lake time

we are off to the lake for the weekend.

spending some time with A's family.
taking the boat out for a spin.

this little guy is coming along.
his first road trip. his first trip to the lake.

i will leave you with some pictures from trips past. lots of memories at this house. at this lake.

i'll be taking some more pictures this weekend and sharing this weekend with you. promise.

happy memorial day my friends. enjoy your holiday.

garden party

do you remember a few months ago when i told you how obsessed i was with the new h&m garden collection {refresh here}. it is so girly. so dainty. perfect for shan. i am a girly girl. ask the besties. its a well known fact.

so it was only fitting that when A and i took a little trip down to ATL, we drop by the h&m store there. and oh yes...i found some little garden pretties.

i love just love h&m.
check out the collection {here}.

simply

organic.

so even though i don't really cook, i have more than enough cookbooks for when i do pick it up. i have every intention to. however, i don't really have some of the things that would make life in the kitchen a little easier. crockpot. electric skillet. a big ol' pot. no excuses though. i really need to start soon.

anyway...back to the cookbooks. i have a ton. lots. and i keep collecting. i want a lot of places to pick out food when i do pick up cooking as a hobby.

menu planning. 
finding fun little meals. 
trying new things.

it all sounds so fun. a lot of work but a gooooood reward.

this little cookbook i got at tjmaxx last week. i really like it. it is a guide for local, sustainable and organic cooking. it is broken up into different seasons. early spring. late spring. early summer. late summer. and so on. and the recipes reflect what is in season for that particular time. taking some of the guess work out of eating locally and learning what is in season.

i really like it. unfortunately (just for me) it is not a vegetarian cookbook. so a lot of the meals involve some sort of meat. however, there are some i can definitely leave the meat out of. and i'm sure they will be just as good.

i recommend this cookbook...so far. i mean...i haven't cooked anything out of it yet. but i love the concept. teaching me how to use ingredients based on the season. love that.

i think it is originally like $24. amazon has it {here} for $16. i picked it up at my local tjmaxx for $6. heck yes ladies and gentlemen.

that is how i roll.

math

plus

= the most perfect perfect snack.
yum.

rock

photo from {here}. a besties blog

the Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom i take refuge.

He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

I call to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and i am saved from my enemies.

Psalm 18:2-3

i want to live this out. everyday.
written on my heart.

summer style

i would really like a fedora for this spring/summertime. they seem like a perfect summer casual to me.

perfect to throw on for a day at the beach.
lunch with a friend.
walking around downtown.

this is the style i would like to find for me.

                                                    

{urban outfitters}

{google images}

{google images}

have y'all seen any cute ones around. i have searched target...they should have a simple one like these above. but so far, no luck. i am hoping to find this little treasure in time for memorial day weekend. 

here's hoping. 

a congrats is in store

last friday was A's graduation. A has been so excited for this day and i couldn't be more happy to celebrate with him. his family came into town and it ended up being such a great time.

a few pictures from the day...

yes. i had to listen to every single name out there being called out. one by one. for 2.5 hours.

my happy graduate.

out to dinner to celebrate after graduation. habachi grill (A's favorite). it was delicious.

A- I loved celebrating with you. I couldn't be more proud. Love, S.

emptying my obsessions

i have a folder saved on my desktop where i save all of my design/decorating inspiration. lots and lots and lots of pictures.

and it is about high time to dump some favorites onto my little ol' blog here.

enjoy the eye candy.

{design sponge}

{robyn karp}

{anthropologie}

{anthropologie}

{design sponge}

{domino}

{design sponge}

{domino}

do you now understand my obsession? i mean...i'll take all of these rooms please.
just gorgeous.

addition

i would like to introduce to you a new special guy in my life. he came into it pretty unexpectedly. i had no idea he would be coming into my life so soon. but it just seemed perfect.

his name is kentson (i graduated from kentucky. A just graduated from clemson). Kentucky + Clemson = Kentson.

A and I are in love. He is such a fun little guy.

so far so good. i will definitely be sharing my puppy adventures with bloggy friends soon!

tuesday's ten: ten books to read this summer

tuesday's ten comes every now and then. usually when i can think of 10 things i can group together for you. and today, it's 10 books to read this summer. they range from simple, girly beach reads to books that will encourage and {hopefully} challenge my faith to grow.

in no particular order...

are there any must-read books on your list for the summertime? i LOVE getting book recommendations from friends so please share!

mama love

happy mothers day mama. i love you to pieces and miss you like crazy.

can't wait to see you in like a week or so. even if it is for only a few days. our visit will still be perfect.

i am excited to celebrate this day with you.

love,
shan

southern city

i love my saturdays.
and i love this new city of mine.

today we went down to the farmers market. then walked around downtown. ended up here with this pretty little view.

it was perfect.

happy saturday friends.

one man's junk is another man's treasure

photo from {here}

last weekend, A and I went on a little trip to visit his family. i also got to participate in a neighborhood yardsale. his grandparents (step grandparents) neighborhood hosted a yardsale. so i took a bunch of junk that i didn't need anymore and sold it. or some of it. the rest of it was hauled off to goodwill. it feels good to get that stuff out of my apartment.

one thing you will learn about me. I am a purger. do y'all know that show "hoarders"? i am the exact opposite of them. i am a purger. 110%. i just love the feeling of no clutter.

it was fabulous getting rid of junk.

and did i mention that i love yardsales? love them! however, i didn't find anything that i wanted at this one. disappointing. i did score some teacup saucers and an old gold frame from A's grandparents. but i wanted some fun little serving dishes. or some furniture that i could eventually redo. you know...take other people's junk and make it my little treasures.

next time maybe.

a makeover if you will

a little blog makeover.

i created a little header. a picture of my new town, my besties and my favorite flowers (and also a picture taken by one of the besties). all meaningful to me.

what do you think?