Bridal Showers are my Favorite

Especially when they honor one of my favorites. As many of y'all read, I was home last weekend in VA for Sportyspice's bridal shower. Being away was a bit of as stressor, but the famjam was able to manage and bust tail to get things organized for her special day. I did all of the favors down in Tennessee and worked with the lovely Karli for our design decorations. We tried to touch every room with a lil bit of bridal love and I was very happy with the overall effect. It wasn't all smooth sailing but everything came together and the bride LOVED everything which was the most important thing.

She wanted a brunch so we had pancake mini stacks, bacon hearts,  mimosa bar, fruit skewers, ham biscuits, Silverado copycat salad, coffee bar and the piece de resistance, cereal cupcakes. Sportyspice is a cereal fanatic so I knew I wanted to honor her love of cereal at her shower. Enter, delicious cupcakes themed after her favorite cereals. They were a hit and the one [okay, two] I tasted were delectable. So adorable and so fabulous for our wonderful bride.

Below are some pictures to sum up the afternoon. There was a fun appearance of my besties lil man and he really stole the show with everyone, especially my parents [yes, I got the hints haha].

Even though I'm a state away, it was so nice to be home for  a bit and celebrate my sissy. Next up is her bachey party and then the WEDDING! EEEEK, so exciting and so much fun. I hope everyone has a FABULOUS weekend!

Good-Bye To Yoooooouuuuu {Weekend in Review}

Oh my land, what a weekend. I don't think we could have packed anything else into that past few days if we had tried. Here we are in April and the month of our trip and it all feels so surreal. Each day is another small small step forward to our destination.

I had hoped Friday would be an easy day to get ahead for Saturday but the work gods were not in my favor. It was small fire after small fire after HUGE ISSUE and I felt so behind when I left work an hour later than planned. Both Le Husband and I had rough days and we decided homemade pizza was just the ticket. It was quite delicious and gave me a bit of pep in my step to finish up the party prep before passing out for the night.

Saturday I slept in a bit and then hit the ground running. There was packing up of bins, finishing up party food prep at the apartment, another purge, no food eaten and then it was off to my parents house. They were such champs letting me host the party at their home on such short notice and it ended up being the best thing in the word. The weather held out and everyone pulled together to get everything whipped up before the guests started to arrive.

I was almost a complete blogger fail before and during the party because I took two pictures. Luckily my sissys, mostly BABYSPICE, snapped some pictures for me to share. Even though this was an informal and thrown together quickly party I still tried to go all out on the snacks. We had lots of chips and dip, veggie tray, hummus, cooked to order burgers with fixins, brats, cuban chicken, broccoli slaw, chicken tenders, macaroni and cheese, tater tots, cookies, cheesecake bites and of course cupcakes. I mentioned the cupcakes I wanted to make here and randomly they were peanut butter which was NOT what I was expecting. I decided to bake regular chocolate cupcakes and then made the icing sans peanut butter. Pretty sure they were fabulous because none were left with at the end of the night. I snatched one of the last ones, heehee!

Sportypsice was so sweet and picked up some beautiful flowers for decor and Babyspice snapped these lovely pictures. They added just the perfect touch to the party. #lovemesomeflowers #smalltouchesmakeallthedifference 

Our first order of business Satruday afternoon when I showed up to help set up was to pop the champs. It was a day of celebration and I wanted to share a bottle with my best gals. There were five bottles still left and we went through them ALL plus one brought as a gift. You could say the champagne sangria was a hit, haha. #loveourdinosaurglasses

The original recipe I chose ended up being kind of a dud, so I was in quite a panic Friday night trying to come up with a plan B. Can I grateful I am for mr google? He brought me to this recipe and after a lil tweaking [added different fruits and some grapefruit juice with the orange juice]. Yum, I want another glass right now. 

While the food was wonderful, the true star of the party was all the love felt by those who came to send us off into the sunset. I was completely floored by the turn out of our friends from all our different groups [over 40+ people] and so thankful the weather held up. We had our kickball friends, my work friends, soccer friends, family friends, neighbor friends and few friends I've known for 20+ years. I wish I had been able to spend more time with everyone but it's always hard make the rounds when your the hostess. I will be forever grateful to Babyspice for being the photographer and making sure I got a picture taken with everyone in attendance. Yup, she installed a 'you can't leave without a picture rule' and it was quite fabulous. Surprisingly I held it all together and didn't blubber at all. I had one or two moments where I teetered on the edge of bawling but managed to hold it all together. #keepittogetherman

The party started at 5pm and the last guest left around 11pm and we still had a little clean up to do. It was an exaushting day of being on our feet however it was oh so worth it. I am incredibly blessed to have this life and SO THANKFUL for my wonderful family. We threw this all together in seven days and they were all rockstars helping out any way possible. Hugs were very long and tight at the end of the night as the realization of the coming months arose but again, we were all able to keep the tears at bay. I couldn't ask for a better family and am so grateful for them. #bradybunchforlife

My heart is so full!

Sunday morning came too early and we jumped right into the swing of things. It was church, home to pack up more boxes and the car, a fun pedicure with the ladies before another stop at the storage unit. Let me tell you HOW much my feet appreciated the massage, heaven sent I tell you. The company was quite wonderful too. #pinkforsummer

I made it back home and just fell onto the couch in our mess of an apartment. The days are beginning to feel the same, so much work done but so little reward shown in the home. I know every step counts but I'm started to get anxious it all won't get done without multiple sleepless nights. Neither Le Husband or I wanted to cook so we headed out to our favorite Mexican joint for a delicious but predictable dinner of fajitas and margs. 

