WEEKLY WRAP-UP

Happy Easter!! Today's Easter celebrations were humble. We had a delicious lunch with my parents and are spending the rest of the day at home. I've been thinking a lot about my sweet little niece lately. I can't believe she's going to be 1 in June! I haven't seen her since Christmastime and I'm dying to hug and squeeze that little cutie pie. Hopefully busy schedules will clear up soon so we can take a road trip up to Bluffton, SC. :)

On the side, Jenny and I have been busy planning our annual Maiedae retreat for when she comes on board full-time in a couple weeks! We decided it would be good to do a little getaway once a year dedicated to spending some time together and doing lots of planning and vision casting for Maiedae. This year we are staying in downtown Savannah, GA. I cannot wait!! AND I Can't wait to start working full-time with my best friend.

Snapshot(s) of the Week: 1// A little statement decor piece we picked up for the living room. 2// Saturday was Caturday. 3// Finally hung up this bad boy. I love the way this looks in our entryway. 4// Putting together a little LUSH product review video for you to see later this week!

5 Favorite Posts:
* Scratch & TDS Collab: Nail Wraps by The Dainty Squid
* Free Printable Easter Illustration by Kelli Murray
* Resources on Tax Time by Alt Summit
* 52 Lists by Moorea Seal 
* A Juice Cleanse by Hello There Home 

Favorite Blog of the Week:
Oh, Sweet Joy! - Kim is such a beauty and I've always enjoyed her blog! She and her husband are going to have their first child soon and I've been loving their adorable maternity photos. :)

Inspiring Me this Week:
Lately I've been figuring out and researching great ways and helpful apps to organize our business. It's been fun to try and find simple solutions to our everyday needs and figure out a system that will work for us. Once I get everything down I'll be sure to share our business organization tips with you! In the meantime, if you have any favorite resources/apps, please share!!

3 Things About Yours Truly:
* Officially creeped out by the Easter bunny due to this. Why!?
* JUST finished reading the first Hunger Games book. I know, I know! It took me long enough. I'm on the second and really enjoying it so far. Reading has become one of my new nighttime hobbies now that I'm not working at nights. :)
* I've really been wanting to watch Holiday in the Sun lately. It was one of my favorite movies as a tween. Anyone else a serious Mary-Kate and Ashley fan?? And they totally have this amazing collectors set on Amazon that I think I might need buy.

5 THINGS

I saw the beautiful Chelsea of Tea Talk post a "5 Things" feature on her blog today and I'd thought I'd take a little time to put one together for myself. :) It's been such a restful weekend so far. We've made a little progress on some home decorating projects and boy did we sleep in! I've been in the blogging mood and knew this would be perfect for today.

1. I have always been an entrepreneur at heart. It all started in middle school. I made a "critter sitting" business with my neighbor. We made a logo, printed flyers, and even put together a little make-shift office in her basement. We watched the neighborhood pets and put all of the cash we made in a plastic safe. I also had a little nail painting business run out of my room. I turned a desk into a mini nail salon and some of the moms I knew would come over and let me paint their nails. I loved it! I even went as far as dressing up like a clown and selling handmade crafts (mostly made out of popsicle sticks) at our garage sales. ;) In high school I focused more on babysitting and actually designed templates for Xanga, yeah you heard that right. ;) It's seriously no surprise that I ended up co-owning my own business. I am so in love with what I do and so thankful to have such an amazing business partner!

2. I severely dislike ET. I saw the movie at some point when I was little and was forever traumatized. I remember having nightmares throughout my childhood of the nasty thing. Creepy ones, too, like holding my baby brother in a blanket and looking down to find that he turned into ET and dropping him in a crack that led to the middle of the earth. Sorry, Ian! I think Jerry Seinfeld even made an appearance in one of my ET dreams. I eventually grew out of my fear, BUT I won't watch the movie and every once in awhile when I think about the way he moves, and how his neck extends...it gives me the creeps!

3. Some of the serious careers I wanted to have growing up were: a nail salon owner, storm chaser, marine biologist, coffee shop owner, olympic gymnast, and a chemist. I didn't realize until my freshman year of college, after a full semester of pursuing a chemistry degree, with the intention of going into something like forensics that I wanted to be a designer. Funny how things change!

