Earrings I'm Eyeing

Wearing fun statement earrings can really spice up an outfit and can be a total mood booster in my opinion. It's similar to that feeling when you just get your hair done and you immediately feel more confident and pulled together. Pre-pandemiv, I would often find myself throwing on something quickly like a simple dress or a plain top and jeans in an effort to get out the door on time. Adding fun earrings helped distract from the lack of effort I put into the rest of the outfit. I also love to gift earrings to girlfriends for birthdays and Christmas.They are one size fits all and you can never have too many. Below are some that I've been eyeing and would love to add to my existing collection and they all have really great price points!

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12 Recipes for Cinco de Mayo

What’s a Cinco de Mayo celebration without chips, salsa, queso and guacamole?! It's one of my favorite holidays because everything is so colorful and festive and it’s also a good excuse to indulge in Mexican food. 

To be honest, I will most likely order some sort of takeout because I haven't been to the grocery store lately. But for those of you that have a stocked fridge, I’ve rounded up a few recipes that are perfect for a stay at home celebration. The good news, these recipes are great for any occasion...perfect for those future gatherings we are all dying to host. Step your guacamole game up a notch with a unique spin on the classic dip. Or give some of these cheese covered dishes a try. And don't forget the cervezas! 

What are some of your favorite Mexican inspired recipes?

Mexican Street Corn Dip

via The Cookie Rookie

Honey BBQ Slow Cooker Chicken Taquitos

via Kristine's Kitchen

Cilantrao Lime Fish Tacos

via Skinnytaste

Loaded Gucamole

via What's Gaby Cooking

Chicken Enchilada Roll Ups

via The Girl Who Ate Everything

5-Ingredient White Queso

via The Baking Fairy

Cilantro Lime Rice

via Cooking Classy

Smothered Baked Chicken Burritos

via Carlsbad Cravings

Mango Guacamole

via Fit Foodie Finds

Low Fat White Chicken Enchiladas

Homemade Fresh Tomato Salsa

via Little Broken

Last but not least, a little something sweet. How good do these look?

Churro Cupcakes

via The Domestic Rebel

Grilled Pork Chops with Chile & Pineapple

Staying at home these days has its challenges but there are also some advantages. I've found myself spending a lot more time in the kitchen and I'm not mad about it. I've also found time to do things I haven't done in a while like sitting on my back porch during the gold hour and reading a magazine from cover to cover. I came across this pork chop recipe in the EatingWell magazine a few days ago and was immediately drawn to the idea of cooking something with fresh pineapple. Pork chops are rarely ever on our dinner lineup so this seemed like a good time to branch out and try something new. If you're looking for something refreshing and flavorful to cook this weekend, I highly recommend firing up the grill and giving this recipe a try!

Grilled Pork Chops with Chile & Pineapple

Ingredients

½ cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish

½ cup pineapple juice

1 serrano or jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 teaspoon salt, divided

½ teaspoon ground pepper, divided

1 pound boneless thin-cut pork chops, trimmed

1 medium pineapple, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2-inch-thick rings

1 large red onion, cut into 1/2-inch-thick rings

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 

Lime wedges for serving

Instructions

Step 1

Preheat grill to medium-high or heat a grill pan over medium-high heat.

Step 2

Combine cilantro, pineapple juice, serrano (or jalapeño), honey, lime juice and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper in a blender; puree until smooth. Reserve 1/4 cup for serving. Transfer the remaining mixture to a medium bowl and add pork chops. Turn to coat and let marinate for 5 minutes.

Step 3

 Brush pineapple and onion slices with oil. Remove the pork from the marinade and sprinkle with the remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Grill, flipping once, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of a chop registers 145 degrees F, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Grill the pineapple and onions, flipping once, until lightly charred, 4 to 5 minutes per side.

Step 4

Serve the pork, pineapple and onions drizzled with the reserved sauce. 

Serve with more cilantro and lime wedges, if desired.

Recipe credit: EatingWell Magazine

Sawyer's 1st Birthday: A Classic Winnie the Pooh Party

Just two months ago we were celebrating one whole year with Sawyer. It's one of those big moments that has always lingered in my mind, but when the day arrived, it was hard to believe. Time has really flown by, just as everyone said it would. The days are long but the years are short. We've been living the reality of all those typical phrases I'm sure you've heard.

We celebrated Sawyer's birthday with a big party at our home with family and friends. I chose to go with a classic Winnie the Pooh theme because I selfishly loved Winnie the Pooh when I was a little girl. I figured this may be one of the few chances I would have to pick a sweet theme that didn't involve action figures. 

My wonderful mom prepared and set up all of the food. She has a catering business so this little party was a breeze for her and she was a lifesaver for me. Everything was so delicious. 

Oh and did I mention that my talented girlfriend did all of the flower arrangements. It took a village to pull this party off but it was all possible with the help of family and good friends.

Sawyer's only focus was the balloons. 

Meanwhile, the bigger kids enjoyed the jump castle outside. 

He was not a fan of the cake and I will take partial blame for that. I ordered a lemon cake with cream cheese frosting for the guests and a plain vanilla cake with cream cheese frosting for his smash cake. There must have been some miscommunication because he ended up with a lemon cake, which did not go over well. However, if he's anything like me, sweets won't be of interest to him. 

I guess we will try again next year. 

How cute are these little  bee cupcakes?

I found a classic Winnie the Pooh story book that I used for guests to leave a message for Sawyer. 

Taking photos with kids is nearly impossible these days.

The Lowcountry Kettle Corn favors were a hit. 

