Blog-tember - Favorite Bloggers

Today, I am sharing a couple of my favorite bloggers!  I don't really read blogs on a daily basis but I do like to sit down every once in awhile and catch up on my favorite bloggers. I have followed and unfollowed many blogs over the years but these are some of my current favorites...

But first, stepping on my soap box-- I don’t care too much for a blog full of sponsored posts and product pushing.  I get blogging is how some people make a living but I just don’t feel like they are very genuine and tend to be very staged. My favorite blogs are normal everyday blogs from real life people that I can relate to. I have found some really awesome new bloggers through this challenge and I love reading your post every day! I really love peeking into your lives and seeing your family and friends and how you spend your time! --

Kelly’s Korner - This is one of the first blogs that I ever read.  My sister introduced me to Kelly’s blog when her first child was born with some medical issues.  I would read about her everyday and prayed for that baby so much!  Now that baby is in the second grade and Kelly is a mom of three!  I love following Kelly’s little family and their busy life and I really love that she strong in her faith and has a passion for sharing that with her kids and others.  Her posts are so honest and encouraging.  She also hosts some really fun Link Ups that I like to join in on every once in awhile.

Taz + Belly -  I just found Kristen’s blog a few months ago when Kelly shared about LiveWhole365 while doing her Whole30.  Turns out, LiveWhole365 was started by a few ladies from Birmingham.  And after reading just her bio, I discovered this girl is so much like me.  She is married to her high school sweetheart, has two little girls who also love to dance, lives in her small Alabama hometown, and bleeds crimson and white!  It is almost a little weird how much alike we are. Her posts are all fun and so relatable to me and she has some really great printables and fun ideas.

My “famous people” blogs I like are  Lauren Conrad, Rory Feek, and Rachel Cruze!  I guess some of these are really more of websites but I tend to check them pretty regularly.

My friend Dana has a fun blog.  She is the one who really inspired me to get back to blogging.

I read Gracie’s fashion blog every now and then too.  She went to high school with me and I enjoy reading her posts!

And I love checking out Modern Mrs. Darcy for some great book posts.

I always love finding new blogs to explore so I can’t wait to read everyone else’s posts today!  I have really really loved some of the fun blogs I have linked up with during this blog-tember challenge and have "met" some really awesome ladies!

Blog-tember - Fall Favorites

Fall is one of my favorite seasons!  I love everything that comes with fall.. pumpkin, riding boots, football,  apples, sweaters.  Some of my favorites that I am looking most forward to for fall are…

Place : One of my most favorite places to go in the fall is to the Pumpkin Patch.  The girls usually go on a field trip and we try to go as a family at least a time or two.  I love riding the hayride and picking out the perfect pumpkins and the girls love playing on zipline and riding the train.  The last few years, the weather has been so nice to enjoy a day at the farm sipping lemonade and eating a funnel cake while the girls run around and play! I can’t wait to go back this year!

Food: I love anything and everything pumpkin flavored… pumpkin spice latte, pumpkin pie, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin bread, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin coffee creamer… haha I am starting to sound like Bubba talking with Forrest about his love for shrimp but seriously I do love it that much!

Event : My hometown hosts the Old Time Fiddler’s Convention every fall at Athens State University and it is by far my favorite fall event!  The place fills up with craft booths, great food, and lots of sweet little old(and a few young) people sitting around their RVs strumming on their instruments.  I love the atmosphere and seeing all the neat and unique things people make and bring to sell.  I am pretty sure I have attended every single year for as long as I can remember and am looking forward to it again this year!  If you are close to North Alabama, I highly recommend you come check it out Oct 7-8.

Book : I have a few books on my radar I am looking forward to curling up in my chair with my pumpkin spice latte and reading.  I am currently listening to The Shack and reading Love Your Life, Not Theirs.

Outfit: Sweater. Jeggings. boots.  I will definitely have this outfit on repeat for most of the fall!  I love love love my jeggings.  I mean reall who doesn't love jeggings?!?  I usually throw them on with a comfy top or my chambray button up and add a sweater or scarf with my boots and I am on my way!  I buy most of my fall tops from Jane or Target and really love the few I have picked up this year.

Blog-tember - If you were a flavor of ice cream..

This is a little odd post for me for the Blog-tember challenge but I figured I would still jump on board today…

If you were a flavor of ice cream, which flavor would you be?

