Have I mentioned how much I love Valentine’s Day?  Ok, so I have….in all my recent posts.  I’m a hopeless romantic and I love L-O-V-E!  And when I became a mom, Valentine’s wasn’t just about romantic love anymore because it was just about love in general and showing that love to the most important people in your life.  Sure, we do this everyday, or should.  But I love a holiday that encourages us celebrate it and to show it and say it more often.  I make a big deal out of this holiday, like with the 14 Days of Valentine’s tradition that I do for our kids.  I also love putting together a fun Valentine’s bar cart with sweet treats for the entire family as well.  So that’s what I’m sharing with you today!

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Click here to read my full disclosure policy.  All opinions are my own.

Our Family Theme Song

This little family of mine LOVES music!  We dance and sing in the kitchen at nights around dinner time, we sing in the car, and we have a family “theme song”.  Our favorite for years now has gone something like this….

“I belong with you, you belong with me….”

“…you’re my sweetHEART!”

The Lumineers put out this song in 2012 and we’ve loved it ever since!  You can watch the music video HERE if you’re not familiar with it!

One day, while browsing Instagram, I stumbled upon the feed of the cutest little shop called Paris312.  I saw this “Ur My Sweetheart” balloon set and knew I had to have it for my family’s bar cart this year.  It includes all the balloons that you see in this space.
(You can see last year’s cart here.)
I reached out to them and they were kind enough to send me this set and guess what?  My family went NUTS over it!!!  Seriously, their faces and squeals (even the boys) made it even more fun!  It was the best surprise and it was meaningful, so it made it that much more special.

Paris312 has so many ADORABLE balloon sets and lots of party decorations that are to die for!  Make sure to check them out for your next event!  You can still order TODAY for Valentine’s.

I grabbed my favorite vintage cart and started loading it up with sweets to surprise them.

I grabbed some pretty glasses and made “Sweetheart Floats”.  To make a Sweetheart Float, you simply add a big scoop of vanilla ice cream to your glass and then top it off with strawberry soda (I used Crush brand).  I might love it more than a rootbeer float!

Beautiful fresh flowers were essential!

I grabbed a few apothecary jars and filled them with gumballs…

…white rock candy, and blush-wrapped candies.  I was thrilled to find those last ones!  Ghirardelli came out with a creme brûlée white chocolate that came wrapped in blush AND they were on sale so I grabbed all 6 bags that were left.  Aren’t they so pretty?! They’re delicious too!

I keep pretty napkins for all occasions so I pulled out these adorable blush heart ones I found at HomeGoods last year.

I grabbed these vintage gold-rimmed milk glass plates that I recently purchased from an estate sale.  I just adore them.

So that’s the top shelf.  For the bottom shelf….

I made vanilla cupcakes with vanilla bean buttercream frosting and put them on a gold cake stand.  It used to be silver but I sprayed it last year. Don’t be afraid to do that.  I also found these adorable blush and silver glittery scalloped cupcake wrappers at HomeGoods so I grabbed every package.  They’ll last me for several celebrations, I’m so glad!  They’re just too cute!

More fresh flowers on the bottom shelf.

Now these babies…these were really fun!  If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen my IG stories the other night and that Brooklyn and I were baking something fun.  We tried these heart macarons and they were sooooo fun!  We’ve baked macarons, like these, and many others before but we’ve never baked heart macarons.

They’re not only adorable but they are sooooooooo delicious!  The filling was my favorite yet and I can’t wait to share the recipe with you!  I’ll be posting it tomorrow so please make sure to check back!  There’s an easy secret to it and you’re going to love it.

Doesn’t that all look delicious?!  It was a really fun surprise for my family. So, make sure to check back tomorrow for the Heart Macaron Recipe and keep coming back because I have some fabulous Galentine’s Ideas AND another fun family idea to share.  If you haven’t already read my Valentine’s Apparel, Gifts & Decor post, it’s a must!  Soooo many fun and fabulous ideas for you and for your home and friends and it’s not too late to order for Valentine’s Day.

Click on arrows to scroll right and left.  Click on item picture to shop.

Welcome To Our Monthly Blog Hop

Kim & Lacey | Styled With Lace

Summer | Summer Adams

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Sheila | Maison de Cinq

Jackie | Finding Lovely

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Ashley | Modern Glam

Judy | Life Is Better At Home

Rhonda | Hallstrom Home

Martha | Simple Cozy Charm

Gloribell | Know How She Does It

Please make sure to visit my talented friends above and see what they’re sharing today!

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xoxo,

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The post Fun Valentine’s Bar Cart For The Entire Family appeared first on Summer Adams.

