Back with a Giveaway!!!

See...I knew that you wouldn't be so mad at me for not writing all week if I came back with something special for you to win!

Just a little update on me and my life....

-This past week was the first week of school!! I have 15 DARLING fourth graders and it was a great week!

-On Thursday morning, I found out that my great grandfather passed away. This was sad for our family but....he lived a loooong 92 years and we knew that this day would come soon. But...as you know...things like this are always hard. He was a wonderful man, teacher, and christian and will definitely be missed!

-My parents are coming to see us today! I am so excited! We go home so often that there is never really a need for them to come see us! So now...it's their turn! And my little brother has his FIRST college soccer game in Fort Worth this weekend...so we are all going to watch him play!

- It has been an exhausting week!!!!

Now...onto the giveaway!!!

I found this SUPER cute Etsy shop owned by Jayme Fort. She makes beautiful custom stationery for all occasions...and she makes it all by hand! Her designs are so clean, crisp, and cute! You cannot help but love them all! She has so many amazing ones to pick from!

Here are some of my faves :

VINTAGE BOUQUET:

CANDYCE NICOLE :

RACHEL : (i LOVE this one!)

NICOLE :

ANDREA :

One extra special lucky winner will receive their pick of any design from the "Personal Stationery" section of Jayme Fort's Etsy shop! How cool is that?!! There are sooooo many pretty ones to pick from! And who doesn't love getting some snail mail?! I know I do!

Want to know how to win??? Here is what you do....you will get one entry for each one you do :

1. Become a new follower of my blog (leave a comment and let me know!)

2. If you are already a follower....leave your name and email address!

2. Go to Jayme's shop and tell me your fave item or which one you might choose if you win!

3. Blog about my giveaway!!

The contest will end this FRIDAY, September 4 at 5 pm Texas time!!! Let everyone know!! I want to have tons of people to pick from for this giveaway!!!!

XOXO,

Hilary

Let's be foreal...

Life has seriously been B-A-N-A-N-A-S lately!! I am so sorry that I have failed to keep up with my blogging! I have been spending so much time in my new classroom...and I don't have a computer in there...yet! :)

Last week I was up there about three whole days and spent the whole time organizing and decorating my room....it looks SUPER cute if I do say so myself! I will have to take some pictures and get it all up on here for you to see!

But really...I am worn out from all of that....in-service week starts TOMORROW...we have had people constantly at our house all weekend (don't get me wrong...we LOOOOOVE having guests come to stay with us)...and to top it all off...I threw a baby shower at our house today!!! GEEZ LOUISE!!! Can I take a nap yet???

But this has been the highlight of my weekend....FOOD....of course! My husband and I are religious watchers of both Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives AND Man VS Food. If you haven't seen either one of these...you are missing out! They are GREAT shows! Anyways...a few months ago DD&D came to town and did a little show on a restaurant not too far from our house. We had never heard of it and it is a little bit off the beaten path. It's called Chef Pointe Cafe. Ya'll.......oh my.....it's CRAZY. The whole deal is that the owner is from another country and couldn't get a loan a few years ago to open a restaurant....so....he got a loan to open up a gas station. Therefore, he just put in a kitchen and opened up his little restaurant inside! Literally....it's a gas station that serves FIVE STAR rated food!! Craziest thing I have ever seen!

We went and tried it out on Friday night and we were AMAZED...so of course....like anyone normal....we went back on Saturday night too! HA! Let me just let you in on some of the MANY things they serve: Duck a la 'orange, Chicken Parmesan, Lobster Bisque, Stuffed Artichoke, Fried Chicken, Stuffed Pork Chops, and their famous (and might I add...the most amazing) Bread Pudding! Their menu is huge and there are so many wonderful options to pick from!

To give you an idea...this is what the place looks like....

B-A-N-A-N-A-S............ what an adventure!

We had to wait at least 45 minutes both nights that we went...but it was SO worth it! If you are EVER around the Fort Worth area...you should for sure look into it!

I am drooling right now thinking about that bread pudding...holy cow.

Hope ya'll have had a wonderful weekend!!

XOXO,

Hilary

How Lucky Can One Get??