Pistachio Almond!  It is by far the best flavor there ever was.  I can’t even describe it but I love anything pistachio flavored and I love almonds so what could be better than putting them together with some sugar and milk and freezing it?  Durbin Farms in Clanton, AL has the VERY best of it in case you were wondering!  We have to stop there every single time we head south just so I can get a big huge bowl of it!

Blog-tember - My Favorite Blog Posts

Today on the blog-tember challenge, we were asked to share our favorite blog posts.  This one was a tough one for me because I have loved just about all of my posts.  I love rereading them a million times and reliving all the little moments of our life that I capture here.  I use my blog as a platform to not only share about my day to day happenings but also whatever God has laid on my heart.


But I guess if I had to pick a few to really say were my favorite, these would be them...




To my first baby on the night before Kindergarten...
As you probably already know, Hadley started Kindergarten this year and I'm not going to lie, I had a bit of a tough time with it.  My girls are growing up so fast and as much as I try to savor these big milestones in their lives, I really just want them to slow down a little bit.




Mom-Shaming
I wrote this post one day when I was so fed up with some of the posts and comments I was reading on the Internet.  I am not sure why we all think we have to shame and critique other moms to make us feel better about how we are doing.  It is really sad and I feel like social media just makes it even worse.  So many people play their highlight reals so often and make it such a competition between ourselves and the rest of the world. We are really all just trying to do our best!




Testimony Tuesday
I started this little series on my blog a year or so ago and it is by far one of my most favorite things I have shared.  I contacted several of my friends and asked them to share their testimony on my blog.  I believe this blog is am excellent resource to share God's word and I was so proud of some of my friends for coming way out of their comfort zones and sharing their testimonies with the world.  I would love to get this back going so if you would like to share, please let me know and I would be so happy to share your story here!




I am a Working Mom
I literally wrote this post in my head driving home from work one day.  As soon as I got home, I grabbed my notepad and jotted it all down.  There is so much that goes into being a mom whether you work from home or out of the home and they both have their positive and negatives.  Neither is better or worse than the other, but it is different.  I guess I just needed to give myself a little pep talk one day and so this post is what came out of it. 


You can check out some of my other favorite posts here, here, and here.

Blog-tember - The one product I can't live without

I have mentioned this in a previous Blog-tember post but the one product that simplifies my life the most is by far my dry shampoo!  I have extremely thick hair and I hate washing and drying it so this little product is a life changer for me!

I can usually go three days between washes.  One day one, I wash, dry, and style with either rollers or curling iron.  Day two, I spray some dry shampoo and let it sit for about 15 minutes or so before touching it up with the curling iron or just pulling it back.  Day three, I usually spray and pull it up somehow.  Sometimes I can get a fourth day out of it depending on what I am doing.  

This is a huge time saver for me!  It takes me a good 20 minutes just to dry my hair and it hurts my arms and I get bored and I just really don’t like it at all (can I whine any more about this>?>)

The Living Proof brand is my favorite.  It absorbs the best for me but it also tends to leave a light residue so not sure how it would work on dark hair. I usually keep a bottle at home, one in my gym bag, and one at my desk for whenever I need a little pick me up.  I am telling you, this little product completely changed my life!

Blog-tember - Mood Board

I don't spend near as much time on my Pinterest as I used to but if you were to head over there right now, you would see me pinning ...

On my Bible Journaling Board...

These script ideas..

And these verses..

On my wardrobe board...

Some cute fall transition pieces..

And some ideas for the Get Your Pretty On Fall Style Challenge..

Get Your Pretty On

and these boots..

On my food board..

This dip..

And this recipe..

And you will probably see some animal crafts for Puggles this week.

And probably some cute ideas for fall if I start feeling a little crafty..

And maybe even a book or two...

Blog-tember - Joy

Today’s challenge is to talk about five things that bring me joy.  I have about a billion things that bring me joy but I guess I can cut down the list if I have to..

1 - My Savior -   I cannot even begin to express the joy that comes with knowing that I have a Heavenly Father who loves me so unconditionally that He would give up his own son to die for me.  I find so much peace and joy in knowing that we have eternal life through salvation in Jesus Christ and that He has created a place for us when we leave this earth so we may live forever with Him.

