A Weekend in Pictures

This past weekend went by in a blur of laughter and stories, baby smiles and squeals, so much good food, two parties for two sweet babes, porch swings, and wonderful moments with friends. 

So so good.

{high school buddies + our friends amazing new home. hello! that wall!}

{#reallife: pjs, an unmade bed & no makeup}

{obligatory first birthday cupcake face!}

xoxo

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Have a Fabulous {Fall!} Weekend!

As I'm writing this, the windows in our sunroom are open and letting in the most delicious, cool fall breeze. What a great way to start this day and to start the weekend! 

{images}

These next couple days off rest are actually pretty full for us, and I am excited for our plans...

- visiting my girl kindredly {who is about to become a mom! I seriously can't wait} and seeing baby Brook's nursery

- hopefully visiting my new fairy god son this afternoon, who will be the perfect start to a great weekend {yes, both my besties are about to have littles! so exciting!}

- time for quiet reflection and reading and discussing this book 

- morning coffee on the front porch

- firing up our grill and eating dinner on the patio beneath our new twinkle lights

- baking something pumpkin {I'm stuck between these tasty-looking muffins and my favorite GF bread}

Low-key weekends like this one, filled with friends, cool weather, and hanging out with husband on the porch/patio are my absolute favorite.

What are you doing this weekend?

xoxo

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Colorado Adventures Part II: Winter Park

After our brief time in Boulder, husband and I and our buddies headed over to Winter Park for a few days of skiing. The drive from Boulder to Winter Park was really quite lovely. I enjoyed watching the landscape change as the snow started to cover more of the mountains, the rocks began to fade and the trees began to grow in tall clusters.

Downhill skiing is one of my favorite things to do with K because we are well matched in our skill level {except I may be just a little bit better, ha.} so we always have a ton of fun. Winter Park was gorgeous, with plenty of good tree skiing, my favorite. I love finding skinny little trails off the sides of the runs that wind through the trees. A few times husband was behind me so I knocked some snow off the branches onto his head. Ha! Mary Jane was our favorite mountain with Edelweiss being our favorite run. It was long and winding with lots of trees and hideaways. We skied at Winter Park two days in a row and spent the entire second day skiing over at Mary Jane.

And although Winter Park was lovely and lots of fun, I didn't think it was necessarily better than the other places we have been. Wolf Creek, our honeymoon spot, was a great, smaller scale local place. And Breckenridge is probably my favorite ski destination in Colorado. We didn't eat out in Winter Park, mostly because nothing really grabbed our attention. Instead we spent our evenings in our condo, making dinner, playing cards and watching movies.

You know the night life is just not for me, 'cause all you really need are a few good friends.

xoxo

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Colorado Adventures Part I: Boulder

Last Friday husband and I packed up and headed out late to visit friends and find adventures in Colorado. We love to ski {we went skiing for our honeymoon!}, hike and basically do anything outdoorsy, so traveling out west is essential for us. Our trip last year was unfortunately cancelled, so we tried our best to fit in as much as possible this time!

We flew into Denver and drove about an hour north to Boulder, where two of our sweetest friends live. {We went to high school with this guy's brother, and honestly feel like a part of their family. K used to spend weekends at the family's cabin in North Georgia when we were in middle and high school.} It was so great to spend time with Joseph and Holly! We haven't been able to just hang out with them since I was in Athens at pharmacy school. They are such cool kids -- so laid back and fun, always up for adventure, and they share our love of delicious food. 

We spent Saturday morning wandering around Pearl Street, stopping for coffee at Ozo, hands down my favorite coffee in Boulder. The gorgeous blue sky and flatirons made a great backdrop for the cold day and hot coffee warming our hands. We bopped into the Patagonia store, where husband bought me what I call a "sleeping bag" jacket. It's just. so. warm.

We lunched at Illegal Pete's, and let me tell you, the chicken pesto burrito is where it's at. After lunch, the snow started and we packed up and headed to Winter Park with plans of skiing the next day. The evening was spent telling stories, eating homemade tacos, and playing spades and taboo. Ha! We love games, especially when we have friends to play them with.

We actually spent another 24 hours in Boulder at the end of our trip. We had dinner at a really neat new restaurant called Under the Sun. Delicious handhelds {sandwhiches} made of lemon rosemary chicken + sun-dried tomato aioli + arugula + mozzerella and pulled pork + bacon + honey mustard + arugula served with kale slaw. Um, yes please. The following morning we brunched at Snooze, which was akin to my favorite Athens spot. Breakfast burritos, egg scramblers with goat cheese, and a homemade hashbrown with each plate. 

Needless to say, I was pretty smitten with Boulder. If only we had family out there, we would move in a heartbeat... but we just can't stand being that far from our loved ones. So we will visit... often.

xoxo 

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Weekend Adventures: Tampa/Clearwater, Florida

Last weekend husband and I went to visit two of our closest buddies down in Land O' Lakes, Florida. I must say, the weekend was an absolute blast. Aside from the general merriment associated with friends you only see a few times a year, we had a schedule jam-packed with fun activities.

