Guest Post: Laurie from The Brothertons Blog

Hey guys, I have another guest post for y'all! This girl is so sweet, funny and always has a great story to tell. Enjoy!

hiya! i'm so excited caroline asked me to introduce myself to you. i'm laurie brotherton. my better half is mitch, M for short. we have two fur babies, kodi & maggie. together, we are The Brotherton's.

now that spring is in full swing here, we can be found outside on the lake, grilling out or hiking the mountains of northern georgia. spring also allows me to pull out my more flattering clothes, unlike the bulky winter coats, giant infinity scarfs &, my personal favorite, the beanie. now with the warmer weather i can wear more skirts, cute sandals &, once i get back to the gym, the occasional bikini ;)

& thanks to caroline's awesome sense of style, i know just what trends are up & coming :)

what are your favorite pieces to wear this spring?

blog // twitter // instagram // bloglovin

i'd love to meet you all. come by & say hello!

thank you caroline for asking me to share with your wonderful readers. you rock!

Thanks again for sharing Laurie!

Linking up with: Just Because, GFC, Tea On Tuesday, Style Elixir, Tasteful Tuesday, Style Statement Tuesday, Taste of Tuesday, What We Wore, Made and Read, Real Girl Style, Wardrobe Wednesday, Too Cute Tuesday, BlogLovin'

Guest Post: Naomi from Patterned Love

Hey girls! I'll be busy all week so I will be having some guests pop over and talk on my blog this week. One of my favorite girls who knows everything about refashioning and great outfit ideas will be sharing today!

 Hey Love Caroline readers! Thanks so much for letting me pop in and tell you about myself.

First things first... I'm Naomi & I love coffee. 

(That's where the crowd comes in and says, "Hi, Naomi" in a monotone way.)

Yep, I live on coffee. From 6am till 9pm I'm usually sipping a cup-o-Joe.

I live in the Northwest, home of wonderful coffee. It's also land of baggy jeans and sweatshirts (in my opinion). People sometimes walk around in pajama pants (which I'm not saying I've never done...but I was a teenager at the time and didn't know any better.) So with the thought of not wanting to look sloppy, I started shopping. Way To Much. Through a series of events, I embarked on a full year of no shopping to break the cycle of ridiculous over-shopping. My only source of any new additions to my closet was to make it myself out of something I already owned (or that was handed down from friends). Because of that, I started sewing more. Sewing has grown to be a love of mine. It's so fun to create something. After my year of being cut off from the purchasing world, I decided to step inside a thrift store and see what I could find. And I haven't turned back since. I grew to love to DIY and refashion thrifted clothes. In fact I just went to Target to get some basics and it was almost painful to pay full price. But I found an amazing dress and got over that pretty quick.

Even though I had a moment of paying full price, I really love thrifting more. I love the idea of making something old into something  new, making something ugly into something pretty and fun. I absolutely love the idea of paying $4 for pants! Patterned Love is a place I started to document my thrift, DIY, refashion, and hand-made closet.

 Now that you know I'm a coffee addict and thrift store enthusiest here's a few more fun facts:

1. I love chapstick

2. I collect mugs... Rather drink from a mug than a cup or a glass.

3. I watch Project Runway as if it were not an option.

4. I am a proud daughter of an amazing mother.

5. I think all tall ladies should wear heels! Don't be shy my tall friends!

 

Thanks so much for sharing today Naomi! Don't forget to check out her blog at Patterned Love!

 

Linking up with: Peacoats and Plaid, More the Merrier, Monday Mingling, Sami's Shenanigans, Monday Morning Gossip, I Love Bloglovin, Life Lately, This Weekend I, Sweet Sharing Monday, Monday Meet Up, My Greatest Hits, Monday Mingle, Monday Bloom

Nautical Stripes

1. Blue and White Striped Dress Forever 21
2. Red Wedges Target
3. Red and Gold Beaded Headband Forever 21
4. Black Anchor Charm Necklace Forever 21
5. Black Anchor Charm Ring
6. Aperifit Essie Polish Target

There has been a series trend lately of nautical stripes going on and I love it! It's spring and warm weather is coming, so it's the perfect appearance for nautical stripes and ships and anchors! I'm totally loving this dress I found at Forever 21 that is perfect for sailing or even a picnic. Target's killer red wedges are perfect to pair with the dress and look amazing! The anchor accessories are too cute too, and are perfect to wear with a nautical dress or even navy crop pants and a cute nautical striped top. I really want to go on a picnic now and wear this cute outfit.

Green + Pink

top: Target 

pants: Target

cardigan: Target

shoes: Bakers Similar

bracelet: Gift 

Something about warm weather just makes me want to wear all bright colors. I've noticed that I've been wearing more bold pinks and blues in my outfits. As a result, some of my darker colors have been just chilling in my closet. So, I decided to wear my dark green pants with a bright pink top.

I'm all about using my wardrobe to it's full use, so I'm going to be trying to mix and match dark and bright colors for great outfits. I would hate to think some of my clothes don't feel loved.

