Thankful for Family

Hi y'all,

Today's post is one that's very close to my heart, my thankfulness for my family. 

I'm super lucky and have a super supportive family. For instance, I don't know many parents who allow their kids to move back home, then think they're going to start a business, and then up and decide they're going back to school, while working full time.

I'm lucky that I have a mom and dad to call when I'm not feeling well, and they'll drive to the store to get me Gatorade and sit with me all day to make sure nothing happens to me.

I'm lucky to have a mom who will take my car to fill it with gas (and use her COSTCO card for me). 

Parents' who came to every game, and every horse show...even when they're three plus hours away.

Parents' who buy me clothes, shoes, etc. with a smile.

Parents' who drive three hours to see me at school for maybe half a day...just to drive three hours home again.

Essentially, I'm super lucky and thankful....

with southern grace,

Lindsey

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Relationships 101: Siblings

Hi Y'all,

Today's post is all about sibling relationships!

I've always been super lucky and my brother and I have always had a good relationship. When I joined a sorority, I instantly gained 140+ new sisters, overnight.     

                           

I like to classify sibling relationships in three different groups:

1. Peaceful. The peaceful sibling relationship is where the siblings don't really fight (the occasional argument is normal). Will willingly talk to each other openly. Value the other siblings.

2. Separate. This relationship is where one sibling pretends the other siblings don't exist.

3. Fighting. These are the siblings that are constantly picking, bickering, etc. at each other.

I'm lucky enough to have a peaceful relationship with my brother. However, many of my friends growing up had the "separate" and "fighting" relationships with their siblings. 

I personally believe there are benefits to having a sibling:

1. You automatically learn how to share. Not only do you share your parents, but you also will often share toys, friends, family members' attention. 

2. You learn to compete. Often times, many kids feel their parents are always forcing their kids to compete. Lines like "your sister did better" or "your brother got an A on his test, why didn't you?" might get used frequently. It's fine that you learn to compete in a healthy environment and in a healthy manner. I was always the "better behaved child" but my brother had far more energy than I ever did (or could ever hope to have). Don't worry, he's calmed down in his old age (of 24).

3. You get money and time saving hand-me-downs. For instance, I didn't have to buy new textbooks for the college classes I took in high school because my brother already had them. I also saved a ton of time with teachers because they often met me before having me in their classes because my brother was older.

Not every sibling relationship is peaceful, and it won't be all of the time, and that's ok! 

with southern grace,

Lindsey

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Holiday Budgeting

The holiday season is here! While I for one am on Nordstorm's side of not starting to celebrate Christmas until after Thanksgiving, the holiday shopping has begun! The season is pretty stressful, and adding in packed shopping malls to the equation and it could ruin anyone's good cheer. There are many different ways to help out when it comes to holiday shopping for friends and family.

1. Swagbucks or any other gift card earning site or app. With sites like these, you earn points toward gift cards. You could literally give the person you're shopping for the gift card or you can use the gift card to buy your gift. This way, you're not spending any of your own money and the person really doesn't know that!

2. Baked goods. This might sound silly, but you can literally go out and buy a box to make bread, muffins, or brownies with and then give away whatever baked good you created as the present. Every year, we make some muffins and bread for friends, bank tellers, doctor and nurses, teachers, etc. While this means you're investing a little more time, it's something they'll appreciate. This is getting a little tricky with the increase in gluten, peanuts, and other allergies.

3. Prioritize your money and gift receivers. This might sound harsh, but one of the best things to do is write down who you definitely want to give a present to (parents, siblings, best friend, significant other, littles, etc.), and then how much you want to spend on each person. For instance, I would prioritize my parents, grandmother, brother, and my two best friends. Then I would shop for my littles, other relatives, etc.

4. Use the internet. You can often find some great deals online, and it's much easier to price check online than it is in store (unless you have an app for that). I often shop from home during the holiday season, because I get too anxious being in the overly crowded mall (and quite frankly, I work retail so my store is open the same time others are open and that doesn't leave me a lot of time). I highly suggest Amazon if you want to find some good deals.

5. Go to "discount" stores/shop local. By discount stores I mean TJMaxx, Marshall's, Homegood's, Sam's Club (depending on the item you're looking for), etc. Not only do these stores have great items, they always tend to have a good return policy for the holiday season. Same goes for local shops. You can often get better return policies when shopping local than in large chain stores (unless your wallet allows for you to buy your presents at Nordstrom). 

How do y'all like to budget for the holidays?

with southern grace,

Lindsey

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MAC Paint Pots

Hi Y'all,

Today's Makeup Monday post is all about one of my favorite products of all time: the MAC paint pot.

