Thanksgiving in Rewind

I'm back as promised and have a lot to share. Get ready for an action packed post.

We actually started our Thanksgivings festivities two weekends ago while volunteering at Turkey Outreach with our church. We are so thankful to be a part of McLean Bible Church as we grow, connect, share and serve with our church community. Turkey Outreach has been a service project for many years and aims to feed and share the gospel with nearly 68,000 needy families throughout the DC area. Each family receives a box filled with a bible, and complete turkey dinner. It was amazing to see how much work goes into preparing 7,000 food boxes.

We put together boxes, helped unload trash, packed potatoes, and left with a joyful heart that only serving others and the Lord can provide.On Thanksgiving we had lunch with my extended family and went back to my uncle's house and then enjoyed dessert with JD's family. A perfect day with family.My uncle has a sweet video game arcade and I always look forward to Ms. Pacman. My brothers have an annual ping pong match and Adrian claimed victory this year.

We spent the rest of the weekend visiting JD's grandma, enjoying a delicious dinner at Belvedere with JD's dad, playing with little Tommy, and soaking in lots of quality time.
I came home with Tommy, Katie and the kiddos to finish off the weekend in Virginia. Now I couldn't catch JD busting any dance moves on the way to PA (it was too dark and I was dealing with a migraine) but I do have a close second.

So I will leave you with this...

Gold Digger from Mollie Douglas on Vimeo.

Home for Turkey Day

I am very excited to spend Thanksgiving with my family. We are headed home to Pennsylvania in just a few hours. I love life in Maryland but there is nothing better than relaxing in good ole' Ephrata with a full house. I'll be sure to share the highlights of our trip next week and hopefully catch JD busting some more moves in the car :) Did you see round 1 of our car videos? If not check it out.

Correction: In the third clip, the song is by Bruno Mars-not Justin Bieber.

Happy Thanksgiving. Anyone venturing out on black Friday?

Handmade Christmas Gifts: HER

December is just days away which means Christmas is almost here!

This year I've decided to do a mini-blog series entitled, Handmade Christmas Gifts.

Giving gifts is just as fun as receiving them. It is not just the gift that is special but the thought behind the gift. Personal, handmade gifts are some of my favorite gifts to give. I love them because they can be personalized and unique and are usually inexpensive. All you need is time. I wouldn't recommend waiting until the last minute to put together your handmade Christmas gifts. Plan ahead and give yourself plenty of time to finish the gift.

These DIY gifts are for the ladies and perfect for mom, grandma, sister, best friend, or a co-worker.

Bath Fizzes
I think these are just adorable. Place them in a cute jar with a small ribbon and it becomes the perfect gift for any bath lover. Find all the directions here on Martha Stewart's website.

Bath SnowballsAnother bath gift, but they are so elegant and really look like snowballs. Thanks, Martha. Find directions here.

Body Scrub
Only 4 ingredients and seems super easy to make. Who wouldn't like to rub their body with sugar? Thanks again Martha, find the directions here.

Jewelry
Kara Paslay whipped together this necklace straight from the hardward store. So edgy yet chic.
Martha Stewart makes jewelry too. Find the directions here.

Personalized Ornaments
Katie from All Bower Power made these adorable ornaments. Check it out here.

So there are some simple and fun projects that any woman can enjoy.

Happy Crafting!!

8 dresses

Over the past 5 years, I've been honored to be a part of so many weddings. 8 to be exact. It has been amazing to see many of my closest friends find love. In addition to my friends, I will never forget when both of my brothers got married. Not only did they gain a wife, but I gained two sisters. I began to realize how special it is to have sister-like relationships.

As a bridesmaid I have...

• Prayed before a reception of 250 people
• Safety pinned a wedding dress two minutes before the ceremony began
• Fought with a wedding coordinator to fulfill the brides wishes
  
• Ran a 5k race the morning of the wedding
• worn 8 different dresses
• created unforgettable memories
• traveled across the county
  
• ate octopus
  

Thank you Katie, Lesley, Kendra, Alyssa, Dawn, Becca, Michelle, and Vicki for including me in your special day. I am grateful for all of our friendships, laughs, and memories. I feel very blessed to have you in my life.

Tourists in DC

After living here for over two years we finally toured DC, tourist style. I've seen all the monuments while in college, but it was great to see everything again.

Abby and Mike, our friends from Pennsylvania, came down for the day and we had a blast catching up and spending the day together. Abby found her soul mate half way around the world in New Zealand. They have a crazy story. The weather was gorgeous and the trees were beautiful.

DC truly is a great city. It is very clean, full of history, and a great place to home.

Movies, Shopping, & Work

That title accurately describes our weekend. And a fun one it was.

Before I go into detail about our weekend, I must say Thank You to all 11 of you who voted on my last post. Funny thing is, my blog counter showed over 40 people clicked on the link, yet only 11 of you voted!? I can't see who votes for what, I just see the breakdown of votes. So come on friends, if you consider yourself a regular reader and didn't vote yet, click here.

Now back to the regular scheduled programing: Our weekend.

Friday night we went out to eat (as always) and JD just had to see Due Date. Anyone else see it? It was okay, I give it a C. Not my type of humor but we oh well. Last movie, we bought skittles and a soda and payed over $8.00! Ripe off? I think so. JD vowed to never buy snacks at the movies again and instead sneak in our own. So we made a pit stop at Rite Aid to stock up.
Saturday we went to Georgetown. It was a beautiful, crisp day for shopping and enjoying our first ever Georgetown cupcake. Would you believe we had to wait in line for 40 minutes!? Call us crazy but I've been dying to try one of those. If you don't know what I'm talking about, it's the cupcake shop owned by 2 sisters that now have a reality show on TLC called DC Cupcakes. We even saw the TV crew filing while we were there. Pretty neat.
We waited so long, we thought we might as well stock up. 2 peanut-butter fudge, 1 salted caramel, 1 vanilla, 1 pumpkin spice, and 1 coconut. They seriously are so good and worth the wait and money.
We also did some shopping. We both got some things. Oh and these cool letters from urban outfitters. Not sure what to do with them yet. I whipped out my camera in J.Crew to snap a photo. If you know JD, he is not a fan of picture taking and I like to take a lot of photos. Thanks for being a good sport.
We then watched A Body of Lies starring Russel Crow and Leonardo Dicaprio. I have one word for this movie: Intense. Although intense it was good. I did have to cover my eyes for some parts and ask a million questions to know what was going on. Following movies has never been my expertise.

Today, Sunday was all work and no play. I spent 2 hours grading papers and then about 4 applying for grad school and writing essay #1 of 2. JD had to be at work at 8am and it now 8pm, and he is still not home. Boo.

What did you all do this weekend?

Should I change the blog name?

After a lot of thought, I'm still confused and need your help. Let me explain.

When I first began this blog I focused on inexpensive decor, DIY projects, design, savings etc. Hence the name High Style on a Small Budget. Living in a small cave (we live half underground in a small 800 sq. foot condo), I quickly realized I was out of space to "make-over" and the blog took a turn. A turn for the better. Right?

I still do all of the above, but now include some of our personal outings, my random thoughts, silly car videos, and of course any deals I find, whether it be an orange pillow or my new favorite sweater vest from Target.

I'm beginning to think High Style on a Small Budget does not accurately title the blog anymore. Should I come up with a new name? If so, have any ideas? Or should I stick with the original?

Help!? I'm going bonkers over here.

I put together this little poll to keep everything tabulated.

Should I change the blog name?