Maxxinista

Happy Hump Day readers!  I'm baaaaack!!!

It's been awhile!  I can't believe I haven't posted in almost two weeks--I'm now in my fourth week of full time teaching and I have been pouring my heart and soul into this class.  I'll be honest, the situation I came into was no good.  I'm the students' third teacher of the year, there are multiple behavior issues in the room, and I'm trying to get the students' back on a strong academic track....BUT, the class has made HUGE gains!!!  Friday was field day and hearing positive feedback from parents meant the world to me.  Now I've just got four and a half more weeks to go before summer!

Anyways, I've had lots of posts up my sleeve for the last few weeks, but no time to post.  I'm hoping to now be back to my regular schedule!  Today I wanted to share a recent trip to TJ Maxx with you.

I've posted about my love for Marshall's before, but TJ Maxx has never been my thing.  I've heard great things, but I don't love the clothes our local TJ Maxx has to offer.  About a month ago I was on the hunt for some cheap colored denim though and thought I'd give TJ Maxx a shot.  I was still disappointed by the clothes, but I died over a purse...

bright yellow, adorable shape, and leather--perfection in my book!

It was a little pricey for a TJ Maxx purse and I'd never heard of the designer (Pulicati) so I decided I would leave it at the store and think about it.

Well, my friends, I dreamed of that purse every day for a whole week!  I decided to go back and give it a second look.  Luckily, it hadn't been bought!

I still wasn't 100% sure if I wanted to take the plunge, so I decided to hold onto it as I browsed the store.  I'm sure you know how well that ended.

While browsing I found some other treasures...

Remember This?

I dedicated an ENTIRE post to my love of lucite bamboo chairs (see here)...these babies usually run close to $300.  This one was $80!  Upon closer inspection it had some imperfections, so I restrained myself from buying it.

Next I found these lovelies!  You know I'm a sucker for pink and green so I had to have these cutie cocktail napkins!  I also thought those wine glass bow ties would be perfect for keeping track of wine glasses at our next get together.

Next I found this gorgeous Wedgwood vase!  It's classic look would be the perfect touch just about anywhere in a home....AND what makes it even better---

The original price tag was on the box!

I always get super excited when I can see just how much I saved.  The original price of the vase was $118 and this one was selling for $19.99.  I bought TWO!

And finally, I think my last find was fate.  Remember these bamboo director's chairs I ogled over at CWC's river house (see post here)?

love!

Well...I found the exact chairs at none other than TJ MAXX!

I'm picturing them with a traditional monogram in the exact ivory color as the canvas...subtle and chic!

These chairs were only $29.99, so naturally I got two of these as well!

My parents were a bit overwhelmed when I came home...

My total loot!  I went a little crazy, but got a ton of bang for my buck!!!

What's your favorite of the goods I scored?

Are you a Maxxinista?  What are your favorite bargain shopping spots?

How have you been?  Fill me in...I've missed my bloggy friends!!!

Have a great Wednesday!

Picnic Night!

TGIF!!!

Wow!  What a week it has been!  As of last night, I had worked 54 hours this week.  The classroom was in disarray and I've been staying after hours every night cleaning out and getting organized.  Despite some serious exhaustion, I couldn't be happier.  I tend to thrive when I'm under pressure and most busy.  Additionally, I had an interview for a kindergarten position for the fall at a small Catholic school.  It went incredibly well, so I'm crossing my fingers I might be hearing good news in the next week!

Today I wanted to share a recent date night Bryce and I had.  Because we began to have a tendency to do the same things over and over, I decided to shake it up a bit last week and surprise Bryce with a picnic night.

We packed a picnic basket and headed to Brown's Island!

We checked out the views of the river before settling down.

I love this photo Bryce snapped of us!

We found a nice spot to enjoy our picnic.

We had quite the spread, Rosemont Wine, Brie en Croute, Salad, and Strawberries!

I also was so excited to use my new wine bottle stopper!

AMF gave me this cute tray, knife, and napkin set for my birthday and I thought this was the perfect occasion to use it.

Enjoying his salad...the one thing we forgot at home was dressing--Bryce got creative and poured a little wine on his!

Miss Dixie's Brie en Croute was a huge hit!

We practically had the island to ourselves!

After eating we took a little walk out onto a bridge and enjoyed the sunset!

The "MORE MOOSE" on this bridge cracked me up...I hope it doesn't have some bad connotation I don't know about!

Enjoying the James River!

Bryce and I love fun date nights like these.  Richmond has so much to offer and now that the weather has warmed up we look forward to more fun, outdoorsy evenings!

