THINGS I AM LOVING!!!

Nine West has some ridiculous cute shoes right now!! These are my favorite!! They go with everything!

My next favorite have to be these black ankle boots. These also come in nude, too. I think these would look cute even into late summer and early fall. I might have to purchase these!! I saw them at Green Hills Thursday and they are just as cute in person!!

These are on sale for 30% right now. Also Nine West! These would be great for summer with a fun dress!!

Have you all seen the Toy Watches? My sister LOVES them!! They have every color imaginable. Makes me think about a Swatch Watch!! Remember those?!

Now, onto food!! Holy smokes this is the best stuff ever! I like the Roasted Red Pepper or the Spicy Jalepeno..great dipped in cucumbers or roasted red veggies!!

These are a great alternative to chips. They can be found in your Health Food section of your grocery store.

I have already mentioned these before, but Diana's Bananas are the best treat EVER! Only 3 points on WW. I love the milk chocolate and the dark chocolate both.

And last but not least, has anyone seen or tried these new Skinny Cows?? They look yummy!!

Have you found any new treats?!

Would love to hear!!

XOXO-

KJ

NEW BOOK!!

We are starting this book in our Sunday School class right now. I wondered if any of you have read it? I thought the name of it was too cute! I love her spaghetti hair!

Hope you all are having a great Sunday!!

XOXO-

KJ

AMISH FRIENDSHIP BREAD!

I am on a major kick to loose my baby weight, mainly because very few of my clothes fit. And even though the scale says I am 5 pounds away, my stomach certainly doesn't look like it!! And I don't think my belly will ever be the same. But, my babies are DEFINITELY worth it!!!

ANYWAY, back to the bread...Mark and Susan Smith, a precious family that we attend church with, brought over a few gifts for Griffin and Paisley and also brought over some Amish Friendship Bread. Oh my gosh, it is ridiculous!! Paisley loves it and I am sure you and your children will, too! Here are the directions. And share with your friends...they will love it too!!

Hope you are all having a blessed Sunday!

XOXO-

KJ

AMISH FRIENDSHIP BREAD

The day you receive 1 cup of starter your friend will advise you which day of the instructions to begin. Note: DO NOT USE METAL BOWL OR SPOON - DO NOT REFRIGERATE. DAY 1 - Do nothing. DAY 2 - Stir with a wooden spoon. DAY 3 - Stir with a wooden spoon. DAY 4 - Stir with a wooden spoon. DAY 5 - Add: 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup milk. DAY 6 - Stir with a wooden spoon. DAY 7 - Stir with a wooden spoon. DAY 8 - Stir with a wooden spoon. DAY 9 - Stir with a wooden spoon. DAY 10 - Add: 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup milk. On DAY 10 - make the Amish Friendship Bread. First pour off three 1 cup starters. Save one for yourself and give the other to 2 friends. Pour remaining batter into a large bowl and add the following ingredients: 1 c. oil 2 c. flour 1 c. sugar 1/2 c. milk 3 eggs 1 1/4 tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. cinnamon 1 tsp. vanilla 1/2 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1 c. nuts, chopped 1 lg. box instant vanilla pudding Pour into 2 well greased and sugared loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes (longer if glass) before removing from pans. This does real well in the freezer. Makes a delicious sweet bread. STARTER: 1 c. flour 1 c. sugar 1 c. milk Start instructions with day 1.

ALL ABOUT JEANS!!

Most of you who know me personally can testify that I NEVER wear jeans. I am a dress person almost year round. Very, very rarely am I not in a dress!! However, a very sweet friend of mine named Sandy asked me to do a post about jeans.

In researching, I did find two great websites. One is named appropriately jeans.com and the other truefit.com. Both of these sites have great advice on wash, fit, sizing, etc.

Some of my favorite brands are Seven and Citizens of Humanity. They seem to be made for girls with a booty. That would be me. Ha!!

So now I am leaving it up to you! What are your favorite brands/styles/fits, etc. Anyone have any great sales tips on how to get designer jeans for less? We would all love to know!!

XOXO-

KJ

NASHVILLE....SHOW US YOUR LIFE!

This might be my favorite Show Us Your Life EVER! When Stephen and I made the decision for me to move to Nashville and leave Jackson, I was so sad. Jackson was the only home I have ever known. My family is there, and that made it super hard to leave. Stephen promised me that if I could not make it, we could move back in a year. The first year we were here was hard. It was all so new!! New marriage, house, city, job...everything. But it quickly became home. I met the sweetest girls who became my best friends and sisters. And we became members of a great church, and that helped immensely!

Aside from all our great friends here, Nashville is a wonderful city. I. LOVE. IT. I don't know a single person who moves here and doesn't fall in love. My favorite parts about Nashville are the beautiful scenery, the mountains, the lakes and parks, and especially all the country music.

Here are some of my favorite touristy things to do:

If you ever come to Nashville, it is a rite of passage to visit lower Broadway and see the Honky Tonks. These are the up and coming musicians. If you make it to the sing on stage in one of these bars, you have nearly made it! There is nowhere like a Friday or Saturday night in downtown Nashville.

Chris Johnson is my FAVORITE Titans player!! He wanted to join the NFL club for 2000 yards rushed during a season. He promised the entire line that if he broke the record, he would buy them all new cars. And he did. How cool is that?!

The Titans Cheerleader and TRAc on LP Field. Stephen and I are fortunate to have season tickets. We try to attend as many games as possible. Paisley LOVES to go to the games!!

Downtown Nashville. We love it downtown. Paisley attends school downtown and we go to church at First which is on 7th and Broadway.

The Parthenon at Centennial Park.

