Jord Wood Watch Review and Giveaway

If you've been around here for awhile, you know that I don't often review products unless I feel like they are a good fit with my readers.  Well, when I was asked to partner with Jord Wood Watches I jumped at the opportunity because, I mean, look at this beauty!

If you are looking for something unique, beautiful, and timeless a Jord watch should definitely be at the top of your list! At Jord they strive to deliver you a quality time piece that is both fashionable and functional.  I chose to receive the Cora Maple and Silver watch and I just love how it has a simple, yet elegant look to it.

Everything about this watch is top quality.  From the engraved wooden box that it arrived in to the little embroidered pillow that it rests on, Jord has spared nothing when it comes to presentation.  From the moment I opened the box I could just feel that this watch was designed by those who treasure quality.

Jord is a company focused on more that just giving you a quality time piece.  On their website they state, "The value of a watch is not in being able to tell how much time has passed, but in being aware of the need to make that time count. Moments are bigger than minutes and your watch should tell more than time."

Make that time count.  Moments are bigger than minutes.  These words have never rang more true for me than right now.  At the end of July my father passed away unexpectedly. Those moments I spent with him are truly cherished. I love that this company emphasizes the need to make your time count!

If you are looking for the perfect fall accessory then a Jord wood watch should definitely be on your list.  The wood makes it a very neutral accessory meaning that you can pair it with just about any outfit! It definitely looks fabulous with some of my favorite chunky sweaters. I've received so many compliments on my watch and I love to wear it when I'm out and about.

Now here is the best part! I get to share the love with my readers! You can ENTER HERE for a chance to win a $75 e-voucher to use on their website.  It can be applied to any watch- men's or women's (and believe me there are some really fabulous watches for both!). One winner will randomly be selected to win the $75 prize, but Jord doesn't stop there.  EVERYONE who enters will receive a $20 e-voucher to be applied to any watch! How awesome is that! All you have to do is click HERE and enter your name and email address. If you are looking for the perfect Christmas gift (because we all know some of you start shopping this early!) or just something unique for yourself hop on over to the giveaway and enter because everyone will receive at least a $20 e-voucher. Contest is open until 10/16 and the $20 voucher codes are good until 1/31/2017!  Good luck friends!

*This post was sponsored by Jord Wood Watches.  All opinions are 100% my own.*

Wooden Wristwatch

Mint and Coral First Birthday Party

I can hardly believe how fast time has passed and my baby girl is now a big One Year Old! It seems like just yesterday that we brought our sweet little bundle of joy home...

to her beautiful new nursery.

And now she has grown into an amazing little toddler who has the cutest laugh and heart melting smile.

I'm learning just how fun it is to have a baby girl after so many little men!  I've planned lots of Thomas, Lightning McQueen, Star Wars, or dinosaurs birthday parties and it was so fun to get to do something girly. I decided to go with a coral and mint theme to match her nursery...of course!

 If there is one thing I've learned (especially this last year) about doing birthday parties for your little ones, its that simple is better. There have been so many times when I've stressed myself out over cleaning every last square inch of my home, or making sure every last detail is right.  In reality I've learned that my guests often don't care if my baseboards have been scrubbed...and by the time it gets to your 5th child, they often are not as inclined to make a big deal out of it. My oldest child's First Birthday party had so many guests! Everyone was so excited to come celebrate him and he was spoiled rotten. As we've gone through each of my children's First Birthdays the parties have gotten smaller and smaller, partly because I've invited a lot less people (I've whittled the guest lists down to immediate family instead of everyone I know, ha!) and partly because after so many parties- for all my kids- the novelty starts to wear off for guests and host.

I've learned its better to keep it simple and remember that the party is not for your guests but for your child. I've gone from reserving rooms at clubhouses and serving a full course meal to just having the party at my home and serving cake and ice cream only. In all honestly, I'm a person who loves a big party and would easily go over the top...but doing it five times a year every year is a lot of work! For baby girl's party I tried to keep it simple and sweet...AND I didn't clean every square inch of my house.

I started out by purchasing this Mind's Eye fan set from Zurcher's as a backdrop for her party vignette. The fans are easy to set up and I attached them to the wall using clear bulletin board tacks. Next I added the ONE balloon garland (balloons also purchased from Zurcher's).  I added a couple of white flower shaped balloons from a local party store and the main backdrop was done!

I'm a person who loves to use what I have around the house so I grabbed some old tassel garland that I had left over from her baby blessing luncheon and put them upside down in my vintage blue mason jars. I then taped some of her 1 Year Old photo shoot pictures to wooden skewers and stuck them in the middle of the tassels.

