home.

via Pinterest
It seems to me that I'm not the only one shocked that August has almost left us, and before you know it, these 90+ degree temps will be a thing of the past. It's a little crazy, but time flies no matter what you are doing. And all the while I find myself feeling excruciatingly blessed after the series of wild events that led us back to my home in Mississippi, somehow, being "home" has not really felt like "being home" to me. My belongings may be in Mississippi, my husband may be in Mississippi, but I'm not 100% in Mississippi. Simply put, it gets lonely when it's just you and the open road.
I understood life traveling Monday through Friday would be just a wee bit difficult, and as I'm writing this I am trying with all my ability to not come across in any way ungrateful or having a pity party for one. In all honesty, I've gained more experience, grown as a person, and it doesn't hurt that my territory takes me on almost bimonthly visits to my nieces' house. Not to mention the fact that I have a job at all. So yes, I'm also counting my blessings.
When I get in a funky mood, I remember that God granted me with a wonderful man who shares in my struggles with traveling for a job. I'm honestly blessed with having Cory understanding why I'm doing what I'm doing, and better yet, with no questions asked. Having just his support helps me a lot. God also gave me amazing family and friends who entertain me on the road, keep me informed, and never let my weekends home go by without a plan or two up their sleeves. 
In reality, I wanted to write this post to remind myself, even in the loneliest of times out there on the road, you're not alone and you have it pretty darn good. With it, I'm simply putting it out there for your thoughts and your prayers (should you be so inclined to do so).
Thank you for letting me get this off my chest, y'all. I have faith that even better things are on the horizon. :)

favorite agendas

Kate Spade polka dot | MyAgenda leopard   Lilly Pulitzer large | Whitney English Day Designer
A planner to me has never been just a planner. I like it for keeping my appointments, yes, but I also have found to jot down notes, ideas, even little musings of my day to day. In a way, my planner has become my journal, and the nostalgic part of me still has them all saved on a bookshelf along with all my other favorite reads. This year's model has a soft, gold leather cover with gold lined pages that I found on a whim at Target, and when first noticed, people will think it's my bible. I sometimes tell them it is ;)
It was a few weeks ago when a couple sorority sisters of mine came to me to ask a few suggestions on a new planner. (They already know I'm a list making, paper nut.) And these four are what I came up with. Right now, I'm leaning on ringing in 2014 with a Whitney English Day Designer. 
Do you have any favorite planners? 

rowdy gentleman

Outside of plaid button downs and a good pair of loafers, Cory has a great admiration for wearing a nice, ole tee. He has an assortment spanning from Southern Tide to Southern Proper, but I have to think these from Rowdy Gentleman are slowly becoming some of my favorites. If nothing else, they are just too adorable and downright clever not to share. 

via here | here | here
There's nothing better than squeezing Cory in a soft cotton shirt. Love. 

sweet & simple saturday

print found via Pinterest

This week had been an especially difficult one. Sinus headaches, humidity overload, and there seems to never be enough coffee to get me out of bed in the mornings. In short, I was off my groove. Not to mention, while I was away in Alabama, Aspen decided to go on a little roaming adventure in my mother-in-law's neighborhood, and was missing for about an hour on Thursday night. I could barely contain myself in my hotel until she was home, and Lord knows Cory and I would have gone completely nuts if she had not been found. 

Thankfully, as I write this, I'm snuggling next to my sweet girl as well as Sidney (my MIL's Australian Shepherd), and I couldn't think of anywhere else I rather be. As an added bonus, I've not only had Friday night dinner with Cory, but ALSO all day today to gallivant around Memphis together. It's truly the little things when you rarely get to see your husband on the weekends (he's been swamped at work fixing planes for hours on end). Ladies, give an extra hug to your loved ones during the week, if only for my sake! :)

Oh Lord, thank you for blessing me with such a loving husband. The days away just affirm how much I love this man more than ever. 

And just because I thought it would be funny to have a record of this: I was leaning over to Cory while still eating dinner to tell him how much I adore him, and he lovingly replies, "You have something in your teeth, babe." Oh, wedded bliss... ;) 

Happy Saturday, friends. 

beauty review: sigma foundation brushes

A few months ago I found myself in the market for some new makeup brushes. Now while I'm all about purchasing my eyeshadow and powder brushes from the likes of e.l.f. and Sonya K. at Target, I need something a little more dense for my foundation. After hearing the majority of the beauty community praise this company, I went ahead and pulled the trigger on the ever popular Sigma brushes. 

