Pensacola Round-Up

 

Hey y'all. This year we spent Thanksgiving at the beach and it was a much needed get-away. Pretty sad though because I spent the last few days in sunny and 72-75 degree weather and I've come home to rain and 55-60. Not fair! We left Wednesday morning for Pensacola Beach and the next few days were full of fun and family time.

 

We of course spent lots of time on the beach, it was such great weather!

 

 

This is my youngest sister, complete with mermaid tail!

 

 

 

Hubs decided he wanted to try to feed the birds. I'll admit that being that close was a little bit scary!

 

 

Evenings were spent either playing games (spoons, Taboo, Mexican Train, and Yahtzee were all on the list), or dancing the night away at our favorite place - Peg Leg Pete's.

This is hubs and my dad dancing away!

 



 

This is Peg Leg Pete's from our balcony - super close. The second they open that parking lot is packed!! They have the best crab legs (well, really everything is the best).

 

 

What a view!!

 

Thanksgiving morning me, my dad, brother, and sister got up to run the Pensacola Turkey Trot. I personally about died, but it was still fun. Definitely enjoyed the mimosa at the end though!

 We had the cutest beach themed Thanksgiving decorations!

 

 During our last day we went and walked around the shops downtown and then over to the fish market. I've never been to a fish market before and I've got to say it is neat!

 

And here's us trying to get a picture by one of the big fishing boats...

 

It was a perfect four days and I while I'm sitting here with the Monday blues I'm daydreaming about this sunset. Till next time P'Cola.

 

 

read more

Let's Get Started - Top 10 Movies

Now that Thanksgiving is over it is officially time to celebrate Christmas! Now, don’t get me wrong – I love Thanksgiving, but I love Christmas more. (Plus – December is my birthday month so let’s get there already!)

To start off the season I’m going to give you my top ten movies that you should watch. These are in no particular order so you should just watch them all!

1.       ELF

2.       National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

3.       The Santa Clause

4.       The Santa Clause 2: The Mrs. Clause

5.       The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause

6.       Santa Baby

7.       Santa Baby 2

8.       The Polar Express

9.       Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch  Stole Christmas

10.   Home Alone

You’ve probably seen most of these, but if not get to work!!

Now Hubs thinks Die Hard and Die Hard 2 are Christmas movies that belong on the list. I keep telling him that just because it occurs during Christmas time does not make it a Christmas movie.

Do you have a favorite that I didn’t list? Do you agree or disagree with Hubs? Let me know in the comments!

 

read more

Thanksgiving Decoration Round-Up

 

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving Week! I absolutely love Thanksgiving (probably because I love to eat!)

 

For today's post I went to Pinterest (none of these images are my own) and scoped out some of my favorite DIY decorations. Hopefully this will help you out if you're in a last minute bind!

 

These bottles are great and easy! (they also serve a dual purpose because you get to drink in order to make these!) Simply grab some old wine bottles, or beer bottles if you're looking for something smaller. Spray paint them the color of your choice. Once dry, write  on them with a paint pen and tie some twine around the top. Ta-Da!

image via Pinterest

 

Next up - some simple candles. Grab a pack of fake leaves and use twine or ribbon to tie around candles. You could even use candles you already have. Easy and cheap!

 

image via Pinterest

 

This one I love! Use those old mason jar lids (you can buy some if you don't have a stock pile) and spray paint them orange. Tie them together and stick some cinnamon sticks in the middle. Hello adorable pumpkin!

 



image via Pinterest

 

This is absolutely adorable and a must (in my opinion) if your family has kids. All you need is a pumpkin and a sharpie. You could use a orange pumpkin if you can't find a white one, or paint it if you're really wanting white!

image via Pinterest

 

Last but not least - GOLD. My favorite! I drool over all things gold. Pick some pumpkins (real or fake), pinecones, anything really, and a can of gold spray paint.

 

image via Pinterest

 

If you use one of these (or even if you didn't), I'd love to see them! Send me pictures (thecourtneycollection@gmail.com) or add them in the comments.

 

read more

Giving Thanks

 

 

Hey! Great news – we made it to Friday! With Thanksgiving coming up next week I have been thinking about all the things I’m thankful for. And let me tell you – it is quite the list! However, one thing really stands out and it’s you! Without you, my reader, this blog wouldn’t be possible.  I know we’re all busy heading into the weekend before a major holiday, so I’m going to keep today’s post simple and short.

To my current readers – thank you for your love and support. Thank you for signing up so early in the game and reading my posts. Thank you for your ideas and words of encouragement.  You are fabulous and I value you.

To my future readers – thank you for stopping by. I hope you enjoy what you read and continue to come around. I appreciate your support and you are also fabulous!

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

What are you thankful for? Leave a comment and let me know!

 

 

read more

Spiked Apple Cider

 

Hello fabulous people! Happy national apple cider day!

 

I don't know about you, but I have had a week. And it's only Wednesday! So to celebrate this wonderful day I figured why stick with regular cider when you can have spiked cider?