4. Some of my secret old hobbies that you might not know about include writing poetry (i can't even), playing the guitar, collaging entire walls with magazine photographs, making Starburst wrapper necklaces and other brightly beaded things, and drawing portraits of people with my eyes closed (they actually came out strangely good). I think I was just drawn to exploring creative things when I was a kid. I loved being creative but had to dabble in a lot of different things to figure out what I really loved.

5. I've known my husband for 9 years. We met when we were 15 and started dating offically on January 10, 2005. He was my first boyfriend. Exactly one month after we started dating, we had our first kiss. I love that we have grown-up together. We have so much history and have seen each other change and grow in so many ways. We were itching to get married after high school but decided to wait until after college so we could focus and really enjoy our experience without the added pressure of marriage. As well, we were involved in a leadership program throughout our 4 years that required you not to be married. With that, we wasted no time after graduating college and got married 1 week after graduation. This May we will be celebrating 3 years of marriage! Boy do I love me some Jon!

I'd like to tag my business partner, Jenny, Maddie of Thritary, Leah of Unearthing Words, Moorea Seal and Gina of Hello There Home. AND anyone else who would like to join in! Be sure to include your link in the comment section so I can read yours. :)

Happy weekend and happy Easter!!

PROJECT CONDO: LIVING ROOM INSPIRATION BOARD

I've been getting the decorating fever. This doesn't happen all the time so I try to take full advantage of it when I can. I sat down the other day in my living room and spent some quality time sketching out my ideas, thinking through everything, and coming up with a plan for the look of the space. I'm really excited about the direction it's taking and I'm looking forward to applying my learning from the dining room to this space. Here is an inspiration board that represents an overall look I'm going for, neutral/metallic colors, patterns, and little details:

I really love the neutrals and the addition of the metallics. I'm not afraid to mix and match colors that wouldn't normally go together. I kinda love the simple, cozy feel it gives off. If I decide to change my mind about colors, I can always re-adjust my textiles. I think pops of statement colors are beautiful and I'm still trying to figure out what that color will be for this space. I've thought about peach and blue, but I'm not sure yet. :) I'm also still on the fence about the pattern I want for my wallpaper wall and if I'm going to paint the fireplace white. I think those pieces might be added/decided later. :)

Today I'm planning on finally hanging our curtains! When we first moved in, we left the windows uncovered. We face a wooded area, but over time got a little creeped out about being a fishbowl and so we decided to nail sheets to the windows. ;) My curtains came in yesterday and I can't wait to get them up! These are the first "patterned" curtains that I've really loved. I think they will flow well from the dining room, too. Progress!

1// White Fireplace 2// Triangle Curtains 3// Chair 4// Pillow 5// Skull 6// Cowhide Rug 7// Living Room 8// Magazine Holder 9// Living Room 10// Camel Couch 

See my living room Pinterest board here!

THREADS: NOONDAY COLLECTION GIVEAWAY!

MY OUTFIT: 1// Tan Studded Jacket - Forever21 2// Geometric Patterned Top - Forever21 3// Handmade Paper Bead Shalom Necklace - c/o Noonday Collection (win one below!) 4// Grey Cigarette Jeans - Urban Outfitters 5// Patterned Wedges - Target 6// Anchor & Eagle Ring - Forever21 7// Black Stone Ring - Vintage

I've been really drawn to mixing neutrals and metals together. I've found myself doing that in my decorating and as I pick out outfits for myself. I also like a little pop of color and a little glam too. ;)

My pop of color for this outfit is a beautiful handcrafted bib necklace by Noonday Collection. All of their pieces are handmade by women in need of jobs in Uganda. They also raise money for adoptions and orphan care. Their collection of jewelry, home-goods and accessories are beautiful. You can find out more about them here.

