Winter Q&A

After the craziness of the Lilly sale, I'm excited to switch gears today and share a more personal post. I was tagged by my sweet friend Jennifer from Sincerely, Mrs. JMM to participate in this Winter Tag. It includes a fun list of questions- a couple are about the holidays, but most of them are winter related. 

Winter has definitely arrived, and I'm already ready to say goodbye to the frigid temps. However, Parker and I still have our Christmas decorations up, so I guess you could say we're not quite ready to part ways with the holidays just yet.  Orrrr we were home in Alabama for 2 weeks and hit the ground running when we got back to Southaven and haven't had the time to put them away. Regardless, I'm really excited about this Winter Q&A!

What is your favorite holiday tradition?

My favorite holiday tradition actually begins before we head home for the holidays. Parker and I do our own Christmas before we travel to be with our families. We get dressed up and go to a fun Christmas dinner, drink some wine, and open our stockings (and the pups' stockings). It's always fun to have this time together before we head back to Alabama!

Outfit Details: Dress // Tights

What is your favorite go-to winter lip product?

My favorite winter lip product is actually my favorite lip product of the entire year. I cannot live without Blistex Lip Medex. I started using it in high school and have never found anything that compares. I linked a 3 pack on Amazon, but you can also find it at CVS and some Targets. I wrote more about it in this Three Things Thursday post. As you can tell from the picture below, I have quite a few and LOVE it!

What is your favorite winter scent?

Christmas tree! Parker and I stock up on Christmas tree candles when they go on sale after Christmas and burn them all year long! I'm not picky about where they come from. I love them all- Bath & Body Works, Anthropologie, Walmart... as long as it smells like a Christmas tree, we love it!

What is your go-to winter fashion trend?

Leggings and oversized sweaters! And sweatshirt dresses. Parker’s parents gave me this ruffle sweatshirt dress for Christmas, and it is going to be my new uniform! I clearly love all the comfy clothes!

Sweatshirt Dress, in grey // Similar Boots // Earrings

What is your all time favorite holiday tune?

All I Want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey for my fun Christmas tune and Mary, Did You Know for my actual Christmas tune. This became my favorite when Jordan Smith sang it on The Voice!

Do you prefer to travel or stay home for the holidays?

I LOVE being home and enjoying our Christmas decorations, but we have to travel to be with our families. So I would have to say I prefer to travel because that is the only way we can be with our families. 

What is your favorite winter skin care must have?

I am very picky about lotion. I have honestly never loved it. However, it is obviously necessary for your skin, so I put a very light lotion on my face in the morning and at night. I used to only wear this Bobbi Brown hydrating face cream. However, I stumbled upon a really light Nivea lotion that is a tiny fraction of the price and works just as well! I linked it on Amazon, but you can find it at Target or basically any drug store.

What is your favorite winter hair care product?

I don't really use hair products, aside from shampoo and conditioner. I'm trying to teach myself to use dry shampoo, so I don't have to wash my hair every day. So I guess I would have to say Batiste dry shampoo. I do like this brand much better than the other brands I have tried.

What is your favorite winter activity?

Does sitting on the sofa with Parker (and the pups) and watching a movie count? I HATE the cold weather. 

Do you love or dislike the snow?

HATE.

What is one item on your wish list this year?

The item on my Christmas wishlist I was most excited about receiving was my new phone! My parents and Parker split it, and I could not be more grateful. I had been using my iPhone 6 since March of 2015, so this iPhone X camera is basically life changing. And a huge help for blog pictures! 

What is your favorite holiday treat?

Red velvet cake balls! Recipe here.

Do you finish your holiday shopping before December or are you a last minute shopper?

I think we finished close to the beginning of December this year. We have to order everything early to make sure it comes in before we head home for the holidays. 

Thanks again to Jennifer for the tag in this fun Q&A! You can read her answers here. I want to get more personal posts up this year, so this was a fun way to get started!

Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day!

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Three Things Thursday

I'm finally back with another Three Things Thursday post today! it's been too long since I wrote my last one, and I had so much fun putting this one together. I'm going to shoot for at least one of these a month. Now, let's get into the 3 totally unrelated things that I am so excited to share with you!

