Kids Holiday Gift Guide

My kids have never been the children that play with a bunch of small toys. Rather, it all ends up on the floor.. all over the house! I've stuck to larger items the past year and keeping with that this year. It helps them stay occupied and the house less of a mess. Winning!

For example, my kids have always loved their play kitchen. I also found this really pretty option for a great price - comes in a variety of colors! 

Madelyn's play vanity is one of her favorite things. Currently on sale! 

Madelyn and Kai will be getting these Fire Tablets this year. One of each, so no fighting! Under $100 and has amazing reviews! 

If your child loves a track and trains, Kai has really enjoyed this master track I bought him last year. Great value for the price. 

I always feel that a cozy and festive pajama set to wear for the holidays is a fun gift that they can look forward to each year. 

Hunter boots and a cozy pair of UGG boots are also a great option. Something useful always makes me happy when it comes to gifts.

I'm always asked about the kids play table, which I think is a fantastic gift option. Would look beautiful set up beside the Christmas tree on Christmas morning with a little tea set, or play food set on top! We use ours for meals, playtime, and crafts. 

Another piece that I'm often asked about is Madelyn's dollhouse. I found it at Home Goods a few years back, but it's not open and functional. The door on it gets in the way and doesn't stay open for her, as well as not having any windows so it's kind of dark inside if that makes sense! Considering purchasing this gorgeous dollhouse for her this year and donating her old one of course! I love how this dollhouse is open and has the windows! 

Elf on the shelf is widely talked about during the holiday season, and I know some parents find it annoying.. but we love it! It's such a fun tradition to make the holidays more special. Doesn't take much effort on my part as a parent, and to see the kids light up every morning is SO worth it. You can have a lot of fun with it too! We like to hang him upside down, and create funny scenes for the kids to giggle about! 

Both of my kiddos love their micro scooters! Fantastic gift option that they can get outside and wear some of that energy off LOL :) 

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Stocking Stuffers Holiday Gift Guide

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around these parts! You don't even know how exciting it is to be creating holiday content early this year. My goal is to inspire all of you with plenty of time so that none of you feel rushed and we can all enjoy this holiday season a little more this year! I find stocking stuffers to be much easier to purchase and tuck away now, waiting to purchase the bigger items in the coming weeks. I'm already purchasing fun little gifts here and there for the kids stockings, so don't worry I'll have a kids guide up next.


First, I have to share that I ordered these faux fur stockings for our home. I can't freaking wait! They should be here this week! We have always had mismatched stockings, which are lovely and will be used in our forever home in our future family room fireplace.. but for now we are in a small home without a fireplace so I wanted them to match and work well with the other decor. It all begins to look too cluttered in here if I'm doing too many things LOL


Okay, onto the guide now! I always feel like the small gifts that we all need to buy, but don't want to buy for ourselves are fun for stockings. I use my L'occitane hand cream all winter long, and really loved this gift set when I saw it online. Looks like the perfect gift!

My cozy butter socks 3 for $25 are another fantastic gift. I wear mine all of the time ( actually wearing them as I type this HA ) and they have held up really well! These leopard slippers are also a fun option!


I wear my pave stud earrings almost daily, they add the perfect touch and make my eyes sparkle! Not sure if this sounds crazy but I seriously feel prettier when I wear them.


It Cosmetics superhero mascara is also the perfect stocking stuffer. Throw it in, trust me! There is a reason its the only mascara I have sworn by for years now.

The Slip silk pillowcase is also a favorite of mine. I found that it truly does benefit my skin and hair, and feels super luxurious to sleep on too!

When sweater weather is in full effect, there is nothing better than a handy tool to keep them in great shape! Toss this portable fabric shaver in their stocking this year!



I'm going to link everything above in the widget below including more fun finds! Happy Holidays, and Merry Christmas my friends!

xoxo

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Messy Waves with a Fishtail Braid

Hey, girls! Today, my friend Jenn is taking over the blog to share a fun hairstyle she did for me. I think this would look so cute on any hair length, and I was really happy to have found another style that works for my new short hair. Hope you enjoy!

Easy and simple hairstyles are my absolute favorite and this is one of them for sure! 

For Taylors hair today, it was air dried so I just worked with the natural partings that were going on and curled her loosely with the t3 wand. 

I let the curls set until they cooled and ran my fingers through to loosen them into more of a soft curl/wave. 

To prepare for the braid I sprayed a healthy serving of shampure dry shampoo from Aveda to give a little extra volume and texture for the braid to hold onto (optional: you can section out the hair around the face if you like any little face framing hairs). 

Next, you will take a small section (just behind the face framing hair if you did that) on the side you want your braid and start your fishtail braid and fluff the braid as you go, for fullness. Lastly we pinned it with a couple of bobby pins to hold the braid in place and then - set the whole style with Davines medium hold hairspray.

**we did a fishtail for this, but if you’re unsure of how to do that you can use a regular 3 strand braid instead. 



xoxo

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All Black

This is the lobby of Brasstown Valley, where we stayed over the weekend. I wrote about this wood burning fireplace in my last post, ahhhh I can seriously smell it now. I LOVE that smell this time of year. Makes me want to run to the store and get supplies for smore's tonight now that its cold enough. I'm a cold weather fan, while Chris is NOT. He was freezing last night while grilling dinner.. bless his heart :)

I pretty much wore this basic, long sleeve layering tee the entire weekend. With my vests, under my sweatshirt, and with my denim jacket. I have a top for each season that works with pretty much everything I wear, and I usually wear them to death. That's why I just ordered another one of these for back-up, and it doesn't hurt that it's a great price point for $49. This top is super thin, while staying opaque, which is really nice!