We had a blast celebrating with everyone. I can't believe my baby is ONE!

Sawyer's First Easter

I find that every holiday is a bit more exciting these days now that we have a little one in the picture. I had to refrain from buying a ridiculous amount of bunny themed items for Sawyer's Easter basket, mostly because he is too young to really understand any of it. But what I couldn't resist was having his photo taken with the Easter bunny. I had all intentions of taking advantage of my day off on Friday to spend some time outdoors with Sawyer and then go see said bunny. The weather ended up being awful and we found ourselves at the Dr.'s office Friday afternoon, all to find out that Sawyer has a double ear infection. So needless to say, things didn't go quite as planned. I wasn't going to give up on the bunny photo though. I knew we somehow had to work in a stop on our way to Myrtle Beach the next day. 

After some serious arm twisting my husband, we made a stop at the mall on our way out of town. Now, I knew going into it that these mall bunnies have a reputation of being creepy and believe me, this one definitely lived up to it. I also knew that it was going to be a rip off but I felt I was doing what I had to do in the moment. We walked into the mall, found the bunny and thankfully there was no line (now I know why). I marched right up to the lady and asked how much. Of course she tried to sell me on the most expensive package for $50 which I politely declined. I had gone through too much to convince my husband to take us there to get this photo so there was no turning back. Against my better judgement, I spent $27 for three printed photos, in only one pose.. I noticed there was a link for the digital downloads on my receipt I went straight to the website and quickly found out that there was another $12 fee do download them...no thank you! I got in the car annoyed but couldn't help but smile at this cute little photo and decided to let it go because it was Sawyer's first Easter after-all. 

I was scrolling through Instagram as we continued on our way out of town when I came across a photo of some children at an Easter egg hunt that appeared to be in our neighborhood. After digging through a few more photos, I found out that not only was the bunny in our neighborhood Saturday morning, but he was also just two doors down from our house. And not only could we have gotten a free photo, but I also could have avoided the great bunny debate with my husband. Next year I will be more prepared....

But in other news, we had a wonderful time in Myrtle Beach. We spent time with family, ate way too much and attended a beautiful church service on Sunday. Sawyer managed to make it through the whole service until about five minutes before the end. I was pretty impressed considering he didn't feel well. 

I assembled this delicious DIY charcuterie board from Lady & Larder.

I was so excited for Sawyer to wear his Easter outfit(s). I bought him a few things at the Charleston Repeats sale when I was pregnant and have been patiently waiting on him to be able to wear them. If you're a first time mom and live in the Charleston area, I highly recommend checking out the sale.

I hope everyone had a Happy Easter!

Family Photos: Charleston, SC

February of this year, I had the pleasure of shooting some family photos with not one but SIX amazingly talented photographers who each offered their own unique aesthetic. Although everyone was capturing my little family in the same setting, same clothes, etc. I ended up with tons of great shots that were each slightly different in their own way.

Today I wanted to share a few of these beautiful photos with you and the ladies behind the lens. I’m so thankful to have had the opportunity to work with such a wonderful group of women. I also must admit, I now feel the need to have multiple photographers at my next family shoot. It was honestly very helpful to have several sets of hands when you have a baby involved.

I would like to first introduce you to Amy Odom. Based in Austin, TX, Amy provides romantic & timeless wedding photography for joyful couples in love. She's also available for travel wherever your love story takes her. Amy initially reach out to me and organized our shoot. She and the other fabulous ladies mentioned below, all came to Charleston for a girls trip and that's how we connected. And I’m so thankful that we did. 

Amy also made it a point to snap a few photos of just Whit and I, which I love.

I can't wait to print some of these out to hang in the house!

Meet Corey Johnson- Atlanta based photographer who reaches beyond the clutter life throws at us, composing clean, simple portraits by a natural light that highlight the beauty of motherhood using natural textures and a soft color palette to incite warmth and embody real life. Not only is she a wonderful photographer, she was also amazing with Sawyer. She did everything she could to make him laugh, get his attention and keep him warm on the chilly morning in Charleston when we did the shoot. I wanted to be friends with her the minute we met. 

She also captured a few shots in film, which turned out beautiful.

Meet Lindsey Brooks- newborn baby, child and family portrait photographer located in Oklahoma City. Her style is one of simplicity and focuses on the natural connections you share rather than on forced poses and busy backgrounds. I love this shot of Sawyer and I that she captured. 

Meet Shawna Bielat- a Hampton Roads & Virginia Beach fine art portrait and lifestyle photographer who specializes in motherhood, maternity, newborn, and family photography.  She believes the best photographs are created through natural movements and genuine emotion, which are reflected in the photos she captured below. She was truly a pleasure to work with!

Meet Hannah Swain- inspired by motherhood, her goal with photography is to offer you the most unique, natural portrait experience you can imagine. Serving the Hattiesburg, Mississippi area and beyond. She offers maternity and family portraits at her studio in Mississippi. One of my favorite images from her is the last one of us shot through the tree branches. 

Last but not least, meet Lindsey Rogers- a southern girl based out of Crowley, Louisiana specializing in maternity, newborn, and family photography. She values timeless portraits, combined with heartwarming real moments. She captures each child and family authentically to let their own personalities shine.

I love this behind the scenes shot of everyone.

A huge thank you to each of these wonderful women for capturing these special moments we will forever cherish! I hope I have the opportunity to worth with them again!

To view more of their work, check each of them out on Instagram.

@amy_odom
@coreyjohnsonphotography
@lindseybrooksphotography
@shawnabielat
@swainstudio
@lindseyrogers_photography