Arden's Garden 2-Day Detox Review

Y'all, while I absolutely love vacation and every last morsel of friend goodness and piña colada that comes with it, I felt icky when I started reflecting on everything that I had consumed last week. So, on the drive home, I spent several hours researching and reading about quick detoxes to kick start my healthy routine again. After all of my reading, I determined the Arden's Garden 2-Day Detox would be my best bet for a few reasons. For one, I could get it immediately because it's sold at Whole Foods (and is $10 cheaper!). For another, it was only two days which I felt like I could do. 

Boy, was it an adventure. 

Essentially, you drink two gallons of an orange, grapefruit, & lemon mixture and as much water as you want over the course of two days - and that's it. No food. Like at all. Zip, zero, zilch. Nada. Okay, you get my drift.

So, did I make it? Yes and no. Yes, I finished the 2 gallons, but I crashed at about 3 o'clock on both days. I was hungry and incredibly tired, so I broke down and finally had to eat a little bit. On day 1, I had a handful of Skinny Pop & a veggie only salad for dinner. On day 2, same handful of Skinny Pop & a dinner of spaghetti squash and half of a chicken cutlet. It turns out that I really like to eat and really need food to sustain. Not even putting the juice in a pretty glass with a Lettermade cocktail napkin made it taste better (or more like food).

Overall, I lost 4 lbs (all water weight, I am sure), but honestly my goal was really to just plain FEEL better after vacation, and I think that was accomplished! I am not sure I necessarily recommend this detox, but I didn't hate it either. The taste of the juice got really really really old after a few hours, and it is A LOT of liquid to consume over two days. If you have incredible will-power, I say it's a great quick fix if you need to lose some water weight before an event or just want a diet kick start quickly. 

Have you ever tried a juice cleanse/detox? How did it go? Tell me I'm not alone!

LCM Lifestyle Lunch

Just before vacation, I had the opportunity to attend one of Laura Carson Miller's Lifestyle Lunches, and I have to say that it has been the highlight of my summer. Each month Laura organizes a group of women to come together and enjoy a meal of good food, good company, and good camaraderie. June's lunch just so happened to be filled with an amazing group of inspirational female writers. Each woman came to the table ready to talk and share their freelance writing secrets. It was such a blast to lunch and learn with Rhiannon, Flannery, Ruksana, Alexa, & Hunter.

Since then I've been a woman on a mission, gathering anything and everything I can about freelance writing. I truly feel rejuvenated and excited about the future! Plus, each of us left with a swag bag filled with fantastic goodies! I am personally obsessed with the Pla Beauty Sheer Delight lip gloss. This stuff is a game changer. 

Be sure to follow along with each of the writers above and stay tuned to twitter - our next lunch is July 17th!

P.S. Don't forget about the Lime Street Fashion giveaway going on now!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July from beautiful Seaside, Florida. I hope you are enjoying this day of 'Merica pride with your family, friends, and loved ones. Try to be SM free today. Eat a hotdog, drink a bud, and go watch some fireworks! Celebrate! 

How to Host a Chili Topping Tasting Party

Planning get-togethers doesn't have to be stressful, and it certainly doesn't have to look like it just leaped off one of your Pinterest boards. This past weekend, I turned my friends' casual pumpkin carving tradition into a festive fall affair. It didn't break the bank, it didn't stress me out, and prep and clean-up was a breeze. The event? A chili-topping party! 

My job was simple: make a big pot of chili. We used a recipe from a local Atlanta favorite and let it simmer in the crock pot for a few hours. I asked each of my friends to bring a cheese to dress the chili - it was totally up to them what kind of cheese they brought, and I had no idea what to expect. 

Our cheeses ranged from classic cheddar to pimento (crowd favorite) to havarti with jalapenos. A few minutes before the party (literally!) I made some cheese identification flags using things I already had around the house: skewers, card-stock, and good ol' Photoshop. 

As each friend arrived, they placed their cheese in the appropriate bowl. I wanted everyone to be able to sample each kind of cheese on the chili, so I assembled paper cups & plastic spoons and displayed them on a platter. Each person could scoop as much chili as they wanted, add toppings, and enjoy...over and over again! 

