x
Showing posts with label round rock. Show all posts
Showing posts with label round rock. Show all posts

Summer Bucket List - 2015

I absolutely love reading my favorite blogger's summer bucket lists (Jen & Kelsey), so I thought I would write out my own this year. Writing out a list also gives me motivation to try new things, so here it goes...


1. Hike/swim McKinney Falls
2. Walk the Lady Bird Lake Boardwalk
3. Cool off with a Snow Cone
4. Kayak or Paddle board Lady Bird Lake
5. Grab a pie from Royers Pie Haven
6. Gelato from Dolce Neve (Supposedly Austin's Best!)
7. Have a picnic at the Round Rock Splash Pad
8. Play at the Brushy Creek Lake Splash Pad
9. Date night out dancing
10. Neighborhood BBQ
11. Swim lessons for Turner
12. Attend Free Yoga on the Lawn at the Domain (free Monday & Wednesday nights)
13. Spend the day at Hawaiian Falls water park
14. Organize a Happy Hour for North Austin (Round Rock/Georgetown/Cedar Park/Pflugerville) bloggers
15. Paint master bedroom furniture
16. Build a chalkboard menu
17. Redecorate guest bedroom in preparation for host daughter
18. Vacation in Maui, Hawaii sans toddler (surf, hike, lay on the beach, snorkel)
19. Attend the Haven Conference (DIY blogger conference)
20. Attend Round Rock's free Yoga on the Plaza
21.  Swim at Round Rock's Rock'N River Family Aquatic Center
22. Take Turner to his first movie at the Dollar Theatre
23. Swim with my niece's in their new pool
24. Girls night out
25. Spend a few hours relaxing at SpaSocial

Let's see if I can mark all of these off of my list in a few months. What's on your summer bucket list!?

SPASOCIAL GIVEAWAY

Ladies, this place exists...in Round Rock, TX. I used to drive by SpaSocial almost every day on the way home, and had no idea what was inside. To my surprise this insanely beautiful day spa greeted me when I walked through the doors. Read all about the Spa Party I recently hosted HERE! 

This is like no other day spa you've ever been to.  I love it because the decor is modern and chic, and the music is fun and upbeat. Every detail of the entire building is beautifully crafted and thought out. When you walk in you're usually greeted by the owner, Amanda, who is seriously the sweetest person, and then you get a view of this amazing pool. 


SpaSocial is a full service day spa specializing in Spa Parties and Monthly Memberships. With a monthly membership you get special rates on spa services, and can use the amazing amenities at anytime (even when not having a service). The levels of memberships range from $60-$180 a month. For the CHOICE IS YOURS Membership $60 would include your choice of a 60 min. massage, facial or Spa mani & pedi once a month. For $120, you pick 2 for every month, and for $180 you get all 3!

Relaxing area near the pool/sauna/steam room

SpaSocial has a jaw dropping Beauty Bar (all stocked with local Texas products) where they do makeup, blow outs, braids, eyebrow shaping/tinting and eyelash extensions. Great for girls going to prom, weddings, or even a night out on the town (I think my husband's jaw would drop if I had my hair and makeup done professionally). 

Beauty Bar
Relaxing area while you wait for your room to be prepared
Spa Parties are probably my new favorite thing. You get to hang out in this amazing room and eat, drink, spend quality time with friends and get pampered all at the same time. Then afterwards you can hang out in the pool, jacuzzi, sauna or steam room for as long as you want. The best part...these parties are affordable! Ideal for a Mom's night out, bachelorette party, wedding/baby shower, princess party and more.

Spa Party Room
One of many massage rooms. It has it's own flippin' shower! 
Now to the fun part! One lucky winner will win a 60 minute massage and a pedicure for you and a friend at SpaSocial! The giveaway will being on April 3rd and end on April 12. The winner will be randomly selected using Rafflecopter,  and they must live in the Austin area. It's super easy to enter, just use the Rafflecopter entry below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

SpaSocial Spa Party


I had the privelege of hosting a spa party at SpaSocial, a full service spa, in Round Rock a few weeks ago, and I'm so excited to share my experience with you! My two neighbors and my best friend paused their busy schedules to take some time out to relax and socialize....we sure did need it.


First, we were pleasantly surprised when we walked in to the huge and fabulous building. It was like stepping in to an Oasis. We felt like we had gone on vacation...kind of like when you go to a movie and forget everything outside of the theatre. That's how we felt inside SpaSocial. We brought snacks and wine/OJ for mimosas. Our hosts were amazing, and set up our snacks in a cute bar cart. They made my store bought snacks look like I had slaved over them all day.


As our room was prepared, we put on our robes and relaxed. I felt like royalty sipping my mimosa in my comfy robe waiting to be pampered. Cue ridiculous photo.


