I thought of a few titles for this post.  One was "Pretty and Approachable Fall Mantel" but I'll be honest, no one is going to put that into google search and I'm all about SEO these days. Hashtag keepin it real. My point is that you don't have to be a designer or have a beyonce budget to create a pretty mantel.  Side note: I often get overwhelmed, rather than inspired by all the beauty out there. I'm always looking for inspiration but it's nice to have attainable inspiration from time to time. Hopefully you'll find that here today. Here's what I came up with + scroll to the bottom for my top 5 tips to create a budget friendly fall mantel.

Last weekend Joe and I took the kids to meet his parents at Mariott's Oceanwatch Villas at Grande Dunes in Myrtle Beach, SC. They'd booked a vacation there and since it's only a few hours away it was the perfect opportunity to cure a little bit of homesickness. I'm not sure what I expected but it certainly exceeded my expectations.  It  really was the perfect place to take the kiddos. Oh and I should say that though this sounds sponsored, it's not. I wish it was. Like I really wish it was because then I could justify going back soon. Ha. I'm always curious about what people do with their kids plus it's been a bit quiet here on the blog so I figured I'd kill two birds with one stone and share. So what made it so great?

My little one is turning FOUR today.  Yesterday, she sat in the backseat with the cutest pout ever saying "I'm tired of being 3 1/2.  It's boring! I don't want to be the youngest."  How convenient that I could assure her that not only is she not the youngest but that she also didn't have to stand for being three one. more. day.  My little petulant Nadia. Today I'm sharing 6 ways I make her birthday feel special!