Life Lately

Since I took a little (unintended but necessary) break from blog-land, I decided to do a life lately post to catch up with you all!

We've managed to squeeze in a few date nights here or there which is always nice :)

We've even made a trip to the drive in and plan to do this as much as we can this summer!  This is one of our very favorite date night things to do together!

I'm trying my hand (or thumb) at gardening this year and so far so good!  I'm just doing some tomato plants to start and I can't wait to see how they turn out.

Snocones are a must this time of the year, especially since we're out running around in the heat a lot!  We actually weren't impressed by our first snocones and found a new place that is SO much better!

Our church teamed up with two others to do a cookout and concert night!  It was so much fun!

Beautiful views at a cookout! 

I love getting a few minutes outside at lunch when I can! It's so refreshing (if it's not too hot).

We are fully in lawn care & compost season which means we're pretty much busy all the time.  It was a bit of a shock last year but this year we knew what to expect so it's not as bad!  We operate on some crazy hours but it's totally worth it.

New welcome mat!  Find it here.

Summertime cookout food makes my heart & stomach happy!  The cake at this graduation party didn't disappoint either :)

So that's a little of what we've been up to lately!  Work, business growing, date nights when possible and just trying to survive busy season :)  Hope your summer is off to a good start!

Just Keep Shining

If you're a small business owner or blogger like me, I'm sure you've faced your fair share of criticism of what you're doing.  I get asked all the time why we started our own company, why I blog, or even get strange looks when people find out that we are doing either of the above.

I have talked to so many other women who are encountering the same reactions from some when they share the passions they are pursuing or the businesses they are trying to run.  This used to make me so angry (to be honest it still does sometimes but I'm working on it). 

We have received SO much support for our organic lawn care company & I have many great readers of my blog, but the support from these great people only dulls but doesn't erase the sting of any criticism.  I've always heard an old saying about how if people aren't criticizing you, you aren't dreaming boldly enough.  I think that is so true!! If other people do not find you a little bit crazy, dream bigger! 

We are all on our own paths trying to find success in the business world, our families and our communities.  It takes so much courage and bravery to start a new business, put a dream out there and work so hard to make it successful!  Why do we not support those people as much as we can instead of criticizing their dreams?  I think it's because we spend too much time comparing ourselves and our life paths to others. 

I, for one, am just trying to live my own life and find my own path to success!  My husband and I started our company because it's something we feel passionate about.  I blog because I love the blogging community and cherish the friendships I have found there, I love sharing and finding ways to make life easier and because it's a fun and creative outlet after being in the office all day!

Just remember that if you are building something from the ground up, you are going to encounter those who support you, those who don't and some who cheer for you to win and some who cheer for you to fail.  Keep working, keep pursuing what you want to achieve and work as if you have everyone's support.  One day we'll look back and remember that the hard times were worth every moment and will get to reap the rewards of our hard work.  In the mean time, we just have to be willing to put our sunglasses on and just keep shining!

 

Summer in Lilly



I'm not going to lie, I used to not be a big fan of Lilly Pulitzer (gasp!).  It just wasn't my thing until the past few years.  Now that I'm officially converted, I love their summer items for this year and several of them are on my wish list!

I am on a lobster kick and love this beach tote & flip flops for the pool or for a vacation!  I have seen a few other lobster totes but this one is my favorite I've found so far!  I'm all about the navy & gold this year and love the combo on this dress and how cute would that gold bangle be with this sleeveless navy dress?!  Also, I'm always needing a fun summer dress for showers or cookouts in the summer and this one is just too cute!

What Lilly items are you loving this summer?  Does anybody already own any of the above options?  If so, tell me how you like them!! 

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday lovelies!!! I'm so excited the weekend is finally here :) 

We have had a crazy weather week here in KY!  Like tornado sirens, lots of hail and horrible flooding kind of weather.  I went home for lunch the other day and right before I needed to leave Jared told me to stay put for a few minutes.  Cue a huge hail storm (you can see it destroyed our rose bush)!  I have never seen hail as big as what was coming down and when we left (J took me back to work) my SUV couldn't even handle the water so we had to go back and get his truck.  The flooding was unbelievable!  Several cities had horrible damage and I'm so thankful we weren't one of those.  Better weather is coming this weekend & we are ready!

