4th of July!

It's tomorrow! Lots of fireworks and grilled meats and watermelon!!

The Walton's are coming in and I can only imagine how darling Rosemary is going to look and how excited Grant is going to be hop in the swimming pool!

 

What are your plans?

 

 

 



The World's Best Cleaning List

When I'm home during the summers I always start out my vacation by thinking...I'm going to be super productive but I'm going to set realistic goals. And then I remember that a.) my husband is a teacher too and that means he is here every single day until 3:30 when he goes to Football practice and b.) that I like my cats, sleeping, the food network and going to the pool much too much to actually work all day.

Well then I found this little gem:

I am obsessed! I love the blog it came from and I love the list!! I'll be honest, sometimes I do a little less than what is listed on each day and sometimes I do a little more. Because we don't have kiddos yet, I don't really need to do one load of laundry every day so some times I replace that with cleaning the litter box instead.  This list helps me to feel productive and happy. And best of all- the house is clean and I can enjoy the remainder of my day at the pool, watching food network or sleeping :-) Don't judge me.

Love & Peace.

Follow the yellow brick road....

Here are a few ways you can follow me when I'm not on the blog:

 

My Pinterest:

http://pinterest.com/lizevansfaust/boards/

 

 

My new Tumblr:
http://tampaprepster.tumblr.com/

 

 

My Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/lizevans

 

 

Add me, follow me, re-pin and re-blog to your hearts content.

 

Thanks for all the sweet emails, I'll try to get back on the blogging!

 

Love & Peace! 

Hello World!

Well as they say, I am a "Bad Blogger." I'm sorry friends, sometimes life just gets in the way.

 

In recent news, School is out for Summer and we are loving it! I'd like to think that this is the biggest reason I haven't been blogging- time flies when you're having fun!

 

The Coach and I just celebrated our FIRST wedding anniversary on Sunday. In some ways it feels like it flew past us and in other ways it feels like a completely natural progression of time.  We celebrated by heading to Clearwater beach for dinner at our favorite restaurant The Beachcomber.

When we go there I think about getting something different and then I always order the New Bedford Sea Scallops, broiled with a wedge salad and whipped potatoes. It's delicious- why fix what isn't broken?!?!

 The champagne was yummy too. I surprised the Coach by booking a night a our favorite little Inn on the beach in Clearwater and while it was nice not to have to drive back to Tampa it was pretty sad that the weather was ugly. Central Florida is getting pounded buy a couple of days of yucky gray skies and serious rain. SO we enjoy a light breakfast the next morning and headed home to sleep the rest of the day away at home with the Kitties.

 

 

Also exciting is that the Coach and I went to New Orleans about 2 weeks ago. One of my oldest friends and his wife live outside the city and we wanted to go visit them this summer. They showed us everything the city had to offer in 4 days. I'm sure there is still so much more to see but we were overly satisfied by the quality time with our friends and the rich culture that is New Orleans. If we are friends on FB then you have already seen these photos but here are a few for the blog followers alone...



Enjoying a treat at Café Du Monte



 

This was my favorite stop of the whole trip. It's a bar/restaurant called The Chimes in Covington just near their home.

 

Our sweet friends Alan and Jessica, who are expecting baby Tripp in October!

 

It was National Wear Your Lilly Day while we were on St. Charles Street, so I was sporting "You gotta regatta" and we were enjoying our daiquiris!
 

 Well, There is lots more to share but I'll leave you today with a picture of our new home :-) I know what you're thinking, "new home? didn't you just move to Tampa?"

The short answer is that after a year of prayer and 5 solid months of SEARCHING we found a home that is the perfect fit for us and what we hope to soon be our growing family...

 

Love & Peace.

 

Happy May!!

Just a couple updates on our life...

My dear sweet sister, Amanda, is in labor with her 3rd baby as I write this post!! That's right, Rosemary Grace Walton is preparing to join the world on "may day." With all the heartbreak the Walton's have had this year in losing their sweet baby girl Annabelle Elizabeth and then the loss of Rodney's incredible Mother- I'd say it's time for these dear hearts to have some JOY! Grant can't wait to be a big brother again! I'll let you know when she arrives!

The Coach and I are sickeningly happy. I think it's a disease to be this content all the time. He's preparing for his first season as the tight end coach at Armwood and I am preparing for a move to FIRST GRADE! That's right- I'm going to first grade in the fall and I'm so excited I could just die! I have so loved actually getting to teach kiddos to read this year (as opposed to last year when all I did was teach Reading Mastery, what a joke) that I know I will love taking the kiddos even further next year. It looks like I'll get about a third of my class again so that should be a blast. I love my babies this year. I will say that I am going to miss my Kindergarten team SO much. They have re-built me, they have embraced me and praised me. I have been able to teach the way I know is best and I have been appreciated for it. They are excellent teachers with so much to give, it has been SO refreshing.