We then headed to our private spa party room, where we had the Wine O' Clock service which included a Mani, Pedi, and a Chair facial. Glorious! The winter has not been good to my skin, so this was the perfect timing as it starts to warm up (hello sandal weather). We did a lot of eating, sipping (lady like for drinking), and chatting.


The 2 1/2 hour party flew by! Afterwards, we headed to the jacuzzi to relax and chat some more. I seriously couldn't have asked for a better afternoon. We felt pampered and relaxed, then we stepped out and were back in to the real world...haha.


SpaSocial is based around a new concept of monthly memberships where members get special rates, and can use the facility any time (steam room, sauna, jacuzzi, pool). The spa parties are affordable, and totally worth the $. If you want more info about SpaSocial or hosting your own spa party click HERE. Check them out on Facebook and Instagram as well.

Disclosure: My friends and I were invited to SpaSocial, I was not paid for this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Check back next week for an amazing GIVEAWAY!

Snap Kitchen's Newest Location - Avery Ranch

Snap Kitchen recently opened up it's newest location in Avery Ranch, and I'm extremely excited because it's a minute from my office!


They feature quick and easy to grab prepared meals that are super healthy yet flavorful.  If you know me, you know that I'm not a healthy eater. I love my carbs and sugar, and unfortunately I rarely eat vegetables.  I obviously need to eat better, especially when eating out...cue Snap Kitchen. Most days I eat a carb loaded lunch, and then crash around 2pm, wanting a chocolate pick me up. The first time I tried Snap Kitchen, I had the chicken enchiladas, super delicious. About 30 minutes after lunch, I drank the Far East Turmeric Elixir juice. The juice gave me so much energy, and I was so full from lunch and the juice, that I barely had an appetite at dinner.


Alex really enjoyed the bison burger with an egg on top and sweet potato fries, and I actually ate kale.  All ingredients are locally sourced, and almost all are gluten free and organic. I really like that the labels on the meals give you the exact calories as well as a list of all ingredients (all pronounceable and no preservatives). I usually don't count calories, but it's crazy to know that 



Snap Kitchen has 6 Austin locations and they also have curb side pick up if you can't get out with the kiddos in the car!

Have you ever tried Snap Kitchen? 

Velkommen til Texas!


Alex, Turner and I are excited to announce that we are adding a new addition to our family this year.....a FOREIGN EXCHANGE STUDENT from DENMARK! You thought I was having a baby didn't you? I randomly saw a post on my city's Facebook page about needing host families for exchange students in our area. It immediately sparked my interest, and after a few emails and some conversations with Alex...we accepted a girl from Denmark who will live with us from August till December. We aren't compensated for hosting, but rather treating her like our own child by taking her to school, providing 3 meals a day, attending her extracurricular events, and taking her along on family trips.



In high school, I was usually the first person to befriend the exchange student. I was intrigued by their culture, language, style and I wanted to show them everything that Texas had to offer!  First there was Benji, my great friend from France. I taught him how to rap really bad songs, and when his family would come visit, we would spend countless hours at the outlet mall. After Benji's exchange he ended up going to college in San Antonio and married one of my best friends from high school. Then there was Mignon (Minni) and Vega. Minni was from Germany and Vega was from China. I took them to their first american football game, explained what homecoming was, and sang lots of George Strait to them. Last there was Jessie. Jessie was from the sunshine coast of Australia, and she became such a good friend that she ended up living with me during her exchange.  We were like sisters...and it wasn't confusing at all that we had the same name : ) I've kept in touch with all of them, and would consider most family. After years of learning about other cultures, I myself was able to go on an exchange to Poland for a year in 2005/2006.  One of the best decisions I've ever made. I actually was able to visit Denmark with my Polish host mom, so I'm extremely happy I will be able to connect with our exchange student on that level.

I've known for a while now that I wanted to host exchange students in my home, but I didn't think it would be this soon. Most host families are older, more established, and have high school aged kids. I was a bit worried so I reached out to a good friend who has hosted numerous exchange students. He advised me that the student will adapt to any family as long as the family is excited to have them and accepts the student in to their family as one of their own.  With that being said, Alex and I are extremely excited to have a new family member this coming fall, and we can't wait to show her a great time in Texas! 

BuiltWell

A while back Alex and I took on our newest business venture, BuiltWell, to earn some extra money.   We had built a farmhouse table for our deck, but after our a/c went out and multiple car issues, we decided we needed the money for our California trip.  We sold it to Jess from the Jess Lively show and her husband Scott, and they encouraged us to start a business.  We thought, why the heck not?  Alex loves building furniture, and he's amazing at it.  I enjoy refinishing furniture, especially vintage pieces, so here we are.  We haven't done too many projects, as we only have weekends to work, so we try to not take too much work on. Check out our Facebook page, Instagram or email us at builtwelltx@gmail.com if you have any requests or questions!




