Barefoot Daydreams

#febphotoaday: Day 2

2012-02-03T00:20:00.001-05:00

Words... Lots and lots of them {My nightstand}.

Photo Challenge Day 1

2012-02-01T22:16:00.001-05:00

My view… Sitting in the living room. Finished at the gym. Dinner is done. Tyler is home. Coasters in progress. {10:16 pm. February 1.}

Confessional Friday

2012-01-27T19:43:00.001-05:00

Look—my first installment of Confessional Friday! Abuncha people I know play this game and I wanted to join in soooo…welcome to this week’s deepest, darkest secrets…

1. We watched Lifetime’s “Drew Peterson: Untouchable” on Sunday instead of football. Tyler would probably lie to your face before admitting this. But it’s true.

2. I got hot pants y’all!!

No, they were not purchased in 1994, I do not Jazzercise, and I did not sing, “I’m so excited” with Jessie Spano at the Max. These were in fact purchased on Wednesday. I was looking for some running pants that I could wear on my lazy days to work that a} weren’t yoga pants {already own} or b} weren’t running tights {inappropriate}. I didn’t think the side ornamentation was a big deal when I bought them, but I was painfully aware of those neon orange lightening bolts all morning at work.

3. I started a new workout regimen…

Perhaps you too have pinned these on Pinterest. There is no. way. in h-e-double-hockey-sticks that THAT burns 100 calories. HOWEVER, if you’re too lazy to go to the gym and you perform this routine during every commercial break across two hours, you will have some very sore pecs the next day. I think I did 100 push-ups Wednesday night… Better than nothing, right?

So…that’s all for my first week in Confessional Friday! I’ll have to take better notes next week… For now, the wine is opened, the pizza is here, and we just ordered “50/50.” I heart Joseph Gordon-Levitt…

Happy Friday and HAPPY WEEKEND!!

{FAIL! I just realized A Blonde Ambition didn’t post a Confessional Friday this week for me to link to. Ha—who needs her?! Better luck next week…}

Easy as Pie

2012-01-22T23:44:00.001-05:00

So, one of the best gifts I got this Christmas was from my mom—she is the best gift buyer. I didn’t ask for it, didn’t need it, probably wouldn’t have bought it for myself… But it’s SO fun and I’m so glad I have it!

It’s the Bella Pie Maker sold at William-Sonoma. It makes cute, little mini-pies in 10 minutes or less. I tried it out for the first time last week and here it comes… My official endorsement.

It was Sunday night and I was looking for an easy dinner option… And while I do enjoy the baking process, that night I was looking for something fast and easy. So I grabbed a box of pie crust, a can of mixed veggies, a can of cream of chicken soup, and some chicken breast.

This is what it looked like… Gross, right? Don’t worry, it gets better.

Using the pie cutters that come with the pie maker, I cut out eight circles from the pie crust {The ones that go on the bottom are larger than the ones on top—you have to roll it out a bit flatter, but you can get 8 circles from the crust. I too was surprised…}.

After laying the bottom crusts on their slots, I spooned in the chicken mixture, laid the top crusts on top, and sealed the lid shut

The pie maker is about the size of an old school waffle iron, and like a waffle iron there’s no timer or on/off switch. You plug it in and let it heat up until the light turns green.

The ones on the left clearly baked correctly…the ones on the right were a bit of a flop. Bad case of user error—I didn’t spoon enough filling into those, so the tops didn’t touch the ceiling of the pie maker. The user guide warned me…

So I did this and hoped gravity would help me out…

Which it did. It worked well enough because dinner was great—mini pot pies served over rice, baked in 8 minutes! They were so good! And we may or may not have made pies for dessert…

They were good but they didn’t quite look like this… I guess I’ll just have to keep trying!

In terms of portion, one pie is a generous serving for a dessert because they’re fairly deep. Dinner is a little trickier—one wasn’t quite enough for me, but two was a little too much {though two is probably perfect for a dude.}…so of course, I ate both of mine.

