The Beach or BUST!

I've been busy lately with new business ventures (yay!) and photo shoots! With this gorgeous weather we've been having everyone is calling me up for me to take their pics - which I LOVE to do, by the way. So if you need your picture taken in the Little Rock area, just hollar! I'd love to meet you!

So about this weather... I just can't get enough. Yesterday I grabbed my granddad's old stadium blanket and the dogs and just laid in our backyard for literally hours just staring into the sky. I'm pretty sure I fell asleep out there. I even got a little chilly but my two dogs were keeping my insulated. :)

But while everyone is getting into the FALL mood (including myself), I'm trying to still think BEACH. We are leaving for the beach in less than a week and I couldn't be more excited about it! We originally booked this date because we got a great deal on the rental house but next year I don't think I'll wait this long to hit the sand. It's like tortue waiting until September to hear and smell that salty water! I think I'll be a fish in my next life.

So here's to the fall... you can come the week after next, but until then, you will find me on the beach somewhere...

Gluten Free Heaven

Good Morning!

My husband and I are trying to watch our weight recently. I have lost six pounds in the last two weeks, I might add! yay! We give ourselves one free day a week to eat yummy snacks, but during the week we eat a strict diet of grilled meats, veggies, fruits, nuts, etc. Yesterday was our free day and yes, we pigged out! We are back on it today! I had fruit and nuts this morning with a harty protein shake, but I can't stop thinking about these gluten free brownies that I made last week!

As many you know, I have Celiac Disease, which means I can't eat any gluten. When Betty Crocker came out with these gluten free baking mixes, I was soooo excited! I ran to the store immediately and picked up some. Let me just tell you, they are yummy! I tried the brownies first and I shared with my husband- he couldn't tell a difference between gluten free ones and real ones!

If you are gluten intolerant or even if you're in the mood for a yummy treat, head over to your local store (I found mine at Kroger) and buy a package of these mixes! You'll be glad you did!

If you want to "mix" it up a bit, then go to Betty Crocker's gluten free page. There you'll find all sorts of recipes using these mixes! I can't wait to try the gluten free cookie-brownie bars! I mean, what could be better than cookies and brownies at the SAME TIME!

Enjoy!

Etsy Finds

I found a cute etsy shop today. ErinJane Illustrations. Go check it out!

New Addition!

So this is about a week over due but with very good reason. I have another mouth to feed in the Buie household. No, I didn't pop out a child in the last week but we DID adopt another dog!

If you all will remember our first dog, Conner... and how much we love and adore him... you could probably tell from the many blog posts about him. :)

Well, now Conner has a buddy- MEET SCOOTER!

Scooter is a Border Collie/Lab Mix. He is a rescue dog from C.A.R.E. He was originally our first foster dog but he was just adorable to let go. We have officially adopted him into the Buie clan!

So, let's review:

I got Hazel from the Pulaski County Humane Society about four years ago. Buie and I had just started dating but I can honestly say that he had nothing to do with the decision to adopt Hazel but he immediately fell in love with her.

George was given to me from a friend who found a litter of kittens in the woods of Louisiana. Again, this was my own doing, but Buie again fell in love with George and his pink nose. I took this picture the day I took George home. Conner was adopted after his family didn't want him anymore. How could you not WANT this face? Buie warned me that having a dog would be TOTALLY different than cats... He was right! I once was a cat person, but I have converted! While I love my cats, nothing compares to the love and loyalty of owning a dog. And now...we have Scooter! We definitely have expanded our family from 0 to 4 animals in four years! We are averaging about one a year. But I'm pretty sure we are done for a while. Of course, I said that about a year and a half ago when we adopted Conner. We shall see! I hope you enjoyed a little history of our family. Until we have our own children, you have to understand... these are our children in a way. We love them dearly and I'm glad to share them with you!

Weekend Review: Cousin Love!

A couple of weekends ago, my best friend and first cousin, Lauren and her beautiful family came up for a short visit. Lauren and I have been close for as long as I remember. Being only three months a part, we did everything together! I had the best time with her antique shopping, cooking and just catching up. She has a handsome two year old son, Trey. I snapped a few pictures of him on Saturday afternoon. Isn't he so precious!? Enjoy!

Blog Feature: Baby Byrds

Today I am featuring a blog of one of my dear friends, Christen Byrd. She is extremely talented and so creative in photography and graphic design along with being a great mom. I'm not quite sure how she has time to do it all! Recently she opened up an etsy shop displaying these precious prints! You can custom order these prints by color, letter and even pick your own animals or character to go along with the letter of choice. Just look how cute these are! Can't you picture one of these hanging in your little ones nursery? Go pick one up for yourself today!

Along with custom prints for your little one, Christen also design prints for your home, no matter what age you are! "You will love this LOVE letter design! The letters can hang in a straight line or in a square shape...however it looks best on your wall. This is definitely one of my favorite designs, as this was originally designed for my sister, but I had so many people who loved it, I thought I'd share it with everyone. Each letter is finished with an irish linen texture to add to the grunge feel of the design.Each letter is 10x10, adhered to a 1 inch wooden backing, which is painted black, to help it stand out from the wall, finished with a sawtooth hanger. Each letter is professionally printed on archival photo paper to ensure longevity and to avoid fading."

Go check out Baby Byrds Etsy Shop today!

Christen's blog: http://www.babybyrds.com/

Introducing....

SCOOTER!
I'm way too tired to blog about this now...but stay tuned to find out about this lovely creature...

I WON! I WON!

I don't ever win anything but I won! On my friend, Hilary's, blog she did a giveaway and announced the winner today and it was little ole me! :) She also had the nicest things to say about me, too! (Thanks, Hil!)

I am the proud winner of stationery by KatieDydDesigns. Go check out her cute shop! I can't wait to get my customized stationery from Katie!

Weekend Finds!

Remember when I told you I went antique shopping last weekend? Well, I went again! I can't get enough... I thought I would let you see my fun vintage finds over the past two weeks!

A 1950's Savoy camera:
This will be the perfect $25 dollar addition to my vintage camera collection. Maybe one day I'll get around to photographing all of them. :)

• A Versatile Coke Crate:

You could use this for recycling newspaper or storing those favorite magazines! I have decided to use it on my potting station to store potting and gardening supplies.

Pottery Barn sells them currently for $24 dollars- I found one for $8 dollars! Can't make it to the Antique Shops? No problem. Order one from Etsy right from your home!

• A Seltzer Bottle:

I have had my eye on a seltzer at Pottery Barn but didn't want to pay that much. I searched high and low until I found one about like this at an antique store for $15 dollars. :) I quickly snatched it up!

• A tea cart or bar cart:

I have also had a tea cart on my list of things to look out for. I searched local furniture stores and even Target and couldn't quite find the quality that I was looking for. I knew as soon as I saw this baby, it was mine! And it was 1/2 off. I brought it home for a mere $70.

My new seltzer bottle looks GREAT on my cart!

Found any neat steals lately? I wanna hear about them! Don't you just love finding great deals!