Let the Festivities Begin...

I'm sitting here drinking a G&T, watching Shark Week, snuggling with my dogs...the usual, and I literally just realized that today is Thursday and not Friday. Which is weird because this morning I knew it was Thursday (according to my FB post) See below...

What I'm getting at is that it is BASICALLY Friday now so everything is good, but things got weird there for a while. 

This weekend will be filled with fireworks, junk food, and lots of red, white, and blue down here in good old Florida and I can't wait to spend time with good friends and pig out (aka wear daisy duke overalls, drinks lots of beer, and yell "MERICA" a lot while holding fiery objects). 

In order to prepare for this weekend of unhealthy eating and laziness I went to Pure Barre, did 3 crunches, and didn't eat any cookies (yet...the night is young...but since I'm calling in Friday early I guess were good). 

I've also been very busy updating my Fourth of July Pinterest board, #becauseamerica and you can check it out here for funsies :)

List of the Day: What makes for a good Fourth of July Experience

1. Friends: this one is obvious. You need people to party with, and who better than people you like to be around!! Especially since people will be drinking and we all know everyone gets annoying when they holiday drink so it's good to surround yourself with people you like regardless of their mental state.

2. Game: Corn Hole, Bocci, Volleyball, flip cup...you name it! This is a holiday celebrating America so obviously we need to incorporate a little bit of friendly competition. And beer.

3. America Jello Shots: Maybe this isn't a must for everyone but I always like to include it to really drive home the point, aaaaand it reminds me of tailgating in college. 

4. Greasy food to soak up the alcohol: This IS a must. Grills must be involved. And it's best to alternate greasy food, drink, greasy food, drink, just to be safe. You know the drill. 

5. Nalgene of water: HYDRATE YOUR BODY SO YOU DON'T HATE YOUR LIFE THE NEXT DAY!!! We are not 23 anymore. Hangovers hurt. They make you sad. AVOID AT ALL COSTS. 

So, everyone stay safe! Don't drink and drive! And wear your protective eye gear if you are the master of firework ceremonies!

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY WEEKEND!!!

Top 5 of the Week...and GO!

1. Outlander EVERYTHING. If you've not read the books and are looking for an amazing series that takes over your life, this is it. Also, the show. It stays so true to the books and the characters are perfect. We definitely splurged on the Starz Amazon addition just for this show...

Get your copy here!

2. Victoria's Secret bathing suits. We have all heard the sad news by now that they are discontinuing the swim line after this summer. Time to stock up ladies.

3. Beauty Counter make-up. My friend Christine is a rep for this company and she got me hooked. These products focus on natural ingredients, cruelty free composition, and healthy skin. I'm in love.

4. Day Designer. These planners are absolutely on point. They have dedicated areas for your weekly goals, notes, appointments, and to-do lists. Also, they have weekly and monthly spreads which I need so I can figure out what month I am in...

Find yours here :)

5. Pure Barre. If you have never taken a Pure Barre class, you should. As a dancer I thought it looked like a joke and then I went to a class and it broke me. Like literally, broke me and I couldn't walk for 3 days. Now I love it (and hate it). It hits all of those weird hard to reach muscles and you will feel immediate results, aka pain. Do it!

So, there you have it! The top five for this week! Go play!

First Day of Summer

Summer is in full swing here in the sunshine state. Daily thunderstorms pop up and cool the air for a grand total of 10 minutes before you feel like you're swimming through a hot tub again. And in the mornings we wake up to condensation fogging the windows while our AC works overtime to keep the stifling heat out.

When I was younger summer was my absolute favorite. School was out. There was no end to all of the awesome summer activities one could do. We could go to the quarry with floats and Cookout milkshakes, and spend the day floating on the water. We could make the quick two hour drive to wilmington for a beach day (complete with ice cream on the boardwalk and henna tattoos from Wings). Sometimes we would just walk up to Duke Gardens for a picnic. No responsibilities. No obligations. Just pure, easy fun.

