Baby Shower #3

We had our third and final baby shower this weekend and it was a blast! I absolutely love how all three of our baby showers were so unique from one another and really fun in completely different ways. This final shower was a co-ed cocktail party for our college friends. When my sister-in-law, Erika, volunteered to be in charge of this endeavor, she asked me what I really wanted out of this shower. I told her that I wanted it to be #1 co-ed, #2 have plenty of alcohol (just because I can't drink doesn't mean that everyone else should have to suffer too), #3 no participation required (I didn't want people to feel obligated to participate in activities like playing games or watching me open presents) and #4 for everyone to have a good time. I know that some people aren't really a fan of going to showers (especially boys), which is why we opted for more of a cocktail party vibe than an actual baby shower. Jared and I did the same kind of thing for our wedding shower. We had a big 'ole cocktail party with a party bus, and it was probably definitely the most intoxicated bridal shower I've ever attended. So when our baby shower this weekend didn't end until 2am with cigars on the patio and girls dancing in my mom's kitchen, I wasn't remotely surprised. I think we successfully had the most intoxicated baby shower ever (I mean everyone in attendance graduated from FSU, what did you expect?) and I'm so glad that everyone had a good time. That's what I truly wanted :)

 Thank you so much to our fabulous hostesses for throwing such an awesome shower!

I loved the invitation! It was just so me with the quatrefoil, the colors, and the Vera Bradley pattern.

Jared and I are so blessed to be surrounded by such amazing friends and family during this very special time in our lives. Peyton is really lucky to have a ton of awesome "aunts and uncles".

Thank you to my wonderful mommy and Peyton's "DeeDee" for letting us invade her home for our party.

I did open presents at the request of the girls at the shower, while the boys hung out on the patio smoking cigars. 

Peyton and I received so many beautiful gifts which of course included some FSU goodies! I might have the best dressed child on gameday because basically half of her wardrobe is now garnet and gold, which is obviously a must in our household!

Jared's mom passed down her own mother's (Peyton's great-grandmother) pearls for Peyton to have. I absolutely love pearls and I was given my very first set of pearls from my mom when I was initiated into Phi Mu, so I am very excited for Peyton to have her own set. Plus, I just love family heirlooms. What a very special gift for Peyton from her Gramie. 

I was thrilled to have my Phi Mu family with me this weekend celebrating our little legacy!

I loved being reunited with my little, grandlittle and great-grandlittle!

 Peyton's Gramie and Auntie Erika!

The boys spent the majority of the shower on the back patio with their beer and cigars, and I don't blame them. I'm glad they got to hang out and have their man time together :) 

Celebrating our little PBR with some PBR tallboys!

A little thank you gift from me, Jared and Peyton for our shower hostesses! Monogrammed Lilly Pulitzer coolers! I might be going to buy one of these as a birthday present to myself here soon. 

Thank you so much to everyone who came out to our shower and celebrated PBR with us! 

Biloxi

Last weekend, we drove to Biloxi, Mississippi for a family friend's wedding. We had an amazing time visiting with life-long friends while celebrating Stephen and Lauren! 

Things I learned while in Biloxi...

1. I-10 is officially that most boring road to travel ever. I already knew this thanks to driving the 3 hour Jacksonville-Tallahassee leg of it during college regularly. However, in case you were wondering, it still doesn't get anymore exciting once you get west of Tallahassee either. You literally drive straight on I-10 for 7 hours west of Jacksonville and poof, you are in Biloxi. 

2. Southern Mississippi is hotter than Florida. I've only been to Mississippi two other times in my life and those were to visit Oxford, MS while my brother was attending Ole Miss for college. However, Biloxi in August. Oh my. 

3. If you just stand really close to the tables in the casino while someone you know is gambling and you pretend like you are gambling too, the cocktail waitress will still bring you free drinks all night. I gambled in the casino for a total of probably 20 minutes the entire time we were there. The rest of the time I just stood next to my mom or Jared at the roulette table, pretended to be "helping" them place bets and collected my free beverages. Haha, I'm such a rebel.

