Friday Favorites!

Happy Friday Everyone!!! 

The weekend is finally here!!! I am kicking off the excitement with another link-up of Friday Favorites with some of my favorite bloggers. Check out Andrea's blog called Momfessionals, Erika's blog called A Little Bit of Everything, and Narci's blog called Grace and Love. Their blogs are so inspiring and they are a must read! 

#1. Purdue CHAARG is my favorite.

If you are anything like me you are probably thinking, what is CHAARG and why is it spelled with two A's and no E's? Well CHAARG stands for Changing Health, Attitudes and Actions to Recreate Girls. It is a movement that has been liberating girls from the elliptical since 2012. 

Here is a little blurb from the CHAARG Website: 

"CHAARG aims to ignite a passion in college-aged girls for health + fitness. Too many college girls rely solely on an elliptical. CHAARG liberates girls from the elliptical + shows them that fitness can [+ SHOULD] be fun! Since every girl has a different preference of what fun is, we create opportunities for our CHAARG girls to “find their fit.” We do this by partnering with local studios once a week to lead a workout, whether it be CrossFit, Pure Barre, or salsa dancing — and everything in between."

So I have only been involved with CHAARG since the start of this semester, but let me tell you, I already LOVE it! On the first night we made our 'Fit Goal' for the semester. Here's mine:

So there is no turning back, folks! I am committing to running another half marathon this spring, and I am committing to actually training for this one. Bring on getting fit! 

I #RunCHAARG because I am getting HITCHED! and my sweet friend Rachel #runsCHAARG because well sweat is sexy of course! ;)

Getting in wedding shape together with the bride-to-be, Katie! 

I mean seriously, even if I didn't enjoy working out, I would still join CHAARG for their incredibly awesome workout attire. Can you believe how adorable this tank is?                       I just LOVE CHAARG. Every. Single. Thing. About. CHAARG.  

                                                     

#2. Thankful Thursday is another FAVORITE!                   

Yesterday I started a new weekly series with my sweet besties Addie, Rachel and Alli. It's called Thankful Thursday! I must say, I sometimes struggle to recognize all of the beauty that life possesses. I get caught up in day to day life, let little situations stress me out way too much, and leave little time to reflect on the positives. My hopes in starting this series is that I will sit back and embrace all that life has to offer, and give thanks in all circumstances, the good and the bad. We would LOVE for you all to join us as well! Grab the graphic below & link-up with me or Addie, at She Who Longs to be on Thursday!

  

                     #3. I am OBSESSED with Tazo tea!                                                   I have ALWAYS been a coffee drinker. Like ten cups a day coffee drinker. I have no idea what has gotten into me the past few weeks, but I have officially transformed into a tea addict. I am head over heals in love with Tazo and there is no turning back. 

Their iced passion tea is the little glimmer of sunshine I need to get me through these cold winter months. It is so refreshing & fruitful, and the radiant color makes drinking it so much more fun!

But when I want to curl up and sob over a romance movie, I make myself a little Tazo Chai Chocolate Latte. This is the ultimate comfort drink my friends. Its so simple to make too! Just add half a cup of the chocolate latte concentrate and a half cup of milk, heat it up a bit and BOOM! You just made your day a million and one times better.   

And a day can't go by without me getting in my organic chai tea. It's the perfect caffeine level for a mid-afternoon drink. It gives me just the pep I need to finish out the day strong. 

If I am not drinking organic chai, then you best believe I have an organic peachy green tea bag in my to go mug. This tea is the perfect combination of fruity, exotic, and natural. 

Every morning I start my day off strong with a nice old cup of earl grey. This tea has won over my whole heart. I never thought reading blogs in the morning could get more fun, but reading blogs while drinking earl grey tea takes fun to a whole new level. 

And what's your morning tea if you don't have an adorable mug to put it in? Here are some of my FAVORITE mugs from Anthropologie. 

To purchase click here.

To purchase click here.

To purchase click here.

To purchase click here.

To purchase click here.

#4. Pinterest hair masks with my besties are my fav.

Last weekend was quite the best with two of my besties. We spent the evening Saturday catching up on Prince Farming and the Bachelor, while experimenting with some hair masks. While I did have some (okay, like A LOT), of reservation about coating my hair with coconut oil, I went for it, because why not. The worst thing that could of happened is that every strand of hair on my head could have fallen out 8 months before my wedding. So really, the odds were in my favor and I dove right into it. 

I can't find the recipe on Pinterest, but literally all we did was completely coat our hair in coconut oil, clip it into a bun, put a hot, wrap a hot steamy hand towel around our heads, and then throw a walmart sack on top. Completely normal right? It was a great look for us as well. Scroll down for proof.

Gosh, I just love how these two make lathering my hair in coconut oil fun.

Click here for some more hair masks ideas! 

Happy Friday Everyone! Have a wonderful, relaxing weekend 

& don't forget to link-up with me on Thursday to recap on all of the things you are thankful for! 