Ya'll...I have been a lucky duck lately! I woke up this morning to an email from Spearmint Baby saying that I had won this super cute necklace from Simag Jewelry! I am so excited! I have been wanting a cute personalized necklace for a while but could never really pick one out! Check out their jewelry...they have tons of cute stuff!

But, now I have a problem....and this is where your help comes in....what do I get put on the necklace?! Do I put my own name? Would it be weird to put Casey's name on it? Or both of our names? Should I get a reference to a Bible verse put on it? So many choices and options! Help me and tell me what YOU would do! I need help!

XOXO,

Hilary

SHOW OFF....

I just wanted to show off some new frames and things that I have created!

Email me if you need any info on ordering any of these!! Anything can be altered and custom made to your liking!

For a Friend:

For my own little house:

For a friend of a friend's baby:

For my new friend Kristen @ Kristen's Palace

NEW FLEUR DE LIS COASTERS!

I am in love with these! Casey and I have some of our own and we use them ALL the time! They come in sets of four and are sealed so that you can put drinks on them!

These make AWESOME gifts!

Wrapped with a bow and ready to be shipped out to YOU! (and yes...i forgot to turn the picture...so get over it and tilt your head!)

RECIPE BOX!

I could never quite find one that I loved...so I decided to make my own! It has a beautiful pearl decoration on the top, and "H" on the front, and the fleur de lis' on the sides...

Enjoy!!!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! I am off to wash clothes, pack up, and round up the pups for a visit to see our parents!

xoxo,

Hilary

WINNER WINNER CHICKEN DINNER!!!!

WAIT...

First I have to tell you what I won yesterday!! I totally forgot to show it off!! Thanks to Miss Polka Dots and Protein Bars....I wont a super cute bangle from A.Tierney!! I picked the white one....which is random because I never really wear anything white! But, I thought it would be so cute with EVERYTHING! I cannot wait to get it in the mail!!! YAY! And by the way.... go over to her blog and say hello!! It's so cute over there and she even MAKES the cutest dresses ever! Get her to make you one!!!! :) Or...you can order me one! Ha!

Now...on to more interesting things!! The winner of the Birdy On A Branch stationery....as picked by random.org........is my good friend Cara Beth! I know for a fact that this stationery is SO her! Cara Beth is such a unique girl and has such a flair for photography and anything antique! We actually went to college together and she was my big sis in our sorority! She is really one of the friendliest and loving friends you can ever have! She is always an encourager and listener! Jump on over to her blog and say hello! Follow her adventures as a semi-newlywed, new homeowner/decorator, photographer, and dog saving hero! Congrats CB!!!

Keep on the lookout!! More giveaways to come!!!! WOO HOO!!!!!!!

Random thought....I have NEVER done a swap before....but I am so interested in being a part of one! Let me know if you know of any swaps going on right now! I want to find a good one to join in on!! :)

Again....your sweet comments are always loved! Thanks you for all of your kind kind words!

XOXO,

Publish Post

Hilary

ENGAGEMENT STORY....

Many of you asked to hear our engagement story! Here it is! It's long...but good! :)

Casey and his family invited me to go on a weekend trip with them to New York (you should know...NYC is one of my most favorite places EVER). He had told me a while back that he would plan a date or something for us to do while we are there so that we can have a little bit of our own time in NYC.

Literally...the day before I left...a few friends asked if he might propose to me. To which I told them...."I would LOVE it if he did it there....but he won't... he is ALL about the element of surprise he would know that I though it might happen there!" So...I really didn't even expect it!

He and his family flew up there on Thursday...but I couldn't get out of town because of work until FRIDAY....so they had been up there planning and scheming!!

I had a bad cold right before I left and brought tons of medicine for myself. So I was just feeling OKAY.... Friday night we all went to the Yankee's game...which was great! Case and I are both big baseball fans! We woke up Saturday morning and me, his mom, and sister decided to go to Chinatown and let the boys go do whatever they wanted. You have to know...that I LOVE Chinatown and I LOVE to haggle with all of the people there! I don't know why...but it's such a rush for me! We get on the subway and start walking around.....I immediately had to go to the gross Starbucks there and got so sick!!!! UGH! I even went on to a Burger King down there too....and they had someone standing guard there in front of the bathrooms. You have to be a customer to use their's and they really enforced it! I cut in line...bought fries...and ran to the bathroom! I ended up calling my mom and telling her that I could not possibly be her daughter b/c I got sick in Chinatown and could not get all of my shopping done! :)

We went back to the hotel so that I could rest. I felt good once we were all ready to go to the Lion King musical...it was so good!!!

