Charleston bound!!

This sassy Bug has her shades on, her gator smocked dress ironed, bows in hair and is ready to party!!!! She's SUPER excited about seeing her amazing GREAT grandparents......

But even more so, we're ecstatic about catching this view...........

Sullivan's Island here we come!!!

I am so excited that this weekend we are headed down to Charleston and the highlights of our trip will be:

• Seeing my best friend and #1 sister Keys!! And my wonderful brother in law Milton, too, of course!! Keys and I don't get nearly enough time together, and daily phone calls just aren't cuttin' it these days....I need my drinkin darlin!!!!
• Raymond's GREAT Aunt Mickey is turning 90 years old so we're having a party!!!
• We get to see my favorite Nana and Paupau and I am so excited for Georgia to have some one on one with them......
• We get to go to Station 9 (the beach house on SI)....the salt air cures all evil

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!!!!

Love,

Charlotte

Drumroll please...........

Winner of the Fontaine Maury giveaway is...........

Amber

at Survival Guide for the Young and Fabulous Newlywed!!!

Congrats!!! Email me your address so I can ship you your sassy candle!!

My computer has been pms'ing this week so I've been MIA....plus I've been busy coming off of Cloud 9 from my staycation....the hubs truly outdid himself!!!

Staycation here we come!

So...the Hubs is taking the biggest test of his life today. He is an engineer and today he is taking his Professional Engineer. He has waited 4 1/2 since graduating from college. There are several markers that you have to do before you can take this one and luckily, this will be the LAST 8 hour exam he has to take!! I don't know how he does it! Also, we have had many things going on personally in our lives (that I've been debating on sharing, once we have more news) that we decided several weeks ago to just have a weekend of unwinding and relaxation! My brother and sister in laws are the ones who have turned us on to staycations....I had never heard of them until last year when they did one in Downtown Charleston (jealous!!) and so since then we do these every few months....back in the day when we were in college we would just stroll and bar hop and have the best time together. We often went out in groups, but I knew he was the one when we could just spend the entire night together in a crowded bar and never feel the need involve anyone else....SO....here's to our weekend, and yours!!
I'll most definitely be indulging in some of this........................... We'll be dining here tomorrow night............

Love this place, we went here the Thursday before getting married with our families so this place has some really special memories for us.......

We'll be staying here.................

Cocktail hour here.......

And finishing the night up here on the rooftop bar!!!!

Look at these views!!! The hotel is on Main Street....I love our downtown. They are really doing some major improvements to bring it "back"

Hope you all have a wonderful, cocktail filled weekend!!!!!!!!!!

L, C

**p.s. don't forget to enter my giveaway!!! originally I was going to cut if off today, but I'll be preoccupied so I'll give you until Sunday!!**

Movin' on Up.....

When I was expecting, I never knew how resourceful blog world would be for me when looking for the latest and greatest items for my baby.....blue eye bride quite often gives reviews of items and she is amazing in and out of blog world! she is so honest and I love her views on motherhood and she really is as sweet as she seems in real life as she does on her blog!....I was (and still am) so thankful for all of the honest mamas our there who just tell it like it is and give great (and sometimes not so great) reviews for items. Especially as a new mom everything is so overwhelming and you just feel like you're treading water sometimes trying to sift through all of the "stuff" you need! As we are (QUICKLY) approaching the Bug's first birthday, I just breathe a heavy sigh that we made it through our first year! With one bout of RSV, one cold, and despite our two top teeth coming in, we have been sleeping through the night since 2 1/2 months, I think that this year has been insanely calm....I praise God every day for our beautiful and healthy baby girl! After 12 days in the NICU when she was born, I just begged for mercy every day to get me through those hours. We only had 12 days of misery and I do not know how some of the mamas out there have done it for months on end. My heart just cries for them. But, we are so thankful that we have had no ill effects and our precious angel is just thriving and growing by the minute!
Here are some of the items that are getting us through the days right now......

the old trusty Nuk pacifier This sucker (no pun intended) has been around for years and it was our go to paci for the Bug. She was really not a big fan for a while, which was okay with us, I just thought that I wasn't going to have a paci-obsessed baby. But around 7 months she just picked that paci up, popped it in and it hasn't left our side yet. The paci clip is the greatest invention hands down, and we do not go anywhere without it! For the teething, I learned in INCREDIBLE tip from a blog mama to dip them in water and then freeze them....I wish I could remember who's blog it was that I saw that on because I could kiss you. It has saved our lives. We always have a few in the freezer to pop in when she's in pain....the orajel only goes so far!

the sassy seat/johnny jump up

We decided to go with the Sassy Seat as opposed to a stationary jumperoo because I was so tired of stumping my toe on all of the baby items....Georgia loves her seat and it buys some really good time, especially in the mornings. We can put her in the bathroom with us while we are trying to get ready and she is happy as a clam.