GET THE LOOK: 1// Studded Faux Leather Jacket - Forever21 2// Black and White Patterned Top - River Island 3// Navy Shalom Necklace - Noonday Collection 4// Black Cocktail Ring - Wallis 5// Ankle Strap Wedges - Target  6// Grey Skinny Jeans - UO

Giveaway Time!
Noonday Collection is offering one person the chance to win a blue Shalom necklace (like the one I'm wearing) of their own! Giveaway is open internationally. One winner will be selected at random and announced within the week. See details below on how to enter. Giveaway will be run using Rafflecopter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hope you have a happy Wednesday, friends!

SPONSOR FEATURE: SPRING DRESSES

Springtime is slowly approaching and I'm having daydreams about picnicking in warm weather and taking weekend trips to Savannah, Georgia. :) This month I asked my sponsors to share their favorite spring dress pick and tell us about where they would travel to in their new outfit.

1// Mariana - I'm not sure this is my dream spring dress, but I can totally imagine myself wearing this Mango dress on a warm spring evening, somewhere by the sea or in a small romantic town (in France, maybe:)), walking around, checking out the shops, listening to music and just enjoying the evening with some good company and a glass of red wine. I can totally imagine that! 
Find Mariana Here: Blog | Bloglovin'

2// Sophie - My dream spring dress is the Louche Julita Paisley Dress. My favourite spring memory is from a holiday to New York with my boyfriend a few years ago. Our first few days were drizzly and cold and then all of a sudden spring had sprung and we spent the afternoon in Central Park sitting on a rock eating cupcakes and taking in the atmosphere. If I could, I would go back to that day and wear this beauty. The thought of twirling around Central Park in this fun, colourful, 50s style dress makes my little heart dance :) Find Sophie Here: Blog | Shop

3// Amanda -  I love this polka dot fit and flare dress from Nordstrom, the irregular polka dots are so cute! I would love to wear it while strolling the streets of Paris, or simply enjoying a date night with my guy. Find Amanda Here: Blog | Bloglovin'

4// Susan - I would pick a bright yellow and white sun dress and a little turquoise colored cardigan and I would love to be on vacation in Greece wandering amoung the white washed walls of Santorini, Greece! Find Susan Here: Facebook | Pinterest 

5// Laura - I'd wear this beautiful maxi dress to walk along the beach to pick up seashells. Find Laura Here: Blog | Shop

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If you could pick your favorite spring dress and go anywhere in the world, what would you choose?

SPECIAL: Interested in sponsoring Maiedae during the month of April? Check out my advertisement page here AND as a special Spring promo, I'm offering 30% off all of my ad spaces including my large feature spots that are both currently available for the month of April. :) Just use SPRINGFEVER at checkout!

I hope all of you are having a wonderful week. Thanks to my sponsors for sharing a little bit of spring with us today, be sure to check out their spaces on the internet!

PS - Are you a blogger, small business owner, or hand-maker in the Southeast region? Come to the Maiedae Mixer on Saturday, June 1st! More info here. We would love to have you! 

WEEKLY WRAP-UP

Jon and I had such a wonderful day yesterday. We woke up early and drove to get breakfast, we had a great time talking and watching the rain. It's been raining for days! Afterward, we walked in and out of Ikea in under an hour to pick up some things for our living room. A new record-breaking time! Sometimes I think Ikea is a time warp. You walk in on a Friday and walk out on a Sunday. ;) There is an area in Atlanta called Atlantic Station that is similar to a giant outdoor mall. It has lots of shops, restaurants, a movie theatre, and lofts all within walking distance of each other. Since most of the shops don't open until noon on Sundays we decided to sit in a little cafe and enjoy some drinks. We did a little more shopping for our living room, found some incredible deals, and then headed home for the day.

Jon's parents came over to visit and we made them dinner. I spent a little time adding in some new pieces to our living room. I'm SO excited to finally start seeing some progress! And I got to spend some time with my friend Leah for the rest of the evening. And now, onto a full week of designs and Maiedae work!

Snapshots of the Week: 1// Jenny and I met up with the beautiful and witty Maddie of Thriftary during one of her trips to Atlanta. So great to finally meet her in person. :) 2// Spent Friday evening making our bathroom a little getaway; love how relaxing it feels now. 3// Had a lunch date with an old friend, Holly. So great to see her after so long. :) Be sure to check out her fashion blog here. 4// Ikea goodies!

