Sweet Parrish Place

I'm the girl with champagne taste and a tight budget

About Nicki

My name is Nicki and I am so happy you are here!
Welcome to all of you who cared enough to click on this page!  In case you are wondering,  I am a mother, career woman, and wife living in austin, TX. I have a challenging career as a middle school counselor. My job can be stressful at times, and a few years ago, I realized I needed an outlet, a place where I could follow my bliss, explore my passions, focus on my creativity.   At about the same time, I discovered a whole world of DIY blogs that I never even knew existed!  It felt like striking gold!  I started devouring them, and obsessively reading them, and one day, a light bulb popped on, and I knew, these bloggers were my people– they were kindred spirits.  They were doing things I had never dreamed  possible but instinctively knew I needed to be doing.  And so over the course of several months, Sweet Parrish Place went from not even a sparkle in my eye to a blog, and I was officially following my dreams for the first time in a very. long. time.
professional and a casual work look

Now that you know how Sweet Parrish Place was born, let me tell you a little bit more about me, the girl with the champagne taste and a tiny budget!  I love God with all of my heart, I pray to him several times a day, and yet I sin and need forgiveness on a daily basis just like everyone else.  I have three kids who I love very much, but at times they make me want to pull my hair out or take up smoking (cue all of the praying). Since its not a good idea to do either of those things, instead, I blog.  That is the creative outlet that keeps me sane and helps me focus on me in a world where I am focusing on other people (my students or my kids) for most of my days.

My oldest is Delaney, she is 22 and she is a senior in college (studying fashion merchandising) and drop dead gorgeous (yikes!)  She is getting ready to move to Miami to complete an internship at a  Nordstrom store.  This internship will likely turn into a job at the end, so as of now, her plans are to stay in Miami for the long haul.   Curious about her Instagram? Well go ahead, you can follow my daughter, but please, for the love of God, follow me too first!  It’s one of my favorite places to hang out.

In 2000, my second child came along.  His name is Coleton and he is 20 years old, he loves all sports, but his passion is running. He is a senior in high school, and is on the cross country and the track team.  And he is actually pretty good!  His 4 x 800 team won the state championship during his sophomore year, and in the Fall of his junior year, his Cross Country team won the state championship. You really should meet him because at the young age of 20, he currently already knows everything there is to know about life.  He really is a phenomenon! #kiddingnotkidding  On the bright side, he is a barrel of laughs and he is generous to a fault with the ones he loves.  All he needs is a little encouragement, and someone who believes in him, and he will move mountains for them.

coleton-marsh

After Coleton was born, my life kind of took a nosedive when my ex husband became an addict.  It’s a story that I could tell for hours and hours, but instead I wrote it down, and you can read all about it right here:

It was a dark period in my life where I became a shell of a person in many ways.  I am still not finished writing it all down, but it is one of those stories that is hard to tell.  I may be inspired to write more one day, we shall see.  If you are someone who has read my story and want to know more, I would love for you to let me know that.  I am just not sure how interested people are in hearing the whole thing.

Good news though!  After being a single mother for several years, I met and married Mr. Right!  I have been married now for 9 years to a wonderful man named Jason. I don’t know what I did to deserve him, but he has been a Godsend to me and my two oldest children. Especially since they have not seen their biological father for years. Jason was a local television chief meteorologist (up until December 2014), and very well loved in areas where WBOY-TV channel is broadcast.  I often joke that I can’t imagine what it would be like to be Jennifer Aniston, because everywhere we go people are recognizing him and either shouting out, approaching him, or asking what’s the weather ( yes still, even though he has been out of the profession for two years, I’ll let you know when it dies down)!
He does do fill in for the current meteorologist from time to time, and his fans love it when he is back for an evening.  I sometimes forget that we are in the public eye, it can be both a pleasure and an annoyance.  Jason has made a complete career change though, and is now a drug rep for Takeda Pharmaceuticals.  When I married Jason he had nothing but the best of intentions, but DIY’er was not on his list of many talents.  I am proud of him though, because he supports me completely, and he is learning how to DIY right along by my side.

