My Saturday in Cola

Hey y'all! So last Saturday, July 16th, I spent the day in Columbia, South Carolina with Hannah! Hannah is one of my closest friends, and I met her through blogging! Hannah owns @scusemysouthernprep on Instagram (check her out!). If you'd like to see how I spent my Saturday with Hannah, feel free to keep reading! 

So to start off the day I took the 45 minute drive to Cola (another name for Columbia) from my small town in South Carolina. I went and picked up Hannah from her house so we could start our journey! Of course Hannah wasn't fully ready when I got there, so I had to wait. But when she was finally ready we took the short trip to the Tropical Smoothie that was near her house. I had never been to a Tropical Smoothie before so I was pretty excited to try it! I ordered the strawberry kiwi smoothie which was delicious! Hannah decided to get the mocha madness smoothie and it was surprisingly pretty good. We sat down and caught up on our lives since we hadn't seen each other since the 4th of July. 

After our smoothie break we were both craving a snack. And what better snack than Chick-Fil-A nuggets! I mean come on, Chick-Fil-A is the bomb.com! 

Since the best time to shop is after you've eaten some food, we decided to stop by Pink Sorbet, our local Lilly Pulitzer Signature Store! I loved looking at all the new prints and styles they had! Sadly, Hannah nor I was able to purchased anything, because you know, we're just broke High School students! (LoL) I was able to add some things to my wish list though! Here are some pictures that I took while there! 

Hannah then wanted to show me this small boutique that was filled with gifts, jewelry, and purses! It was called Just The Thing and it was located on Divine Street near Pink Sorbet! I actually purchased something at this boutique. Only because I knew I would regret it so much if I didn't!! I bought this beautiful tassel necklace and matching bracelet set which will be pictured below! 

After our shopping spree is when the real fun began! We decided to take pictures at the West Cola River Walk. The river walk is on the Congaree River. The trail contains a few small bridges and hills. The scenery is beautiful! Hannah and I decided to take pictures at three different locations along the river walk. We would have done more, but here in SC we're known to be famously hot. And that held true that day. 

The first location we took pictures at was at this cute little bridge towards the first part of the trail. There was green everywhere! The next stop was at the river. There are rocks all along and in the river. So of course we had to jump to the rocks that were in the river to take pictures! (I mean duhhhh, who wouldn't!) This part of the river was also under a bridge and it was actually very cool to stand under. Here is a picture of some of the scenery from our second locations.

 After we skipped on some rocks, and we both almost fell in, we decided to move on. The last location was along another part of the river. There we took pictures with bubbles and confetti! I know you've been waiting to see, so I'll finally show y'all some of the photos from the shoot below of Hannah and I! (The beautiful candles featured are from Bridge Water Candle Company! They smell and look beautiful!)

Before we ended our time together, we made a quick pit stop to see one of our mutual blogger fiends, Cathleen! Cathleen's Instagram is @cathslagle! (She takes amazing photos!) The reason we went to meet Cathleen is because Hannah needed to drop off a rep package from her business, @simplygoldaccesories on Instagram! We even got pictures with Cathleen!

So that was my Saturday with Hannah! I hope y'all enjoyed reading my story! Don't forget to follow me on Instagram at @theofficialprep to see more photos from my day in Cola! 

Xoxo, 

Samantha 

Rules to being a Great Snail Mail Friend

Hey y'all! Ever wanted to be a great snail mail/pen pal friend? Well I have made my own set of rules from experience. First off, if you don't know what snail mailing is i'll tell you. Snail mailing is when you sent letters or cards back and forth to a friend by mail! Usually people talk about their interests or what's going on in their life! So let's get to the "rules"!

Rule #1: You must be willing to respond to your snail mail buddy! 

This is very important, because if you don't respond, how will this ever work? 

Rule #2: You must have the means of getting stamps. 

If you don't have stamps how will you ever mail the letter?

Rule #3: You definitely should be willing to give out your address! 

If you can't do this, don't expect any snail mail buddies. If you have a P.O. Box this is perfect because it's not your actual address. 

Rule #4: Everyone's address is confidential.

Never every give out someone's address. This is just so wrong on so many levels...

Rule #5: Be creative! 

No one wants to receive dull mail. Be creative and ad a little color or flare to your letters! Your snail mail buddy is sure to love it! 

Rule #6: Be fun!

Don't talk about boring stuff that no one wants to hear about. Be sure to find a common interest with your snail mail buddy. Then you'll be able to carry on a conversation that both of you will enjoy! 

Rule #7: You should probably love to receive mail! 

This one isn't a must, but it's kind of important! I love to receive mail with my name on it. It just brings me so much joy! 

Rule #8: Be prompt! 

Try your best not to wait a long time between receiving and then sending out your snail mail. Write back as soon as possible! 

So that's all I have for right now! If you're good at the majority of these things above, I would love to have you as a snail mail buddy! Just direct message me on Instagram (@theofficialprep) and ask if I'm open for a snail mail buddy! I hope y'all enjoy these "rules" of snail mailing! 

Xoxo,

Samantha

(@theofficialprrp)

The Cutest Wallpapers Ever

Hey y'all! Do you need some wallpapers to brighten up your phone? Well I have some just for you! I've searched everywhere to bring you some of the prettiest, cutest, and most inspirational wallpapers for us girls. If you find one you like, all you have to do is hold down the image and save it! Then from there you can set it as your wallpaper! These are for phones and not desktops. 

I would also like to note that none of these wallpapers are mine. I found them all on the Internet. 

That's all I have for now! I hope you found some new wallpapers for your phone! Stay tuned for more new posts soon! 

Xoxo, 

Samantha 

(@theofficialprep)

Jesus' Guide to Gossip

Hey y'all! I know as a teenage girl in High School I struggle with gossip a lot. Either I'm doing it or someone else is, but gossip is everywhere in High School. I admit I do it a lot, most of us do, but I wanted to know what Jesus' take on Gossip was. As well as how he says to handle it. So with out further a due here's Jesus' Guide to Gossip, told from my point of view. 

(I would like to make this known that this is my interpretation of Jesus' word. I am in no way saying that this is what Jesus actually means. Everyone interprets the Bible differently)

Definition of Gossip:

a casual conversation about other people, typically involving details that are not confirmed as being true. 

Verses to look at:

*verses that stood out to me

Leviticus 19:16

Proverbs 11:13

Proverbs 16:28

Proverbs 20:19*

Romans 1:29-31

2 Corinthians 12:20*

1 Timothy 5:13

*Whoever goes around as a gossip tells secrets. Do not associate with people whose mouth is always open.

Proverbs 20:19

*I'm afraid that I may come and find you different from what I want you to be, and that you will may find me different from what you want me to be. I'm afraid that there may be rivalry, jealousy, hot tempers, selfish ambition, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorderly conduct.

2 Corinthians 12:20

My Interpretation: 

From reading the verses Jesus blankly says that gossiping is wrong, and we all know that. In Proverbs 20:19 Jesus says that we shouldn't associate with people that gossip. If we want to follow what Jesus says we must part with the people that bring gossip in our life. 

My Reflection:

Gossiping is very easy to do. I do it almost everyday. Sometimes it's hard to realize when I do it because I've gotten so used to it. One question I still have is it really gossiping if it's true? Either way, always remember that if you wouldn't want that rumor spread about you, then don't spread it about someone else. 

I hope if you are struggling with gossiping that this Guide to Gossiping helps you at least a little. Please remember I am no way trying to persuade your views or am claiming that this is exactly what Jesus is saying. 

XOXO,

Samantha 

@theofficialprep