Thankful Thursday

Today I am starting a new weekly series with my sweet besties Addie, Rachel and Alli & they just happen to be phenomenal bloggers as well. I must say, I sometimes struggle to recognize all of the beauty that life possesses. I get caught up in day to day life, let little situations stress me out way too much, and leave little time to reflect on the positives. My hopes in starting this series is that I will sit back and embrace all that life has to offer, and give thanks in all circumstances, the good and the bad.

Today I am thankful for my fiancé and his unconditional love.

 I will be the first to admit that I am truly a piece of work. I have my struggles, moments of weakness, and times of trials; but my sweet David comforts me with love, understanding, accountability, and realism. His patience are endless and his compatibility is deeper then the sea. I am grateful beyond measure for David Butterfield.

I am thankful that my mom is now able to talk! 

My mom is quite the trooper. A few weeks ago she had surgery to remove nodes on her vocal cords. The poor lady couldn't talk for two weeks. Two weeks. She communicated via a white board, a pad of paper, a bell, and countless text messages. Good news however is that today, my mom was cleared by her doctor to talk again. Praise the Lord! I am so thankful for my mom and her voice (most of the time ;)). I truly think that I take for granted things like speaking, hearing, touching, and seeing. Our senses help us to create a better understanding of our world, and for that I am grateful.

I am thankful for best friends who enrich my life daily.

I love these girls with my whole heart and I am so thankful for each of them. 

Purdue has brought about so many great things in my life, but one of my very favorites is that Purdue led me to each one of these blessings. I am lucky and grateful to call them my life long friends. 

I am thankful for the ability to laugh at myself.

Friends, Target had some UNBELIEVABLE steals last week when it came to their shoe department. Unbelievable in the sense that I bought myself 5 new pairs of shoes, each under $9.00. But before I go any further, I must notify you all that only 4 out of the 5 new pairs I purchased are actually wearable. You see, I bought two left shoes, one shoe being a size 8 and one being a size 8 1/2. I know I dance like I have two left feet, but typically when I buy shoes I usually try to stick with one right shoe and one left shoe. I am thankful for the laughs that my stupidity brought me this week. 

I am also thankful for the inspirational messages inside of Dove chocolates.

Why? Because these sweet messages instantly wash away any guilt I had after eating about 12 thousand pounds of chocolate. And let me tell you, there was lots of thankfulness for these little guys today. 

And it wouldn't be a complete Thankful Thursday, if I didn't give a thankful shout out to the thing that has really kept me going this week....

COFFEE.

Happy Thankful Thursday, everyone! I hope you have a joyous day! 

Sugar Cookies with Your "Sugar"

So one of your best friends gets engaged & you are over the moon excited. What next? Throw together a cute little gift bag full of sugar cookie decorating supplies & attach this free printable gift tag. That's what I did when my sweet Laken got engaged. 

Here's how it all went down...

Oh boy, oh boy! When my phone rang late on Christmas Eve & I saw Miss Laken Lefever calling, I knew it could only be one thing....

HER & BRYAN GOT ENGAGED! 

My heart is literally overflowing with happiness for my sweet bestie & her perfect other half. I am fully convinced that God created these two with the other in mind. They go together perfectly. And the best thing about their whole relationship is that it is centered around the Lord. Melts my heart.

I can't rant and rave about the perfect couple without showing you a picture of them. So, here they are... the future Mr. & Mrs. Elston.

She is literally BEAMING with happiness. 

And nothing is sweeter than a proposal action shot, and let me tell you friends, this one does not disappoint...

Ahh the facial expressions. Pure bliss.

Oh and one last thing

... sit down for this because it's going to knock you off your feet...

THE STUNNING RING. 

I looovveee the uniqueness of the pear cut. 

All of us girls had planned to meet bright and early in the morning the day after Christmas to get all of the details in person from our newly ENGAGED Laken. I knew I wanted to throw a little something together to congratulate her. I didn't have much time & my resources were limited, so I decided to throw a little "sugar cookie decorating" bag together. You know, so she could celebrate the engagement by baking sugar cookies with her sugar. 

and yes... I am fully aware of how cheesy that is. 

Here are the things I purchased:

1. One bag of Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie Mix

2. Whipped Vanilla Icing

3. A set of 4 Heart Shaped Cookie Cutters

4. One package of Candy Hearts

5. One container of pink sprinkles

6. One Icing Decorating Kit

7. A card

8. Tissue Paper

9. A bag to place all of the contents inside 

I simply placed all of the contents in the bag, shoved some tissue paper inside, attached the card to the front, and added a little bow.

My mom snapped a little selfie of me and the "sugar cookie" bag. 

And here is the finished product right before Miss Laken arrived.

I hadn't created the little gift tag when I made the goodie bag for Laken, but don't forget to grab yours. Here is the link for the free printable.