We carved pumpkins, noshed on chili, and enjoyed the beautiful fall temperatures & each others' company.

It was a smashing success and was such an easy way to add a little pizzazz to a gathering. Give it a try and let me know how it goes. By the way, how fun would these be for future taste-testing?

 

New School Year, New Routines, and New Things

Today officially marks the first day of school and the end of me squeezing in just a few more minutes of sleep every morning. I am excited to get to work to meet my new group of kids and get started on a year of teaching and learning. Every school year, I challenge myself to find a few new routines and get just a hair more organized. Believe it or not, I would not classify myself as an organized individual. I love pretty paper, cute organizers, and fun pens, but I typically keep a calendar for about a month before it gets lost in the abyss of my purse/desk never to be found again.

{via}

This year, though, I want to make the change a little more permanent. I'm planning to start keeping an editorial calendar for the blog thanks to these adorable print-outs, and with some new things on the horizon for me (not to mention our wedding), I'm hoping to devote an hour or so every day to planning my days and weeks ahead. I think it will help cut down on the stress, don't you? By the way, Emily Ley has tons of other freebies on her blog for simplified living. Be sure to visit.

{via}

Speaking of new things on the horizon, I am thrilled to let you guys know that I am officially a contributor for For Chic Sake, an adorable and informative blog choc-full of recipes, style advice, and decor ideas. I'll be contributing fashion & style posts (yay!) in the coming weeks, so be sure to add For Chic Sake to your favorite blog roll and follow along! 

P.S. Did you know that PPD has a Facebook page now? It's true! Keep up with all of your favorite happenings with me there. Oh, and as a special treat for you today, one of my sponsor's, Accessory Mercado, is having a HUGE flash sale tonight at 8 CST / 9 EST. Get 30% off of your purchase with the code: SUMMER30. Be sure to like their page & be on Facebook at 8/9 sharp for all of the deals.

And one more thing...don't forget to enter my Pearl Connection giveaway!

Chicago Recap

First of all, thank you all for your kind words and being so understanding about Monday's post. You're the best. 

I promised you a recap of our trip, and boy are you about to get one recap. Loads of pictures below of our weekend in Chicago with Hunter's family. Enjoy!

We kicked off the weekend with a trip to downtown Chicago for dinner at the Girl and the Goat & an architectural boat tour. Both were unbelieveable, but I must say that dinner was my favorite part of the evening. So much well-executed, delicious, and beautiful food!

We spent Saturday gearing up for the engagement party. It was such a treat to see everything come together: from the flowers to the tent to the food prepared by Britney and her staff at Truffleberry Market, it was a perfect evening, and we couldn't have asked for a better weather.  How cute are the mason jar vases?!

Then on Sunday, we rounded out our time in Chicago with a shower hosted by Hunter's mom's lovely group of friends. They could not have been more welcoming and fun to hang-out with. The lunch they prepared was absolutely delicious, and we all had a great time discussing "wife advice" and sipping mimosas. It was a fabulous way to end our trip.

Me with Lindsay, my MOH / Kaci, Haley, and I in our summer hues

 What a great trip, huh?! 

PS. Can you tell my fav color right now is coral? I wore it three days in a row!

A Little Radio Silence

I'm writing this Sunday night after a very fun yet exhausting weekend spent in Chicago celebrating with an engagement party and shower with some amazing friends and family. It was a blast, and I cannot wait to share our time there with you. 

Our trip, however, started off a bit shaky when we received news that one of our friends, Jason, had passed away. Jason had just started a new Crossfit gym in our area and left us at thirty-years young. We will miss him immensely, and know that he was toasting with us this weekend just as we were him. 

Jason & Thomas in front of Crossfit 404 / A few of us pretending to ignore the pie heading straight for Jason's face :)

Jessica of My Style Vita wrote a fantastic review of her Crossfit journey & included images from Jason's gym just last week. I'm posting it here as a very small tribute to a guy who was a great person & truly friends with every single stranger he met. 

So today, I'm taking a little time to reflect on friends and family. See y'all Wednesday.

