The View From My Pencil

Free: A print or four

2012-01-18T05:00:00.000-08:00

This Christmas, my sister and I decided that instead of buying each other things we'd make each other something. I'm not as talented as her so I think I got the better end of the deal with the beautiful flower necklace she made me (post to come!). I put my skills to work looking on her Pinterest page and created some prints she had pinned. You can see them in her house here. But for those of you who share her tastes, I've included them here for your download and print pleasure. Nothing like a freebie.

PRINTING NOTE: These were sized for 8.5"x11" prints. For some reason I got the picture size and standard paper size mixed up. They should print high resolution at 8x10. To download, click on the print. You'll be launched into Blogger's image viewer. From there, you should be able to Control + Click the picture, which will give you the option to open the image in a new window. From there, right click or command click the image and you should get a Save Image As option. Once you save it, it's ready for your print pleasure.

One for the boss

2012-01-17T03:16:00.000-08:00

Cowl girl

2012-01-16T03:14:00.000-08:00

I saw this cowl on Pinterest (such a time suck!), and I'm loving the chunkiness of it. It screams, "Wear me, woman! You will not regret it." And, "I go well with a Starbucks cup." Yes, yes, you do my fine cowl friend. Must put on my knitting needle to-do list, which by the way, someone really needs to tackle. I'm not going to name any names, but you know who is slacking on that resolution.

Seeing purple

2012-01-14T03:10:00.000-08:00

For some reason I'm eating up all things purple. I've been contemplating painting my office/guest bedroom for a while now, and when I saw this page in this month's issue of Better Homes and Gardens, it struck me purple could possibly be my paint color. Although, I'm not in love with any of the ones on this page. I'll need to get some paint samples and sit with them for a while since it's going into a room I now spend 40+ hours in.

A scrumptious knit stitch

2012-01-13T03:06:00.000-08:00

I saw this on Pinterest. I need to find out how to make it and what it's called.

Dear Vincent

2012-01-12T15:04:00.000-08:00

I never started a baby book for Vincent. I'm not sure why. Maybe because I didn't think putting little factoids in a book was enough to say how much this little boy means to me. It doesn't capture much about him. Weight, lengths, first words, and first step information leave much to the imagination about the kind of little boy Vincent is. It doesn't capture how when Vincent is happy he grows and leans in to nuzzle you with an open-mouth kiss. Nor does it capture how he loves to splash in the tub, so much so that he loves getting splashed in the face. I could go on and on. So I thought instead of writing down all the mundane details that every baby goes through I would start writing little journal entries to him expressing what he's doing and what I'm loving about him. My only regret is that I wished I would have thought of the idea sooner. Oh well. All he needs to know is that he pooped, peed, and ate for the first 9 months of his life, right? He's only recently become a shining character worthy of words on a page. Oh, and I still keep track of those tiny details like height and weight, but on post-it notes. Maybe I'll make a page some day devoted to just this information.

So I set out to find a notebook to do this. And if you didn't know, Target has a lot of fun notebook. I saw this one with a changeable monogram on the front. The only problem was that the V monogram was pink. Call me old fashioned but pink is for girls. So I set out to make my own V to insert into monogram pocket at the front of the notebook. So clever. And I think I might do something with the left over letters. Maybe Vincent can use them to practice identifying them.

Here's the notebook. I hate that the sticker on it left behind some bleed from the glue. I might have to cover it up with a fun label. Something I can be bothered about later.

Here are the little punch out initials that came with the notebook. You can see the little monogram pocket on the left.

And more monograms. Sorry about the crappy pictures. I was lazy and took them with my iPhone.

And more. You can see the company also made some symbols...

And some other characters.

But I created my own monogram. Here are the options I liked best. But when I printed them out, I thought the last one was the strongest.

The font is called Ribbon.

Hung up on jewelry hangers

2012-01-09T10:48:00.000-08:00

Now that I'm starting to amass a few rather long and chunky pieces of jewelry that don't fit into my jewelry box, I'm thinking it's time to get a jewelry hanger. I'd love to see my fun Charming Charlie pieces and my very favorite recycled T-shirt and flower necklaces up and on display. Since I'm a jewelry phobe/virgin, I forget what I own. My daily routine has never included "What fun necklace should I wear? Or I wonder if those dangly earring would go with this outfit?" Nope, those thoughts don't cross my mind. But this girl is changing, and I think a jewelry hanger would remind me what I have and be a fun closet accessory. So I turned to Etsy. Of course there would be a million options.

Here are the ones I like:

From CocosKnits
Although this one is by far is my fave, I think $75 is a bit steep. Just think of all the pieces I could get at Charlies!

This one from is Sleeper1972 different and made from upcycled material, but I imagine my collection will soon grow beyond what it can hold. The $17 is easy on the wallet though. Would it look good in a closet?

This one from penelope9919 is very Dexter ($10). Moving on...

I don't quite need a Caboodle (bluebirdheaven, $116). Do you remember Caboodles? I never quite had enough crap to fill the slots and drawers for those tackle boxes.

I think this one from oakstudiosofdesign would give me space to grow. Although the price--$35--for such a simple piece might be a little much.

That boy makes me smile

2012-01-06T07:00:00.000-08:00

New year's resolutions

2012-01-05T07:00:00.000-08:00

Since I'm turning 30 this year, I thought that it was fitting to have 30 resolutions.

1. To get up every morning at 5 and run on the treadmill or do yoga.
2. Blog at least three times a week.
3. Take more pictures of my family.
4. Start a blog binder and spend more time and effort into each post.
5. Redesign my blog.
6. Organize my office/guest bedroom to be a place I'm eager to go to work in every morning.
7. Paint my office.
8. Finish my foyer gallery project.
9. Hang up pictures around the house.
10. Put hardware on the cabinets.
11. Buy wall cabinets for each bathrooms that I can put towels in.
12. Paint the bathrooms.
13. Do something each month to prepare for Christmas.
14. Start sewing regularly.
15. Journal regularly.
16. Go see my niece in California.
17. Develop and cleaning schedule and stick to it.
18. Plan two date nights a month.
19. Practice French daily.
20. Get pointers on giving a better interview and talking myself up.
21. Come up with a budget plan for buying big ticket items for the house.
22. Call my dad at least once a month.
23. Plan a family reunion.
24. Have a girls weekend with my sisters.
25. Get professional family pictures.
26. Knit one item a month.
27. Drink more wine.
28. Set up regular hair appointments.
29. Teach Vincent sign language.
30. Get a new job.

Christmas recap

2012-01-04T14:29:00.000-08:00

I'm already falling off the my resolution wagon by not blogging as much as I wanted to. Oops! Can we pretend that New Year's is this weekend? After all, I didn't even enjoy the bottle of champagne we got. Do over please!

This Christmas was so very fun and tiring for me. I decorated the house for in laws to come over for dinner on Christmas Eve. I may have went a little overboard planning the menu for someone who has a 10-month old: a roast (we didn't have a a roasting pan; had to buy that); honey pumpkin crescent rolls with honey butter (yikes, those took all morning; who makes bread for the first time when they have so many other things to do? apparently I do. They turned out fabulous though); green bean casserole (OK, this was Jonathan's item, but I still had to watch the baby while he made it). We had wine and sangria. There was fondu and carrot cake. I hung ornaments from the chandelier and tied ribbon to the napkin holders. Red chargers were in place. The list goes on and on. I'm not kidding. It was the fanciest and most lavish dinner I've ever tried to put together. Can't wait to do it again next year! I better start planning now.

Christmas Day was a whirlwind. I wish I would have savored it more. Drank in Vincent's reaction to all the hoopla. Taken more pictures. Savor: That's my word for this year. Savor. Like a glass of really good wine or a piece of chocolate. That feeling of the last five minutes before you have to get out of bed. I'm always trying to be one step ahead and it sucks all the fun out of it.

Oh, and I managed to find the time to sew monogrammed stockings for Jonathan, Vincent, and I. First project out of the sewing gate. It wouldn't be me if it weren't challenging.

We have our party clothes on!

Perhaps we need a bigger tree for family portraits. One we don't completely block.

A little better.

Vincent and Grandpa Al. Notice the stockings in the background. That was the only picture I seem to have taken with my good camera. Love that the Boppy is hanging out in the background. Sigh.

Christmas morning! A new puzzle and play phone. All right! OK, maybe he's not that excited, but it is 6 a.m. in the morning. We didn't manage to take many pictures. We were both so tired since Vincent woke up at 5 a.m. Jonathan got me Nook Tablet, which I can't put down. It makes it so easy to read and stay caught up on my blogs.

Dapper dude at Grandma and Grandpa G's. Sweaters on little boys=CUTE!

All these presents are mine! MINE!

I'll open this one. Who cares if it doesn't have my name on it.

Bet I can win you over with my smile.

Never mind on opening it then, banging on it is just as fun!

Wilson attacks!

Now can I open it?

The G Family

Raylene couldn't be there, but she wasn't far from our minds. Ms. Disney/Hollywood.

Everyone loves a baby.

My new riding toy

That K-State pillow pet is silly.

With my second (?) cousin

Putting together a foosball table

Mama is so funny.

Worn out!

Insta Friday

2011-12-02T08:13:00.001-08:00

Welcome to my first ever Insta Friday post. Chance, you can stop pestering me about it now, thank you very much. Because I'm going to rock this. This week has been, well, take a look for yourself and insert your own adjective.

Road tripping it back home from Denver. I think Vincent's happy to have gotten a haircut during the trip. Check out the before we took during the trip out:

Still cute, but maybe a little too furry.

You talkin' to me?! You talkin' to me? Our table centerpiece gives us lip during dinner.

Vincent's school pictures. Yeah, this could be submitted to Awkward Family Pictures. Oh my. Even though they're expensive, we're going to buy one for prosperity.

A little better but still very sad. The background is his room teacher's arm. Nice. In his defence, Vincent was sick. Obviously he's a cute baby. See earlier picture.

Mama got an iPhone 4GS. FaceTime here I come!

I started decorating for Christmas this week. I still haven't finished. Hopefully I'll be done before the 25th. No promises. Vincent still refuses to help.

Pretty, right? It cheers me up!

Until it doesn't. Then I write snarky, bad things on my chalkboard mug.

And drink wine over lunch. Oh the perks of working from home.

You'd think I'd stay in a great mood between the Christmas decorations, getting a new iPhone, AND receiving a pile of cute jeans, slacks, and tops from my sister Melissa. Clothes that fit!

She also put in this sexy bra. Bow chicka wow wow! And since I just quit nursing, I was more than happy to welcome back underwire. And sexy.

I mean, just look at how happy these girls are. At work even. (Who's thinking maybe she shouldn't drink wine? )

My husband has been bringing home flowers when he grocery shops. I'm pretty sure they're not on the list, but I love them.

When I don't work, I sometimes shop. Make that window shop. Who thinks I should buy these boots? Victoria Secret's. $89.

The table piece is going to eat all the stars. Oh no!

What a monkey

2011-10-30T14:49:00.000-07:00

We tossed around several ideas for Vincent's first Halloween, among them: cowboy, the little baby from Adam's family, an ewok, and a squirrel. We finally landed on him being a monkey because, well, he does kind of have monkey feature with that crazy hair and big ears. I love my child. I really do. :)

Little pumpkin

2011-10-09T17:32:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we ventured to a pumpkin patch at a local cider mill. Although the day was pretty warm, we didn't let that spoil our fun and first ever pumpkin patchy goodness! We found our way through a corn maze (which pales in comparison to the one I went to in Colorado a few years ago; not only was the maze super easy but the corn was all dead and see throughy), and then we picked our way through the pumpkin patch. And you can't have baby's first pumpkin patch visit without the requisite sit-next-to-a-pumpkin picture!

