Christmas Vow

I vow that next Christmas our empty mantel will have stockings.....something like this.



Because I'm obsessed with burlap and lace. Maybe I should have titled my blog Burlap and Lace....hmmmm.

This year our fireplace is naked.....well except for some evergreen garland.

J Crew Obsessed

I can't help to peruse the aisles of J Crew. I LOVE their style this season...has "Sammy Flair" written all over it!

Adorable

Found these little guys through Ali Loves Curtis Love them! I wonder if I can figure out how to make some of my own. Find them here

Movie Obsessed

Currently watching Across the Universe for the one-millionth time.....LOVE IT!

Design Inspiration

Love This!




Studio




Frames


Peg Board



Organized Clutter






Floor


Bed Cove with Curtains


Bed Nooks

Images taken from various sources via White Trash Beautiful

Homeless Wildlife?

We have a neighbor who religiously feeds the various Clifton wildlife at certain times during the day. He also calls them by name "Blue" and "Burt"are the ones we have made out so far...

Today I found some forgotten rolls leftover from Thanksgiving in the breadbox and needless to say I was a little worried when my husband proceeded to take them out to our sun-room, open the window and yell "Caw-Caw" while tossing the rolls out to the forest below. He said instead of tossing them in the garbage, we should feed the "homeless wildlife".

I'm worried there may be something in the water....

Bon Appétit

So last night I watched the movie "Julie and Julia" with my Mom and was pleasantly surprised. Julie Child? Sure...I know who she is, but I've never held any certain kind of fascination with her as I have with other television icons (ah hem...Diane Sawyer). After watching the movie, I went into stalker mode and found myself wanting to know her story and research her history.....who was her husband? were did she live? how tall was she really? I must say...I AM intrigued.....

Also, I would like to mention I've discovered a fondness for Amy Adams...how cute is she?

Image from Columbia Pictures/Jonathan Wenk via PopCultureNerd

I like.....

I really like what Grey Likes Weddings suggests in this post about this hand embroidered card (shown above) from Kingpopcorn

Laziness Overides Productivity

I REALLY need to get organized for my trip to Cabo. We leave this Thursday and I've been meaning, for once in my life, to organize my suitcase in advance rather than pack my bag 1 hour before departure.....seriously, this seems to be a pattern for me and I'm determined to overcome it.

After a full weekend of Pottery Auction-ing, the couch is looking much more appealing than this list of "to-do's" in my head. I am feeling way too sloth-like so hopefully, by putting my organization plan into writing, I WILL overcome the laziness and accomplish what I initially intended to do on Friday night.

Plan for tonight is as follows:

1. Eat pad thai with tofu which husband will pick up in t-minus 2 minutes

2. Throw items from wash into the dryer

3. Lay out all potential vacation outfits in order to determine which accessories/shoes to include in suitcase.

4. *Look online for pair of cool gladiator sandals in gold or bronze.....

5. *Re-work Donovan's Dr. Seuss Birthday invitation

* Please note these items involve being sloth-like on the couch, but still on my internal "to-do" list nonetheless.

Halloween

We attended our annual Halloween bash at Mecklenburg Gardens on Halloween night and once again had a great time. The costumes were super creative this year! Chris insisted on wearing a wasabi hat so I made sure to make that happen and this is what we came up with.

Inspiration

I LOVE this post from Jessica at What I Wore!

Let it be known....I'm back on my blogging course....no more long lapses!

Perfect

Just had an amazing time on this beautiful early fall night eating outside with my girls, enjoying sweet riesling wine, and following the evening up with two scoops of cookies and cream ice cream in a waffle cone.
Perfection.

New (Temporary) Family Addition

So Chris was running Ellie around Clifton last Tuesday night and came across this little ball of exuberance. He had a collar and no tags. We figure he either ran away or he was abandoned :( We immediately took him to the vet and had him checked and got him started on medication. His personality is to die for. We've named him Hank.