Monday Greetings!

Just a quick hello this morning from the beautiful Florida panhandle. We're soaking up sun and enjoying family time from the beaches of 30-A. I hope you all have a fantastic start to the week - a short one, no? Happy Monday & Happy July! 

 

Keep up with all of my beach adventures, outfits, and of course, food on instagram - @nicolemelv

Life's Little Details

This is my final semester of my Ed.S. degree, and one of my classes is digital photography. I have been practicing with my camera taking pictures all over the house this week. I'm not sure I'm getting any better, but I am noticing little details here and there around our home. Since I haven't talked about a house update in quite sometime, I thought I'd show you some of the pictures I've been taking to give you a glimpse!

1:: Flowers just outside our front windows that I never noticed until a few days ago. 

2:: Saving my mags for our trip to the beach. Have I mentioned that we're leaving on Saturday? No? ;) I know, I know, but I can't stop thinking about it!

3:: Anthro ikat bowl and Design Darling matches. 

4:: One of many antique items I have stocked on my built-ins. I played with this phone at my grandparent's house, they gifted it to me in college, and it sits in my home now. I love that it has their phone number on it (sans area code, of course!). 

5:: Some of my favorite perfumes that I sometimes forget to wear. Recently I've been addicted to Twirl, but there isn't anything like an old favorite.

Weekend Update & Five Things

Whew. It has been one crazy week around here. Last week, I spent Wednesday-Friday traveling down to Mobile for a funeral. While the reason for the visit was not the best, I so enjoyed being able to spend time with my grandparents. I just love their house, and I am totally spoiled while I am there. AND! My grandmother and I were able to plan for one of my wedding projects; I cannot wait to get it started.

Today I'm sharing a little bit of my time in Mobile as well as what we were up to this weekend (registering!). Oh, and I'll be giving you my 5 things. I was tagged last week by Emily and have been wanting to write this one up, so I'm glad to share it with you today!

Mobile: Grapefruit without the "white stuff" (thanks, PopPop!) / Silver at an antique store - my favorite patterns are Chantilly & Tara / Lunch in Fairhope @ Panini Pete's / Hair accessory for the wedding. The plan is to turn this vintage brooch and pair of earrings into a hair comb a la this (the earrings are held on either side...you can't even tell, right?!).

Weekend Update: I spent LOADS of time on Macys.com registering. Do you catch a glimpse of one of my patterns? / Best burger in the world @ Holeman & Finch at Turner Field. This is a real treat to Atlantans as the restaurant famously only serves 24 burgers per evening / A little Etsy treat from Bip & Bop for our engagement pictures (on Wednesday!) / FREE Zac Brown Band concert for the Final Four.

5 Things: 

1. I'm on spring break! I am cheating with this one, but it's just too exciting of a thing not to share. :) 

2. If I were to choose any job in the world, I would want to be a wedding planner. Ironically, I am struggling making decisions for my own big day. Things like a dress, venue, photog, etc, are done, but the smaller details are really bothersome! I'd love to have a Style Me Pretty wedding in which every little detail is covered, but I'm so far from that right now, I don't know if it will ever happen.

3. I studied abroad in London during college and hated every second of it. Truly, I was miserable. It turns out that I like seeing new places, but I'm not so good at being away from home. I learned to deal with it about a week before we left. I will say that London is a very neat place...although Paris will always have my heart. Paris, je 'taime.

4. I am terrible at both geography and math, but I could find my way around a city I've never been to without any problem. I have an awesome sense of direction that I pride myself on. I do not, however, know how to distinguish between my right and my left. I give directions by saying "turn at McDonald's towards the BP." I am thus terrible at directing another driver. Yes, I teach school...writing, though, people!

5. I love to read, and I have a HUGE book collection, but I have never read a book twice. Not my thing. I feel like it was too good the first time, so a second glance wouldn't do it justice. Don't tell my students. :)

So there ya have it: weekend update & 5 things! I'm tagging Sara (duh), Jenn (duh), Bri, Amy, & Laura.

Linking-Up with Leann for Monday Morning Gossip!

