Strawberry Picking at Mercier Orchards | Simple OOTD

My mom drove up to visit for Memorial Day. We went to a Braves game, had a great brunch in Kirkwood and worked on my apartment… but the highlight of the trip definitely was strawberry picking at Mercier Orchards.

If you remember the last time she visited, we road tripped up to Blue Ridge (about an hour and half drive) to go apple picking at Mercier. Apple picking was fun but strawberry picking was even better. The weather was gorgeous. We went on a weekday so it wasn’t crowded and we took our time sampling the two varieties of berries, picking the best ones on the vine. It’s $10 per person (with a special deal for the kiddos) and you get a gallon bucket to fill to your heart’s content. We definitely got out money’s worth. I have strawberries in every nook and cranny of my fridge and freezer!

When we were in the field, I did get a few pictures before I splattered strawberry juice all over my white t-shirt. Note to self, do NOT wear white while strawberry picking. It’s just a recipe for disaster. At least my Lilly scarf covered it up pretty well. 😛

     

 Shop My Outfit // Scarf, Lilly Pulitzer (similar here and here) / White gauzy t-shirt , J.Crew (same style here) / Chinos, Old Navy / Sandals, Jack Rogers / Sunglasses, TJ Maxx (similar here)

I’ve been really wanting to make YouTube videos for some time now. I finally made my first YouTube video, a little recap of our strawberry picking, check it out down below and subscribe if you have a YouTube account. 🙂

          

Having fun in the Blue Grass State

Another one of my (many) road trips in March was to Lexington, Kentucky for a concert from country singer Deana Carter. 

One of my work tasks this year was to help manage a contest with the singer and the sorority. Chapters raised money for our international philanthropy, Ronald McDonald House Charities, and the chapter that raised the most funds per sister won a private concert with Deana.

Beta Psi Chapter at the University of Kentucky are perennial philanthropy power houses and raised a whopping $340 per sister to take home the prize. My co-worker Anna Kate and I traveled to the Bluegrass State to assist with the concert and congratulate the chapter in person.

https://twitter.com/JoanieOben/status/583101900674957312

After the concert, we took a quick walking tour of the University of Kentucky’s campus before getting dinner with some sisters.

I had to get a picture of some UK Basketball players! 

We decided this was our HS senior picture post.

Thank you Beta Psi for a great visit! I’ll have to come back to Kentucky and explore Lexington further and thank you Deana for a great concert, as always!

https://twitter.com/JoanieOben/status/583105149968744448A liA li

     

 

24 hours in Winter Park, FL

I was scrolling though my instas to find my pics from this trip and I can’t believe I visited Rollins College a month ago! I was only there for a night but I fell in love with the college and the little town. I could have definitely seen myself attending Rollins and living in Winter Park.

Even though the city was established before the Art Nouveau era, I can definitely see that style throughout park and architecture. Just check out  their seal. Art Nouveau is one of my favorite art time periods so I was smitten the minute I got out of the car.

I was in Winter Park to photograph our colony (now the Theta Psi Chapter) at Rollins College. I was already in Orlando that weekend so just worked out.

But before I went to campus, I grabbed a latte from Barnie’s Coffee Kitchen. A Food and Wine magazine was left in the copy room at work and the issue had a feature on Orlando and Winter Park. The article had was Rifle Paper Co. Founder’s favorite spots. I love their stationery so I knew this would be a cool place.

Barnie’s Coffee Kitchen did not disappoint. My vanilla latte was strong and perfectly flavored. It even came with some cool latte art. I sat outside at a tiny, marble table and felt fancy for the rest of the morning.

  

After the perfect amount of caffeine, and an amazing dining hall salad (wut), Nicole, the Leadership Consultant and I went to meet the chapter women and capture their picturesque campus in our photo shoot. I had a lot of fun getting to know everyone during the shoot and I went to their first Greek Week event! It was tug-o-war and I had flashbacks to some intense UM Greek Week competitions.

After watching everyone battle it out, Nicole and I got some great fajitas (and a tasty marg) from Cocina 214 before chilling and watching The Voice. My Winter Park trip was short-lived and I had a BurgerFi goodbye the next day.

I already want to go back to Winter Park. I think it’s the perfect day trip to take a break from the touristy spots in Orlando. The little Downtown area had lots of unique restaurants, cute shops and great outdoor areas. I really recommend checking it out!

     

Photo Diary: Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival

Happy#TravelTuesday! I feel time is truly flying by. I can’t believe it’s already Spring! These past few weeks have been busy for me to say the least. I went to Disney; Winter Park, FL; Lexington, KY; and I just drove back from visiting my fam  back home in SWFL for Easter.

Let’s start with the earliest trip first. I went to Disney to visit my Little Diamond Sister (my sorority’s version of Big/Little) for a little reunion. I’ve seen her only briefly since I graduated so it was a lot of fun to catch up and hang out together all weekend. We went to Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom and Epcot. We also went to see Cinderella with some other ADPi sisters. It was a jam-packed weekend and so much fun!