My favorite part of this kabuki style is that it's synthetic. This essentially means that unlike natural hairs that want to soak up half the product when applied, it instead sits on the tips of the bristles and waits to be transferred on the skin. Best part is that they are dense enough to buff into the skin using just a minimal amount of foundation. The flat head F80 brush is my favorite, but I like the angled F84 to get on the sides of the nose and under eye area with concealer. 

y'all know I'm a sucker for nice packaging

As a little surprise, I was also given a E05 eyeliner brush. I've purchased a couple of flat head eyeliner brushes in the past, but could never master the look I wanted. This brush is great for swooping the perfect cat eye, and took the place of my current eyeliner brush (which just happened to be a Hobby Lobby $3 paint brush that was in need of replacement anyways..yep, true story).

Something tells me I'll be purchasing more Sigma products in the future. And I saw for the month of July you can use code RNL2013 for 10% off your order!

this week's favorite links

this and other pretty things via here

adoring my new cork and gold iPhone case  a few photo editing tips for your blog (the photo widths tip is my favorite!) wore this super soft maxi dress for the Fourth thanks to a rec from Megan  every gal needs a good pair of studs she can wear with anything..mine are in seaglass and if I had a spare $50, this would soooo be in my makeup drawer 

beauty review: tarte amazonian clay blush

If you caught my Fourth of July photo from this earlier post, you probably noticed I've toned down my pink blush addiction (see also: lets be honest, I can have moments of clown cheeks). 

Because I've been such an avid MAC obsessed gal for so long, I'm shocked to be giving you so many non-MAC related beauty reviews, but y'all..this is such a great blush. It's a beautiful nude, peach color with a tinyyy bit of glitter, but not so much that you would really notice. It's very pitmented, so a little will go a long way. 

All in all, I'm really impressed with these amazonian clay products, and will more than likely try other colors once this little gal is used up. Do y'all have any tried and true blushes that you love? 

five random facts

I've always enjoyed reading these type of posts from others, so I decided to contribute my two cents...or in this case five.

/// I'm a lipstick hoarder, but yet I rarely wear it. One thing I have learned from my engagement shoot? I need to wear more of it. Geez, my lips are fish belly white!
/// I own two instruments - a clarinet (middle school) and an acoustic guitar (high school). I have since forgotten how to play both of them.
/// I have my nails polished at all times. It's not in a vain sense really, but rather I gave up biting my nails to nubs when I turned 21 years old. I rationalize that as long as I keep them nice looking, I won't want to continue biting. So far it's worked.
/// I went to China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan earlier this year for work and completely forgot to blog about it. I blame it on the jet lag. 
/// I love the thought of traveling, but I have an absolute, unequivocal fear of flying. I ironic thing is, I do it for work on almost a monthly basis. (and see also: fun fact number four o_O )  

beauty review: benefit stay flawless primer

I decided our Fourth of July festivities was the best time to put the new Benefit Stay Flawless primer to the test. Granted, I'm not one to necessarily believe in the benefits of a primer, but to be honest, how could I refuse this adorable packaging promising me 15 hours of stay put power? Yes, I bought it partially because of the packaging..true story.

While I've read different interpretations, I found that this balm can dry quickly, and it's best to rub it on in sections, using the stick and not your fingers, and then immediately apply your foundation. That way your foundation mixes with the tacky balm and locks it into place.
I have to say, after about three hours walking the streets of downtown Memphis in 90 degree heat, it held up pretty nice. We went back inside to cool off a bit and change, and I added a bit of my NYX powder to touch up before dinner. After that I was good to go for the rest of the night.

right before dinner with my fav dude, Cory
And here's my official summer makeup routine. I like that it's a light BB cream that gives me the coverage I need, a powder that isn't caking on my face, and a primer that keeps it all from budging. (Side note: I noticed my BB cream is getting a little dark now that I'm loosing my Memorial Day tan. Right now, I'm mixing it with a little of my lighter foundations to make a perfect match.)

To get the info on the other two products, check them out in my top ten here. Do y'all have a summer makeup routine that you're loving right now? Let me know if I'm missing out on something! :)

seeing red

I am in desperate need of a hair makeover. It's not curling like it used to, the ombre is pretty much nonexistent, and it's just downright boring. Some days I want bangs, other sweaty, summer days I'm thankful I don't have them. I'm also that crazy girl who views her hair as a safety blanket, and will never cut major inches off for the summer. 
While I already know I need some serious layers to get my curls back to bouncing, I've also been obsessing with the idea of going red... not RED red, but more auburn, reddish/brown. Or maybe I just want to become Emma Stone, who can virtually wear her hair whatever color she wants.

Any of y'all having the same hair woes as me? Or have you had a hair change recently?