So, that One Time when I Redesigned my OWN Blog...

Notice anything different around here? You're looking at a brand new Probably Polka Dots! What started as a fun Saturday project to prevent me from going to the mall and spending money turned into a full-on redesign. Honestly, I had no idea what I was doing, and I still am not sure how a lot of this even happened. I googled "How to...." more than I can count and watched so many YouTube videos it's not even funny. I didn't even save any images of what the blog looked like on Friday because I accidentally updated the "real" blog instead of the "test" blog...and I forgot to back the original up. Thus, totally new design. Whoops.

Some things you'll notice: 

1. Social Media Buttons! I now have fancy circular buttons/logos for each of my social media platforms. This was my first project of the day, and it was easy breezy thanks to Carrie. My favorite one is for sure the Bloglovin' icon. Too cute and clever. 

2. Lack of over-all dots. Y'all. I love polka dots. You should see my closet, but my side bar ones just weren't doing it for me anymore. I made the switch to two clean rows of dots around my header. I hope you love the simplicity as much as I do! 

3. Amazing (if I do say so myself) pages and icons. There are a few surprises and modifications coming to PPD and these icons are just the beginning. Look for sponsorship information soon. I hope to have it up within the next few weeks!

So what do you think? Hopefully you like it because the old images are lost in the abyss of my computer, and I am too lazy to recover them :) Love y'all! 

P.S. I even made a favicon - and it's a peach - I am so knowledgeable AND cute...humble too.

Currently Coveting

I have tried to be SUPER good with not shopping or spending frivolously this month. I mean, can you believe that I went to Charleston last weekend and didn't spend a dime?! No really. I didn't buy anything to commemorate my trip. Mostly because I got the best souvenir ever, but also because I am broke broke broke. However, that doesn't stop my eyes from meandering across Pinterest, magazines, and Kate Spade new arrivals. Here is what I'm currently coveting:

NOTE TO SELF print / KATE SPADE watch / BRIGHTHOUSE BAUBLES suzanna necklace / KATE SPADE iphone case

Did you catch what I said up there about getting the best souvenir ever while on my trip? Want to see it? 

 

Yep! We're engaged! It happened on Friday the 15th in a quaint little courtyard in Charleston. We spent the rest of the weekend eating like kings, calling all of our friends and family, touring the city, and gawking at my newest accessory. It was perfect.

I definitely want to nab this print to add to our house somewhere; it would be a great constant reminder of our engagement. It's definitely on  my wish-list. 

P.S. Ryan is excited, too :)

Style Sessions & Random Wednesday

Oh lawd, I cannot believe I'm about to post pictures of myself on my own blog again. Y'all. If there is anything that gives me anxiety, it's this very thing. A few weekends ago, Hunter and his mom kindly walked me through an iPhone photo shoot (no fancy camera for me...yet) for my post on Style Elixir. I was so embarrassed the entire time, that there are more out-takes than there are quality images. But, I think this outfit, as simple as it is, is a great example of how I dress on a daily basis. So, I'm putting it out there. But, rest assured that if I had loads of money, I'd be shopping and looking just like every single one of my Friday's Fancies posts. 

I tend to wear pants a lot, so I try to jazz them up in any way I can. In this case, I chose a kelly green blouse (budget find!) and paired it with fun leopard loafers. These shoes have quickly become my favorite, but I definitely have a thing for flats...and heels...and wedges (haven't you seen my posts on Vine?!). For an added bit of color, I pulled out some punchy blue studs (thanks, Hollie!), and then kept the rest of my jewelry simple. I wear this watch and this bracelet daily, and I've been really into my monogram necklace layered with this one, too. Oh, and yes, I mix gold and silver...and I don't have any qualms about it! 

So there it is - or should I say, there I am. So tell me, what is your best example of your "actual" style?

I'm linking up with Shanna from Because Shanna Said So today for Random Wednesdays. Go over there and get some new reads!

I am also linking up with Lauren from Stylelixir for Style Sessions. Be sure to take a peek at this blog (which I'm sponsoring!) for some extra style advice from some very stylish ladies!

Random Wednesdays & Life Lately

Merry belated Christmas, y'all! 