 

Saturday we spent most of our day at Weeki Wachi Springs, paddling down the gorgeous, serene natural spring. We took turns canoeing and paddle boarding, our first time on paddle boards, which was so fun. The water was so clear and teal that it honestly looked fake! Toward the end of our trip we also saw a family of about ten manatee, swimming and sleeping in the deep ponds at the end of the river.

{a reluctant thumbs up from husband & the resultant frown from me. ha!}

Sunday we ran a 5 miles race at the Clearwater Running Festival. Our friends were total rockstars and completed the half marathon! The route for both races followed the road along the ocean and bay, traversing multiple bridges {the Florida equivalent of a hill}, and allowing lovely views. After the race {and showers... and a nap} we headed down to Ybor City for a dinner feast at The Columbia Restaurant. After 1905 salads, crispy calamari, traditional cuban pork, and a {shared} bread pudding, we were all stuffed and ready for a long winter's nap.

Here's to a great weekend and sweet friendships.

xoxo

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Summer Holiday(s)

Two of my favorite things - and mostly because it means time with husband, family, and friends.

A couple weeks ago we spent four blissful days in Gulf Shores, AL with husband's sister and her family. He spent the morning fishing out on the sea, and I passed the time devouring the 'Hunger Games' series leisurely reading on the porch or at the pool.

The week after we returned home, Kindredly and her husband JG came over for a mid-week July Fourth celebration. We had a pretty low-key evening, but managed a few all-American hamburgers, strawberry basil sangria, and a blueberry-blackberry crisp. The evening came to an early close with sparklers in the twilight.

Hope you had a very happy Independence Day.

xoxo

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Check It Out!

My sweet friend and fellow blogger, Lesley asked me to do a guest post for her while she is on vacation. I'm so honored.

Lesley's blog, Homemade Grits, is one of my daily reads. And not just because we are friends IRL, but because her sweet style of unabashed honesty is just infectious. I love hearing her thoughts on everything from motherhood to yoga and nutrition. Lesley also has an Esty shop. She's a true renaissance woman!

So... go check out Homemade Grits and see what is at the top of my list for spring!

Behind the Scenes

In the past two weeks I have been lucky enough to receive two blog awards from two very lovely ladies -- the first from Diana of One Crafty Fox and the other from Jessica of Punk Rock Momma. It's always heart warming to know that other people read and appreciate what you have to say, and I personally like to know more about the women behind the blogs that I read. So, to continue to spread the love, here is a combination of both awards which ask for a bit more personal information than your typical outfit post affords.

Name your three best memories:

Christmas Eve at my parent's house - just drinking coffee and telling stories with my family.

Meeting my bestie for the first time - We were paired up as college roommates and immediately became inseparable, as in within minutes.

September 5, 2009 - the day I married my K

Name five things you can't live without:

Wooded running trails

Camping and hiking trips

Time to cook and bake and experiment in the kitchen

Rainy days and quiet time

Kisses from my love

What is the best thing about being a woman?

The quiet, constant strength that we possess - it doesn't need to be elaborately displayed or even explained. It just is.

Name four of the best fiction books you have ever read:

To Kill a Mockingbird

The Kite Runner

Ender's Game

The Chronicles of Narnia

(this list could honestly go on forever....)

State an interesting fact about yourself:

I have a cat named Cooper who is missing his pinky toe and his tail. He acts more like a dog than a cat (he plays fetch) and has more personality than some people that I know.

Because there are so many blogs that I love to read daily, I am passing these awards on to anyone who wishes to participate. I love finding out more intimate details of other bloggers' lives and ideas. It makes this online community we have developed that much more special.

Happy Monday.

xoxo

images via weheartit

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Junk (tbd)

One of my favorite ways to spend a morning is sitting at my desk with a big cup of joe, catching up of all of my favorite blogs. From inspiration to entertainment, reading what each of you have to share is an absolute joy. A new addition to my daily reads, Love this Junk is quickly becoming one of my faves. {It doesn't hurt that the author is also one of my fave friends.} From book lists to hunky vamps to hilarious rants, Junk covers it all. If you like(d) Kindredly, you'll love Junk. Go check it. Now. I promise that you won't be disappointed.

xoxo

image via we heart it

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Fill in the Blanks Friday

One of my favorite bloggers, Trishie, over at Under Lock and Key is doing a fun game each Friday, and I have decided to pass it along! It's a fun way to celebrate the beginning of the weekend, so here is the first fill-in-the-blanks-Friday-game post!

Hello, my name is Ashley but you can call me Ash . Today, I am wearing grey cigarette pants, a loose grey tank, and a pink striped cardigan {to work}. I am looking forward to having a weekend with nothing to do! I am feeling a bit bummed about having to work, but excited about a couple days off. I miss my bestie but I get to see her in the morning! I wish for more time off to read your blogs and shoot some outfit posts!

If you want to pass along the game, feel free! Just make sure to link back to Trishie's post.

Happy Friday my lovelies!

xoxo

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