28

I had an amazing weekend!  The weather was perfect, and Alex and I spent quality time with our little man.  

Friday, Alex and I took off of work to celebrate my 28th birthday.  I started my day with a massage, we had lunch at my favorite restaurant Perry's Steakhouse (pork chop Friday), and saw Gone Girl all before 5:30pm.  That night I celebrated with friends at The Domain's newest bar, Punch Bowl Social. 



Saturday, I did some early morning thrifting, and later headed out to the "Touch a Truck" event in Round Rock.  Turner was in heaven.  That night Turner and I went on a little date to Old Navy and Barnes & Noble. Oh the beautiful books! I wanted to buy every Christmas book.





Sunday, Turner had his 1st haircut at a salon (our home buzz cuts aren't the best).  After, we stopped by Lowe's to buy some materials for our next BuiltWell project, then spent a few hours playing outside.  Turner and I "napped" on a picnic blanket in the front yard, and I could not have asked for a prettier day. 




What Turner does when I say, "Touch your toes!"
Did you do anything special this weekend?  I'll be traveling to Chicago early tomorrow morning for 3 days for work, and I'm super excited. I'm not sure I'm ready for the cold weather.

Guest Post: What to Wear for Family Photos

I'm excited to have my friend and wonderful photographer, Kim of Kim Neuman Photography, talk about what to wear for your family photos! Kim took Turner's 2 year old photos last month, and I can't wait for our family photos. I'll be taking tips from Kim, because it is not as easy as I thought coordinating outfits for my family.


"It’s that time of year again!  Your family’s holiday card is going to be the best on everyone’s mantel.  You have your favorite photographer booked. You’ve picked out a super cute location and your session will be during golden hour so you get that warm, glowing light that is oh so flattering. But what are you going to wear?? That is the million-dollar question, isn’t it? It certainly is one that most of my clients seem to struggle with, and I’m sure you are too! Don’t worry, you are not alone and I’m here to offer you some pieces of advice.

I always suggest my clients start with whomever is going to be the most difficult family member to dress. That may be dad, baby sister, teenage brother, or even mom. No matter who it is, start with him or her because you will build your wardrobe around that outfit, instead of running around town trying to find something he or she will wear that fits in with everyone else. Trust me on this!

I recommend three or four colors. We definitely don’t want everyone wearing the same exact outfit; that is terribly dated and you will not love those images. Finding outfits that coordinate is a bit more work, but totally worth the effort! You can choose color families (earth tones, jewel tones, etc.) or you can go for complimentary colors (colors that are opposites on the color wheel). I’m not saying that you have to go with bright purple and bright yellow, but you could use gray as your main color and throw in buttery yellow shades and deep purples. There are many different ways to work in your colors. I love layers and accessories.  Think earrings, necklaces, hats, scarves, belts, and headbands. 



I recommend giving yourself a good two to three weeks to get your outfits together to find sizes and correct colors, especially if you are ordering online.  It might be a good idea to buy a few different things for your children to see what they are comfortable in.  Make sure to keep those receipts handy!   

Please don’t forget footwear!  We don’t want your running shoes in your family photo, friends.  I know it sounds like a relatively small detail, and they probably won’t be in every picture, but they are really important.  If you’ve spent the time and the money on getting professional portraits, those dingy whites Nikes are going to ruin the shot.  Again, trust me on this!


My final recommendation, for mom, is to try on your outfit and have someone snap a picture of you in it.  That way you’ll know how you look in it and if you truly like it.  We all know that looking in the mirror is totally different than looking at a picture of yourself!  And, we also know that if mom doesn’t like how SHE looks in the picture, she doesn’t like the picture, no matter how perfect everyone else is!


I hope you’ve found these tips helpful and here are some of my go-to places for family outfits:  GAP, Old Navy, Zara, H&M, Matilda Jane Clothing, and J. Crew/Crewcuts. You don’t need to get everyone’s outfits from the same place! Nordstrom is a great place to go if you need to grab a pair of shoes for the kiddos. Enjoy pulling your wardrobe together!"

2 Year Photos

We recently had pictures of Turner taken for his upcoming 2nd birthday.  It's hard to wrangle him for photos by myself, and I knew I wanted high quality photos taken. Thanks to Kim of Kim Neuman Photography we have some amazing photos to remember this time in his life! Kim was so sweet and very patient, which comes in great when you have a toddler running around.  I highly recommend her for your kiddos and family. She's booking fall mini sessions right now....it's a good idea to start thinking about holiday cards, plus family pictures are great gifts for grandparents : ) !

For the shoot, I brought a bag full of items to catch Turner's attention (football, books, his favorite stuffed animal, balloon, and some chairs for him to sit on). He really wanted nothing to do with anything except his football (that is until Alex accidentally smacked him in the face with it...see the last photo). 









#parentfail