5 Favorite Posts:
* New Living Room by DesignLoveFest 
* Pillow Talk by A Beautiful Mess
* A Day in The Life by Considering You  
* 40 Projects Just for Fun: Lighting Solution by Smile & Wave
* How to Balance Your Social Media Plate by IFB

Favorite Blog of the Week:
Hello There Home - I know I've mentioned Gina's blog on here before, but I am always motivated by her beautiful posts and photos. Recently she's been doing a spring-cleaning focus and I love reading about her ideas. So inspirational. :)

Inspiring Me this Week:
I've been nesting more than usual lately and it's made me feel so comfortable and cozy in our home. I think working from home full-time has put more motivation in me to make my surroundings homey.

3 Things About Yours Truly:
* Trying to learn how to keep house plants alive. I keep killing everything. :(
* I LOVE finding amazing deals at stores. Bought a huge piece of artwork from West Elm that was on sale for $20.00 due to a little damage. I'll probably touch it up a little and it'll be as good as new!
* I'm SO looking forward to April 15th because of this.

CAPTURED: THE GIRLS

Last Saturday was absolutely beautiful in Georgia. Jon and I went to go visit my parents for a late lunch and we got a chance to snap a few photos outside. My mom, sister, and I hardly have any photos with just the three of us together. I love seeing our faces side-by-side. They are such beautiful women. I'm so thankful to have such a wonderful, big-hearted mother and beautiful, talented baby sister. :) Can you believe my mom has three full-grown children? What a looker!

I hope you have a wonderfully relaxing weekend! Jon and I slept in this morning to the sound of a thunderstorm. I remember telling Jon a couple weeks ago that my perfect day would begin with sleeping in together on a weekend to a thunderstorm and it came true this morning. I love when things like that happen. :) The rest of the day we are planning to hang out around the house and tomorrow we are doing a little home decor shopping for the living room and having Jon's parents over for dinner. I love our families so much!

LIVING WELL: TIME TO EAT BREAKFAST

During my college days and a couple years into my marriage, it became a daily habit for me to skip breakfast. I could usually go without a meal until lunchtime, maybe throw in a snack, grab an easy dinner and then munch late at night. I never really cared if this was healthy for my body or thought much of breakfast.

Now that I've been on my journey to wellness for nearly a year, I've been realizing the importance of starting your day with a healthy meal. Although I tend to have stomach aversion to any type of food in the morning, the more I got into the routine of eating three meals and a couple small snacks, the more my body expected breakfast in the morning. When I make a healthy breakfast part of my day, I always feel like I have more energy and that my stomach is on a good eating schedule. It's easy to find lots of studies that show the benefits of eating a healthy breakfast like improving memory, giving your body extra nutrients, helping your cholesterol, and giving you a good ol' boost of energy. And who couldn't use a little extra bit of those things? Aren't we the best at making excuses for why we can't eat breakfast? Some of mine where, "My tummy hurts in the morning", "I'm just not hungry", or my favorite, "I don't have enough time!" People! Let's get our booties out of bed just a wee bit earlier and give ourselves enough time to eat food! I'm preaching to myself here, too. :)

We all might have different circumstances that allow us to make a larger breakfast or just make something quick for an on-the-go meal. Here are a couple of my favorite breakfasts recipes that take a little more preparation time in the morning:

1// Oil-Free Chocolate Zucchini Walnut Muffins - Oh She Glows 2// Strawberry Chia Seed Spread - The Gracious Pantry 3// Make-Ahead Oatmeal Smoothies - The Yummy Life 4// Chia Seed Pudding - What's Cooking Good Looking 5// Overnight Oats - Mind Body Green 6// Blueberry Coconut Pecan Breakfast Cookies - Kumquat

Some of my favorite easy breakfasts:
* Instant organic oatmeal - Sweeten it with honey or agave nectar.
* Breakfast bar - I really like Luna bars!
* Bananas and other fruits
* Greek yogurt and granola
* Smoothies - Kris Carr has some great recipes you should try!