And every night there would be something going on. Some house party or camping trip or movie night. I'm not sure if it was the monotony and routine of the school year that made summer seem so magical or if it was something as simple as a REAL season change, unlike what we have down here!

I just got off the phone with my best friend back home and we laughed and talked about how being 'adults' is probably the dumbest thing we have ever done. So many things that used to be exciting and crazy no longer hold that appeal. Probably because we now have responsibilities, bills, and obligations to worry about.

I don't know when that change occurs, and you become somewhat jaded and uninterested or unfocused on what used to make you happy. It's probably a different age for everyone depending on your job, family or what have you. But it's always the same, things start to appear less shiny and fun, like an old toy.

All I know is that I think it is utterly ridiculous to feel obligated to do something or not do something simply because society says its what you are SUPPOSED to do. Of course there are things you can't ignore like your water bill or feeding your dog - but who's to say that you can't still enjoy the things that you used to?

I may be a realtor who is responsible for selling people homes, but I can also enjoy taking an afternoon to float down the Blackwater on an inner tube with friends. It's okay to spend a Friday night in reading an amazing book that you can't put down instead of going out drinking. It's also okay to go to Disney World as an adult and take picture with your favorite princess. The balance seems to evade us in favor of the mundane the older we get, and I am guilty of letting that happen to me regularly.

So, I guess what I'm trying to say is that, on this first day of summer 2016, think back to the basic, simple, every day things that make you happy. Sit on your front porch with a gin and tonic and a good book, get out into your garden and plant some new flowers, call up some old friends and have a dinner party, go for a hike, watch a movie you haven't seen in a while!

Take a minute to breathe and consider that child-like feeling you used to get when something really exciting was about to happen. Then go out and do that!

Happy Summer <3

Adult Disney

Ever since moving to Florida for flight school a year ago, J and I have been trying to pick a weekend to go to Disney World and have the ultimate adult Disney Weekend. Both of us went as young children but hadn't been in 10+ years, so as you can imagine, we felt very strongly about this trip. However, with everything going on down here we never managed to get enough leave or have all of our ducks in a row to make the trip happen.

But! Last week when I got back from NC, J handed me an envelope and told me to open it...and inside were two 4 day park hopper passes that he had gone out and gotten, spur of the moment, for us to use this weekend! I miiiight have the best fiance ever.

MAJOR. Bae. Points.

Needless to say, if there is one thing more magical than Disney World as a child, it's Disney World as a childless adult. We only had two days so we made the most of it by doing Disney Springs for dinner and shopping Friday night, Blizzard beach and Epcot on Saturday, and Magic Kingdom (my fav) on Sunday morning. We definitely didn't get to do everything we wanted to do but luckily we have two days left to you at some point in the near future!

If you are looking for a super fun trip to take as an adult to stir up your inner child, or you just love rides, water parks, and happiness, you need to do an adult disney trip. Not to mention...you can drink beer at the parks when you are old. BOOM. You're welcome.

So, here are some pics from our epic Disney weekend...and yes, we wore mouse ears.

Magic Kingdom!

Being children at Blizzard Beach

Obligatory Castle Pic

Me forcing J to take a car selfie 

Found my veil. Done.

Random people we took shots with at Epcot

Epcot

Pensacola Bucket List

I woke up early this morning, my mind racing with all of the things I need to get organized and taken care of in the following months. The saying "Home is where the Marine Corps sends us" sure is proving true! J selected his platform and it looks like were going Ospreys! Don't get me wrong, I'm excited to be going on another adventure, and VERY happy that this platform guarantees us a small chunk of time in our home state, but it's always a lot of work planning for a PCS especially when one is also planning a wedding. 

The way things are looking now, we will have a few more months here in Florida though so I will be able to wrap up the sales I have going on, spend time with our wonderful friends, and do all of those fun PCS things like; inventory our house, find renters for it, attempt to obtain housing in TX from afar, gather all of our records for the move, find a new job, and...pack. 