What We Wore, Made and Read, Wardrobe Wedensday, Your Whims Wednesday, Doing You Well Wednesday, Dress For the Day, Fresh Fashionista,Wordless Wednesday Bloggers, The Pleated Poppy, Rolled up Pretty, Because Shanna Said So, Tucker Up, Transatlantic Blonde, This Girls Life Blog, Taingamala, Whatever Works Wednesday, Penniless Socialite, Casual Chic Mom, Two Thirty-five Designs, Lily Among Thorns, Watch Out for the Woestmans, NQTY, Fancy Things, Fashion Informant, Keeping It Casual, Get Your Pretty On

Pineapple Banana Sorbet

I'm all about simple and easy recipes that taste great! My sister found a recipe today that fits both of those descriptions while she was on Pinterest. You gotta love Pinterest! The recipe is for a pineapple banana Summer Sorbet. My sister made the sorbet and it tasted amazing! It's just like homemade ice cream! Here's the recipe!

 Pineapple Banana Sorbet Ingredients

1. 2 bananas (fresh) 
2. 1 1/2 cups frozen pineapple 
3. 1/2 cup lemon juice 
4. 1/3 cup maple syrup optional sub: try coconut milk instead of lemon juice for an ultra creamy sorbet (not fat free) 

Directions

1. Add all ingredients to a high speed/high quality blender like a Vitamix.
2. Slightly thaw the frozen fruit so that it easily blends - but is still frosty. 
3. Blend until smooth. Keep it as thick and frosty as possible. 
4. Pour into a chilled metal container and chill until firm. 
5. Scoop and enjoy! 

This is the perfect ice cream recipe for summer! It's simple and takes less than 5 minutes to make and tastes great! Hope you try it out!

Linking up with: Just Because, GFC, Tea On Tuesday, Style Elixir, Tasteful Tuesday, Style Statement Tuesday, Taste of Tuesday, What We Wore, Made and Read, Real Girl Style, Wardrobe Wednesday, Too Cute Tuesday, BlogLovin'

H54F: Prayers

Here are the five highs of my week.

1. I have really enjoyed the Bible study quiet times for this week.

2. My best friend bought me this bag while she was on vacation in Colorado. I absolutely love it! It's handmade and beautiful.

3. Finally started using detangler spray. My hair is getting super long and it takes about 10 minutes to brush it after I shower, so detangler spray has really helped me save time.

4. Chapstick,  enough said. It's amazing and perfect for dry weather!

5. I've been reading my favorite author, Tracie Peterson's book A Lady of High Regard. 

P.S. I'm so glad that the Boston Marathon bomber has been caught and am still praying for all the people affected by the bombings, and shootings.

Linking up with: BlogLovin, Aloha Blog Hop, GFC Blog Hop, Friday Blog Hop, Friday Fancies, FFF, Casual Friday, Friday Chaos, Find + Follow Friday

Honoring God

 via

Tonight at my Bible study at church we talked about how we, as Christians, are called to honor God with our lives. One of the questions that my Bible study leader addressed, was "what does it mean to honor God?" The answers we came up with were respecting God, and giving him the recognition he deserves. Those two things alone are hard. It's difficult to give someone the respect they deserve and even more so to give God the recognition he is required.

As Christians, everything we do shows honor to God. One of the specific things that we talked about that shows God honor, is our mouths. It's hard to live a life of honor to God when Christians around the world constantly say unkind words or unkind things. It's ruins a Christians witness to have an unclean mouth and hurts God. Whenever I hear people that I know are Christians saying unwholesome words or unkind things, it really hurts me as a Christian. I know no one is perfect, but God calls Christians to be set apart from others and I that especially means in the way we talk.

One way that my group leader said Christians could hold each other accountable and stay pure is fellowship with other believers. Romans 12:5 says, "So in Christ, we who are many form one body, and each member belong to all the others." This verse is the perfect example of how Christians are supposed to spend time with other believers. Another verse we read, was 1 Thessalonians 5:11 and it says, "So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing." Through fellowship with other believers we are worshiping God in what we, as Christians do, and that's what I want to do. I want to honor God with all I am.

 Linking up with: Blog Stalking Thursday, Thumping Thursday, Blog Lovin' Hop, Look What I Got, It's Ok Thursday, Thankful Thursdays, Thankful Thursday F4, Show and Tell

Teal + Maroon

Top: Target

Pants: Target

Shoes: Toms

 I got this top from Target last month for my birthday and I'm in love with it! It has lace sides and a lace back and is so cute and perfect for spring! I can't wait to wear it again style it with some coral  shorts! This top is now in my Target collection in my closet. I can never get enough Target!

I'm also obsessed with my Toms! There almost a year and a half old, but I still love them. I probably need to get some new ones though or place patches on these.

