Parades, Pools, and Picnics

A parade and picnics, that pretty much sums up our weekend in a nutshell. It was hot and sticky, but nothing that a cherry snowball and a dip in the pool couldn't fix. Violet went through three swimsuits in the course of the weekend in addition to a skinny dip or two. Our 'pool' is just a little plastic job, but she took a dip in a friend's actual pool as well and she was absolutely fearless. Wanted to jump right in without even her mama to hold her up. My little Miss Independence. A glimpse of the summer to come and what the future holds. I can't even begin to imagine what the teenage years will be like...

Hope your weekend was glorious. xo, Lauren

Friday Favorites + True Love

We had a special delivery to the H-Haus yesterday thanks to the lovely Lori Marie. She sent us one of her beautiful dolls, Merriweather, and Violet is IN LOVE. She took that doll everywhere with her yesterday - to the park, down the slide, on the swing, in the stroller, she fed it her snack and snuggled her and lovingly stroked her hair. I love seeing her start 'mothering' her own babies, it's so sweet. (I also have one of Lori Marie's medallion pillows and daisy chains. Yep, I'm an addict.)

We're so looking forward to a LONG Memorial Day weekend and I'm really excited to take Violet to the parade - she gets so excited about them. Having a child really does make everything fresh and fun again, doesn't it?

I also want to say a special thank you to a few heroes in my family: my Papaw, Uncle Tim, brother-in-law Randy, and cousins Donny, Shanna, Justy, and Tim - Thank you for your service to our country!

And without further ado, a few favorite links to kick off your holiday weekend:

Pretty printable envelopes

Custom constellation artwork for your little one

Can you be in love with a paper cup?

How to replace backgrounds in Photoshop

The sweetest wedding

Is the American Dream changing?

I so want to wear this crown.

Happy Friday!  xo, Lauren

P.S. I've opened an Etsy shop where I'll be selling custom silhouette portraits - check it out here!

P.P.S. Follow me on Instagram - @withtwocats

Peach Perfection

clockwise from top left: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven

Somewhere Else

Sometimes I come across photos (mainly whilst surfing The Pinterest) that make me want to get away. Go somewhere else. Maybe back to our honeymoon? (We went to Germany and Austria). A little cafe in France? Joanna Goddard just recently went on an impromptu trip with her other half, and Amsterdam looks just lovely. Wouldn't it be great to have no responsibilities, plenty of money and just be able to jet set off to explore new places? I had a dream a couple of nights ago that I won one-hundred-and-forty MILLION dollars in the lottery. (It was a beautiful feeling.) And then the alarm clock woke me up...

I bought a lottery ticket the other day just in case.

one . two . three . four . five

bedroom refresh

I always hear couples on HGTV talking about how the last thing they decorate is their own bedroom. No one sees it but them for the most part so it just gets shoved on the back burner. Is it true for you?

It definitely is for us. We've painted and bought some bedding way back when we were first married, but other than that we haven't done a thing. The new Orla Keily line just came out at Bed Bath & Beyond and it's pretty and affordable and is totally inspiring me to spruce things up a bit. I always feel so gloomy when I walk into our bedroom. I thought the dark paint color we used would be soothing, but instead it's just depressing. It doesn't help that the lighting situation is pretty much non-existent. We have a big old radiator that needs to be ripped out and a lot of ugly old beige carpet with green tile underneath. Ugh. The whole thing just makes me sick. Definitely not the best way to drift off to a peaceful slumber at the end of the day.

The idea board I came up with includes a bunch of things we already own that I think could be repurposed in our space - the Michelle Armas print, the terrarium, and the floral pillowcases. I think paired with the white Orla Keily bedding and some fun stripes it would really freshen up the space!

Sources: quilt, sheet set, floral pillowcases, white pillowcase, velvet pillowcase, striped wall, lamp, terrarium, art