Bachelorette Party ~ Part 2

Continued from Part 1 ~ here

On Sunday we woke up early and head to Green Room Spa for a day of pampering!

We had the entire place to ourselves...and {almost} the entire bridal party was able to come! A couple girls are still teenagers, so they weren't able to come out the night before. But, on Sunday, the only 2 missing actually live in Florida, so they aren't coming up until the wedding. 

We all signed up for massages, facials, and/or eyebrow waxing...and it was such a nice, relaxing way to unwind after the night out on Saturday.

The spread! Each of the fabulous bridesmaids brought something yummy to snack on, and Michelle's cousin and I brought mimosa fixings, of course ;)

The gorgeous bride, opening her gifts! I kept the "naughty gifts" and lingerie pictures out, as to not embarrass her, because I know she reads this :) 

Besties since 7th grade! 

(Made this one black and white because the lighting was so orang-y in this room)
**Note that we are both proudly rocking second day hair from Saturday night ;) 

It's been so fun celebrating with her, but I know she is so ready to have the wedding be here already!

Only 16 more days!! xx 

#redballoonsforryan

I post this today with a heavy heart...while scrolling my Instagram feed in the morning, as I always do, I noticed a few people that I follow were posting pictures of a gorgeous little boy with the most amazing curly red hair and #redballoonsforryan. As I looked into it, wondering what it was all about, I found the story of Ryan and his parents (Jacqui and Dan)...and my heart broke into a million pieces. 

You can read the story here.

Although I did not know this family, we all know how the blogging world helps you connect with those miles away and creates a community of support. And as Jacqui's friend posted...

They need our support.
They need us to rally
They needs us to pray
to share
to love
to remember…
….. Ryan.

A simple request to support...to pray...and to not let this red-headed angel be forgotten.

It hits home because it is a reminder that nothing is certain or forever ...and we need to cherish the precious moments we have with the ones we love ...and always take the time to hug a little tighter and say "I love you" one extra time. xx

Bachelorette Weekend ~ Part 1

I was up in Akron again this weekend...this time, for my best friend's bachelorette party!

There's a lot of pictures, so I'll break it up into two different posts.

Michelle drove up from Kentucky on Friday afternoon and we went shopping for outfits to wear over the weekend. I took her to Discount Fashion Warehouse (which I have mentioned multiple times before, as it is one of my favorite places to shop ;) and she loved it! I'll do a separate post on the things we picked up.

Saturday morning, we were up and on the road by 7:30 am. We drove to Akron and went straight to her final dress fitting. There were a couple of hiccups at this appointment (won't go into detail, but we were not pleased at the way they were rushing / over charging her) ...but her dress is amazing and she is going to look SO beautiful on her wedding day!! 

After the dress, we headed to her trial hair and makeup appointments, and she treated my to a pedicure and my first gel manicure ~ she is such a sweetheart :) She didn't want me to be bored while I was waiting. I have to say, I'm super impressed with the gel nails (I just got a simple french manicure) and it seems much better than getting damaging acrylics glued on!

That evening, we went out to dinner in downtown Akron (Bricco - yum!) with all the bridesmaids. After dinner, we did a little bar hopping...didn't stay anywhere too long, and ended up at my favorite gay bar for some fabulous music and dancing! Wasn't a late night, home by 12:30 pm --- getting old and our feet hurt, haha!

Shameless bathroom selfie to get a shot of my dress - it had this subtle gold lace overlay and was really comfortable too!

I just love the dress we found for her! Cute little silver strapless - perfect for the bride-to-be!

 Group shots (wish we had a camera - iPhone's just don't take a good quality pic)

I'll save Sunday's pictures for Part 2 ;)

But before I go...I thought I'd also share my favorite looks from last night's Met Gala...

I like that Rosie wore something daring...and she always looks utterly amazing.

 Not a fan of Selena, or the lipstick...but her wine colored gown is gorgeous.

 Just stunning...again, not a huge fan, but this was a great choice and all the makeup / accessories / etc go together so well.

And in my eyes, the winners are...

1. Emma Stone - Perfect. Unique, fun, colorful, sexy, effortless hair and makeup...she looks amazing!!

2. Victoria Beckham - Gah. She and David are so perfect. And you all know my obsession with the color white. This gown is PERFECTION. I'm not 100% sold on the eye makeup, but who cares? She looks amazing.

What were your favorite looks from last night?

Bachelorette Party ~ Part 2 coming soon!

Friday Favorites ~ 5.2.14

So excited to link up today with one of my favorite bloggers... Amanda from 'Meet Me at the Barre' ...for Friday Favorites!

  

Favorite Finds:

Some of my recent purchases :) 

Got the VS sweatsuit off ebay for a super discount compared to buying it on their website.

Win.

Snatched up these UO sunglasses for $15 ...I've been looking for a "cost-friendly" version of the colored Ray Bans...but every time I find a pair that works, they sell out in less than 24 hours! I happened to me like 3 times...well I learned my lesson! When I stumbled upon these, I wasn't hesitating this time! 

Love these two effortless maxi dresses from F21 - striped one was $12 and coral one was $8.80 -- steal! And I could checkout without adding the little ceramic bunnies to my cart once seeing them ;)  

 Favorite Links:
Abby's husband showed me this slowed down version of Dolly Parton singing "Jolene'. I love Dolly Parton, and I love that song...and it even sounds fabulous this way too! 

Tried this quiz, thinking I was going to rock it...I was so wrong - it's hard!

 
Favorite Songs:
Heard this on Pandora the other day, and instantly bookmarked...

 

Favorite Recipe:

Love the look and sound of these delicious "Wontons" that Julie posted about! Can't go wrong with Bob Evans sausage :) They look perfect for party finger-food! Head over to her fabulous blog to check out the recipe!

 

Favorite Funnies:

Now that the weather is warming up...

How I feel about soccer (and basketball)...but give me baseball or football any day!!

Two little gems from Instagram (follow me @emiliestorey ;)

And the two that always make me laugh, no matter what...

Join the link up here!

1 year old!

Just a quick post...because my little babe is 1 year old today!

We didn't adopt her until July, but May 1st is her official birthday :)

I am so lucky to have this little sweetheart in my life. I can't imagine it without her! She truly is a member of our family and makes my heart so very happy (even on the days when she is driving me nuts ;) I look back at pictures from her first couple of weeks and I can't believe she was ever that small! A trip to Moochie & Co for a new antler to chew on (her favorite) is definitely in order today!

Happy Birthday Deedee <3 <3 <3