2 - My family - I am so happy to come home every day to my family.  Jarrod is my rock, my teammate, my best friend.  My girls are so full of life and love and I love watching them learn new things every day.  I have been extremely blessed with a very close-knit-everyone-gets-along family.  My mom and sister are two of my very best friends.  In fact, we have a family group text that stays extremely active with all kinds of crazy stuff and we all go out to lunch every other Friday.  I live within walking distance of the majority of my extended family and the others are just a short drive away so we get to spend time together often.  I have also been blessed with the best in-laws who truly treat me like their own. I love spending time with all of them!

3 - My mornings - I have probably mentioned this before but my quiet morning times are my favorite part of my day.  I wake up before everyone so I can have a little time to myself to drink a nice hot cup of coffee (another joy) and spend time with God.  Sometimes I read a devotional, sometimes I read my Bible, sometimes I journal, and sometimes I just sit and pray and listen to his still, quiet voice.  

4 - French Fries and Diet Coke -   Okay if we are being completely honest here, I have to admit this one.  I know they are both terrible for my health but man do I love me some french fries (even better topped with bacon and cheese and dipped in ranch dressing) with a big ice cold Diet Coke (preferably with some cherry flavor and pellet ice).  If I was told I could only eat one thing for the rest of my life and nutrition didn’t matter, this would so be it.

5 - Making Memories - I am not a stuff person.  I don’t really care about a big fancy house full of all the latest gadgets or a closet full of clothes.  I am definitely more of an experience person.  I love going places and doing things with my family and friends.  I love vacations and exploring new places.  I love going on field trips and celebrating big events at a fun dinner.  I love hearing my kids laugh and seeing their huge smiles and listening to them tell all about their favorite times.  I love spending a day on the river or at the beach with my husband.  I love going to weddings and parties and picnics and plays.  And I really love capturing it all here on my blog so I can go back and relive those memories over and over and over again.

 

Blog-tember - Summer Favorites

I cannot believe that summer is already over!  How did it fly by so fast?  A few of my favorites from the summer were..

Place : Orange Beach - we have vacationed here for many many years and it is my favorite vacation spot for all of us!  We love the food and of course the beach!  We had the BEST little family vacation over the summer.

Food: Summer produce is probably my most favorite ever.  I love corn and squash and watermelon!  We grilled a whole lot too!

Event : Hadley turned six this summer and we spent a whole weekend celebrating!

Book : I read lots of books over the summer but my favorites were Me Before You, Luckiest Girl Alive, and Fates and Furies, In the Unlikely Event. Click the Books label on the side to see my thoughts on them.

Product: Living Proof Dry Shampoo!  I hate washing my hair, especially in the summer when it is super hot and usually ends up in a ponytail anyways.  This stuff has been my life saver all summer.

Outfit:  I bought these shorts in yellow at Loft at the first in the summer and wore them soo much.  They went with a ton of tops I had and were really comfortable and the fit and length were just perfect for me.  I splurged on this top at Lucky back in May when it was 40% off and have worn the mess out of it all summer.  It goes with so much and is light and cool.  Plus I love the flowy style! If you saw me at all, I was probably wearing at least one of these!

We had the best summer but these cooler mornings the last few days and football season kicking off today has me wanting to bring on fall!

Back in Order

Back to school means getting my life back in order!  I have been so off all summer.  I love the freedom that summer brings and I love going and doing fun things with my family but I feel like I have really slacked on my meal planning and exercising and housekeeping and well really just adulting/momming the last couple of months.  So now that we are back to a normal routine, I am so glad to get back on track with all that.  I am a huge planner and just having a consistent plan and routine helps me to really feel like I’ve got my act together.  I have gathered together a few really great resources to help get everything organized….

1 - First of all, I LOVE my Day Designer planner.  I got it from Target for like $10 and it's perfect for my everyday needs.  I love that has lots of room but is not too bulky or heavy.  I also love that I can see monthly and weekly calendars with plenty of room to write and it has lots of extra places for lists and notes all throughout.

2 - I am jumping on board the LiveWhole365 train and printed off a few of their planning materials.  I really love the grocery list and weekly meal planner.  I track most of this in my regular planner as well but it is nice to have separate sheets to pull out when I need them.

3 - I am really loving get back to eating right.  My body really hates me when I eat a bunch of crap and I just feel so much better.  Planning ahead and tracking what I eat helps me so much to only look better, but feel so much better too! I have also been using MyRecipes a good bit for finding recipes.  You can search by ingredient or type and it has soooo many recipes to choose from.  All you have to do is sign up for a free account and you can start making your own little digital cookbook.

