Tuesday, June 29, 2010

The First Anniversary

Our first wedding anniversary weekend was spent relaxing, eating, and just enjoying each other, with a lot of "this time last year we had our first dance" and "this time last year I was getting my hair done."  Thanks to a restaurant.com gift cert, we ate a fancy (to us) dinner at a local restaurant the night before and drank a beer on the outside patio of our favorite bar. The next day W brought us home breakfast from McDonald's and then we picked up our anniversary cake from our wedding baker. 


Later that day, I made W his favorite meal - grilled cheese - and we watched our wedding video, exchanged gifts, and dug into our amazingly delicious cake.  Can it be our anniversary EVERY weekend?? 




Wes's gift using the paper tradition. I had to pick activities out of a bag and then chose the month in which we will do them. The activities including such things as "Wes cooks dinner", "Shopping trip", "Stay in movie night", and Wes's favorite -- "puppy shopping." I also got to choose from wildcard options and trade in any of the original twelve.

My gift to Wes - a leatherbound journal in which we'll write love letters to each other every year on our anniversary. I also gave him a brochure for a cruise on the local paddlewheeled riverboat.






Wednesday, June 23, 2010

One Year

June 20, 2009


One down, a lifetime to go. 
<3


Sunday, June 20, 2010

Happy Fathers Day!

When I was planning my wedding last year, I of course, was looking forward to exchanging vows with my husband and being surrounded and supported by those closest in our lives. But one of the major parts of the day I was insanely excited about was a. being walked down the aisle by my dad, and b. having one-on-one time with him during the father-daughter dance. And a year later, those two moments rank supremely high on the list of the best things of the day.

Here's to you, Dad.




We had a blast on the dance floor. He sang to me almost the entire time and spun me around so much I was afraid I was going to lose my balance!



We danced to Paul Simon's "Father and Daughter"




Monday, June 14, 2010

OOTD(s): Playing Catch-Up

Looking at the pictures from some various OOTDs from last week, I'm far less enchanted with them than perhaps I was when I first wore them. Therefore, they really don't need their own post.

Dress: Target (last year)
Belt: F21
Shoes: Target

I kept thinking of myself as Sporty Spice that day.
Dress: Kmart  (indeed)
Hoodie: Old Navy (2008)
Shoes: Target

Andi @ Saltwater Dreams told me white is an instant summer classic. So I purchased this white dress. :)
Dress: Fashion Bug 
Cardi: Target (Merona)

Favorite color combo of the year
Dress: TJ Maxx
Cardi: Target (Merona)
Shoes: Target (these were my favorite shoe of the week apparently)

This cardi is beyond comfortable
Dress: Target (last fall)
Cardi: Target

Going to cut this post short, because it's my birthday and my husband is going to take me out for a little shopping and dinner.  :) 


Thursday, June 3, 2010

Impulse Buy: Charlotte's Cupcake Apron



As mentioned in my previous blog on my wax seal pendant from Etsy, my blog addiction is bad for my shopping... er, addiction. Maybe I succumbed to this purchase because I'm SATC obsessed. Or maybe it's because I thought this blog needed more literal apron love. Or maybe it's because I needed another item to qualify for Amazon's Free Super Saver Shipping. I don't know; it all happened so fast.



But I caved and swapped up this cupcake apron designed by Jessica Steele. Might I add it was on sale? I'll just comfort myself with the fact I didn't run out and buy the vintage white Valentino pants Charlotte paired with her apron. :)


6 Weeks as Homeowners

... and we still have working plumbing, a roof, and standing walls. I'm impressed and surprised.

My husband and I are probably the epitome of a clueless homeowners. Between the two of us, we have as much common sense as Jessica Simpson and are quite possibly the least handy people ever. Needless to say, there's been quite the learning curve. I've re-caulked the bathtub three times already; I ruined a brand-new iron with hem tape glue while "hemming" curtains; and I did three loads of laundry before I realized I put the lint trap in backward.

I have so many projects I want to tackle - the list just grows and grows. Thankfully the seller had painted the walls in mostly pleasing neutrals, so there hasn't been much to do in that regard. One minor project I completed was replacing the sad looking sage curtains that hung over the kitchen sink. After the hem tape disaster on my existing white curtains, I sucked it up and bought a bamboo shade:

Before:

After:

And much to my surprise, the room that may be the most "done", by simple terms, is the dining room - the room we use the least, but walk through the most as it connects the living room to the kitchen. Dining room set and rug from walmart.com. I'm going to add more furniture pieces over time.

Before:
After:

It's so hard to be patient. I want a fully decorated house NOW. So I remind myself that we have a few years to do the things we want do and just prioritize the current list. At least it feels a little bit more like home with each day. 


Wednesday, June 2, 2010

OOTD: Chambray Wishes and Target Dreams

I don't think I can get behind most blue chambray at this point. It gives me some horrifying flashbacks of my 80s childhood and leads to visions of "the Canadian tuxedo." But dyed chambray I can definitely support. I may have audibly squealed when I spotted these new Merona chambray dresses at Target. I loved all the colors (purple, mint, and khaki) and the classic lines. The straps are adjustable and the back is smocked. I thought the dress was so charming I bought it in two colors. However its one downfall are the nipple seams. 

Oh, and did you notice another change in my OOTD? No cell phone in my hand. It's time I stop making my readers suffer through dark grainy pics. 

Dress: Target
Necklace: Forever 21
Shoes: oops (I then put on my bronze Target flops - 
shutup, I'm not a shoe girl)


Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Winning is Fun

A day or two after I won a blog giveaway from Kendi Everyday, I won ANOTHER one from the blog The Thing About Daisies. I must have had a very lucky week! I received my goodies the other day, and once this picture was taken I immediately swept them all into my big yellow Nine West bag so I could start making use of them.  She wrapped them in the prettiest metallic paper and cute gift bag also pictured. Thanks so much!


pictured: Giovanni towelettes in grapefruit, Burt's Bees lip balm, Wisps, and Peace of Mind from Origins