additions to the summer Lilly collection!

{four} An AOII Happy. This lil cutie arrived on Monday and brightened my day! Sometimes you just need a little reminder of why you do whatever it is you do.

{five} Shrimp by Cole Hon. The hubs surprised me with this beautiful bag for our leather anniversary. Isn't she a beauty?  I'm in love!

Happy Memorial Day weekend friends!  Linking up with April, Natasha, Christina, and Darci for Five on Friday.

Wish us luck this weekend... we have lots of work to get moved in a week! 

Just the Thing!

You guys... I found the most adorable shop in South Carolina last week. I mentioned to a friend that I was heading to Columbia for work for a couple days and she said - o my gosh, that's where the store is, you have to go. So naturally I said, "What store?? And how do I get there?" 

The store is so adorable! They have gobs  of assessories and tons of cute gift ideas. From babies to weddings, they have you covered. The clothing section is filled with silky blouses, Lilly style dresses, print shorts, and linen everything. They even have a monogram shop where you can get just about anything you want with an initial on it. 

Naturally, I made a quick pot stop during my visit to Columbia a few weeks back. I picked up a few great staples that I already have worn a ton and love!

They also had some other cute items that I eyed up for next time, but I stuck to my basics for this go-round.

Good news for those of you not in SC... they have a great Facebook page!

Window boxes

After my brief trip to Charleston last week two weeks ago {where does the time go}, I came home inspired to get some flowers in my window boxes. With the move looming in the near future, I haven't done much gardening... but I just can't wait any longer. Our new shed is in some desperate need of some welcoming flowers!

I think there are a couple flowers that make a window box more interesting. Start with "a thriller," something tall like a spiky cordyline, add a few "spillers," something to trail over the sides, like white bacopa, and add lots of colorful fillers to finish it off. These are a few of my favorites.

via Lowes Creative Ideas.

Love this idea! 

via Southern Living.

via Better Homes and Gardens.

via tripadvisor.

via.

What are your favorite plants for window boxes? Please do share. 

I'm on a mission to spruce up the new house and shed. 

A Day in Charleston

I hope Mother's Day was filled with lots of love for all those momma's out there.  We love you so dearly and appreciate all you do! Here's a throw-back to my momma and I, circa 1984.

Isn't she so stylish? Love you Momma! 

I'm back from a wonderful quick trip to the Carolina's. I had a brief work trip to Columbia on Thursday/Friday and enjoyed getting to explore a new city. They have a super cool downtown and a few fabulous hotels that I toured for work. The campus is pretty neat too. I didn't get many pictures while I was there, but it was a good trip. Friday evening I joined the hubs in charleston for his work trip. We enjoyed a delicious meal at Virginia's and bevs out on the town Friday night. Saturday I had the day to myself to explore, and explore I did! 

Here's to a day in Charleston!

I started the day at the Farmer's Market downtown and picked up some neat digs. Great veggies, arts and crafts, and lots of tasty treats. 

I came home with a few treasures: Carolina peaches, a jar of pineapple-habanero jelly, cafe con leche, a cinnamon-sugar pretzel for breakfast, and milk soap. If I could have, I would have loaded up a cooler full of veggies and brought them home. Dang you 7-hour drive home. You Charleston gals are so lucky, I'd be there every week!! 

Next, I took a nice jog down to the battery and explored all the beautiful streets and homes in charleston! Every house has so much character. I could have spent hours soaking them all in, but it was a beautiful day and the beach was calling my name! I packed up my bags and headed to Sullivan's island to get my toes in the sand. 

It was a gorgeous day and the perfect much-needed relaxation time on the beach. After hitting up the TJMaxx and Homegoods in Mt. Pleasent {I couldn't resist}, I showered and headed to the downtown market for a few treasures before they closed. I scored this adorable "oyster santa ornament" to add to our collection and replaced my favorite pearl ring that I broke a few weeks back. 