1. Nativity Scenes

My mom has collected nativity scenes for as long as I can remember, and she has helped me start my own collection over the past few years. They are our favorite Christmas decoration, and they are also a great reminder of what the Christmas season is really about. I'm sharing pictures of 4 of my favorites below. 

A. I got this one from Hobby Lobby last year!

B. I got this one last week from Target! You can click here to check it out!

C. My mom put this cute and tiny one in my stocking!

D. This is my favorite Coton Colors Christmas attachment!

Shop some nativity scenes that are currently available:

2. Our Sectional and Ottoman

I realize this is a super random thing to share. However, my sister just purchased a sectional, which is what made me think about it. If you have been looking for a fabulous sectional, I highly suggest this one.

We got this couch when we moved into our house in Southaven back in March, and we could not be happier! I did months and months of research on sectionals. I was beyond ready to get rid of Parker's brown, ripped. faux suede leather sofa, loveseat, and recliner. Those things moved up to his mancave, and we finally got normal looking furniture for our living room!

It wasn't easy though.... after tons of online research, Parker and I went to 4 furniture stores in town (that were seriously disappointing) before we headed to Macy's in Memphis (thanks to my friend Emily for the recommendation!). I had no clue Macy's even sold furniture. As soon as we walked into the furniture section, we immediately knew we wanted the first one we saw. 

The color is just what I was looking for. It's lighter than the dark brown we had, and y'all- the fabric is magical. Bailey and Rosie's muddy paw prints and Parker's red wine spills have been so easy to get out. Macy's sent some magical cleaning supplies, and they get everything out so easily!  

I'm also bringing this sectional up today because it is on sale! It is currently marked down $1200! Maybe I should have dedicated an entire post to this sofa. I could go on and on about how much we love it, but I'll stop now. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out though!

3. Sweatshirt Dresses

I got my first sweatshirt dress when I went to the Nordstrom Rack Grand Opening party in Memphis a few months ago. At first, I thought it was an embarrassing thing to buy (because who actually wears these things?), but it was under $20 and so comfy that I purchased it anyway. And I'm here to tell you that money was well spent. I wear it every single weekend. It is so comfy!

The exact one I have is sold out, but Parker's parents are giving me this one for Christmas, and it is still in stock. Plus, I've linked quite a few options below. If you don't own one of these, you need one for comfy weekend wear! 

Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day!

How to Make Thanksgiving Fun When You're Not with Family

Thanksgiving spent with family is always the best option. However, sometimes life happens and you have to come up with an alternate plan. Parker usually has to work most days during Thanksgiving week, so it would not work for us to travel home when he may just have Thanksgiving day off. So, we stay put for Thanksgiving and look forward to a longer Christmas break with both of our families.

We have actually come to really enjoy Thanksgiving with just the two of us (plus Bailey and Rosie obviously). I believe the year we got married and moved to Fayetteville, Arkansas was the first time I missed Thanksgiving with my family. At first, I was really disappointed to miss out. I have so many cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents that I love to catch up with on Thanksgiving day. However, we came up with a plan that we now look forward to every year!

Everything on the list pictured above happened in 2015, and we have revised it a little bit each year since. For example, the amount of food has been decreased significantly, and we skip the pigs in a blanket breakfast. (And FYI- the things under our names are things we were in charge of cooking/picking up... meaning I didn’t choose all of the 300 things under my name.) However, lots of the things on this list do occur! Let's jump right in, shall we?!

1. Start the day off with pineapple/orange juice screwdrivers and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade!

2. Facetime your family. When I can't be home for birthdays and other festive occasions, my family always Facetimes. It doesn't have to be for long, but it's nice to get to see them while chatting, as opposed to the usual texting behind the phone situation.

3. Turn on some tunes and make cooking fun!

4. Set the table with your fine china, crystal, and flowers! We just had a couple of bright sunflowers on the table, and they added so much warmth and happiness!

5. Eat off of your everyday china! I get great joy out of pulling out my fine china and setting the table with it. However, being able to throw my everyday china into the dishwasher when we're finished eating is much more fun than hand washing fine china in my opinion! 

6. Go for a walk. Parker and I don't go on a long exercise walk, but we do enjoy getting out of the house for a little stroll with the pups.

