House Hunters: SC

We officially started our house hunt a few days ago. But the odd thing is, its not really a hunt, because there is only one house we want, and it really all happened by accident. We were driving out of town and passed the same beautiful, old house that we have passed hundreds of times. We have never seen a car there as long as we could remember. We figured it was just left to rot because it is overgrown and rundown. But this particular day, something was different. A For Sale sign in the front yard by the road. I immediately got on my blackberry and searched for the home and found it. Its in our price range, bigger than we ever thought we could afford, and is beautifully situated on 10 acres. The kicker: its a fixer-upper- like majorly.

Got in touch with a Realtor and toured the home. Having been an estate, the home is still full of the last owner's beautiful antique furniture. But it needs a new roof, the landscaping is majorly overgrown, and there is a colony of honeybees in one of the front columns. That's the least of the issues plaguing this beautiful house. But we want it. We want to make it ours.

Our Realtor said there is a type of loan made just for this situation. It will give us the extra funds to fix all the problems and it actually forces us to get the stuff done in a certain period of time so we can't drag our feet in getting the remodel done- which is good because it will give us a very strict time line of when we would be able to move in.

We will make an offer on Monday after visiting with our banker. Send a few prayers our way that our offer is accepted!

Jaded

I loved our wedding. I truly did. There is nothing that I regret. Nothing that I wish I would have changed. We had the most beautiful weather, at the most beautiful location, with the most beautiful family and friends surrounding us.

But if I think about it honestly, it is not something I ever want to do again. I know, that's a good thing. I don't mean it in the sense that I hope I never get married again, because I've already got my perfect match, but I mean it in the way that I never will plan another wedding. Not for myself. Not for someone else. Never.

Wedding planning was stressful. It was expensive. Who wants to spend their hard earned money on bubbles or a silver knife you will only use once? I know I'm being a little ridiculous, but I think planning my own wedding has jaded me. If I turn to TLC and Say Yes to the Dress is on, I have to change it. Immediately. My heart starts racing, and I feel that at any moment my palms just might start sweating.

I know I'm only three months past my own wedding, and maybe this reaction will fade over time. I'm hoping that it does. Weddings are a beautiful reminder of why we all fell in the love in the first place and they cause us to hope that our love can always be new and fresh every day.

Scentsy Special

Many of you may have seen the giveaway on Taylor's (Undomestic Momma) blog for for a Scentsy warmer and two scents. I would like to continue the fun and offer a special for the month of July. Any orders placed in the month of July will receive a FREE Scentsy Bar with their order.

So for instance, you could buy one of these:

Taro Plug In Warmer: $15

Or one of these:

Faith Full Size Warmer: $30

And get a Scentsy Bar scent for your warmer for FREE! The warmer is up to you, and the scent is FREE! This is great for anyone who has never tried Scentsy before.

Visit my Scentsy website here and then send me an email at scentsationaloakes@gmail.com to let me know which free scent you would like or I can help recommend one if you're lost in all the wonderful scents :)

And finally, if you live in South Carolina or a nearby area, lets Party! A Scentsy Party that is. Email me at scentsationaloakes@gmail.com if you are interested in hosting a Scentsy party. You get to smell all the wonderful scents and receive free stuff, just for hosting a party. What could be better!

Thanks for looking!

Top Two Tuesday: Favorite Summer Recipes

I was so excited about this week's top two. I love summer recipes because of all the great fruits and veggies that are harvested at this time of year.

1. Tomato Sandwich

You will need:

Your favorite sliced bread (texas toast works great!)

Tomato slices-as many as you would like

Mayonnaise

Salt and Pepper to taste

This has to be the summer sandwich of the south. Nothing is better than using a fresh tomato from the garden to make my favorite summer time sandwich. Hubs thinks these sandwiches are disgusting- but then again, he doesn't like sweet tea, so what does he know anyway :)
Some don't like tomatoes, but for those who do, try one of these if you haven't before! You may have just found your new favorite sandwich!

2.  Peach Cobbler

Living in South Carolina, we never have a shortage of fresh peaches during the summer. There is no better fruit for making all of your favorite summer baked goods. Check out Paula Deen's recipe here. I've never made Paula's cobbler before, but you can never go wrong with Paula. I can't wait to try it!

Join in the fun here!

Also be sure to check out the Scentsy special that I'm offering for the month of July here!

The First Step

Today, Hubs and I took a very big step. This step was our first big leap towards being debt free. Hubs wasn't so wise in the past (heck, who is?) and as a result, we now have debt that we really want to get rid of. I don't want to sound like I'm an angel financially. I'm the girl who financed her wedding dress, only to discover she actually didn't love it and bought another dress before the old dress was even paid off. True story. And lets not even start with my student loans.

Our getaway car

We knew our first step was to get rid of hubs's baby- his Shelby GT500. I think I actually love this car more than he does, but the monthly payment is too much to handle, especially with the goals we have for our future. So today we looked at and bought another car for hubs so he can sell his Shelby. I'm so proud of him for doing this. Its a big step down from a Shelby to an old truck. I'm happy that he's happy, and he's happy he has a truck to tow his boat. Now we will start the process of selling his car.

We've been talking about starting the process to become debt free and now we are finally able to see progress. Its easy to talk about something, but even harder to put it into action. God has been so good to us. Its been a struggle for the past year or so, but we've never gone without and its awesome how much more God provides for us now that we are being good stewards with all the blessings he has given us.

Let Them Eat Cake

We had a great 4th of July weekend. Yesterday was a lot of fun. We went over to my husband's brother's house for a cookout. Hub's brother is deploying to the Middle East in a week, so it was a going away celebration for him. We had a fun time hanging out with family and all the kids had a great time running around with eachother.

I made a few desserts for the event that I'm pretty proud of and just had to share with you! Please excuse the pic quality- they're from my phone.

Watermelon cake! I got this idea from Women's Day magazine- you can see in online here. I saw it on the shelf in the grocery store and said I have to make that! It was surprisingly easy and I've never made anything like it before, so I was pretty impressed with the results.

And best of all, strawberry cheesecake. Instead of making the crust with graham crackers, I used ground gingersnap cookies. It makes such a difference. Its a subtle change, but so good. My brother-in-law requested this cake be made again for his birthday. Those Oakes boys love some cheesecake!

Top Two Tuesday: Favorite Purchases This Year

1. Our Wedding

A wedding is definitely not a "purchase" per-say, but anyone who has been married knows that it takes quite a few purchases to pull the day off (too many it seems like). Aside from the obvious "it was the best day of my life" thing (which it truly was) there were a ton of special things from the day that make it the most special day and the best money spent ever.

 

 It was the beautiful location

The dress. (From J-Crew)

The food!

Our fun favors.

The cake. So delicious!

The flowers.

The rings. Hub's ring is from an etsy shop- here.

 

First Kiss: Priceless.

2. Our Fur Babies

I don't necessarily like to think of them as a purchase either (although, lets face it, puppies can be expensive), but more of an adoption. It was one "purchase" we are so happy we made. You can read more about our miniature dachshunds here.

Join in the Top Two Tuesday fun here!