That evening, I joined the guys for another fabulous dinner at Lana's on Rutledge. Again, so amazing. 

We polished off the trip with some cocktails at the Veranda and a long night of rest - much needed after a few days of go-go-go.  We're back for 24 hours before we head off on another work venture to Baltimore and ATL. 

Hope all those Mother's out there had a fabulous day!

Mexican Chilaquiles

Happy Cinco de Mayo! My Mexican sister-in-law thinks this is the best american holiday we have... because they don't even celebrate this in Mexico. Go figure, huh? Us Americans, any excuse for a party! But, in celebration of today I wanted to share a delicious traditional Mexican dish to help cure your hangover for tomorrow morning... after one too many pitchers of margaritas.

Mexican Chilaquiles

via.

Ingredients:
Oil for frying
30 corn tortillas, cut into quarters
2 cups of water, for boiling
1 small onion
4 tomatoes
2 jalapeños
Fresh Garlic to taste
6 eggs, slightly beaten 
1 cup Monterey jack cheese
Salt and pepper to taste! 

First, heat your oil in skillet and begin frying tortillas in batches.

In a separate sauce pan, bring your water to a boil. Add tomatoes, onion and jalapeños. Boil for 10 minutes or until tender. Transfer contents of pan to blender and add garlic.  Puree to make your sauce.

Once all tortillas have been fried, add beaten eggs to the pan and let cook until eggs are firm. Next add your sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Top with cheese, and serve.

It's a delicious brunch dish - perfect after a late night on the town!

Happy Cinco friends!

Five on Friday

Happy Friday Friends!!

It's been a good week back in the blogging world and I am so excited to finally have some sunshine outside my window. I wanted to share a quick re-cap of some of my favorite things this week.

{one} New Makeup.

I finally stopped in at Sephora for some new powder and blush and my face couldn't be happier! I'm especially lovin' the Coralista blush from Benefit!

{two} Homemade pop-tarts.

I mentioned in my blog yesterday that we had lunch at Ted's Bulletin in DC.  Lunch was really good and the atmosphere of the place is just adorable, but my favorite part - the homemade pop-tarts! Not only are they super cute, but they are so tasty. I got the strawberry and the bacon/peanut butter. I have one world. YUM. Such a great treat for this Friday morning!

{three} Frames for the Guest Room.

I scored these great frames on the clearance rack at Michaels this week. They are the perfect color for our guest bedroom and will hold the two pencil drawings J and I picked up on our engagement trip to Nola. One of our favorite vacation spots - and a special place very dear to my family!

{four} Sparkly Green Earrings.

Not the kind you actually wear in your ears, the book! One of my new years' wishes was to get better with my reading this year by picking up a new book every month. Thanks to April's blog earlier this week, I found this little gem in the stack and ordered it right away. Can't wait to dive in!

{five} Derby & Diapers.

I am SO excited for tomorrow. We get to celebrate two of my favorite two people in this world and the arrival of their sweet baby in June! We have planned a fabulous celebration for them on Saturday and I can't wait to share all the fun pictures next week. It's going to be grand!!

Have a great weekend! 

Happy May Day!

May just might be my favorite month of the year! Spring has finally arrived, which means warmer weather, longer days, beautiful flowers, and cocktails on the porch! It's also our anniversary month, but I don't think that's a coiendence. 

We drove up to DC last night for the PAC dinner, which was super cool. The DC politics and hype are so entertaining to me. The dinner was at the liaison hotel on capital hill. A hot spot for lobbyist {or so I hear}. I finally got to wear my unused Easter dress! 

And we enjoyed late night drinks after dinner in the bar. 

Today, I enjoyed a lil DC time... A nice runaround the monuments. 

 And some lunch at Ted's Bulletin with the guys before heading back to Va.

More on their fabulous menu to come! 

DC was great, but I'm ready to get back to our small town living and prep for a fabulous shower this weekend. Here is a sneak peak... 

Happy May!! It's almost Friday!

Cheers!