Let Your Speech Be Gracious

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YES! And AMEN! Right?! I pray this over my mouth today. Let my words be slow and full of grace. Let me reflect the light of Christ and the Truth that He is Lord!

 

I pray this over you today too! When complaints, gossip, negativity, slander, thoughtlessness come out of our mouths, I pray for Christ to convict us. Let us repent and be filled with His Spirit. For His glory, not our own. Amen!

 

Happy Monday! Let your speech be gracious.

Frankly, my dear...you should pop over here to visit my sweet sponsor, Jenni!

5 on Friday: New Home Sneak Peeks

Note: This post does not include the dust on the floor, boxes on boxes, clothes overflowing out of suitcases, things where they don't belong etc. These are little snippets of some of the only things that are currently together in our new home. All that to say: don't think it's perfect because it's not. Life is about being a work in progress. :) You can read the story of our first home here! Glory to God!

ONE | MIRRORED TRAY 

This in the middle of our double vanity makes everything look lovelier!

TWO | MY CORNER

I love this girly corner of the bathroom. It's a print of my wedding dress (given to all brides by the designer!) and our ring bearer plate that I adore. 

Purchased from Paloma's Nest on Etsy

THREE | MASTER BEDROOM NOOK

A lovely corner nook (and obsessed with all of the green out the window!).

FOUR | LAUNDRY ROOM WALLS 

The only room where things are hung right now. The dry erase board from our wedding weekend kickoff on Lake Wylie (that I will never erase!) and bulletin board full of happy things.

 

FIVE | COFFEE + TEA STATION

Obviously we cannot go a day without coffee/tea in our home. So when the granite install finished Wednesday night, this was the first set up on the new counter top.

I keep a picture of our English family here as a prayer trigger to pray for them each time I make coffee or tea. :)

That's all for now. My talented mama is coming in town this weekend, so she is sure to get things looking spiffier in no time. That woman can get everything hung in a house in under 2 hours. She's got skillz. Can't wait to show y'all more!

Cheers to the lovely linkup creators: Darci, April, Christina, and Natasha!

Happy Mother's Day weekend to all you mamas! Cheers to y'all!

Life in Emoji

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This is how I feel in Emoji: cray cray. And happy and bonkers at once.

 

This is THE HAPPIEST MONTH EVER. Seriously, it's full of THE BEST STUFF:

Moving into our new home (and finishing moving out of our rental...)

Having exciting things done to our home (there is an electric saw sound in the background cutting granite as I type)

My birthday AND Marky's birthday

My in-laws coming into town from England!!!!!!!! (No, seriously. I CAN'T WAIT!)

Oh...and obviously...HOPEY'S WEDDING! (And family BBQ, and bridal luncheon, and rehearsal dinner!)

 

And my family is coming into town this weekend! I'm trying to embrace that the house is not going to look as lovely as I want it to look when they arrive. It's okay. Sigh. This is a process!! And one I'm so grateful to be in right now!

So thanks for yall's continued patience on my email replying and promptness. This is a crazy fun time. Things are a bit of a mess all around me, but I choose joy amidst the mess and the dust. Fullness of joy. Thank you, Jesus!

 

I seriously do have some fun giveaways around the corner to celebrate my birthday...because it's more fun celebrating with all of y'all. So get ready to join in the fun. Here is a preview:

 

Get pumped, y'all. I know I am!

 

Cheers to this crazy, happy season of life!

 

Frankly, my dear...you should pop over here to visit my sweet sponsor, Jenni!

The Gift That Gives Back: Mission Cute

There isn't much better than a gift that gives back, right?! That's why we all love companies like Toms. Now there is a monthly box delivery company that gives 50% of net proceeds to nonprofit organizations. 50%! That's so awesome!

So here's what's up: Mission Cute is the jam. You can sign up for a monthly box and know that your money is also benefiting others, all while supporting local artists and shop owners. (I love buying local/small!) Supporting a cause AND small businesses while getting cute stuff?! PERFECT GIFT...for someone else or for yourself!

Whether this is a last minute Mother's Day idea or a birthday gift for girlfriends throughout the year, count on Mission Cute as "Etsy in a box!" [as my friend Nina said]!

Here is what April's box looked like:

 Hello, darling packaging!

 There is a phamplet that explains the nonprofit to which 50% of this month's profits are headed.

April's nonprofit partner was Girlfriends Giving Circle. Read about the other nonprofits supported thus far here.

 Here are the items from the April box. I brought the necklace on Hope's bachelorette weekend!

This item is my favorite. A candle in a mason jar with a NC tag? Swoon. Not to mention how delicious it smells!

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So what now?! Join Mission Cute by May 10 to receive May's box of goodies! You can purchase one box for $39/box, 3 months of boxes for $34 a box, or 6 months of boxes for $29 a box! It's the perfect one time gift or fun subscription service. Whether your box is for you or for someone else, it feels fabulous to support a company with strong values and a passion to serve others (monetarily and physically).