In less than a month, Valentine’s Day will be here.  Yippee!  After Christmas, it’s my second favorite holiday.  I love pink and red, blush tones, heart candies, and all things love and romance.  I make a big deal of the holiday with my family, not only on Valentine’s Day but for the entire 2 weeks preceding it.  When February 1st arrives, I start the 14 Days of Valentine’s for my kids and it is the most fun tradition.  Make sure to check those posts out.  Today, I have a post to also help you get ready.  I’m sharing Valentine’s Day apparel and accessories, gifts and decor!  Ladies, you might want to forward this post to your hubbies and give them some ideas.

This post contains affiliate links for your shopping convenience.
Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

I hope this has given you ideas!  When February 1st arrives, I wear heart t-shirts and sweatshirts, lip-printed blouses and sweater…I just love to be festive, in a fashionable way.

I would love it if you subscribed at the top of the page in order to receive my weekly emails of all my latest blog posts and hear about digital printables & freebies, as well as sales or new items in My Online Shoppe.  You can also follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to see what I’m up to in creating a home and lifestyle of inspiration!

xoxo,

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The post Valentine’s Day Apparel, Gifts & Decor appeared first on Summer Adams.

I recently helped a client of mine take her home from drab to fab. One of her biggest complaints about her home, before I helped her with the interior decorating, was that her home was so “plain” and “boring” and there was “nothing fancy”. She didn’t know what elements to add to make it a little more glamorous and sophisticated. She felt that her home was too rustic and casual and masculine. I decided to bring her to my home, since she didn’t live very far, to walk her around and show her what I do and then it inspired this blog post. So here are examples of a dozen ways to add glam to your home.

Add large pretty plush pillows to your sofas and bed. Ditch the pillows that come with your sofa. Look at your favorite home decor stores for those full and comfortable pillows that catch your eye. Maybe they have pretty details or trim or designs.

See more of this room HERE.

They can have lace or ruffles, velvet, sequin, floral prints, or even faux fur. Look for something that adds that soft, feminine touch to those large and masculine sofas.

More on this table and the special dinner we had HERE.

Use pretty pieces to set your table. Finding pieces like elegant goblets, maybe some new silverware or goldware, or using lovely chargers or placemats can transform your table. Shop for new sets that match and put aside your plastic cups when you have company. If you’ve been married for a while and you’re still using the place settings you registered for and they are half-missing…it’s time to find some new sets. I love my family dinners on Sundays, when we have company for dinner, or other special occasions because I like to set a pretty table and add a little glam. My family just loves it. Not only that, but my kids learn how to set a proper table and my daughter is learning how to create a lovely tablescape.

Image via Pottery Barn

Choose chandeliers that sparkle or have a more romantic style. Maybe your husband has liked a ceiling fan or maybe you have the chandelier or pendant lights that came with your home when you purchased it. Well, it’s time to make a change! They don’t have to be the most expensive thing out there. Converting a ceiling fan, or putting in a brand new chandelier is easy and often inexpensive with the help of electricians Brookhaven or a similar company. You won’t regret it, there’s nothing like a little sparkle or a chandelier with a “wow” factor to add some glam to a room, not to mention the enhanced natural and artifical lighting when you need it. To help you find some gorgeous lighting for your home, I’ve shared some great budget-friendly options in this post: How To Pick Chandeliers For Your Home. Here are some of those favorites, including this one above that I’m purchasing for our new home:

See more on this entry way HERE.

Find mirrors with more ornate details. While I love a simple-trimmed mirror and appropriate in certain spaces, depending on the style you’re going for, a more ornate or detailed mirror is always a way to add more glam to a simple space.

This gorgeous Venetian mirror, from Rach Purcell, is another lovely example and another one on my “New Home” shopping list. Here are some other fabulous examples:

Fill your home with pretty fresh or faux flowers. There is nothing like having the loveliest flowers in your home to soften a space and add some glam. You can put them in a pretty vase, champagne bucket, or even a lovely pitcher. Treat yourself!

Create a beautiful vanity just for you. I recently shared my Updated Vanity Makeover and how I wanted to make a small change to this space. Every girl deserves a glamorous space to sit and put on her makeup, put on her jewelry, and spritz some lovely perfume before she heads out the door. Ruffle throw blanket is sold HERE in my online shoppe.

Another post, called The Prettiest Vanities, is where I share how you can achieve that glam vanity that you want. You definitely want to check it out! I have lots of fabulous shopping links for mirrors and vanities and accessories to glam them up!

See more on this gorgeous space HERE.

Add a touch of faux fur around the house. Faux fur automatically make a space feel more romantic and cozy. Everywhere I turn, I’m seeing faux fur rugs, pillows, table runners, throw blankets…the list goes on. Just like a woman might throw on a glamorous fur coat, the trend of adding faux fur adds the same, sexy feel to a room. If you love this chair (blush is always glamorous to me) you can shop the link under the picture for a ton of blush decor.

Decorate with mercury glass candlesticks, vases, or candles. When I shared this DIY Bathroom Shelving in our Vegas home, I wanted a rustic glam look. To add the “glam”, I chose some really lovely pieces to decorate with, including mercury glasses candles, vases and bottles.