After dinner we came home and went right back to packing up and finishing up our trip plans. It seems that Germany is not going to work out so it's on to northern Italy [we think]. I also laid out most of what I want to pack for the trip and am HOPING to get it finalized this week. Did I mention I was trying to make it in a carry on? No, well yeah, we are gonna try. Which reminds me, it's time to get off here and finish up some more stuff. Can I get a PTL for no more 6am class? I don't think I'd make it tomorrow if I had to teach, I am so wiped out mentally and physically.

OH, before I go, one more good piece of news…I GET TO KEEP MY JOB FOR TWO WEEKS AFTER THE TRIP!!!!! WOOOOOFREAKINGHOOOOOOO! I am so thankful everything ended up working out the way I envisioned and I am SO GRATEFUL my boss ended up working with our schedule. Our moving date has changed to June but that is okay, I am 100% thrilled with the extra few pay checks. THANK YOU ALL for your prayers and good vibes, I so appreciate them.

Hope you have a FABULOUS Monday! <3 p="">
Linking up with these ladies

Bringing Back a Classic {Oh How Pinteresting}

Morning, lovely ladies [and gents if you are out there]. I hope your Wednesday is going well. I thought I'd bring back one of my favorites from the early days of blogging, Oh How Pinteresting. I loved linking up every week to check out different pins and ideas from other bloggers. The linkup may be defunct but I'm using it as an inspiration for my post today.

[Quite possibly the most perfect summer brunch outfit.]

[no other words needed]

[Swing dresses are my new favorites and the heels are too fabulous for words]

[I need these perfect white skinnies and love the pop of leopard with the stripes]

[So pretty for this time of year, such fun pretty pinks]

[Got to get ready to pack for Europe, hey Kristen, can I hire you too?]

[Tie dye is making a comeback and while I'm not completely on the bandwagon, I do think this dress is fun.]

[Easy, healthy and delicious, a triple threat in my book]

[For a candle loving gal, finding use for all the tops is quite an achievement]

[This look is so crisp and elegant, love the gingham]

[Looking to add something new to the breakfast routine and this sounds filling and easy]

[Continuing my planning for Sportyspice's bridal shower, loving this color palette]

[Mimosa Sangria?!? Yes, please!]

What has caught your eye on Pinterest lately?

 linkinguphere
**all sources can be found in captions under photos**

The Weekend I Barely Stopped Moving

Good morning friends and happy LEAP DAY! I'll be honest with you, I find 2/29 a very strange day. I can't imagine having my birthday disappear can you? So, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to all your leap babies, make sure you enjoy your day!

Moving on to the weekend, phew, this was a doozy of a two days, y'all. It was a weekend of stuff after things after events after workouts and soccer games. Thankfully I was able to chill out a bit Sunday evening and get everything ready for my 6am BODYPUMP class. I'm super excited for early bedtime tonight after we have family dinner for Sportyspice's birthday [gimmeallthehibachi].

This weekend I…

… took the evening off from the gym [after taking a lunch class] and baked these adorable cookies for Sportyspice. She gave up chocolate for Lent and I wanted to bring her a cute treat for her 30th. #minionsrock

… rocked my faux fur vest for the last time this season. LOVE THIS LOOK.

… tried to keep a good attitude after the restaurant made us wait an HOUR for our reservation. Trust, me I get it when things run late, but they let three five tops take our room 30 minutes before the time we reserved. Thankfully we were comped appetizers but it was tough keeping Sportyspice's head up as the minutes ticked away.

… bucked up the birthday girl and had a wonderful time celebrating my favorite middles sister joining the 30 club. It was a fabulous evening full of friends, family, drinks and lots of fun conversations.

… realized I need to square my shoulders in pictures. #hugarm #notthatboxyinrealife

… stayed out way past my bedtime and indulged in one too many whiskey on the rocks. 

… woke up Saturday morning and started rocking it out. Since I knew it was a busy weekend I did a lot of my Sunday prep on Saturday morning. Prepped meat, salads and sweet potato chips for the week and then ate breakfast. 

… went to my 2nd GRIT class and rocked it out once again. #hiitisawesome

… drove to my parent's house and got ready for the baking bonanza with Babyspice. 

… spent four hours baking test cupcakes for Sportyspice's bridal shower. #cerealcupcakesforthewin

… woke up late Sunday morning and scrambled to make it to church on time. #workissuedidnothelp

… sprinted home after church to change into workout gear. Attended my second BODYCOMBAT class to help a fellow instructor tape her assessment video. Lots of workouts in the weekend make the muscles pop. #likemyworkoutearrings #forgottotakethemoffafterchurch

… came home, made food finally, did some stretching and drank pickle juice to loosen up a knot in my calf.

YES, I drank the juice and YES it works.

… played in an early soccer game where we won and I ran around like crazy.

… came home and relaxed for a bit which felt amazing.

… cooked dinner, did some more planning, prepped the rest of my lunch for Monday and put the final touches on Monday morning's BODYPUMP playlist. #gottakeepitfresh

How was your weekend? Were you running around as crazy as me? Make today awesome!

Linking up with these beautiful ladies whoop