Weekend Recap: December Edition

Hey everyone! Happy Monday! I'm in a great mood today because we have a very short week and then it's Winter Break! Hallelujah! We also had a wonderful weekend and I was super productive, win win!

The weekend started with dinner at Flip Flops and a drink at Chowboy's. Flip flops was okay, but not great. We always LOVE Chowboys so we should have eaten there instead. Oh well! The rest of the night was spent watching The Santa Claus, one of my favorite movies!

apple pie mimosa

On Saturday, we had breakfast at Commune, once again it was just okay. Kinda hipster which isn't really our scene lol. Then we grabbed at coffee from Three Ships and walked around the Farmer's Market. It was the perfect relaxing morning! Afterwards, Mark and I finished some Christmas shopping and I headed home to clean the house. It makes my week start off so much better with a clean home. Don't you agree?? Saturday night we went out to dinner with a couple friends to Mahi  Mah's and had a great time. The night ended with listening to live music at a bar down the street.

Sunday morning was very lazy and we ended up watching our home church from SD online. Mark made us breakfast which was so yummy, thank you!! :) We both ended up running errands and then I worked on making some Christmas treats. My mom always makes toffee so she sent me her recipe so I could make some too. I made a huge mess in the kitchen but it looks like it turned out pretty well so far. We will have to see when I break it apart and actually try it. :) I also made the Pioneer Woman's pot roast recipe, YUM!

I hope you all have a great week and accomplish everything on your list before Christmas! :)

Five on Friday

I'm back with my favorite post of the week... Five on Friday! Today I'm sharing some things that I'm loving. A BIG fave right now is the Christmas season in general. I love all the Christmas decorations, the hustle and bustle when it comes to shopping and wrapping gifts, and of course the yummy treats. I will be so depressed when we have to take down our Christmas stuff lol. Anyways, I'm not going to let the depression set in yet. :)

Christmas Planner

So if you're like me, you need to write everything down to stay organized and sane. I'm super old fashioned in the sense that I need to see it on paper, not track it on my phone or on a spreadsheet. That's why using things like a gift tracker makes my like soooo much simpler lol! I was sent this Christmas planner from Gifts.com and I immediately fell in love with how easy it is to keep everything organized. I would show you my printed version but then my friends and fam would see their gifts lol. So just take my word for it... I've used it and love it. 

Dry Shampoo

My friend Stephanie introduced me to the Dry Bar dry shampoo and I LOVE it. Dry shampoo has never been much of a game changer for me but this one is! I section off my hair, spray it into my roots, and then rub it in to soak up the oil. Then I blow dry each section using my big round brush to give my hair more volume. It has really helped my second day hair to look so much better and I can actually wear it down instead of up in a ponytail. I have the travel size right now but I need to buy the full size asap. This would also make a great stocking stuffer, hint hint Mark :) Thanks of the recommendation Steph!

Gossip Girl

I have been on a major Gossip Girl kick over the last few weeks and I am so obsessed. I used to watch the show years ago but never finished it. Now, I'm cruising through the seasons and will be done soon lol.  It's just an easy show to have on in the background and doesn't stress me out like a lot of other shows do. I really appreciate that lol!

Qalo Ring

I've had a Qalo ring for awhile now but the new options are seriously so cute. These are made to be stacked and I love the idea of changing them up a bit. Plus it's just a nice option to still wear a ring when I workout but I don't risk ruining my actual ring. The peach option is next on my list!

Sunsets

Sunsets are my jam and I have reeeeally missed my walks at Sunset Cliffs. Every now and then I catch a gorgeous sunset here in VA and this one was amazing! I love the colors!

Christmas Home Tour 2017

It's the most wonderful time of the year! I love Christmas and I especially love all the decor that comes with it. I've collected a lot of Christmas stuff over the years but when we moved into a house that was three times as big as any place we ever lived in, I realized that I need a ton more to fill the house. Thankfully, I was able to score some great Black Friday weekend deals on garland and wreaths but of course I would love every room to be covered :) I feel like we have a good start though. The living room, dining room, and family room are all decorated. I have a few pieces in the kitchen that have some cute things too but they aren't pictured because I really hate our kitchen lol. It needs to be updated so badly! So without blabbing any further, let's get into the pictures of the house.

