10-Year Vow Renewal

- Emily

I had a few of my friends get on me that I haven't posted pictures from our 10-year vow renewal yet. So...I thought I would share some pictures with y'all. The hubs and I renewed our vows in Hilton Head at the end of April. It's always something we had talked about doing. We've been through a lot in our marriage (and who hasn't, right?!), and wanted to do this for us...and for our children. I think the girl was more excited about wearing a tiara, pink dress, and holding flowers though :) I won't lie - it was fun trying on dresses again. I was three sizes bigger 10 years ago, so it was fun picking out a sleek dress what showed off my curves. I did wear the same earrings, one bracelet and shoes from 10 years earlier.

It was very simple - just us, the kiddos, and my parents. Our first wedding was in central Illinois - nowhere near a beach. But Hilton Head is a special place - we've been there every year since 2001. The kids have grown up playing on the beach at Palmetto Dunes. 

As I used to have my own photography business, I wanted to hire a photographer to capture the moment. Our photos from 10 years ago were not the type of style you see nowadays. Every picture was posed and stiff. Not this time! We hired Concept A Photography out of Savannah. Rich and Megan were awesome to work with. Rich even shot film...and those shots turned out with a cool vintage feel. See what you think...

Linking up with The Pleated Poppy

Learn to Love the Deadlift

- Emily

I won't lie. I used to be one of those girls who thought if I really started lifting heavy weights I was going to start looking like a body builder. I was nervous my legs, for instance, would become bigger and more muscular instead of thinner and more toned. Boy was I wrong.

One exercise that I love doing is the deadlift. Don't you love how heavy this looks...like "Wow...Emily must be lifting way over 100 lbs." Nope. That's only 65 pounds. These types of weights have bigger plates to ensure you are doing exercises like this correctly by not going down too far. (But, I do love how it looks! Ha!)

Doing deadlifts can really help improve your strength and help you tone your legs, butt and thighs. Don't be intimidated and try this great exercise. I've had trainers comment on how good my form is, so I thought I would tell you what goes through my mind while I'm doing this exercise.

1. Step up to the bar with your feet actually going under the bar. Don't stand too far away. Keep the bar as close to your body as you can. Don't make your grip too wide...about shoulder width a part.
2. Grip the bar knuckles out.
3. Sit back in the hips and keep my back straight to reach down and grab the bar.
4. Lift up with my legs - and do NOT pull with my back. And keep that back straight...NO arching!!! You will hurt yourself.
5. Stand up and drive the hips outward for the locked position.
6. On the way back down, again, drive the hips backward and keep your arms as close to the body as possible. Don't let your knees goes over your toes.

The hubs and I did part of a Crossfit workout one day that was just deadlifts. 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1. Oh yes, that's 55 deadlifts right there, folks. Talk about legs turning into jello. BUT, my legs have never looked better.

Do you love deadlifts...or think you can learn to love them?!?

By the way, I have on both lucy capri leggings and sports bra. I can't say enough good things about lucy. Is it pricy...yes. But, it's comfortable, washes like a dream, and really wicks away moisture.

Follow Us on Bloglovin

Don't forget to follow us on bloglovin, especially if you rely on Google Reader, which is going away soon. If you've never used bloglovin before...well...it's awesome. It keeps all of the blogs you want to follow in one spot. One stop blog reading. Just do it already. :)

WIWW Stripes!

- Emily

Stripes are on everything. And I love stripes. I have a lot in my closet. I thought I would show my summer stripes this week!

It's so easy to dress up a stripe tee with a pencil skirt. Instead of throwing on a statement-type necklace, I thought this summer scarf was a great option instead. It is a great coral color with pops of hot pink and a dash yellow in it. I love the mix of color and patterns.

T-shirt and Scarf - Old Navy; Skirt - J. Crew; Shoes - Charles by Charles David; Watch - Michael Kors; Bracelet - Stella & Dot

I love the flowiness of this dress (is flowiness a word? well it is now!).  I like the variation of horizontal stripe and the chevron-type stripe on the bottom part. Last time I wore this, I opted for a yellow belt and wedges. But today, I just felt a little more patriotic I guess and chose red.

Dress - Boutique in Hiawassee, GA; Belt - The Limited; Wedges - Charles by Charles David; Bracelets - Tiffany; Earrings - Simon Sebbag

See...flowiness!! :)

Linking up with The Pleated Poppy.

What I Wore on the Disney Cruise - Year 3

- Emily

The past two summers, the fam and I have gone on a Disney cruise. The first one was a 5-nighter to the Bahamas on the Disney Dream and the second was to the Eastern Caribbean on the Disney Fantasy. The Fantasy is an amazing ship, so we went on it again this year to the Western Caribbean. We stopped at Grand Cayman; Costa Maya, Mexico; Cozumel, Mexico; and Castaway Cay (Disney's island). The weather could have been better, but it was a wonderful week.