The Grand Ole Opry. One of the places that was recently flooded, but they are hoping they will be able to replace it and restore it in full.

The Nashville Zoo is a great place to visit! It is by far Paisley's favorite place to go. Beside from the great arrangement of animals, the park has a great carousel and a wonderful play area with wooden bounce houses, a park, and a great place for a picnic.

Arrington Vineyards is another wonderful place to visit. It is our local winery that is owned by Kix Brooks (Brooks and Dunn) and has won many awards for their wonderful wine. It is a great place to hang out with friends. We usually bring our kids and pack our dinner, and buy wine once we get there. The kids can play outside under the trees. They even have swings for the adults and kids. It is such a beautiful place to watch the sun set in Tennessee.

Above is a picture of Cheekwood Botanical Gardens. Another beautiful place to visit!

One of my favorite restaurants on West End is Stoney River Steak House. The best steaks and seafood!

Sambuca...a great place to have drinks and appetizers and people watch. Sambuca is located in the "cool" part of Nashville. We are headed there tonight to celebrate Stephen's birthday!

The Standard is another hidden gem in Nashville. Well, it was a hidden gem. It is definitely becoming a popular spot for not only dinner, but a great cigar bar upstairs, along with a very cool place to host wedding receptions or special events. I am a little partial because our dear friends, The Smiths, own this restaurant. It is one of the oldest homes in downtown Nashville, and has been completely restored. It is filled with beautiful antiques and paintings. It is quite lovely. Definitely a great place to visit!!

And last but not least, leave some time to head to Green Hills. By far, the best place to go shopping! This is a great place to see celebrities as well. Venetian Nails is also here. A great place to get a mani or a pedi. There are some great places to eat here (The Cheesecake Factory, Yolos, F.Scotts, and Zoes.) Also, the best stores, like Louis Vuitton, Tiffany, Janie and Jack, Z Gallerie, Sephora, JCrew, Nine West, Juicy, Burberry.....the list goes on and on!!

I hope I have sold you on Nashville.

I am proud to call it my second home!

Please come visit us soon.

We are Nashville!

KJ

MAY GIVEAWAY!!

I am in LOVE with this book...so much that I am giving away a copy!!!

Please leave a comment and you will be qualified in the drawing!

I will draw May 31!!

Happy Humpday!!

XOXO-

KJ

GOSSIP GIRL SEASON FINALE!

I think I am the only 29 year old that watches Gossip Girl. I love the music, the clothes, fashion, and it is set in New York City. The other reason I am obsessed with it is because I am in LOOOOVEEE with Ed Westwick, aka Chuck Bass. He is the hottest thing EVER.

Chace Crawford isn't so bad either!!

In case you haven't watched it, I won't tell you what happens. But it was SO goooood!!!

XOXO-

KJ

HODGE PODGE POST!!!

This last week I have been scattered all over the place! I feel like I am on a race against time to get all these projects completed before I start back to work. Yes, I am going back. I am still very torn about this, so please pray for me. I am so worried that I am going to have a nervous breakdown trying to handle it all. I love my job and really don't want to quit, but I have to travel a good bit, which is not so easy. My plans are to go back and see how it goes! It is nice to know I can come home if it doesn't work out.

We have such a great church family and they have been SO super generous in bringing dinner, dessert, baby gifts for Griff, big sister toys for Paisley, and on and on and on!!

This is a picture of my good friend Denise and her little girl, Julianne. She and Rob are in our SS class at church. She is a CCU nurse and her husband is a cardiologist! Isn't that sweet?! I call them the Chinese Barbie and Ken. They are both gorgeous!! She brought over a yummy dinner and the most delicious chocolate and caramel cake that I had to take to the neighbors!!! I am trying so hard to be good!! We have also had sooo many others bring dinner and I often forget to take pictures. So thank you for all the delicious meals!!

Paisley spent the night with Grammy Friday night, so Stephen and I decided to go on a dinner date. Griffin is still at the age where he sleeps all the way thru dinner in his carrier, which is awesome!! Our dinner was SO yummy and fun (I had the tilapia and grilled shrimp; Stephen had Crab) until this couple sits down behind Stephen and I thought they were about to have sex at the restaurant. GROSS! It was a little wierd to sit there and watch them make out and feed one another!! Just thought I would share that...so

Saturday morning, our ice maker underneath our cabinet went out and water was alllll over our hardwood floors. It was soooo fun (NOT) to get to spend our Saturday cleaning up water. Stephen also had to turn the water off at the street to find the leak. So needles to say, I was WAY behind on laundry this weekend. He was able to fix it and we are waiting on the part. Cross your fingers this will be inexpensive. With appliances, you just never know!!

Saturday afternoon, we went to a birthday party for one of Paisley's BFFs Georgie. She turned 3 and had a party at My Gym, and it was SO CUTE!! We had a great time playing!

This is a picture of Paisley with Uncle Fro (my BFF Amy's husband, who Paisley LOVES.)

Paisley and Grace jumping on the trampoline!

Georgie, the birthday girl! How cute is this?!

Trying to get 30 kids to smile!!

Grace LOVES Griffin!!

My BFF Alexis' sweet baby boy!! He is so cute! His name is Hudson!

The grown ups acting silly!!!

Bryce and John!

Paisley and Bryce jumping!!

Sweet Grace!!

Griffin also made his SS debut this week and I have no pictures to show of it. We planned on taking pics after church, and of course, he had a blow out during church. I promise I will take pictures next week!

Love you all and hope you had a great weekend.

XOXO-

KJ

SHOW US YOUR LIFE...BOOKS!!!

These are my favorite books!!! Enjoy!!!!

And our favorite Children's Books....