Garland down our bannister 

Living room corner

Bookshelf in the living room- I made these mason jars last year :)

Sorry the pictures are dark, I was trying to show the cute lights in the garland. 

the bar in the dining room

I made the buffalo plaid and burlap banner last year for Mark's birthday. 

My photo buddy

I can't hep it with these adorable birds!

Phew, did you make it through all those pictures?? Like I said, this is only part of the house but hopefully next year we will have more rooms decorated. I'll include some pictures of the outside of the house later this week :)

Stocking Stuffers for Her

The stocking is one of my favorite parts of the whole Christmas gift process! I LOVE picking out items to stuff the stockings and to be honest, I really love opening my own. :) I mean who doesn't love presents right lol?? It's fun to see what kind of amazing things you can stuff into the little stocking and it was always the first thing we would open as a family.  My sister and I would even sneak down in the middle of the night and look at our stockings since everything else was wrapped. Whoops lol! They can contain anything from jewelry, books, movies, and of course candy.  I didn't put candy on this list because I figured that picking out your loved ones fave candy is a personal choice. I really love the Christmas tree Reese's and York Peppermint patties :) Hope this helps you get some ideas or you can always send the link to your man too!

Kyoko Town- My cousin has an Etsy shop with the best jewelry. I own a bunch and she even made my wedding jewelry, including my headpiece. Everything she makes is high quality and perfect! These name charm necklaces are the cutest!

Lancome Grandiose Mascara: This is my favorite mascara of all time. It makes my lashes look even longer and fuller and stays all day long.

Argan Hand Mask: I love these for the winter time when my hands are dry and cracked. These masks work wonders and smell amazing!

The Simplified Life: Emily Ley is one of my favorite people to follow on Instagram. Her posts are so calming and helpful. I was just talking about her with a friend the other night and realized that this would be a great gift for anyone! Thanks for the idea Colleen!

Deborah Lippmann nail polish: I LOVE the Deborah Lippmann nail polishes and these colors are perfect for the holidays.

Reindeer Gloves: I think these gloves are so stinking adorable! Plus they are subtle enough to wear all winter long.

Birchwood Pine Candle: I include this in every gift guide but there's good reason... it's the best candle ever!!! I have been saving mine from last year and can't wait to start burning it. I need to buy the bigger version asap though.

Lululemon headbands: These are my favorite workout headbands!

Mug: Elf is one of my favorite Christmas movies and this mug cracked me up as soon as I saw it. Perfect!

Pom Beanie: I love a good pom beanie and this BP one is perfect!

Sloth jewelry holder: I have a love affair with sloths. I think they are adorable and this little jewelry holder is just so fun. How cute is that little guy??

Cozy Slipper Socks: Slipper socks are a great stocking stuffer and these polar bears are so cute!

Thanksgiving Week Recap

Can you believe that Thanksgiving is over already?? I was looking forward to this week for months now and I'm so sad that it flew by. We had a blast having family in town but sadly my dad was sick with the flu all week. Hopefully he will be feeling better soon. Now that the holiday season is here I am soooo excited for all the festivities. I am a little bit of a Christmas freak so bring all the holiday magic!

Our week was jam-packed with activities especially since I was still working until Wednesday. Here are some of my fave pictures from the week!

From our walk along the oceanfront

We stopped and had drinks at Catch 33. So pretty!

My parents in front of the tree outside our house. Gorgeous leaves right now!

I made the Pioneer Woman's Chipotle Chicken Chili on their 2nd night in town. YUM!

We also ventured out to Green Flash for some beers and to play corn hole 

On Wednesday night, we went to see the Deloreans play at Chichos and oh my goodness, it was a blast! I LOVE some good 80s cover songs!

Breakfast on Thanksgiving... ignore my crazy beehive hair and the lovely faces Mark and Chase are making lol

After Thanksgiving dinner, we walked around the neighborhood to check out the lights. Walks are my fave so this was the PERFECT way to end the evening.

Everyone headed up early Saturday morning and I wish they could have stayed longer. I love hosting people at the house and it was a blast to be together for Thanksgiving. Come back soon!!

The rest of the weekend was spent cleaning, doing laundry, and decorating the house for Christmas. Mark and I did venture out to get breakfast at the Bee and the Biscuit on Saturday morning. I LOVE going there! Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!!