Friday, June 27

THOUGHTS ON THOUGHTFULNESS WITH TINYPRINTS





After spending so much time abroad and then coming home, I started to look at the way I was communicating with my friends and family. Most of the young people in my generation have had the best of both worlds in regards to ways  of communication: we were around for the pre-social media age as well as the rise in social media/technology. Naturally though, many of us have gone with the easier forms of communication like text messages, e-mails, facebook messages, etc. When I was in Costa Rica I realized that I had taken our postal system for granted because down there, there is no formal mailing system and most places don't even have a real address. 

Now that I am home, I have been finding ways to send more hand-written notes to the people I care about. We are so unaccustomed these days to sending and receiving hand-written notes that I was able to really surprise a few friends with some just thinking of you and wanted you to know cards. Their reactions and appreciative words from a simple card really show that thoughtfulness goes a long way. It really shows you that the energy you put into this world is what you often times will get out of it!

I was recently introduced to the website Tiny Prints and wanted to explore their newest designs. I was blown away by the selection of stationary and thank you cards that Tiny Prints has to offer and it was almost too hard to choose. Not to mention, the people at Tiny Prints were so lovely to work with that I cannot say enough good things about this experience. I ended up with the gorgeous personalized stationary cards you can see above as well as matching address labels. I am so excited to start sending out more notes to my friends just because. Tiny Prints was also so gracious to offer me my own personalized notepad so that I can stay on top of everything. Even though it is summer right now, graduate school and life responsibilities never end (thank you, adulthood!). Since I am 100% a lists person, I could not turn down the opportunity of a notepad with my name on it! Not to mention I was able to find one that pretty much matches my blog design perfectly. Meant to be? I think yes.



Tuesday, June 24

PRETTY PLACE





Still going back (probably too many weeks now) to Memorial Day weekend, I found one of my new favorite places ever. Pretty Place. We were walking in town one day during the town's festival and I noticed a photograph almost identical to the last one right above here. I thought it was so stunning and something about it just caught my heart off guard. My dad said, oh that's Pretty Place. It turns out, this beautiful little chapel up on a mountain is where my grandmother's ashes were scattered about 20 years ago. My father also told me that it was essentially right now down the road from us. Why I had never been there, I wasn't sure! So we took a trip there and we were able to snap a few pictures of this incredibly beautiful spot. Sometimes I forget that you don't have to travel out of the country or even very far from your home to find some amazing places that you never knew existed.


Last two pictures courtesy of my dad.

Thursday, June 12

BERRY PIE FOR TWO


When I was in North Carolina for Memorial Day Weekend, my family did something that we literally cannot go on vacation without doing: we shopped for pottery. Our favorite spot in NC is Mud Dabbers and this year I stumbled upon the cutest pie pan. I'm not gonna lie .. I wasn't really interested in anything in the store that didn't have some purple in it and I definitely was not in the market for a pie pan. But I saw that this one had some beautiful purple colors in it and it had a little recipe taped to the bottom entitled Berry Pie for Two. A miniature purple pie pan with a recipe for miniature pie? Of course I bought it.

Here's how you make pie for two!

What you need:

What you do:
Place the full sized pie crust in the center of the pie and cut the extra crust off the edges.

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and then put the mixture into the pie pan.

Use the left over pie crust to cover the mixture. I used strips but feel free to cover it any way that you think makes it look the best! Then I placed the small pan on a baking sheet in a cold oven and turned it on to 425. The recipe said to cook for 40 minutes but it only took about 30 before the pie was golden brown so I took it out. I would say just keep an eye on it.

Now I know what you're all thinking ... I don't have a miniature pie pan! You can use the same recipe just use 2.5-3 times the ingredients. You will also need two pie crusts, one for the bottom and one to cover the pie, depending on how you want the design to be. That's really all there is to it!

This was the first pie I've ever made and I'll give myself a little pat on the back because it was delicious. And now it's gone :)

linking up today with Nicole's Treat Yo' Self linkup!

Wednesday, June 11

SHERWOOD FOREST







During our stay in North Carolina there was the cutest picnic gathering for Memorial Day. The wooded community that my parents will be living in is called Sherwood Forest and continues the theme throughout the entire community, as you can see with the Robin Hood Barn where the picnic was located. It really is quite cute and made for such a quaint picnic. My brother, his wife, and I only got to spend a few days down there but we already know we can't wait to go back!

Tuesday, June 10

NORTH CAROLINA VACATION








A few weeks after the fact but .. for Memorial Day Weekend, my parents, brother, sister-in-law, and I all came together in my parents' new house in North Carolina. When my brother and I were kids, this was our family vacation spot and many years later, my parents decided to purchase a house here! We had so much fun exploring this lake and the forest around it that we had spent hours playing in when we were children. We both decided that everything looked just a little bit smaller now than before ;)

I have many more pictures from these three days of vacation so be prepared for a few more posts with lots of pictures of the North Carolina scenery that I couldn't get enough of.

Monday, June 9

TIMES SQUARE PROPOSAL...BUT NOT MINE ;)







A few weeks ago, my friends and I took part in helping out with a secret marriage proposal in Times Square for our friend Megan! Her boyfriend had planned out everything and she had no idea. She took her blindfold off to her friends and family holding signs asking will you marry me?? and she said yes! It was so much fun to be a part of it. Afterwards we all went to a restaurant called Osteria Cotta in NYC for drinks and dinner. It was a great day in the city spent celebrating love and friends.

Thursday, June 5

BRIDAL SHOWER


pale pink bridal shower
bridal shower decorations
pastel bridal shower

bridal shower panty line

mimosa bar

bridal shower decorations

A few weeks ago one of my best friends celebrated her bridal shower. Being that half of the bridal party (me included up until January) is from out of state, it was a little difficult for all of the bridesmaids to get on the same page about planning festivities! But in the end everything came together and we were able to pull off what we thought was a pretty Pinterest worthy bridal shower. My favorite part was a post-it game, where all guests had to write down a memorable (or not so memorable) moment of the bride that she had to read out loud to the group and then try to guess who wrote it. There were some pretty interesting post-it stories that made for a good laugh. The bride handled all the somewhat embarrassing shower games with much grace and poise! Let's hope that when it is one day my turn, such games are out of style ;)

We are now just two months away from the big day where she says I do, but first ... the bachelorette party. In a few short weeks we are going to Nashville to celebrate for the weekend! I'm excited to say I will definitely be documenting that weekend so stay tuned.

finally able to link up with nicole's treat yo'self!

Tuesday, June 3

HELLO ALL


As per a few requests, I've decided to revive this little space of mine, at least for the time being. It is summer after all! And I plan on going on as many adventures as possible, so obviously I will need to share them with everyone :) It has been a while since I've shared anything on my blog and I'm not entirely sure in which direction I plan on taking this space but for now I think I will stick to pictures of all my outings during my first full summer back in the states since 2010 .. yikes!

Here's to new beginnings :)