What We Wore, Made and Read, Wardrobe Wedensday, Your Whims Wednesday, Doing You Well Wednesday, Dress For the Day, Fresh Fashionista,Wordless Wednesday Bloggers, The Pleated Poppy, Rolled up Pretty, Because Shanna Said So, Tucker Up, Transatlantic Blonde, This Girls Life Blog, Taingamala, Whatever Works Wednesday, Penniless Socialite, Casual Chic Mom, Two Thirty-five Designs, Lily Among Thorns, Watch Out for the Woestmans, NQTY, Fancy Things, Fashion Informant, Keeping It Casual, Get Your Pretty On

Apple Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Apple oatmeal raisin cookies are the perfect treat! There a great snack, and the perfect dessert! Here's how I make them.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup quick oats (Not Instant)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (1 Medium Lemon)
• 1 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
• 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) salted butter, softened
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 cup fresh apple, peeled and finely chopped (1 Medium Apple)
• 6 ounces raisins (About 1 Cup)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
2. Combine all dry ingredient in a medium bowl until mixed well.
3. Cream sugar and butter together in a large bowl using an electric mixer. Add egg, applesauce and honey and mix at medium speed until smooth.
4. Add the flour mixture, fresh apple, raisins, and blend at low speed until mixed well. Dough will be soft.
5. Drop rounded tablespoons onto an ungreased cookie sheet 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until golden brown.

 Hope you enjoy making some healthy apple oatmeal raisin cookies!

 




Linking up with: Just Because, GFC, Tea On Tuesday, Style Elixir, Tasteful Tuesday, Style Statement Tuesday, Taste of Tuesday, What We Wore, Made and Read, Real Girl Style, Wardrobe Wednesday, Too Cute Tuesday, BlogLovin'

H54F

 
(Pictures from the past 2 weeks)

Here are five highs of my past two weeks.

1. I ate some amazing dump cake these past week two, and it was delicious! It's the best dessert ever!
2. Apples are great snack and are perfect in chicken salad.
3. Loving that I can wear my cute grey wedges and that's it's warming up!
4. Wore some bracelets that my friend got me.
5. Loving my gold sequin sandals.

Hope y'all have had a great week! I'm really looking forward to the weekend!

Linking up with Lauren for high five for friday, and Katherine for Fresh Friday

Follow my blog with bloglovin

 

Coral + Navy

1. Coral Dress Forever 21
2. Navy Flats Forever21
3. Pearl Flower Headband Forever 21
4. Gold Arrowhead Necklace Forever 21
5. Gold Cuff Forever 21
6. East Hampton Cottage Essie Polish Target

My favorite color of all time is orange, so I love everything that's orange! When I saw this coral dress I knew it was perfect for spring and was the perfect color for any orange/coral lovers out there like me. The dress has a great fit and I love the cinched waist. After finding the perfect coral dress, shoes were the next step to a great outfit. I love flats, but sometimes it takes me a while to completely fall in love with a pair. With the pair I chose for this outfit, I knew they were perfect! I love the navy color and the peep toe!

I love accessories too, especially cute necklaces, and cool looking cuffs! I'm also a lover of nail polishes. There are so many nail polish colors that you could own one for every piece of clothing you own. But, I'm not a fanatic about buying them, except specific colors that I love and know I will wear over again. East Hampton Cottage by Essie is one of those nail polishes I would choose. The color of the nail polish reminds me of a soft pale rose and it goes with pretty much anything. Do you like this nail polish too?

Linking up with: BlogLovin, Aloha Blog Hop, GFC Blog Hop, Friday Blog Hop, Friday Fancies, FFF, Casual Friday, Friday Chaos, Find + Follow Friday

Pink + Blue

1st Outfit

Top: Target

Cardigan: Target Similar

Skirt: Jcp

Bracelet: Icing

Shoes: Gift

2nd Outfit

Top: Target

Cardigan: Target Similar

Jeans: Target

 Bracelet: Icing

Shoes: Gift

This past Sunday I wore both of these outfits. I usually wear a skirt or dress for church, but I don't like wearing skirts all day, so I try to make a second outfit with some of the same pieces I wore for church. I wore a cute pink v-neck and a white cardigan to church, so they were the perfect pieces of my church outfit to use in my second outfit for the rest of the day.

Both of these outfit are pretty much all from Target. I seriously have a Target problem. I always leave with something when I go. They have such cute clothes and I love their house decor! Glad I got that off my chest.

I got some colored jeans a while back and this is my reveal of the blue colored jeans that I got. They are perfect for spring and summer and look so cute rolled up. I'm totally in love with them and love paring them with new things!

xo
Caroline
What We Wore, Made and Read, Wardrobe Wednesday, Your Whims Wednesday, Doing You Well Wednesday, Dress For the Day, Fresh Fashionista,Wordless Wednesday Bloggers, The Pleated Poppy, Rolled up Pretty, Because Shanna Said So, Tucker Up, Transatlantic Blonde, This Girls Life Blog, Taingamala, Whatever Works Wednesday, Penniless Socialite, Casual Chic Mom, Two Thirty-five Designs, Lily Among Thorns, Watch Out for the Woestmans, NQTY, Fancy Things, Fashion Informant, Keeping It Casual, Get Your Pretty On