I love using my mercury glass candle sticks all year long but they were especially fun HERE during fall as I brought them all down to our family room coffee table.

And they were perfect HERE for a candle-lit dinner at Christmas.

Choose french cottage vintage pieces over rustic pieces, when antique shopping. These gorgeous french cane-back dining chairs were a fabulous find and the perfect option to bring that glamorous and romantic look to my elegant dining table, seen HERE at Christmas. Can you imagine how different this room would look if I’d used cross-back chairs (which I do love but not appropriate for the look I was going for) or something modern? Now, you can add glam to any style! However, the french cottage-style pieces of furniture will really give that elegant look and can add a lot to a more modern room. By mixing styles like that, you are decorating in a “transitional” style.

I did that in my Living Room, choosing to mix my vintage ivory tufted sofa with a more modern coffee table.

Of course, if you follow me on Instagram, you know I’ve changed the side tables and lamps and art and sconces again around Valentines, ha! I’m always changing things around!

Switch out ordinary drawer knobs and pulls for fancier ones. In Brooklyn’s Tween Bedroom Makeover, I shared her painted vintage dresser and how I changed out the boring knobs for these lovely brass and glass ones.

I even switched out all the ones below to these gold mercury glass knobs. Don’t they just make it look that much more elegant and feminine?! I’m doing the same thing to my nightstands in my bedroom and I think it’s going to look fabulous.

Dress up your windows. In my home, I used white linen-like curtains to outfit the downstairs. However, I wanted something a little more glamorous and elegant in my dining room. I found some gorgeous floral print curtains that were still neutral and would go well in that room and be okay when I added pops of color. I really love the way they changed the feel of the room.

In my bedroom, I added these silver dupioni silk curtains to dress up the room. Dupioni silk is always so luxurious and glamorous.

My office has these gorgeous blush silk curtains that I made after visiting a fabric store one day. This is a very feminine and glamorous space all of my own.

See more on Brooklyn’s bedroom HERE during Christmas.

Brooklyn’s room had a makeover when we moved and these blush curtains were also perfect to add glam to her room. Cotton or twill just wouldn’t have done the job. It would have been too ordinary and simple.

See more on my Adding Glam To Christmas Decor HERE.

Leopard is always in style and always chic. There’s nothing like a pop of leopard to add a touch of glam to any space. Even the most masculine spaces can become glamorous with just something as simple as a leopard rug or leopard pillows or a leopard chair.

I’m so glad you stopped by and I hope you feel inspired and ready to add more glam to your home and I hope you understand exactly how you’ll do it. Go shopping! Think of these helpful tips as you are shopping here online or are out and about, browsing from store to store.

I would love it if you subscribed at the top of the page in order to receive my weekly emails of all my latest posts. You can also follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to see what I’m up to in creating a home and lifestyle of inspiration! See you soon!

xoxo,

*affiliate links used

The post A Dozen Ways To Add Glam To Your Home appeared first on Summer Adams.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again….I LOVE “love”!  Valentine’s Day is one of my favorite holidays because I get to show an extra amount of love, being extra conscious of telling and showing my family and friends what they mean to me.  I’m sure the commercial side of any holiday is profitable and loves holidays and encourages us to make a bigger deal of them for their sake, but I truly don’t care because after all….it’s the true meaning of the holiday that really counts.  So let’s celebrate L-O-V-E!  (cue song by Nat King Cole)

Some fabulous blogger friends of mine often get together on a monthly basis and share with all of you, whatever it is we are doing or celebrating.  Today we are giving you a tour of our homes all decked out with Valentine’s Day Decor.  We all have different styles and loves for certain colors and textures so I really love seeing what everyone shares.  There’s so much inspiration! So, WELCOME if you’re coming from Kim & Lacey’s blog Styled With Lace.  Aren’t their homes soooo dreamy?! I love everything they do!  Welcome to all my regular readers and I’m so grateful you keep coming back for more fun and inspiration! Come with me into my living room!

I kept my living room pretty bright and white, as usual, and kept the blush tones.  I also kept all my gold and silver mercury glass candle holders and sparkly candles out from Christmas, to keep that ambience of romance and glam.

I removed my large piece of art with warm tones and replaced it with a lighter piece.  I also removed the leopard pillows that I love and put them somewhere else.  I wanted to keep this room light and soft.

I wish I could find this wooden heart wreath for you somewhere!  I always get asked about it.  I found it at Target a few years ago and still love it.  It has a touch of gold glitter (I should have gotten a close-up).  You can find the Vintage Letter Banner (I also used HERE recently) in my online shoppe and spell out any word or phrase.

It’s always a nice, pretty spot to sit and relax and write “love notes” or watch an old romance movie.