Cheers to Mission Cute!

Disclosure: I was given one free box in exchange for a post on my blog. All opinions expressed are strictly my own.

Frankly, my dear...you should pop over here to visit my sweet sponsor, Jenni!

Hope's Bachelorette in Miami

Event planning does not come naturally to me. (Especially in a city I'd never visited until this past weekend!) But I'm pretty proud of the weekend I planned for Hope and her bridesmaids in Miami. Not to toot my own horn, but TOOT TOOT, y'all. ;)

Thursday

Hope and I arrived early and stayed with family. We got to know the city and loaded up on cortaditos.

 I seriously didn't think about my hot pink luggage matching my neon pink dress until the security guard in the airport made a comment. Oopsie! I enjoyed dressing for the occasion as my sissy is pink obsessed.

 I became obsessed with cortaditos this trip as inspired by Khloe, my favorite Kardashian. (Yes, I enjoy KUWTK. Owning it.) Cortaditos are so good. And it wasn't until after we had our first cortadito trip and rewatched the Kardash episode that Hope and I realized that we went to the exact same cafe as Khole and Kim. And then we screamed and laughed non-stop. What are the odds? HA! CORTADITO!! (FYI it's Latin Cafe 2000 on Biscayne Blvd. Pictured above!) 

Friday

View from our hotel pool. I highly reccommend Hotel Victor! Not the typcial $700 a night Miami charge, still in the middle of everything, newly renovated. We had the best customer service experience there too! 

 In typical Elise fashion, I made a brochure for the weekend. It had a hilarious/embarrassing picture of Hope on the front, hotel info, a schedule of events, as well as walkable local spots in case anyone woke up early and wanted to grab this or that. Oh, and there was an enlarged version of our favorite Emoji on the back. If you know us, you know "her" too. :)

 Somehow we landed 2 free upgrades for 2/3 of our rooms. Holy amazing. Ocean views and all!

 Never have I ever met someone who appreciates the pink bubbly more than my sista.

 HEYYY BRIDE! We spent Friday night in with pizza, a lingerie shower, and Spyros (Hope's fiance) even made a pre-recorded appearance via the iPad for a game of 20 questions.

Sista, sista

 

Saturday

 On Saturday we did some filming on the beach... ;) ;) Mwahahaha. 

 Sistatime.

 Hopey got glammed up by her oh-so-talented bff, Jenna.

 All the girlies dolled up for Saturday night.

 Since Hope is marrying Spyros AND they're heading to Greece on their honeymoon, how could I not have chosen a Greek restaurant for the occasion?! Poseidon did not disappoint. They also had tip top customer service!! We were spoiled there!  

All in all, it was a fabulous trip. I can't wait to go back! Luckily it's a place we'll visit again soon since we have family there. Next time Mark and Spyros will have to join us!

Cheers to Miami!

Frankly, my dear...you should pop over here to visit my sweet sponsor, Jenni!

 

Vacay

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Hey there, dolls.

As you read this, I'm in Miami highly anticipating the arrival of 8 of Hope's besties. I'm taking this week off from my usual 5 on Friday fun. I know you understand! :)

BUT...how could I be in Miami and not make sure you have this song in your head right now? You're welcome.

In the meantime, keep up with us on Instagram!! (Me | Hope) Cheers from Mee-aah-mi!

Everybody party all day, no work, all play, okay?

Frankly, my dear...you should pop over here to visit my sweet sponsor, Jenni!

Sistas, Blowouts, and Bridal Showers

I had the best time at my sister's bridal shower in Charlotte yesterday. I'll let her share all of the party details, but I wanted to squeeze in a few iPhone pics before I head to Miami this afternoon! Oh, and Charlotte ladies, I'm about to fill y'all in on a suh-weeeeeet blowout spot...

 Y'all. Gisoo Salon on East Blvd in Charlotte. 

Never noticed it before even though I've driven down that road 19215789 times.

There was a big sign out front advertising $30 blowouts that caught my mama's eye. And so we went!

We had so much fun. And the sweet ladies there even offered to give us complimentary makeovers!

Uh, yes please!!! 

I'm telling you...try this place. I LOVED how my hair (and makeup!) looked and will definitely be going back again.

Love this under-the-radar find! Had to share! :)

 Showering the bride at Mimi and Papaw's house.

...with Mimi's favorite "bridal decor" piece: the swan. 

The swan was at my bridal shower AND rehearsal dinner. Love it. So silly.

We will be passing this new tradition down to every girl cousin in the fam.

 We look more alike with the same hair color, right?!

(We like that. :))

 Hopey and I share a lot of things. Girlfriends included.

P.S. Ensley (far right) is a blogger too!

Sleepover party in sissy's room. Before I hit the road circa 6am. Sigh. 

See you later today, sissy! 

CHEERS to my SISTA BRIDE!

(And a the upcoming weekend full of celebrating her!)

I'm goin' to Miami...

Frankly, my dear...you should pop over here to visit my sweet sponsor, Jenni!