After Sun

A perfect day to me is spent on the beach with family and friends.  I could spend hours lounging in a beach chair, swimming in the waves and taking walks in the sand.  But after a long day soaking up the rays, a quick shower and some lotion and aloe is a must!

I have always been a fan of the Hawaiian Tropic suntan lotion (I mean have you smelled the stuff… amazing!) and I have to say their After Sun lotion is the best way to end a beach day.

 

I first tried the After Sun lotion this past week on a trip to the outer banks and I was sold!  The lotion and aloe gel was the perfect combination to hydrate and smooth my pinkened skin.  And don’t let the aloe fool you, this isn’t the t-shirt sticking to your skin aloe, this lotion rubs in perfectly!

 

So when packing your beach get-a-way bag this summer, be sure to throw this little beauty in too!

 

* Hawaiian Tropics After Sun Lotion was sent to me for review but all opinions are all my own.

Beach Necessities

After an amazing week at the beach this past week I am back to reality and feeling a little bummed.  To reminisce and get my mind back to our little get-a-way, I wanted to share my beach necessities for a perfect few hours in the sand.

 

 

 

1.     Beach Towel

2.     Beach Chair: we grabbed these chairs last summer and what a great purchase!  A cooler pack, built in bag, and pillow!  What is not to love? And it scraps the need for an actual beach bag

3.     Easy Beach Read: Love the simple trashy reads!

4.     iPhone

5.     Sunscreen

6.     Cold Beer & Water: I am pretty sure I would be perfectly content with just these two!

What are your must-haves for a beach day?



Friday Night Fail

Friday evening I had the brilliant idea to go on an after dinner walk with our dog, Hunter.

 

Brandon was working so Hunter and I set off alone into the woods behind our new house to let him get out some energy.  It started as a normal walk, I turned on Pandora so Hunter and I could jam out, he sniffed and peed on everything, and we chatted.  We came to a fork in the road and decided to take a left.  I was under the assumption that the path we were on looped back around to the original path and would take us back to the tree line... oh but I was so so wrong.  

The grass started to get taller on the path, the sun was setting a bit quicker than anticipated and then, as we hit an unexpected fork, the Pandora cut out and we were stranded.  Then I heard a rustle in the woods (which I am 110% sure was a giant grizzly bear!)!  Hunter and I picked up the pace (read: full out sprinted) and ran along what I realized was the back end of the property.  I thought we were close to the end of the woods when I ran into the giant piece of machinery.  I called Brandon frantically, thinking he would at least have some idea of where I was and be able to direct me towards civilization... no answer!  Hunter was helpfully stopping every 4 feet to pee on each bush (I imagine this was his Hansel and Gretel version of bread crumbs) so at least they would be able to find our bear-mauled bodies in the daylight.

After a few more wrong turns, dead ends and my loud cursing of country life we found our way to the open field by the road.  Granted we were on the entire opposite side of the 100 acre property, but we made it out alive!

We got back to the house and I gave Hunter a quick once over for ticks and that's when the fun really began!  I rushed him into the bath and spent the next hour of my Friday evening washing a plucking ticks of the poor dog.  I feel like we eradicated the entire tick population of Virginia!

 Brandon was able to get a break from work and call me back... he was a little concerned how I was able to get lost in our own backyard.  Needless to say Sense of Direction is not a quality I list on resumes.

 My bruised ego, and our ticking-hating dog have decided no more walks without Brandon! 

 

Happy Blogging!

As we get closer and closer to finishing our new home, I can't wait to be blogging again more!  Katie at Keep Calm and Carry On {love, love, love her blog!!} wrote a great post last week about getting back to blogging and renewing everyone's love of this favorite hobby! 

So here I am!

We have been busy over here with best friend's weddings, house decisions (flooring, cabinets, outlets... oh my), family birthdays, and more weddings to come!  All the hustle and bustle starts to blur together and all the sudden it's June!

I thought I would start back to blogging with a quick

"Currently"

Watching… Playing House on USA.  This show has me laughing out loud over and over again, and of course, wanting to move in with my best friend!