Fisher Price musical table

Raymond's coworker suggested this item to us and it is the absolute best thing in the world! We were quickly running out of items that Georgia was interested in and this is wonderful because the legs easily pop off so you can lay the top of the table flat on the ground for babies who are not yet standing, you can prop it up on two legs for sitting babies to play with or you can have it on all fours for children who are standing/walking. I think that we have a climber on our hands so at times I have caught her trying to climb on top of her table....Lord help us all.....it's a wonderful toy and the music is just precious that it plays.

(AMEN for) Gerber Puffs

I will stick the Bug in her high chair in front of the tv with some puffs when I am trying to clean up after her meals and this buys me 5 minutes of silence and I can trust that she is safely eating. These have also tremendously helped her develop the skills to pick items up and put them in her mouth. Her coordination has really come along these past few months and these are especially my go to item when in public and she's getting antsy....guaranteed to buy you a few moments of silence.....

Nuk sippy cups

I have spent I don't know how much money on different sippy cups. I was that mom trying to provide "variety" I guess. Now I have heard several different schools of thought on the sippy cup in introducing it too early, not putting anything but juice in there, and so on....BUT you do have to find what works for your child and I am a firm believer in that. I guess I am just old school in that we all grew up fine, our parents all grew up fine and I am just now OCD about alot of the information out there. I do believe there is such a thing as too much internet education. However, I started introducing the cup around 7 months. It started with me holding it for her and she would slightly drink out of it. I tried several different cups and this is the one she responded best to. I am not sure why, but I just kept working with this one. Every day we would give it to her and I never really allowed her to "play" with it- I had heard some moms saying their kids just thought it was a toy. If it was out, she was drinking out of it. I think this helped her establish what it's intention was. Slowly but surely, she started grabbing for it herself and before long, she was holding like a 1st place trophy. She is so proud of her sippy cup and loves that thing more than life itself. As a mama, this makes me so happy. She, to this day, will not hold her own bottle, so the selfish, need 5 minutes to go to the bathroom part in me came out and thought of putting her formula in the cup. BAM!!!!! Free at last thank goodness I am free at last!! Georgia now takes all but one of her bottles in a sippy cup and takes her juice in the cup as well. I am ecstatic because as the big 0-1 birthday approaches, I was having anxiety about weaning her off the bottle....well my friends, we are almost home free.....

Britax Marathon Convertible Car Seat

There are many parts to Georgia growing up that excite me but there are parts that are sad to me as well. As happy as I am she's taking a sippy cup, I will most definitely cry the day that I pack up all of her bottles. It's just that closing of one stage of her life and moving to the next that is so emotional for me. The same with her car seat. We have been looking for some time now and when we were looking for her infant car seat, we toyed with the Convertibles vs the Infant Carriers. I decided to go with the Bertini for her infant car seat and stroller system. We have LOVED LOVED LOVED that system!! I get so many compliments on it and our sweet friends Megahn and Blake are expecting their sweet baby Anna Heath in a few weeks and they also went with that one. Now we've had the joy of picking out her next ride and we have decided to go with the Britax marathon....I am SO excited for her to sport around town in this. It's an incredible car seat and Britax is a great brand. I think we've found a winner!!!

There are so many emotions as I remember back to being pregnant and scouring for hours at babies r us, online, through magazines, talking to friends and fretting about finding the PERFECT items for our baby girl. That all seems so long ago and I still pinch myself every day at the thought of a whole year passing by as a mom. I am so looking forward to my first Mother's Day!!! We did celebrate last year since I was pregnant but I am super excited to have the Bug here now to join in on the festivities.....maybe that KS agenda will appear?? I have a few other items that I am hoping for so keep your fingers crossed that Georgia has told Daddy all of Mama's wish list items.....