If possible, try and include some of these great super-foods into your morning meal! 
* Kale - Can be added to smoothies and juices.
* Acai Berries - Can be added to oatmeal, smoothies, juices or eaten plain.
* Coconut Oil - I like adding this to my smoothies!
* Chia Seeds - Can be added to smoothies and chia seed pudding.
* Blueberries - Can be added to juices, smoothies, oatmeal, or eaten plain.

What are some of your favorite healthy breakfasts? Please feel free to share recipes below!

THREADS: MINT & POLKA DOTS

MY OUTFIT: 1// Black & White Cardigan - Forever21 2// Mint Dress - Sosie 3// Black Polka Dot Tights - c/o Tabbisocks 4// Knee High Black Fringe Boots - c/o Minnetonka 5// Gold & Black Necklace - c/o A Little Dot 6// Sparkle Ring - Forever21

I wore this mint dress as a bridesmaid at Jenny's wedding. She gave us a color palette and let us all pick out our dress preference. I loved the fact that she did this and that I now have a wearable, flowy dress to add to my wardrobe. I haven't worn it since her wedding last June but I have a lot of plans for it this spring/summer.

The weather in Atlanta lately has been beautiful. I hope that it stays like this a good month or more before the heat and the humidity come. In the meantime, I'll be storing away my heavy jackets and thick sweaters!

GET THE LOOK: 1// Black & White Aztec Sweater - Forever21 2// Gold Tassel Necklace - The Outnet 3// Cocktail Ring - Banana Republic 4// Lollipop Red Nail Polish - Essie 5// Knee-High Fringe Boots - Minnetonka 6// Mint Dress - Sosie

CAPTURED: S'MORES NIGHT

On Sunday evening, my bible study group got together for a s'mores night by the Chattahoochee river. We set up under a little gazebo with twinkle lights and roasted marshmallows over unscented candles. In addition to the typical s'mores ingredients, we also had Andes mints, Reese's cups, dark chocolate, and ginger snaps. So yummy!! It was such a relaxing evening. I love spending time with these ladies talking about life and sharing hilarious stories. Girl nights are a must! 

Can't wait until the next one!

GIVEAWAY: $1000 SHOPPING SPREE!

Today I am excited to be teaming up with a group of great ladies to bring you a GIGANTIC giveaway! One person will be selected to win a handful of gift cards worth up to $1000! The gift cards are to some of our all-time favorite shops like Starbucks, Target, Anthropologie, Pier 1 Imports, and Etsy. So wishing I could enter into this giveaway myself. :) This giveaway is perfect to get your wardrobe and home ready for springtime. Check out the details below to enter!

Thriftary | Two Hoots & a Holler | Style Elixer | Because of Jackie | Simply Just Lovely | Moorea Seal | Jenny Highsmith | The Charming | of Corgis and Cocktails | Maiedae | The Serena Saga | High Walls | Pillow Thought | Him + Her | White Lights on Wednesday

GIVEAWAY TIME
One winner will receive a $50 gift card to Starbucks, $300 gift card to Target, $175 to Pier 1 Imports, $300 gift card to Anthropologie, and $175 gift card to Etsy! Seriously amazing! The giveaway will run until March 31st and you can enter using the rafflecopter entries below. Yay!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
How exciting! Best of luck to everyone who enters! I hope everyone has had a marvelous week so far. I've been enjoying my day off but I'm looking forward to getting back into the swing of things tomorrow. Cheers!

WEEKLY WRAP-UP

This week has certainly been eventful. A little dash of everything from making exciting plans for the future to emotional moments that are easily cured by taking a hot bath. Last week Jon and I decided to take this Monday off to have a little R&R during a long weekend together. I feel so blessed that my husband is also my very best friend. We were just talking today about how the more and more time we spend together the more and more time we want to continue spending together. It's exponential! Lately we've been playing video games together, watching movies, going out on dates around the town, and doing lots of talking. :) I'm looking forward to another day off tomorrow.

Tonight is exciting because I'm going to a girls night complete with a bonfire, s'mores, coffee, and nail painting. No matter how old you are, it's so good to have girl time and be encouraged by some quality ladies.

