Paper Garland DIY

I love Christmas and I love creating my own decorations, to add to the merriment and cheer of the season for my home.  Here are two super simple, paper garland DIY projects that you can use, not just for the holidays, but all year long. A strand of garland, packaged with love can also make a really sweet gift or stocking stuffer, as well.  And, it costs pennies!  I've been making them like crazy! 

I have a few other holiday DIY videos that I'll be posting this week. So, be on the lookout. ;)

~Merry Christamas sweet friends! 

Thanks to my amazing guy Samuel for creating these for me.
Music by: Amiina
(They are giving free downloads of their heavenly music counting down to christmas!)

American Blogger

This week, we had quite the adventure as we welcomed film maker, Chris Wiegand into our home. If you haven't already heard, Chris is filming an incredible documentary-movie called,  "American Blogger." Over the next 2 months, he is traveling coast to coast in his vintage air stream (that he renovated himself) filming and capturing the hearts and lives of bloggers all across the nation. This is going to be an amazing piece of work when he's finished!

When I got an email from Chris' sweet wife, Casey, who is a phenomenal, straight from the heart blogger and friend, asking me to be a part of this journey, I was so excited! Seriously. It was such a great and fantastic experience just for our family to connect with Chris' heart and vision. You guys, I want to be neighbors with the Wiegands. So much kindness, sincerity and beauty comes from this family.  Casey...keep scheming and brainstorming. ;)

Chris arrived Tuesday evening, after driving straight  from Palm Beach, Florida. He filmed our nightly routine as we ate dinner and put the boys to bed. Wait, do we even have a routine? ;) Then after the boys were fast asleep, he and Samuel talked shop about gear, film and the movie  industry. After that, we headed into the city to hang out with my girl friends. Chris wanted to get as much variety of my normal flow of life as he could, seeing he that was leaving the next morning. So, out to girls night it was.

Any of you who follow along my journey here or on instagram, know how dear and vital my friends are to my heart. It worked out so perfectly, that at the last minute, everyone was able to get together and Chris was able to catch it all on film. We all met up near uptown and walked to a roof top restaurant where we laughed and caught up on our lives. Chris followed along, filming and interviewing me at various times, asking me all kinds of questions about blogging, my family, and the important role my friends play in my life. It was great!

The next morning, before he had to head out to his next stop, a few hours away, there were more interviews and more filming.  Then, Samuel and I also got to take Chris to our favorite coffee stop, Not Just Coffee. Then, right before Chris pulled out of our driveway, he invited us to take a look inside the "American Blogger" Air Stream camper. It was SO AMAZING!  It literally looked like a little Ikea apartment. So cool.  Kael was kind of obsessed with it calling it a robot truck. Wait, what am I saying... I was obsessed with it! ha! I think I join in with the voices of everyone who's seen this fabulous little silver darling when I say that I WANT ONE! Ah! 

This was such an awesome and fun experience.  It was fun showing off our Queen City and sharing a peek into our life with Chris. But, more than anything, it was a delight to have our families connect, hear his heart and vision for this movie and to be a part of the adventure of it all.

American Blogger will be available for purchase on iTunes when it is completed. I will post updates here as it get closer to the launching of it as well. Follow Chris' journey this summer on his instagram, ChrisWiegand #americanblogger. You can also keep up to date on what's happening and where he is in his travels on his wife's blog "Casey Leigh."

Thanks for giving us the joy and opportunity of contributing Chris and Casey! Love you guys!

Jess, Sam and the boys

Food Truck Friday

Food Truck Friday is one of my favorite culinary and city loves about Charlotte. Every Friday, there is a buzz of life in the air, as masses of people come out to try delicious plates from half a dozen or so, AMAZING food trucks at South End. The experience is half of the deal. When else would you wait 45 minutes in line just to get a small plate of fish tacos or a black bean burger? But, to me...it's worth it! There are always friends, familiar faces and sweet puppies to be enjoyed.  I LOVE the loud chaos, the buzz of all the people there and the laughs that fill up the space in the background.

This past Food Truck Friday, a group of my best friends and I met up together to share a bit of picnic blanket in the shade. The sweet and savory smells of everything from tacos to crepes tempted our taste buds. We welcomed in the first day of summer with warm sun, the goodness of true friendship and the sounds of our wild children playing and running everywhere. Their sweet laughs reminded me that in every time of happiness or disappointment, present or up-coming, there is always a simple joy to be found and held onto. Hello Summer darling, I'm glad you're here.

-Jess

My beautiful friends, Anna, Jessie, Lauren and Lorean.