All in all, this is very much a gadget—not a necessity, just something fun for the kitchen to mix up your baking! {And it’s currently on sale at William-Sonoma…} Maybe I’ll try to get creative and make something cute and fun like this…

Catching up…

2012-01-22T21:20:00.000-05:00

“Is this some new effort to be ‘authentic’?” my sister asked me on the phone today—referring to my recent absence. Ha! I wish. I’ve just been a little…. lazy. The post-holiday lull in life and social activities has sucked me right in… Tyler’s job has slowed down, my job is regularly regular, and we’ve done no major traveling for three weeks, so we’re just hanging out and getting fat! We haven’t been total bums though…

We DID venture to Annapolis last weekend. It’s an easy 30 miles up the road, but I’ve lived here for nearly six years and had never been! We have friends who bought an adorable row house just a few blocks off of the water, so we had a great excuse to finally visit. It was cold but the weather just added to the charm of the city. It felt a lot like Boston, just on a smaller scale.

The start of an easy drive…

{Aren’t you impressed with my amazing cellphone pics? I know, me too.}

Maryland Ave was lined with adorable home décor, antique, and monogram shops. I was in heaven.

So makeable, right??

We didn’t go into the Naval Academy but it was fun to see the midshipmen walking around town in their uniforms. In such a picturesque place, the men in uniform walking around just made me feel like I was in a movie. It was all just a little too perfect.

We walked everywhere—we enjoyed lunch at Pusser’s, dinner & wine at Red Red Wine, and lots of window shopping in between. Back at the house we sat around the fire pit with wine and hot chocolate while Brad & Tyler relived their college glory days until our feet froze. It was such a fun weekend—we’re lucky to have fun, hospitable friends with great taste in real estate!

In other news… I finally updated my Etsy shop again! My plan was to start slowly by just adding coasters, but I got 10 orders in one week. Sooooo…there goes that plan. The customers have great taste though—check out some of the colors they’ve picked!

I’m also adding new trellis designs this month—I think they’ll be really cute. Keep your eyes peeled!

In more exciting news…our friends Jamie & Michael welcomed their bouncin’ baby boy {Ryder} a few weeks ago. We made the exclusive hospital invite list, but we were able to spend some real time with them last week when we took them dinner. It was so fun to see them in their home as a family of three—we are so happy for them in this sweet time.

I mean, seriously? Check out those dimples.

We hope some of that magic baby juice rubs off on us!

And in the last piece of excitement…winter has finally arrived! We finally got our first snow a few weeks ago. The temperatures have been so up and down this “winter” {seems like it’s been that way everywhere} and I have really been annoyed—not just that it hadn’t snowed, but the temperatures keep getting into the 60s! Yuck. The first snow came on two Mondays ago. It took a long time before it finally stuck, but it snowed non-stop for a good 10 or 12 hours…it was so beautiful to watch from the windows.

And it was so nice to come to this…finally!

{Just in case you’re judging…the garland is our neighbor’s and she hasn’t taken it down. I don’t really mind though! {And you shouldn’t judge.}}

We got more snow this past weekend, so…I’ll probably talk more about snow this week. Because I love snow. Snowy, snow snow….

But anyway, that’s about it! Just living a low key life for the last few weeks… I’ve been thinking a lot about marriage and money and pie, though, so hopefully I’ll tell you about that soon.

Happy Sunday—hope you had a great weekend!

What do you say?

2012-01-05T07:40:00.000-05:00

I realized today I’m on a current kick where I say “super” and “crazy” a. lot. Especially “crazy town.” I’m really liking that one a lot lately.

I think it’s hilarious when people say “bananas” instead of “crazy” {Like, “It’s bananas in there!”}. And I hereby resolve to use it more. So that people will think I’m funny.

I also say “no worries” about 27 times a day. But that’s good because it just means I’m laid back, right?

Tyler and I call each other “babe” more than we use each other’s real names by a ratio of something like 99:1.

Whenever we say “I’m just kidding,” we always follow it up with “Puddin’.” As in, “I’m just kiddin’…Puddin’.”