Have you been on a picnic lately?  What are some of your favorite picnic foods?

Have a great weekend!  I'm off to C'ville to enjoy the annual Foxfield Races!

LEJ Engagement Celebration

Happy Friday readers!

I'd like to extend a warm welcome to all of my new followers...be sure to say hi in a comment so I can get to know ya!

How were you weeks?  Mine has been great...just yesterday I received notice that I got a teaching job!  It's a long term substitute position starting Tuesday through the end of the year in a first grade class (perfect!).  I'll be the students' third teacher of the school year and have a tough road ahead of me, but I couldn't be more excited to have a class of my very own.

This time last Friday I was headed to C'ville for the afternoon and evening to celebrate the engagement of one of my closest friends from the Curry School, LEJ!  A group of us, all from the elementary ed program, got together in honor of the occassion and it was so fun to have an afternoon devoted to girl time.

We started our afternoon at King Family Vineyards.

It was absolutely gorgeous and think might now be the top of my favorite vineyards list.

LEJ in her "Bride to Bling" sash!

ready for the tasting

I loved this "HOT HORSES COOL WINE" sign!

the decor inside the tasting room was rustic and gorgeous

I always love seeing the wine bottles lined up with their medals.

I bought one of these wine bottle stoppers for $1 and they are awesome..might have to make a trip to get some more!

Next we selected a few bottles and headed outside to enjoy the beautiful weather.

KTM ready with our wine!

the views were gorgeous...I don't know if you can tell but that is a POLO PLAYER PRACTICING IN THE DISTANCE!

I enjoyed a glass of the Crosé

With the future Mrs. W!

the whole group

Terrific Trio

After wine tasting we headed out to dinner and out on the town for quite the fun night!  I felt so old being surrounded by undergrads I didn't recognize.

Ready for some fun on the corner!

CLW, ABE, MBB

Are any of your friends currently celebrating an engagement?  Are you a fan of wine tastings?

Have a fantastic weekend, friends!

Oyster Birthday Basket

Happy Tuesday readers!

Hope you all had wonderful Easter weekends!

Today I thought I'd share a closer look at Bryce's birthday present.  In my sorority, I was Director of Philanthropy one year and was responsible for putting together all the baskets at our Parents' Formal silent auction.  I really enjoyed putting together themed baskets.

That being said, when Bryce's birthday started to get close I tried to think of a present I could give him that would be unique.  Bryce adores oysters and even grows them at his river house.  I thought it would be neat to put together a basket centered around his love for oysters.

Finished basket--now let's take a look inside...

It was so fun searching the internet for cool oyster goodies.

The first thing I ordered was this canvas from Easy Canvas Prints

Bryce has been wanting a Southern Marsh tee shirt and I thought this Oyster Fest one was perfect!  Bryce looks great in red!

No oyster meal is complete without hot sauce.  This Crazy Jerry's sauce is made especially for oysters!

Bryce is quite the shucker and this Shucker's Soap from Georgia Oyster Knife Co is designed to "cut the yuck & de-slime in no time!"

Bryce is also a huge fan of all things Virginia, so I knew he would love this koozie from Virginia's own Rappahannock River Oysters!

This Shucker's Field Guide by Patrick McMurray makes a great coffee table book and is filled with interesting information on all things oyster!

This Southern Proper Oyster Bow Tie will be perfect for summer events.  I ordered it through County Club Prep, click here to join!

The final element in the basket was this Charleston Shucker Co personalized Palmetto Shucker.  For no extra charge, Charleston Shucker Co will personalize your oyster knife.  One side was engraved with Bryce's initials, "BAC", and the other was engraved with "25"!

After collecting all of these gifts I began to pull it all together in the basket.  For the basket, I ordered a monogrammed decal and added it to a galvanized tub Bryce can use later for entertaining.  

I used this oyster stationery as a birthday card.

I wrapped his knife.

And then styled it all in the basket..

second look

I then wrapped it in cellophane and added a raffia bow complete with an oyster shell!

When I presented him with the basket, Bryce was very excited!

He also had a little fun playing with the wrapping...

Bahaha!

Y'all know how I feel when he grows out a beard...can you imagine how much I liked this look?

I think Bryce really liked his gift and I had a lot of fun putting it all together.  I think gifts like these are great for the person who already has everything--just pick a favorite interest and put together a basket centered around it!  

Are you a fan of oysters--love 'em or hate 'em?  What are some cool gifts you've given in the past?