favorite things friday + saturday shopping {4}

Today I'm linking up with Kim's  Favorite Things Friday and Gussy's  Saturday Shopping blogging meme's. I absolutely love finding new Etsy pretties and sharing them with you, so here we go!
{Warning: Lots of cuteness coming your way. Just sayin'.}

In honor of the my beautiful dress {and the ball itself}, I decided to plan my FTF + SS around the colors of my dress. And, by the time this automatically posts, I'll be on the way back to Emily's to slip on my dress. :)

Etsy simpleheat

{1. Ivory Silk Clutch with Ruffled Flowers}

{2. Poppy Garland Headband}

{3. Design Your Own Clutch}

{4. Sky Blue Topaz Ring Necklace}

{5. Sky Blue Bow Ring}

{6. Sky Blue Polished Glass Pendant}

{7. Moonstone Necklace with Leaf Accent}

{8. Bird's Nest Necklace with Blue Eggs}

{9. White Opaque Glass Teardrop Earrings}

{10. Vintage Light Blue Crystal Earrings}

{11. Ivory Wedding Shrug}

{12. Blue Ivory Triangle Shawl}

Happy shopping, readers!!

in T-minus 24 hrs {or less}..

...the 6th Annual Historical Ball will begin!!

::commence jumping up and down and insert squealing like a little girl in 10 octaves higher than i normally scream, thus shattering every glass object within a 5 yard radius::

{just a sneak peek of my dress. i'm such a tease and don't want to show you until after the ball}

This morning we helped the ball committee with the set up, which was mainly setting up tables and chairs {along with chairs along the walls}, the food station, and hanging icicles lights on PVC pipes. After I went to chemistry {boo hiss} I came back and helped put the finishing touches on the room, such as picking up tulle and helping store the leftover decor in the storage rooms. Once we finished at the church, we went to shop for the food, then dropped it back off at the church to store in the fridge. And now we're finally home!! ;)

Tomorrow promises to be a great day, with a dance workshop/refresher course in the morning and the actual ball later that night. It's going to be great!! I'm also pretty excited go back home with the Nichols' to get ready with Emily and Katie. 

I'll be a little MIA from blogging and commenting this weekend, but look for my scheduled Favorite Things Friday + Saturday Shopping post. It was inspired by the beautiful color of my dress...

Have a great weekend, readers!!

WIWW {4}

Today I'm linking up with Lindsey for WIWW {What I Wore Wednesday}. Initially, it was started to keep Lindsey accountable and wear things {real clothes! gasp!} other than yoga pants and sweatshirts. Now it's blossomed into over 150+ bloggers joining in and sharing fashion tips/tricks for other WIWW particpants. 
All the cool kids are doing it. Gussy, Lisa Leonard, Kim, Moriah, and Lindsey herself. I'm not one to buckle under the peer pressure, but I've jumped on the bandwagon. I think it's a great way to show you guys what I wear...without having to wear skirts for a week. ;)

This week I got up to 4 outfits, and I even considered adding a 5th, but hey...I'm sure you don't want to see my hair on no shampoo days, and that day was today. So, no pictures of the greasy hair. I'm sure you'll thank me...

{Thursday}

Happy St. Patty's Day!! FYI, I'm Irish. I know people say that when they're, like, 1/18th Irish, but my last name is just as Irish as Smith is American.

 Channeling my inner Gussy here... ;)

{Tissue Tee and White Tank underneath: Target}

{Sweater: Mom's [from Stein Mart, I believe]}

{Jeans: Old Navy}

{Necklace: Josiah's Nest}

{Shoes: Converse}

{Friday/Saturday}

I actually wore the same thing twice...gasp!

{Shirt: Hand-me-down from Emily}

{Capris: Target}

{Necklace: My friend Brianne's shop, JustPlainSimple}

{Shoes [not pictured]: Sperry's}

{Tuesday}

All pictures credit to my bestie, Emily. Thanks, Emily!!