7. Watch football / online shop / watch movies / take an afternoon nap!

8. Make a list of 10 (or more!) things you are thankful for.

9. Eat pie and all the desserts! Thanksgiving only happens once a year!

10. Check out ArtFashionFun.com for a roundup of all of the best Cyber Week sales! :) SO many Black Friday sales have already started, and even more will continue to go live over the next few days. I have blog posts tomorrow, Friday, and Cyber Monday with some of the very best deals! We will definitely be using this time to put a dent in our Christmas shopping!

Also, I have created a new page on my blog in an effort to help with navigating Black Friday sales. If you go to the menu at the top and click on Black Friday, you will be taken to the page where I have rounded up a list of my favorite retailers that are having sales. I have also included the codes you need to use to get the sale prices . You can click here to be taken directly to the page. Or you can check out the sales below. Let me know if you have any questions!

Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day and a very happy Thanksgiving!

Early Black Friday Sales + Codes

Baublebar- 30% off holiday collection and gift sets with code YAY30

J.Crew- 40% off entire purchase and free shipping with code THANKU

J.Crew Factory- 50% off everything, no code needed

Loft- 40% off everything with code GIFTITUP

Madewell- 25% off entire purchase with code DONTSTRESS

Nordstrom- Up to 40% off, no code needed

Old Navy- 50% off everything, no code needed

Shopbop- Up to 30% off with code MORE17

Tory Burch- 30% off $250 or more with code THANKS

Wilson Weekend in Southaven

Last week, I talked about using my blog as a scrapbook to document fun memories because I have put the actual act of scrapbooking on the back burner lately. So today I want to share the details of last weekend when my family came to visit Parker and me for the first time in Southaven!

*Ebie- Top // Cardigan // Leggings // Booties // Clutch // Sunglasses *Me- Top // Leggings // Boots // Similar Tote // Earrings *My mom- Top // Jeans // Booties // Purse

Friday

My mom, dad, and Ebie got to Southaven right before lunch on Friday, which is seriously impressive because it is about a 6 hour drive from Mobile. We visited for a little while, and I got to show them around our home! It's always so different seeing things in real life than it is over FaceTime or through pictures. 

Then, they unloaded their car, and everybody was curious about the treats we got!

Thanks Mama- so many amazing treats for us all! The one who should have gotten all the treats was my mom because we were throwing her a late birthday celebration. We snuck in a few festivities throughout the weekend.

After an hour or so at home, we headed off to Germantown. We had lunch at Tazikis, which was delicious as always.  

Then, we went to The Shops of Saddle Creek, which is my very favorite place to shop. My mom needed to return something at J.Crew, so we started there and we did more than just return an item... They were having a sale, so we each got this hair tie and this white top (the one Ebie is holding) that I styled and talked all about in yesterday's post. 

We didn't do too much shopping because my dad was with us, and we wanted to make sure he enjoyed his weekend too. So we went to a couple of other stores and then headed home to spend the rest of the day with Parker, Bailey, and Rosie.

I also want to point out this top my mom brought for me. It is the cutest button up top that could be worn for so many different reasons. Everybody needs a good white top, and the pictures online do not do this one justice. I also found it on sale here.

White Top // Leggings // Boots // Sunglasses // Earrings // Necklace

Saturday

We spent the whole day Saturday at home, aside from a walk my mom and I went on. We don't have too many pictures of us because we were in our comfy clothes with no makeup on all day. I did try on my bridesmaid's dress for Ebie's wedding, so that was exciting!

Between football games, Parker pulled out all of our lunch food, and we enjoyed a gameday lunch of cowboy caviar, Chicken Salad Chick, boiled peanuts from Parker's dad, and some chicken Parker grilled. Kinda random, but delicious!

The football games just so happened to be perfectly spaced out, so we all got to hang out together while we watched our teams play. Ebie got to watch the LSU game first, then Parker got to watch the Auburn game, and my mom, dad, and I got to watch the Alabama game last. All of our teams won, so that always makes the day more fun!

My mom's sweater

We enjoyed some bourbon and coke zero during the Alabama game and the shakers came out! Anyone else still have shakers from college? They definitely brought us some laughter and fun! 

I made seafood ettouffe for dinner. It doesn't look pretty, but it sure does taste good! And we enjoyed a cheesecake for my mom's birthday dessert later on!

Sunday

We had some pancakes for breakfast before my family packed up their bags. We took one final picture of our new hair ties because I wanted to show y'all how cute they are! Perfect stocking stuffer for girls of all ages! 