Later...I went back to rest a little bit before we got all dressed up and ready for our date that he had apparently REALLY planned! ( I honestly thought we would just go with the flow and do whatever came to mind...Casey is not known to be a huge planner!) So we get in the cab and he says that he wants to go hang out at a couple of places before we get to dinner...he tells the cab driver to take us to St. Patrick's Cathedral. I had never been inside before and it was absolutely GORGEOUS. We sat down at one of the pews and Casey turned to me and told me he wanted to read something to me, then pulled out a pink Bible from the pew and began to read Proverbs 30 (this was the moment when things were starting to come together for me and I started to figure out what was happening!) He then led me out into the middle of the aisle of the cathedral to a big Alpha and Omega symbol in the floor and proposed to me! (I know that he said so many sweet words....but i cannot remember ANYTHING!) He gave me the Bible afterwards and it had my married name already printed on the front of it! After the proposal, we went up to the altar to pray together and then went to the back and lit a candle together! It was all REALLY sweet! Next we went on to take a carriage ride around Central Park before our dinner reservations..all the while I am trying to call and call my family and NOBODY will answer their phones, which is SO typical! We finally made it to the restaurant, he had chosen to take me to Tavern on the Green which I love! We are led to our table where, I had no idea that MY family and his family were waiting for us! Not only was it special that my family was there....but it was even more special because my dad would never go with my mom to NYC...and since it was our engagement he was so excited to go! It was absolutely the best engagement ever!

Plus...his dad was in the back of the cathedral the whole time taking pictures!!!! So...I had something to look at and remember! (it was really dark in the cathedral...so the pictures are a little fuzzy!)

WHAT?! An Award?!

Miss Angela over at Short Southern Momma sent me a great little award today! I was SO excited to get it and share a little bit about myself through my award!!! Run over to her blog and visit her!! She is so cute and has a GREAT blog!

So here is what you are supposed to do....tell TEN things about yourself and then pass the award on to TEN other blog friends!!!

This is going to take me a minute to think of these ten random facts....Here goes.....

1. I hunted for the first time ever this year..... I literally cried four out of the five times that I went. It was fun and all....but I think I might be too much of an animal lover!

2. I own THREE dogs....a dachshund (Skeeter Boo), a great dane (Miley Mae) , and a black lab (Cache Money)! We basically live at a zoo.....

3. I had to buy silver shoes for a wedding I was in a month ago...I couldn't find any that I liked. So...I have now taken up the hobby of spray painting shoes to the color of my liking....ha! They actually looked REALLY good!

4. I....LOVE.....cream....cheese......

5. My best friend and I met the very first day of high school in our very first class...we sat by eachother and were bffs from day one!

6. I got engaged in New York City and was sick as a DOG the entire weekend! But I have the best engagement story ever!

7. I love love love the city...but my dream is to get some land, build a house to live in for a looooong time, and buy many more animals (horses, longhorns, ducks, etc!)!!!

8. I almost failed "PAINTING" in college....because I never went to the class. Who can be creative at 8 in the morning?! Not me! I had to explain that to my professor so that I wouldn't fail! I got everything in on time.... :)

9. Most of my friends live in different states :(

10. I am accepting a 4th grade teaching job TOMORROW!!! This will be my first year teaching and you have NO idea how excited (and nervous) I am!! :)

Now...I bet you want to know who I am passing this on to....right??????

Here goes.....

Cara Beth @ the buies

Katie Richardson

Kristen's Palace

Made You Blush

Finding Home

Dixie Lust

Julee T

Polka Dots and Protein Bars

Small Town Girl

The Pink Chick

Yay!! I hope that you all participate and pass on the love!!

Also...don't forget about the giveaway!!! It will end on Tuesday at noon (Texas time!)!! Spread the word!!

XOXO,

Hilary

WANT SOME?! WIN THEM!