{Dress: Hand-me-down from...I forgot!}

{Shoes [not pictured]: JCPenny's}

{Tuesday}

{Shirt: Old Navy}

{Jeans: Old Navy}

{Shoes: Converse}

{Sunglasses: Calcutta [Overtons]}

hello monday {7}

{hello monday}

{hello cloudy skies after a gorgeous sun filled weekend}

{hello breezy conditions}

{hello Bible and reading time}

{hello hot shower}

{hello early morning sewing session}

{hello lunch [peanut butter sandwich and apples FTW]}

{hello afternoon spent on chemistry studying, chemistry problems, and chemistry test}

{hello Wii time with the little bro}

{hello [more] chores}

{hello blogging}

{hello more chemistry [can you believe it?!]}

{hello more Bible Study and school reading}

{hello dinner}

{hello CHUCK, Dancing with the Stars, and Castle}

{hello bedtime routine}

{hello monday}

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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.

a day {Thursday} in my life...

You've heard me talk about it, ramble on about it, and rave about it. It's the main reason I don't normally blog on Thursdays, just because I can barely think straight, much less write a coherent post. Thus, no blogging on Thursday.What is it? It's CBS {Community Bible Study}, of course! A little background would be nice, no?

Community Bible Study is an interdenominational Bible study for the community. We offer a wide range of courses in classes throughout the United States and welcome people from all backgrounds and levels of Bible knowledge.

For over a quarter of a century, Community Bible Study has been helping people-from children to seniors-to grow in their knowledge and love of Jesus Christ.

{source}

Now that you know the general idea of what CBS strives to accomplish, here's what a typical day looks like...

Getting ready for CBS starts the day before, really. Packing up the rolling cart {with Mom's teaching materials and lesson inside}, camera, CBS snacks for the kids, and the occasional backpack full of schoolwork to do.

6:30AM: Wake up call! Oh, what fun it is to wake up before the sun had even risen yet. Not. :)

6:30AM-7:30AM: Get dressed, shower, eat something, and pack up the last minute things. 

7:30AM: And...we're off!

8:00AM: We're finally here!! After 30 mins. of driving through the backroads to avoid the morning rush hour traffic, we arrive at Grace Church. 

8:00AM-8:45AM: We unload the car and head to work. Mama sets up her room while Clark sets up the Music for the kids later in the morning, and I work on snack, the display boards, and anything else Martha Duke {the Children's director, which is the head of the Children's Ministry} or the teachers need {there are 2 teachers for each class, which are the 1's, 2's, 3's, 4 & 5's, plus the homeschool class, which Mama has taught for 3 years now}.

8:45AM: Prayer time! All the teachers gather around in the 2's room to pray over the day, the kids coming, and the lesson they're about to teach. 

8:45AM-9:45AM: I greet everyone coming in this door and help mom's put name tags on the {sometimes} screaming kids, hanging up diaper bags, and comforting the screaming kids. ;)

9:45AM-10:30AM: I do anything and everything that needs to be done. Mostly, I go around and take pictures of the kids and their class activities, helping Martha Duke with attendance sheets, work on gathering visual aids and such for next week's lesson, and, more than likely, you can find me in the Lamb's group with the little babies 1 and under.

10:30AM: Music time! Our music teacher this year, Laura Beth, is so sweet and energetic. She had a great way with kids and I love to talk with her afterwards.
11:00AM-11:30AM: The kids go back to their classes and I'll usually hang with the Lamb's group or get a early start for cleaning up both snack, the display boards, and music supplies.
11:30AM-12:00PM: Miss Renee {the teaching director} is so kind to give the teachers the lecture of the lesson of CBS, so we sit down {for the 1st time for hours!} and eat a snack or two. Then, it's back to cleaning...

And...that's about it. BUT! It's a lot of prep work, clean up, and everything in between. :) It is so rewarding, and I love each and every minute of it.