Remember, this is quick & simple and makes for a fun treat for the newly engaged couple to share together! Happy Wedding Season!

What's A Wedding Without A Hashtag?

Oh the wedding #hashtag craze is in full force now more than ever. I mean really? Can you have a wedding without a #WeddingHashtag? I think not. Here are my top ten favorite wedding hashtag ideas:

Number 1.

 #BecomingAButterfield

Number 2. 

#ElstonsEverafter

Number 3. 

#ButterfieldPartyOf2

Number 4.

 #ShesASmith

Number 5.

 #IntroducingTheSnovers

Number 6. 

#HappilyEverHarrison

Number 7.

 #HarrisonsSaidIDoOnJuly22

Number 8. 

#HarrisonsGetHitched

Number 9. 

#MeetTheButterfields

Number 10.

 #FranklinsForever

David & I chose #BecomingAButterfield for our wedding hashtag. I am kinda obsessed. In all honesty though, because Dave's last name is Butterfield, being called "butterball" is somewhat expected. Therefore, my lovely sister willingly started hashtagging #ButterballsWedding, and my very easily influenced besties followed suite. I can't help but laugh.

Oh the wonderful hashtags we could concoct if our last name was "butterball" instead of Butterfield....

#BecomingAButterball

#ButterballsForever

#ShesAButterball

I think I will stick with #BecomingAButterfield

and of course your #WeddingHashtag wouldn't be complete without all of your wonderful guest knowing about it!  Here are a few ideas of how you can spread the #hashtag:

(source: here)

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Happy Wedding Planning! 

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday Everyone!!! 

The weekend is finally here!!! I am kicking off the excitement with another link-up of Friday Favorites with some of my favorite bloggers. Check out Andrea's blog called Momfessionals, Erika's blog called A Little Bit of Everything, and Narci's blog called Grace and Love. Their blogs are so inspiring and they are a must read! 

#1. I said "YES" to my wedding dress!! 

I am sooooo relieved and full of excitement that I FINALLY found the dress that I am going to marry my sweet David in. Wedding dress shopping has been my favorite part of the wedding planning process thus far and I am so happy I was able to experience it with three of my favorite ladies.

Me with my mom, Grandma, and Aunt Michelle.

To read more about my wedding dress shopping experience & to learn all about my tips and tricks for saying "yes" to your dream wedding dress click here.

#2. Red Velvet Oreos are an obvious favorite.

These presumably tasty little bites of heaven come out in store on February 2nd. I will be busting through the grocery store doors to purchase as many boxes of these guys that my checking account will allow because they are only being sold for a limited time.

Fun fact for you all: This is the first time since 2004 with the Golden Oreo that the brand is featuring a new cookie flavor and color.

I am still in awe that Oreo made this cookies for me & apparently so is my grandma ;)

If Red Velvet Oreos aren't for you check out these other tasty options:

hahaha...is this real life? I hope not.

In all honesty though, I could eat a few of those Peanut Butter Oreos.

And naturally, these Cookies and Cream Oreos are calling my name as well.

#3. My sweet momma is my favorite. 

This week my mom had surgery on her vocal chords and she can't talk for 14 days. She is literally such a trooper with the most positive attitude. I would be going banana ham sandwich crazy, but she is more patient and sweet as ever.

She keeps snap chatting me with pictures of her whiteboard (what she has to use for the next two weeks to communicate with everyone) and her little bell (what she uses to get my dad's attention; which I am sure he is just loving so much ;)) She is adorable. 

So in honor of how much I love my mom and appreciate her, here are a few of my FAVORITE pictures of us. 

Christmas two years ago in our matching PJs. 

Decorating for Christmas this Thanksgiving break.

Mom's Day Brunch at Ann Tweedale.

Mom's day at Purdue last year.

#4. 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 is my favorite Bible verse this week.

This verse has provided me with lots of encouragement, accountability and happiness this week. 

#5. My Tom Wedges are my favorites. 

Folks, Tom wedges have been on my wish list since as long as I could write. At first glance I knew it was true love and totally meant to be. My sweet sister made my dreams come true and bought me a pair for Christmas. She's always been my favorite ;)

All joking aside, these booties are so exceptionally comfortable and practical and are totally worth the $88.95 splurge. 

I have this black pair of booties and love how they go with literally everything. Tom's currently has out two other pair of winter wedge booties as well if black isn't your preference...

There are these adorable Taupe wedge options...

and these precious Chestnut wedge options. I love the look of these! 

To purchase the black booties from Nordstrom click here. 

To purchase the chestnut booties click here.

To purchase the taupe booties click here.

To read about my other must have booties click here.

Unfortunately I haven't snapped any pictures of outfits that I have paired with my wedges, but when all else fails Pinterest always comes in handy. Here are some of my favorite outfit inspirations that will compliment the Tom wedges perfectly:

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Happy Friday, everyone! I hope you have a wonderful, relaxing & fun-filled weekend!