Charleston Bachelorette Party

Charleston, SC.

I knew I wanted to either go to Charleston or Nashville for my bachelorette party. Because of the time of year, I chose Charleston. 

I had such a fun weekend celebrating with (almost) all of my friends. 

Megan and my sister went early on Thursday to set everything up & they did a GREAT job. Everything was so cute!

A few of us went on Thursday night so we could enjoy a full day Friday. We stayed at a townhouse in Mount Pleasant my friend found on VRBO.

Friday, we woke up and went to Paige's Okra for Brunch. It was so amazing. After our very tasty brunch, we had to stop at a gas station to blow up the inflatable swan. This took way longer and way more quarters than we thought. We also got some funny looks as we drove by. It was definitely worth it though. 

Once we finally got the swan ready we headed to the beach. Thankfully, we had great weather all weekend, so we stayed at the beach all day! 

When it was time to go inside and get ready for dinner, the next group of ladies had arrived. We all got ready and headed to Coast for dinner. Dinner was so good, and after our stomachs were full, we were ready to go have some fun!!

Friday was super fun. There was a lot of dancing, bruises and tired people the next morning. Thankfully, we had coffee waiting on us.

Once everyone was awake, we had a lingerie shower and breakfast. Not two things that usually go together... or do they?

We spent Saturday afternoon at the beach too. We all enjoyed getting a little sun and relaxing. 

Saturday night, we went to Burwell's Stonefire Grill.My food was not that great, but other people really enjoyed their food. This restaurant took two hours to serve us, so we were all a little tired when the checks finally came. 

After dinner we went to a rooftop bar until everyone was ready to go home. 

The weekend was definitely memorable & I am so thankful for the people that came to spend it with me. I love all of you dearly. 

xoxo elise 

Meet my Maids

I seriously have the best friends a girl could ask for. All of these friendships mean so much to me for different, unique reasons. I am so thankful to have each of them standing beside me on my big day & I wanted to show them off. 

Lauren Geiger - Sister. Sidekick. Ride or die.

Megan Mundy  - Met at Pro Cheer All Stars ten years ago and instantly became best friends. We bonded over the fact that neither of us could do a push up.

Taylor Wallace - Best friend from high school. Once, Taylor threw a weight on my back & now she has the most beautiful baby girl in the world. 

Priscilla York - we met through my ex boyfriend and I am so thankful. Priscilla stuck around and I am SO glad she did - even if she hates playing card games with me. 

Leslie Bentley - met first day of 9th grade. We were both public school newbies and we bonded over our horrible health class and new school jitters. 

Kendall Taylor - aka Kenny- we met through small group at Athens Church in college and had an instant connection. We lived together our senior year in college and it was the most fun year ever. 

Kelly Boling - Roommate in college. If you want a brutally honest friend, Kelly is your girl. I love her for it though. She keeps everyone grounded and always knows how to have a good time. 

Jennica Pridemore- met through Athens Church small group & lived together senior year. Always knows how to have fun & will force you to go work out with her the next day. 

Emma Daniel - cousin. love her like she is my little sister. kick butt cheerleader. 

I am so excited to have these ladies standing beside me. I couldn't think of better people to share this memory with. 

xoxo elise 

Magnolia Market

Waco, Texas

A few weeks ago my mom & I went to Dallas for work. We decided to extend the trip a few days to visit some family in Austin and the Silos in Waco. Let me just tell you how amazing it was. 

We woke up Monday morning and left the hotel in Waco at 9 am. We had to be back in Dallas by 5 for our flight home, so we wanted to give ourselves plenty of time at the Market. I was a little overwhelmed when we first walked in because there were so many people. I didn't know where to begin, but there were workers everywhere to answer questions and help make our experience awesome. 

The Market is set up in a square shape with a grassy area for kids to play and picnic tables in the middle. One entire side of the grass is lined with food trucks. We started our day with a large iced coffee from the Common Grounds food truck (it was so hot in Texas). Once we had some caffeine, we started our shopping.  Everything in the shop was set up and decorated to give the buyer ideas on how to use it in their home, which was my favorite part. I knew I could order anything in the store online, but I was taking pictures of things I loved all day so I could remember how she brought all of the different pieces together. We bought a few things but couldn't get much because of our flight home. I wish they had given me an order form when I walked in listing all the products you would see throughout the store. That way, you could check what you wanted to order, and they could ship it to you (Big Dreams).

We took a break from shopping and ate lunch on the lawn. We tried the Cheddar Box food truck... it was amazing! After we ate we went to the garden shop. I have never had the desire to garden until now. I want to plant everything imaginable at our new house. They had the cutest little starter kits as well as other gardening essentials. 

