Happy Friday friends! I hope this week has treated you all good! This week felt a little more like winter than spring; we received a few inches of snow earlier this week and it’s been pretty cold every other day as well. I like the snow but not so much in April. Bring on the sunny skies and nice weather I say!

Favorite Pillow Covers

I have found my new favorite place to buy pillow covers from; H&M! Super affordable, nice quality and a nice variety of styles. All of the pillow covers on our new sectional, which you can read all about HERE, are from there. The right pillow inserts make ALL the difference in the world. I like these ones the best; I used a combination of 24×24 inserts and 20×20 here in our living room. One of the positives about buying an insert is you can switch up the covers whenever you please! I like to change them up during the different seasons and holidays so it makes sense to invest a little more money into a nice insert for me.

Patio Furniture

Holy moly! I can’t believe how quick patio furniture sells out! Last month I ordered a new outdoor sectional; a black frame with black cushions. Last weekend Matt opened the box to put it together and we found they sent us a brown frame with navy blue cushions and when I called they proceeded to tell me they were out of stock of the black and black. So, we sent them back and then that same evening ordered this set that had caught our eye in Walmart. Long story short, order got cancelled the next day and they are out of stock everywhere. Back to square one I went and after a while of searching I picked out a couch and set of chairs pictured down below.

But guess what?! Went to order them the next day and, surprise, out of stock! LOL I’m actually kind of happy the first three options didn’t work out because after searching last night, I ordered a different sent of chairs and couch and when I showed Matt he said it was his favorite out of anything I’ve shown him! I will link them for you all soon! Lets hope now, I get the pieces in the next month!

Sunless Tanner

So, some of you have probably heard me talk about how I’m allergic to all sunless tanners if you follow me on my other social media platforms. Every about 6 months or so I will try a new one, thinking maybe it’s the golden one, and every time I break out in a terribly itchy, red rash/hives that last for weeks. (When will I learn?!) Because I am allergic to self tanner I have always used the Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs to give myself a “faux tan”. This is actually a great product and comes off with water. The last 4 years, every single morning (unless I’m sick and in bed), I have smeared this self tanner all over my neck, chest and arms. The tanner has always rubbed off on my clothes, jackets, bras and jewelry. But I’ve been invested in the belief that without it, I’m not quite as pretty. A line has sometimes been left where the tanner reaches my jaw line, it settles into the lines on my neck, but I still have thought it was better to have it than not.

Until lately. Maybe it’s because I’m getting older, have less patience for daily rubbing it all over, or am tired of it staining my clothes or looking fake. Maybe I’m tired of covering up the parts of me that I don’t think are pretty enough and instead accepting and enhancing what God has given me.

So today, I went to the store and picked up shade 420 in my foundation, much lighter than shade 465 I’ve been using, came home and washed off the tanner and my makeup. I threw away the brown and orange stained makeup wipe and blended in the new shade of foundation. Much lighter but more me. I took a picture of Emersyn and me and while it may take some getting used to, it already feels so much better.

The last time I tried a self tanner and broke out in hives, my mom asked me why I just didn’t embrace my lighter skin? Sometimes, moms know best. Also, Claire from Outlander has very light skin and so I tell myself it’s alright! (Kidding! Slightly! 😉

I’ll leave you with this little piece of writing I did yesterday afternoon. Writing is like therapy to me. I find the more I do it, the more I crave and need it. Sometimes I wish I didn’t always feel all the things, you know? But then what would life be without all of those big, beautiful, sometimes overwhelming emotions? Jotting them down always helps me sort through them all.