Beach... {guest post by Emily C}

My last guest poster is the sweet, the GORGEOUS, the amazing photographer, the recently-engaged {::squeal!:: so happy for her!} Emily C. She's the brains behind last year's Summer with a Purpose & is just generally one of the kindest & positive people in the ol' blogging world. Emily? Meet my readers. Readers, enjoy Emily's post! :)

 

Beach.  Just the mention of that word makes me happy! Hi, I'm Emily from Old Country Cottage!  Yes, another Emily ;)

I've lived in Florida my entire life, always within 15 minutes of the beach.  It's got to be one of my favorite places to go, especially in the summer heat!

Being a photographer, I love to photograph the beach.  So, I thought I'd share some recent beach photos of mine!

I also wanted to share some of my favorite beach themed items from Etsy:

~ Organic Beach Towel ~

From Beauty and Spa
Every time I see these pop up on Etsy, I love them!

~ Aqua Seaglass Sand Dollar Necklace ~

From SAMISEAGLASS

I adore seaglass jewelry!  I have a seaglass necklace that I wore the tar out of!

~ Shark (recycled) ~

From Recycled State

I just love this.  I think it's creative and fun... plus, I love marine animals!

~ Nautical Wreath ~

From The Baker's Daughter

How cute is this?  I really like wreaths, and this one is no exception :)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Guess who wants to go to the beach now??

I hope you enjoyed this guest post!

ABOUT ME:
I am first and foremost a servant of my Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ...  I'm recently engaged (Aug 6th, 2011)... I have two wonderful parents... I have an awesome older brother who is married to one of my best friends... I live in Florida... I'm a photographer... and my life's purpose is to glorify God in the way I live my life - my life is because of Christ!

For a tad longer "about me" and to read more about the little things in my life, head over to my blog!

memories of the beach {a guest post by Meredith}

Ya'll. This girl named Meredith? She writes some of the best posts I've read...and I've read a lot because I'm a blogging junkie. But we weren't talking about that, were we? No. Like I said, this girl is amazing; I literally LOL'd when I read this post and I'm 100% sure you will too. Take it away, Mere {I call her that because we're friends. Be jealous.}

        Ahh, the beach. It's kind of wonderful, no? I mean, who goes to the beach thinking “I really wish I wasn't going to the beach?” (If you just said “I do,” go visit a mental hospital or something.) The beach is fantastic. I would know, I just went to the beach! I'm pretty much experienced in the art of...beaching. 

{via weheartit}

      But, as experienced as I may be, I have never been able to achieve any level of beachy cuteness. I need to know how those girls do it. You know the ones. The ones with the perfect hair, the perfect tan, and a cute nautical themed outfit that's, well, perfect? I usually end up looking like a freckled tomato. And forget keeping my hair in place. It usually ends up in my mouth. Take my advice, if you need beachy fashion help, ask the girl in that picture. Not me.

     Moving on. Trips to the beach are lovely. There's something about the salty breeze and the sound of the waves that makes me want to just plop down on the soft sand and sleep. Going to the beach is the vacation of all vacations. Leaving footprints in the sand, gathering sea shells, feeling the waves lap against your legs, chasing sea gulls, they're all sweet, simple memories you'll never forget.

        The highlight of my beach trip was probably walking down the shore line, talking to my friend about "the old days". The sand was cool beneath our feet, the waves were gently teasing us, and soon we jumped in. Wild horses couldn't drag me out of that water. It was blissful. Sadly, all good things come to an end. We had to leave, and on the car ride home I could feel myself swaying to the swells of the ocean. I'm thankful I still have all those wonderful memories. Beach trips are the best.

          Speaking of all good things coming to an end, I'm afraid I've said my speel and it's time for me to go. I'm so honored to be guest posting here at Sarah-Anne's blog. She's such a sweet and lovely girl! & I hope you'll all come visit me on my side of the blogosphere. Until then, I remain yours truly & beachy,

                                                                       Meredith

BIO: Hello, I'm Meredith! I'm a fun-loving fifteen year old gal. I have hair that some might describe as a sandy brown or a golden blond or a strawberry red. My eyes are the color of the sea. My hobbies include reading good books, making people laugh, baking and frosting cupcakes, and blogging (over at mere words of mine.) I love the color yellow {just to let you know}. I also love Christ Jesus more than life itself. I'd be thrilled if you came by to see me. I dearly love new friends. Well, ta ta for now!

The Beach {a guest post by Emily N}

Can you believe it?! We're on the second day of guest posting, and this post was written by my IRL bestie, Emily N!! I'm sure you've heard of her because only every other post here at Simply SA mentions her & her family. She's got a great line-up of her fave things about the beach, so stick around & read her post if you'd like! Take it away, woman! ;)

I'm so excited to write a guest post for Sarah-Anne! She really wants all of us to keep the beach theme for each of our posts this week, so I’m going to write about my favorite things about the beach.