Twins

2011-09-18T13:16:00.000-07:00

A little Photobooth fun. Oh, how I love Macs!

Foyer for ya

2011-09-02T09:25:00.000-07:00

I can't help myself, but how clever is my post title? Look at me trying to be witty. Now for a test: try saying "foyer for ya" five times real fast. Ohhhh! Hard, ain't it? Now onto our regularly scheduled programming...My new house (I've lived here a year and it's still new to me) has a grand foyer. I love it! Jonathan thinks it's a big ole waste of space, but I like that upon walking into the house you don't immediately walk into the living room. Walking into a foyer always makes an impression on me. That said, my foyer wasn't making much of an impression on anyone. All it had were stacks of unread baby, yoga, travel, and decorating magazines (see where my interests lie?) and place to catch the keys. It needed something! So I shopped around the house. So this makeover is free as the bird that Vincent likes to unintentionally give his parents. Six months and he already has attitude!The table is actually an old Target desk (it has a hutch that now lives in the basement).

Progress pictures:

Here's what we have: That big stack of magazine (needs to go!), a purple latern (I have these in all colors, and thought it would provide a pop of color; it got the axe in the end); a delightful candle that a friend gave me from a local bath shop (it's lit to give some ambiance. ommmm); dahlias cut from my yard and placed in a Shatto milk jug (glad I saved that!); a basket from Pier 1 to hold the Flip camera, keys, and other things; and a fleur de lis place card holder turned picture holder from Nell Hills.

Here I added a stack of books to give some dimension and height, a tray, and a photo box. (Pardon the shake. Still getting used to my camera settings and how to take pictures...)

Getting closer...I swiped the quilted runner my sister made from our dining room table for some added texture. Hmm. Still looks a little too blocky.

Soak in all that fun quilted goodness. But it still isn't right...

Enter and smaller tray to hold mail, keys, sunglasses, and whatnot (just for you sis!); I also swiped the G from my mantel that my sister gave me years ago, and I removed the basket. Not too bad, huh? What made it difficult is that the table sits along a half wall that overlooks the stair well to our basement. I didn't want anything that stood higher than the ledge.

Who doesn't love a big initial?

and a pretty collection of flowers, books, and a candle?

It's an end result that I'm actually pretty darn happy with. But you should have read the text to my sister as it was in progress.

Want to accomplish

2011-08-29T11:57:00.000-07:00

I always have a running want-to-accomplish list in the back of my dusty brain. Here's my top 10 house want-to-dos. Maybe publishing them here will be a spark of inspiration!

1. Find more frames at garage sales and on Etsy to spray paint as part of my wall collage in my foyer. I'm doing all black frames since my walls are the color of putty and white makes the putty look garish.

2. Create art for some frames. I want to do a mix of signs, pictures, and meaningful things. Hopefully it won't become the Museum O Vincent. But could you blame me?

3. Possibly repaint the white desk in the foyer that I'm currently using as a foyer table. I'm thinking black, but maybe I should be more bold and do something unexpected. Like navy blue or tea?

4. Spray paint some wooden airplanes that were Jonathan's when he was a boy and hang them from the ceiling in Vincent's room. He's starting to be more aware so I think he'd like having something to look at over his changing table. I'm just going to paint them white to go with his furniture.

5. Make some signs to go in Vincent's room. Right now he only has his "I love you to the moon and back" print that I made him. His nursery is so boring, but I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with it. And anymore I realized I hate rooms that are too themed. I want his room to be eclectic.

6. Sew couch pillow covers.

7. Sew curtains for the dining room.

8. Shop around for some new things to put on the mantel.

9. DIY things to put in the mantel apothecary jar.

10. Organize the pantry.

Food snooze

2011-08-06T12:57:00.001-07:00

I've always heard how exciting it can be to give your kid their first foods. Makes sense. Food can be quite yummy and fun. But I wasn't in any rush to give Vincent food. His ped recommended waiting until 6 months and if we wanted to try anything earlier we could do rice cereal. Rice cereal=FAIL! We tried it a few times starting at 5 months, but when it made him gag so bad he puked, I threw in the towel. Or the spoon in this case. If he wasn't ready, I wasn't going to push it. I hate cleaning up puke more than I like feeding him food. So we waited until 6 months when we could give him something that didn't taste like sweet cardboard (sweet because it's mixed with breastmilk...and yes, we tasted it...don't judge).

Vincent turns 6 months this Wednesday, so we figured it was close enough. We broke out some sweet potatoes. Yum yum. Er, or not. Vincent still isn't too interested in food yet. And he still managed to gag. We'll keep trying. Just offering a couple spoonful until he can master the art of eating. I guess we should have known he wouldn't be fond of food. He's only eating 4 or 5 ounces of milk at a time. He's just not an eater. Yet.

But hey, I did get some cute pics out of it. Look at all that yummy cuteness! I think he's more fascinated with the camera than the spoon.

Daycare bound

2011-07-29T14:32:00.000-07:00

And just like that, it's time for Vincent to go to daycare. Just to recap: He was home with me for 6 short sweet weeks, followed by two weeks home with Daddy. Then he went to work with Daddy through the end of June and watched full time by Grandma Pat almost the whole month of July. This very last week of July, he went to work with Daddy half days and spent the other half of the days at home (while I worked) and Daddy did most of the caregiving. On Tuesday it was Mamma & Vincent day from which I took the day off from the week I found out 5 months after having Vincent that my new company gives to new parents. Yeah, thanks for that 5 months later assholes. (Yes, I'm bitter. And I wrote assholes. I'm bitter, remember? But seriously, who doesn't tell an employee who was pissed about having to use all their vacation for maternity leave that they wouldn't have had to use with the old company that they get an extra week?!)

Today, on Vincent's very last day of no longer being cared for by family, we dropped in on his daycare that he'll be going to come August 1. The ladies that run the infant room are so sweet, even when one baby wasn't too happy about missing his nap because of the fire alarm drill that morning and another baby crying every time she looked at Jonathan.

I'm actually pretty excited for this part of Vincent's life. I think he'll learn a lot at daycare, and I'm looking forward to picking him up in the afternoons. The daycare isn't too far from our house, so it'll be a nice way for me to not only get out of the house every day but also to close up shop and go see his smiling face. Or at least I hope it's smiling. Miss Helen warned us that it takes a week or so for babies to get acclimated and they usually go home exhausted. The bonus she said is that they usually start sleeping through the night if they're not already. This mamma is loving those words!

The end of nursing

2011-07-26T13:40:00.000-07:00

I think we've just about closed the door on the nursing saga. Lately it's been a battle of wills when I nurse Vincent. Not because he doesn't want to, but because he gets really impatient and lazy. I've done all I can to keep up my supply, which had dipped. I really don't think my problem was lack of a supply but rather a baby who'd rather the milk flow like from a bottle nipple. It makes my heart ache to close this chapter. I really wanted to see it through some date in the future determined either by medical necessity (me going back on my MS meds) or him not gaining enough weight. I never imagined that mother nature was going to give me milk that drips rather than flows. I think I'd be impatient too. And before you comment with a ton of advice, believe me, I've tried it all—or I feel like I have. I know that many sites suggest taking away the bottles until he can get used to nursing again, but as a working mother, that's impossible. Thanks America for providing a way for mammas to provide the very best for their children. I hate how you rob us mammas of so many opportunities to be with our children.

Maybe this won't be the end. Maybe it will be. I just hope I'm ready for whatever is in store.

A V post

2011-07-26T07:09:00.000-07:00

I think I've abandoned my other blog, so look her for all news about Baby Vincent as he mostly known at least on the Massey side. I think it has a better ring than Vinny (which makes my blood curdle and makes me want to vomit a little in my mouth; guess if you want to be on my good side, you'll call him V, Vincent, or even Vince, just saying).

So about the little guy: At almost 5.5 months, he's really close to rolling over. He hates tummy time, so I'm not sure if he'll ever be successful until it's time to crawl. His hands continue to fascinate him, and even though mamma shows him his feet everyday, he has yet to be interested. I'm so ready to see him do happy baby.

He's really attached to people (at least he is to Mom and Dad) and is starting to notice if you leave the room. Hopefully that won't be a cord that's around forever. I'd like to think Vincent could be a social, non-clingy child, but if it means more mamma snuggles, maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

I've given him rice cereal on several occasions and he's still not interested and has a strong tongue thrust reflex. His pediatrician doesn't even recommend rice until 6 months, so I'm in no rush to push the issue, especially after this week's cereal triggered his gag reflex and he vomited every where. I felt like the worst mamma in the world. Honestly, I think this society is too keen on being food pushers, including bottles. I kept wanting Vincent to eat more in his bottles, but then it finally clicked that hey, he obviously doesn't need it so why push it? He'll eat more when he's ready; same goes with solids.

He's starting to reach for things independently. Before we had to show it to him and he would tentatively touch or grasp whatever it was we were presenting to him. He's starting to sit up more on his own, and we're thinking we might invest in a Bumbo seat so he can get more practice sitting. A couch isn't exactly conducive to unsupported sitting. One delay I'm a little worried about is that when we try standing him on our lap he doesn't bear weight on his legs, unless he's really pissed off. If he's still not doing this come his 6-month appointment, I might say something to our pediatrician. I just don't think Vincent is in any rush to achieve his development milestones and when he's ready, he seems to accomplish them in a day.

Randomness

2011-07-25T10:20:00.001-07:00

By request, here's 29 (cuz that's how old I am!) things you may not have know about me.

29. I think I'm a hippie at heart. I believe in the good of most people. Unless you piss me off and then I write you off forever. Maybe I'm not a full-blooded hippie.

28. I happen to think women who don't wear any makeup and dress casually are the most beautiful because they let their personality "dress them up".

27. I thinking eating takes way too much time, especially now that I have a kid.

26. Even though I work from home, I have to be wearing shoes, even if it's just flip flops. Otherwise it feels like I'm working on the weekends.

25. I love the comfy casual look best. Not only am I comfortable but when I feel comfortable, I feel like I look good.

24. I love challenges. I took calculus in college just because I wanted to see if I could do it. I didn't even need it (journalism major). I ended up with a C, but I contend that a lot of that was because I had to spend a majority of my time tutoring my roommate because she didn't understand basic algebra.

23. I wish I would have majored in biology. I'm good at science, and I love a challenge.

22. Sometimes I miss being a college student and wish we could have repeat days where we go back in time for a day and have a do over and have conscious knowledge that it was a do over.

21. My other do-over days would be: the day my mother died so I could tell her goodbye, when I met my husband, my wedding day, and the day I gave birth to my son.

20. I didn't know motherhood would be this hard. I also didn't know how anxious I would be to find out how my little boy is going to turn out.

19. I like buying name brands. I equate them with quality, but since having a kid all brands are fair game.

18. I'm embarrassed to admit we bought Wal-mart brand diapers and we like them!

17. I'm a neat freak about how I clean: I don't clean all the time, but when I do, you could eat off every surface.

16. You could even eat off my toilet.

15. I loved being pregnant. I want to have another kid just so I can be pregnant again.

14. I also want another kid so I can go through birth again. I was in labor with my son for 18 hours and I pushed him out in 10 minutes.

13. I love to-do lists. My sister once made fun of me for all my lists and even bought me this beautiful to-do list book, but I can't bring myself to write in it because it's so beautiful! On my to-do list is to be brave enough to write in it.