A to Z

Yay!!! Same Sweet Girl tagged me with this....I love these!!
A. area code: 803
B. bed size: Queen. We will most definitely HAVE to be upgrading at the rate we're going...4 bodies in a bed is a tight tight queen.....
C. chore you hate: the nitty gritty deep cleaning....i adore my cleaning lady...she's awesome...
D. dog's name: Tellie aka Letellier Gibson Hamilton...such a bold name for such a dainty golden...
E. essential "start of the day" item: does my radio count??? I can't wake up to a buzzer....
F. favorite color: right now? apple green or golden yellow
G. gold or silver: I've always hoarded silver, but lately I'm spreading my wings and collecting gold pieces
H. height: 5'6".....and stout
I. instruments you play: Violin for several years growing up....I wish I would have stuck with something
J. job: I am a (newly appointed!!!) Account Manager for a Brokerage/TPA Firm....LOVE IT
K. kids: One!! But the drama queen is enough for now!!
L. living arrangements: Cozy Three Bedroom on cul-de-sac....
M. mom's name: Swoozie is what she's referred to now...God given name, Susan : )
N. nickname: Bug (my mom), Charsy (my lifelong girls, anyone else I'd kill them), Killa (the hubs-don't ask) or WOMAN (my one and only BFF)
O. overnight hospital stay: Too many....5
P. pet peeve: Poor spelling/grammar, the word AINT, someone feeling their superior/entitled, not writing a Thank You Note (come on....), a weak handshake, people who are judgmental
Q. quote from movie: Hearts will never be practical until they are made unbreakable...-The Wizard of Oz
R. righty or lefty: Righty
S. siblings: One little brother whom I adore
T. time you wake up: Weekdays 6:00, weekends...whenever Georgia tells us to!
U. underwear: whatever will not be detected under my clothes that day.....
V. vegetables you dislike: leeks.
W. ways or reasons you are late: Georgia- you will never know what it is like until you try to get out of the house with a baby....this is my excuse now...before I just misjudged my time....
X. x-rays: well I just recently had an ultrasound done...closest thing lately....but I've had cat scans and mri's...I could die peacefully never having one of those again...
Y. yummy food you make: any baking of sorts....and waffles!!
Z. zoo animals you like: the giraffes! they're so elegant!!

Now I tag these lovely ladies.......Tale of a Grits, Katie's Journey,and Life in a Small Town

Happy Tuesday!!!

Giveaways Giveaways

Amber over at The Survival Guide for the Young, Fabulous and Newlywed is giving away this adorable apron from Kirklands!!! Scoot on over to her precious blog to check out her sweet gift!!!

Also, only a few more days to enter the Fontaine Maury giveaway!!!! Entries are due by Friday the 16th....

I guess everyone has Spring Fever right now!! I love all of the freebies that are popping up everywhere!!

Who needs an Oscar when you have blog awards?!?!?

Bella over at Southern Somedays passed on the I Love Your Blog award....I love her blog and her family is so beautiful!!! She's got a great place and I hope you run and follow her!!!

Things that make me happy......

1. The way my sweet Georgia smells and her laugh...it's infectious

2. The smile on my husband's face when he walks through the door every night- no matter how hard his day has been, he never lets on

3. My job...I have the most wonderful career and I love every minute of it. I could not be more thankful for all that they have done for me.

4. My fabulous friends!!! You all are so wonderful!!

5. Blogging...I am so happy to have an outlet to vent to and for such inspirational people I meet out here in blogland....I have come across some pretty incredible people

6. My Mama....I don't know where I would be without her

7. Summer...I think all the cold weather down here has made me crazy....the sun is soothing

8. AHA Moments...we don't have enough of them

9. A Friday night with absolutely nothing to do

10. My relationship with my Saviour...Raymond and I put God first and everything second. When I am doubtful, or unsure of myself, He brings me back to my core, and quickly reminds me of what's important.....

Now, to the 5 bloggers that I love......

Bumpkin on a Swing

Same Sweet Girl

Short Southern Mama

First Comes Love....

The Preppy Pearl

I know you will love all of these ladies as much as I do!!

The Rules:
1. Link and thank the blogger who awarded you.
2. List "What makes you happy"
3. Pass the award on to the 5 blogs you love.
4. Notify the new recipients of their awards.

