Step Into My Week 7.11

 After two weeks away from posting here, I am happy to be back. I always feel so guilty when I don’t have time to get posts live for y’all, but I’ve come to realize that as my schedule continues to be busy with a full-time job and some freelancing opportunities it’s best to keep this feeling like a creative outlet and not a chore to constantly post on. Since we last talked, I’ve done quite a few blog shoots, stayed busy with work, and even spent a long weekend at the lake. Since there’s no way I can remember what all I did each day, here’s a highlight reel from the past two weeks. 

from my Southern Lady Magazine Fourth of July shoot last summer - in this year's July/August issue

Supper club is always one of my favorite weeknights. Our group tries to get together at least once a month, and before the Fourth of July, we decided to make poke bowls. Since we weren’t confident in eating the tuna we purchased raw, we decided to sear it and created two grease fires that we quickly got under control. Even with that hiccup, the finished product turned out to be delicious.

I worked and worked out on the weekdays before finally packing up to head to the lake for the Fourth of July weekend. After a challenging time trying to get Hunter’s Traeger grill onto the rack on his car, we finally got down to the lake, unpacked the car, and made our way to the dock with a cocktail in hand to hang out with his siblings who had arrived before us. 

Friday was rainy in the morning, which worked out well for the girls who stayed put at the house lounging around in our pajamas while the guys golfed. We met them at the course for lunch before heading to an art show on the way back to the house. We mainly spent time on the porch in the afternoon playing board games while it rained and eventually got to jump in the lake when the weather cleared. The rest of his family arrived that night, making it a full and lively house. 

Everyone woke up relatively early on Saturday morning enjoying their coffee on the porch while our big breakfast was cooking. Hunter’s nephews were there and insisted that we play trains with them for a good portion of the weekend which was a fun blast from the past. Once we ate and cleaned up, we all changed into our swimsuits to sit on the dock. Hunter took everyone wakeboarding for a few hours, and I was shocked to be able to get up every time, although I didn’t stay up that long any time. We had lunch afterward and sent the guys off for another round of golf. The girls went back down to the dock for a while before bringing out the cornhole boards before getting cleaned up for dinner. 

Sunday was the fourth, and we ate breakfast before going to watch the boat parade on the lake. There were so many boats out and about that I think we were all glad that we drove. We spent a good part of the day on the dock while Hunter smoked a big meal for us to enjoy that night. We had ribs, wings, and pulled pork with plenty of delicious sides that had everyone full for our boat ride and firework watching that night. I wore my new favorite dress from Maxwell and Geraldine, but unfortunately, the quick pictures we took while the sun was setting didn’t turn out that great for our face, but at least you can see the dress! We drove the boat to the edge of the slough to watch the firework show taking place at Children’s Harbor. We came back to a pitcher of Mississippi Mud (basically an alcoholic milkshake) that Hunter’s brother had made for everyone and sipped those while watching the Parent Trap. Talk about ideal! 

dress by Maxwell and Geraldine - I'm in an XS

Since I had Monday off, we had another full day which really left us feeling like we were on vacation. More time was spent on the dock and the porch with a jet ski ride and a boat ride thrown in there as well. We made frozen pizzas for dinner and watched Harry Potter on the porch in our PJs that night. 

I had taken Tuesday off from work but had a meeting I needed to log on for at 11:00. Hunter and I went on a boat ride before that and then after my meeting was over made lunch. We thought we’d leave after lunch, but the sun came out, so I read on the dock for a while as Hunter watched soccer. We needed to take the boat back to the marina, so I followed Hunter on the Seadoo so that he had a way to get back. I read for a little while longer before packing up, getting clean, and folding the laundry so that the house would be ready for its next round of guests. We left the lake around 5:00, stopping for salads at Chopt on our drive back. Once I was home, I unpacked and got in bed early to read. 

It was back to work on Wednesday with a shoot for Southern Home Magazine after starting my day with an MPower workout. The shoot went by quickly which gave me time to clean up my desk a bit and get some email work completed. Later in the afternoon, I helped paint some Christmas ornaments for Amanda. I went to the grocery store on my way home and made chicken, broccoli, and brussels sprout bowls for dinner. I was able to do some work on my computer that night before going to sleep.

I got up early on Thursday morning for an MPower cycling class and came home to shower before starting my workday. With lots of shoots coming up, I needed to get organized with scheduling meetings and making to-do lists for each shoot. Later in the afternoon, I went to the Hibiscus House showroom to take a few photos and work on social media posts. I met Hunter and two of our friends for dinner at Moe’s Barbecue and then went to Hunter’s house for a bit, where we watched Modern Family before I left to go to sleep.

Friday morning, I went to another MPower class. I got cleaned up and had a meeting that morning. I sent some emails out and began sourcing products for upcoming shoots before going to the Hibiscus House showroom to work there in the afternoon. I felt incredibly productive there, which is always nice, and then came back home to get ready for my evening plans. Hunter and I met up with Macy, Drew, and two of their friends at Carrigan’s that night for dinner and went over to Macy and Drew’s house afterward to make watermelon margaritas before calling it a night. 

I had to meet a shipper at the Hibiscus House showroom Saturday morning, so I was there around 8:00. That took about an hour, which gave me some time to work on computer tasks before staging some of those deliveries. I caught up with Nell on the phone while doing that, and Hunter and I met for lunch at The Garage, a bar and sandwich place that I had heard about a few times in the past weeks. Macy and I went antiquing in the afternoon before I changed and went to Hunter’s house so that we could go to a Birmingham Legion soccer game that night. I was worried it was going to be really hot, but it was actually quite comfortable, and we got dinner from the food trucks set up there. We hung out with friends afterward for a little while before I was ready for bed.

I slept in for the first time in a while on Sunday, and went over to Hunter’s house in the afternoon to watch the finals of a soccer game while getting work done. Eventually, I went to the grocery store, did laundry, and talked on the phone to my parents. Sunday night, I showered, cooked for the week, and was able to cross more things off my to-do list in preparation for the week ahead. 

I hope that y’all have had a good couple of weeks! I’ve drafted out a few other posts for this week and hope to not leave y’all hanging again.