I'm definitely becoming a bit of an expert on packing, if I do say so myself ;)

We also decided to come up with a Pensacola/Milton Bucket List to accomplish before we go, and here is what we have come up with so far:

1. Go to a Blue Wahoos game
2. Kayak the Blackwater
3. Pensacola Bay Brewery
4. Florabama *cringe*
5. Beach it up!!
6. Irish Wakes at Maguire's
7. Bands on the Blackwater
8. Pensacola Lighthouse ghost tour
9. Tube down the Blackwater
10. Blue Angels Air show

What are some things were missing?? Any recommendations? 
xoxo

Also, for tips on PCSing check out my pinterest board HERE :) 

For those of you who were wondering...this is an Osprey! Cool, hunh?

Weekend Favorites 4/22-4/24

Wow. I have been terrible about blogging recently, and really there is no excuse other than life. We are currently playing that oh-so-fun marine corps game of 'hurry up and wait' to see what platform J will be assigned for flight school and where that will send us in the coming months. Because of this, I have been cautiously tempering my inflow of work in case we will not be here in a few months. Thankfully the wait will be over next week and then we can make a game plan! Honestly, it's not the moving around and last minute orders that are the most frustrating, it's the waiting! But then again, patience is not a quality that I possess in any graceful fashion so that doesn't help my case...

In the meantime, while we wait PATIENTLY, here are my weekend favorites. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

Favorite Shoes: Just ordered these beauties from the J-Crew New Balance collection. They are so pretty and when I realized last week that I had managed to puncture a hole in my nice sneakers I decided to take the plunge and buy them 

Favorite Podcast: This talk by Liz Gilbert (author of Eat Pray Love) knocked my socks off. I have felt this way my whole life and hearing her talk about following your curiosity instead of forcing a passion was so incredibly moving for me. Hummingbirds Unite!

http://www.supersoul.tv/supersoul-sessions/elizabeth-gilbert-flight-hummingbird-curiosity/

Favorite Movie: This weekend J and I watched the Princess Bride which was so much fun because it was a childhood favorite for both of us. Every time I watch this movie it gets funnier, and I have so many good memories associated with it :)

Favorite Book (currently): I am STILL reading Brian Greene's book The Fabric of the Cosmos, which is shocking because I'm normally an incredibly fast reader. But this damn book is taking me forever because I have absolutely no background in physics and I have to read every single paragraph multiple times and then put it down and think about how I know absolutely nothing (Jon Snow...) about the world around me. It's awesome though. I think I'm starting to get it...maybe..youtube videos help. 

On a separate "book note" I just ordered Elizabeth Gilbert's new book Big Magic and the first book in the Outlander series so I can't wait to get my hands on those!

Favorite Recipe: This weekend I have made the homemade Bean Burger recipe from Thug Kitchen twice and we are still not sick of it. Even if you are not vegetarian or vegan you NEED this cookbook. The flavors are amazing, the recipes are easy, and they are cruelty free...reduce your carbon footprint...blah blah blah...you know, IMPORTANT THINGS. 

  

On that note, hope you all had an amazing weekend. What were some of your weekend favs??

Em

Pep Talk Time

Life has been pretty crazy the past couple of weeks, but the good kind of crazy. We nailed down the last few details for the wedding; venue, photographer, lighting, hotel, bridesmaid dresses, MY DRESS, the DJ, basically everything! My business has been taking off like crazy with the spring market (thank you little baby jesus!), I had to travel for various reasons to Nashville and Durham, and of course life in flight school is as unpredictable as always! 

Life is good! It's crazy thinking back to when I was in my early twenties and didn't have a clue where I would be in a few months, and especially not in a few years! I definitely did not think I would be living in Milton Florida, marrying my amazing best friend, or running my own Real Estate Business. But here we are! It's funny to think about the curve balls life throws at you. 

There have been lots of ups and downs (mostly ups!), I've made amazing new friends, strengthened old ones, stepped out of my comfort zone career-wise and personally, and grown a lot as a person. I have started learning how to COOK! Which is probably hilarious to those who grew up with me :)

The other day in the car, J and I were discussing the different potential duty stations we could be sent to and what it would mean for me and my career. I got a little bit frustrated because it seems like the second you get established and comfortable in a new place its time to pick up and move again. It takes so much time and money to start a business and the thought that I will have to keep starting over can be daunting at times. Also, one can't exactly sell real estate in Japan. 

