Belated Birthday Tales

This past April my darling little girl turned five.  The previous birthdays we've had for JaLynn have been low-key where as this year J requested a birthday party with her friends and "lots of gifts".  Feeling a little guilty and some what eager, the husband and I knew we had to do it big this year and throw a bash. A Monster Bash!
We made sure to invite school friends, soccer friends, our friends their friends and family.  Being wonder woman and the creative perfectionist I am- I tackled a large load.  Thank you Pinterest for stimulating my creative mind. 

Decor:

 Washable paint brushed on the side walk

Cardboard signs cut into arrows & painted w/ acrylic

Target helium tank $20

Dum Dum Flower Pot

Monster Cupcakes

Activities:

Easel Paper taped on the back fence with washable paint (big hit)

Monster masks

Stop and go music (prizes)

Sweets:

Frosting tip #3 Hair Piping

Neon food coloring

Marshmellows

A special thank you to our friends that joined us and offered a helping hand. 

We could not have done it without you :) 

Weekend Summary

Weekend Summary:

Fort Mill Water Park

Baby Scooting

Bubbles/Soccer with J

Dilworth Neighborhood Grille

Savor Cafe

Plant 21 Salon

          

Daily Smoothie:

2 handed ice 

4 large spoons-Trader Joes french vanilla organic yogurt

1 Banana

8 Strawberries

Handful of walnuts

Bee Pollen

Distressed Buffet from the 1930's

The BIG Reveal!!

Boy, am I proud of myself.

  Annie Sloan Chalk Paint is the bomb.com. Once I started working with the color Duck Egg it began to look too icy over the dark mahogany.  I then purchased a green tint to mix with the paint by Proceed, called Phthalo Green.  I used one in a half teaspoons to create this color. Distressing came with sand paper BEFORE waxing then a couple clear coats of  "wax on, wax off".  The clear wax darkens ever so slightly taking away the white base of the paint. A much needed pop of color for the kitchen.

Next project: Kitchen Cabinets :)

Life Rule

I must share some good news.. Last week, your girl received a phone call from a large business here in Charlotte to provide makeup services for a series of dates. I'm really excited for this connection and I look forward to building a business relationship with those fabulous individuals. Look for more images to come!

A Father's Brag Book

I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend! Ours was fantabulous! On Saturday the hub and I took a night out on the town and checked out a popular spot here in Charlotte, Soul Gastrolounge.  A few drinks. Tapas. We were all smiles wrapped in our conversation outdoors.  The night was cool and the city view had a picturesque sunset.
Sunday, we made sandwiches for our family picnic in the front yard. Once we sat down JaLynn was finally able to give daddy his gift.  She has been talking about it all week. We made a Brag Book, something he can keep close to look through; show off of course.  JaLynn wrote 4 things she would do for daddy:

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint

Annie Sloan is..where it's at if your looking to refinish furniture, cabinets, etc. I found a local place in town that carries her specialty paints. They are a little more pricey than your average slap on the wall paint. $50 smackeros. I'm planning to shop by there today and put my vision in motion this weekend.

I'm looking to refinish this buffet that is attached to one of our walls in our adorable 1930's bungalow.  The thought of painting it is kind of hard to do since everything is originally the house.  I don't know about you, but that's pretty cool.  The cabinets are rich mahogany paired with hardwoods.   My eyes are seeing way too much brown for my color palette.

www.beautyintervention.com

I'm loving the the old white, provence, duck egg blue, and paris grey. 

 What color do you think would work the best?

Eat Pretty

Six weeks.

6 is all you need according to, "How to Be More Beautiful in Six Weeks".

How you treat your body is a direct reflection of how you look.  Don't drink enough water?  Dark circles are more apparent.  Lay out in the sun, look like burnt leather.  You are what you eat. Meat, maybe a little pimple here and there, or maybe it's just the secretion of flesh coming through your pores. Take your pick, but you get the point :)

Studies show many of our beautiful vibrant fruits and veggies carry carotenoids, which the pigment in these babies improve the overall appearance of your skin. How? By carrying Vitamin A and Antioxidants. AKA wrinkles best friend. Glowing skin, yes please.

I don't know about you ladies, but I want to look young forever. Let's preserve together.