Whew! It has been whirlwind few weeks for me. I absolutely love all of the parties and gatherings that abound during the holiday season, but I feel like I can finally take a few days to relax and enjoy a few of my presents (like this, this, and this). However, since it's been a little quiet around here lately, I thought I'd give you a glimpse into what I've been up to:

Sara & I hosted an Atlanta Blogger meet-up at Tootsie's boutique // I received an incredible swap package from Cammie 

I planned a dinner party for my friends and our annual Favorite Things Party // It was a blast!

The entire gang (11 of us!) went to see A Christmas Carol // One of the weekend's many indulgences: an Almond Joy Latte from West Egg 

I'm linking up with Shanna for Random Wednesdays today! Shanna is one of my favorite bloggers out there, so be sure to head over to her blog, show her some love, and find some other new reads. You won't regret it. 

#BlogshopATL

When I signed-up for Blogshop, I didn't really know what I was getting myself into. As of Friday night, yes, this past Friday night, I had not even opened Photoshop. At all. I knew that blogs like this, this, and this, had to use something more than I had been using (ahem, PowerPoint), and I knew that if I ever wanted my blog to get some serious readership, I needed to change something. I can say, without a doubt, that Blogshop was an investment, and step, in the right direction.

I was running a little bit late to day one...you know, I had to find the perfect thing to wear...dots & lots of color, of course!

Finding a Baggu full of goodies, this water bottle, and what I have dubbed, the Blogshop bible at my seat was a perfect way to greet us.

We immediately got to work transforming, masking, retouching, and saturating pictures (hello words I didn't know last week).

The SmileBooth provided a lot of fun for all of us and was a welcomed break when we'd had about all the "hold shift" we could take.

As dorky as it sounds, I was completely blog-struck by several of the women there. Not just Bri and Angela, who are rock stars in their own right, but women like Christina, a fantastic jewelry designer in Atlanta, Ali, who is the author of the first blog I ever followed religiously, Mandy who is launching Waiting on Martha, an online boutique, and Meghan, who was an immediate friend and works as a recipe developer (cool, huh?!). These women were inspiring to chat with and learn beside.

As a result of the class, I have a few new ideas that I am eager to start implementing soon! If you ever have a chance to go to Blogshop, DO IT without a bit of hesitation. What is there to lose?

(Well, maybe some of your dignity...)

5 for Five

Well hello there! I have been in blogland all weekend, and it. was. awesome. I learned so much at Blogshop and met a new friend or two, too. I want to give you a full re-cap and show-off some of my new skills later this week, so check back on Wednesday for a Blogshop post.

 

Today, I am linking-up with my blog/IRL friend Jenn for her 5 for Five. The idea is to post five things you want to accomplish this week, and reevaluate them next week to see how you did. Since I'm off of work this week, I thought it would be a good time to give it a try. Here it goes!

1. Sign-up for Elf for Health Holiday Challenge: So, I realized this weekend that I have fallen WAY off of the bandwagon for maintaining a healthy lifestyle. This summer, I went to the gym at least five days/week and was eating right too. I think this challenge will ease me back into good habits without cutting anything out cold turkey and might even jump-start my New Years Resolutions. Sign-up here!

2. Take Ryan (my dog) for a real walk 3 days this week: By real walk, I mean around the neighborhood, not just down the street. I have plenty of time, so hopefully I can get this done!

3. Make my returns happen: It never fails that when J.Crew has a sale, I feel like I need to buy something. I bought this top last week (in both colors, actually), but it sadly didn't fit. Ironically, I'm not all that disappointed, because I just think of it as getting money back.

4. Practice my new Photoshop skills: I learned so much this weekend, and I am ready to put some of it into practice. Hopefully you'll start seeing some changes around here...slowly, but surely!

5. Send out the Atlanta Blogger Meet-up Invites: So, Sara and I have been planning a blogger meet-up for months...literally. Hopefully invites are officially going out this week. Look for yours, and if we miss you for some reason, please let us know and we'll get one to you :) This event is going to be so much fun, and we want everyone to be there. Yay blogger friends!