Okay, so faux fur vests used to be my thing. When I lived in Florida while going to school, I would wear a fur vest with every outfit... IN FLORIDA. Dresses, skirts, shorts... I'd throw a vest on it. LOL - kind of going back to my "roots" here with this season. Well, it's been kind of easy as I haven't found cute vests in a while, so I was super excited to have seen this one go online after being sold out SO fast last year!




Anyways, I've got a lot of cleaning and organizing to do today. I've been a bad housewife and have put a lot of tedious tasks off.. making it worse in the long run. One day I will realize that I just have to suck it up and get it done so that I'm not overwhelmed later. I pray I'm not the only one that does that....


xoxo



Love Token faux fur vest \\ Layering tee \\ Denim \\ Gucci belt \\ Boots \\ Earrings

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Brasstown Valley Weekend + North Georgia Mountains

Hey, friends! If you follow along with me on Instagram, then you already know Christopher and I went up to the mountains over the weekend. We stayed at Brasstown Valley resort, and my only complaint is that we didn't stay long enough! (This is not sponsored by the way, we paid for everything!) Definitely going to make a trip back with the whole family, and make sure I have enough time to ride horses. The grounds were gorgeous, but I was most excited to find out that there are horse stables and beautiful rollings hills with mountain views that you can ride along. Fun fact, I grew up around horses almost all of my life. We owned many, and at one point even had a stable for them to live in our backyard! Such an amazing childhood  memory to think about. 

Anyways, we had a blast driving up through the mountains, stopping off at different trails along the way. The foliage is starting to turn, not close to peak yet, but still beautiful enough to get really excited! There were a lot of spots that looked amazing with the bright red and yellow leaves. Ah, such a fun experience if you love nature and being outdoors like we do. I highly recommend a stay anywhere up there. Lake Chatuge, Young Harris, Blue Ridge, Helen, Blairsville, Hiawassee, and so many more! 

We drove over to Brasstown Bald, a stunning and quick drive from the resort. This is the highest elevation point in Georgia. The mountain is known to the native Cherokee people as Enotah. Yes, the views did not disappoint, but it was FREEZING. 

Next, we stopped at Tallulah Falls State Park on our way home. The stairs walking down to the suspended bridge weren't bad until you needed to go back up. My butt and thighs are already sore, LOL! It was beautiful, but busy. I recommend trying to visit during the week and not on a weekend. Regardless, it was a wonderful visit and we will definitely be back. 

Lastly, I wanted to share one of the outfits I wore during our stay. I finally got the chance to wear this vest after staring at it in my closet for about a month, just waiting and willing the weather to change. I'm so happy I bought this and will be wearing throughout fall and winter. 

I wish we had thought to take more photos of the resort, but you'll just have to see for yourself in person. It was so beautiful, and what we loved the most was that it felt so comfortable and quaint. Not once did I have my usual feeling that I get when I stay in hotels, of wanting to be at home in my bed. 

I'm not opposed to upscale and "boujee" resorts, but I much prefer something more relaxed and laid back. Brasstown was really nice and definitely felt upscale, but without the "uppity" vibe. Everyone was super kind, but not in your face the whole time. The lobby and throughout the resort smelled of fresh firewood burning. They have huge fireplaces that are always burning and it was seriously the best. The food was also really great, and we enjoyed both restaurants. Bonus points for not being crazy expensive like you typically see at resorts! 

I'm SO happy Christopher and I had a weekend away together. As much as we LOVE being with our kids on trips, It's always nice to make time for the two of us every once in while : ) Shoutout to my parents and brother for watching the kittens for us, love you guys so much!! 

Okay, I will stop rambling and end this post. If you have any recommendations for a destination similar to our stay in the north GA mountains, let me know! 

xoxo

Outfit details :

Shearling Lined Denim jacket \\ Black layering L/S tee ($49) \\ High waisted black denim \\ Stuart Weitzman boots \\ Similar hat \\ Chloe backpack 

Patagonia sweater \\ Fleece vest \\ leggings \\ APL sneakers \\ Chloe backpack \\ Gucci sunglasses 

Black layering L/S tee ($49)  \\ Faux Fur vest \\ High waisted black denim \\ Stuart Weitzman boots 

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Casual Go To Outfit This Fall

I love having a few outfits that I know work for me in times when I need to get dressed and just go. I've shared a few of those on my Instagram stories, but today I wanted to share here on the blog one that I feel put together, confident, comfortable and can be worn from day to night. This jacket is super lightweight so it's perfect for this in-between weather when it's only cool in the morning and evenings. You can see it styled again in this blog post here. I wear it with everything from dresses to athleisure.


Next, it's a cute pair of shoes that are equally as comfy to really complete everything without having to do too much. I always feel like I don't need many accessories or jewelry when I wear cute heels. Not sure why LOL

Maybe It's because I have this irrational fear of looking way too done up that it ends up looking like a hot ass mess? Or is it rational...? I don't know.. now I'm rambling about my weird fashion fears. Fantastic.

Anyways, do you have any cute go-to outfits? I asked this question on Instagram and had a lot of people tell me pajamas. While I'm all for PJ's (my nickname Chris gave me is Pajama, so your girl knows a thing or two) I was really looking for outfit ideas that you LEAVE the house wearing... unless you go into the world wearing PJ's. In that case, I won't judge. Promise :)

Military Jacket (25% off) \\ V-Neck Luxe long sleeve tee \\ Frame denim \\ Gucci sunglasses, under $100 dupe here \\ Peep-Toe Booties \\ 

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