Did you know these gorgeous celebrities were vegetarian/vegan?

Wedding Day: Anette Massarina Hufham

Check out the latest bride from Beauty Asylum.

Jump on over to see the rest of the magic at Indigo Photography

During Anette's beauty process I met my cousin Dana for the first time. The blonde just right of the bride. Given the events taken place we didn't get to chat too long but hopefully, our paths will cross again soon. She said she's been told we look alike- What do you guys think?

Want to create Anette's look?  

Bobbi Brown:

Stick Foundation, Natural

Corrector in Peach

Concealer in Natural

Beach Bronze Cream Shadow

Black Gel Eye Liner

Nectar Blush

Beige Lip Color

Cocoa Lip Liner

Pink Champagne Lip Gloss

Sickly

Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend. After last nights festivities I awoke with a head cold and an unforgiving tummy.

Weekend highlights: wedding, chinese takeout, baby's first food, yard work, potluck.

Meditation

Many of us go throughout the day holding our breath and forgetting the most important thing that connects the mind and body.  "Nice long inhale and slowly exhale", I said in a series of repetition this morning. From the fast-paced life and racing thoughts, silencing the mind isn't an easy task. Challenge yourself. Breathe. 10 minutes. See if you can train your mind to just let go, and think of nothing but the breath of air that enters your body.

Happy Friday! Taste of Charlotte this weekend!

Bridal Makeup, Sat. Indigo Photography

Sunday Potluck with friends

Aged Porch Wood

After returning from a dine in moment from one of our neighborhood restaurants; the hub pointed out scrap wood laying in a pile along side the road for garbage pick up.  As soon as he brought it to my attention I immediately vouched for carrying it back to the house.  This wood wasn't your typical lumber from Home Depot.  This is 1920's wood that has been through rain, hail, and snow which made for a perfect distressed look in our dinning room. Lowes had great brackets for $5 to mount on the wall for support.

Thank you hub for the fabulous picture bomb

Stuffed Chicken with Ricotta, Spinach, and Tomatoes

Last night I made a yummy dish I found on Pinterest.  So far I've only made two recipes I've seen circulating on the boards.  I figure, the more repins I see, the better. Here is a first choice meal I recommend you trying at home.  It takes no time to prepare.  I've provided a quick reference on the meal and the original site it came from.  Although, I did tweak mine a bit ;)

fortheloveofcooking

I like a little more flavor and I didn't want a mouth full of ricotta cheese- so I used three chicken breasts and added a little more of the right ingredients :) Here's a quick snap shot of the food.

• 1c Ricotta cheese
• A big handful of fresh spinach
• 8-9 small grape tomatoes
• 3 Tbsp of parmesan cheese
• 3 leaves of fresh basil (chopped)
• 3 garlic cloves (minced)
• 1/2 tsp of oregano
• Salt/Pepper to taste
• Italian Seasoned Panko Crumbs
• 3 tsp Olive oil
• 2-3 Chicken breasts

Rinse the chicken (pat dry) and cut a horizontal slit along the center of the breast, nearly through to the other side.  Combine all ingredients above and mix well.  Fill with ricotta mixture. Season each side of the chicken with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper.  Bread the chicken with panko crumbs until both sides are covered.  Close the slit with toothpicks.

Heat oil in an oven proof skillet on the stove over medium high heat.  When the oil is hot then place the chicken in the skillet and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown, flip the chicken over and place the skillet into the oven. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes.

LemonLove

On Memorial weekend the family and I packed up everything and headed to Georgia. We have not been back for a visit since baby Brantley was born in January- the trip was intended to enjoy family and friends. It also fulfilled the much needed break we seldom get from the kids. The weekend went quickly for us but it also came with a cherry on top.  After being together for 10 years Mr. Kendall and I made it official in October.   In celebration of this moment in our lives on Sunday we grabbed lunch with a good friend and had a dazzling photo shoot.  Mrs. Renee Hicks at Lemon Chic Photography got her gear together after having TWINS (!!!) and spent the morning with us shooting in downtown Decatur, GA. For more images you can check out Renee's blog LemonLove and check out behind the scenes fun with athomewiththehicks  :)