12. I don't have very good manners.

11. I have a hard time meeting new people.

10. I firmly believe in my astrological sign, the Pisces. All the traits apply to me.

9. I think it would be fun to own a New Age shop. I would burn incense all day and listen to music that always puts me to sleep.

8. I'm very sensitive to the moods of people around me, especially anger. If you're angry, I can't stand to be in the same room with you.

7. I hate fighting.

6. RE: 7: It makes me very passive aggressive.

5. I love gummy bears.

4. I cracked up when my niece and nephew saw my gummy bears in my travel snacks when I went to Denver and totally wanted them. I guess I love kid candy.

3. I can't sit still long enough to watch movies anymore, especially ones that are thought provoking. We just watched Conception and I was glad we were interrupted by the kid so I could do something else for a while.

2. I hate people who bitch and complain and then when you bitch and complain they give advice like it's not a big deal. Hello, feel my pain!

1. I hate crying. When other people cry I never know what to do. Crying is like nails on a chalkboard to me. I think that's why I don't let Vincent cry much.

The forgotten post chronicles: Work from home is for the birds

2011-07-21T06:03:00.000-07:00

So now that I've been working from home for almost four months, I felt it was time to give my assessment and true opinion of working from home.

Pros:
My own bathroom
Can eat whatever/whenever I want (I don't, but it's nice to have access)
When I'm done for the day, I'm already home
I can wear whatever I want
Getting Vincent and myself ready is easy since I have plenty of time

Cons:
I feel more disconnected than ever
I miss talking to people face to face
I feel less motivated (NOTE: this could be due to sleep deprivation and company changes)

Cousins

2011-07-21T05:55:00.001-07:00

The day we arrived in Denver during our recent trip there, much to our surprise and shock, my niece Abby wanted to hold Baby Vincent. It was her idea! I think Vincent brought out the tiny mamma in her. She didn't even want to let him go, and it still warms my heart to know she is still asking where Baby Vincent is at—almost a month later. She's going to be a fine big sister. And almost just as surprising, Vincent tolerated being held by amateur arms. I just love that they're in their PJs.

Quilt love

2011-07-18T09:49:00.001-07:00

There's nothing better than a quilt to snuggle up under. Nothing. Those little blocks sewn together with love have been en vogue in my family for as long as I can remember. If you were lucky enough to get a quilt that was made by either of my grandmothers or my mom, you almost felt like you really did win the lottery. Quilts made by these women are a hot commodity both because they've already passed on from this life and because of the time, energy, and love they poured into their artistry. They're things of rare beauty. So you can imagine what it's like to look upon my sister's quilt creations. Although her work is more modern and the quality probably surpasses even our familial quilting predecessors, I still feel that same comfort seeing her work. And now we're proud owners of one of her quilts. Or I guess I should say Vincent is. Lucky baby. I really wanted to hang it up it's so beautiful, but my sister wasn't having it. She wants her quilts to be used and loved—not hung up as a relic. I'm so happy that Vincent has a blanket he can snuggle up under when he's older that was made by someone who loves him almost as much as I do. Everyday we break it out and play. We practice rolling, we sit up and read, we play with our play gym, and sometimes we just cuddle up with Mamma underneath it. Thanks Aunt Chance for such an amazing gift!

Sparkle

2011-07-09T11:26:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we ventured to Denver to spend time with my sis and her family for the fourth. The last time I saw her daughter Abby she was a timid little thing who had to have lots of time to warm up to you. But now she's two and a half and sassy! I loved how she'd run up to me and hug my legs and giggle as she'd peek on baby Vincent. We worried she wouldn't be receptive to having a baby in the house since she hasn't seemed that fond of the baby growing in mamma's belly. Instead, she found herself a real live doll to hug and snuggle.

Jonathan snapped this picture of her. It's way blurry, but somehow it captures the sparkle that Girlfriend exudes. Sparkle on Girlfriend. Sparkle on!

I can't wait to share with you all the rest of my Denver adventures. Trips to my sister's house are always so much fun and inspiring.

Yea or nay?

2011-06-28T18:09:00.000-07:00

Source: simplyseductive.blogspot.com via Beachbrights on Pinterest

I really want to put wainscoting in my foyer. Bad. But I want to paint it black. Should it be done? All my trim is a beige tan color, so I couldn't do white on top even though for my space—that only has light from one little window—that would really brighten things up. I realize that this image isn't wainscoting but rather the bottom half is painted black and split with a chair rail, which would probably be a cheaper option. I have textured walls. Would it have the same effect?

Little monster

2011-06-21T06:22:00.000-07:00

As I type this, I'm one eye ready to go back to bed. And it's only 8:23 in the morning. You see, we're working with Vincent to sleep through the night in his crib. Remember how I told you I'd tell you more about my sleep deprivation woes. This is that post.

His bedtime routine is getting a bath and getting swaddled up. He's usually in his crib by 7 or 7:30. And he'll sleep through until about 10 or 11 and then require his pacifier put back in. After that, he pretty much wakes up every hour needing his pacifier. Usually at 1:30 or 2:30 I go in and nurse him. Hopefully he'll go back to sleep, but more often than not, I'm so tired at that point I bring him back to bed with me. Last night we weren't having it. So back to his room we went and I rocked him. It seems that's what he wanted. Not sure when we went from needing to nurse to sleep to needing to be rocked to sleep. Probably has something to do with Grandma Pat watching him. Spoiled baby.

In light of my baby being a little monster and not letting Mamma get any sleep, I dressed him accordingly. Too bad it doesn't say Little S#@t.

Start 'em young

2011-06-20T06:14:00.000-07:00

Tummy time in our house doesn't happen often. We can't ever seem to find the time between eating (don't want to put him down too soon or he'll puke) and napping (cuz then he's just more pissy than he usually is when he's tired). We don't like tummy time. But yesterday Jonathan put V on his tummy in front of the computer in hopes it would distract him from the pose. So bad. But so very cute at the same time. Notice the drool?

Father's Day Before and After

2011-06-19T15:53:00.000-07:00

One wiggly baby = not sure which mode to capture him in. Av? Tv? P? M? Almost all my pictures in Av were too blurry because of the constant waving hands and kicking feet. Tv was too dark. I'm close to figuring out how to manipulate the settings. Close. I did manage to get this picture. Although my action boosted it so it's a little over exposed (is that correct term?). I wish I had gone somewhere else to shoot. That door in the background is an eye sore, but hey, you take what you can get when you don't know when the fuss-o-meter is going to go off.

An after without the before

2011-06-18T07:00:00.000-07:00

Go me. I saved over the original so unfortunately you can't see the difference in this one. Thought I'd share it anyways because is this kid cute or what? He came out looking like a little boy, not a baby.

Another Before and After

2011-06-17T10:25:00.000-07:00

Maybe this will become a daily thing. I give you another Before and After.

Photography 101

2011-06-17T06:03:00.000-07:00

One of the biggest items on my to-buy list when we had a kid was a DSLR camera. I've long hated my crappy Olympus point and shoot. Now I've entered the big kids realm of photography. Well, sort of. We purchased a Canon Rebel XS. The price was right, and for the photography I had in mind, it would work. I'm not a pro. In fact, far from it. Just getting behind the camera to take pictures of my loved ones let alone anyone else has always made feel self-conscious. Like I'm about to paint a brilliant masterpiece in the time it takes for the shutter to snap open and close.

I told my sister the other day how I'm full of ideas and ambition. I just can't find it in myself to finish projects. And I know why: I'm just not able to execute that brilliant picture that I have in my head. Any project. Any craft. Ending in a big fail, and I'm sure a few shakes of my sister's head. She's the Queen Project Finisher.

And that's how I feel about photography. When I snap a picture, it always feels unfinished and poorly composed. So then I want to hide my camera away for fear of not really know how to operate it, quit blogging (because who wants to read a blog with endless words—like this post), and go back to bed. Classic Project Unfinisher.

I was hoping my fancy little camera would get me out of my creative rut, but I've been too sleep deprived for that (more on that some other time). I even leave it in my office to stare and taunt me daily. It seems to have worked because last night, I broke out the manual and read up on my little friend. I don't really get things like composition, foreground, background, rule of thirds, aperture. They all want to make me scream (into a pillow so I don't wake the baby).

So I took a step back, and thought, maybe I don't need to take the perfect picture. I just need to fake it until I make it. Or practice, but I don't see that coming first. And I get design. I like to monkey around in Photoshop. So I read online how to create actions and make bad photos look good and good photos even better.

Here's my first stab. One pic of my cuter than bunny-snuggled-up-to-a-dog niece and my darling boy.

Maybe my blogging strike will officially end. Or else I won't hear the end of it from a certain someone.

Did you know?

2011-05-10T15:08:00.000-07:00

I'm the youngest of 8 children. I have 4 sisters and 3 brothers. It went girl boy girl boy until I was born. I should have been a boy.

My mom was 17 when she had her first child. I was 28 and 11 and a half months when I had my first child.

There are 14 children between us 8 siblings and 4 great children. 10 boys and 8 girls. There's another child (no, I'm not pregnant) and great child on the way. V has lots of cousins.

I thought I knew a lot about babies from having so many nieces and nephews. Then I had V. I still don't know what I'm doing.

I love sleep. V doesn't. He fights his swaddle and sleep. When he succumbs, he cat naps. Another reason I don't like cats (I'm also really allergic to them).

I used to not get stay-at-home moms. Now I want to be one, despite the above.

I want to decorate my house. I have lots of ideas.

V takes up all my time, so my house is bare and boring. Even V's nursery isn't completely finished.

I want to own my own company designing inspirational posters, stationary, and other things. Again, I have lots of ideas. I also have a baby.

How do people do this?!

To sum up: From a big family, don't know what I'm doing with my own kid but loving it enough to do it full time, don't know where to find the time to do anything else. But I have lots of ideas.

Getting the hang of motherhood

2011-03-07T17:07:00.000-08:00

My house is a wreck. Or maybe it just feels that way to me because the time on the weekends that I usually devote to cleaning, are being eaten up by my two week old (tomorrow! not sure how he grew up so fast!). The dishes I wanted to do today? They had to wait yet again as he wanted to be held and fed all day long. All day! Except for the hour I took to go buy some lounge pants and T-shirts at Old Navy, he has preoccupied my time. I tried reading, but it's hard to turn pages with a baby in your arms. I watched countless episodes of Income Property. I'm trying to tell myself that I should enjoy not having to have everything done and just enjoy holding my bundle. He's sure to grow up fast. Gotta embrace it while I can.

Warranty time

2011-02-19T10:33:00.000-08:00

We're taking stock of any and all repairs our house needs for its one-year warranty. Yes, you heard me right—one year! Our house is quickly approaching its one year birthday and I honestly can't believe it. The year has gone by so fast, and honestly, we haven't made many changes or dressed it up, but that's fine with me, the less we change, the more is covered under our warranty.

While Jonathan surveyed every nook and cranny, I looked up anything we found in our warranty book to see if it was covered and recorded it on our warranty form that's due at the end of the week to the builders. It's a tedious and time-consuming job, but it's really showed us how to take stock of our home on an annual basis. I hope that we'll continue this every year on our own now that the builders will no longer be responsible for repairs.

I do daydream about painting and decorating, but I'm trying to keep those daydreams at bay until the little one is here. He'll be my life until I get a hang of having a little monkey in my life, and then it'll be time to live really live in this house. I'm not sure which project we should save for first: fencing the backyard, furniture pieces, finishing the basement, getting our foyer professionally painted.