First off, I love the beach. I have always dreamed of living at the beach all during the summer, but I’m pretty sure that it’s not going to happen. I would love to live down there in a big pink house like this one:

I bet you never guessed that one. Pink? What do you know?! It is my favorite color… =)

I think it would be absolutely amazing to be able to walk on the beach anytime I wanted during the summer and come home to my own cozy beach house. It doesn’t hurt to have big dreams, right?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here are some ingredients for a blissful day at the beach (in my opinion):

A bright blue sky…

Sticking my toes in the water and jumping in the waves…

Sand between my toes…

Visits from a friendly little crab…

Getting seafood at a waterside restaurant…

Sitting on the beach and reading for hours under a bright colored umbrella…

Windblown hair that smells like the sea (and that gets extra curly with the humidity).

Flips flops, cute beach bags, and stylish sunglasses…

Ice cream at Dairy Queen…

Photoshoots on the beach...

Fishing on the dock…

Long walks down the beach before the sun goes down for the night…

and...

You can't forget the gorgeous sunsets over the water, right?  Is there anything else that you would add to the list? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Thanks for letting me guest post, Sarah-Anne!  

P.S. Sarah-Anne has some pretty amazing guest bloggers lined up for y'all for the rest of the week… I would definitely check back in the next day or so because it's going to be pretty spectacular!

Hi Everyone! It’s Emily from Practically Pink (otherwise known as Sarah-Anne’s “in real life friend”). I live in a small town in NC with my family; my wonderful father, my older sister, Katie (21), and my younger brother, Andrew (almost 14). Also, you might already know this, but my mother just recently passed away due to lung cancer. We are a Christian family and are trusting in Him as we start this new chapter in our lives. He is going to help us through this difficult time, but we just have to lean on Him and walk by faith. My little corner of the internet is a snapshot of our life, mixed with an assortment of many other things that catch my eye on a daily basis. Come on over and say hello! I would love to "meet" ya'll!

etsy beach finds {a guest post by Emily S}

First up in Simply SA's guest post week is my blogging friend Emily {and by friend I mean really good friend. We're currently plotting to meet up sometime; too bad neither of us can drive!}. She was immediate in her response to guest post so she got first dibs & ya'll get to look at Etsy beach-themed pretties. SCORE! Give it up for Emily!! 

Hey everyone! This is Emily from Flip Flops and Polka Dots. When the lovely Sarah-Anne asked me to guest post, my immediate reaction was 'Um... YES!!!'! Sarah-Anne wanted to stay in the theme of the beach, and so I scoured Etsy to find anything and everything beachy and nautical! Here are some of my truly beautiful finds...

Beach View photograph by MarascaPhotography:

Isn't it just breathtaking???

Dreaming of the Sea necklace by pennymasquerade

Be A Square Knot Bracelet by junghwa

So simple and beautiful!

I Spy Telescope Necklace by pennymasquerade

And it works! How cool is that???

Happy Seahorse Family Wall Decals by graphicspaces

I had to throw these in... Aren't they just too cute? :)

Beach House Decorative Pillows by PillowThrowDecor

I adore these pillows!

Sugar Starfish on Brown Headband by ShepherdoftheSea

I would loooove the have this!!!

Nautical Lighthouse Cushion Cover by mojosewsew

This is soo cute!

Beach Sign by Twigs2Whirligigs

If only I had known about this sign when my rooms theme was the beach! I totally would have bought it!

Turks Head Knot Rope Bracelet by WhatKnotShop

These bracelets are incredibly popular, so I had to throw one in :)

Do you have any favorite Etsy beach items?

ABOUT ME:
Hi there! My name is Emily, and I'm a 15 year old girl who lives in beautiful Virginia! I love so many things {swimming, baking, playing piano, my puppy Oliver... you get the idea :)}, but my top 3 most favorite things are my Savior, my family, and photography! In that order too :) I love photography SO much, but I know what's really important in life, and what really matters! I really hope you'll stop by my blog to read more about me, my life, and basically everything else! :)

a blogging break also? a hello monday: beach edition {19}

Otherwise titled as Hello Monday: The Beach Edition {19}

First off, yes...I'm taking a blogging break. My third, in fact! We're starting school on the 15th & since Dad has one week off this summer & it happens to fall on this particular week, we've spending quality time with each other having fun & making end-of-the-summer memories. 

But don't worry; I'm not leaving you high & dry like the other two blogging breaks. I always equate the beach with summertime {and...if you're a devoted long time reader you'll know that I have an undying love for anything & everything beach, so I've arranged to let you readers be treated to beach-themed guest posts from Emily S, Emily N, Meredith, and Emily C all throughout the week, along with a FTF + SS {beach themed of course!} featuring just ONE all beach themed shop! Cool, right?

Do you forgive me, readers, for springing this on you?  I promise, you'll be in love with the guest posts! 

On to the Hello Monday, shall we? I've complied a few of my MANY favorite things about the beach along with some gorgeous photos from weheartit.com. Because, you know, weheartit.com is awesome.  

{hello monday: beach edition}

{hello sand}

photo credit

{hello salt spray}

{hello waves & pounding surf}

photo credit

{hello beachcombing for shells & driftwood}

{hello wind-whipped hair}

photo credit

{hello reading my heart out}

{hello picture opportunities galore}

photo credit

{hello family time}

{hello staying up late}

photo credit

{hello sleeping in late}

{hello memories that will last a lifetime}

{hello monday: beach edition}

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This post was inspired by the one and only Lisa Leonard. If you'd like to take part in this blogging meme, make sure to give credit where credit is due.

 

 Enjoy the guest posters, readers, & I'll be back next Monday!