4 - There are about a billion budgeting tools out there but lately I have been using EveryDollar for my budget planning/tracking.  We are trying super hard to get completely out of debt and really build up some savings for some special vacations and fun stuff we have on our radar so sticking to a budget is key for us right now (more on all that to come later).  I really love EveryDollar because I can access it from both my phone and computer and Jarrod and I can share an account so we can both update and see it wherever we are.  It has a really neat and easy to use layout and some extra tools built in without be overwhelming.  I use the free version but they offer a ‘Plus’ version that you can even link to your bank account and such.  You can sign up here for free here!

5 - A few months ago, I signed up to go to Washington D.C. in October to run the Army 10 Miler and that is approaching very very quickly.  Like I said before, I have been extremely inconsistent with my running and exercising this summer so it is time to really get my butt in gear if I plan to run it without completely dying!  There are so many running plans out there but I am following this one from Shape.  It is really for a half marathon plan but it should get me to the 10 mile point by the time I need to be.  I followed one very similar to this when I completed the Bridgestreet Half last fall so it should be pretty doable for me.  I don’t really follow the run/walk part of it but I like the schedule.  As much as I would love to do more, realistically, I don't usually get more than about three days each week to get a run in... especially long ones.. so this plan works well for me.    

6 - And last but certainly not least… Google Docs!  I am not sure how I have completely ignored this amazing resource in the past because it has seriously become my lifeline!  Instead of toting around a billion papers and notebooks all the time or email stuff back and forth to myself, I can just upload it all here and access it from anywhere that I am.  I mean I can get it on my phone, my home, my work, everywhere.  And it is super easy to use and work with my documents on all of my devices.  This is where I keep all of my long term lists, plans, ideas, posts, spreadsheets, etc. and it is seriously the best.  If you are not using Google Docs, you need to start right now!    

Simplify Your Life

I may have mentioned it before, but I have really been interested in the whole idea of minimalism lately.  The idea of a simple life free of clutter and unimportant distractions just really appeals to me.  I find myself constantly cleaning and organizing all of our stuff and it really gets exhausting. I just simply get tired of doing it all the time.  

I long for a simple, easy life filled with the things that matter most... not stuff! I long for less commitments and fewer things on my to-do list. I want to have more time for quality time with my family and friends and less time cleaning out and organizing my mess. The dang internet and stinkin iphones are supposed to make our lives so much easier but they are also really good at filling our lives with stuff and stressing us out over stuff that really doesn't matter.  I want to trade all that for magical moments with the ones I love most and live a more simple, less stressful life!      

I ran across this post and found it very inspiring. This guys site has really got my brain churning and realizing more and more that this stuff that I think I have to have in my life is what is really holding me back from the things I truly love the most.  Looking forward to trying out some of these ways to simplify my life!

http://www.becomingminimalist.com/the-10-most-important-things-to-simplify-in-your-life/

Living Well Spending Less

I know I mentioned a few weeks ago about how I am really working to
change some of my bad habits and stop spending so much time and money
worrying over all the stuff I think I have to have.  I am really
trying to be more content and over the last few weeks, as I have made
conscious effort to do this, I can honestly say that I feel more
content and just better about it all.

That being said, one of the books I ran across recently was Living
Well and Spending Less by Ruth Soukup.  I ran across her blog awhile
back and have really enjoyed reading many of her posts and using some
of her tools to not only reign in my spending and work on my budget,
but also to find that contentment and happiness to live better.  This
book is really great.  Not sure I would call it absolutely life
changing, but definitely very inspiring.  It really made me think
about what I bought and why I bought it.  She touches on a ton of
scripture and gives me challenges throughout the book that really make
stop and focus on the important things... not just the stuff in my
life.

I am not going to touch on every point here because you can find it
all on her blog but there are a few of the challenges I want to pursue
in the next few weeks that I hope to share as I go through them
(mainly for the accountability part).

