halloween by megan

happy halloween!

i love halloween…i always have! i love costumes and candy and parties….just keep the scary stuff away from me 😉

tonight i am going downtown with the girls for my friends bachelorette/lingerie party, and i am so positively excited! i usually spend halloween with my family and all of my younger cousins at our neighborhood block party, so i am looking forward to a night out with friends this year! oh, and i’m going to be a sailor girl! i adore getting dressed up in costume for a night…it’s always been something i loved to do, whether it was for a dance recital costume or a mardi gras costume.  i think my favorite halloween was 2 years ago when i was minnie mouse. kids would call out “hey minnie!” when they came for their candy, it was really so sweet!

are y’all dressing up or celebrating tonight? i would love to hear plans, costumes, and “trick or treat” stories!

joy by megan

I have recently been doing a lot of thinking about what makes me happy…what brings me joy. There are so many ways to answer that. God has blessed me with so much, and I am not one to sit around and let things go to waste. Questions about my life/career/future after I graduate with an Early Childhood degree in May 2010 have been popping into my head lately, and I do not know the answers to any of them. But the awesome thing is that God has the answers, and he is praying for me…he’s praying for you, too 🙂

But, I do know that if I want to accomplish anything I simply can not rely on my faith on alone…I need to use the creativity & determination God gave me. Dreaming and pondering a career in fashion has been on my mind for the past 2 weeks…opening the boutique I’ve been wanting, writing about fashion (ie. a blog), or even working downtown at Saks Fifth Avenue for a little while. Those are all careers I dream of…I don’t dream of teaching. Is that terribly not right since I have spent so many years in school studying how to become a teacher?

I don’t know! I just know that I want to wake up every morning so excited to go to work…to do my job with a smile on my face.

Until then, until everything is figured out, I am going to continue working hard on my education degree, studying for the big teacher certification test coming up, and working on my field portfolios. I am going to continue feeling joyful for this life, waking up to read my bible each morning, serving my church, allowing God to have control, enjoying the fall season (apples!!!), and loving my friends & family.

The fall semester is almost over…lots to do in preparation for it. And, hopefully, my dreams will become realistic and some more writing will appear on this little blog…fashion writing…we shall see!

Happy Thursday…hope your week has been full of JOY!

p.s. thanks for reading 🙂

Homemade Gifts by Jen

Ok so I know we are still in the month of October….and Halloween has yet to arrive. But I will proudly say I have finished a Christmas gift for my parents. It may be early but have you browsed Target lately? Christmas everywhere! A few years ago I decided I wanted to get into scrapbooking. I dabbled in it a bit and soon became hooked. Ok, addicted if you will…$200 at a scrapbook store I think qualifys as addiction! It’s something I find allows my own creativity to run wild. I start each page without a plan and somehow, page after page, it all comes together. Yesterday the masterpiece was completed. I won’t tell you how many hours I spent sprawled on my bed cutting, glueing and rearranging. Had it not been for the many reruns on the Food Network to keep me company Im not sure I’d be done so soon.

When I was a little girl I used to make my parents gifts for their birthdays, etc. I’d make homemade cards that I stamped the back as “Jen-Mark”. Later in my teens I grew out of such a habit, buying a card and gift seemed much more convient as a curious, busy teenager. After years of giving the same person a gift you begin to wonder what more they could want?! I rewinded back to those child years. A scrapbook of ME, from birth to graduation, seemed like the most memorable gift to give. I can’t wait to see my parents reaction in a couple months. I guess that’s the price I must now pay for getting a bit ahead of the holiday season…waiting!

Have you ever made a homemade gift for someone?

it’s beginning to smell like fall by megan

Happy Friday and Happy, Happy Birthday to my darling sister, Lizzy! I am so thankful that she is my sister and my best friend, too. God is so good 🙂 In honor of my sister’s birthday I have been baking and shopping.

My baking has been for Lizzy’s birthday and also for the LSU party I am going to tomorrow.

white chocolate chip pumpkin cookies

I used this recipe. Except I did not make the icing and I folded in 1 cup of white chocolate chips after all of the ingredients were mixed together. While baking these cookies definitely smelled like fall and that made me smile 🙂

My shopping has been for Lizzy’s birthday gift and my outfit for her birthday outing tonight. I can’t show you Lizzy’s gift, but I can show you the dresses I purchased (ehh, my mom purchased for me). They are from a local boutique, Miche, and I love them all!

I am wearing the dress on the left tonight since we are still experiencing record breaking heat…but aren’t the 2 long sleeved ones so lovely? I can’t wait to wear them!

So tonight’s agenda includes dinner at Palace Cafe…

and some Michael Jackson at House of Blues! It is going to be such a fun night and I am so excited to celebrate Lizzy’s birthday with her, our friends, and our family.

Happy Friday!

p.s. I ordered the “Keep Calm and Carry On” poster in yellow…very excited about it!

keep calm and carry on by megan

Hi!

Oh! I have just been so busy these past few weeks in between birthdays and babysitting and friends…I can’t take a break! But, I have been enjoying every bit of my business. Tomorrow is yet another birthday that must be celebrated: my dear sister, Lizzy, is turning 22 🙂 We are going to dinner and then downtown to the House of Blues for our favorite cover band…the Michael Jackson cover band that is: Who’s Bad. We saw them a few years ago and it was probably one of the best nights of my life…I had so much fun! So, needless to say I am really excited about tomorrow night…I love me some MJ.

I’ve also been shopping…loving Target and Etsy at the moment. I spent over 2 hours in Target yesterday. I got some goodies though that I can’t wait to wear…2 necklaces, a beautiful black cuff, and a pretty headband. And a gorgeous, huge black lacquer wall frame. Love. Oh, and as for Etsy…this is in my shopping cart right now.

{buy here}

I will let y’all know if I end up buying it! Happy Thursday!!

dear fall, when will you be arriving? by megan

Hi friends!

Okay, so I am beyond ready for fall! It is in the 90’s down here today, y’all. It is October 7 and it is over 90 degrees outside. Sigh. I am dreaming of all things pumpkin and fall right now. Here are some of my favorite images to get me through this Louisiana heat…

{pumpkin cupcakes}

{fall leaves}

{pumpkin pie}

{pretty anthropologie sweater dresses} worn with tights, of course.

{loeffler randall boots} i die for these boots, by the way.

Happy Wednesday!

birthday girl by megan

Hey y’all! This past weekend was my birthday, October 4 to be exact, and I just wanted to share some of the fun that was had…

It was one of the most beautiful birthday weekends of my life! I am so incredibly grateful for everything that the Lord has blessed me with this past year…overcoming an eating disorder, discovering who I am, meeting a few lovely ladies who I now call my best friends (love those girls!) , and improving my relationships with my family. I can’t wait to keep growing in Christ and in my relationships with family & friends. Just continuing my walk in my faith.

I am so blessed and I am looking forward to being 24 🙂 Happy Monday!