Book page wreath

2011-02-01T06:18:00.000-08:00

Image: Jones Design Company

A friend of mine told me about All Things Thrifty. It's a great blog right up my alley in wanting to decorate (eventually) on the cheap. And as always happens, one blog leads to another blog and then inspiration (!) and self-discovery.. I stumbled upon Jones Design Company, and she's crisp, clean, and a little whimsical just like me. In her tutorial section, I found a wreath that I just need to make (at some point; all projects are pretty much on hold until my little man arrives, unless some serious decorating and crafting nesting hits). I'm a huge wreath judger. I like clean lines and a lot of wreaths scream "I just exited my grandmother's 1970s house." You know what I'm talking about! All fake flowered out and wishing to be put to death or dismantled and upcycled.

But not the book page wreath. It speaks to me on so many levels. From using old books as the craft source to all those beautiful magical letters in a serif font. Mmmm. Now I need me a hot glue gun.

I also discovered the lima bean wreath too that I think would be a great holiday wreath for next year. I love the fact that it's simply white and the fact that it's made with beans. Beans? Come on!

I'm gonna stop

2011-01-31T11:04:00.000-08:00

feeling guilty. For some reason, I've always had a HUGE guilt monster. I makes me say sorry for everything, even things I have no control over. I think I say it because I want that phrase to make all things better. I think I got this from my mom. But for whatever reason, being pregnant has give me more of a back bone. Must be the surge of hormones shutting down that part of my guilty, sorry brain. I kinda like it.

Maternity leave to-dos

2011-01-28T21:19:00.000-08:00

I've been thinking of things to keep me occupied when the baby is napping and I'm looking for something to do. These will probably yeah, right, but it's still fun to think I might do something other than feed, burp, and change poo everyday. A first time mom can dream.

1. Read a couple books. Not sure what yet.
2. Organize the office.
3. Knit, good woman, knit. I want to knit: Chewy a simple garter stitch blanket, cowls, fingerless gloves, and maybe this delicious sweater.
4. Go thrifting.
5. Journal.
6. Blog more. Hopefully not just of the kid.

Travel plans

2011-01-20T11:07:00.000-08:00

No, not now with the bambino business happening, and probably not for a while unless you count inevitable road trips to see the family in the future. I've been flipping through my latest issue of Travel + Leisure, and when I should be thinking about my forthcoming nugget to snuggle and care for, I'm thinking about travel. Places I want to go with Jonathan. Thinking about when I can go to these places with Jonathan. The fact that I'm reading Parents magazine at the same time illustrates the dicotomy of today's mothers. Can I get a "Hell yeah!"?

On my international travel list:
Egypt: Ever since 6th grade when we learned about Egypt and its pyramids, I've fancied myself an Egyptologist. I even made a paper mache King Tut mask for a project, and I have to say, I wish I still had it. My craftmanship was quite extraordinary.
Ireland: I have a thing for wide open spaces; it's why I love the Midwest as much as I do.
England: For its charm.
Italy: Do I really need to explain this one?
France: To put all my years of studying the language to good use. I know I'll fail, but at least I'll have tried.
Jamaica: It always just looks so pretty. Really any island would do as long as it's not incredibly touristy. I hate crowds and I love seeing things off the beaten path. Oh, and nature.

On my national travel list:
Nantucket: I have a thing for coasal cottage living. I dream of owning a vacation closet here.
North Carolina: The pictures always make it look so beautiful.
Maine and/or Connecticut: Again, picturesque.
Chicago: Just to say I've been.
Seattle and Portland: I think if I ever were to move to a big city, it'd have to be one of these two. I haven't ever been, but for some reason they already speak to me. I love rain. Must be my water-loving Pisces heart.
Montana and/or Wyoming: I don't know why. Must be the wide open spaces.

Places I could care less about:
New York: Crowds-hate. Theater-not particularly fond of. About the only thing I'd go for is to see it in the fall, the art museums, and the architecture.
California: Just not big on California in general. I know I'd probably enjoy the wine country, but this state just isn't for me.

I want to brave enough to

2011-01-10T19:01:00.001-08:00

shop on Craigslist. I see all these treasures that people buy and upcycle for their homes that are better and cheaper than buying new. But going to someone's house who knows where and picking up said item scares the shit out of me for some reason. Plus, pictures sometimes lie. And then what? "Oh, actually, on second thought, that's uglier than I thought it was going to be. My bad."

Are you a Craiglister? If so, what was your first experience like? If the item wasn't exactly what you imagined, do you haggle? Can you walk away? I'm not even a garage sale goer, so Craigslist seems like shopping a garage sale, but just online.

My new goal, especially with the new bambino, is to start thrifting: cutting coupons, planning menus and freezing food, buying used where it works and where I'm comfortable with used. Our home still needs lots of things: buffet, entry table, art, just to name a few. It would be nice if I could get these items on the cheap.

Au revoir 2010

2010-12-31T19:47:00.000-08:00

I can't believe this year will be over in a little more than 2 hours. It's been a momentus year: we moved out of our apartment that we had live in for 5.5 years, found our first home and proceeded with the build process, moved in with the in laws until our house was done (I lived on my sister in law's couch so I wouldn't have to commute during the week and then went back to the parent in law's house to see the hubby on the weekends), became brave enough to give my injections every night without an auto injector, moved into our house (April), in May we found we were expecting our first baby, hosted our first party in our new house, hosted our first Thanksgiving in our new house (24 people!) and learned how to cook a Turkey, and hosted our first family Christmas Eve in a decked our house! Although this year was huge in every way, I think it's only fitting that next year be even bigger! We waited a long time to get a house, but I guess we couldn't put off having offspring too much longer.

I'm not even making resolutions for the new year just because I don't know what the new year will hold. I'd like to think we'll be the same simple, uberrealistic people we've always been and not so into our kiddo that we forget just how we started.

Happy New Year!

Christmas craft to do: cone trees

2010-12-23T14:29:00.000-08:00

Katie over at BowerPower has a cute, easy, and cheap craft: cone trees. I'm in love with some of the cone trees I've seen this year, including a $15 mirrored version at Target. (You can't even purchase them online anymore because they're out of stock. Do you know how tempting it is to go see if they're still there and snag them because they're so popular?!) I'm too much of cheap to buy it though. Instead I'm going to try making my own versions with yarn and Christmas card stock.

Glittery mantel

2010-12-23T07:55:00.000-08:00

I couldn't wait to decorate the mantel this year. Unfortunately, work and other projects prevented me from finishing it until this week. I had purchased a $9 pre-lit garland from Target and during last year's after-Christmas sales, I had picked up two pre-lit 3ft. container Christmas trees for $25/apiece at Jo-Ann's. I set one on the mantel and the other outside. These were my foundation pieces besides the afore mentioned Keep Calm print and my hurricane.

My other purchases included a glittery Believe sign I picked up in Hermann, Missouri during our anniversary trip, a set of 50 gold shatter-proof ornaments for $15 from Target, 4 gold and 4 silver glittery snowflakes for $1 a package, and probably my most favorite finds for the mantel: a jingle bell G and one gold and one silver birdie (you know my thing with birds), which I picked up for less than $6 at Michael's. I repurposed some items I already had on hand, including little red glass balls, a Santa teapot that was my Mom's (I liked having a piece of her up there since it was her dream as well to fireplace), and the star in the corner is actually our tree topper that this preggo didn't like on her tree this year.

I loved how the mantel turned out for my first mantel. And in the process, it shook open some decorating vein in me! I want to decorate everything now. And repaint, but let's not tell my husband that!

I give you what my mantel looked like before:

And here's the Christmas after:

An exercise in staying calm

2010-12-22T09:46:00.000-08:00

A couple posts ago, I told you how I was planning on having a print made of Craftily Ever After's Keep Calm and Merry On sign. Well, I did. And I had planned to slide it right into the frame Capricious gifted me with that held the Keep Calm and Gobble On (Just typing that makes me laugh) version she had made for me. What I didn't realize is that Miss Capricious is one fancy, detail-oriented lady (OK, I did realize this because she's my sister and usually it drives me nuts). Not only was her print an 11x16, she had had it printed on poster board.

It wasn't until I got to Costco and was waiting to check out that I realized there was no way my 8x10 was the same size. It was tiny in comparison. And glossy, like a Polaroid picture! Drats! I drove home determined to make it work. For one thing, the 8x10 print only cost me $1.70. Who can beat that? For another, I hate hate hate standing in line at Costco. (Seriously: How do Costco lovers do it? The deal just doesn't seem worth the chaos. Am I missing something?)

But never fear, because Capricious is here. The woman is like Super Woman. She once dawned a cape in college (I have a picture to prove it), and it's something I think she should wear everyday. When I told her what I did and how it wouldn't look as fantastic as her print because of the size, her answer was simple: Do a wrapping paper background. It'll make it pop even more.

Turns out I didn't have some fantastic wrapping paper that would complement that burgundy, almost brown of the print. But not all was lost: I happened to have a giant book of Christmas scrapbook paper with that very color. After holding up a few pieces and consulting you know who, a new sign was born and salvaged. And I just did as the poster said: Keep Calm and Merry On. The end result is fun and adds a bit of funky to my otherwise elegant mantel. I added a glittery snowflake to the top that I found at Target, four for $1. Love me some glitter this Christmas!

P.S.: Sorry for the crappy quality of pictures. My camera, an Olympus Stylus 710, is a sorry excuse for a camera. Next month we plan on purchasing a DSLR, just in time to record those monumental moments with the bambino. Until then, I'm keeping calm and snapping on.

Free art for the nursery

2010-12-21T19:41:00.000-08:00

I decided to try my hand at designing a poster for the nursery. Ever since I saw this saying on another blog (it escapes where I saw it now), I knew I wanted it in my son's room. So I whipped one up last night while the hubby was watch Fantastic Mr. Fox. Now I just need to get it printed and to buy a frame. I love that I created something for free, and I'm sure I can find a frame for less than $30 and to get this bad boy printed on poster board at Costco costs around $10.

Feel free to print your own. I have it designed for up to a 11x16 print. Who doesn't love free?

On order

2010-12-19T17:51:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow I pick up my Keep Calm and Merry On poster that will be the center piece to my mantel decor for Christmas. I'm so excited how my mantel is shaping up! Get your free download from Craftily Ever After.

I suck

2010-12-18T03:16:00.001-08:00

House and home have unfortunately been put on the back burner while I put out wild fires all over work. You'd think my company would be smart enough not to give the hormonal pregnant woman work that makes horns sprout from her head, or at least not plan some crazy ass move that consolidates four floors into two floors all to save a few bucks since out of the 20 offices or so belonging to the company, we have the cheapest rent (and the cheapest cost of living and salary). So like I've said, I've been busy. So busy that Jonathan has been cooking all my meals and doing the dishes. Yeah, that busy. And that hormonal. Underneath this mask of normal is scary. I'd be happy to give you a preview sometime.

But now I'm looking at a week off and I'm hoping to accomplish all kinds of things: decorating my mantel for Christmas, Christmas shopping that I haven't even started, putting together the crib and moving other furniture into the baby's room, baking (hoping to back some ginger snaps and go to all my neighbors in our cul de sac crew), knitting, and of course some yoga.

Keep calm

2010-12-11T14:15:00.001-08:00

As a thank you for hosting Thanksgiving, my sister gifted me with a framed print of Craftily Ever After's "Keep Calm and Gobble On." How sweet and awesome is that? I plan on replacing the print every season as appropriate. For Christmas, I'm going to print out the "Keep Calm and Merry On" version and hang it over my mantel. I think it'll be a perfect motto since I tend to hang on the edge with the surge of pregnancy hormones. Be sure to get your own print. It's free!

