Tripp's Baby Shower! Inspiration Boards!

Since our little nephew Tripp will be making his debut in early December all I can think about is showering his mom, my sister in law Erin with a perfect shower. We have decided on the theme, it will be Frogs, Snails and Puppy dog tails. I have always thought this is a cute saying and his Mom, Erin came up with the theme. Once we had a theme nailed down it was time to get to work. Since, the shower will be in October I feel like we have plenty of time to get everything together for little Tripps shower. I can't wait to shower Tripp and Erin with lots of love & goodies. Below are some of my ideas for the shower. 

Why I love Birmingham!

I have lived in Birmingham for 6 years now. I really feel like I have a good understanding of this city and what it has to offer. I know I am partial to Birmingham because this is the city I went I first came to when I moved for college, it's the city where I fell in love, bought a house, and started my career. Birmingham will always hold a special place in my heart. But even if you don't have the emotional ties to this city there are still plenty of great things you should check out. Below is my list of the Top Ten Must See/Do Things in the Iron City.

1.The Vulcan statue is the largest cast iron statue in the world, and is the city symbol of Birmingham. I love Vulcan is just minutes away from my work. I love to see it overlooking our city. I have had so many fun times here. 

2. Tannehill- A beautiful state park that is very close to our house. We love attend Tannehill's Trade Days to look for treasures. 

3. Moss Creek Preserve - Is one of our most favorite places because it backs up to our dream neighborhood. The setting is beautiful. This particular picture was taken last year at the Moss Creek Festival.   

4. Regions Field...the Home of the Birmingham Barons! I can't say enough great things about this ballpark. Everything about it is awesome. 

5. Tunnel of Lights. This is a hidden gem for Birmingham. It's a must see if you are downtown one night. 

6. Railroad Park- I have very fond memories of walking at Railroad park when I worked for the nonprofit. We would take the kids in the program to the park for fresh air a good bit. It's a gorgeous park. 

7. The Bright Star Restaurant- It's a tradition that me, my mom and grandmother have lunch here when they come to visit. 

8. Pepper Place Farmer's Market- One of my favorite Saturday morning activies. This is such a neat part of town. I love seeing all the local vendors. 

9. Barber's Motorsports Track - A really neat place to visit. Even if you aren't a avid race fan it's pretty neat to have something like this is our city.

10. Sloss Furnace - A must see if you are in the Iron City. I have attended the Sloss Fright Fest once before. I will never go back to the fright fest but I would go back to Sloss during the day time. 

There are many other wonderful places to visit. Including the Summit Shopping Center, The Civil Rights Museum, Oak Mountain, and the list goes on and on. Come check our Birmingham, AL it's a great place!

Weekend Fun

This weekend was so much fun. It consisted of time with a good friends, volunteering for an organization I love, and spending time with my sweet husband. I did manage to get some housework done and squeeze in a little shopping. Here are my pictures from my wonderful weekend! Hope you all had a great weekend as well!

Friday evening I attended the Baron's game in the rain. An experience for sure! I had a lot of fun with my friends!

Saturday morning I spent my time at the Alabaster Farmer's Market
SafeHouse, a non profit that I am on the board of was the featured nonprofit for the day!

We are selling these cute yard signs for the organization! Aren't they adorable?
Contact me if you would like to purchase one. They are $28. 100% of the proceeds benefit SafeHouse!

Sunday, Mason and I went to lunch at Cheesecake Factory. One of my favorite places.

My sweet husband purchased a surprise for me. 

Best husband award goes to: MASON MCINTYRE! 

Sunday afternoon, we took our sweet Ellie for a walk in our neighborhood. 

Me and my Ellie Girl!

Office Love!

I believe making your work area cute will brighten your mood and make you more productive. These are a few of my favorite office essentials. What do you have on your desk? 

Pencil holder, Kate Spade Planner, Clear tape dispenser, clear business card holder, wedding picture

Football Season and what to wear!

2013 right before we were engaged! Mason is pretending to be
an Alabama fan for me.  