4. My brother can rap every lyric to "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix A Lot. And he did. On the microphone. At the wedding reception. And I'm pretty sure that no one on Stephen's side of the wedding was even remotely shocked by this. That is what happens when you invite the Adams clan to your wedding :)   

 Welcome to Biloxi!

 Post-Rehearsal dinner adventures at the local bar

 Family photo

We stayed at the Beau Rivage Hotel & Casino on the waterfront. The only other time I have ever been in a casino was at Atlantis in the Bahamas when I was in 8th grade. Obviously, I wasn't gambling or drinking then, so this was my first real casino experience! 

 

 Before the wedding. 

I know my brother and Jared love it when I make them pose for photos in the hotel lobby. 

 We had to get one more wear out of our bright summer colors and seersucker before Labor Day!

 With my favorite girlies...I stick out like a sore thumb in my florescent dress. Thanks Lilly Pulitzer :)

My Lindsay...can't wait to watch this girl walk down the aisle next May!

Fashion Icon

I am not someone who you would consider a fashionista by any means. In fact, I don't even really consider myself fashionable. Most of the time when I go in the mall, I see things that are currently trendy and I think, "what the hell is wrong with these people?". If I had to classify my style, I guess it would probably be classic. I like to invest in wardrobe pieces that are never going to go out of style, and can be suitable for any occasion. Which brings me to my favorite fashion icon. Lilly Pulitzer.

I love Lilly Pulitzer dresses because they are bright, fun and timeless. You can take the same Lilly shift dress and put it on a 20-year-old college girl or her 50-year-old mother and both of them will look fabulous in it. In fact, that is exactly what I do. My mom and I wear each other's Lilly dresses all the time. Lilly's fashions embody a classic style that works for any age.

My love for Lilly started in high school. I lived 30 minutes from Palm Beach, which is like the Lilly Pulitzer mecca. I fell in love with the bright, colorful patterns and fully believed that the "louder" the Lilly dress, the better. Of course, once I got to FSU and joined a sorority it was like a breeding ground for Lilly addicts. Even now, my go to dress for any special occasion is a Lilly Pulitzer design.

As you can imagine, I was deeply saddened (as I'm sure sorority girls across America were) when I heard the news yesterday. My beloved fashion icon, passed away at 81 years old. As soon as the news broke, social media was blowing up with her life story which I know very well. Still, it was very interesting to read her story over again. Fashion designer Lilly Pulitzer dies at 81 

I feel like her designs were a direct reflection of who she was. She loved for people to be happy and having a good time, all the time. Her dresses truly reflect that. How could you possibly be mad when you are covered in so many bright patterns? Whenever I put on one of my Lilly dresses, I instantly feel happier. I don't think it is possible to not have a good time when you are wearing Lilly Pulitzer. I believe that is exactly what Lilly would have wanted her legacy to be.

So put on your brightest sundress, go out and live life the way Lilly would have wanted you to. 

Easter via Instagram

I hope everyone had a lovely Easter! I spent the holiday with my family and we had a great time. I have been realizing; however, that all the fun things that I loved about certain holidays as a kid are not nearly as cool once you become an adult. Trust me, no one is interested in watching my 25 year old self run around the back yard hunting for Easter eggs. Holidays are so much more fun when there are little kids around, guess I'll have to start working on that eventually.

I figured that rather than telling you a long drawn out story about my Easter Sunday, I would just snap a few photos using Instagram on my iPhone and let those tell the story. So here it is...

My Easter Sunday...according to Instagram.

We went to church in the morning with my parents and then headed back to their house for the rest of our holiday festivities.

If I'm wearing a Lilly and white pumps, it must be Easter...ok let's be honest, it really could be any other day in the spring as well :) 

Roses from mommy's garden in the bud vase I brought her back from Waterford, Ireland

Ballerina Easter Bunny!