I was testing out a new camera for work, so I took a TON of pictures. Even more than the ton I usually take. 😉  I have a few ideas for different Disney posts but I wanted to post a photo diary of Epcot first. We were at Epcot for the Flower and Garden Festival and everything was beautiful. The colors were spectacular and I loved seeing all the characters come to life as topiary. The butterfly garden was bursting with blooms and butterflies of every color. Can you believe the butterfly pictures are from a $150 point and shoot? It’s crazy!

The festival will be blooming until May 17th so definitely try to visit if you can! I loved visiting during this time of year and I want to go back with my mom and sister. We all love gardening but they seemed to have the green thumbs. I, on the other hand, kill  everything I touch. RIP Orchid

         

 

I had to include the picture of Belle herself too!

         

         

          

 

Thanksgiving Tablescape

This past Tuesday was my work’s annual Thanksgiving potluck luncheon. The kitchen counter was overfilled with buttery mashed potatoes, cornbread dressing, Honeybaked Ham and those well-known and well-loved southern casseroles and salads.

If these tables look familiar, it’s because we did the same tablescape last year. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Check out last year’s table here.

This year, we sent the invite via paperless post. I used the same invitation to create a menu for the luncheon. I got the frame from Michael’s for a steal and painted it white. We’ve been using this frame to announce all of our FUN Committee events. Currently, a whimsical pink and blue Christmas tree invite is in the prime spot in the kitchen announcing our Christmas party.

We also used the invite to create little dish markers for each dish. My friend Callie wrote everyone’s marker out and they came out so cute!

The savory items were delicious but the desserts were out of this world. The dessert table is always the star at this shin dig and it didn’t disappoint this year. I got this “Give Thanks” garland from Target last year. I’m sure they have a similar version for this year’s holiday.

I was partial to Callie’s cheesecake ball but everything was delicious. One of my coworkers brought a chocolate peanut butter trifle that everyone raved about.

vest // thermal knit  // scarf

Another great thing about this luncheon is it’s a casual day. The chesecake ball chef and myself had to get a quick picture before we finished setting everything up. The vest is from Old Navy and I got it for only $17 (It’s $25 online). The vest is super warm and I think it’ll be perfect with a red top for a festive, casual Christmas look. I saw it on Mackezie Horan’s blog and I had to have it!

My family is coming to Atlanta again for Thanksgiving so I think I’m going to recreate this look for my Thanksgiving table (but on a MUCH smaller scale). How do you like to decorate your table for Thanksgiving?
      

Sister Fun

Venti iced coffees, trips to the Lilly store, walking around the neighborhood and greasy burgers describe this last week perfectly. My sister took a break from grad school and spent the week with me here in Atlanta.

We always have fun together and this week was no exception. We walked around my neighborhood, shopped for some spring fashions in Buckhead and explored different restaurants around the city.

Here’s a little Instagram recap to see what we were up to. 

  

Left: My sister was here for the week but I only got Thursday and Friday off. After work one day, we walked around Midtown. The tulips are blooming all over the city and I had to take a picture of these hot pink ones. Spring is finally in the air here in Atlanta.

Right: Can you spot my apartment? JK! On Thursday we hiked Stone Mountain and here’s a picture of the Atlanta skyline from the top. It took us a little under an hour to get to the top and back (we took lots of breaks). After this, we were craving a venti iced coffee. I think we got iced coffee almost every day she was here.

  

Left: After Stone Mountain, we met up with one of my friends at Taqueria Del Sol on the westside. I’ve been to the one in Decatur but I’ve never been to this location before. I think I might have to switch it up and go to this one more often. It’s in the Westside Provisions District which is full of fun, trendy shops and restaurants. It’s definitely the place to be in Midtown.

Right: After tacos, we had to have some Jeni’s Ice Cream. My best friend from Nashville raves about this Colombus chain and I was excited to finally get to try it. I got banana french toast and goat cheese with red cheries. Both were amazing!!

  

Left: On Friday we ended up doing some shopping and playing tourist. Alice’s friend Taylor came up to Atlanta and we met her at The Varsity. Can you believe this was my first time? It was good but slightly pricey for greasy fast food. I’m glad I finally got to try the Atlanta landmark.

Right: We spent our Friday at Sweet Water Brewery. Sweet Water is the perfect place to visit in Atlanta for happy hour. It’s only $10 and comes with a souvenir Sweet Water pint glass and 6 tasting tickets! We got special edition Sweet Water 420 Fest glasses during this visit.

  

 

Left: On the drizzly Saturday, we decided to walk to Virginia Highlands to check out the boutiques. I took this pic on our walk. The trees are blooming everywhere here. I only live about a mile from the main VaHi thoroughfare so it was didn’t take us too long to get over there.

Right: Our first stop was Yeah! Burger which was delicious. I got a turkey burger with goat cheese, arugula, onions, tomatoes, and bacon jam. It was a great combo. I also got a  50/50 side of sweet potato fries and onion rings. I’m going to be adding Yeah! Burger to one of my favorite places to go in Atlanta. It’s just too good!