Like any good southerner, I use “fixin'” all the time because it’s totally a legit word.

I call it a “cuss word,” not a “swear word” and if I say one, it’s usually “dammit.” But I try not to.

And I call every boy patient of mine “dude” way more than their moms probably want me to.

So that’s what I say… What do YOU say?

{100 points if you can name this movie: “I say…that what YOU say…is what I say.”}

Blogs & Authenticity & Good Writing & Pinterest

2012-01-03T11:28:00.000-05:00

Last night, for the first time in what seemed like an eternity, I sat down and read blogs. I also pinned ORIGINAL items on Pinterest that I found all by myself. For a good hour or two.

And it was heavenly.

I think when Tyler went to bed first, he was afraid I’d be down here all night. I wasn’t. I just needed to sit down and read my favorite blogs. I’ve skimmed here and there but I don’t think I’ve truly been caught up on people since the summer.

And I realized how much I missed it.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Pinterest. I adore it. I’m addicted. I get annoyed when I check it on my phone and people aren’t pinning enough, so the same stuff that I looked at two hours ago is still there. Pin, people, pin!! {But then I’m a total hypocrite because someone will pin like 8,000 pins in 15 minutes and it fills up my pin feed, or whatever you call it, and it’s usually on a topic I’m not remotely interested in, like 17th century portraits of Chinese emperors, and I’m like, “Stop pinning dammit! Don’t you have anything better to do??” Anyone else suffer from this?} Anyway, it’s a wonderful concept. But I’ve also noticed that I read blogs less because of it. It’s like a shortcut. Why read all of the housing blogs when you can skim Pinterest without reading a thing, and only if you like the image do you go farther to the words?

But the words are the best part.

Especially if you’re reading Edie’s. I think I was an occasional reader of her blog until last Christmas when her house burned down. And then I was sucked in. I kept reading and reading and reading. I so admired her response. And now I love her. I read her posts and I want to be her. She has such wisdom, she is smart {like, really smart. like doctor smart, plus she reads like an English lit major}, I think she’s funny, she is a crazy good communicator, and she has fantastic taste. I love her blog because she writes about faith…and then she’ll show some crazy cool design boards and pictures of her house…and then she writes funny stuff about her refrigerator…and then shares pictures of a barn dance with her kids...and then she’s self-deprecating in a charming kind of way, not in an oh-I-really-think-I’m-perfect-but-I-should-say-I’m-not-so-people-will-tell-me-I-am kind of way. I don’t love her because I think she’s perfect, I love her because I think she’s authentic and what she writes really resonates with me.

{I’m using the world “love” loosely here y’all—I love her as much as I can love a stranger who I’ve never met, but think she’s really cool and wish she’d take me under her wing and mentor me if we lived on the same street… Y’know? That kind of love.}

And then after reading Edie’s blog, I hopped on over to Nester, who’s co-hosting a series on building up your blog. Today’s topic was on authenticity which included nuggets of insight and information from popular bloggers on how to be more sincere and authentic on your blog.

And I loved reading it.

And I was inspired.

And I was convicted.

Because I don’t feel like I’ve been authentic. I don’t think I’ve been disingenuous, but I haven’t really made myself vulnerable in any way or posted about anything of depth. To be honest, I was just so busy over the last two months, I posted to get a post up. And while I’m not a professional blogger and don’t have sponsors and all that jazz, I like to keep my little corner maintained. So it was all kind of obligatory.

But those posts were boring and I knew it.

So here’s to great bloggers and authenticity. I need to read more of everything to make my little space more interesting. Less Pinterest, more scripture. Less Bachelor {or not}, more books. Less surface, more of me.

Now, go read this and this. It’s good.

