The Silos Magnolia Trip

05 April 2017

Oh Magnolia! We took a road trip down here for spring break – we have lots of cousins that live in Texas and we used to live here, so it was such a fun visit. Of course we had to come to the Silos! They were everything I thought they would be after seeing them on Fixer Upper and hearing about them, it was exactly how I’d pictured it to be.

We had perfect weather and went on a sunny April Monday afternoon:

Tip: if you enter from 8th street side, there is free parking. As you drive in, everyone else around wants to charge $10. You can just google Waco Brake & Clutch Supply, it’s right across the street.

First, we hit the bakery!! Lots of yummy food trucks all around, but dessert first please:

The cupcakes were $3.99 each and they had order cards they had you fill out while in line to keep everything running smoothly:

I waited in line to get into the bakery bathroom, I didn’t even need to go and just took pictures :)

We loved the cupcakes! So dense and moist and the frosting was sweet perfection. Our favorites were the nuts & bolts and carrot cake. I would skip the Elderflower drink, we thought it tasted like dill pickle. Everything is so well thought out from cards they have you fill out with your order to the boxes and wooden forks.

The garden is charming:

they were just bringing out spring plants:

They have covered pavilions to sit under with wildflower boxes – We got a yummy bacon grilled cheese, herbed fries and a biscuit from Milo to share because we had already filled up on cupcakes.

And then we hit the store!! Everything is so beautifully displayed and it’s just fun to walk around and look.

So what did I buy? My awesome sisters gave me a Magnolia gift card for my birthday so I got a t-shirt (of course!), a collapsible basket, telescoping photo stands, metal sign holder, a wood beaded cake stand, and the cutest little cream pitcher to add to my collection. It’s not inexpensive, but I also don’t feel like they were insane prices either.

It was so worth going! A few things:

* mean people don’t come to the Silos! Everyone that works there and visits there is so nice and friendly, it’s so fun to see where everyone is from.

* All the employees I spoke with said come between 2-5 p.m. on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday to beat the crowds. Most people come right when it opens at 10 and then stay until 1 or 2 and weekends are crazy, be prepared for long lines.

* is it kid friendly? Yes and no. My kids loved the lawn area and running around, swinging and throwing the football, but my youngest only lasted a few minutes in the store so my daughter was an angel and took him out to play. We waited in line at the bakery for 25 minutes, but they keep everything moving really well. At the store we really didn’t have a line. I could have stayed there for much longer but most of my kids were ready to go after an hour or so.

* what about food? There are food trucks there, but many were sold out by 1 p.m. We don’t have a Freddy’s near us, so we went there ♥ Other recommendations were Torchy’s Tacos and Cafe Homestead.

Other places you can drive by:

* Harp Design Co. 808 N. 15th Street

* Joanna’s original Magnolia store 3801 Bosque Blvd.

* Read their book before you go. As if you don’t feel like they are your next door neighbors, it gives such a tender look into their roots, how they began, the hardships they faced, what drives them, their dreams, and their faith.

I just love seeing what they’ve done for downtown Waco. Anyone who owns property around the Silos has got to be loving their crazy increase in property value. The drive from Dallas-Ft,Worth area was gorgeous in the spring with all of the bluebells and wildflowers and was so GREEN! We went on to Temple, TX to visit family and that drive was beautiful. I saw lots of women on girl trips – I would have loved some more time to explore, but was so, so glad we had the time we did.

Have you been?

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courage for the week 4.2.17

01 April 2017

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caught my eye + deals 3.31.17

31 March 2017

Enjoy this exquisite antique cape from Smith + Vasant Architects in Vermont

* 7 Pieces of Financial Advice That Changed My Life

* Happier People are Raised By Parents That Do This One Thing

and of course, DEALS! These are the prices when I hit publish, they can change or run out at anytime. Lowest price means it is the lowest price within a year, within $1:

* Cuisinart Stainless Steel Mixing Bowls with lids $16.10

* 21 Days of Beauty at Ulta! Today: Smashbox Primer Water and Serovital & Unilastin

* Fashion Friday: Day of the Week Shirts & Sweatshirts for 50% Off + FREE SHIPPING with code DAYS17

* Bluetooth wireless headphones $9.99 when you use code Z5LDZ98Y at checkout

Home Depot has some crazy good spring Black Friday sales!

* 50 quart insulated red cooler at Home Depot only $14.97

* Miracle Gro Garden Soil $2 for .75 cu ft

* 22 ft aluminum telescoping ladder $99

* Husky Mobile Workbench $199

* 4000 watt dual fuel portable generator $249

* Ames 4 cu ft Lawn Cart $19.88

* Delta 7 spray handheld shower faucet $16.88

* First Act Ukulele $17.81

* today only: Seagate 4 TB External Hard Drive $87.99

* Baskin Robbins is celebrating 31 flavors today (March 31) with $1.50 scoops – go here and it was the 3rd picture in with the info

* Crazy 8 has 50% off Easter styles + free shipping on any order today

* Tide Pods 81 load $15.72 when you clip the coupon

* Aloe Gel $4.17 when you clip the coupon

* 4 pack Titanium scissors $9.97

* Elephant Watering Can $3.49

* Chicken Legs Knee Highs $4.99

* Intex Giraffe Pool $9.33

* Berenstein Bears Mother’s Day $1.69

Easter Baskets:

* State Charm Bracelets $5.99

* Disney Princess Toothbrush $2.99 when you clip the coupon

* LEGO Creator Blue Train $4.93

* Dr. Seuss Board Books Box Set $8.91

* Maybelline Great Lash $1.99 when you clip the coupon

* Franklin 27.5 Grip Rite Basketball $5.97 (these are great to donate to classrooms as well!)