Time to get organized

So I noticed this week that the new mom Agendas are out....and I've been using the mom Agenda now for 3 years....well the MOM one for a year and the my Agenda for the years prior. I love all the different colors they've come out with. And every year I find that my pages fall out by years end....does this happen to anyone else? I LOVE the layout of the agenda and despite the size, I always manage to have a purse big enough for it......so I'm curious if any of you run into the same problems..... and then I came across KS's agenda....and while definitely a tad more pricey, you just buy the refills every year which I like so I can keep all of my notes section and what not......and really if you know of any other types of agendas that have interchangeable inserts, those are welcome too! I think this is the year to switch up and try something new.....

What agendas do you all use???? I could use any suggestions!!!

So long Vera, Hello Bettie!!!

Fulfilling my faithful duties as a Southern sorority sister (Hello Zeta!!) I dashed off to college with my complete set of Vera Bradley...everything from my garment hang up bag all the way down to my wallet. Over the years I have tamed my Vera display and really just use about 3 or 4 of the items when I travel now and have never had a reason to justify trading in and lets be honest, ole' Vera has been good to me over the years. But a few weeks ago my zipper snagged on my over sized duffel, and then last week my strap popped. So, I took this as a sign that it was time to invest in some new overnight gear.....in comes my new best friend, Buckhead Bettie!!! In one of my routine trips to Just the Thing I noticed this overnight bag, but alas, I resisted....and then it was fate- I was in the market for a new one, and they still had one left! I also picked up the matching square tote for my toiletries!!! Check out Buckead Betties for their complete line.....

My wonderful and amazing hubby is treating me to a romantic staycation this weekend so this will be a perfect accessory for our "trip"!!!

Hope you all a wonderful weekend! I am slowly but surely getting better! I think I am going to head back to work tomorrow (even though I don't have my post op until late Tuesday) this working girl is getting antsy!!!

tata for now!

The Countdown is on!!!

That's right my loves....only 24 days until the Biyatches of the Turnpike return in all their dramalicious glory to fulfill my Monday evenings!!!! I can't wait!!! I am sure the drama will be as delish and tensions will be as high as ever!!!!! I already have my DVR warming up...... Until the return of the ORIGINAL bubbies, I'll settle by getting my Jersay fix from these sassy mafiasas (and mafiaso, sorry Anthony!!) Seriously, Gigi's boyfriend Frankie literally looks like he stepped off of the set of The Sopranos....but what's even more entertaining than the actual show? The Fanpage on Facebook!! The catfights that those people get into over this show are absolutely hilarious....need a good laugh? Check it out....
And of course, right now, I am currently getting my reality show fix from these six socialites.

Am I the only one who thinks that Ramona is seriously and certifiably crazy??? I think that Bethenny is so into herself and portraying herself as a victim and this is getting old, fast. I try and keep an open and fresh perspective on her, but I think her "wit" (if that's what you want to call it) is just so tiresome. I think that Jill has taught me what kind of friend I do NOT want to be- she keeps tabs on everything! That's not friendship to constantly throw stuff back in someones face. If you truly forgive and love someone and want to move on with the friendship, that's what you do....not harbour that resentment to throw back in their face at a later time. Luann has me puzzled this year, I have always been an avid promoter of Luann but I can't quite determine how I feel about her this year. Kelly is...well....Kelly. And the front runner for my favorite this year is Alex. She's attempting to stay out of the drama but also keep her friendships in a healthy manner with everyone....she has pleasantly surprised me!!

Raymond and I absolutely LOVE Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution!!! I cry every time we watch it. Jamie is so passionate about turning our school food's system around and my heart breaks for him at the challenges he encounters. He is just so sweet and caring and I think what he is trying to do is truly remarkable.

And as always, my favorite TV Family has returned and have not disappointed!!! I got a kick out of Tori and Dean's attempt at an RV Cross Country family road trip....Good luck ever getting Raymond to get me to commit to that!!! I just love this little family and all of their dysfunctions.....

I think I am at my limit right now for trashy reality TV!!!! Being home all week has definitely promoted me to #1 Couch Potato! I cannot wait to get out of the house this weekend! It's absolutely gorgeous here!!!

Sullivan's Island here I come.....

I am SO ready for our Beach Week!!!!! I have stocked up on some stuff for the summer and now that the heat has set in, I can't wait to break some of my goodies out!!!!!

