I had the honor of meeting Leah back in our college years at our sorority. She is such a sweetheart and I was so lucky to have crossed paths with her. Leah doesn't know this but I had college apartment envy. Don't get me wrong our Ben Affleck posters adorning our walls were hot but hers was waaaay better, like grown up better. 

Leah's a wife and wonderful mom to 3 beautiful littles....I mean how cute are they? She has written a great blog called Unbored Housewife, where she shares yummy recipes and daily life with the littles. Her basil strawberry ice cream recipe sounds delish. She's honest and real and I know you will enjoy reading her blog as much as I do.

Meet Leah from Unbored Housewife

I worked as a lawyer for many years and although I spent a lot of my time writing, it was in a confined and restricted way.  I craved an outlet for creative writing.  After quitting my legal job to be a stay-at-home parent, I submitted an article to MOPS International's blog, Hello, Dearest, on a whim.  They chose my piece for publication, which was thrilling.  However, I realized that most of the women writing for Hello, Dearest were legit writers with fancy blogs of their own. I decided to carpe diem and start my own blog to include in my byline. That is how Unbored Housewife was born, and since then it has been an absolute joy to write about food, fitness, family, friends and God. 

Red beans and rice.  As a Louisiana native, I grew up eating this down home staple, and now it's my kids' favorite comfort food.  It's the dish they ask for most often and it's also surprisingly simple to prepare - dried red beans, smoked sausage, onions, garlic, bay leaves, salt and pepper - and you're in business.

Mascara.  Always mascara.  I have blonde lashes and I feel positively naked without it.  I use the classic Maybelline Great Lash Washable Mascara in Blackest Black.  That pink and green tube has been around forever.  It's tried and true and I heart it.

If I could makeover one room of my home it would be my master bedroom.  With two dogs and three little kids - aged six, four and two - my bed is usually overflowing, and my bedroom always manages to be the last spot in the house to receive attention.  I would love my master bedroom to be an organized, peaceful retreat, with crisp white linens and fresh flowers on my nightstand.  Maybe one day!

Favorite store to shop at?

The two stores where I draw the most inspiration are Anthropologie and Terrain (both of which are owned by the parent company Urban Outfitters).  The folks who style both stores are wildly creative and adept at creating an intoxicating look, smell and feel that inspires.  At Anthro I can pick up a unique outfit (complete with cool accessories), gorgeous tableware, eclectic home decor accents and the most fragrant candles around, all in one trip.  During my visits to Terrain, sometimes I browse for hours, soaking in the detailed and inspirational home and garden displays.  Then afterwards I grab lunch at Terrain's Garden Cafe, where they use hand-selected seasonal produce, dairy and meats sourced from local farmers.  I leave feeling fresh, creative and pleasantly full.

I've been on a high gloss paint high (no pun intended) for awhile now. Since the majority of my house was professionally painted I only have a few rooms left to experiment with. The bathrooms and the boys rooms. Since they like to decorate their walls with stickers I won't be touching those for awhile, although my sons houndstooth wallpaper would look amazing with black lacquer trim. So that leaves me with my bathrooms and one was in need of a touch up anyway. It's a room I'm trying to salvage because the black and white basket weave tile is probably what I would have chosen if redoing it anyway and I'm kind of digging the library wallpaper. The trim was painted a matte gray and I thought of doing a high gloss gray but wanted to go bolder. So black it is. My 6 year old even got in on the action. I had a moment where I said no you can't paint wth black paint and then something came over me and I decided this is a great opportunity to teach him about painting, why not start with black. Razors can scrape paint off the doorknob, right?! 

Plaid, suede and fringe, bring on the Fall Trends! Blanket coats, which I adore and lots of fringe which I'm slowly growing to like. Beautiful suede ladylike midi skirts and backpack handbags. Flare jeans in washed and dark finishes. A combined look of 90's preppy with 70's Boho Chic. Layered gold rings and statement jewelry. All things to try this fall! 

Back to school shopping was one of my favorite childhood memories. I still remember one of my favorite outfits. Remember these? Yeah, I wore them with scrunch socks and thought I was the coolest. 

As I was thinking about what to blog about, maybe high gloss paint or an awesome new fabric I found I was interrupted with a "Moooooooommmmmmmmm" .....quickly my daydreams disappeared and off to work I went. I'm calling it work today because I can't recall one enjoyable or proud moment of parenting today.  

For cool nights I love having extra throw blankets on hand. The kids love them for picnics too! 

Store backup items on the shelves below 

Look for items around your house to store fruit etc. used for cocktails. Here I use a vintage white pedestal bowl I found at an antique store and a tea-light holder to hold straws

Use a tray to hold all the items needed for your cocktails  

DONT WORRY BEE HAPPY

 Cheers!