Refreshing My Home

How perfect is this marble bookend? I spotted it for a whopping $3 in the clearance area

 Alright, I may have splurged on a bag too!

If you spot this candle on the shelves at Marshalls, please pick it up and smell it. 

I promise you that angels will sing!

Top and Hudson jeans - c/o Marshalls

home decor items pictured - c/o Marshalls

Every once in a while I get an itch to purge and refresh my home. We finished our remodel in December and with the stress of the holidays, I have been seriously slacking in the decorating department. With the year starting and a new baby coming in a few weeks (hello, nesting!) I'm itching to get the house in order. Refreshing your home can be a large scale project or something as small as swapping out a few items to your home. One of my favorite ways to freshen up my house is by bringing in fresh greenery from my backyard and lighting clean smelling candles. My home can be crazy, but this helps bring a little serenity and peace to my everyday routine. 

I went to my favorite Marshalls to pick up a few goodies for my kitchen and fireplace decor. I always head there first because I know that I won't spend a fortune on quality pieces. We splurged on beautiful leathered Quartzite countertops, so I really wanted a nice cutting board that we could add on top. Not only does it protect our counters, but it's such a statement. We've received so many compliments on the handcrafted board. I always laugh because who knew you would get so many compliments on a cutting board! One of the items that was important to us when designing our kitchen was to have some glass front cabinets to display pretty dishware and vases. When all the cabinets were put in, I realized I didn't really have much to display, so I've slowly been collecting pieces like this beautiful pale aqua vase for only $12.99. We have a tree full of bay leafs in our yard and I frequently clip pieces off to leave in a vase. So clean and fresh! 

Another project we finished in December was our fireplace facelift. We went for a very clean and simple design and wanted minimal decor on the fireplace to show off the beautiful details. The one must-have item was to find a large piece of art or mirror to add above it. Round mid-century style mirrors have been filling up Pinterest feeds everywhere, so you can understand my excitement when I found this amazing (and heavy!) piece at Marshalls. I was excepting a hefty price tag but it was only $149.99. Score! Those are just a few ways I've refreshed my home and added a little beauty here and there. Now if only I can catch up on my never-ending laundry pile!

Disclosure: I have received free products or value from Marshalls or The TJX Companies, Inc. 

in connection with my affiliation with Marshalls Project FAB

As always, all opinions are my own.

Winter Layers

My look: 

Paige jeans, Cloth & Stone chambray, Tart hat, Velvet vest -- c/o Marshalls

Booties -- Nordstrom

Nick's look:

RVCA button-up, Joe's jeans -- c/o Marshalls

Uriah's look:

Joe's jeans & top -- c/o Marshalls

Sweatshirt -- c/o Primpop

Christmas season is here! Our tree is up, holiday music is on Pandora 24/7, and we are enjoying every.single.moment.

It's adorable seeing Uriah excited for all of the holiday decorations; he is  always trying to convince me to get ornaments whenever he sees them. We added a little tree in his room for him to decorate and picked up some kid-proof ornaments from Target and Marshalls for him to add to his tree. We went to a local lot (family owned for 26 years!) and picked out the perfect tree. Well, Uriah wanted (of course) this 18ft. tree, but sadly that wouldn't work for our home so he settled for a regular ole' tree. I love smelling that fresh pine scent when I'm in the living room!

Another thing I'm loving is all the winter items at Marshalls. I walked in and had a cart filled within minutes. Not kidding - minutes! I was so surprised to find this amazing shearling vest by Velvet for only $44. And it has pockets! I also added another felt hat to my growing collection. Whenever I spot a Tart Collections hat at Marshalls, it always comes home with me. Such incredible quality and they're priced perfectly at $19.99 compare at over $48 -- who could resist that? It's difficult shopping for a growing belly, but luckily vests and hats will always fit!

                                    

Visiting Santa at Stanford Shopping Center

Uriah and I were invited by Stanford Shopping Center to visit with Santa last week and I couldn't think of a better way to kick off the holiday season. Especially since this year he has been talking non-stop about Santa! 

We followed the beautifully decorated trees to the center of the mall, where we found the cutest log cabin with Santa waiting inside for visitors. I loved the excitement that was building as we walked through the snowy walkway decorated with tall Christmas trees; Uriah was mesmerized by the sparkly lights and the giant glass balls decorating the trees. One of our favorite parts was the interactive games they had places in the area where you wait in line..especially "Snowball Fight" - you stand and throw fake snowballs to hit down all the elves. The games are perfectly placed to keep waiting children entertained and in the holiday spirit. We made our way to the front where Santa came out to greet us and bring us into his cozy cabin for our picture. While Uriah was beyond excited, he still gets a little nervous sitting on Santa's lap, as you might be able to see from his (cute) sad face. But don't let that little face fool you, he had a blast during his trip and we can't wait to make visiting Santa at The Stanford Shopping Center a new tradition for our Christmas season. 

Thank you for reading!