Together, we had my youngest daughter, Gavi, my little angel face.  She is in 7th grade and likes to draw and make things, and she is currently a cheerleader at her middle school.
From august 2013-June 2014, we hosted a wonderful student from Sweden, who lived with us for 10 months (you can read our experiences hosting an exchange student here and here.  She is back in Sweden now.  But in our hearts, she will always be a part of our family. Delaney actually has traveled to Sweden and visited her a couple of times, and she is coming back here for a visit next month.  We are so excited to see her!
We are also do have a family pet.  He is a Pug we affectionately call Tyson Chicken Nugget.  He will 2 years old in June, and he is adorable and sweet.  We are just hoping he gets out of the puppy stage soon because he chews us out of house and home!

I am an incurable vintage and thrift store junkie, DIY’er, crafter and Junk Gypsie wannabe.   I believe that a few coats of paint can make anything better, I have never met a gallery wall I didn’t like, and fashion and personal style are in my soul. Although I am a West Virginia Mountaineer at the core, the beach is my jam!  I consider myself a small town girl with big city dreams.  I love easy listening music like David Grey, James Taylor, Jimmy Buffett, Adele, and my favorite band of all time is the Eagles.  A tiny piece of me went with Glenn Frey when he passed, but I am so happy that I was able to see them in concert a few years before.

I feel most at peace when my home is clean and organized, but that doesn’t always happen around here. If it has retro vibes, I will probably think it’s cool, and I have defined my design style as an eclectic, modern, polished casual style (and yes, I made that up, I’m allowed, I even have a Pinterest Board dedicated to it, read more about my design style here).  Nothing beats waking up to a super sized cup of hot tea ( Lipton is my favorite) and several hours free to blog or work on a project to my hearts content.  And just one more very important thing you need to know about me- I am a huge Tom Cruise fan.  I know I know, his religion is weird.  But I am a fan of his looks and his acting.  I just pretend the religious schtuff doesn’t exist. And yes, I know he is short, but since I will probably never lay eyes on him, that really doesn’t matter, does it?

Sweet Parrish Place is a space for me to share things I love and things that matter to me:  the  DIY projects we do at our house, decorating, crafting, painting stuff, my personal style and the fashion I love, travel, my family, the subject of addiction, or anything I find beautiful, pretty, or interesting.  Four 1/2 years ago, we moved into a 1996 split level in a great neighborhood to be closer to the kid’s school’s and activities, and it has made my life so much easier! It is a nice house in a great neighborhood, but needs a lot of tender loving care.  I want this blog to be a reflection of myself, the things I love and what inspires me.  When you read the pages of this blog, I hope you feel like you know me, like you are chatting with a friend.  I want to have a conversation with you as well, I want to know who you are, and what makes you tick.  Please comment away, and tell me all about yourself (after all, it’s only interesting if it’s a two way conversation).  I view this blog as a place for me to go to get away from work and decompress, a platform for me to connect with like minded people. All of these things help restore my sanity and feed my soul.   Really, Sweet Parrish Place is me sharing my heart and my life with you!  Four years ago, after daydreaming about it for a long time, I decided to give blogging a whirl and follow my bliss. And guess what happened?  It changed my life forever! Won’t you please join me on this journey?

Here are a few of my most popular posts:

One Room challenge Bathroom Reveal

 One Room Challenge Bathroom Reveal

Painted Subway Tile Backsplash

DIY Reclaimed Wood Wall

You can find me hanging out at all of these locations at various times throughout the week:

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about me today, the voice behind Sweet Parrish Place.  For advertising opportunities site wide (or just to say hello or ask any question), please email me at [email protected], Or click on my advertising link. Please type sweet parrish place advertising opportunity in the subject line so I will be sure not to miss it!

Nicki

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