Baby Shower { It's a BOY}

 

I am so excited for this Saturday!

I had the pleasure of helping some great ladies plan a baby shower for Ryan's sister.

This is her first baby and we are all so thrilled to have a little one in the family. I am beyond excited to be an aunt finally!

 

I had two jobs for the shower:

*getting cute straws and something to hold the straws

* items for the message on a diaper station

 

The baby shower colors are:

Blue

Green

Grey

 

I found really cute blue, green, and grey paper straws and blue and green jars for the straws. I found all of this at Hobby Lobby, of course!

 

I found the perfect diaper holder at Hobby Lobby for after all of the guest write cute and silly messages to the new mommy and daddy.  

  We all had tasks to make the shower special and I am so excited to see it all come together. 

Bridesmaid Dresses

 

 

Good Morning!

 

As promised, here are the dresses my lovely bridesmaids picked out for the wedding. I didn't want to be a bridezilla and make them wear a dress they hated, so I told them as long as it was orange, I was fine with their pick. But....when we all went to David's Bridal to get some ideas and look around, they all ended up loving the same dress! Best part; they got the dress for a steal! They were originally $120, but when I brought my wedding dress I got a $20 off coupon for the bridesmaids.

We didn't even intend to leave David's Bridal with dresses that same day. It was just a day to look around and a day to see each other. They all looked so beautiful in the dress with their cowboy boots on!

I cannot wait to see them all in their dresses on our wedding day.

 

 

 

{ front}

 

{back}

 

 

Long time no talk!

 

Long time no talk!

 

I have been all over the place since starting back to school. As you can see, I have not done an entry in a long time. Here is a run down of what is new in my life; if you're interested:

1. I gave my Mom my 2006 VW Jetta TDI and brought a 2014 Jeep Patriot ( I LOVE IT!!)

2. I was asked to be the maid of honor in my cousin's wedding (So Excited!!)

3. We took our engagement photos ( I will post them soon)

4. I have been helping plan the baby shower my soon-to-be sister-in-law ( I will post the fun activity I am doing for the shower)

5. Ordered Save the Dates and little things for the wedding

6. Booked our mini vacation to Charleston, SC for November 21-23 ( I CANNOT WAIT!!)

7. I am almost done with college (bittersweet)

8. I pick up my cap and gown for my December 15th graduation.

9. We picked our honeymoon destination......Trip through Germany for 12 days (Thanks to Ryan's parents!)

10. My bridesmaids picked our their dressed (They all look so beautiful!)

11. Ryan has started renovating our basement. He is so handy around the house! We cannot wait to have the basement finished for more entertainment.

12. And it is a little less than 1 year until the Best Day Ever...our Wedding Day!

 

 

{New Jeep}

 

{How my cousin asked me to be maid of honor}

{Our honeymoon trip}

From Pickle Jar to Bathroom Storage {DIY}

 

I cannot believe I have been away for so long! Ryan and I have been trying to spend as much time together and doing last minute summer things before I start back to school on Monday. It is still weird to say "back to school." Where did the summer go? I have one more semester of college; bittersweet. Although I will still be working during the semester, I feel I have a few months left before I truly start the "big girl" career. Here's to one more semester of college!!!

 

Now to the easy and cute DIY.

What you will need:

1. Pickle Jars

2. Spray Paint

3. Chalkboard stickers

4. Things to fill jars

 

Step 1: Soak the pickle jar in HOT water for about 30-40 minutes. I found it easy to keep the jars submerged in the water by placing my cutting board on top. This will make it easy to peel the sticker off.

Step 2: Remove all the lids and spray paint {I used yellow to match out grey and yellow bathroom}. I do not recommend using a glossy spray paint; it takes a lot of coats to not see the green lid.

Step 3: Place a chalkboard sticker on the jar for labeling. You can get a pack of chalkboard stickers for about $2 at Hobby Lobby.

Step 4: Fill the jars! I filled mine with cotton, Q-tips, make-up wedges, and floss picks.

 

 

Please feel free to leave a comment {bloggers & non-bloggers} or follow along! I love to hear from readers!

 

446 Days Until I Say "I DO" to the Most Amazing Man I know

Seriously, 446 days?! I am beyond thrilled to be marrying my best friend after almost 7 years of dating, but I hate the anticipation. I want so badly to be his wife!

We took a little hiatus from planning; by accident really. We were so focused on our move that once we moved in we were just excited that we got to see each other everyday and start sharing our life together. Living together has been better than I could have ever imagined. I honestly cannot think back to what it was like before.

 

But now we are getting back to some of the wedding planning, mainly because I start back to school in a few weeks and we want to get some of the details taken care of to take a load off of me while in my last semester. Ryan has been really involved in all the details, which is great for me! It is nice that we are on the same page with all the wedding ideas.

 

We still have a lot left to do. I am doing a lot of DIY projects that can wait until closer, if I can contain myself.

 

Here's to hoping the next 446 days get here soon, so I finally say "I Do."

 

Shannon & Ryan

October 17, 2015 • 446 days to go!

Somersaults

I went to Target this past weekend for one item, which was my first mistake. I never go for just one item; who am I kidding? My second mistake was going before Ryan and I stopped for dinner. So, naturally Ryan and I hit up the food isles. We said we were just looking to see what they had. Before I knew it my hand was reading for a snack that read cinnamon, and that was enough for me. I love anything cinnamon or even a hint of cinnamon.  I had never heard of the snack food Somersaults. It a "crunchy nuggets basked with sunflower seeds and toasted grains." So, not only are they delicious, but very health, 100% natural,and non-GMO.

 

If you are making your way to Target anytime soon, I suggest you pick up a bag to try.

 

Homemade Hickory Smoke BBQ Sauce

Originally for our wedding favors we were going to do an apple cider mix and pumpkin cake in a jar. Then I got an even batter idea; homemade bbq sauce! Up until this weekend I had never made bbq sauce, but I am so glad I did. It turned out to be AMAZING!! I took a jar to Ryan's parents, my parents, and our good friends. All said it was "over the moon" good and they even asked when I would be making more.

 

What you will need:

INGREDIENTS

2 cups ketchup

⅔ cup dark or light brown sugar (dark for sweeter)

4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

¼ cup worcestershire sauce

 3 tbsp. white or cider vinegar

 2 tsp. bbq spice

  freshly ground black pepper

Salt

Liquid Smoke

INSTRUCTIONS

 

1. Put ketchup, sugar, garlic, worcestershire, vinegar, barbecue spice, salt, liquid smoke, and pepper into a small heavy-bottomed saucepan and stir until well combined. Simmer over medium-low heat to maintain a gentle simmer, 25 for  minutes. If not using sauce right away, allow to cool, then store in a clean jar, tightly sealed, in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.

 

 

So now we are going to have homemade pumpkin cake and homemade bbq sauce for our wedding favors.

 

If you decide to try this recipe, let me know what you think or if you made any modifications.