Decorating frustration

2010-12-07T19:32:00.001-08:00

I don't get it. I don't get it at all. How does a person pull off decorating that looks polished and finished. I'm still in the throes of holiday decorating. And as excited as I was about decorating the mantel, I honestly have to say I have no idea how to do it. And I really don't want to spend money on the project. It makes me a little bah humbug.

Hung by the chimney

2010-11-29T19:39:00.000-08:00

When we bought our house, the fireplace was optional. We actually forked over some dough to have one put into our floor plan. It's a decision I'll never regret! I mean, how else is Santa getting in? And this year, I get to do what I've always dreamed of: decorate a mantel. I haven't quite decided how I'm going to deck it out, but I do know that the mister and I (and eventually the bambino) need new stockings—preferably one without a giant 49ers bear in a football helmet. Problem is, I can't find any I like—even on the craft mothership Etsy. I have, however, found some cute Christmas fabric, but I'm not sure I trust my instincts enough to buy fabric for something that will last this family years to come. I can't do too trendy, but I'm really digging this Riley Blake fabric. Thoughts? Too trendy? Not Christmasy enough? Should I go more Pottery Barn classic?

Pumpkin belly

2010-11-27T20:17:00.000-08:00

Happiest belated Thanksgiving! Our Thanksgiving was full—full stomachs, full house, full chaos and fun! We hosted my family: Dad, Tami, Joey, Tim, Toni, Jenna, Recca, Bruce, Kalin, LB, Jon, Stacey, Tabytha, Victoria, Jamie, Chance, Andy, AJ, and Abby (and breathe), and Jonathan's family: Pat, Al, Breanna, Chip, and Raylene.

It was fun to have everyone in the house and to see my family, which I don't see nearly as often as I would like. I love them to death, and it was especially fun to have our two families mingle and eat, and then party!

We had a small family (OK, maybe not so small when you consider the size of my immediate family) baby shower. Chewy received lots of beautiful, thoughtful, and many practical gifts. We're so thankful to share this time with our families. And now Jonathan has to get cracking on the baby's room. He took a look at the calendar today and realized that December is going to be one busy month and the count down is ON!

Now how cute is this picture my sister took? Pumpkin bellies. Only I get my pumpkin in February and he doesn't rot (unless you count his forthcoming diaper changes).

I'm so thankful

2010-11-22T14:18:00.000-08:00

I just had the world's great and most centering prenatal massage. My first massage experience last year was awful. I drove home crying. It might have been because I went to massage chain Massage Envy. The woman wasn't at all centering or relaxing, and the lotion she used on me didn't smell good and felt gross afterward. Even the rooms are devoid of any decoration or color. This time around I wasn't making the same mistake. I got a recommendation from a friend and it made all the difference in the world. If anyone asks, I want a massage for my birthday—or even before Chewy comes.

The experience left me on Cloud 9 and it made me reflect on how gifted this therapist is. Truly a gentle soul that doesn't grapple with trying to push life into her mold, rather she makes a garden out of what she's been given. (And she really does garden.)

My family is full of beautiful people like this, and they deserve a little shout out to know how special I think each and everyone of them are. And how I can't imagine my life without them. I'm so thankful for my family and all the unique personalities. Thanks for being you!

Anniversary and babymoon: St. Louis and Hermann, Mo.

2010-10-17T13:35:00.000-07:00

This year, for a combination 4th wedding anniversary/babymoon, we went spent a day in our beloved Hermann, Missouri and then we ventured east to St. Louis.

Hermann provided us the opportunity to visit the places we truly loved last time we were there: The Secret Vine bed and breakfast, Montague's BBQ, Time for Pie pie and coffee shop, Back Home Again store (amazing pumpkin butter), and The Chocolate Box chocolatier.

Before we knew it, it was time to pack our bags and head east on 94 highway. (Note: If you're looking for a getaway to the Missouri wine country, pack Dramamine. The drive is really beautiful but so windy that I wondered many times if we were going to have to pull over for me to leave an offering of sorts.)

I left where we were staying in St. Louis to the husband, so when we arrived at Lafayette Square and were surrounded by row house after beautiful row house, I said to him, "I wish we could go inside one." Which is when he revealed that we were in fact. Oh be still my heart. Napoleon's Retreat bed and breakfast is hands down the best bed and breakfast I've ever stayed in. We had the garden suite that was off the back of the house overlooking a small garden and courtyard. The theme of the room was sage green—the walls, the bedding, the accent pieces. The best part was this modern, crisp white bathroom with a whirlpool tub. It was such a slice of heaven! And we got to stay there for two days!

The innkeepers, Michael and Jeff, made a delicious breakfast each morning that was served in the dining room. The first day was quiche, fruit salad, and this raspberry cinnamon crunch thing. I couldn't clean my plate I was so stuffed. Then today, we were served a cinnamon poached pear, blueberry pancakes, an orange slice, and bacon. Mmm. I think I came home a few pounds heavier—or at least I hope; gotta pack on pounds for my little boy.

Each night we ate at one of the restaurants in the square. It gave us a chance to walk around the neighborhood and see more of the painted ladies. The first night we ate at SqWires. They play live music every night, and it's a pretty crowded and bustling place housed in an old warehouse. I chose the fish tacos and Jonathan had the fish boil. Neither of us were impressed enough to truly recommend what we ate, and unfortunately, our waiter left a lot to be desired in the service. The next night we ate at Ricardo's Italian Cafe, which we preferred over SqWires. The place was smaller and quieter. I had the half portion of Cavatelli Broccoli, and it hit the spot. I actually ate way too much and ended up getting indigestion. Jonathan had the shrimp scampi, which wasn't soaked in butter but instead seemed to be baked with parmasean cheese.

We didn't have a lot of time to spend sight seeing, so we stuck to only a couple things we really wanted to see: the St. Louis Botanical Gardens and the St. Louis Cathedral Basilica. We spent more than 2.5 hours at the gardens and probably could have stayed longer if it weren't for the fact that we were both tired and I'm pregnant. I can't only take so much walking! The highlights of the gardens were feeding the coy fish who you could practically pet they were so eager to be fed and Climatron, a dome structure built in the 1960s and mimics rain-forest-like conditions. I had a good laugh at the name. It's so retro future. The flower, plants, and trees were unbelievable. The only thought I did have was that the unit keeping the dome at the right temperature to sustain the right environment is so loud that it has to cost big bucks to run that thing and it probably consumes an outrageous amount of energy. The gardens do get bonus eco points from me for composting their onsite restaurant remains and growing a vegetable garden. It does cost $8 per an adult to get inside the gardens, but considering the amount of time we spent inside, it was well worth the expense. Plus, it was a gorgeous day to be outside.

We only took a quick look around the basilica since we had missed museum hours, but even going on your own is a treat. I felt like I was in Europe without leaving the States. The mosaics are mind-blowing and opulent. Some of them were even done by Tiffany and Co. I left there thinking how religion used to use (and still does to some degree) its money to create believers, suppress people, and push its own political agenda. I definitely felt like I walked back in time.

It was nice to get away for a long weekend. I thought I would be said to think of this trip as my last for awhile until Chewy is older, but I was eager and even happier once we got home. But maybe that has something to do with the fact that I'll I thought about all weekend was work and it put a damper on my long-awaited vacation, but that's another conversation that's primarily going to stay in my head.

Narrowing down the buffet

2010-10-05T06:26:00.000-07:00

The dining room area is still in need of a buffet, and finding the perfect one is, well, it's perfect so of course it's gonna be hard. Every now and then I peek around online to see if anything new has turned up that fits our budget and has both drawers and shelves. In the drawers, I'd like to store our current can't-stick-in-the-dishwasher silverware. It's a pretty set, but it's a pain the hiney to have hand-wash them every week. And with a baby on the way, I think replacing that set for a cheap set that can go quickly be washed in the dishwasher will save me some time and sanity. I need the shelves to store my rather extensive platter and serving bowl collection. I do love me some Pampered Chef!

Here's what I found in my latest scavenger hunt. I would rather the wine glass area be another drawer, but I think I could put a basket in that area since I don't think the hooks could hold all my wine glasses. And they have a happy home in my cabinets anyways.

The plus is that the look matches my new dining room table, and should I ever get tired of the color, I think it could be changed up a bit with a coat of paint. And for $365, it's not as pricey as some of the other options I've looked at.

Love me a hoho

2010-10-04T06:00:00.000-07:00

Capricious also sent sent the baby a hoho. Love these crazy little creatures made by Little Bit Funky. Spoiled baby.

Boo!

2010-10-03T11:04:00.000-07:00

Look what I got in the mail, handmade with care by Capricious. I still have some other pieces to buy to Halloweenofy the mantel! Can't wait!

I've lost my edge

2010-09-27T06:16:00.000-07:00

Something happened when I got pregnant. The world seemed to stop as I know it. There's been almost no yoga, no house gushing and decorating, and minimal socializing. Now I'm just deciding what I want this blog to be and what I want to say in it. I have projects in my head that I so want to complete, but I have niether the money (kids are expensive) or the talent. I think the baby has sucked up my creativity. Here's on my to-do list nonetheless, should the inclination return:

1. Buy an area for the great room (I love calling it a great room. So much more greater to say, don't you think?)
2. Buy a sideboard for the dining room.
3. Buy a console table for the foyer.
4. Buy an ottoman for the great room.
5. Buy some fall decorations!
6. Buy some sort of structure to go around the egress window well so wildlife quit falling in and dying.
7. Organize the chaos that is the office.
8. NURSERY!

Chirping salt & pepper shakers

2010-09-12T17:25:00.000-07:00

Check out these cute robin salt and pepper shakers from Z Gallerie. And only $10. I just might have to go snag these little guys because I heart me some bird decor.

Baby's out of the bag

2010-08-20T19:02:00.000-07:00

Why have I been a blog slacker? I've been busy growing a little human. But I'm feeling better and house projects and life in general can resume so I can have more blog fodder and my sister can stop harassing me. For a peek in the womb-growing business, check out my other blog, Motherhoodasana.

Tweet tweet from the mantel

2010-08-17T12:07:00.000-07:00

One of the many things I love about my sister Chance is her generosity. When she was visiting, she and her little family went up to Atchison, Kansas for the day. But look what she got me at Nell Hill's! A bird for my mantel. Just what I've been wanting!

The mantel is still a work in progress, so don't be too upset I'm not showing the entire thing.

Taming of the shrew: Home edition

2010-08-09T16:23:00.000-07:00

We have a new friend. His name is Vinny. His past residence: our egress window well. His occupation: whatever shrews do.

One of my favorite things is to look into our oh so deep and wide window well to see what animals might fallen in. So far, we've had Larry the frog and Quincy the baby snapping turtle. When I saw Vinny, I first I thought he was a mole. But upon further research, we discovered he's a shrew.

And although I gave him the moniker Vinny with all the tender loving care of a mama, Jonathan liked calling him something that rhymed with Ducker. Our house is colorful to say the least. You see, Vinny wasn't necessarily doing anything down in that pit of ours. I was more concerned the thing was going to dig his way to the bottom and starve to death in his attempt to escape. And at first, we weren't even certain he was alive, but with a little nudge from a long pole, he scampered around. It's ALIVE! I was actually pretty excited about the creature, and me being me tried to get it to move around bit more by throwing a weed at it. Oh, my bad. The thing just raced to the side of the wall and jumped up into our siding. Christening him Ducker from Jonathan. It wasn't until then that we researched what he was to find out exactly what we need to do to get rid of him. That is if he came out of his hidey hole.