Shop this room below:

In the kitchen nook, I decided to keep my vintage tea cart here in the corner after our Soda Shoppe Valentine’s Family Night that we threw for our kids one night.  I like it here!  It’s fun to decorate and since I always keep a candy bar or sweets out this time of year, it’s the perfect place to display it all.

This “rose gold” or blush love mylar balloon I bought last year is the cutest addition for this little corner.  My friend Tanya at A Darling Daydream has the same balloon and when I saw her use it above her cute cart, it inspired me to use it the same way. Her entire party she threw for her family was out-of-control gorgeous and you need to go see it!!!  Then, Amy at Pearl & Jane sent me THE CUTEST garlands!  Here’s how I used one of them.  This mini gold sequin XO garland is the perfect thing to hang right below this fun love balloon.

It’s still cold some days here in Dallas (in between all the fabulous warm ones) so I keep the hot chocolate and mugs out to make a cup whenever anyone desires.  Gumballs, heart biscuits, rock candy, vanilla meringues…

…and some mini angel food bundt cakes make this the perfect place to take care of that sweet tooth.  Sweets for my sweets!

Of course, I had to add lots of pretty rose sprays!  Roses make everything prettier!

Shop this room below:

Let’s head on over to my Dining Room!

This is such a bright space with the bay windows and I like it staying that way instead of getting too busy.  So, all I added was the simple glitter “love” garland and miniature faux rose wreath on my china cabinet.

That being said, I love to set a really fun table for Valentine’s Day for my family!  It changes every year but it’s always fun and festive.  We celebrate together on Valentine’s Day and have a really great night together.  It usually involves a heart-shaped pizza, a chocolate fountain with all sorts of delicious dippers, and other yummy things!  Oh, and presents!  I love to wrap and give them fun gifts.  I feel like it’s a mini Christmas.

This year’s table was inspired by those adorable garlands by Pearl & Jane.

My dear friends Ashley and Susan shared them in their Valentine’s posts and I had to have them.

The little pink felt lips, gold sequin hearts, felt ball and heart garland, and rose gold sequin XO garland were just all so so cute together.  It added that fun element I wanted since this is our dinner with the kids.  And of course…it sparkles.  Win win!  I love that I can use these banner throughout the year for occasions other than just Valentine’s Day.  I’ll use them for baby or bridal showers, birthdays, our anniversary, or even in Brooklyn’s room.

More fresh roses and these ones smelled OH SO GOOD!  This gold vase was a fun DIY.  It was a clear glass vase from Home Goods that had some faux flowers in them with that clear resin that looks like water.  Well, I needed the faux floral in them for something else so instead of getting rid of this and tossing it, I just sprayed it gold.  I needed a gold vase so it was the perfect solution.

I used my blush chargers with gold flatware, or “goldieware” as I like to call it.  I grabbed my blush sequin runner and gold mercury glass candleholders too and do you see those leopard pillows in the background? I told you I moved them from my living room and into here for a fun accent.

But these blush sequin dinner napkins, from my friend Nicky Sinclair and her adorable online shop called Composition Lane, were the icing on the cake!  They are to die for and they compliment the garlands and chargers and runner and everything so perfectly.  My kids walked in the door from school and started saying how “awesome” and “fun” and “cute” this table was and their friends’ jaws were on the floor.  It was cute.  And let me just say…..yes there’s sequins and sparkle and shiny mercury glass here.  But this was so so simple to put together.  I love buying pieces throughout the year that I know I’ll use often and then mix and match linens and serve ware and home accents to create totally different looks.

Ok, one of my favorite things for this simple but FUN Valentine’s table are these keys. Last summer I went to my friends’ barn sale and bought a ton of fun vintage treasures, including a handful of brass skeleton keys.  They were so cute and I knew I could use them so many different ways.  But, being the hopeless romantic that I am, I immediately thought of using them with this “You hold the key to my heart because…” saying for Josh and the kids at each place setting.  On the back of each heart, I’ve written what they do that just melts my heart.  For example, Beckham just turned 9 years old but he still grabs my hand in the parking lot as we walk into the store.  I die.  EVERY.SINGLE.TIME.  I hope he does that for a while longer.  I think they’ll like the sweet expressions of love I wrote down for them and hope they understand how much it means to me.

It’s the simple things we can do that make such sweet memories and unforgettable experiences.  My mom had 6 of us kids and, while I know it was very hard to do and she couldn’t do everything she would have liked to do for us, she was brilliant at making holidays magical and special. Best mom ever!  I remember walking into the house each Valentine’s Day after school and seeing red and pink balloons, flowers, the table set with china and everything looked so fancy!  Some of our dishes were in a heart shape and we each had the cutest wrapped gifts on each of our plates.  We absolutely LOVED Valentine’s Day each year!  Mom was too cute.  I hope my kids look back on these days with fondness and a smile as I do.  I enjoy it all so much!  Especially our “14 Days of Valentine’s Tradition” that I do for them.

