Boating 101

A few weeks ago, my family & I visited Rosemary Beach in Florida. The vacation was much needed by all & welcomed with outstretched arms. We decided to rent a boat for the first time, a pontoon boat to be exact. I have only one memory of being on a boat. A fishing boat of some sort when I was just 7 or 8. My friend Travis got bit by a dolphin. So...that was interesting.

This experience was completely different though. I was extremely nervous when we first arrived. To put it simply, I am terrified of the ocean. I'm not afraid of drowning nor afraid of being eaten by a shark but I am terrified of large, vast things. Big buildings get my heart racing so you can imagine what happens when I stare out into a big, deep body of water.

But once on the boat, I felt pretty comfortable. We rode out to Shell Island, an uninhabited island off the coast. The beach was BEAUTIFUL & the water unlike anything I'd seen before. The bay side of the island was calm with water only waist deep. The gulf side was FULL of shells & sand dollars. We walked the beach & collected a bucketful after having lunch on the boat. My brother snorkeled for a bit & I swam in the middle of the ocean for the first time in my life on our way back. I had been out in the waves before but I had never swam where I couldn't touch. It was invigorating at first, then I got freaked out & promptly swam back to the boat. But hey, atleast I tried!

Cowboys & Indians...& Aliens?

Warning: Image heavy...

(Please note: Lauren's hilarious face. She makes the best of them!)

The lack of posts around here isn't due to the lack of adventure. These past few weeks have been packed full of summer fun with my bests. I have a couple of posts scheduled about my birthday beach trip but I couldn't hold off on posting all of these hilarious photos from last night. We're still working on the internet situation at our house which is why this place has been so quiet!

The girls & I had a party at our new house in Nashville to celebrate my 23rd birthday & invite friends to see our humble abode. The theme was Cowboys & Indians. We decided to keep it interesting & add the option of dressing up as an alien. The outcome was laughable.

The house was packed with so many new & old faces. Best birthday yet.

BEACHGRAMS

I hope everyone is having a fabulous week...because I know I am!
Here are a few stills from vacation so far via Instagram...











1. Our boat trip to Shell Island; 2. View from the beach house; 3. At the beach in my leopard pink bikini; 4. Mango daiquiri; 5. Self portrait while bday shopping; 6. Big brother with a feather rat tail...don't ask; 7. Swimming in the ocean for the first time; 8. A storm rolling in on the beach

I'll be back soon with a post on our boat trip to Shell Island!

Prepping For Fall

I am currently at Rosemary Beach in Florida with my family on vacation. My birthday is Friday so I decided to take myself on a little shopping trip today. I intended to just buy whatever caught my eye but I ended up purchasing half the things on my Fall wishlist. Every single thing I purchased was atleast 20% off AND tax-free! How did I get so lucky?!

These are the items purchased that were on my list for fall...

Black leather jacket - Old Navy ; Booties - Old Navy ; Distressed denim - A&F (I would never shop here, however all denim was HALF OFF!) ; Checkered shirt - J. Crew ; Black leather satchel - Francesca's

I am amazed that I stepped foot into A&F AND purchased something. The music & cologne nearly scared me off but I muddled through all in the name of denim! The checkered shirt has been on my wishlist for eons. I knew J. Crew would be the place to purchase it but I wasn't impressed with the price. However, I scored it for 30% off!

I am out of my mind excited about the faux leather jacket. I'm impressed with the structure & quality being that it was only $50 and from Old Navy, which I am usually not able to shop at because nothing ever fits me correctly. I've wanted one of these suckers for years.

Hopefully I'll be styling these pieces in the near future! Fall can't come soon enough.

MOVING DAY!

Hello, friends!

Sorry if things are a little quiet around here but I am officially in move in mode!

We got the keys today. Can you guess which one is mine?

Lots to do in the next few days!

See ya soon!

An Update

Good afternoon, blogosphere! I'm taking a little break from my never ending to-d0 list to try & catch up on my bloglovin' updates. Over 500+ updates! Sheesh. Not sure when I'll ever get through these...

I'm sitting here in disbelief that July is OVER. Where is this summer going? It has seriously been such a busy couple of months. August is going to be jam packed as well. I start my new position with Harley on Monday. I will be the store manager of our alternative retail outlet in downtown. I'm extremely excited to be working in downtown Nashville full-time. It's such a different culture down there & I absolutely love talking to the tourists who get excited about being in Nashville.

Next weekend is my big move into the city! I don't think I've ever been more excited about a move. Lauren, Kayla & I are busy getting packed & making plans for housewarming get togethers. We're all looking forward to having new spaces to decorate & make our own. The following weekend is my birthday trip to the beach! Kayla will be joining me mid-vaca & I imagine we'll be up to no good. I've never needed a vacation & margarita so badly in my life!

Tonight is the costume party of all costume parties. My dear friend, & new assistant at the shop, will be joining me. You're never going to guess what we're going as...

Until next time!

Grassy Knoll Movie Night : Harold & Maude

Last night I attended an outdoor movie event that my bestfriend, Lauren, helped organize. Grassy Knoll Movie Night takes place every few weeks in an empty lot next to one of Nashville's best coffee shops, Bongo Java. There were food trucks galore so you can imagine my excitement! Food trucks are fairly new to Nashville but have recently been blowing up. It seems there is a new one popping up every week.

I got a taste of I Dream of Weenie and Pizza Buds. Both were deeeelicious! Jackalope, a new all women's run brewery, was also there but I wasn't in a beer mood so I skipped out. I plan on trying it next time though. Plus I'm all about a brewery run by girls!

The movie that played last night was Harold & Maude. I had heard of this movie but never seen it. I instantly fell in love with it! I plan on ordering it so I can watch it again & again. Harold's character is probably one of my favorite film characters ever.

Learn more about Grassy Knoll Movie Night here. There are many more dates this summer & fall!

Buon Compleanno!

On Friday night, we celebrated Lauren's 23rd birthday...ITALIAN style!

I swear we were campaigning for No Carb Left Behind. How do the Italians do it!?

We consumed large amounts of pasta, bread, cheese, & wine. LOTS of wine. It was the most deeeelicious party I've ever been to.

& then we boogied.

*Come back tomorrow for a What I Wore post featuring this outfit! :)

American rain, American rain

The 4th of July was pretty perfect. My day was spent at the mall window shopping while waiting for my lovely new Ray Bans. I somehow scratched the lenses of the pair that I've been recently wearing. It cost less to just buy new ones so that's exactly what I did. I went with the new wayfarers. Big, black & round! Love.

The evening was spent at Logan's for a little American get together. Beer, hot dogs, & lots of new faces. We headed downtown to watch fireworks & enjoyed each others company at the end of the night. Sadly, a very close friend of Logan's was in a bad bicycle accident while on her way to the firework show. She'll probably be in the hospital for a bit so my thoughts are with her & fingers are crossed for a fast recovery. It's amazing how quickly your circumstances can change - for good or bad. Accidents happen but boy, I wish they didn't. <3