He eventually did come out, and the meantime we let him be while we trekked to Home Depot to get a live trap. The trap turned out to be unnecessary since the trap was for a mouse and shrews, once Jonathan got a closer look at him, are a little bigger. Plan B: find a box. It was now dark outside, so armed with a flashlight, we coaxed him on the lid of the box—once he quit playing like he was a rock! Then we walked across the street to the woods by our house and Jonathan launched him into the woods. Farewell Vinny!

Now we're making plans to prevent animals and humans from falling in. We really don't aspire to play Noah.

If this isn't cute

2010-08-09T16:17:00.000-07:00

I don't know what is. Unearthing myself and my camera. I didn't take hardly any pictures while my sister was here visiting, but apparently I got enough or a couple picture that will steal your heart. Here's Abby. Isn't she a doll? She's at her favorite spot in my house: at the bar eating.

I made a curtain, part four: Big reveal!

2010-06-20T20:33:00.000-07:00

Okay, okay. This is a loooonnnnggg time coming. What does that sidelight look like all dressed up and places to go? Here she is. Jonathan looks at it every week and says that I did an amazing job. Him saying that makes all my anxiety worth it.

Now we can walk around naked. If we want.

I made a curtain, part three

2010-06-14T22:00:00.000-07:00

Deep breaths. I made the first cut. Into designer crazy amazing upholstery. And I had a plan. I would take a 30in. wide segment of fabric and then cut that in half again to fit the 14in. wide sidelight, covering the window so that the inside and the outside of the curtain was the same. This is a tall window that's highly visible to visitors as they walk up to the porch, so I wanted the pattern to be visible from the outside too. That was the final plan, but it took some getting there.

Initially I thought I would take a 30in. segment of the fabric for each side of the curtain, allowing for gathers. But once I started working with the fabric and the Heat N Bond, I realized that gathering the fabric would actually cover up the really cool oval design. When you pay $17/yard for fabric, you don't want to block the design. I also learned that although Heat N Bond is a really easy way to get around sewing, it wasn't going to hold everything on this thick fabric. Altering my plan actually made it easier to execute.

Once I had cut down my panels to size, I heated up my iron and got to work. I left room on the width to fold in the sides half an inch, and it turns out the pattern provided an excellent measuring tool in how far this would be: each oval was just folded in half. Neat and tidy. Once I had ironed down the Head N Bond tape to the backside of the fabric, it was peel and stick time.

Okay, it actually wasn't that easy, and this was my first time working with the stuff, so I enlisted Jonathan help in this step. While I ironed, he went ahead of me folding down the edge of fabric about to be ironed. This prevented me from having to stop and do it myself and keep the edges neatly folded. The first panel went without a hitch. It was on the second panel I ran into problems.

Apparently Heat N Bond can be temperature sensitive. You don't want to get your iron too hot, and alternatively, you don't want it too low. So I had couple inch sections here and there that didn't want to stay down. Once I researched the problem online, I made sure my iron was turned down.

Panels done, I got to the final part of my plan. Some actually sewing. I need to sew the two panels together so they could fit around the tension rods. Remembering my grade school sewing days, I faced the two panels together with the backside facing out, and marked 2.5in. in from the top. Because I still wasn't want to even sew that much, I did single stitches every inch or sew. Sewn, signed, and delivered, or more like, sewn, flipped right side out, and tension rods placed, it was time to give my foyer it's privacy curtain...

Master bedroom: art

2010-06-14T08:00:00.000-07:00

I don't own a lot of art, but I do own a lot of our wedding pictures (four years this October! Where did time go?). Including these two pictures that my photographer had matted for me. I used frames I already had. In our old apartment, I had these hanging in different locations, but I wanted to use them together in our new master. To figure out the layout, I laid them out on the floor first. Here's how it turned out on the wall. Noticed the wall color! This collage still needs a little something...

I made a curtain, part two

2010-06-11T08:00:00.000-07:00

In part one, I rehashed how I came to decide to make my a curtain for that skinny foyer window, a.k.a. sidelight, and how I finally found the perfect fabric for it.

But let's back up: That fabric. That amazing Dwell Studio fabric is just that. Amazing=pricey. $35 a yard to be exact. Because it's actually an upholstery fabric and a name brand, it's more expensive than your everyday cotton pattern fabric. And after measuring the window, I determined I would need 3 yards, or $105. Someone grab me a chair, I'm gonna faint. Ouch. Here I was talking about not buying a ready-made sidelight curtain because of the price and I'm going to shell out $105 on 3 yards of fabric?! Actually, no. I'm not that insane or spoiled. It was Memorial Day weekend, and Jo-Ann's was having a half off sale. $17 yard it was. Still pricey, but considering that I was getting exactly what I wanted, it was worth the extra expense. And the bonus: The window was only 14 inches wide, so I would only end up using around 30 inches of fabric (front and back) to cover my window, leaving me with leftovers for other creative projects that I'm sure will be another post. So not only was I getting a fabric I loved for half the price, I was going to be able to use it again.

Oh, and I forgot to mention what else drove me to my decision: my husband. That's right, I dragged him along with me to Jo-Ann's. Ladies, feel free to do a swoon if your man refuses to enter a craft store. I won't say there wasn't any kicking and complaining, but he knew I couldn't make this decision on my own. So I patrolled and I contemplated, and I probably asked Jonathan a million times what he thought of this or that fabric. Until Holy Grail! I think I found it! The price left me crestfallen, and I was experiencing more than a little trepidation at the thought of handling such a fine fabric when my sewing days were somewhere back in 8th grade when I had to sew a plush football. But after some consultation with my sister, that honey of mine said, "Let's get it!" and stalked off to get our cut of fabric. Hy hero!

Like I mentioned, I don't own a sewing machine, so feeling inspired by Young House Love's no-sew curtains, I picked me up some Heat N Bond. When we returned home, I laid out the fabric on our guest bed in my craft room. What exactly had I gotten myself into? I'm about to cut a $100 worth of fabric. I'm no amateur seamstress. But I measured and measured and measured. And I thought and I thought and I thought. And I got to work. This curtain wasn't going to make itself, even if I thought at that price it should.

Tiny beauties

2010-06-10T06:23:00.000-07:00

I went to Target recently and picked up these little guys for $3. $3. I love that they come in their own little egg carton. I'll take a dozen, please. I controlled myself and went home with one carton, and I'm still trying to decide what to put in them. I don't have flower or foliage yet that I could pluck and pop in there. But that's all the fun.

I made a curtain, part one

2010-06-08T19:12:00.000-07:00

for my sidelight. I still can't believe it. Me, someone who is usually pretty quick to give up when a task seems too hard. First things first, what exactly is a sidelight and why does it need a curtain?

A sidelight is a long window next to the front door. There can be one on each side, and they may only run half the length of the door. We only have one, and it goes from floor to ceiling. Floor to ceiling. Not much for providing privacy. As the name implies, they do provide some light into our foyer, but not so much that we didn't want to leave it uncovered.

But how exactly to cover it? I had heard of those frosted privacy window film clings that you just cut to the size of the window. Light gets in but no peepers see in. Problem was our front door doesn't have a peep hole in case we should get a visitor, so we needed to still be able to see out of it. That left finding a sidelight curtain, which turns out harder and more expensive than was worth. Did I mention they are ugly sheer monstrosities with no style whatsoever? Not only were they expensive, they weren't what I wanted=not worth it.

That left only one option: I had to make a curtain. I didn't even have a sewing machine! No matter. I had the perfect no-sew inspiration from Young House Love's post. Combine that with the most perfect fabric on sale at Jo-Ann Fabric's. It's Dwell Studio's Cameo Ovals.

Window shopping: Rugs

2010-06-05T00:00:00.000-07:00

We need an area rug for our living room. I want something contemporary. I'm loving this bold yellow rug from RugsUSA.com. I think it would complement our Harvester yellow walls nicely.

Coming out of my shell

2010-06-04T16:52:00.000-07:00

Things didn't stop with mantelscaping and painting when Capricious was here (I told you she was fabulous. Lucky for us, she's my sister, or I'd probably have to pay her. We did feed her and she seemed okay with that.). Once we established that Behr's Rain Washed paint color was an excellent choice for my walls—the perfect combination of fun and relaxation—next was figuring out how we could work that combination into my limited decor. Using things I already had and wanted to keep around, mixed with small items I could buy that wouldn't break the bank.

I've always been a fan of Coastal Living magazine, and beach-style decor says peace, calm, and quiet to me, exactly what I wanted my master bedroom to tell me at the end of my increasingly long and stressful days at the office. I wanted it to tell me: This room is your oasis. Come in, relax, and put your feet up.

Nothing says beach more than sea shells, but if I was going to go that direction, it couldn't be kitschy. I wanted a classy, cozy, and comfortable cottage style that didn't scream country, since that's not our thing at all. Perusing Pottery Barn's latest summer catalogue, I was able to get an idea of what I could do. Among them was using a conk shell and coral that Jonathan already owned. Both real (sad, but true about the coral; there's now plenty of places including Pottery Barn where you can get fake coral, leaving the real stuff intact), and both very beautiful. They'd make perfect additions to the my black bedside bookcase we already owned. That's right, black.

In discovering our new-found themes for our house, we couldn't help notice we owned a lot of black. Black furniture, black frames, black lamps, lots of black accents. It was immensely popular when I was in college, and I still love a dark color any day. But white is the new black, and I was more than ready to break out a paint brush to bring them into the new era. But Capricious stopped me in my tracks. Why paint all this stuff white when you can make black work? Seriously, the girl is brilliant. And we didn't have to paint or change a thing, which was fine with me. I really loved the contrast it brought into the room.

So back to the bookcase and those shells. Using those real ocean pieces Jonathan already had, we also wanted to bring in some other shells and maybe sand for one of those cool oceanscapes that use found beach items in some vessel. I already had the perfect clear vase, we were just lacking a beach for the rest, but that's why they invented Michael's, where we found not only sand (they have all colors, we opted for your everyday beach variety) but also a bag of shells and then just for something special, a starfish. We carried it all home and sorted through the bag of shells. I didn't want to use all of them, so we chose only a select few we liked. And this is how it turned out and at the conk and coral. Ignore the empty photo frames. I'm still trying to decide what to put in them.

Can't get enough G

2010-06-01T18:10:00.000-07:00

When Capricious graced us with her presence, I thought we'll go through my mismatched decor. Laugh our butts off at my lack of taste. And possibly slap some paint on the walls. And we did that and more. Mantel more. Homemade art more.

Because we struck upon a theme I could get behind—the letter G—we ran with it. Or rather, Capricious did and I just went along with it. Our inspiration was a black letter G that my other sister had given me for Christmas a couple years back. Capricious came up with the idea of using black frames I already had on hand and stamping some Gs on some patterned paper—items pulled from my stamping collection. Easy and cheap. And just the beginning of what I'm calling Project G. Here's how our creation turned out and a peek at the mantel.

Brought to you by the letter G

2010-05-27T18:56:00.001-07:00

While Capricious was out here, themes from my decorative chaos emerged. We went through my limited collection of decor and discovered I owned nothing that went together, or at least that I wanted to be a primary theme in my house. (I don't think my house really says morrocan gypsy like these jewels do. Fun, but not an everyday look I was going for.) There were pieces I owned that really stood out as something to work from. Among them, the letter G. Which is right up my ally as a sometime typography aficionado. I love me some type, and in my down time, when a design mood takes hold, I can often be found perusing the latest type at dafont.com.

