thursday.

Remember this: behind the skinny actress with the Oscar win; behind the joke you think is stupid; behind the girl with reputation that is falling apart in public; behind the tears of the girl being bullied and the harsh words of the mean girl who bullies her; behind the woman at the Food Lion who scans the cereal and the man sitting in the Oval Office—behind all of those images that people craft for themselves, there is a person, seen by God, created in his image, and longing to be loved and accepted. Just like you. No matter what their reputation, no matter what image they so desperately want to show you, there is a person. Don’t forget to see them.

--Emily P. Freeman, Graceful

I'm back from my unannounced, self-imposed blogging hiatus, and wanted to share this beautiful excerpt from one of my favorite books with you. Hope you have a beautiful Thursday.


xoxo,

Ireland

A Quick Update...

Hey, everyone! It's crazy to think that this is the longest I have ever gone without posting on the blog. I have a good excuse, though!

As of last Saturday (August 30th, 2014) my family and I have officially moved to Wilmington, North Carolina! I took these pictures yesterday at Wrightsville Beach, which is literally biking distance from our house. Is that not awesome or what?

 

I also started my junior year of high school that week (in public school, no less), so I've been swamped with homework and long to-do lists. Fortunately, some of the madness is starting to subside, and I am getting into the swing of things... More on that some other day. :)

 

The short of it is that I am back here with you and am crazy excited about it! More posts are coming your way soon, but in the meantime, I want to know...

 

How is the back-to-school season treating you so far?

 

xoxo,

 

Ireland

P.S. Shout-out to my newest follower, Sofia Nikula! I hope you enjoy what you find here!

 

 

Sweeter Than Fiction // Outfit Post

So, in recent news, my grandmother and great-aunt Linda are visiting this week from Knoxville! Yesterday we all piled into my mom's car and took them to see some of the quintessential Southport spots-- including the waterfront park, where I'm sitting in the picture below.

 

I rarely ever do this, but I changed three times over the course of the day yesterday. I wore a dress and a denim jacket to church, changed into a t-shirt and shorts when we got home, and then changed again before going out in the evening. Anyway... eventually I ended up in this sleeveless sweater by Scott Taylor, my dark denim shorts, and faux leather flip-flops, along with the beaded necklace my uncle got my mom in Afghanistan and my prescription sunglasses. So everything worked out.

 

My dad called me a blonde Jackie the other day and I am still basking in the glow... :) My inspiration for this outfit came from some pictures of Audrey Hepburn and Jackie O on island vacations... they even made casual wear look chic! You can check out my Pinterest boards of Jackie here and Audrey here.

 

Silly faces to brighten the mood :)

 

 

I hope your week is starting off well! As usual, your thoughts are more than welcome in the comments....

 

xoxo,

 

Ireland

 

 

Outfit Credits:

Sweater- Scott Taylor, borrowed

Shorts- ZCO via Belk

Shoes- Sonoma, borrowed

Necklace- ?, borrowed

Sunglasses- Dr. Bizer's?*

*(IDK for sure... they are labeled Aztec Suns but I don't know if that's the style or the brand)

 

 

Title Credit:
"Sweeter Than Fiction" by Taylor Swift

 



 

 

 

on the wings of the wind.

 

 I went to SPT Marina yesterday with my dad and we had lunch... and talked... and looked at cool boats.

 

 

Here is the awesome Happy Sandwich I made him. My sandwiches are better than my pancakes, right?

 

There's a park right across from the park, and here's... a TREE!

 



It felt so good to be on a dock, surrounded by water... We used to have a boat when I was little and spent a lot of time at the lake. Happy memories.

More boats.

 

Still more boats.

 

And now we come to the title of this post. So, Dad and I were reading all the boats' names... which is always fun... and I really liked this one: On the Wings of the Wind. We also saw one called 10 acious. Cute, right?

 

Do you love being on the water? Would you rather go surfing or boating regularly?

I look forward to reading your comments!

 

~xoxo~

Ireland

Walk On the Water // Outfit Post

It's Saturday! And I don't know about where you live, but here in Southport, NC, it is also the last day of spring break. Now, I'm home-schooled, but I know this because a) the beach/downtown area is starting to get much more crowded, and b) everyone I know from youth was off this week. :)



Today I'm wearing layered tank tops with a three-quarter length cardi and cuffed skinnies. While I was getting dressed, I just fell into the whole black-and-white thing, which I like, despite the fact that it doesn't do as much for my fair complexion as other colors. The right makeup helps, though.

 

These platform wedges are deceptively taller than they look, and while wedges are supposed to be easy heels to walk in, I still tripped a couple times. [I don't think I'm supposed to tell you that, but it's true! Anyway, I tried to be discreet about it. :) ]

Mom, Jeffrey, and I went to the part of the beach right in front of the Oak Island Lighthouse. It's 143 feet tall! (And yes I had to look that up for posting it on here.) Cool right? I'm thankful my mom drives us all around town to do fun stuff. Hashtag MyFamilyRocks.

One of my favorite quotes by Mother Teresa is, "What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family." And isn't that something we all could be better at? It's such a great opportunity to LOVE others (which is MASSIVELY important!) and it's right at our fingertips, on a regular (if not daily) basis. I know I for one am generally better with other people's little kids than I am with my brother... but I want that to change. And this last picture... this... this is what I want. And it is beautiful.

xoxo

Ireland

Outfit

Black tank: Old Navy

B&W tank: Self-Esteem, thrifted

White 3/4 length cardi: Old Navy

Skinny jeans: Aeropostale

Black/cork wedges: St. John's Bay, JCPenney's

Title: Walk On the Water by Britt Nicole