Our weekend flew by way too quickly, as it always does. But now the countdown to Christmas begins!

Thanks so much for reading! I'll be back tomorrow with a Pre Black Friday Sales roundup! Have a wonderful weekend!

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Long Weekend with the Goodmans

A couple of weeks ago, my sweet grandmother mailed me a picture of the two of us from over 25 years ago. In the letter she included, she mentioned that the picture of us was for a scrapbook, if people still have those. I have been a fan of pictures for as long as I can remember.

I have printed 1000s of pictures of Bailey and Rosie in the past few years and have several scrapbooks documenting their precious little lives. However, since I started my blog, I have not been scrapbooking as much because I tend to put lots of my pictures into blog posts (which is more time consuming than you would think and doesn't leave much time for scrapbooking).

So today, I decided to go with more of a personal post instead of my usual fashion posts. I am treating Art Fashion Fun as my scrapbook and documenting the wonderful long weekend we had with Parker's parents through pictures and descriptions of what we did each day. However, I will also be linking my outfits and sharing the things we got while shopping. :)

Wednesday

Parker's dad was on vacation from work, so Mr. Mike and Mrs. Carol were able to come up to Southaven on Wednesday! They got in Wednesday evening, and we had a relaxing night at home. We grilled out and had a nice meal and wine while catching up. Then, we ended the night watching True Detective, which we continued to do the rest of the weekend as well.

Thursday

Parker had to go in to work for a little while on Thursday, and Mr. Mike also went in to see Parker's job. Mrs. Carol and I started out our morning nice and slow with lots of coffee and pjs for way too long. I got my Nordstrom Sale Picks ready for Friday, and it's still going on if you want to check it out. Click here to see lots of cute things included in the sale. I got a gift card recently, and I actually shopped my own post yesterday. It was hard to narrow down my cart because there are so many fabulous things included in the sale.

Parker actually got to come home around 2:00 to spend some time with his parents, and I was thankful because I was a terrible host and left at 3:00 for an event in Oxford (which is an hour away). I got to meet bloggers in real life for the first time! I met a Southaven blogger, a Memphis blogger, and 2 bloggers who are basically famous in the blogging world- Kathleen from Carrie Bradshaw Lied and Jennifer from Haute off the Rack. It was such an interesting experience, and now all I want to do is meet other bloggers in real life. There are so many things that go on behind the scenes in the blog world, and it was absolutely amazing to get to talk to other bloggers about these things.

I forgot to mention that this day was actually Parker's birthday! I stayed at the event a little longer than scheduled, but when I got home, we enjoyed a couple of drinks before heading out to Mesquite Chophouse to celebrate Parker. Mr. Mike and Mrs. Carol treated us to the best meal I have had in quite some time. It was our first time to try this restaurant, and to say we enjoyed it would be an understatement.

We came home, watched Parker open his cards and gifts, and watched more True Detective.

Friday

Parker took Friday off, and we had the best day! We enjoyed our coffee before heading to Germantown for Tazikis and shopping. Baseball card shopping for Mr. Mike and Parker (with his birthday money). And Shops of Saddle Creek shopping for Mrs. Carol and me.

I had to get Parker to take a picture of my OOTD (outfit of the day) for my daily post on Instagram. This dress has been a favorite of mine, and it was perfect for a warm day.

Outfit Details: Dress // Shoes // Similar Earrings // Crossbody Bag

We started at Anthropologie, and I fell in love with too many things of course. I only bought one item that had been on my wishlist for months. I got this tunic. It was originally $128, and I got it for under $55! Mrs. Carol bought a Christmas gift for someone. :)

Then we went to Loft. Y'all, they have so many things that I want right now. I will share my finds later on, but I will share one thing today. Mrs. Carol kept insisting on buying me Christmas presents. I finally allowed her to buy me a necklace that was 25% off. Click here to check it out. The 2 necklaces are actually separate, so you can layer them or wear them by themselves. I can't wait to open up this gift when we are in Dothan for Christmas!

Parker and Mr. Mike finished their shopping way too soon, so Loft was our final stop. Mrs. Carol and I had the best time and could have kept going for hours. But the guys were finished, so we came on home with them and Mr. Mike cooked us the most delicious dinner before we had Parker's birthday cake for dessert. We were too full the night before, so we got to enjoy The Cheesecake Factory red velvet cheesecake (bought at Walmart) after Mr. Mike's delicious meal.