There are so many reasons why I love fall. The clothes, weather, decorations, Mason and I both have a birthday in the fall, pumpkins, and the list goes on. But for Mason there is one real reason why he loves the fall. FOOTBALL! Just like an other southern man football dominates his life. I think it's cute that he get so excited. I like the atmosphere of the games and enjoy tailgating as much as the next person but what I really get excited about is planning my outfits for the games. Haha...it's so funny that I spend more time thinking about what I will wear to a game than I even actually watch the game. 


Of course you can go the route of wearing your favorite team's jersey, t-shirt, etc. That's not really my style but I'm not knocking it. I prefer to incorporate my own game day look by using my own clothes that I wear daily. For example, for a chilly fall game I would suggest wearing black leggings a a cute black or red shirt and maybe a furry vest over it. Here is a look that I am going after for the first Bama Game we are attending. The game is September 13th. So there is a very good chance that the game will be hot. It's always good to wear layers so if you do get a little hot and can take things off.  What will all of you be wearing to football games this year? Roll Tide! :) 

Leah's Latest Obsessions

My latest five obsessions are amazing! I suggest in adding them to your wishlists ASAP. Let's get to it!

1.)  Sarah Potempa, The Beachwaver- This product is so great. It gives you the waving hair you have always wanted in just a few minutes. I can't tell you all how many compliments I have had on my hair since I started doing this. Only drawback...the price. At $200 it's a splurge I know but let me go ahead and justify it because it's WORTH every penny. You can thank me later! If you want to see more reasons you need this hair tool YOUTUBE the beachwaver. It is so easy to use and I love that!

2.) If you know anything about me you know how much I love bright lipstick. It makes me happy and turns any ordinary outfit into something fab. If you are like me a love a color to pop I suggest purchasing the Two Face Melted Lip Gloss. I have never had a lip stick so vibrate.   

3.) I have fallen in love with Mad Men. I know I'm only 10 years behind everyone else but it's so good. I just can't stop watching it. I love this show. The characters, the plot, the clothing.  Netflix and I will have a date again tonight. 

4.) I always have been and most likely always will be in love with monograms. But lately, I have caught myself loving monograms even more. I love M's! So happy my new last night looks great being monogrammed. :)

5.) And as always I'm obsessed with my two little fur balls, Sampson and Max. Love these little puppies so much! 

It's so important...FOUNDATION!

                                                               

                                               

In the beauty world there are things that can make or break you. Example...FOUNDATION! I really believe paying for high quality foundation versus drugstore brand makeup. I'm not knocking the beloved brands such as Maybelline, Revlon, or even Almay because I am supporters of them when it comes to lipsticks and eye makeup products. However, for actual foundation I think you should spend a little bit more and get a product that matches your skin perfectly and blends well with your other products. Foundation is all about preference. I have a very good friend who instead of wearing foundation each day she opts for a tinted moisturizer and that works for her. I'm a girl who likes coverage. I want my makeup to stay in place all day. I don't really want to reapply anything other than maybe a little lipstick after lunch. I have tried and used so many different types of foundations and I have to say my all time favorite is MAC...Pro Long Wear. MAC offers several different types of foundations but I am a personal fan of the Pro Long Wear Line because of the way it wears on my skin. 

I wear NC 25. It's always good to get your makeup matched by a Makeup Artist that works at the store. Don't be afraid to speak your mind if you do not think the foundation is the right color. 

Here are my reason's for loving this product.

1.) This product goes on so smooth. It's easy to apply. I use my foundation brush each day.

2.) I feel like the texture of the makeup. It's not too thick but it's not too light either. It's the perfect coverage for me.

3.) The pump is easy to use and it's a great product for traveling. 

4.)  MAC rewards their customers for returning to purchase more products. It's call the recycling program. Once you have six bottles of foundation that are empty you can bring them in and exchange your old foundation bottles for a lipstick or an eye shadow. It does take a while to accumulate six bottles of foundation but hey I'll take free any day!     

5.) Finally, my reason for loving this product is it LAST. Morning, noon and night. This product does not come off my face. It makes it though an entire day. I never have to reapply and it still looks good at night when I am washing all of my makeup off. 

Just so you know, I have not been paid or compensated by MAC. These are my thoughts and opinion about a product that I love.