But then J looked at me and said, 'what do you mean you would have nothing to do? You can do anything you want.' Just like that, so matter of factly! And I realized, he's right. It's so easy to look at the military life through a negative light. But in all honesty, these moves allow me to have the freedom to change things up and follow MANY dreams, not just one! Soooo we get sent somewhere I can't sell real estate? I can go back to school, learn a new trade, travel, do an archaeological dig. 

I think it is so important for us ALL to realize that life doesn't have to hold you back. You don't have to stay in that job you hate, you don't have to have one career your whole life, you are NEVER too old to go back to school, you SHOULD travel often and learn about new cultures. If you wake up one day when you are 57 and decide you want to be a photographer, sign up for lessons! If you want to quit your job, sell your belongings, and travel the world: do it! 

If there is one thing I've learned this year, it's that you can't limit yourself based on what you think you are 'supposed to do'. Recently (in politics and in general) it has come to my attention how absorbed we as humans are with putting people into boxes and categorizing them. And when something doesn't fit in a box we fear it or reject it. If everyone worried a little bit less about what was 'acceptable' or 'normal' and focused more on being a good person and being happy, the world would be a better place. 

You can be a business owner, real estate broker, archaeology loving, yoga-doing, mom, animal activist, occasional vegan dieter, wanderluster, who sometimes has no clue whats going on. (or whatever). 

I guess what I'm saying is, think about what makes you happy, I mean truly happy in your soul, and do that! Don't get so caught up in the technical details of everything that you forget to see the beauty and opportunity in each situation. 

Hope everyone has a great weekend! 

One of THOSE days

Today was one of those days. You know the kind. The kind of day where you come back from being out of town and have a million, bajillion little things to do to catch up with work...and home...and chores...and your email.

The kind of day where you make yourself a cup of tea, forget about said cup of tea, locate it 2 hours later, and have to reheat it. Multiple times. 

The kind of day where you are trying desperately to motivate yourself to do a bunch of things that have been piling up but the weather decides to be rainy and cold, and all you want to do is read a good book under a bunch of blankets in your comfiest sweats. 

The kind of day where you come home from meeting with a client and you realize your dogs ate the homemade biscuits you left on the counter. All 12 of them!!!!

The kind of day where you are late to a closing because of a hailstorm/tornado watch and realize when you get there that you are wearing that gross pair of moccasins that should NEVER see the light of day. 

You know, one of those days. 

The kind of day where you really, really need to go to the grocery store because there is no food in the house but you don't feel like cooking so you decide to pick up Taco Bell instead. 

The kind of day where you accidentally quadruple book yourself and end up missing a hair appointment and a doctors appointment (BUT you make it to the important things!)

The kind of day where you decide to call your bank because the business checks you ordered STILL haven't arrived and they tell you that your order was never processed. 

So. Since it was one of those days, I am going to pour myself an extra large glass of wine (to drink with my Taco Bell), put Fixer Upper on T.V, and call it an early night!!

After all, tomorrow is Friday!!!

My Favorite Things This Week: Click the Links to Explore!

A list of my weekly favs...Enjoy xo

1. Favorite Blog: The Daily Tay (So hilarious, and true, and hilarious)

2. Favorite Workout Site: BodyBuilding.com (Much cooler than it sounds...you can even find a plan that matches your health goals!)

3. Favorite Pandora Playlist: Bob Marley (So ready for summer!)

4. Favorite App: Boomerang (Perfect for capturing awkward moments, and repeating them over and over and over...)

5. Favorite Instagram Feed: mamawatters (She always posts such inspirational posts and lovely photos)

6. Essential Oils: We are loving peppermint, lavender, and eucalyptus right now! So refreshing on these hot days!

7. Favorite Show: House of Cards!!! (Obvi, we are taking it a little slower than some of you dedicated binge watchers!

8. Favorite Food: Fresh strawberries from Bailey's Market!

9. Favorite Swimwear: Victoria's Secret Swim (They always have the cutest suits!) But also, I love a good Target swimsuit if I can catch them early on before the good ones are gone ;)

10. Favorite Recipe: We are all about some smoothies for breakfast these days, and huge fresh salads with lettuce straight from our garden!