Gift wrap can add so much and this gorgeous Rifle Paper Co. wrapping paper was the perfect touch! I found some mint and coral polka dot bags from Target to add in and the presents were almost too cute to open.

I am not a cake decorator by any stretch of the imagination! I often buy a cake or have someone make one for me. It is just not my thing at all. I'd had a sweet friend make me a cake for her photo shoot that was absolutely gorgeous! I was really tempted to ask her to make another, bigger one for the party, but I was also trying to be very careful about staying on budget (because it would be so easy to go over the top!). I ended up making my own cake and kept it very simple.  Two 8 inch circles stacked with my favorite homemade butter cream frosting. I found this cake garland and "1" cake topper at Hobby Lobby and they added so much to the cake.

 I had one of her pictures from her photo shoot printed out at 11 x 14 and mod podged it to a canvas so I could use it as a center piece.  I will later be using it in a gallery wall in my basement...I love decor that has a purpose and can be reused!

I bought some gold plates from Target and coral plates from Zurcher's and stacked them alternating on a cake stand.  Forks in a mason jar and cups stacked in an old tray rounded out her little birthday vignette.

The party went fabulously and we were so excited to watch baby girl open up her gifts.  I'm pretty sure she had a blast playing with her cousins and smashing cake all over herself and the floor.

Here's my favorite buttercream frosting recipe, enjoy!

Butter Cream Frosting

• 1 C REAL butter
• 1 1/2 tsp REAL vanilla
• 4 C confectioners sugar
• 2 Tbs evaporated milk

Cream butter and vanilla until smooth. Add sugar and mix well.  Then add in milk.

Rustic Little Boy Room Part 1

Hello everyone! I'm here today with Part 1 of my Rustic Little Boy Room makeover.  

Many of you may remember this room as our Birch Family School Room.  This poor little room has undergone three different makeovers in the 6 years we've been in our house...it just can't seem to find its identity, ha! About 6 months ago we got rid of our homeschool room and turned it back into a bedroom for our 4 and 6 year old.  I sent my children back to public school last year and while it was great to have a school room to do homework in and store things like books and bags, it was even more important to have a bedroom for my two youngest boys.  All four of my boys had been sharing one large bedroom downstairs and it just was not functional at all.  I'm still eagerly waiting for the rest of our basement to be finished (there's sheetrock on the walls!) and right now we just can't decide if the fifth bedroom will be a school room or another bedroom so my oldest can have his own room.

I'd wanted to do a rustic themed room for quite some time. It's definitely out of my design element and I wanted to challenge myself. I started out by purchasing a new bed and bedding from IKEA.  I just love buffalo check and these duvet covers jumped into my cart, ha! I purchased some gold spotted Threshold sheets from Target and threw in this Hello pillow from Hobby Lobby and the feather pillow from Target.

Next I tore out the board and batten and shelf that was on the back wall.  The shelf stuck out about 6 inches and was at just the wrong height so the bunk beds couldn't be pushed up against the wall.  In a small bedroom I need every inch I can get! This faux barn wood wall was a fun project and the tutorial will be going up on Make It and Love It next week. Once it posts I'll come back and post the link for you! It only cost me $30 to do and I think it adds so much to the feel of the room. Of course I'm a sucker for architectural details...for me they make or break a room.

 This whole gallery wall is made up of items from Hobby Lobby.  The deer head has been floating around my house since last fall and he finally found a home in here.  I wanted to bring in some black to break up the wood, gray, and white and this pennant was the perfect addition.

This galvanized bucket was gifted to me from my mom but she originally purchased it from Walmart (of all places!). It works great to hold all of the oversized books that don't fit in the book shelves.

This little corner over here will be the focus of Part 2 of this room's makeover.  I'm making my boys a little tent (or teepee because I haven't decided yet) so they have a little reading nook in their room.  I'll also be touching up paint and hanging up curtains.  Keep watching for lots more to be added to this room.

DIY Flower Boxes

I am so excited that Spring is finally here! It is by far my favorite time of year...I really could live in an eternal Spring and be happy. This year curb appeal has been on my mind a lot.  We've been in our house 6 1/2 years and haven't done much to the outside besides upgrade our garage door. I have a few things on my list to do to the front our home to give it more curb appeal and one of those things was flower boxes.

For the longest time I've been wanting to add some flower boxes to the front of our home to give it more dimension and color. I just love flowers and think they add so much to a yard.

Every time I walk (or drive!) by these flower boxes they make me smile so big! I can hardly wait for them to grow in and start cascading.

I love that I'm able to add a seasonal pop of color to the front of our earth tone colored home. 

These flower boxes were so easy and fast to make and the best part is that they only cost $20 including stain. To learn how you can make your own visit the entire tutorial HERE on MakeIt-LoveIt.