We have posted flyers around Clifton as well as posted "found ads" on Craigslist, Petfinder.com, and the Enquirer so hopefully we will find his owner(s). If that doesn't work we are going to try and find him a good home. If we didn't already have two furries at home he would definitely become a permanent addition to the family.

How can you resist this face?

Home Inspiration

I like the painted leaves for the guest bedroom...


Image from livingetc via OhBrooke

I also like this for the dinning room...different colors though



via Centsational Girl

I SO want to meet.......

They're so Cool!

Etsy Find

Shannan sent me this link from Etsy because she said it looked like me and she's totally right! Check it out!
Retro Cabin Renovation

Bouquet Obsessed

I must confess, I have a mild obsession with my wedding bouquet. The minute I saw my very talented florist walk into the room and gently sit it on the table, my heart skipped a beat. I was in love! The beautiful arrangement of white dahlias combined with thistle and soft pink roses was exactly what I had envisioned and instantly I was smitten. Rustic and elegant!!



Sadly, this is what my beautiful wedding bouquet has become......



My attempt at beautifully drying my bouquet into a cherished keepsake ultimately failed when it was forgotten outside on our patio during a rainstorm and was discovered the next day as a soggy mess. I can't bring myself to throw it away so for right now it has taken residence on a stump in our entrance way as something I've titled "Still-life with Seashell". Hmmm.....ok for now I guess.

*Side-note - This stump also served as our cake stand!

Publishing Gods...Can you Hear Me?

...Please Bring Back my Cottage Living Magazine!
I was so depressed after I received notice in the mail that the November/December 2008 issue of Cottage Living would be the last published issue :( This happened months, well almost a year ago, and still I imagine myself going to the mailbox and pulling out that small booklet of wonderful goodness and drolling over the endless pages of little cottage bungalow decorating and design inspiration.....Here are some of my kitchen favies since we would like to eventually redo our tiny, horrible laminate floor, no storage space kitchen.....


Bright Cottage Kitchen - MyHomeIdeas.com
Shared via AddThis



Mitchell Kitchen Makeover - MyHomeIdeas.com
Shared via AddThis



The Cottage Kitchen - MyHomeIdeas.com
Shared via AddThis

Fake Animal Head Obsession - Cool or Creepy?

So....for a while now I've been wanting to make a 3-D collage of animal heads for the tall wall space above our front door entrance after seeing some interesting examples in Z Gallerie. It would be a nice (or not so nice) visual surprise for anyone walking into our main living room.....well, only if they come all the way in, turn around and look up.

I'm talking about interesting conversation pieces people....
so is this Creepy? Cool? Not that I'm really going to let anyone persuade me.

I think I'm just going to run with it.

Indy Wedding

Went to Natalie and JD's wedding last night in Indianapolis. We had a blast and I even got Chris out on the dance floor. He looked so handsome and one of my girlfriends told me he looked like a Wisconsin or Minnesota mountain man which I REALLY liked!



They had individual cakes for each table and announced that the couple sitting at the table that had been married the longest would have the pleasure of cutting the cake and serving the table. I think this is such a cute idea!

Marla and John did the honors since they have been married for 9 years!




Deja Vu
They had also been married the longest at Lila and Jon's wedding in 2006!

New Venture

I'm excited about this new "journal". I've never had one. Ok, that is a lie....I did have one when I was 8 years old, but my journal entries were one-liners and I kept up with it for approximately 2 weeks. I must admit, even the one-liners were pretty comical looking back on it.

And Then There Was a Blog

Maeve is on the right and Ellie is pictured below.

Maeve is the ole' girl. She likes to keep Ellie in check when needed. She enjoys eating, going for 20 foot walks, eating, napping, and eating.

Ellie enjoys chasing furry squirrels, playing with her favorite "monkey-worm" toy, and licking you into a laughing frenzy.

They are my lovies.