{Five Months} Where I've Been

I last posted on April 3rd.... two days before Easter and three days before my life changed forever.

If you have been following me on Instagram, then you know that the twins were born on April 6th. It was a day that will forever be etched in my memory. They were born at 35 weeks and were perfectly healthy at 4lbs 6oz and 4lbs 10oz. They were able to come right into our room that night. God has surely blessed our family. We are so thrilled to introduce you to Jackson Hamlin and Magnolia Joy!

Many of you have been following our journey of adoption and infertility. Thank you all for your kind words, support and love. I have been blogging for four years and feel like I have been sharing this journey with old friends. So Thank You from the bottom of my heart.

I will resume writing my blog as soon as we are on some sort of schedule over here! I would love to have time to at least share DIY's and Ideas with all of you once a week. That is my goal for now! So thank you for sticking around! Next post will be the Twin's Nursery Reveal...Finally!

Our New DIY Industrial Coffee Table

This post is a long time coming. I started this project with my brother and dad a few months ago and we finally finished before the holidays. I just haven't made time to take pictures and share with all of you. Some of you might remember that a coffee table was one of my 2014 Home Goals. We did finish in 2014..so I am making that count!

We have been living without a coffee table for our entire marriage. That is almost 10 years people! I really liked having an open space in front of our couch, but never realized what I was missing until this beauty came along.

Now we have a place for our drinks, snacks, feet....whatever! This table is so sturdy that we can literally stand on it to change a light bulb or dance the night away without worrying about the damage our hefty selves might cause.

My brother built the wood top out of reclaimed wood from an old pub in downtown Raleigh. He planed the wood and sanded it down to create a smooth surface.

My dad and I designed the metal base and welded the pieces together with heavy duty steel. I am working on a tutorial to share with all of you over the next couple of weeks. So stay tuned!

I added a few coats of clear polyurethane to bring out the color and knots in the wood and to give it a durable surface with no worries of water stains. I also sprayed the metal with a clear coating to protect it from rusting in our humid NC weather.

I absolutely love how the table came out. It really gives our living space some texture and life. I love combining different styles to create a space that I want to spend my time in.
So much meaning and hard work went into this piece. I can't wait to have it in the family for many many years. A HUGE thank you to my talented brother and father for helping me create a memorable piece. I loved spending time working on this with both of you!

Our Weekend in {Williamsburg, VA}

Hi All! Welcome to Monday morning! Whew...another start to a long week. I hope you had a nice weekend and were able to spend some time with the ones you love.

We were fortunate to take a little weekend trip up to Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia. It seemed like a magical place walking through history and learning about the past. There was so much work that went into everyday activities back then. There was back breaking work and concern of war, but in some ways walking through the past seemed like simpler time of life. Time to enjoy working in the garden, watching your children play games in the yard and saying "good day" as you walked through town.

I can almost guarantee you that if I was born back then I wouldn't think it was simple living at all. I am very fortunate to live in a world today that has running water, electricity, high tech hospitals and state of the art science. Although I think I would have liked a horse drawn carriage, I am also thankful for my car that gets me to and fro.

I enjoyed learning about how they died fabrics to make colorful clothing using berries and insects. They really did have fabulous color options even back then!

To have a shoemaker design and make your shoes would cost you anywhere from one day to three days pay. I guess I wouldn't have had a closet full of shoes back then. Darn!

Wigs were also very popular in this time. The latest fashion would come over from England and France. They would make wigs from goat, horse, human or even yak hair. It wasn't uncommon for you to have a few different wigs ranging in style from short to long and curly.

One of the most beautiful places in Williamsburg is the Governor's Palace. The architecture is absolutely magnificent. Even the colors on the walls in the grand ballroom and study were just fabulous. This was the home to many governors including Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson.

We really had a nice weekend celebrating my dad's 60th birthday as well as Father's day. The best part was being with our family and enjoying each other's company.

Sorry for the picture overload! I just love my sweet family and enjoy having this little ole blog to document life and our fun family moments.

Have you ever visited Colonial Williamsburg? Hope you are off to a great start to your week. See ya around here tomorrow!

Our SC Vacation {Charleston & Savannah}

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We are back in action today after a wonderful week in Hilton Head, SC. What a beautiful place! This was the first Thanksgiving since we have been married (2005) that we haven't cooked Thanksgiving Dinner in our own home.
We stayed at a condo with my in-laws which was right on the golf course and close to all sorts of bike trails. My mother-in law and I enjoyed some thrifting at the local shops and the boys played golf each day. The beach was also only a couple minutes away. So we got to enjoy a little sunshine too!

Hilton Head is about 2 hours from Charleston, so we were able to enjoy a day in the old historic town. 

There is so much history and beautiful architecture there. I could spend weeks just walking up and down the streets and peeking through the windows! Too bad no one invited me into these beauties!

We ate at one of the most delicious places: Amen Street 

Fabulous Calamari, White beet salad and...... Pumpkin Pie Creme brulee!! 

We also got to enjoy a day in Savannah which is only about a 40 minute drive from Hilton Head. This was my first time experiencing the magnificent Live Oaks and walking the streets of the old haunted city. 

My Sister-in law even got to join us for the day!

I wouldn't have minded if someone offered me a tour of their fabulous home! Sadly they did not.

Another city of amazing iron work and architecture!

It was such a wonderful trip with my in-laws. We enjoyed the relaxation, sight seeing, shopping and of course the eating! How did you all spend your Thanksgiving this year?