One of Jared's specialties - Bacon wrapped quail stuffed with jalapenos 

Easter dinner fit for an outdoorsman...quail, bass and venison. We don't discriminate the types of animals we kill - we take them by land, sea and air :) 

Watching the Masters - so glad that an American (not to mention a Southern boy) won!

Yes, we ate Easter dinner on TV trays...feel free to judge

No holiday is complete without a family booze cruise around the neighborhood...

Or without Chris and Jared smoking their cigars...

Have a great week!

Phi Mu Love

Just when I thought two of my favorite things in the entire world couldn't get any better...they joined forces.

You may remember a post I wrote back in January (Lilly for Sororities) about how Lilly Pulitzer was having a contest and the winning sororities got their own Lilly print for their sorority. Well, we found out a few weeks later that my dear sorority, Phi Mu, did indeed win one of the prints! So if you helped me out and voted for Phi Mu, thank you :)

About a week ago, Lilly Pulitzer revealed the designs for the winning sororities' prints and I could not be more excited about how adorable the Phi Mu one is! Let's just say that I'm obsessed. It has lions, quatrefoils and carnations, oh my! Haha, sorry, that was lame...let's just say it is simply Phi Mu perfection.

Presenting...Phi Mu by Lilly Pulitzer...

Lilly has made the print into a Facebook timeline cover, which I am of course currently rockin' on my Facebook page. I guess this is their way of holding us over until the actual merchandise comes out in stores, which isn't until August!!! I know, what a tease. It's probably a good thing though because I need to start saving up since I fully intend on buying everything that Lilly makes in this print. 

Speaking of my love for Phi Mu...I celebrated Founders' Day last weekend with my amazing Alumnae Chapter and we had a great time. It's hard to believe that Phi Mu has been around for 160 years now. Thank you to all the fabulous women who keep it going strong! 

In other exciting Phi Mu news, I am still the President of our local Alumnae Chapter here in Jacksonville and this is a convention year! Which means that I will be representing our chapter at the 52nd National Convention (Phi Mu runs on a biennium so we only have convention every 2 years). I was lucky enough to be able to attend the National Convention in 2008 when I was President of our Collegiate Chapter at FSU, and it was a blast. Needless to say, I am super excited for July. This year's convention is taking place at this fabulous resort (JW Marriott San Antonio) in San Antonio, Texas!

There is just so much Phi Mu love going on in my life right now! LIOB

  

Oh, How Pinteresting!

Once in a blue moon, I actually talk about fashion on my blog. It doesn't happen often, but today's Oh, How Pinteresting! post is all about my favorite fashion color...navy. Every time I see something that I like in a store, it is usually navy. I could honestly dedicate an entire section of my closet to my navy clothes. I love navy because it is sophisticated, classic, and never goes out of style. It is appropriate for absolutely every occasion, every season and pretty much goes with everything. I could seriously wear navy every day of my life. I wouldn't consider myself an expert on fashion, but I must say that every girl needs some classic navy style in her closet!  

Oh, How Pinteresting! - Style Me Navy Edition

                                                                                                                  Source: evokingyou.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                          Source: Uploaded by user via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                              Source: lillypulitzer.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                          Source: adabelles.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                              Source: lillypulitzer.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                               Source: lillypulitzer.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                               Source: lillypulitzer.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                            Source: bowsandsequins.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                       Source: Uploaded by user via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                   Source: shop.nordstrom.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                          Source: bodenusa.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                         Source: anntaylor.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                                  Source: jcrew.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                                        Source: modcloth.com via Jacki on Pinterest

                                                                                                           Source: polyvore.com via Jacki on Pinterest

...and of course my favorite royal lady is always looking amazing in navy!

                                                                                                               Source: google.com via Jacki on Pinterest

If I could borrow clothes from one celebrity's closet, it would definitely be Kate Middleton. She is so fabulous, and I obviously have a serious girl crush on her. I honestly feel like she is pretty much the Jackie O. of our generation. Plus, she wears a lot of navy...and looks damn good doing it.