Uses: eyeshadow, eye shadow base, and/or concealer.

Description (from maccosmetics.com): A highly pigmented, long-wearing eye shadow that goes on creamy and dries to an intense, vibrant finish. It blends smoothly and creates seamless, buildable coverage.

Key Claims (from maccosmetics.com): 

-Ophthalmologist tested

-Dermatologist tested

-non-caking

-non-flaking

-Crease-proof

-Long wearing (15 hours)

-non-acnegenic

-Water resistant

-Stay-true color

-Provides flexible coverage

Clearly, I use mine for ways the product was never truly intended for (but I'll be the first to say it cover under-eye shadows like a dream). 

I first discovered this product thanks to Blair Fowler on Youtube, who talked endlessly about paint pots. She used the "painterly" color in one of her videos and bam, I was hooked. This color is flawless! Not only is it a great color, but the nude is so perfect that you can tell I'm wearing something but it's hardly there. 

Unfortunately, this product has gone up in price (by about $2 in the past 5 years or so), but I for one, think it's worth it. It serves multiple purposes and literally lasts forever!

I've tried the Urban Decay primer potion, and the paint pot beats it out hands down!

This comes in a ton of different colors, and is readily available at any MAC counter, store, and online.

with southern grace,

Lindsey

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Fashion Friday: Investing in Vests

Hi Y'all,

I'm an absolute sucker for a good vest. Literally, I buy at least one new vest every year (this year, two-whoops!).

Anyway, here are some of my favorites:

(in order left to right: Lilly Pulitzer "Isabelle" | Barbour Calvary Gilet | J.Crew Factory Quilted Puffer Vest | Lilly Pulitzer "Blake")

Each of these vests are different, and have different ways to wear them.

For the L.P. Isabelle, I would wear it with a super thick sweater in the later parts of Fall/early winter before I need a really heavy coat. 

The Barbour Calvary Gilet is good for any kind of weather-with just a shirt underneath or a sweater. I absolutely adore the cinching in the back! 

I personally own the white version of the J. Crew Factory Quilted Puffer Vest and I absolutely love it! I got the collar monogrammed in navy blue, and I get compliments on it every time I wear it. This vest has super great pockets that I think are rather hard to find in a vest, plus it's a great price, and J. Crew factory often has great deals to go with the already good cost.

Finally, there is the Blake. It's super lightweight and would be good for the early fall/late spring when it's really too warm out to wear a real jacket, but still too cold to expose yourself with just a shirt.

Do y'all have any favorite vests?

with southern grace,

Lindsey

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Thankful Thursday: a job

Hi Y'all,
As this is the "month of thanks", I thought it would be great to take some time each week to remind myself what I'm thankful for. And, in case you were curious, yes, there is still one major holiday in between now and Christmas, it's called Thanksgiving.

For this first post, I'm thankful for my job. I currently work for a small boutique that sells Lilly Pulitzer. I'm extremely lucky because the store is expanding. Lots of other small boutiques in our section are closing/going out of business. That means, people are out of jobs right before the holiday season (literally one store is closing in two weeks!).

I won't lie, sometimes my job is stressful/anxiety causing (you're looking at a social introvert so when the store gets really busy I find that taxing), but that means that I have a way to provide for myself because our store has customers!

Plus, I could be like a lot of college graduates and not have any job at all.

It's a fun work environment and I get to work with a clothing brand I love on a daily basis!

What are y'all thankful for?

with southern grace,

Lindsey

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Relationships 101: The (permanently) Friendzoned Friend

Hi y'all,

Today's post is about that relationship everyone has in their life, but struggles to talk about: the permanently friendzoned friend.

First things first, how do you know you have that permanently friendzoned friend?

Easy, it's the person you look at like a brother or sister.

How do you explain your relationship to others?

This is the tough one because it seems like no one understands why you won't date the person! I always go with the answer "we're better off as friends"... which I often truly believe!

How do you know it's the right move to friendzone or be in a relationship?

Well, let me put it to you like this, if you always want the person around friendzone them. If the possibility of losing them as a friend terrifies you, then it's probably best to friendzone. Should your relationship not work out, it could be very hard to go back to "just friends".

Is it ok to friendzone someone?

Absolutely! Even though this is coming from the person who basically friendzones everyone, it's totally ok! 

Is the friendzone a bad place to be?

No! Here's the thing, you really have two options once you've been friendzoned. Option A, being friends or Option B, not being friends. You can easily take yourself out of the friendzone by not talking to the person anymore.

Moral of this story: it's okay to be the permanently friendzoned friend!

with southern grace,

Lindsey

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