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5.30.2014

Get Pin-Spired #16

 Hey, Hey It's my Birthday!
I am the big 3-5 today. Yikes.
I am taking the day off school and going to get a mani/pedi.
Then, I am heading to the Nordstrom Half Yearly Sale, I received a couple Nordstrom gift cards for my birthday that I WILL be spending today!
Enough about that, no it's time to Get Pin-Spired with me, Sheaffer & Shay!

I am doing something a little different with this month's Pin-Spired! 
Last month, one of my best friends from since I was in Pre-School (Hi Sarah-Sue!) posted on FB that she just got her first Stich Fix. I had heard of Stich Fix before, but hadn't really looked into it until then and decided to give it a try!
Basically, Stitch Fix is a styling service that sends you 5 pieces of clothing, which are picked out especially for you by your own personal stylist! 
Here are the 5 things I got in my box:
When, I first opened my box, I immediately laughed because 3 out of the 5 items are pieces I already have in my closet....but I took that as my stylist knowing my style and what I like.
Not the exact ones, but similar. I have a white/navy striped shirt with 3/4 sleeves. I have red jeans & I have a denim jacket just like that one!
I held up the aqua cardigan & knew it would be too big (it was)
And, when I saw the floral tank, I wasn't quite sure about it.

Not only does it come with 5 items, but it comes with a note from your stylist (so nice!) and it comes a print out of different ways you can style the pieces they sent you! And, it tells you what brand they are. It's like your own personal Pinterest. So fun!
 Since I just got my Stitch Fix, I thought I would use my Stitch Fix for my Pin-Spired post.
Here is one of the images on the card:
 I wasn't so sure about the tank top because I am not big into floral prints. I mostly stick to stripes (I own LOTS of stripes! And polka dots!) I had the other items to make this outfit happen:

I actually loved this outfit! I was surprised at how I liked the floral tank. It was fun & summery!
 I decided to see if I could create any other outfits with this tank top.
Here is one I came up with:

I LOVED this combo!
 This outfit just screams Spring & Summer to me. 
It made me realize that the floral tank would be more versatile than I first thought.

 Onto the next outfit....
I am pretty sure my stylist sent me the stripe shirt and the red jeans because of this pin that I have on my Pinterest:

 Even though I knew I wasn't keeping the stripe shirt and the red jeans since I already own items just like that, I thought I would try them on for fun.

I had to cuff the jeans because (shocker!) they were too short on me (I am 5'9 and have a LONG inseam of 36 inches, pants are so hard for me to buy) But, I was SHOCKED that they fit me pretty well. If I didn't already own red jeans, I would have kept these.

 As I was looking at the card my stylist sent me, I saw this cute outfit she put together using the denim jacket they sent, but I already own.  
 I realized I have similar color combos that this outfit has, so I dug in my closet and pulled out my coral/white/gray shirt and gray pants. (Just a little swap from the pictured outfit)

I like how this outfit turned out and I will totally be wearing it! 
So, there you have it! My Pin-Spired outfits for this month...which are really Stitch Fix inspired as well :)

If you want to sign up for Stitch Fix, it is easy!
Click {HERE}
To get started, all you do is fill out your style profile (and you can include a link to your Pinterest Boards if you have them so that your stylist can get a feel for your style)
The cost is $20 (which includes your styling fee and includes the shipping and return shipping!)
If you decide to keep any of the items, the $20 cost is credited toward what you buy.
If you keep everything in your box you receive $25% off the entire purchase. As a bonus, if you refer a friend who orders a fix you receive a $25 credit. 
I decided to keep one item.....the floral tank top. 
It was fun & I own nothing like it. 
I returned the other 4 items (which is super easy to do because your package comes with a pre-labeled & pre-paid shipping envelope that you mail your items back in. Easy Peasy. 
You just log on to your account and give your reasons why you are returning them (size, cost, didn't like, etc) Very user friendly!

I was really impressed with how well my stylist did choosing pieces for me the first time around, I mean she picked out 3 items that I already had in my closet...pretty impressive! 

It was fun, I will definatley be doing another Stitch Fix!
Anyone else ever tried out Stitch Fix? 
I am totally late to the Stitch Fix bandwagon, but glad I hoped on board :)

If you are new to my blog, thanks for stopping by!
Feel free to follow along! 
You can find me on Bloglovin or Facebook.
If you have outfits to link up, feel free to grab a button to add to your post.
Can't see what you link up!