Shop this room below:

Do you have any special traditions or things that you do for Valentine’s Day?  Do you do a lot of decorating or just something simple?  I’d love to hear!  And for more inspiration, please head on over to my friend Joan at 2 Ladies & a Chair next.  She’s so talented and I always love to see what she’s up to!

Make sure to visit all of my other friends joining me today also:

I Don’t Know How She Does It
Maison de Cinq
Crazy Chic Design
Lindsay-Hill Interiors
Happy Happy Nester
Home & Fabulous
Meme Hill
Styled With Lace

Thanks so much for joining me today!  I would love it if you subscribed at the top of the page in order to receive my weekly emails of all my latest posts.  You can also follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to see what I’m up to in creating a home and lifestyle of inspiration!  Hope to see you soon!

Wishing you the happiest and sweetest and most memorable Valentine’s Day ever!

xoxo,

*Affiliate links used.

The post Simple Valentine’s Decor appeared first on Summer Adams.

As soon as I take down Christmas each year, I always enjoy the clean slate of my home and a fresh start to a new year.  But then I get the itch to start decorating and planning for Valentine’s Day.  It’s my second favorite holiday because I love LOVE!  There’s nothing better than celebrating the ones that mean the most to me and making an extra effort to tell them just that.  Josh and I love celebrating Valentine’s Day as a family with our children each year.  Just like my mother did, I make a big deal about this special holiday and try to make it extra special with a big dinner, tons of decorations, and gifts.  Last week, I shared a fun Soda Shoppe Valentine’s Family Night that we did with our kids.  But today, I’ve gathered a few of my talented blogger friends to bring you “5 Ways To Wine & Dine Your Valentine.”  I decided that since I have the family celebration planned, I would also plan a romantic Valentine’s table for two and surprise my sweet husband with a very special dinner.  We did this a couple of weeks ago and was also a 2nd dinner and continued celebration for our 13th anniversary!

I’m so excited to have those of you who are here for the first time and coming from Courtney’s at French Country Cottage.  Can you believe how talented she is?  Everything she does is magical and she leaves me wanting more and more.  Such an inspiration!  To my regular readers, I love you for coming back over and over!  I love having you here and LOVE your comments and feedback.  It means so much to me, so thank you!

We moved back to Texas this last year and so we take advantage of those warm winter days in the 60’s or 70’s between January and February and sit out in the sun to enjoy the fresh air.  So that’s exactly where I wanted to create my romantic table for two.  We live just blocks from a beautiful nature preserve with so many trails and ponds and even a zipline course.  It was easy and accessible and had lots of private, cozy areas to set up in.  I grabbed a girlfriend and my kids and had their help to set everything up.  It good to have a partner-in-crime to help you pull this off if you’re making it a surprise for your Valentine.

Over the years, Josh has become soooo good at surprising me and sweeping me off my feet. I was really wanting to surprise him so I told him to meet me at this one spot at the beginning of the nature preserve on his way home from the office.  It’s right where you turn to come down our street so it really is just couple of blocks away and I love being this close to it. This is what he saw!

A surprise, remote, candle-lit dinner was not what he expected. He was so shocked and just loved it!  The sun was starting to set so it was perfect and romantic.  I grabbed a small patio table for 2 people and added my linen table cloth. This was a small table so I used my basic white beaded salad plates and a fun polka dot plate for dessert later.  It wasn’t a five-course meal or anything so it was just the right size.

Being such a small table, I didn’t have much room for anything else but some pretty flutes and a small lantern.  These flutes are so pretty and dainty that I used some small pretty blush heart napkins I found in the checkout line of Home Goods a few weeks ago (that’s where they always put those little irresistible pretties that I have to throw into my cart last minute).  I served a fruit platter (not shown as it hadn’t arrived yet) and made us mini heart chicken pot pies.  That’s one of Josh’s favorites, being a Texan boy and loving those hearty home-cooked dishes. We toasted with Sparkling Cider, another one of his favorites.

Since our table for two was so small, I also brought our smaller folding table to set other things on. I kept the color scheme very neutral with linens and white roses but I couldn’t help myself and added a couple of hints of blush.

I found these blush mercury glass vases last fall and they were the perfect choice to hold these gorgeous white roses.  I kept dessert simple and light, as we are trying to make healthier choices, and went to Whole Foods Market for some rose and vanilla macarons.  I love them and they’re so pretty.  I won’t tell you how much I wish they were big slices of chocolate shake though, haha!

On the other end of the table, I placed a picture of one of our church’s temples (in Salt Lake City) because this is where we first saw each other back in 2001.  We still remember that exact moment our eyes met from across the room.  I’m so glad it was in this lovely place because if it had been in a McDonald’s or somewhere less beautiful, we would probably have that framed here instead ha!  We are silly and sentimental like that.

To the left of the table, I decided to bring an A-frame chalkboard that I embellished with some faux blush roses and green branches, blush and white striped ribbon, and this beautiful quote written.