No, we aren't pregnant.

We are still loving Florida. No snow, lots of sunshine and 30 minutes to the beach. What's not to love???

My birthday is on Monday so this is officially "Birthday Week!" Monday night was Walkin' Taco's for dinner and slurpees from 7/11 and last night was great gourmet burgers and a Chai Tea Latte from Starbucks. Tonight was the first night of spring practice so the Coach got home really late- dinner was on our own ( I had cereal and a hot dog- healthy, I know)  and as for my special treat, I guess I'll  have to wait and see what the Coach has planned! This weekend should be wonderful. We have a wedding, a date to Cinebistro and a trip to Tiffany's planned and not to mention a visit Orlando to hold my darling baby niece Rosie and hug on my sweet Sis.
 

I hope you're all happy as clams!

Love & Peace!

Sunday Wisdom.

{via}

 

Love & Peace

200th Post :-)

200 Posts! Who knew?

 I don't have the time or energy to make a list of the 200 things I love the most so I thought I'd settle for 20!

 

1. Tampa

This picture is from Valentine's Day weekend...Seriously. It was warm, sunny and we were at the beach. How can you NOT love this city??

This is what our neighborhood looks like at Christmas. No ice, no brown snow. Just a pastel sunset, and some decorations. #Heavenonearth

 

2. My family

I love this picture. Even though everyone is hurting deeply over the loss of our sweet Annabelle, we stood together as a family and my sister was the strongest of us all. I'll never, ever be able to repay the debt I owe her for the incredible service she did for me by standing at my side exactly two weeks after the death of her child. She is the truest representation of a Godly woman.

 

3. Being Married to the Coach

These are our first steps as husband and wife- out of the bubble that was our wedding ceremony and into the real world. So far, so good!

 

4. My "zipzip"

I know this picture is ugly because it's in the garage- but it's rainy today so I didn't pull her into the driveway. Y'all, I love this car. I know it's stupid but she's so cute and she's so zippy (I'm sure my Dad hates that I just wrote that) but it really is a little sports car. This car is such a good model BMW. The 2002, 2003, 2004 & 2005 3-series (mine is a 2003) cars got the best safety ratings of any luxury cars that year. It has a great back seat and pretty grey leather. I'm sure a car seat will fit nicely in there...someday.

 


My new monogram sticker in the back window. Clearly this car belongs to Elizabeth Evans Faust :-)

 

5. Jeremiah and Sophia, the worlds most low maintenance cats.

Rough life they have.

 

6. ANYthing Personalized

7. Lilly Pulitzer

8. Naps

9. Pandora

 

10. My School/My job

I mean check out that view?

 

11. SWEETS!!!!!!!!

 

12. Summer

 

 

13. Things that haven't changed.

Beef and Noodles at Grandma Craig's house. Grandpa Craig used the cut noodles, then it was my Dad and now it's The Coach.

 

14. The Kentucky Derby

This was my 21st birthday. I was born on May 6th so I was definitely a "Derby Baby." My Dad took my sister, my best friend Staci and me to the Derby that year and I look forward to going back ON my 30th birthday with my Husband :-)

 

15. Peppermint Tea

16. Birthdays

17. Southern Living's Wedding Magazine

18. Pink things

19. Pinterest

 

 

 

20. Rosemary Grace Walton

That would be my sister, Amanda in this picture with me and that bump on her belly is Rosemary Grace Walton- "Baby Rosie" is due to enter the world on May 1st. And we couldn't be more thrilled. We all miss Annabelle so much and we are glad that Grant will have a baby sister again. On our refrigerators we have lavender and white rose shaped magnets- they reminds us to pray for Amanda and Rosie whenever we see them and so I ask you, my blog family to do the same. When you are out shopping and see rose covered stationary or you're at the grocery and walk by the florist or perhaps when you see a rose pin the next time you're at the mall, please take just a second to lift up my sister, this baby girl and our family up in prayer. The support is more appreciated than you could ever know!

 

I hope you all have/had a wonderful Palm Sunday. I leave you, friends, with a few pictures of our morning here in the Sunshine state...which is uncharacteristically cloudy today.

 

Love & Peace.

 

"Bacado" Omlet at First Watch. So Delish.

 

Sunday morning Coach :-)

 

Recycled Lilly P. Don't judge.

 

I have a creamer problem....2 cups of coffee, 6 cups of creamer. So bad.