Capricious and I already managed to whip up some free art (that's for another post) to grace my mantel working with the G theme, and after splurging a tiny bit for another item to start rounding at my mantelscape, I wondered what else I could make or buy on the cheap. I didn't have to look far for ideas. In my own blog backyard, I found the Daily Drop Cap. G, how perfect. Now to transfer my big idea from my head to house.

Bedskirt? Can it be found?

2010-05-26T22:00:00.000-07:00

Unless my search turns up something more than a 80s floral number, I think the options for modern, classy, and fun (you can do all three) bedskirt are limited. Seriously limited. But then I recalled this post from Young House Love. (I'm seriously obsessed with them since buying our house. Can you tell?) I can make one. Without a sewing machine. Because my crazy bone is just that. Crazy.

I'm in love Michelle Engel Bencsko's Beyond the Sea organic fabric.

Bedskirt?

2010-05-26T13:30:00.000-07:00

Looking back at my earlier post, I notice what an eye sore my box spring mattress is. But when I think of a bedskirt, my mind automatically does a line dance (not a good thing). So: to skirt or not to skirt? What are the other options? On Young House Love's blog, I found a bedskirt idea I think I can get under.

Here's the duvet. From West Elm. It's a dramatic yet simple (and organic) pintuck duvet. I'm thinking natural so as not compete with the Rain Washed walls.

I like the idea of a patterned bed skirt so the bed doesn't seem like one block of neutrals. Now to find that dramatic and anchoring bedskirt.

My new best friend

2010-05-24T16:28:00.001-07:00

is a microfiber dusting cloth. Take that baseboards!

From this to that (bedroom painted)

2010-05-22T10:16:00.000-07:00

With the help of Capricious, who flew in for the weekend (thank you!), we got our master bedroom painted. From a boring neutral (is off-white or tan? I couldn't decide), it went from blah to Rained Washed (Behr). All for a $150 investment (paint, ladders, rollers, duck tape, tarps, etc.). It was more work than I ever imagined, and I thought I'd never get the blue splatters off my feet. Good thing we treated ourselves to pedicures after all our hard work.

See my paint block test? Quite the contrast without being over the top.

Here's the finished project. It's a soft change that I'm calling classy beach cottage.

Decorating jewels

2010-05-11T12:48:00.000-07:00

Let me start this post by first saying that in the 5 years we lived in our apartment, I never exactly honed my decorating skills. You see, I refused to believe that we would stay in our apartment long (that didn't happen) and second, I didn't want to spend money on decorating such a temporary place when who knows what kind of house we would end up buying or how long we would end up staying (smart on both counts). I also didn't unpack and distribute the decorations I had from college (mostly consisting of bright gems from my sister's stint at Nell Hill's).

I don't decorate. I try. I read the magazines and blog stalk these guys and her, but I don't possess the DIY bone that makes me scour Craigslist looking for ready-to-spray paint cheap wonders. It's the reason why you haven't seen any pictures yet of the house all dolled up. It's the reason why she's coming to visit this week. To help me decorate and give me ideas. To define my decorating style. Or just let me borrow her's.

And tell what in this collection goes and what stays and how to use it. So much trust here. I mean, who couldn't trust someone who makes stuff like this for fun? (And I secretly hope she will be inspired to make me one too once she see the house.)

Just sifting through some of those forgotten treasures (?), I found these. Aren't they cute? Will they find a place in our new nest?

Locked out

2010-05-10T11:31:00.000-07:00

If you're reading this post title and wondering if we locked ourselves out of the house. On the Mother's Day. Yes. We did.

We were headed out to go grocery shopping to host the in-law crew for a Mother's Day dinner.

"Honey, will you grab the recycling on the way out?"

"Got it!" (Look at us being super organized and multitasking. I mean, we could save the recycling trip for later. But nope. Two birds.)

[Rushing out the door beaming at our geniusness of multitasking.]

"Let's check the mail on the way out."

"Okay!"

"Honey, do you have the key?"

"What? No, just use yours."

"I didn't bring mine. You were supposed to grab your keys. I only grabbed the car key."

"I grabbed the recycling." [Still beaming. I still hadn't got that we were locked out.]

"We're locked out."

"Crap!"

So another two and half hours later and a trip to the in laws to grab the key we gave them, we were back in business with our keys and ready to go grocery shopping. Dinner was late. So much for being super organized and multitasking.

Color inspiration

2010-04-28T10:56:00.000-07:00

My walls are yellow. You remember my freak out, right? Well, since we've moved in and I've lived with the yellow, I've fallen in love. It's not overly brillant, and the hardwoods really tone things down. The cunundrum now is what to pair with yellow. I think white is a given. Yellow and gray is one of my favorite pairs, but with the trim painted an off white and the couch falling somewhere between tan and green, I think there'd just be too many competing neutrals. Which leads me to my next color contemplation: navy. Yellow and navy.

I can hear the country wagon wheels spinning in your head, but before you do, take a look at my inspiration. Done just right, navy and yellow wouldn't have to been country. I would just have to strike the right balance, which means bringing in bold patterns and crisp clean lines.

From here.

From here.

Fireplace unearthed

2010-04-27T19:39:00.000-07:00

We finally dug out. And by "we", I mean Jonathan. I came home from yoga last night to a fireplace! A fireplace! Priority one was "lighting" the fireplace and sitting back on my new sectional and enjoying the view. The fireplace still needs to be decorated, but all in due time. I'm not rushing the nesting phase.

Forgive me, but I'm new at this

2010-04-19T06:41:00.000-07:00

We're in. We're happy. We're homeowners. It still doesn't seem real. And I think part of us is still living like we did in an apartment. So forgive me for not having a post up that gushes about our home and has all sorts of pictures to drool over. The fact is, we've been busy and my camera is, uh, packed away somewhere.

But in the two weeks we've been in our home, I've fallen in love with my kitchen. It's my favorite room in the house. It might be something to do with the fact that I have two lovely windows over my sink so I can people watch. Make that construction-worker watch. Not that any of them are hot, but it's still interesting to watch a house go up and think about our house having gone through the same process. It's all, "So that's how they did that!" We've also discovered that the homeowners of that home are more excited than we ever were. They come by just about everyday to check on the progress. I waved at them once, and they waved back rather hesitantly. Maybe we'll friends! If I don't scare them away first.

Until I get some pictures up (coming soon, I promise), here's a picture of the new section we bought over the weekend. I'm in love with the softness of the corduroy fabric. Next on the shopping list: a new dining table. Won't be a for while though. Our expenses need to recover.

Wow, truly wow

2010-03-30T08:01:00.001-07:00

I'm raising money for the MS Walk. Something personally important to me because my battle with MS brought some really good things to my life. Good things? I know, sounds crazy, right? But it gave—no, blessed me—with much needed perspective. You already know the sayings: Life is too short; live today like it's your last; be the change. And it's all true. And I'm living it now. Although I've experienced a major shift in my life since MS, nothing compares to what's happened while I've raised money for the walk. Your generosity is what. Your beautiful giving and compassionate hearts.

I started a modest goal: $200. I'm in the throes of closing on a house and living out of a suitcase. Work is busy. And I only had a few weeks to raise the money. I didn't want to do anything too big. I just knew I wanted to give to this organization that many people with MS depend on for support. Even if it meant I would give the $200 myself. But you guys did something that amazed me: You donated more than $500 in three short weeks, and the funds keep coming. I finally raised my goal to $600. And I know we'll surpass that too. How do I thank you? How could I possibly tell you how much this means to me when I don't have the words?

From the bottom of my heart, thank you. And for those of you still wanting to donate, you can do so from my fundraising site. I'm walking for you!

Giveaway!

2010-03-22T17:49:00.001-07:00

There are those people in this world that exist to create beautiful things, and then they give them away...for free! And we get a chance to own some of the creativity. Another Ordinary Life is an amazing crafter. I'm lucky enough to own some of her jewelry. And I envy her knits. Lucky for us, she's giving away one of her fun knitted headbands over at A Capricious Perspective's blog. Go check it out and win yourself a knitted headband that's perfect for the chilly spring morning and evenings!

House update: OMG! It's yellow!

2010-03-14T18:14:00.000-07:00

We ventured out in the rain on Saturday to go see our house. I was expecting to see counter tops and bathroom floors, instead I got lighting fixtures, paint, and a panic attack.

Harvester is more sunny yellow than I was expecting. I think I can learn to like it, because, honestly, I think the panic attack is due more to living in white boxes my whole life. My eyes are virgins when it comes to seeing color on the walls. So after some anxiety filled picture texts to my sister, I was talked back from running screaming to the nearest store to pick out a new paint.

And those lighting fixtures? They're nice. The entire time I was freaking out over the yellow, Jonathan was exclaiming how much he liked the lighting fixtures. He was even sending pictures of them to his mom. Excuse me? The walls?! What do you think of the walls?! He's a true guy, and said that he didn't mind the yellow. Doesn't mind or doesn't care? Deep breaths, crazy lady!

This is what I've been thinking about

2010-03-12T05:56:00.000-08:00

Sorry I've been absent from here as of late. Life has been rather busy. Last weekend I spent my days at my yoga studio attending a Les Leventhal workshop. 12 hours of yoga. Crazy wonderful. But my house (you've heard about my house, right? please tell me you already knew) is never far from my mind. We go to look at it again this weekend. Seeing it has become routine because giddy and exciting magic seems to be taking place everyday. This week: counter tops and bathroom vinyl.

In the meantime, I've been looking at some fabulous things I imagine in my home. I'm not buying yet just because I need to be in the space some time before I decide what's going to be a good fit. A trip to Chicago so I can shop Ikea might be in order. And Young House Love turned me on to Lamps Plus that has some fun drum pendant lighting. It's so easy to go overboard with dreams. Good thing they're just dreams.

House update: walls and cabinets

2010-03-07T18:22:00.000-08:00

Daily weigh in?

2010-02-23T06:27:00.000-08:00

No, I'm not part of The Biggest Loser contest. I just happen to be semi-living with my sis-in-law and her BF. And a scale. It's a beautiful, modern, digital contraption that pleads with me. No. Begs me. To just step on it. Just once. Or every time I walk into the bathroom. So I've become obsessed with weighing myself because it's either that or hold it until I can resist the urge to not weigh myself (or wet myself).

At first I ignored this guy. I've never been one to watch the number. Instead, I live by the rule that if I feel good both inside and out, get good nutrition, and exercise, why should that number matter? It shouldn't run my life. But this guy persisted. And tripped me. I literally hit the wall one morning while dressing because I took a step too far back. "You will step on me!" So I relented. And stepped on the damn thing. And have far too often since.

I've become fascinated to watch the numbers change from in the morning (weigh in number one), perhaps after yoga (weigh in number two), after eating (weight in number three), and just before going to bed (weigh in number four). To the scale: I love you. You serve a maddening duty of dishing out both depressing and good news. But please, please, please don't make me want to buy one of your friends. My life and my new house don't need your ruthless numbers.

Heart these shoes

2010-02-21T12:45:00.000-08:00

Don't they make your heart happy? And only $20!

DIYs when you're snowed in

2010-02-21T11:19:00.000-08:00

Or when your iced in. And right now, it's exactly that. It days like this that that want-my-new-house-already itch drives me up the wall's of my sis-in-law and BF's apartment. Because days like this are meant for crafting, and I left the parental unit in law's without thinking to grab my bags of knitting for this very occasion. Instead, I give you my list of crafts I'd be doing if I were already in casa de TVFMP (the view from my pencil). Maybe you'll find inspiration here too!