The linky will be open until next Friday, June 6th
Your link will show up on my blog, Sheaffer's blog & Shay's blog.
My favorite part about linky parties is checking out other people who have linked up! 
Go find some new blogs & leave them a comment letting them know you stopped by...and get Pin-Spired by the outfits other people linked up!
TGIF!
Hope you have a great Friday & an awesome weekend!

5.28.2014

Cupcakes, Cornhole & Celebrations

I can't believe May is almost over!
It has been such a busy & fun month! 
If I could sum up this month in 3 words, it would be:
 Cupcakes, Cornhole & Celebrations
We ate a lot of Cupcakes this month.
We played a lot of Cornhole.
We had a lot to Celebrate!
Here are some highlights of our May via my phone!

The first weekend of May started off with the Kentucky Derby.
Our family is BIG into horse racing. 
My inlaws were at this year's Kentucky Derby and of course, being from California, we were rooting for California Chrome.
Kate was REALLY excited with California Chrome won, she went up & kissed the TV.
 When you watch the derby, you must have a Mint Julep!
Mother's Day weekend was also full of celebrations.
I took the kids out for Fro Yo Friday because of all the craziness that was going on in our schools & we were thankful that the week was over!
That Friday night, we had a Mom's Night Out that was put on by our church.
There was an awesome speaker, named Jennie Allen. She was great and so sweet.
The next night was our neighbor's 40th Birthday party with a hummer limo to San Francisco. So much fun! Love my neighbors!
 I only had 2 requests for Mother's Day. I wanted to sleep in & I wanted Eggs Benedict for breakfast.
Done and Done. Kevin made that happen.
My loot of gifts from my kids :)
We had the Book Fair at my girls school. Love my little book worms.
A house in our neighborhood had termites. Now, whever I see a tented house I think of Breaking Bad. Which, I finished this month. Yes, I watched all 5 seasons within a 5 week period. SO good!
 One of the biggest highlights of our May was my niece being born! So fun hanging out at the hospital on the big day!
Lots of celebrating for the arrival of a healthy baby girl.
 Friday Night Pizza Night when the weather is warm means having dinner poolside.
My favorite pizza combo...pepperoni, pineapple & jalapeno. SO good!
We had swim team Time Trials. I think we are going to have a fun year of swim team!
Kevin's Birthday was 2 weekends ago and for his birthday, we had a cornhole tournament our neighbors and I made a ton of cupcakes!
I made my Cookies & Cream Oreo Cupcakes {Recipe HERE}
I also made Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupackes {Recipe HERE}
Celebrating the birthday boy!
My neighbor Steph and I dominated at Corn Hole that night. So much fun!
Kate had her final Softball game of the season. Such a fun year. She cried when the season was over because she was going to miss her team so much. After her last game, we had a mother daughter game. It was so fun!
 
We had Open House celebrations at school. Love the Shape Town that Kate's class made!
Lukey & Boulder waiting for Kevin at the door. So cute!
 For Memorial Day weekend there was tons of swimming and tons of yard work.
 
We also celebrated my birthday and Kevin's birthday.
Since Kevin's birthday is the 18th & mine is the 30th, we celebrate with our families the weekend in between.
My family was on Saturday. My parents have the best view!
Sunday afternoon we went to pool party with friends
And, then another corn hole tournament with our court! Here is our neighbor on their balcony summoning the court with a horn alerting us that it is time for cornhole. Hysterical.
The neighbors begged for more cupcakes, so this time I made my Reeces Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Butter Cream Frosting {Recipe HERE}
Our court has a cupcake & cornhole addiction.  Ha!  I was not playing good cornole this weekend. Me & my partner got beat way too many times to count. It was still fun!
Monday night we celebrated our birthdays with Kevin's family! We had Ice Cream Cake {Recipe HERE}
 Yesterday I had a mini photo shoot for Olivia's birth announcements. I can't believe she has strawberry blonde hair! Such a cutie!
 So, there you have it. Our May in a nutshell.
We had a very fun and busy month and it's not over yet! 
More celebrating this weekend since my birthday is on Friday!
***********
 A few reminders!
May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month and my Rodan + Fields SPF & Sunless Tanner Sale ends on Saturday!
Buy 1 item with SPF , get 1 at 50% off!
*Includes the Sunless Tanner which is BACK in stock!!!
 Details of the sale on THIS post!