Christmas Recap 2011

2012-01-02T16:22:00.001-05:00

Hey dudes—Happy New Year and all that! I know I haven’t posted since Christmas but we didn’t take the laptop with us on our ~~tour of the lower United States~~ trip and I had to do the last two posts from my iPhone {yes, that one—the one with all the pictures…don’t even get me started on the faultiness of the Blogger app}. I was afraid that Tyler’s grandparents were going to think I had anti-social/addiction issues with my phone…or that I don’t like them…or that my marriage was trouble... Point: it took a super long time sitting in the corner by myself to get that post up.

ANYWAY. Here’s a little recap of our Christmas in DC and our trips to Nebraska and Georgia. {I will try very hard to include more pictures than words…}

Before heading west to mayhem, we had a little date night to ourselves. We saw Sherlock Holmes and walked and shopped in Georgetown before hitting Serendipity 3 for truffle mac & cheese and frozen hot chocolate. It was divine.

A few days later, we flew to Omaha. We popped in to visit a few friends before heading to Tyler’s grandparent’s place—we landed in Nebraska at 3pm and by 8 o’clock we were in our fourth city! Typically there’s snow on the ground and the lake is frozen but this year was unseasonably warm... So no snow. Bummer.

We spent great time with Tyler’s entire family on the 24th…which included lots of soup, a Dirty Santa, and a regular gift exchange. There were 26 of us so it was crazy town in that basement.

And then had a low key Christmas morning after the rest of the family dispersed…

Christmas morning in PJs with Grant… I think I mentioned kidnapping him several times.

It’s just not Christmas morning without breakfast casseroles… So I made three the night before.

On the 26th, we drove to Randy’s {B-I-L} family farm in Newman Grove. Tyler & the gang shot skeet… I played with babies.

That night we did a fondue. {And then we hopped in the station wagon and went to see Grease…And the next morning we all got up and voted for Carter!} I’m kidding—it was fun!

Kara & I also built a gingerbread house with the boys that night—it wasn’t perfect but it was one of my favorite parts of the trip!

On the 27th we hopped on a plane to Atlanta. Most of the big festivities were done by the time we got there so I don’t have a ton of pictures of the family—just a whole lot of Halley! Tyler & I begrudgingly baby-sat one morning when my sister had to work. We were a little tired so we let her watch “Tangled” three times in a row. “HORSEY MOVIE!!!”

The child that never sits still will sit entranced for a good hour when this is on… {but she still has to kick her feet}.

One night we went out for Mexican and on our way out, a train was passing behind the restaurant…

“Train!Train!Train!Train!”

Mom & I hit up Ballard Backdoor on Thursday—the Ballard Design outlet in Atlanta… I don’t make it there every time I’m in Atlanta, but I try to get there as much as I can. I think this can now be considered a Christmas tradition…

Homegirl wracked. up. I bought a ton of curtain panels and shower curtains for $10 and $15 {normally listed for $100+ each} for spring Etsy pillows. I also grabbed a few burlap pillow cases, Christmas ribbon, and a pillow for myself. I love that place…

Tyler’s lucky we flew because this hutch—the top portion you see was $50. Fifty. Dollars. It retails for $700. There are so many things I’d do with that if I had the space…

Forsyth Fabrics is in the immediate vicinity of Ballard… They kicked me out for drooling all over everything.

{I am obsessed with this fabric…}

That night we double dated with my cousin & his wife at Buckhead Diner—we took no pictures of humans. Just the blue cheese chips we had as an appetizer…

To die for.

And that was it! My grandmother is a champ and underwent a knee replacement while we were there so we invaded her space for a bit before we left town. All in all, it was a great trip—some parts were crazy and overwhelming but we also took in our fair share of movies and took crazy long naps. It’s just not Christmas without family and we were so lucky to spend so much time with both sides.

It was perfect until I got in a fight with Halley on our way out of town…

This kid loves her some Uncle T.

Happy 2012!

Favorite Things 2011

2011-12-26T08:56:00.000-05:00

So how did everyone fare this season without Oprah's annual Favorite Things episode?? To be honest, the daily 4:00 hour of my life has suffered less than I anticipated... Yes, I would love to see the Oprah on Gabby Giffords and Amanda Knox interviews but I haven't found myself actively missing her {do you think somewhere in Hawaii Oprah just started twitching?} . With Nate Berkus and Ellen, I'm quite content with my afternoon talk show lineup (sorry Anderson, I've tried...).