Reading… The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (I am a junkie for these type of books.  All part of my game-plan to rule the world!), and waiting for a copy of Emily Griffin’s new book to come in the mail from my old roommate! Then just give me a beach chair and a few hours!

Listening… Lisa Loeb station on Pandora (I mean, how was I not listening to this all day, every day already?!)

Feeling… overwhelmed!  I am in love with the idea of building our own house, but all the decision making gets crazy! 

Planning… super fun and exciting giveaways at Simply Style Boutique!! ;)

Loving… the warm weather and beach days ahead!  How can you not be happy on these oh so perfect sunny days!

Happy Blogging ladies!

 

Five on Friday

Happy Friday loves!!  This sunshine is getting me so excited for the weekend and what better way to kick it off than with the Friday Link-up for Five on Friday!

 

{one}

First things first... you have to check out the amazing SALE at www.simplystyleboutique.com!! 60% off all apparel and

And the shop is filled with new accessories and I have been dressing fabulously all week because of it ;)

Simply Style Boutique perfect beach cover-up 60% off!
(I am so missing that long hair)

 

{two}

My parents opened their pool this past week and I am grabbing my bikini and heading over Saturday to enjoy an afternoon Corona by the pool!

my dad and brother working hard... of course my mother had to post it on facebook!

 

{three}

Celebrating Mother’s Day for my beautiful mother and sister on Saturday evening with the family!  I am in-charge of the salads and I am trying my talents at an orzo pasta salad (the plus side is no oven is involved, so I can’t burn it!)

 

{four}

Picking out a refrigerator for the new house was both the roughest part and highlight of my week.  The cabinet guy was waiting on the fridge size to finalize our kitchen layout at the new house!

GE Profile refridgerator

 

{five}

A house update: we have outside walls, windows and doors!  And the electrician has come through and run the wiring throughout the house!  I can start to walk through and mentally decorate every room!  It is becoming so real!  

(now I just need the unlimited design budget and we are golden!)

 

Link-up with these lovely ladies and let's talk about your "Five on Friday"!

{and a very big Congratulations to Christina of Carolina Charm and her husband on the birth of their beautiful little girl... those pictures will have your baby fever in full swing!!}

 

 

 

link-up

Pantone Love

Last year Pantone picked Emerald Green for their color of the year, not a favorite if you ask me, but when this year's choice came out and Radiant Orchid hit the masses, I was in love!

 

I keep a fairly neutral wardrobe (which I kick myself over every morning as I scour to pick something a bit more exciting to wear than black) but I knew I wanted a way to show off this year's color.

So I grabbed a scarf, probably one of the easiest and practical accessories around!

 

Thrown on with a simple black top and white capris and I am set!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are you loving Pantone's choice?  How do you wear you favorite colors?

Weekend Recap

Last week my sister and I decided a beach trip to the outerbanks was much overdue, so we packed out bags, she put her husband on daddy-duty with the kids, and we headed down to our family house in Duck on Friday.



Friday's look of the day! 



 Our parents were going down as well to get the house ready for summer so we figured we could work on Simply Style Boutique business (*fun things coming next week*), help with some spring cleaning and work on our tans!

porch coffee with a view always seems so much better!

 Unfortunately the weather-man guessed a bit high on the 80 degree weather forecast but my sister and I were able to grab a beer and chat on the beach before heading to church. 

 

Emily & Beth coozies

After church we ate at The Black Pelican in Kitty Hawk.  This was our first time there and they had an amazing menu.  After our day of chips and appetizers I wasn’t too hungry so I opted for their Mediterranean Chop House Salad.  It was a large serving size and so delicious!

Sunday we enjoyed the last bit of weekend sunshine and helped put together bunk beds with mom and dad at the beach house before we headed back home.



I slept in the bedroom with the bunk bed overflow...

Now we are back to a week with a dreary looking weather forecast but our house is coming along and we are looking forward to a visit with the electrician this week.