Happy Weekend!!

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A special Chandelier

29 March 2017

Hello friends! We are working on Hailey’s room – and it is a disaster right now! Paint cloths and boards and sawdust everywhere. We are busy and crazy like most other families and it is hard to find chunks of time to work on it. But I wanted to share my favorite part of the room that we did manage to get to: the chandelier.

My paternal grandparents grew up in Alberta, Canada. My childhood memories have a huge chunk dedicated to going to visit Grandma & Grandpa every summer. Grandma Reeva had a huge garden and we usually had to pull some weeds or pick some strawberries or peas before we could go play with cousins. Grandma loved to play cards and could mostly always school us in Rook, Rummikub, and Boggle. If you ever beat her, you were feeling pretty good.

Her living room had an old upright piano, a chesterfield, a big comfortable velvet chair, a sunburst clock, nuts on the table, and a beautiful chandelier that I would sit and look up at. That chandelier moved with her when my Grandpa died and she re-married and her new husband built a new house behind the one we knew so well.

This past autumn, Grandma had to move into an assisted living facility and my parents went up to help. My mom had asked if there was anything from the house that we wanted and I had mentioned that I loved that chandelier but the house was already sold so chances were probably slim on that one.

I’m sure I’ve mentioned before that I have the best parents ever and they asked the owners if they were planning on keeping the chandelier and they said no way, they were going to replace it ASAP and to go ahead and take it. So my Dad got it down, kept all the crystals and they surprised me on a visit around Thanksgiving. It means so much to have something that my Grandma picked out for her own house to live on in ours. They sure don’t make them like this any more with real glass & crystal. And you can probably see that we’re doing a little board & batten treatment in there as well so it’s coming slowly but surely!

Mom & Dad also brought me an unopened box of starch from Grandma’s laundry room – I love the vintage lettering & colors on it!

An eagle mirror that you may have seen in Lauren’s room,

and a tin box that she had cake flour in that I now store my yarn and washi tape in.

So this is a post to share a story, to remember my beautiful heritage, and a reminder to bring meaningful things into our home – some special things that you can’t buy on Amazon or on Target clearance.

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courage for the week 3.26.17

26 March 2017

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caught my eye + deals 3.24.17

24 March 2017

Another gorgeous Instagram to follow – love this entryway at greensprucedesigns

* a Stanford dean shares skills every 18 year old should have

* this video of a mother of 5 in that takes in 3 more and gets a surprise of her life ♥

and of course, DEALS! These are the prices when I hit publish, they can change or run out at anytime. Lowest price means it is the lowest price within a year, within $1:

Easter basket ideas:

* lowest price: Mr. Sketch 12 count marker $4.03

* lowest price: Fisher Price Shimmer & Shine Microphone $5

* lowest price: The Rescuers & The Rescuers Down Under 35th Anniversary Blu-Ray Combo $8.99

* lowest price: Disney Short Films Blu-Ray Combo $15.99

* lowest price: Despicable Me Trouble Game $6.95

* Pentel Drafting Pencil $3.33

* Gillette Venus Tropical Razor 3 ct $3.62 when you clip the coupon

* Gillette Men’s Pro Shield Razor $5.62 when you clip the coupon

* Hot Wheels Mega Hauler $9

* Hyper Toss Action Game $11.38

* $2.99 board books: You Are My Sunshine * The Going to Bed Book * Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

* Avery Name Badge Labels .98

* Loreal Ideal Moisture Facial Moisturizer $3.88 when you clip the coupon

* Intex Twin Airbed $9.98

* Rubbermaid Premier Food Storage 12 pc set $14.77

* XBox One Wireless Controller $39

* lowest price: Razor Hoverboard $298

Have a fabulous weekend!!

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courage for the week 3.19.17

19 March 2017

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caught my eye + deals 3.16.17

16 March 2017

* This living room makes me want spring! At Making Home Base:

* I loved this article on Christopher Clark in the Utah Valley magazine. He is the brother of Stephanie Nielson (Nie Nie Dialogues) and the husband to Lisa, the woman in the hilarious Chatbooks commercials.

* the most pinned recipe in every state

and of course, DEALS! These are the prices when I hit publish, they can change or run out at anytime. Lowest price means it is the lowest price within a year, within $1:

* today only + lowest price: Graco Simple Sway baby swing $53.99