And one of my favorite parts? Dressing up!!! Now. You will see all types of fashion on the ship. ALL types. The good. The bad. The unusual. But, to each his own, right?! I had a few new dresses to wear, and I couldn't wait! During the day, my wardrobe consisted of a swimsuit and t-shirts and shorts most of the time. You have to be comfy on vacay.

Saturday - Boarding
I love maxis, and this one is no exception. Love the color...neon is everywhere! Another thing I love; I can wear it with flat sandals! (In the background you see Nemo's Reef, the water area for the kiddos under 8.)

Dress - The Limited; Shoes - Banana Republic; Bracelets - Stella & Dot and Michael Kors; Sunglasses - Louis Vuitton

Saturday - 1st Night of Dinner

I wanted to wear my new white dress while my spray tan looked the best. So I decided to do turquoise accents. I had to borrow mom's bracelet :)

Dress - Nanette Lepore; Shoes - Charles by Charles David; Jewelry - Stella & Dot

Sunday - Formal Night

When I was in Hilton Head, I picked up this dress on sale. I love the A-line cut and small bow detail. So feminine and just plain pretty.

Dress - Lilly Pulitzer; Shoes - Steve Madden; Necklace - Stella & Dot; Bracelet - Coach

Monday - Cruise Casual, but ate in Palo's, one of the adult restaurants

I fell in love with this dress the moment I saw it in the store. I love everything about it - the cut, the pattern, the mix of mint green and gray - everything!

Dress - Tart; Jewelry - Stella & Dot

Tuesday - Cruise Casual

Nautical print = perfect for the cruise. I love the piping on the empire waste. I thought the cut was very flattering with a slight A-line.

Dress - Vineyard Vines; Shoes - Charles by Charles David; Bracelets - David Yurman; Earrings - Stella & Dot

Wednesday - Cozumel

Look! I actually got dressed this day!! I picked this outfit up at the outlets in Hilton Head. Truthfully, I'm not a big shorts fan, but I feel more comfortable in them when my legs are tan. Even a fake tan :)

Shirt and Shorts - Banana Factory Outlet; Shoes - Sam Edelman; Watch & Bracelet - Michael Kors; Sunglasses - Louis Vuitton

Wednesday - Cruise Casual, but we ate in Remy's, which requires you to dress up

I think this dress is unique, and it has one of my favorite colors - blue! I love this color of blue...maybe because wearing blue always makes my blue eyes pop more. I thought I would add pops of cheetah print on my shoes and bracelet. (Can you tell it was windy?!)

Dress - Joseph Ribkoff; Shoes - DVF; Bracelet - J. Crew; Earrings - Stella & Dot

Thursday - Semi-Formal Night

I wore this dress to my office holiday party, so it was begging me to wear it again! When I wore it for the party, I wore black tights and pumps. I tried to make it more summery with cage sandals. (Again, windy much?!?)

Dress - Anthropologie; Shoes - Michael by Michael Kors; Necklace - Stella & Dot; Bracelet - Coach

Friday - Cruise Casual

Coral is such a hot color this season. Last time I wore this, I paired it with wedges and a chambray top. Not this time! Gold accents is what this dress needed. (Background is in the Ooo La La cocktail lounge. LOVE the furniture!)

Dress - JC Penney; Shoes - Steve Madden; Necklace - Stella & Dot; Bracelets - Coach and Michael Kors

That's it! The wardrobe for the cruise. I may have been a lot more dressy than others, but I loved everything I wore! All I have to say is good thing we can drive to the ship because we had a lot of luggage. Should I admit a small roll on carried all of my shoes?!? Oh wait. I just admitted it.

Linking up with The Pleated Poppy.

He Did It!

- Emily

Back from our Disney cruise vacation...and I have to say how proud I am of my son. He is a child who suffers from Selective Mutism. People typically just say "Oh, he's just shy." But, it's so much more than that. New surroundings can make him very anxious and uncomfortable, especially if he is around a lot of adults. He warms up to his peers very quickly.

Well...he finally did it. After two Disney cruises and a trip to Disney World, the boy finally felt comfortable taking pictures with the characters. This is a huge step for him!! Now, he didn't talk to them, but he was all smiles and hugs. I felt so proud of him. So I had to show off a couple of pics with his favorite characters - Stitch and Chip & Dale. Two years ago, he wouldn't have even stepped close to them. Way to go, buddy!!!

Pastels Please

- Emily

"Hello, pastels." This is how one of my coworkers greeted me today. I'm hoping that was a compliment...

But pastels are huge this spring and summer. And since I'm not afraid of color, I thought I would throw a whole slew of pastels at you all at once!

By the way, I'm loving these Matchstick jeans from J. Crew Factory. They keep their shape pretty well, but they do stretch out a little after you first put them on after washing. And I continue my fascination with button ups! Old Navy has such a great assortment of colors and patterns!!

Shirt - Old Navy

Jeans - J. Crew Factory

Watch - Michael Kors

Jewelry - Stella & Dot

Shoes - Via Spiga