mom hack: chick fil a.

can i be completely honest?

we visit our local chick-fil-a at least three times a week.

ok. fine. maybe four or five times a week.

are you judging me?

please don't. 

it is just so impossibly yummy. 

and it might be the only meat that my tot will actually eat.

i scream for chickie nuggies. & he does. too.  

to put it simply. 

if mama loves it. and tot loves it.

it is a grand slam in my book.  

you can imagine my utter delight when the owner of our chick-fil-a . . .

mister-dave-with-the-dog-on-his-belt as we refer to him in our house . . .

told me about the "heat it when you need it" nugget trays. 

my mind was blown. 

these trays come in small. medium. & large. 

they are fully cooked. & then chilled until you wish to serve them.

they are so great for a gathering of friends.

a bible study get together.

or a kids party.

you just pop those nuggets in the oven for about 15 minutes 

& they are ready to be served.

so super convenient & yummy.

but my favorite thing about these chilled trays . . .

the fact that we now have bottomless nuggets in our freezer.

how amazing is that?!

yes. i may or may not have purchased two trays to keep in my freezer.

that way. on the days that i don't feel like heading to chick-fil-a

i can serve it to patrick right at home.

i simply pull out a handful of nuggets. 

heat them. & serve them.

patrick gets the pleasure of having his CFA nuggets.

i get the pleasure of staying at home to get things done.

we are both gloriously happy.

i feel certain that as my stash runs low i will be 

refilling with more trays. 

it is just so brilliant. 

so mama's. grandma's. auntie's. stock your fridge with these babies.

you will not regret it. & your kiddos will thank you.

the fourth street chick-fil-a has the trays ready on demand.

you can simply pop in & order them to go.

you'll just have a few minutes to wait as they package them up for you.

if you are hoping to get a large amount. just call ahead.

hopefully this will ease some of your burden this holiday season 

as you are having parties & family gatherings. 

everyone loves chick-fil-a! 

cluck! cluck! 

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beauty counter.

alright ladies. 

prepare to fall in love.

beauty counter is. hands. down. my latest obsession. 

i am a thirty year old girl that has always struggled with poor skin.

i get breakouts. hyper-pigmentation. uneven texture. dull complexion. & oily spots.

yes. the entire batch of bad skin annoyances happily reside on my face. 

it is not so much fun. and even less pretty to look at in the mirror. 

i have tried every topical. every peel. every pharmaceutical program out there.

and sadly none of them have worked the magic they claim to do.

that is until i was introduced to beauty counter.

when my sweet.as.pie.girlfriend.michelle let me sample her products

i was blown away at how much i loved them from the very first application.

in all honesty. the aromas. the oils. the entire process felt like a spa treatment. 

{and hey. this mama sure does miss her frequent spa sessions}

after sampling her tester kit for one week. i was hooked.

i loved the serenity of the nighttime routine.

& i really loved waking up with dewy refreshed skin every morning.

it finally dawned on me. 

applying harsh anti-aging. anti-acne. chemicals to my sensitive face. 

in hopes of having clear. youthful. beautiful skin. was back firing. 

 in reality it was sucking the life out of my face.

leaving it overly dehydrated. abused. & just a mess.

{not to mention disrupting my endocrine system. thats another topic}

my face was crying out for natural. gentle. & safe products.

that would allow my skin to thrive organically.

products that truly are good for me. 

by the way. 

did you know that europe has banned over 1300 skincare 

ingredients that are hazardous to our health & wellbeing?!

the united states has banned only 11. 

did you know that most of the skincare products on the market in the united states

contain ingredients that are known endocrine disruptors?!

that means they can foul up your metabolism. your thyroid. & even your fertility!

did you know that beauty counter does not use any ingredients that 

even pose a potential threat to your health & well-being?

consider me sold. 

beauty counter can be trusted to be safe & beneficial for our precious bodies. 

here are a few of my faves from the essential beauty counter collection. 

love this uplifting rose water spray.

super refreshing. a healthy toner. 

obsessed with this lustro face oil.

never thought i would rub oil on my face . . .

but truly this is like liquid gold. 

the routine clean face wash.

gentle & strong. all in one. 

so ladies. 

if you want to get serious about what you are 

putting on & into your body.

all the while nourishing your skin . . .

check out beauty counter

or reach out to me.

i can get you in touch with beauty counter rep. michelle. 

she is incredibly knowledgable about the entire beauty counter collection.

plus. she has sample kits that you are more than welcome to try out. 

xoxo.

{images courtesy of glitter guide. they love beauty counter, too!}

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diy magnetic board.

i love the idea of a magnetic board in a playroom.

it is just so much fun. & really stinkin cute.

it provides great entertainment. imagination stimulation. & a bit of education. too.

i had been on the hunt for the perfect one . . . but just could not find it.

i wanted it to be extra big. and to order an extra big one costs extra big bucks. 

so. i decided that we could just make our most perfect magnetic board.

& it turned out exactly as i had hoped it would. 

our board is a whoppin' four feet by six feet.

& the entire board cost less than 100 dollars to build.

{thats a steal compared to the options i found online}

the kicker is that it only took one weekend to make. 

{thanks to a super handy dad}

first things first. 

we got a piece of sheet metal cut to the size we wanted.

next. we used liquid nails to adhere the sheet metal to a piece of plywood.

{you want the plywood & sheet metal to be the same size}

using clamps to hold the pieces together . . . let the glue dry overnight. 

pick up some trim molding from home depot to use for your framing.

paint it the color of your choosing. i chose glossy black. per usual. 

adhere the trim to the sheet metal using liquid nails. 

after the board & trim have completely dried

it is time to hang your board.

keep in mind that the board is very heavy.

you will definitely want to make sure you affix it well. 

then voila!

you have your very own magnetic board. 

accessorize your board with age appropriate magnets & watch the fun begin. 

i chose to use wooden animals. letters. & dinosaurs. 

they are super cute & big enough that they won't fit in patrick's mouth. 

all of the animals have really sparked patrick's curiosity.

he loves to point at each of them so we can tell him their names.

he also loves to try to take the magnets off & put them back on again.

it is really fun to watch him explore his great big new toy. 

yay! 

we always knew magnetic boards were way fun . . .

but who knew they were so easy to make?!

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a birth story.

i had the absolute pleasure of photographing the birth of sweet baby caroline.

tiffany & jimmy are dear friends of mine. & this is their second baby girl. 
i could not have scripted a more perfect or beautiful birth . . .

now. here is my disclaimer:
i am not a professional photographer.
so if you are one . . . look away.
this is merely my attempt at capturing beautiful moments 
for those people that i love the most.

welcome to the world sweet baby caroline. 

and thank you to my sweet friend tiffany . . .
what an honor it was to be by your side for this special day.

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