Whats In Store Summer's Coming and Swim Cover Up Advice

Welcome Back to week 2 of What's In Store!

It's a new blog series that allows me to shop with you where you are--and see what we find together. 

Before I show you what I was looking for this week, first let me thank you for your support. 

Last week's post was so fun to put together and even more fun sharing with y'all. 

The comments on facebook and Instagram were great and I got some good suggestions about real things you want to see. So, thank you for coming along on this ride and for commenting. 

Sometimes its nice to know someone is reading your words, otherwise it just seems like a whole lot of trouble to go in order to talk to yourself. :) 

Okay, so on to this week and What's In Store--

(If you want to go back and check out last week's post and a little explanation of what we're about to do click here) 

Also, some real-life info about real-life me:

I'm a size 8 approximately 17% of the time. 

I'm a size 10 usually about 74% of the time. 

I'm a size 12 about 26% of the time. 

I was never good at math. :)

This typically makes me a size Large, so that's your reference point. 

I'm 5'8" and I would love to tell you I weigh 136 pounds. I don't, but I'd still love to tell you that. 

I'm a summertime girl. 

You will never hear me say, "Yay! It's officially boots, jeans and cozy sweater season!!"

Other things I won't say while we're checking out What's In Store:

1. "I sized up to a small."

2. "At $148 this top is a steal!"

3. "I can't wait to wear this blanket scarf with my Hunter Boots!"

I will never, ever suggest we wear $100 slippers or carry $300 tote bags to the pool.

While those things might be normal for some people, you won't find any of that here. I just go shopping where I like to shop and where others like me might like to shop and we see What's In Store. 

So here we go....

This week I was in TJ Maxx (Brook Highland on 280 in Birmingham, AL) and really had beach-brain.

Y'all.

I never buy long dresses but they had such a great selection that I was drawn over and I loved this one!

 

It makes me want to go to dinner in Maui or on a cruise (which will never happen because I don't think Joseph will ever get on a boat that he isn't driving!)

I tried on a Large and it was just right.

I wanted to look for some coverups for throwing on to take the kids to the pool and beach and to wear on the boat when we go in and out of bars  restaurants. 

I first tried on this Michael Kors Striped Day dress. 

It was okay, but not what I needed. If the sleeves on this were different I would have bought it just to wear anytime. It was well made and comfortable, but I am not a fan of this short sleeve.

Sleeveless? Always.

3/4 sleeve? Sure!

Short and cap sleeves are not my friend. 

Moving on!

Then I remembered talking with a friend last week at the pool and she said she always goes to the junior department at TJ Maxx to get coverups. The dresses in the junior's department are usually cheaper and the length is right for a cover up, so here we go....

she was right! I found 2 cute options and they were both 16.99 or less! I did a large in the striped dress and an XL in the off the shoulder tassel dress (top?)

I have to say, this may be the best 7.99 purchase I've found

Its a Mossimo shirt, but it will make a great cover up for the boat. Its a heathered slub tee with these huge slits in the side. It's just what I need to have in my boat bag!

Also, I ran into another friend while I was on my way to the dressing room (Hey, Liz!) and she mentioned that she had this top and loves it.

So, that was quick and easy and fun! I found a great dinner/summer/cruise/vacation dress and three cute, simple cover up options in no time. Nothing over $25 and they had tons of each of these at this TJ Maxx right near the front. Head in this weekend and I'll bet you can see them there. (I tried to find them online for you but had no luck, but I did see lots more cute things on the TJ Maxx website that I may try soon!)

Let me know what you're shopping for and we can shop together in next Thursday's What's In Store post!!

Easter Morning and Easter Fun

We had an absolutely beautiful Easter Morning and I hope you and your family did too!

We started well before dawn with goodies from the Easter Bunny, some shows on JellyTelly all about Easter and then a hunt in the front yard once the sun came up.

We got ready for church to celebrate the most glorious gift of love, the miracle of a risen savior. 

