Whoop whoop! Finally! My blog is live on Bloglovin'!

I had been having some technical difficulties but after a few chats with customer service, everything is up and running now, thanks Linda :)

Click here to see my Blog on Bloglovin' and follow me there.

They also have an app and it's free! It's a great place to keep track of and read all of your favorite blogs. Thank you to my super talented hand letterer friend and fellow blogger Amy, over at brightlydonedesign.com, for recommending them to me.

I also wanted to share these super pretty social media buttons I used on my blog.
They are free which, in my opinion, makes them even better :) Click here to view them.
Thank you igottacreate.blogspot.com for the free download!

And to put the icing on the cake, I found an AMAZING tutorial on how to add the buttons to my blog without having to use a photo hosting site first! Seriously this is awesome! And this girl can use all the help she can get, I'm not exactly computer savvy, and I figured this out so easily with the help of this video. Click here to view the tutorial. Thank you Emily at blogaholicdesigns.com!

The last thing for me to do is add my blog to Facebook and beg hope pray ask that all of my friends follow me. But I'm not quite sure if I'm ready to take that step. Putting yourself out there is hard. Being rejected is hard. And people not liking you or supporting you is the worst. It's a fear of mine and I'm just not quite ready to take that jump just yet. I am still new to the bloggers world so once I get a little more comfortable in putting myself out there, maybe then I will be ready. But for now THANK YOU to all those who have found me and read my blog. And thank you again to my friend Amy, for getting me started in the fun world of blogging :) It's proving to be a fun hobby, even if I only have few people following me and actually sticking around to read my ramblings lol!
Thank you!

 And since I can't stand to have a post without a picture...

Eeek! I'm totally excited to see this! And figure out how to take a screen shot on my MacBook lol!

Feel Good Friday ~ Fall Decor Sneak Peek

Even though I am a little bit sad that summer is coming to an end, I am also so excited for fall! Our 11th anniversary just around the corner, the leaves changing colors, cozy sweaters and boots, and pumpkin everything, are just a few things I am excited for!

I usually wait until October before I begin decorating, but I just couldn't help myself. My hydrangeas were ready to be dried and I found the perfect ceramic tray at a second hand store. A couple dollar store pumpkins, a little spray paint,  and about 15 minutes later and I had myself the prettiest little fall decoration ever. I just love it! Total cost = $5!

I got the old 4 pane window a few years ago off of Craigslist for free, and I made the banner last year with scrapbook paper I already had in my paper stash. Really this came together so easily and it has definitely put me in the mood for fall!

I have a few other decorations that I have in the works but for now, this is the only one internet worthy lol ;)

Have a great Friday everyone :)

Summer Flowers

I've been spending a lot of time outside lately cleaning up my flowerbeds, soaking up the sunshine, and admiring my favorite summer flower, hydrangeas. 

They are so dainty and feminine. And these particular ones are pink...I love the color pink!

I just love hydrangeas and these pretties are in full bloom right now. That also means that summer is on it's way out for the year. I love the summer, the sun, the tan lines, the water, the smell of freshly cut grass, and the flowers. I try to soak up as much of these as I can, because once winter comes, it's long, gloomy, cold and so gray & dreary. 

During the summer our family loves to spend time on the lake, waterskiing, and swimming. Summer storms are amazing here, crazy thunder and the torrential downpour of rain, I could sit on may patio and could listen to it all day long.  I love entertaining with our friends and family and having outdoor dinner parties. I even enjoy all the yard work, especially working in my flower beds. These are the things that I miss so much during the winter months. So for now, I will breathe in the sweet smell of flowers and warm summer air.

"Let us dance in the sun, wearing wildflowers in our hair."

~ Susan Polis Schutz

Weekly Recap

Whew, what a week! I am tired, so tired, but I survived :) 

The baby shower was a lot of fun, my cousin received so many cute gifts and had a great time. I can't wait for her little bundle to get here :) 

The luau was a blast! There was so much good food and the setting was spectacular, all that was missing were the fire dancers and hula girls!

Just look at this view we had at the luau, it was gorgeous!

Pineapple monkey bread, fresh coconut cream cake, my mom & I having fun!

The moving sale was exhausting, we had customers non-stop all three days. But that's the whole point of a sale, selling things! We had a little rain on Saturday, but that still didn't stop the customers from looking under the plastic tarps and shopping. We sold a ton of stuff and anything that was left over was taken to the donation center.

So much stuff! And this was Thursday morning before everything was set out!

So today I am having a nice lazy day with my husband and the tv, just what I needed after last week.

I hope you all have a great labor day weekend!

Pineapple Mango Salsa

Even though I have a crazy busy week, I just have to share this with you guys!

Tonight I am attending a Hawaiian Luau to celebrate the end of summer and to get together with 10 amazing people we vacationed with in Hawaii last February. So to keep things in the tropical theme, I made this delicious Pineapple Mango Salsa. 

It is SO good! Sweet + Heat = Amazing Treat! The sweet mango and pineapple just take this salsa over the top! It's not too hot, but it you like it that way feel free to add more jalapeños. This is super easy to make! And the presentation makes it seem much fancier than just plain ol' salsa. Who wouldn't love to dip out of cute pineapple boats?!? 

Just look at this...

It's so colorful and it's bursting with flavor! Is your mouth watering yet?

Okay...I won't torture you and make you wait any longer, here's the recipe :)

Ingredients:

• 1 Large Pineapple
• 2 Mangoes
• 1 Bell Pepper
• 3 Small Limes
• 5-8 Tomatoes
• 1 Chile Pepper
• 1 Jalapeño
• 1 Bunch Cilantro
• 2 Medium Red Onions
• Salt & Pepper

Directions:

1. Wash your produce thoroughly
2. Cut the pineapple in half all the way through the green top and carefully cut out the core and discard it *I angle my knife inwards and slice down each side of the core, making a triangle, and then pull the core out
3. Carefully cut out the rest of the pineapple making sure not to cut all the way through the sides or bottom. It won't make a very good boat if it leaks ;) *I also use a spoon a gently scrape the bottom until it's smooth 
4. Put the chopped up pineapple into a large glass bowl
5. Chop mangoes and tomatoes into bite size pieces and add to the bowl *Here's is a link that shows you how to peel a mango FAST! This is the only way I do it :)
6. Dice up peppers, onions and cilantro
7. Add the juice from the limes 
8. Add salt & pepper to taste
9. Stir everything together
10. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight 
11. When you're ready to eat, add some of the salsa into the the pineapple boats, serve with tortilla chips, and ENJOY :)

Let me know if you make this and what you think :)