The bakery wasn't open yet, but we got to see part of what it will look like. It is supposed to open later this year and I am sure it will be just as awesome as the rest of the Market.

I didn't want to leave once we were done shopping because we were having so much fun. We decided to go over to Harp Design Co. which is Clint's shop. Clint does all of Joanna's special wood projects on Fixer Upper. Clint's shop was much smaller but still super cool. I actually bought some stuff for our new home and a wooden A to use at our wedding. They shipped everything for me. Clint and his wife got themselves a fixer upper in season 1 right next to his shop. We looked at their house from the street and remembered how incredible their renovation was. The house was even more beautiful in person. 

I would 100% recommend a road trip to Waco. I want to go back with a U-Haul and get almost everything in the store. It was such a fun experience, and we love everything about the show. 

xoxo elise  

Circles are better than rows pt. 2

This time a week ago, I found myself leaving the driveway of a house I have grown to love over the past 4 months. When small group ended in December, I honestly wasn't sure I was going to join again. Not because I didn't love it, but because I was making excuses. I was tired or I wanted to work out. I started thinking about how much I gained from the semester before and realized that my excuses were not even close to what I could get out of being in small group again. 

There were a lot of the same women in this group but some new faces as well. Again, I was the youngest of the group, but that didn't matter one bit. Some of the ladies in our group are spunkier than I am. 

I am so thankful for community. I am thankful we don't have to live this life by ourselves, but we are given people to help us be better, keep us accountable, love us and pray for us. In small group this semester we laughed together, cried together, mourned loss together and celebrated together. In times of hurt and heartache, we were there for each other. In times of goodness, we celebrated and laughed together. 

Being in a small group with these women is one of the best decisions I could have ever made. The wisdom that I hear every week is amazing, and sometimes I just sit back and think, "I hope I can be like that". 

Someone wanted us to wear hats because she likes to call us the "Mad Hatters". I forgot mine, of course, but someone had my back! :) 

These two ladies are so incredible. If you don't know them-  you should. So thankful for leaders like you. 

Matthew 18:20 says, "For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them". 

 xoxo elise

Savannah Bachelorette Party

#goodbyeguffin

After months of planning, it was finally time for my friend Alanna's bachelorette party. Alanna wanted to go to Savannah for her last fling. We had such a fun weekend eating everything in sight, laying on the beach and singing "Friends in Low Places" at the top of our lungs. Below are some pictures of our weekend celebrating Alanna. 

Of course my party planning loving self had to make gift bags for everyone! 

When we got to Savannah on Friday, we stopped at The Funky Brunch Cafe. Each table had a griddle in the middle so of course, we made pancakes. 

They taste better than they look! :) 

When we were done with brunch we made Alanna go to the store with some girls so Brynn and I could decorate the room. 

We hung out at the hotel for awhile and played some bride/groom jeopardy (Alanna wasn't too good at this). Then we got ready for our first night. 

We went to The Local Public Kitchen and Bar for dinner. Unfortunately, this place didn't take reservations but I had heard great things so we tried it out. 

We had an hour wait & only 2 people liked their food but we still had fun! 

  

We didn't make it out Friday because everyone was so exhausted so we had an early night watching Friends in the hotel room! 

Saturday we had brunch reservations at B. Matthews Eatery but decided to cancel and eat a quick breakfast at the hotel when we saw how nice the weather was supposed to be. 

After we scarfed down our breakfast we went to the beach for the rest of the day. 

When we were done at the beach, we went back to the room for a little nap and got ready for dinner. We had reservations at the Bohemian Rooftop Hotel but Alanna was in the mood for southern food so we cancelled our reservations and went to Paula Deen's restaurant. 

After dinner we went to a place called 51 for awhile but then made our way to Saddlebags (we would find the only country bar). That is where we spent most of our night Saturday and I think the bride loved it. 

xoxo elise 

My Little Pony Birthday

Cambry turns 4!!

Every year, I look forward to helping my sweet friend Priscilla plan her daughter's birthday parties. From princesses to ponies, we have done it all. This year, Cambry originally wanted Frozen but quickly changed her mind (like every girl) to My Little Pony. 

Check out the pictures from Cambry's birthday party below. 

I had to share a picture of the ponies on top of the fireplace because I was so impressed when I found out Cambry's dad Neal drew them. 

My favorite gift Cambry received was the journal below. I have the adult version of this, and it is so cool. I'm only on the first year, but I can't wait to continue using it and see how my answers change throughout the years. Cambry and her family are going to have so much fun with this. 

We loved celebrating you today, sweet Cambry. 

xoxo elise