And on a side note, it's been super fun putting videos together for you! Thank you for all of the sweet comments and encouragement! I'm excited to make it a regular part of my blogging. :)

Snapshot(s) of the Week: 1// Shooting photos at the location for the Maiedae Mixer. It's SO beautiful! AND you should totally come. :) 2// A mini Ulta haul from this weekend. The Body Shop body butters smell SO flipping good. I got one in peach and strawberry. Getting ready for spring time! 3// Jenny and I had a morning meeting with the beautiful Anna of In Honor of Design. Exciting things planned! 4// Celebrating St. Patrick's Day with a bowl of Lucky Charms. I'm going to be completely honest and say this was 100% accidental. I didn't realize it was SPD until after I shot this pic. What a useful coincidence.

5 Favorite Posts:
* Products Worth the Hype by Essie Button
* Spring Cleaning Kit by Hello There Home
* Homemade Lemon Herb Soap by Sincerely Kinsey
* Minimalist Nail Art by Moorea Seal
* Palm Springs Trip Video by Designlovefest 

Favorite Blog of the Week:
Ingrid Nilsen - Ok, so this isn't a blog, but Ingrid has an amazing beauty channel on YouTube that I just love. She is so easy going, adorable, and has great insight on some amazing beauty products.

Inspiring Me this Week:
This week I'm feeling inspired by rest and balance. I'm excited about taking a little bit of time off and continuing the journey to figuring out how to balance my new life working full-time with Maiedae. :)

3 Things About Yours Truly:
* Currently wearing: black converse, blue skinnies, grey sweater with chambray underneath and lots of gold jewelry.
* I've been craving cheese like a mad woman.
* Jon and I are planning to go to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, to celebrate our 3 year wedding anniversary in May. :)

FANCY SHMANCY: POPSUGAR MUST HAVE BOX

This month I decided to give a box subscription service a try! There are a lot of great options out there for handmade lovers, paper lovers, beauty lovers, and more. The reason I decided to try out POPSUGAR was because it's more of a "lifestyle" box that includes goodies for your home, entertainment, wellness, and beauty. This is a little more on the expensive side of subscription box services, but you are paying $35.00 for a month and receiving over $100.00 worth of quality items. Wouldn't this be a great idea for a Mother's Day gift or maybe for a friend that just moved into a new place? Or maybe you're like me and just love receiving prizes in the mail and want to try it out for yourself. ;)

You can subscribe to POPSUGAR for 1, 3, 6 or 12 months at a time. I decided to go for the 3 month subscription and see if it was something I would enjoy. I'm really excited about trying out new products that I'm not familiar with or have always wanted to buy! Check out the site here if you'd like to order one of your own! AND you can check out the video below to see a first impression "unboxing" of the March box. Whoohoo!

Overall, I was SUPER thrilled with the products. I loved how the box had a "get ready for spring" vibe. I'm big into themes. ;) Ahh! I'm so excited about the next box! Do you subscribe to a box service? What are some of your favorites? Happy weekend!

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel here | Google Reader is going bye-bye! Be sure to follow Maiedae using an alternate subscription service. Might I recommend Bloglovin' or Feedly? Follow Maiedae on Bloglovin' here. :) 

IN THE NEWS: LET'S BE FRIENDS

It's official. Google is saying goodbye to Google Reader. You can read about it here. To be honest, I've never been much of a Google Reader user myself, I started using Bloglovin' a couple years ago to follow my favorite blogs and haven't turned back. If you're looking for alternatives to Reader for your blog or to follow your favorite blogs, might I suggest setting up a Bloglovin' account? It has a simple and clean interface, it's easy to organize all of your favorite blogs, easy to like your favorite posts and explore new bloggers. I also love the app design for the iphone and tablet.

I realize that you can use Google Reader for more than just following blogs so another great site to check out is Feedly. They also have a stunning interface that has a great editorial feel. You can follow blogs, sites and anything you love, PLUS you can also catagorize it. I think I'll be using both from here on out. :)

Be sure to change your subscriptions over by July 1st! AND you can follow my blog on Bloglovin' here!