Church was wonderful and nearly brought both Lizzy and I to happy tears.

I have to say one of the more joyful moments of the morning was getting to church and seeing that the flowers hadn't fallen. 

This was the first year I have been on the Flower Guild for Easter. One of my assignments were these arrangements on the main doors of our sanctuary.

They were beautiful and somewhat heavy and I was less than confident when I left the church on Saturday that they would make it through the night.

But Glory be! 

They survived. I literally breathed a sigh of relief as crested the hill to church and could see them as we approached. 

After church we had lunch with Joseph's family then came home to spend the rest of the day eating candy and complaining of tummy aches. 

I will say the lunch was tasty and I made a delicious potato salad!

And I can't forget Lizzy's sweet Easter party on Thursday! I realized when I left that this is her last preschool party--and MINE! Oh, what a happy time it has been!

 

I hope you and your family had a wonderful weekend, too! 

Friday Favorites- Easter Cupcakes, Tea and A New Dress For Me

I'm linking up here today to show you some of my favorite things this week!

Thanks for stopping by and let me know what you're loving too! 

My favorite thing I made this week was these Easter Cupcakes for Lizzy's class Easter Party....

Jelly Bird Eggs and a handle made from Spree Rope candy. Lizzy watched a YouTube video and wanted to make them and they turned out just great!

My favorite beverage of the week has been this....

Bigelow Benefits Radiate Beauty

I have been loving this tea all week! I bought it a month or 2 ago as I usually get on a "tea kick", drink a few cups then go months without it but I'm on my second box of this and could still drink it all day long, hot or cold. The neat thing is....

It's pretty! It tastes great and its this pretty shade of magenta.
I'm not sure that its actually going to make me radiant, but I think its great!
(I also like this one at night for sleep.)

And I got the comfiest dress this week and have worn it already and love it!

I blogged all about this shopping trip and started a fun new Thursday series called What's In Store you can read the full post here.

Thanks so much for all of your kind words and support from this post!
I am already looking forward to next Thursday's edition!

Those are my quick favorites on this Good Friday.

I hope all of you have a wonderful Easter weekend celebrating the glory of God
and our risen savior, Jesus Christ!

What's In Store--Easter Dresses and More

Hey y'all!

After a fun week of Spring Break and then a surprise weather day last week, I looked up and realized we were a few days away from Easter and while I have everything ready to go for the kids Easter outfits--I hadn't yet shopped for myself.

Having just a few hours of "freedom" on each week while the kids were at school I ran to a few of my favorite places to see what I could find. My quick search led me to Stein Mart where I found some cute options and definitely some inspiration. But more on that later.

I snapped a few quick pics in the dressing room since I was caught between two cute options and needed to do some polling (send them to my sister-in-law for her opinion! ha!)

I loved this Seersucker Dress and it's so springy and fun!

I also think this Navy Dress is classic and is a silhouette that knows no wrong!

One of these did end up coming home with me as did these shoes.

There were TONS of beige and nude shoe options and the location I was at, I'm sure your local Stein Mart is well-stocked too.

As I was headed to the checkout I passed the cutest top in the Boutique section, turned on my heels, grabbed one and a few pairs of white jeans and headed to the dressing room.

I had to snap a pic for a friend because up until now I have not owned any white jeans and she has the perfect pair that I think are close to 10 years old. I wanted to show her I was taking the plunge myself.

Also, I got this whole outfit. I'll be wearing this top so much y'all will think its my uniform this summer. I've already planned 8 times I want to wear it.

I ran back in to Stein Mart another day and found this dress. 

I really wasn't going to buy anything this day but, y'all this dress is so SO soft and comfortable and a great length for errands/mom stuff. 

When you find that combo in a cute dress you grab one now! (Also, they were just unloading these at me Stein Mart so I am certain you can find them today/this weekend at your store but they will go fast.)

I've had a few chambray dresses over the years and I know I'll be wearing this once a week until Thanksgiving. Since its under $50 that makes is about the best deal in town!