We have loved this quote because, for those that know our love story, we knew for a long time we wanted to get together but waited a couple of years (as I was in Portugal and he was in Guatemala as missionaries) until we were both back in the USA.  Also, after being married for some years and hearing friends say that they “weren’t sure they picked the right one” or weren’t sure if they “married their soulmate” we felt completely opposite.  We have always known that we were meant for each other AND that we made the right choice.  It’s like that saying, “Forever, for always, and no matter what!”  There’s just no doubting for either of us.  Ok….enough sappiness (for now).  Moving on…..

When I went to light the candles just as he was arriving, I stopped to admire the perfect backdrop that was just behind us.  That sun peeking through the trees was just icing on the cake.  The timing couldn’t have been more perfect.

To the right of our table, I set up a little cozy spot for us to sit and snuggle together after dinner.

I used the Vintage Glitter Letter Banner from my online shoppe to spell out “ALWAYS”.  I like it more than “forever”.  We know we are forever, but we want to like each other always, love each other always, be best friends always, be united and connected etcetera always!  So that’s more about the significance of that word for us.

I threw down some faux fur throw blankets, a pretty blush throw blanket, and a lantern next to this lovely box.  A present for Josh?  Nope.  Inside was a stack of just some of our letter we wrote back and forth to each other, from Portugal to Guatemala, for 2 years.  There were soooo many experiences we shared in those letters.  Hard times, the best times, really funny times…..and it’s through those letters that we got to know each other and become best friends and start to fall in love.  If our house ever caught on fire, I’m grabbing my kids and those letters!!!  They are priceless.  We laughed and rolled our eyes at some of the memories and even had some very tender moments. This was the most PERFECT way to celebrate 13 years of marriage AND have an early Valentine’s date.  This is also where we ate those delicious macarons.

The night couldn’t have gone better or been more romantic.  This is such a fun idea and really so easy.  Besides baking the Chicken Pot Pie and making my fruit platter, the only other thing I made was the floral arrangement.  The extra bodies to help set-up were very helpful but if you don’t have help, you can still do this so I encourage you to plan this surprise outdoors table for two!

These blush sequin pillows are new to my shoppe!  They are matte sequins on one side.  And if you use your finger to “draw on the pillow” and flip the sequins up, they are shiny on the other side.

That is how I made the heart on one pillow and the “S+J” on the other pillow.  So fun right?  You can also leave the all down for the matte look or switch to the all shiny side.

I’m providing the links of what I used (or something similar if not available) to create this special evening just below, for your shopping convenience.

I can’t WAIT for you to hop on over to Kelley’s blog at Kelley Nan and see what she is doing to Wine & Dine her sweet Valentine!  Kelley always has the best ideas and quite the hostess with the mostest so you’re in for a real treat!  Please make sure to also visit my 3 other talented friends listed below.  These ladies are a constant source of inspiration!  Make sure you’re saving all these fabulous ideas to Pinterest!  You could even text these links to your Valentine if you think he might appreciate the ideas.

SheLeavesALittleSparkle |  KelleyNan  |  BoxwoodAvenue

RandiGarrettDesign  |  FrenchCountryCottage

Thanks so much for joining me today!  I would love it if you subscribed at the top of the page in order to receive my weekly emails of all my latest posts.  You can also follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to see what I’m up to in creating a home and lifestyle of inspiration!  Hope to see you soon!

xoxo,

*Post contains affiliate links.

The post 5 Ways To Wine & Dine Your Valentine: Table For Two appeared first on Summer Adams.

It’s almost February which means my next favorite holiday will arrive soon after…Valentine’s Day! I’ve said it for years….I love LOVE! I love celebrating those that I love and mean so much to me. Josh and I are really good about going out on dates regularly, meeting for lunch, and taking vacations alone (in between family vacations with our children). But on Valentine’s Day, we make sure to spend it with our children and celebrate as a family. So many parents I’ve talked to say that it sounds like a fun idea but are not sure how to make it a fun family tradition. Well, today I’m solving that problem and bringing together some of my favorite Interior & Lifestyle Bloggers, that also happen to be some of the sweetest and most talented mothers, to share with you 11 Kids Valentine’s Party Ideas to do at home. What a FUN tour, right?! Make sure to get your fingers ready to tap and pin each of these posts to Pinterest.

Welcome to my friends who regularly visit AND big welcome to those of you visiting for the first time and are coming from Erin at Sunny Side Up. Didn’t you just love Erin’s ideas? She is darling and always so creative and talented. I love the warmth and love that oozes out of each blog post of hers.