1. Terry cloth Caddy
2. No-Knit Textured Throw and Patterned Pillows
3. Envelope Accordion Book
4. Lavender Eye Pillows
5. Napkin-folded Pillowcases
6. Oilcloth Lunchbag
7. Hanging Bubbly Ball Decorations
8. Eggshell Flower Pots

Close to close

2010-02-20T19:24:00.000-08:00

Our projected close date is April 1. Yes, I recognize the irony that that's April Fool's Day. I'm trying not to dwell on it, because that close actually works well for me work-wise. I ship my April issue on March 31st. And almost like the stars are aligned, April will be magazine ship-free. Do a little dance here because I'm going take some days off and drink in my gorgeous new home. My first home. I'm going to roam the rooms. Run my hands over the [sigh] island and white cabinets. Turn on my fireplace. Maybe do some yoga on my hardwood floors. Practice pulling in and out of my garage. Licking my lips in sweet anticipation.

Dry wall and siding go up this week.

My house bones

2010-02-18T20:50:00.000-08:00

As promised, here are our house pictures. Or rather its bones. It's hard to imagine that this goes from being a construction of two by fours, pipes, and cement to a home that's not only beautiful but clean. I never in my life imagined that the build process is so messy. But I'm sure Michelangelo didn't break out the dustbuster while he worked either. Today during our walkthrough with the foreman, we went over our punch sheet and he explain what each of the juncture boxes, pipes, and different wiring that we were seeing was. And when he'd ask if we knew what certain things were, I didn't feign intelligence. What would it get me as a new homeowner? He was kind enough to explain the plumbing piping that's now being used instead of copper, something about our heater that I don't remember, and some other things. I couldn't help notice that he often would look at Jonathan when he talked. If he only knew that we do things pretty much 50/50. I'll be right there maintaining my home along side him.

We also got to drop in on another home that's the same model as ours just to refresh our memory as to what exactly it's all going to look like. Afterall, we haven't seen the product since we walked through the first home that made us sign a contract that day. It wasn't a model home, so there wasn't a chance for us to see it all again. I didn't take pictures because a)it wasn't my home, so I felt for sure that had to be something illegal about posting pictures of another person's home...even if they haven't taken custody, and b)I want to make you wait for the big reveal. Call me evil.

And because my sister is full of great ideas, including a creating a picture diary of our first home as it goes through the build process, I give you my house bones. Enjoy the skeleton!

The view from the front door in the foyer, looking back into the great room, dining room, and kitchen. The structure in the back is the makings of [cue dramatic music] a kitchen island.

The view from the kitchen, standing by the island, looking back into the dining room, great room, and foyer. The bedrooms and bathroom (two) are all on the right. I wonder if it could be considered a shotgun-style home.

Looking into the foyer at the front door. The stairwell on the right leads down into the basement. Not pictured is a coat closet on the right as well.

The view from the fireplace. Looking at a bathroom, linen closet, and two bedrooms.

The fireplace. [Swoon]

The island up close, looking toward the kitchen, standing in the dining room.

Looking into the kitchen. Between the two windows will be the kitchen sink. Notice the beautiful light. Something I never had in my apartment.

In the kitchen looking toward the master bedroom. In front of the master bedroom is the kitchen pantry. We widen it from the original design and I'm in heaven.

Standing in the master bedroom, looking toward the kitchen. To the left (not pictured), is the master bathroom and walk-in closet.

In the master bedroom looking at the master bathroom. The walk-in closet is off the bathroom. Strange, but I like the extra wall space in the master.

Lessons in building a home

2010-02-15T16:35:00.001-08:00

If I were more put together (i.e. not living on my sis-in-law and future bro-in law's couch...who btw are some of the most gracious hosts on the planet...during the week and commuting an hour to get to the parental unit in laws on the weekends to squeeze in face time with my husband), there would be a picture of my house in this post. The house that's the cause for all this life upheaval. But, of course, I packed my digital camera someplace...special. So special and so intelligent of me that I can't find it. So much for organized packing.

Back to that dream house. We went on a little walk-through today to go over the most recent inspection that our inspector turned in. His list made us a little faint and start thinking things like, "What the hell do we think were doing building a new home?" or "Why are we doing this?" But after meeting with our foreman, we discovered that our inspector had actually gotten in a little too early and most "problems" were just things that had already been in process. Whew. Because we know nothing about homeownership. We know nothing about building a home. So when our inspector is using words like "tyvek short," "ceiling joist missing," or "window nails missing," it's enough to send you into a little tizzy and want to use some choice words and put some bad karma out in the world. All this made me realize I need to educate myself on the upcoming home maintenance, so I rushed out and bought Home Maintenance for Dummies. Feel free to leave your best tips in the comment section.

On the plus side, the impromptu walk-through of our framed up house was so exciting. Who knew I would get excited over, of all things, storage space. Pantry. Linen closet. Coat closet. Those are titillating words to a former tiny apartment renter.

We go on another walk-through on Thursday. Check back for pictures! Now to plan my next yoga class and read up on cleaning gutters.

Namaste!

Teaching yoga, week 3

2010-02-07T19:34:00.001-08:00

If anyone asked me why I wanted to bring yoga to the workplace my answer wouldn't have anything to do with exercise and lengthening muscles. Those are just nice side benefits. My answer would be: Yoga reawakens the spirit to the breath so that we may fully appreciate and accept life as it happens. Too often we spend our time wielding swords and shields as life comes at us in one chaotic mess. Bills, work, time, errands, homework, etc. The list is endless. And I mean endless. Because long after we are gone, those things will continue to happen. But yoga allows us to put aside those things barreling toward us, either in the next minute, hour, day, week, month, year. We battle this crazy schedule. And in yoga, only the present moment counts. The breath that keeps us in this moment and moves us into the next. We don't think beyond this breath. Doing the splits, touching our toes, powering up our core can happen in any exercise routine. And if that's only what is important, then you truly lose sight of that present moment.

I've witnessed what stress (that time battle) has done to my body and my breath. And I've witnessed it in the workplace. By bringing yoga (free yoga!) to the workplace, I hope that I can allow my students a reprieve from all that. They don't have to worry about paying anything, the class being too long (it's only 45 minutes), or being too difficult (we practice a hatha flow/restorative class). They can just focus on the present moment and breathing deeply.

Chanting consciousness

2010-02-02T10:19:00.000-08:00

One of the more rich traditions that I love is chanting. From modest Om (pronounced "Aum") at the beginning of class to the more hearty Om Shanti (Peace) to close class or my favorite, Om Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu, I find myself grounded and bringing my mental state inward for reflection. That every mantra brings me to the present moment.

But for anyone new to yoga, chanting can create an outward, self-conscious state—the complete opposite of the tone you're trying to set for class. Or you leave class feeling as if you missed out or nervous. But this is all part of a beginner's mind set. That beautiful mindset of extreme awareness where you discover your body and its abilities on all levels. So even if your Om is whisper quiet, that's where your body (and mind) are at right now. Respect that. Love that. Honor that. Ever so slowly you'll feel your mind's eye turning to gaze inward and the outer world fall softly to the background.

Teaching yoga, week 2

2010-02-01T19:15:00.000-08:00

I'm a little behind in my posts. A move to live temporarily at home with the in laws had to happen. As did the cleaning of our apartment we had had for the past five years. All that spells no time, one tired yogi teacher, and nasty SOS film under the fingernails. Eww.

Week two went really well. I felt more calm. More "I can do this" attitude. And my yogis, I'm falling in love with my yogis. We actually don't converse much. But it's the spirit they bring with them. Their understanding that their bodies need this. That they need to get away from their desks and relax those shoulders.

If only I could bring free yoga to the masses...

Belly buddha shirt

2010-01-24T17:52:00.000-08:00

Last week I treated myself to this cute Om Girl tank top in purple. Buddha has a little bling bling belly jewel. Can't help but smile wearing this shirt for yoga.

The end in the beginning

2010-01-24T17:42:00.000-08:00

The rooms are for the most part bare, save for the essentials we'll need to get us through the last week in this apartment. It's all making me a bit nostalgic. Five years ago Jonathan and I moved in together. Five long years ago when I still had a mommy and another brother, and JL wasn't even my fiance. What a amazingly bittersweet five years.

Chance says I shouldn't be sad about the empty rooms because it's just leading to the next step in my life. A house. Maybe a family down the road. So while I'm sad to leave, I'm also excited to think what's in store. Just like I was excited to move into this place. The end here is really just the beginning. (And if you're a Bones fan, you'll get the title reference.)

Sidenote: Listening to Florence + The Machine's Cosmic Love. Loving this song!

Teaching yoga, class 2

2010-01-22T20:25:00.000-08:00

Second class, group B today. The class was so full that I had to give up my spot and just walk around and do poses where ever as I said them. I think at one point, each of my hands and feet were on different mats. Thank goodness for flexible yogis who are comfortable enough for me to do that. I wasn't as nervous this class. In fact, it was such a rush to spread what is such a joyful experience for me. I even had it together enough to play Krishna Das on my iPhone from my Pandora app during savasana. What conference room? It's now a bona fide yoga studio. Okay, maybe not, but I did convince building operations to move out a unused bookshelf and filing cabinet so I could fit in some more yogis. Hoping I can fit in 6 more. Never knew that I would start out teaching 15 students in a class.

Now if only I could convince my company to give me a budget to buy props for restorative poses. How lovely would be to relax back into supta baddha konasana in the middle of your work day? Like chocolate.

Teaching yoga, class 1

2010-01-20T18:51:00.000-08:00

You wouldn't believe how nervous I was to teach yoga. (Even had to do a headstand to ground myself before class.) It put the fear of yoga in my heart, which happened to probably be a good thing as most of my work yogis are beginners and as limber as a plank of wood. I even got the question "How long does it take 'til I get limber? And it made me recall my "beginner mindset," where I didn't know what the hell the teacher was saying to do or how to breathe. As a beginner yogi, you're lost. Your mind is chaotic and screaming, "Why Am I Doing This?!" Or: "How the hell do I: breathe in this pose or do what the teacher is doing, or I can't keep up."

It doesn't sound like it, but that chaos is a beautiful thing. A beautiful journey with an unknown destination. I'm hoping each of my yogis can appreciate the journey and find a love, peace, joy, and compassion like I've found. I don't except all of them will, and many will have Great Expectations to master poses in no time at all. If only we could get rid of the time element, then we would cease to worry about how long something takes to "master." We'd be there to experience the present moment as it comes in us in whatever package.

But as a teacher, I was just as lost as a new student. Internally I was trying to recall the lesson plan I had put together. I had hoped to deliver words of wisdom that have helped guide me to a deeper meaning in my practice. If I delivered any words of wisdom, I can't remember because amazingly enough, my nervous, chaotic brain was in the present moment just as much as my new yogis. We're new yogis together where we're learning from each other. They're practicing poses, and I'm practicing teaching. Both students.

Is it my calling? Too soon to tell, but I walked away just as uplifted. Can't wait for Friday's class.

Who will make me this bed?

2010-01-19T19:30:00.000-08:00

Who will come forth and wield their tools to make me this bed? It's a Pottery Barn bed that cost $1500 that quickly become my inspiration room that you can read all about here. When I told Jonathan, he said, "Well, that sounds like a good deal."

"That doesn't include mattresses, honey." (Guys don't know these things.)

"Oh, well, that's a horrible deal."

My point exactly. Let me know if you see another less-expensive, already made version. Or if you want to volunteer your labor. I'm serious.