Saturday

Saturday was a rainy day, but that didn't really matter to us because we don't leave the house on gamedays anyway. Parker's sweet parents offered to take us out to get new blinds to replace our broken ones, and Parker quickly declined and told them we don't leave the house on gameday. Football takes over our entire day.

We watched Auburn, ate rotel dip, and watched football all. day. long. Maybe I should clarify- some of us watched football all day long, some of us online shopped and talked about Christmas lists. And others of us (Bailey and Rosie) slept in cozy spots all day long.

We ended the day watching the Alabama-LSU game and eating hamburgers and homemade french fries, which we hadn't made in at least a year. OMG- they are SO good. Also, Mrs. Carol let me buy one Christmas gift for her! She picked out this sweater that I got for myself a couple of weeks ago and shared about in this post. It is such a cute one, and I was excited to get my Christmas shopping started!

Sunday

Mr. Mike picked up breakfast for us on our last morning together, so we ate our breakfast and drank coffee before they had to head out. Mrs. Carol also got me to pick out one more Christmas gift. :) This ruffle sweatshirt dress included in the Nordstrom sale will be wrapped up under the tree for me to open next month, and I can't wait to open it and get to spend more time with Parker's amazing family!

Two arms out for the most fun weekend!

I know this was a little different from my typical blog posts, but I know I will be thankful to have this post to remember such a fabulous weekend! And guess what- my family is coming in town this weekend, so I hope you enjoyed reading because there will be a similar recap happening next week! 

Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day!

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10 Takeaways from my 10 Year Reunion

This past weekend was a celebratory one. My sister and her boyfriend of 10 years got engaged! And I attended my 10 year high school reunion. So today I'm sharing 10 takeaways from my 10 year reunion! 

1. I am so grateful my parents invested in my education. When you are in the middle of your school years, you get too wrapped up in your school work, friendships, sports, and all sorts of other things to even think about thanking your parents endlessly for working so hard to send you to an amazing school. So Mom and Dad, I realize I'm a little late with this, but THANK YOU for sending me to a school where I was able to get a fantastic education. 

2. I may not talk to my friends from high school every single day or see them too many times a year, but that doesn't mean they are not my lifelong friends. We so easily pick up right where we left off every single time we get to see each other. 

3. When people say time flies, they aren't kidding. How it has been 10 years since I graduated from high school blows my mind. I can't believe I'm now 28 and married. I feel like it was just yesterday we were standing behind the Seniors sign at the pep rally getting ready to run out and feeling like we were such a big deal because we were the oldest in the school. Makes me want to slow down and make sure I'm appreciating each stage of life. Also, if you want a link for the Minnie Mouse outfit below, message me. #kidding #homemade #fashion

4. Because my degrees are in teaching, I can speak to how much a simple thank you from a student and/or parent means. If there is a teacher you love (or your child loves), tell her how much you appreciate her! Teachers work harder than you will ever know.

5. Team sports are so good for you when you are growing up. You learn a whole lot more than just the sport itself. Especially when you have a coach like this precious lady. 

6. Pictures are everything! I wish I had a scrapbook for every year of my life. But I am so grateful to have this blog now to document wonderful memories, like our reunion weekend.

7. So many people in our class are genuinely kind people. Someone I had not spoken to in 10 years reached out to give me a hug and say hello when I was passing by. If you are in our class, you could probably guess I'm talking about Jory! I strive to be a person as thoughtful and kind as Jory! 

8. We could not name more than 2 high school couples that stayed together. I don't know exactly what this means, but I found it interesting. 

9. Listening to the many accomplishments my classmates have achieved at the Athletic Hall of Fame banquet was astounding. For example, one fellow classmate below is currently a professional MMA fighter ranked #18 lightweight in North America. Umm, whoa! I am beyond honored and thankful to be a part of this group. 

10. We may be 10 years older, but the SPS class of 2007 is still as fun and full of spirit as we were 10 years ago. Already counting down until the next reunion! Let's go Mobile!!!

Thanks so much to Graysi, Paige, and everyone who made our reunion such a fabulous event! Also, thanks so much for reading today's post! Have a great day!