I also tried on this dress because I am a sucker for the fit and flare!

Super cute and I can probably think of another 10 places to wear it. 

This blush sleeveless top was perfection and the pintuck pleats are so flattering! Perfect with my new white jeans!

Oh boy was I on the fence on this one! I said I wasn't going to jump on the off-the-shoulder bandwagon.....but if I do this is the top that will buy my ticket!

I love the stripes, the ruffle sleeve and the cut on this one. It falls away from your body without looking oversized and boxy. This one was a Large with plenty of room, I can possibly take a Medium in this which makes it that more tempting! They were just unloading this one too, so pop in to Stein Mart and try it on this weekend!

Now, here's the inspiration behind this post. I was chatting with a friend (Hi, Ashley!) recently and we were talking about clothes and shopping and how we see cute things online but neither of us love the fact that often things featured are quite expensive and if they aren't  then they are sold out and back ordered by the time we find them. 

Then, while I was shopping and taking pictures to text anyway it occurred to me that THIS kind of feature is what I would like. A weekly feature with things that are 

1. Beautiful

2. Affordable

3. Attainable

So many of us have little time to shop for ourselves and when we do we are on a "quest" to find something specific. That's where the blog comes in. I'll be out scouting for us and on Thursdays I'll post to show you What's In Store(s) this weekend while you are running out in your free moments.

Stein Mart is one of my happy places, so I've started this series by posting some of what I found there that you too might like. Stein Mart (as of now) isn't sponsoring any of this content, nor are any of the items linked affiliate links that would earn money for me. They're just for fun and ease-of-shopping for my friends here. 

So, enjoy! Happy Shopping! Tell me where you want me to shop for us and I may head there next week!

Let me know what you like by leaving a comment here or on my Instagram!

Gifts for Easter Baskets

It's Already Tuesday of Holy Week, I can't believe Easter is this Sunday. 

Luckily, I sat down last night and finished up shopping for the kids Easter baskets and all of my items will be here on Wednesday. If you're wondering what to put in kid's baskets or looking for a gift for the boy who has everything and the girl who loves it all then keep reading and you can shop from here and have your goodies quicker than you can do the bunny hop. 

For Jay- my ourdoorsy 6 year old boy who loves hunting and fishing I picked up this minnow net.

I saw this at a friends house and love it because it fold up like an umbrella! Perfect to take with you fishing and it's different from any other minnow traps we have. 

I had ordered this for Jay yesterday and he literally got in the car after school talking about these and wanted me to find him one! Another item a neighbor showed me last week that the Easter Bunny will deliver!


Toplay Fidget Spinner Toy Stress Reducer Ceramic Bearing - Perfect For ADD, ADHD, Anxiety, and Autism Adult Children (Fluorescence) I have heard these are awesome if you have a little boy and exteremly helpful if you have a little one who struggles with a learning disability or learns differently, or have someone on the ADD/ADHD or Autism spectrum. You can spin them to fidget and learn cool tricks with them. I'm thinking if you have a little guy who like the bottle flip game then this will save everyone a few gray hairs!

Since he's a new reader I also picked up two classic chocolate-themed books for him. 

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (we are just finishing James and the Giant Peach so the timing is perfect!)

The Chocolate Touch is only $3.03, you cant beat the price on these books1

For Lizzy, who is now 5 and loves all of her dolls, every Barbie and toys of all kinds I got her this doll seat for her bike. 

Books for Lizzy who is starting to read and spell and working on sight words- 

Pinkalicious Boxed Set

and Barbie

Barbie I Can Be....(Story Collection)

I also picked up a chocolate bunny for each child, some Reese's candies and a kite for each one. 

I started off sort of stumped but love how it all came together! If you still need to shop for your little ones then hop to it! 

What's your favorite Easter Candy? Mine is obviously Reese's--it always finds its way from their baskets to my secret stash eventually.

Happy (early) Easter, everyone!

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