Today I’m sharing a fun idea we had to go a little retro and have a “Soda Shoppe Valentine’s Family Night”. I had something completely different to share with all of you and THEN my son, Beckham, said something about Mommy growing up in the old-fashioned days and wondered if we had colored TV’s. You should have seen the look on my face! I was born in the late 70’s so….yes, we had colored television. I told him that he was referring to the 50’s and since he clearly didn’t know much about the 50’s, one of my favorite eras ever, it was a no-brainer what this Valentine family night’s theme needed to be. You bet your bottom dollar that I turned on Grease and played the soundtrack as quickly as I could. It was swell! ;-p

I wanted to use everything we had and not spend much. I only purchased a few little fun things. We had poodle skirts (I’ve got them ready to go at all times ha ha), we had a vintage tea cart and soda glasses, and we had some vinyl records from another project I did. So we just needed food and music and games and we were set! And instead of using our Dining Room, I decided to keep it quaint and stay in our kitchen nook, on our little round white table. It seemed more fitting somehow.

Oh, I should point out that even though all 4 of us were present, my husband passed on the photo ops for this party and stayed with me behind the camera and, while I had my poodle skirt on, I opted out of being photographed because I’ve got a horrible cold and it shows. You’d thank me, if you could only see me ha!

I grabbed some old vinyl records that I’d purchased at The Salvation Army a while ago for $1 each and used them as chargers. I’ve had red and heart plates that I’ve collected over the years and heart napkins as well. I kept this party simple and ran to Whataburger because I thought that the whataburger menu was better than most of the other fast food places around (it’s a Texas favorite but you can also choose In-N-Out). I grabbed some burgers and fries, just the way we like ’em.

I used a small cake stand from the Target Dollar Spot for the middle of my table to act as a pedestal for my retro diner menu and salt & pepper shakers.

I’m sharing this FREE PRINTABLE I created on Photoshop for this retro diner menu with you (for personal use only, copyright laws apply). I found the sign for less than $2 at IKEA and they always carry them.

One of the things I had to order (because they added so much and were just sooooo cute) were these Classic Pink Cadillac Party Food Boxes and placed a box of chocolates in them for each member of our family. You could also add cookies or popcorn or candy, etc. They are so fun, aren’t they?! Included is the cute checkered tissue paper.

No 50’s diner would be complete without Coca Cola bottles and milkshakes. While I had intended to make strawberry milkshakes, we had some strawberry Fanta soda and vanilla ice cream so I just made these yummy Strawberry Soda Floats. Easy peasy and sooooo yummy!

As far as milkshakes go, I grabbed some yummy cupcakes from my grocery bakery and added chocolate syrup, maraschino cherries, and cut off part of a red-striped paper straw to look like a milkshake. Milkshake cupcakes….that’s what we’re calling them and they were terrific.

This vintage tea cart has made an appearance over and over in our family parties and we use it often to entertain or to hold our hot cocoa bar (search hot cocoa bar or tea cart on my blog to see all the ways I’ve used it).

Iam so glad I had it for my Soda Shoppe Valentine’s Family Night. After dinner, we grabbed those chocolate graham crackers off the bottom shelf of the cart and all the fun candies and we made…..

….LOVE SHACKS!! (cue music) Oh, and of course our “jukebox” (a.k.a. Alexa, our Amazon Echo) was playing all of our my favorite 50’s music that I created on a playlist. Mixing a little water with powdered sugar until it’s really thick makes the perfect “cement” to put together your Love Shack.

While Brooklyn was trying for a more traditional look, Beckham had had enough and went for a more adobe-looking Love Shack….like something we’ve driven past on our drives through New Mexico. Ha! Let’s face it…all they care about is finishing it so that they can pick off the candy or eat the leftover candy. But it was so fun.

While the game Twister may have not been invented until the 60’s, it was a retro game that I know my kids love and laugh hysterically over, as they try to cheat and knock over the other person. We had to bring it out. Please tell me if this sounds familiar!

Of course, NO party is a successful party in The Adams’ Home without a dance party. The sun was setting too so it was the perfect time for a sock hop!

Aaaaaaand….they are gonna kill me one day for sharing this, I’m sure, but I can’t help myself.

Our playlist for the night included the soundtrack from Grease and also many songs from this list I found online. Oh! And “Love Shack” of course! These 50’s tunes are PERFECT for a retro Valentine’s Party!

Here are the items or similar items used that I’ve linked below for your shopping convenience and to help re-create this Soda Shoppe Valentine’s Family Night.

Thanks so much for joining me today! I would love it if you subscribed at the top of the page in order to receive my weekly emails of all my latest posts. You can also follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to see what I’m up to in creating a home and lifestyle of inspiration! Hope to see you soon!

NEXT PARTY —> Head on over to see what my amazing friend Annie at Zevy Joy has in store for you! Every post of hers just melts my heart and I always look forward to the next!

Make sure not to miss a single party! Here are all of the hosts below:

Summer Adams (me) | Zevy Joy | A Thoughtful Place
Kindred Vintage Co. | Eleven Gables | Pink Peppermint Design | Ella Claire
House Of Five | Elliven Studio | Craftberry Bush | Sunny Side Up

Wishing you the Happiest Valentine’s Day, celebrated with the one(s) you love most!

xoxo,

The post Soda Shoppe Valentine’s Family Night appeared first on Summer Adams.