Hanging out with my sister was great. I can’t wait to go back home for Easter and spend more time with her and hang out with my mom. We already have our beach days planned. Can April 17th come sooner?! I miss the Florida sun!

 

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Goals and Priorities

Do you ever read those articles on Levo League or Thought Catalog about all the things you have to be doing as 20 somethings?  I should be branding myself, and thinking about the future while also living free with no regrets and just being a free spirit. Everyone in their 20s are confused. And the articles aren’t helping.

Leading up to Christmas, I had way to many goals. I was spinning myself in all directions and I was only getting dizzy. I wanted to blog post every day, start a YouTube channel, build my social media following, dance more, spend more time with my friends, tackle debt. You name it, it was my goal.

I started off the New Year with the same mindset but a few weeks in I was already getting burned out. I decided to figure out what my main goal was and I’ve been focusing on that moving forward and that alone. Some of my other stuff, like this blog, has fallen to the wayside, unfortunately. Sorry to vaguebook (well vague blog really) but I don’t want to put my main goal on the internet just yet.

I will still be blogging I just be posting like I was before Christmas. I think blogging is so much fun but  I want to produce quality content and not days upon days of mediocre posts. I already have some ideas swirling around in my head and I hopefully will be jotting them down soon.

Do you feel overwhelmed by your goals? Let me know in the comments below.

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January Instagram Recap

So it’s almost Valentine’s Day… let’s have that sink in for a little bit.  I feel like I didn’t really do that much in January. I’ve been trying to take more dance classes in 2014 so that’s why I’ve been a little MIA. Dance classes really take a chunk out of my weekend/random week nights.

Anyway, here are just some of my favorite Instagram posts from the past month!

If you want to see more of my Instagram adventures follow me at @njoben.

   

Left: Last month, I found this cute site, www.printablemonogram.com, that does fun little downloadable calendars and monogram prints. I loved the blue stripe and hot pink on my January calendar. Plus, it’s the perfect size to fit in my planner. This month’s calendar features hearts.
Right: I’ve been trying to eat healthier in 2014. Taco bowls have easily become my favorite thing to make for dinner. It’s just brown rice, fajita veggies, roasted chicken with salsa and guac. Noms.

   

Left: I found this Alex and Ani bracelet at TJ Maxx for only $14. It looks like they changed the design of the miami bracelet (the new one is here) so I’m guessing that’s why it was at TJ Maxx. I got the other bracelets from Forever 21. I made a quick peresual of the website but I guess they’re no longer available. F21 did have some other Kate Spade inspired cuteness.
Right: We had an alumnae event at Chick-a-Biddy in Atlantic Station and I snapped this pic of my bloody mary on my DSLR. I thought it was a pretty good food pic, if I do say so myself. The bloddy marys were super good too. I like when they’re peppery and spicy.

   

Apparently drink posts are a favorite of mine…
Left: The Nutella and Burnt Marshmallow shake from FLIP Burger Boutique. It was awesome!
Right: White sangria from Cellar 56.

   

In case you didn’t hear, it snowed in Atlanta towards the end of January. I wrote a little snow day photo diary but here are some more pictures that I posted to Instagram during the snow day.

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Snow Day

It’s finally happened… Atlanta is having a snow day! Eek! Here’s some pictures I took at Piedmont Park!

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My Busy Work Day Essentials

Hey y’all. I don’t know about everyone else but I am BUSY at work, I think January is always a busy month because everyone is trying to be productive which makes me stuck in my cube corner all day. 

I think everyone motivates themselves differently. Here are some of my strategies to make the most out of a busy work day.  P.S. these can totally work for studying too!

Pick a good Pandora station. I’m a music person and it dictates my mood. When I’m knee deep in design projects I turn to EDM (think Avicii and Armin Van Burren) because it makes me feel hipster and the constant tempo keeps me on track. If I’m doing something boring like copy editing, I like to listen to my *NSYNC/BSB/Brittney station to make it fun.  It’s all about picking the right work jam.

Give yourself a brain break. Even when I’m crazy busy, I need a brain break. I try to finish lunch during the first half of my lunch hour and then I spend the second half catching up on blogs on Bloglovin’. I need the distraction to give my brain a refresh for the afternoon.  I also like to read the Daily Muse to catch up on any industry tidbits I’ve missed.

Bring healthy snacks to work. December was the month of the office snacks for me. We had tons of cookie, candies and treats in the kitchen everyday before the holidays and I ate more than my fair share of junk. I ended up getting sugar crashes and just not being in the right mood. Since one of my New Year’s Resolutions is to stop eating office food, I’ve been bringing more snacks to work and I feel a lot more energetic. I normally bring a piece of fruit for my mid-morning snack and Greek yogurt in the afternoon (lately I’ve been loving the Publix Premiuim Greek Yogurt– try the peach and pineapple).

What are your essentials for a busy work or school day? Let me know in the comments below!

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