Hello all!!

Thank you so much for participating in the last giveaway! It was a huge success and I LOVED reading each of your comments!

I have a few more giveaways lined up for the coming weeks...so get super excited!! The stuff that is being given is SO cute!!!! You will love it all...promise!

This next giveaway is a favorite of mine! I am a bit of a stationery hoarder. I love it all and it's all so pretty! But...I am that person that has all of it and forgets to use it! Check out my new Fort Worth friend, Katie's Etsy shop! It has the CUTEST little name...KatieDydDesigns. She has such a talent at designing stationery, thank-you cards, invitations, birth announcements, etc!

Here are some of my favorite items in her store:

DAMASK BUTTERFLY:

SWEET SILHOUETTE:

LITTLE BIRDY BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT :

And now onto the GIVEAWAY! Katie is kind enough to be giving away a set of 10 personalized note cards to one winner! She is giving away my MOST favorite design of hers....

BIRDY ON A BRANCH PERSONALIZED STATIONERY :

Katie can put any name on these and can also change up the color to your liking! And, don't you just LOVE the inside of the envelope?! What a great little touch!

Want to know how to win these cute little cards?! Well...here you go:

Here is how you can enter:

1. Leave your name and email address as a comment!

2. Become a follower of my blog! (let me know!)

3. Go to KatieDydDesigns' Etsy shop. Come back and tell me what your favorite item is!

4. Post on your blog about my giveaway! (post the link in the comments section)

For each one of these that you do, you will get ONE entry! So, you can get up to four entries!

Since I got REALLY antsy during the last giveaway...the deadline for this one will be a little bit shorter! The deadline for this one will be on Tuesday - August 4th!

Also...if you order anything at all from Katie...send me a little email and let me know! I love to know that I inspired someone to buy something...plus, Katie would love to know too!

Good luck!! And if you win....send me a thank you letter on your new stationery! Ha! Only kidding..... :) I cannot wait to see who all enters this one!!!

XOXO,

Hilary

DRUMROLL PLEASE....

Well...I officially wrote down ALL of the votes...cut them out...and drew one from a pretty little bowl!

The winner of the beautiful Midnight feather headband is.........

KRISTEN SARA!!! She has a CUTE little blog! Run over there...tell her congrats....look around...and follow her! She would love it!

I will email you the contact information so that you can get in touch with Ribbons & Lace and let her know your shipping address!

To all of you who didn't win........there will be another one coming up very soon!

XOXO,

Hilary

HEYYYYYOOOOO!

Sorry for the long pause in writing! Things, of course, have been crazy in my life again!

Here are some updates on me and my life:

• I signed up to sub in three different school districts for the fall....i figure this will be the best way to get some experience and get to know some schools!
• I had not told a certain private school "no" to their job offer yet...I really wanted the job but the money is NOT there....but I was still so torn about it. I may end up taking this 4th grade position. It's hard to think "I HAVE a job offer to be a teacher and I'm NOT going to take it?!!" Casey and I may just have to be on a REALLY tight budget for the next few months! (dang it....) I am waiting to get some answers back on some questions that I had for the school...but I should know something soon. Prayers needed!!!!
• On a good note with that...Casey was approached by a friend yesterday that had a plan for him to make quite a bit of extra money on the side. That sounds really shady...but it's not! It may just be an answer to a prayer!
• Cache puppy has been at Billy and Becky's for a couple of days....he is now muddy and stinky in his kennel after a LONG romp with his brother Cisco. I can smell him from where I sit....
• The dogs also just drug some camping chairs from the patio into the yard and started to destroy them....yaaaaay.
• If you are a teacher or not teaching anymore and have some school supplies/room decorations/etc that you don't need/want anymore....consider passing them on to me! I am taking ALL donations!!! I would love to be able to get my room all together without having to spend much money. But...of course...I want it to look REALLY cute!
• Frames are selling great! Bring on some more orders ya'll!!

Don't forget about my fabulous giveaway!!

It ends TOMORROW at noon (Texas Time) and I will have a winner soon after! PLUS...i have some other GREAT giveaways that are about to go on! I have some fabulous sponsors that are so generous!!! Be on the lookout!

XOXO,

Hilary