One is purging the stuff that I have in my home-- my house is full of
clothes and toys and all kinds of trinkets that I have collected over
the years.  Each week during the next month, I plan to clean out and
overhaul one area of my home.  I hope to give you an update as I go.
Week 1 - Toys
Week 2 - Kitchen
Week 3 -   Clothes
Week 4 - Garage
Week 5 - Junk Room

The other challenge she suggests that I really love but I am just not
quite committed enough to follow all the way through with it is her
Living Well, Spending Zero month.. meaning spending absolutely nothing
on anything but absolute essentials and some perishable food items.
No buying anything extra or eating out!  I am going to follow this as
close as I can but due to some events planned this month and just some
circumstances in our life at the moment (aka a big girl birthday
coming up and my child's rapidly growing foot), I am going to have to
tailor this a little but still plan to keep the spending at a very
minimum.  You can join in her real challenge here if you are really
interested www.livingwellspendingless.com

I highly highly recommend this book to anyone who has gotten sucked up
into the materialism of this world or if you are just wanting to
refocus your spending habits.  Not only does she give some great tips
on ways to do this, this book also helps us to learn how to be content
with what we have and truly live a better life.

Friday Favorites

I love reading "Favorites" posts whether it be favorite clothes, beauty products, or food.  I really like to see products that other people have found and fallen in love with because they almost always inspire me to try them myself (I know.  I know. I am a sucker for advertisements and gimmicks).

So here are a few of my favorites lately...

The New Balance tennis shoes are THE BEST casual shoe!  I love my Sanuk flip flops for a comfy casual shoe but sadly I can't pull them off year round.  These are very lightweight and comfortable and cane be paired with leggings, tshirts, dresses, shorts, jeans, yoga pants, and pretty much almost everything else in my closet!  In fact, these are the ONLY pair of shoes I took to Cincinnati a few weeks ago.  I'm pretty sure that is the first time in my life that I have ever only packed one pair of shoes on a trip!  They really are perfect for running errands and chasing kiddos.

I have been using this blush for awhile now and have really fallen in love with it.  I have it in a few shades but my favorite is the coral.  It is super easy to swipe on and I really love the feel of it on my face... very lightweight and airy feeling and the color stays in place all day.  

My mother in law bought this brush for the girls after her hair stylist was talking about how great it is for wet and tangled hair.  I tried it out and decided I needed one for myself too.  I have really thick hair that gets super tangled and falls out like crazy.  This brush literally feels like it just rubs across the top of my hair but it really gets the tangles out without pulling.  I guess it is the really tiny bristles that lets it glide so smoothly.  Anyways, I don't really know how it works but it does!  A huge live saver at our house full of girls!

I got this Stila lipstick in my Birchbox forever ago but had never really used it because of it's bright bold red color.  But, I got brave lately and gave it a try.  This stuff is awesome!  It is super soft and doesn't leave my lips dry and flaky like most lip stains tend to.  I can't pull off bright red lips every day but I plan to go buy it in a few more subtle every-day-wear colors.  The color really lasts several hours to!  Worth the investment!

I found these chips when I was at Earth Fare last week.  I am a huge fan of anything pumpkin so it definitely caught my eye!  And wow they were SOOOOOO good!  They are kinda sweet but have that salty tortilla chip taste as well so they just end being pretty much perfect.  I maaay have eaten the whole bag by myself... in one day.  The only negative side is the bag isn't really what I would consider "full size" and I haven't found them anywhere else except for bulk size at Amazon.  But I will definitely be going back and getting some more!         

Maybe you will see something here you might like to try!   Happy Friday everyone!!

Living Proof Deal

So I have shared before about how much I hate to wash my and how much love Living Proof hair products for helping me go days between washes. I don't tend to really splurge on a lot of high end and name brand products, but this one is really worth it! However, I found a great deal for this if you are planning to buy these products.

First sign up for ebates if you don't already have an account here.

Then go through ebates to the Living Proof website so you can earn 4% cash back!

Then, I found this little trick to score a few free products...

Living Proof offers TWO free perfect hair day minis with the purchase of $39+ and have free shipping and returns with no minimum order requirement. Plus you get a free sample of a product of choice with every order. Since I needed both the shampoo and conditioner and decided to purchase the jumbo size of each (which cost more than $39), I placed one order for the shampoo and a separate order for the conditioner. The jumbo size bottles are pretty pricey but are about 20% cheaper if you figure up the per ounce cost! If you know you like this stuff and are going to use it for awhile, the jumbo size is a pretty good deal for you.

It took me about 3 more minutes to go back through my ebates account and place another order but I ended up getting 6 free samples and it didn't cost me anymore! AND I got like $5 back in my ebates account which is always exciting!

So I just thought I would share for all you other Living Proof fans out there!

Friday Favorites - Three Day Hair

So I have always hated washing my hair... or more so drying it than washing it to tell the truth.  It just takes so long and makes my arms tired and I just don't like it.