Have any of you read this book?  I started it last night and only took a break to watch the Scandal finale.  It's SO GOOD!! It was exactly what I needed to read right now and I love her tips on how her family lives a more natural lifestyle.

I saw this quote on Facebook the other day and thought it was worth saving!  A lot of times we see people's actions or hear their words and believe the worst about them.  Believing the best about someone helps you to look at them in a better light and keeps your mind more positive.  Just something I'm trying to keep in mind when dealing with people that just aren't my favorite!  I don't think it's always going to work, sometimes there are just people who aren't your jam and never will be but hopefully it will make being around them have less of a negative affect on my mindset. 

Last weekend was definitely a favorite!  Catch the recap here.



Several of you asked about my Derby Pie recipe that I talked about earlier this week!  You can find my recipe here :)

 Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Weekend Recap

Today's weekend recap is coming to you a day late!  Yesterday was a crazy day from start to finish and a blog post just wasn't possible! 

We had a great holiday weekend & hope you did too! 

Friday started off with a girls lunch with Darlene!

I made a Derby pie for work on Friday (Derby weekend is a big deal here in KY and cannot be celebrated without my homemade derby pie)!  It was a huge hit :)

After work, Granny & I enjoyed some mani/pedis.  Nothing like a relaxing mani/pedi after a very long Friday at work!

Jared had to work Friday night so I went and spent some time with my grandparents.  Grandad liked my derby pie too!

Saturday was full of landscaping, errands to be run & some time in MC working on business things!   After being in an office all week, I love being outside on the farm on weekends! 

We had a nice dinner in at home and called it a night early after all that!

Lunch with Darlene on Sunday!

My favorite person.

These three.  Not sure what I would do without these guys!!  They take such good care of me :)

Darlene loved all her gifts!

Grandad Charles liked my pie too :)

The afternoon included a visit with my MIL, a trip to the grocery and some business errands.  We followed that up with dinner and the most recent Nashville...holy moly!  Anyone else watch that and shocked at the way things are going?

Our first grilled dinner!  Jared did a great job and I can't wait to enjoy dinner off the grill this summer :)

It was a very full weekend but a good one!  Hope everyone has a great week!  We have a lot to accomplish this week and not a lot of free time so I'm hoping all this rainy weather isn't going to kill my motivation and just make me want to curl up in a blanket & read ha!

The WINNER of the pineapple apron & towels is: ASHLEY SORRICK! 

Ashley, I sent you an email about claiming your goodies! 

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday!! I'm so pumped the weekend is finally here!  This has been a trying week in more ways than one.  I felt at times I was living out Alexander's terrible horrible no good very bad day (finding a piece of a plate that shattered in my mouth when I bit into it from my taco salad at lunch yesterday was the cherry on top) but I've been working to keep it in perspective this week.  When it seems like everything is going wrong or not the way we want it's easy to be down or irritable.  I'm trying to get in a habit of counting my blessings when this happens!  I'm healthy, have a great husband & family, great job & business, a Lord that forgives me daily and so much more!  I'm leaving this week behind at 5 today and am ready to enjoy the weekend with my sweet husband :)

Now, on to my favorites this week!

We've had a few cool days this week but are seeing some warm weather and signs of Spring!  Hoping for even better weather this weekend!

The other day I shared my cooking essentials and dream kitchen inspiration and wish list!  See that post here.

 

I started binge watching OTH this week!  I forgot how much I loved this show!!

 

Did you catch my post on the Simple Steps to a Spring-Ready Bedroom?  Find several ways to freshen up your bedroom this season!

 

 

Be sure to enter my giveaway for this fun pineapple apron & kitchen towels!  I'm loving the pineapple trend this year :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

See you back here tomorrow for a Fitness Update!  Hope everyone has a great weekend!