Minneapolis Walk of Flowers & Sculpture Garden | 7-13-15

   So we arrived in Minneapolis today! Vacation has officially begun! After having lunch and hanging out at my grandparent's apartment, we walked about a block or two over to the Sculpture Garden. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time exploring the giant sculptures. For video footage of our adventure, head over to my family's youtube channel tomorrow: Chaos x 7. But here are some photos!

A beautiful cathedral on a sunny day

The family

My too-cute-for-words sister :)

Love these two!

Walk of Flowers

See you on friday!
XOXO,
Sophia

How to get FREE preppy stickers!

   I don't know about you, but I have been seeing videos all over Youtube and posts all over Instagram all about the "free preppy sticker phenomenon." Of course, being a huge sticker fan, I had to take part! I'll tell you how to get these stickers, and how I use them!

   Pictured above are some stickers from the companies Jadelynnbrooke and Marley Lilly. Both of these companies have such amazing customer service!!!
   So for Jadelynnbrooke, you just scroll down to the bottom of their website (linked here: http://www.jadelynnbrooke.com/ ) and click "happy sticker request." You simply fill out a form and bam! They send you two of their signature stickers along with an adorable hand written note! (what a nice touch!) They said because of popular demand it could take anywhere from two weeks to a month to receive your stickers, however, I was pleasantly surprised to receive mine in about 10 days! Oh, and... they pay for shipping!! Yep, completely free of charge! Also, a really fun thing about Jadelynnbrooke is that it's run by three sisters!
   For Marley Lilly it's a little different. You go to customer services on their website (here: https://www.marleylilly.com/) and just e-mail them saying you would like to request some stickers to represent their amazing company ect. I have done this to multiple companies, but Marley Lilly was the first to respond. They wrote write back to me with a link to their sticker page. They said I could pick TWO of each available style and the only coast was a small shipping fee! The stickers were delivered within about a week! They are really thick, amazing quality, and even waterproof!
   HUGE thank you to both of these companies. I was so happy with their customer service.

How I use;
I have decked out my laptop with some of these fun stickers and I L-O-V-E love how it has turned out! I've left a space at the top for a monogram sticker I have coming from an etsy shop and then it will be perfect!
I also have loved putting them on school stuff; notebooks, folders, planners, ect.
And of course, water bottles! I was thrilled when I heard that I could put a Marley Lilly sticker on my camelbak and even wash it with no problem!

I hope that you all found this helpful!
Happy... stickering (?)
XOXO, Sophia

A very festive fourth

Hello all! Hope that you all had a fabulous fourth of July!
The fourth of July is hands-down one of my favorite holidays (though I am notorious for being a huge holiday and celebration enthusiast in general) and I loved celebrating this year with family and friends. Our day consisted of a parade, so swimming in a lake, and was topped of by some wonderful fireworks! I am so blessed to live in the great country that is America where I have the freedom to worship the Lord.

Matthew watching the Parade!

Playing some all-American catch!

red, white, and blue to the max!

Thankful to those who serve!

So fun and old-school!

Fabulous Fireworks!

Thanks for reading. See you next Friday!

XOXO, Sophia

Rainy day blues... and grays!

This summer has started off to a rather... rainy start. Rainy and overcast, day after day. But it sure does make us appreciate the sunny, warm days more!
Anyway, here are some shots of an outfit I put together for those rainy summer days. Comfy, warm (but not too warm) yet still stylish! Take a look...

Thanks to my sister for taking these pics. We swapped places for once! I;m usually the photographer :)

Thanks for reading!
XOXO,
~Sophie

Fool-proof French Macaroons! (For beginners)

I'm hoping on the band wagon for this one. Macaroons are all the craze right now, and after making them, I know why! They are not only adorable, but delicious and really fun to make. When I was looking up recipies and tips for making macaroons, I was intimidated by repeatedly hearing phrases like "very advanced" "hardest cookie to make" and "now this part is easy to mess up by over or under stirring..." but if you follow these tips that I have gathered from experience and different sources, you should be fine!
Tips and tricks for the perfect macaroon!
1) Sift, sift, sift! Sifting our powdered sugar and flour makes a huge difference. This will give you light, fluffy cookies. If you don't, you will end up with unattractive and bumpy cookies that are more prone to cracking.
2) Use a piping bag. Using a piping bag is necesary for both the cookie itself, and the frosting. If you don't own a piping bag, you can pick one up at any craft store and most grocery stores for just a few dollars. (My bags and tips are from Wilton) Or, you can make one out of a Ziplock bag!
3) Use parchment paper. I would recommend not spraying or greesing the pan that you will be placing the macaroon shells onto because you don't want any added greese. Also, make sure to use parchment paper and not wax paper. The outcome will be much better!
4) Tap out air bubbles. After your cookies have set for a bit on the trays, hit the tray against a couter or table top to release all air bubbles. This is more of a cosmetic step for the cookies but will still help a lot.
5) Every recipie I have come across has called for almound flour, which I didn't have. So I used King Aurthur whole wheat flour and it worked just fine!
This seems like a lot- I know, but by following these five tips you will be a macaroon pro in no time!
I'm not going to list the actual recipe here because that would make this an extremely long blog post, but I will direct you to the sources I used.
Nerdy Nummies on youtube - HOW TO MAKE KIRBY MACAROONS
Pinterest - Various pinners (just look up macaroon recipie)
Entertaining with Beth on youtube - Beth's foolproof French macaroon recipe
Hope that this helps!
Until next time,
XOXO

~Sophia
*DISCLAIMER I realize that my macaroons (pictured above and below) do not have "feet" or "ridges". This was my first try and I'm actually really happy with how they turned out! If you can get the feet then that proves you truly are a pro, but they are really hard to perfect. Happy baking!

#confirmation2015

Yesterday I proclaimed my faith in Jesus Christ. I was so blessed to have my family and loved ones with me and get to experience confirmation with such a wonderful group of people. Thank you Jesus! ❤️ 

Holidays at my house...

So the holiday season is always crazy at the Waters' household. But then again... everything is crazy at our house! Halloween reminded me just how hectic it can be during this holiday season. My brothers were bouncing off the walls with excitement and  literally could not stop talking about "trick-or-treat." Right after dinner (which for them was like two bites...) they asked for permission to get ready and, after getting the okay from mom and dad, ran over to their costumes (Mikey and Raph from Ninja Turtles) to "suit up." I have to admit, they made the cutest Ninja Turtles I ever did see! We of course, were the very first people outside and it wasn't even dark yet, but the boys had a grand old time... well, so did I! It was adorable to see them running about collecting sweets and enjoying this much anticipated moment. But now that Halloween is said and done, they have moved on to the next subject; Thanksgiving, and then of course... Christmas. So all said, it has been crazy; a birthday in September, a birthday in October, Halloween, another birthday to come in November, Thanksgiving, Christmas, the New year. Then we have a quick break before the birthday rotation starts up again in February! It may be busy and hectic around here, but that's just how I like it. It's for sure that we are never bored!


~Sophia