Welcome!  Grab a cup of tea and pull cup a chair for today’s posts (and get your pinning Pinterest finger ready haha).

As I started off this new year, a few weeks ago, I made resolutions (like we all do) and also wrote down things I wanted to learn how to do and goals I wanted to achieve.  It got me thinking about what a big year 2015 was and all that I learned.  We had a LOT of fun too!  So I went back through my blog and decided to share with you the posts that were YOUR favorite!

1.  Dirty Diet Coke 101  Some of you had never heard of my FAVORITE drink.  I gave you the recipe and a fun, free printable to gift your friends and your feedback was so fun!  I’m glad I can share my love (aka addiction) of Diet Coke with you and an added kick.

2.  “14 Days of Valentines” have begun!   Valentine’s Day, as well as the 13 other days leading up to it, is one of my most favorite times of year.  I LOVE love!  I’m a hopeless romantic.  I also love making it fun and full of reminders for my kids that we love them so much.  Sharing my 14 days with you and what our tradition is was something everyone loved.  If you search all my Valentine’s printables, you will find that I’ve made a BUNCH and they are FREE for you to enjoy as well!

3.  Have Courage & Be Kind  The new Cinderella movie was not only one of my favorite classics remade, and remade well!  But it brought a reminder for all of us to be a little kinder and braver and to stand up for what is right; to stand up for ourselves.  I shared a heart-warming experience with my daughter that a lot of you related to.  Thank you for your feedback.  This has been one of our most-pinned and most-visited posts and has circulated Pinterest and Facebook.

4.  Knock-off Swig Cookie Recipe  If you haven’t had a Swig pink sugar cookie, you are missing out!  The St. George original has made national, even global recognition and I share the perfectly exact recipe.  I love how many tags and texts I received that people were making them and LOVING every bite.

5.  Sneak Peek!  As we moved from one side of town to the other, I gave you a sneak peek into my new home (aka a really cute rental while we are living here in Vegas) and showed you that you can spend little money but with a good eye and organization and sticking to neutrals, your rental house can feel like a cozy home.  Thank you all for your generous feedback!

6. DIY Wooden Box Centerpiece  One of my personal favorite DIY projects AND apparently yours too!  I love all your pictures after you’ve followed the plans and instructions for this fun and easy project!  Everyone needs a wooden box that they can change up all throughout the year with flowers and candles, pinecones, etc.

7. MINT To Stay Strong  As a friend of mine successfully finished her rounds of chemotherapy, she approached me and asked me if I’d be willing to make a cute thank you tag along these lines that she could give all of her fellow chemo friends that would be there continuing their treatments after she left.  It was so thoughtful of her and I was honored to do this.  SOOO MANY OF YOU have touched my heart with your connection to this and being able to use this as well.  I’m so glad and I hope this finds you well and healthy!

8.  Easy DIY Hall Tree  My solution to covering such an awkward built-in alcove was fun for us all!  I shared how EASY and AFFORDABLE this was to put together.  And…It can be unscrewed and taken with you to your next home!  Isn’t it fun to share our projects with one another?!  This hall tree has been a topic of conversation many times when people come to our home and fun to switch up for each season and holiday.

9.  Master Bath DIY Shelving  Another popular solution to an awkward space in my home!  Every morning I wake up and look at it and am sooooo grateful I did this!  Thanks for enjoying it with me and being inspired to make your own!

10.  Chalk Painting Upholstered Furniture  Ok, this is one of my very favorites!!!  It was a sentimental and gorgeous piece, easy, and STUNNING transformation!  It’s been really fun to see this one circulate all over social media.  THANK YOU for sharing and I’m thrilled that it motivated you to try it out for yourself!

11.  Ice Skates Christmas Decor   Hands down my FAVORITE craft this year!  And boy did we all have fun with this one on Instagram as my friend Rhonda and I (check out her gorgeous blog and online store at Hailstorm Home) shared our ice skates we made and invited everyone to go #iceskatingintotheholidays with us and share all their ice skates and other Christmas decor with us.  Such a blast and can’t wait for next year!

12.  Mini Gingerbread House Mug Huggers We all got a kick out of this one!  NONE of us wanted to buy the cute Anthropologie version of these for $10 but we all wanted them haha!  So, I figured it out and uploaded my template.  It was hard at first but after having the template it was a piece of cake and soooo cute!  Friends loved these as gifts, too, around the holidays in a hot cocoa mug.

THANK YOU for following along with me as I share a part of my life with you!  It’s been fun learning together and hearing your feedback!  Best wishes to another great year and MANY fun projects and memories made in your home!

xoxo, Summer

The post Top Posts of 2015 appeared first on Summer Adams.