 

Now here is where sad news comes into play... I was already home in my PJs when I decided that spiked cider was a must. Obviously I wasn't going to change and get back out in the rain (I don't know about you, but here in Chatt-Town it has been pouring all day). Now for good news - there was vodka in the freezer! (thank you hubs!!) So I'm going to let you in on how I'm celebrating national apple cider day with things you most likely have in your home already.

 

All you need is apple cider and vodka. Cinnamon sticks are optional. They make an excellent garnish as well as adding a little extra flavor.

Grab your glass and throw in some ice. Pour a shot (or two) of vodka and top off with cider.

Garnish with a cinnamon stick and enjoy your evening!

Now I realize this isn't some fancy drink recipe, but it's what I had and I'm sure you do too!

What is your favorite cider recipe? Let me know in the comments!

 

read more

Getting my life together.. HA

 

Here lately I’ve really been trying to get my life together – ha, right? Is that even possible? I’ve always had great dreams of being an organized person (and let’s throw in another ha...), but it never happens. I buy the fancy planners and map out my life and do great, but only for about three days. Then I’m screwed.

This time though I’m serious. I mean if I’m struggling to run a household that consists of hubs, me and the dog, how am I ever going to add kids to the mix? So I’m trying… really hard…

Things I’m doing:

1.       The dishes every night, even when I don’t want to. A clean sink gives me happiness. (Sometimes I get lucky and Nick does them before I make it to them!)

2.       I bought a Happy Planner. I realized that I had a planner for me, a planner/notebook for work and another one for my blogs. WAY too many, and it was setting me up for failure. So with this planner I’m able to customize it for what I want and so far it’s perfect!

3.       Trying my best to stick to my to-do list. I’ve always loved making lists, but when I’m tired I don’t always follow through. So I’ve been working on making sure I stick to it.

4.       Attempting to organize my craft room. I spend so much time in here and it is a mess!! I can’t think when I’m in there and that is distracting.

What I’m doing isn’t much but it’s definitely a step in the right direction.

Do you do anything to help stay organized? Let me know in the comments!

 

read more

DIY: Lace Crown

 

 

Hello my crafty friends! Today I'm sharing my DIY lace crown. I'm a little embarrassed to post this because of the pictures, but I'm going to anyway. Just keep in mind that I was in a hurry and didn't have time to clean my craft room before this so there is stuff everywhere!

 

This is probably one of the easiest, but cutest crafts! If you have, or know, a little girl this is a must!!! (This also works if you’re a self-claimed princess like me – I plan to make myself one.) I made this lace crown for one of my best friend’s bachelorette party this past weekend. She was so cute!

All you need is some lace (I bought a half-yard), fabric stiffener, and hot glue. Optional items are paint, glitter, and something round to shape around (I used an old jumbo wine bottle).

 

 

Lay your lace out on a piece of wax paper and cover it in the fabric stiffener. (Helpful hint: the kind I bought pours out so I had to brush it on. I HIGHLY recommend getting stiffener that comes with a spray top) Now this needs to dry. I did this step right before I went to bed one night so it was able to have all night to dry. 

 





 



Optional step – if you’re planning on painting your crown keep reading, if not you can skip ahead. I painted hers with gold paint. I wanted to make sure I kept the details of the lace though. So I grabbed my spray bottle (you can pick one up for a dollar at most stores), I poured some paint in there and mixed in just a little bit of water. I then sprayed it onto the lace. It gave it color without weighing it down with paint. I also sprinkled some glitter on while the paint was wet!

 

 

 

Once your stiffener (and paint) is dry trim any off the bottom if you need it shorter. I did this in a few cuts so I wouldn't go too short (ignore my bike and my socks...*embarrassed*). Now shape it into a circle as wide as you want (like I said, I used an old wine bottle) and hot glue the ends together.

 

 

 

Ta-Da! You’re now a princess! We secured hers to her head by sticking bobby pins through the holes in the lace.

 

 

 

Did you make one? I’d love to see it and/or here your tips. Let me know in the comments!

 

read more

Weekend Recap: Party Time

 

This weekend we celebrated one of my best friend’s upcoming wedding by having her bachelorette party! We headed to Nashville, TN and had a blast!

The theme of her party was cranberry and leopard with champagne sayings. The shirts we wore out said “Pop the bubbly Kari’s getting a hubby” and then our shirts for brunch said “Pop the top she’s tying the knot”. I made both shirts with my mom’s silhouette machine and everyone loved them.

 

 

Knowing we were going to be in a hotel room I didn’t want to have too many decorations, but I knew we had to have something. So I got a tablecloth, plates, confetti, and napkins that matched the theme. I also made our leopard print glasses, confetti hangers and cranberry poof balls. All was completely minimal, but it really added to the room and made it feel less hotel-y. One of my favorites was the lace crown I made for the bachelorette herself to wear. You can see it behind all the glasses in the picture below. I’ll be doing a post later in the week on how I made it, so check back for better pictures of it!

 

 

And of course there was food! Since we were heading to dinner we only had some snacks. We had buffalo chicken dip, a popcorn bar, cheez-its, and cupcakes. The basics, but all things the bride-to-be loves.

 

 

It was sad to end such a great weekend but it was nice to get home to hubs and the pup. 

read more