what i'm packing // mexico

tomorrow we are hopping on a plane and spending a week in mexico. so just for fun, i thought i would share a few of my beach vacation necessities i'll be packing. packing for a relaxing trip means lots of color, and only the fun stuff. the lap top will remain at home! that does mean lots of work today though to prepare posts and finish up emails. all totally worth it though.

a bright mini purse is perfect for exploring new towns and carrying only what you need. plus neon yellow goes with everything right? polaroid camera for beach days. perfect little spiked hair clips to stylishly pull hair back during the day. and rather than carrying a big notebook, i'll take a mini ring of notecards that will easily tuck into a pouch. this great scarf that is so big it can be worn as a dress, a skirt, used as a bag... pretty much anything. and a mini travel bottle of my fave perfume.

forever 21 had these and lots of other great plastic sandals, perfect for wearing in the sand and near the water. i always make the mistake of taking leather sandals. they never get worn since they are ruined so easily on the beach. problem solved! plus how cute are the little owls?!

r and i always collect sand and shells when we visit a new place for the first time. so i'll be bringing this jar along to keep them safe on the trip back.

sandals from f21 // bag from target (older) // phone case from ralph lauren // gold spike clips from f21 // scarf c/o scarfs dot net // notecards from muji (decorated w/ paint polka dots) // spike pouch diy here

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peonies are back!

have you guys seen the peonies at trader joes yet?! sharon had these at her house for a little shoot i helped her with this week.. so as soon as i left i went and picked some up for myself. the smell of these take me back to our wedding day, so i feel like this needs to become a tradition in our house, having a pretty little peony arrangement displayed for our anniversary (on sunday!). smell is definitely one thing that triggers so many memories and i'm happy to be able to get that wedding week feeling back around here by simply putting out a vase filled with blooms. funny how a few bucks can make my weekend:) are there any little things that you pick up to celebrate the weekend? hope you have a good one!

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hanging roll down menu diy.

summer entertaining has begun friends. do you ever prepare what you are taking over to the host and hostess? ya, me neither. but i thought these roll up menus would make the perfect present to give with a bottle of wine or even a little plant when you are invited to dinner parties and backyard bbqs. you can probably make around 15 to 20 with these supplies and they only take a few minutes each. so stock up and be prepared all year!

these are prefect for hanging in your kitchen and rolling down each time you write your menus. i love writing out our menus for the week, but you can also use when entertaining as well.. or even as a notepad by the front door!

here is what you will need // a roll of that kraft paper from the hardware store (by the painting supplies), similar to what i used here but thinner, twine, tape, plastic straws, washi tape

cut your straw down to slightly smaller than the width of your paper and tape it to the end of the paper.

roll the paper around the straw tightly until you get to your desired thickness. thread the twine through the straw, measure how long you would like it to hang, cut and tie.

secure the end with some washi tape and you are done! hang and start jotting down your menus and notes

do you guys ever take hostess gifts when invited over to friends and families homes? i'll admit, we usually take the go to bottle of wine. but i think will start bulking up on little goodies like this. much more interesting and personalized. the key is definitely making everything ahead of time though since saturday night dinners usually pop up a few hours before... leaving no time for crafting ;)

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vacation shopping list // mexico edition

r and i are heading down to mexico early next week. we will be celebrating our first anniversary! it's all i've thought about for the last few months. and now that we are just days away, i'm dreaming up lists of things i would love to take. beach vacation necessities if you ask me...

01. hat // 02. beach blanket // 03. lip gloss // 04. popsicle coin purse // 05. popsicle phone case // 06. sandals // 07. dress // 08. travel notebook // 09. heels

i always pack way too much and far too over the top. i end up in my flowy dresses and a hat. so i'm trying to narrow it down this year to dresses that will work as cover ups and take me to dinner with a change from sandals to heels. hats are always necessary for a quick departure from the room straight to the beach. and you always need a few fun accessories to brighten up your basics. (how awesome is that beach blanket?!) what do you always take on your vacations? i want to start travel journals to hold pictures and jot down tiny details from our trips. i think they will be something fun to look back at years from now!

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let's have a summer party // instafaves 8

welcome back from the weekend friends! how was it?

saturday i ran my first 25k on trails.. one of the hardest runs i have done. in. my. life. afterwards we celebrated with lots and lots of sushi at our favorite restaurant in laguna. yesterday we worked a little on our backyard and picked up a few pieces of furniture to complete or seating area under the new pergola (where i am typing this right now, i love it!). then we went down to the lake with some friends and paddled around on sups for a while in the afternoon. we live 2 miles away from a lake and this was the first time we've been! not sure why it took us so long, but there are going to be many more summer days spent there. you can rent SUPs, kayaks, boats... anything. our next mission is to try some yoga on the boards (yes, in the water). have you guys ever attempted that? i've seen pictures, wondering how challenging it really is though!

today i picked out some of my favorites from instagram that are inspiring me to really start planning a summer party! we've been talking about it but haven't set a date. i love all of the details above. so summery!

scarf image by @lolabell // bar image by @grownupshoes // table setting by @freutcake // gin sign by @cincinvintage // see other instafaves here

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