 And, this Friday is Pin-Spired!
Link up your Pinterest inpsired outfits with me, Sheaffer & Shay!
Hope you have a happy Wednesday...it's almost the weekend again and 2 weeks until school is out!!!!

5.21.2014

Our Backyard Garden {2014}

One of my very favorite parts of Spring (and Summer!) is planting our Garden.
Kevin grew up with a garden in their backyard & so did I.
We LOVE homegrown veggies. 
They taste amazing...there is nothing like picking veggies straight from your backyard!
I get so excited in April when it is time to start thinking about our garden.
This April we were crazy busy on the weekends with softball for Kate, throwing a baby shower and rainy weather, so we didn't get our garden planted until the first weekend of May.
I carefully plan out what I am planting in each garden box (that Kevin built for me!)
Each year, Kevin gets new dirt for our boxes. This year we did a compost mix (so stinky at first!!!) 
Each year, I have do most of the same things, but I like to try out at least one new veggie each year.
I am all about being a Suburban Farmer :)
Here is our 2014 Garden:
Notice the fencing around it....that is to keep our dog out. We originally had no fence:

 But, the day after I planted the garden, our yellow lab dug up half the garden!!!
I was furious! So, I had to go buy new plants & replant them. Ugh.

 Here is a breakdown of what I have in each of the 3 garden boxes:
Box #1
I have green onions & leeks
Carrots & Celery
2 types of lettuce, Wildfire Mix and Romaine:
I also put my herbs in this box.
Dill & Cilantro
Rosemary & Oregano:
Garlic Chives & Basil

Box #2:
This box contains 4 types of tomatoes, squash & zuchinni:
I planted Sun Sugar Tomatoes (orange) and Super Sweet 100:
Yellow Pear & Cherry Tomatoes:
Green Zuchinni:
I LOVE zuchinni! And, I love baking treats with it like:
and my favorite....

Yellow Squash:
 
Box #3:
This box has 5 Early Girl Tomato Plants
These are my favorite tomatoes! They are delicious and deep red. Perfect for Salads, Sandwiches, Caprese Salad, etc. Delicious!

Around our garden boxes, I have other things planted.
I have 3 types of Cucumbers:
Salad Cucumbers:
Persian Cucumbers:
Sweeter Yet Cucumbers:
I love growing cucumbers for salads and also making Homemade Pickles!

We also have some fruit trees. They are only 2 years old, so they haven't produced any fruit....yet!
Mandarin Orange:
Honey Crisp Apple Tree (that looks more like a bush)
Fuji Apple Tree:
 
 We had a lime tree, but it froze to death this winter. 

We also normally plant watermelon, pumpkins and cantelope in our garden, but we are in a drought here in California with water restrictions. Those vine plants require  A TON of water, so we are not planting them this year.
I am also not planting peppers this year.
The past 3 years, I have attempted bell peppers, banana peppers, pepperchini & jalapenos, but they have never produced more than 1 pepper per plant, so I have given up on peppers. I am not sure if we are in the right climate zone for peppers. Oh well.

Another view of our garden:

Here are my gardening tips in case you have a backyard garden!

1. Plant your garden in a place in your yard that gets a lot of afternoon sun. 
We use a raised garden boxes that Kevin built. 
They are 4x8 and made with redwood. This is our 4th summer having them. I love them!
2. Make sure you water your plants 3-4 times a week during mild weather and everyday during a heat wave.
3. Get new dirt each year, more specifically one for gardens. 
We order a Garden Mix from our local nursery. This year we added an organic compost.

4.  Block your garden off with a fence (or barricade) if you have a pet who likes to ruin your garden. 
Our lab dug up half our garden within 24 hours of planting it.
UGH. And, last year, she kept eating them off the vine. Bad Dog ;)
5. If you are planting Tomatoes, you MUST get this:

$5 at Home Depot. It works works wonders! 
Our tomatoes last year were OUT OF CONTROL!
It was awesome. 
I also an an organic fertilizer to my other veggies.
Do you have a Backyard Garden? What is your favorite thing to grow?
Let me know if you have any other garden questions (and feel free to add your tips!)