...E

What are your favorites???

February Favorites

While February might have been a short month, it was jam-packed with great books, recipes, and Netflix shows to get us through the last of these cold, rainy days. Here is my list of Feb Favs that I want to share with you :)

Recently, I have been on a cooking show kick on Netflix and let me just tell you these shows are on point. They make you hungry but the music and imagery is breathtaking and I am convinced that I want to go to culinary school at some point now (terrifying, I know).

I've also been slowly making my way through a stack of wonderful books I got as birthday presents! Cookbooks, home decor books, and self improvement books are a huge guilty pleasure of mine. You know, the kind of books that most people just set out on the coffee table...I am a huge nerd and actually read them, over and over and over again.

 

 

Since the majority of the days in February down here are cold and rainy, we have been eating a lot of warm dishes for dinner. Classics like tomato soup and grilled cheese, chicken and wild rice stew, homemade buttermilk biscuits, and yo-yo ramen noodles (which basically means we make ramen and add a bunch of random yummy things to it).

The Buttermilk Biscuit recipe in the Fosters Market Favorites cookbook (above) in RIDICULOUSLY YUMMY. And easy to tweak and make your own. 

Also, cheese and wine. We go through a weird amount of bread, cheese, and wine in our house. Especially since I realized how easy it is to bake Irish Soda bread from scratch. Slap some local jam on it and it is a perfect snack during the day. 

 

There is nothing cozier than coming home from a long day of showing houses, putting some oils on the diffuser, getting some biscuits baking in the oven and settling down on the couch with a good book and some hot tea. 

I recommend all of the books above and would love to hear which recipes are your personal favorites!

xoxo Em

Tornadoes Tabatas & Thieves

As the end of February draws closer and closer I am struck with the urge to clean and declutter our home. Spring fever is going strong over here, even though a slew of tornadoes and rain brought another cold snap through last night. Of course, that would happen right after we get our new garden started, but with the exception of a couple of basil sprigs we weathered the storm quite well. Much better than many in our area unfortunately :( Thankfully, the storms weren't as bad as they could have been but the tornado did take out several homes and businesses. However, if one thing can be said of this community it is that they take care of their own. As early as this morning posts were going up all over the spouse pages about relief efforts and donation sites!

http://pulsegulfcoast.com/2016/02/photos-see-aftermath-of-pensacola-tornado-from-the-air

But back to the subject of spring cleaning...

When I say spring cleaning, I am also referring to cleaning up ones eating habits and shedding the layer of blubber that appeared out of nowhere over the winter months. We have been back in the gym attempting to get back on our clean eating and fitness regimen. It's a process. Down here in Florida bikini season starts at the end of march and that time, my friends, is fast approaching. 

Some of the easy ways I'm getting back in shape for the summer are:

~Trying to run at least 2 miles every day

~No fast food or junk food

~Upping my cardio game at the gym to 45 mins

~Portion control and smaller meals throughout the day

~Drink. More. Water.

~Tabatas that focus on the booty, core, and arms

When it comes to our home, some of the simple ways we spring clean include; opening the windows whenever it is nice out to get fresh air inside, diffusing essential oils like thieves/peppermint/tangerine to combat allergies, getting all of the pillows and linens washed and dried out, and filling the house with as many live plants as possible (which can be a pain in the ass since we have to get pet safe plants). 

New years resolutions are for people who don't want to deal with goals throughout the year! Theres no bad time to set a goal and make a plan to accomplish it :) I find it much easier to set seasonal goals anyways since I find myself having different focuses during different times of the year. Like eating all the carbs in the winter, and then having to spend half my life in the gym during the spring. 

For more ideas on fitness, clean eating, and oils check out my Pinterest boards ;)

Here:

What are some of your spring goals for your house? Body? Mind?