I was "blessed" with extremely thick hair which I am very thankful for until it comes to washing and drying it.  I used to think that I had really oily hair and had to wash it every single day or it would be yuck.  But after doing a little research and browsing, I discovered soooo many women who were going several days between washes and figured I would give it a try.   

 

 

My friend suggested Living Proof products to me.  They are kinda pricey but she just kept raving about them so I bought the travel size to give them a try.  These products have seriously made the biggest difference for me.  They don't leave my hair feeling gunky or oily and the smell is great.  I use the shampoo and conditioner from the Perfect Hair Day line.  There are several different lines so you just have to pick whichever is best for your type hair.  After washing my hair, I spray the root lifting spray and comb the Perfect Hair Day styling cream through my hair while it is damp.  I then just blow dry it upside down.  I usually either style with a curling iron or round brush on day one and may mist it with just a tiny bit of hair spray.

I sleep with it down because my hair creases very easily with a ponytail.  On Day 2, I usually shower with my shower cap (don't laugh at me because I promise it helps).  I then apply some Tresemme Dry Shampoo to my roots and hit it with the blow dryer for a second to give me some volume.  This is the best dry shampoo I have found so far (although Living Proof just came out with one so I may have to give it a try). It does seem to leave a bit of light residue if you have darker hair though.  I run a little John Freda Secret Weapon Touch Up Creme to tame any crazy hairs and then re-curl with the curling iron or throw in some hot rollers to style.  I finish with a bit of hair spray.  I like the Kenra 14 because it is a "working" hairspray and doesn't leave my hair sticky or stiff.      

Once again, I sleep with it down and then shower with my shower cap (seriously stop laughing at me).  Day three, I use the same products as day two but usually either pull it up and wear some type of braid (braids do wonders for hiding "dirty" hair -- you can find some great tutorials here and here) or an elastic head band.  I love the cute head bands with my hair pulled up in it.  It makes it look like I really did something special when it really takes like a whopping two minutes to do.

I am definitely not a hair stylist or have any type of hair education but this is just what works for me lately and I love it!  I used to think I could never go more than a day between washes but turns out, I was just using the wrong products and the more I washed my hair, the more oil it produced.  Some of these products are a bit pricey and some are super cheap so it all works out.  You can buy them all at Ulta .  

Anyways... this routine has seriously made my life so much easier so just thought I would share!

Happy Friday my friends!

Athens Alabama

One of the blogs I follow is starting a series on fun places to see in each state and Alabama happens to be first!  And I am so excited to share my favorite place in Alabama!

I love my little hometown of Athens.  I was born and raised here and it is where I plan to raise my family as well.  Athens is located right off I-65 just south of the Tennessee border and is full of all sorts of wonderful secret must visit places! 

We have the most perfect little downtown area full of historic homes, cute shops and fun restaurants.  There are cute gift shops, clothing boutiques for men, women and children as well as an old historic general store, drug store, and a cute little book store and coffee shop.  There are also a few beauty shops, consignment stores, and antique shops downtown as well. 

Photo courtesy of Spirit of Athens. www.photos.al.com

There are several unique restaurants as well.. pizza, Mexican, ice cream, burgers, bakery, deli, and good ole southern cooking can be found at the several non-chain restaurants around the square!  Kreme Delite is a little walk up cash-only ice cream stand that serves the best soft serve ice cream! 

From the square, you can walk a few blocks to the farmers' market, new public library, or the park complete with playground, duck pond, and a historic restored gas station. 

On weekends in the summer, we have the Kiddie Carnival that is just a few blocks from the downtown square.  The Kiddie Carnival has been going for over 50 years and is the perfect little inexpensive carnival for little kids full of miniature rides, cotton candy, and bingo!  My girls absolutely love it!

Athens is also host to several events throughout the year such as the singing and car shows on the square, ghost walks, the Athens Grease Festival, and the Old Time Fiddler's Convention where you can find bluegrass music competitions, crafts, amazing funnel cakes, lemonade, and rib-eye sandwiches!

Athens, Alabama is really the perfect little southern town full of grace and charm and I love to show it off!   

Find this fun print of Athens here

A few of the fun shops downtown....
Bennetts Clothing
Snapdragon Kids 
The Grasshopper
Pimentos 
Trinitys 
Belles and Beaus
Epiphany Boutique
Crawford's Gifts