Has anyone read Emily Giffin's latest book Heart of the Matter?? I loved loved loved all of her other books, so I figure this one has to be just as good, right??
Just The Thing is a FABULOUS boutique in Columbia (they also have locations in Atlanta and High Point, NC.) and I picked up the Gold and Black in these Sunny Feet....they have a strikingly familiar resemblance to TB's sandals, don't they??? They are so cute and very flattering on my w-i-d-e feet!!

I love bathing suits and I just wished that they reciprocated the relationship!! Ha! Land's End has come out with these new scrunch skirts....I think they're really cute and hope they are just as cute on!!

(I'll also take some mile long legs like these too, please!!)

Just The Thing (I told you, I'm obsessed with this store!!) has started carrying this line of clothes by Judith March and all of her items are $100 or less....that's so hard to come by these days! Tracy at JTT has incredible taste and she has such a great variety of items and price ranges...there truly is something for everyone!!

I just picked up these two new pairs from my boyfriend, Jack......

This Platinum color is really versatile and can go with literally anything......

I love the link bracelet and necklace......and since I'm so....ahem....big boned....Tracy so kindly scoured for an 8 inch bracelet for me!! She's wonderful!!! If you're ever in any of the areas where they have a shop, definitely pop your head in!!!

www.shopjustthething.com

Everyone needs a cute beach bag!! How cute would this be with either a powder blue or hot pink monogram?!?!?!?

I can't wait to get my feet in the sand!!!!

The Bug's First Birthday Party....

Okay....so I only have about a month and a half before the Bug turns ONE!!! I cannot believe how fast this year has flown!! I am going with a Zebra, Hot Pink and Lime Green theme but have been running into some road blocks....these are some images that I have found that are providing me with some inspiration...... courtesy of google

I am definitely going to do a candy bar....any suggestions from anyone who has done one of types of candies that are big hits?? I have found several websites that are awesome and you can order candy by the color! How nice is that?!?! I will let you know which website I end up using. I've also created custom stickers through Fontaine Maury that will go on the cello bags for the candy....this will be the guests surcie!!!
I'm still tossing around the idea of an animal print cake....I will definitely do one for the Bug to plow into but a Fabulous baker has offered to do some cupcakes for me as opposed to a large cake for the crowd.....what are your thoughts on this????

How to Shown at WCD
I LOVE this topiary!!!! My mom and I are going to do some for the party...I've found a DIY website on google (just type in ribbon topiary). They seem really easy to do! I've also thought about these Chinese lanterns as well hanging in the yard above all the tables.....

I have several glass dispensers (with the spout) that I thought putting pink lemonade in with limes would really go with the decor....the other dispenser will have margaritas for the adults!! I had to have another lime accessory!!

If any of you have pulled off a pink and green party and have ideas, throw them my way!!! I've thought about tossing the zebra out and throwing more "Lilly-esque" items in there....I guess I will go with whichever one I find more of!!

Raymond has no idea what he's getting into............

p.s.- i love that my google spell check highlighted "surcie" i guess mr. spell check isn't southern

Here comes Peter Cottontail.....

This year was so much fun....I did not do a tremendous amount of stuff this year for Christmas since Georgia didn't really realize what was going on! BUT the Easter Bunny definitely made his stop at our house this year!!! We had a blast getting everything....she got several new bathing suits, some dresses, a musical table, a talking puppy dog, her own little pink cell phone, beach toys, books, bubbles, and candy!!! She had a big year!!! Daddy's basket is to the left, and he stocked up on golf balls, some Guy Harvey TShirts, and lots of candy! Mama got a cute little new outfit and a bracelet from Handpicked! Overall, it was a wonderful Easter!

The Bug just had to try out her new bunny ears!!

Georgia had an all white smocked dress on and her bow had a bunny on it! I also put her in her white Bobux...normally she doesn't keep her shoes on but she managed to cooperate for church!

ugh.....the humidity has set in.......

Georgia was pretty much over taking pictures at this point

Big and Mimzy came by to see us! Later that evening we went to see Uncle D and Swoozie but I forgot my camera of course!

Georgia and her Big!

Hope the Bunny was good to all of you as well! Hard to believe that Easter has come and gone! Summer and the heat have set in!!