I planned on having this up before Christmas but I was all busy shopping for Tyler, like 3 hours before we were supposed to trade gifts. Hopefully you were all better prepared than I was and finished your shopping in a timely manner but just in case you need some last minute inspiration or ideas on how to spend all of those gift cards and exchanges, here are a few of MY favorite things of 2011...

Silhouette SD
If you're not so crafty, this might not be your thing {or maybe it will!!}. The Silhouette is an electronic cutter, similar to the Cricuts you see everywhere but for half the price. What sold me on the Silhouette is that you can use any and all of the fonts you have on your computer-- you're not limited to what Cricut sells {which costs upwards of $30-90 PER CARTRIDGE}-- and you can purchase singular graphics or shapes iTunes-style for 99 cents apiece. There is also additional software you can buy that allows you to upload and cut your own pictures-- whatever or however many you want. This is what I used to make the custom stencils for my Etsy Christmas pillows and make all of the monogrammed Christmas ornaments that I gave to my patients this year. You just slide in the paper or vinyl like you're printing something and it cuts it out! {People are also über impressed with you, in case you need an ego boost} I am in love with this machine and SO, SO, SO glad that I did my research and didn't buy the Cricut-- I saved myself a small fortune. {And since I've started this post, I learned that the SD has now been discontinued and they've upgraded to the "Silhouette Cameo" and now I am veryveryveryvery tempted to put mine up on eBay so I can upgrade too...}

Moving on...

Stella & Dot!!
I've known about their jewelry for awhile and always thought it was super cute but if you know me and my frugal ways {and my NYC jewelry excursions...}, I couldn't swallow their prices. But I hosted a party for my friend Lindsey and despite it being a small turnout, I still got great hostess rewards! With a $100+ credit and three 50% off coupons, I bought 4 great necklaces that I wear all. the. time. I am seriously loving this jewelry and while it is definitely not an everyday purchase for me, this stuff is beautiful and really well made {read: heavy on your neck}.

Contigo Coffee mug
Ahhhhh, this coffee mug. I. love. this. mug. It is the bomb diggity. I received this mug as a gift from a patient earlier this Fall and "As long as Eye live, I will never use another mug again!" I love it because it will NOT spill. I typically leave the house in the morning juggling my purse and my lunch and my gym bag and my keys...my coffee and...my hands are full. I can throw my coffee in my purse and it can shake all around, turn upside down...it will. not. spill {it also keeps the temperature of whatever's inside a ridiculously long time}. You can pick one up at Target, among other places, for 20 big ones. Do it.

Oh My Darling Designs
A mom that I know through work {whose children are adorable and impeccably dressed and could sell the clothes themselves}, recently started her own children's clothing company with a friend of hers. She was inspired one day when she went to buy a smocked dress for her ONE year old that cost NINETY dollars. I went to the launch party last month and my uterus was turning over at the site of all those smocked dresses and John-Johns. So check it out-- the stuff is adorable and all reasonably priced. They also announce sales and specials on their Facebook page all the time.

Mary KayLike their skin care, love their make-up. If you were to open my make-up bag at any given moment {or the ziplock bag I call my make-up bag}, you'd find MK concealer, foundation, powder, blush, creme eye shadow, facial highlighting pen, creme lipstick, and no less than 3 lip glosses. I recently took a trip to the 19th century and honed my bartering skills with my friend Laura Sue-- I helped her with a blog make-over while she sent me an awesome goody bag of MK products-- face wash, nail polish, lip products... She has great taste {and she makes cool headbands}, you should definitely hit this girl up for your facial beautifying needs...

And now for the last one.... Despite our recent trip to Napa, when it comes to wine, I really don't know what I'm talking about. But a year or so ago I kept having this great glass of Savignon Blanc-- a wine I don't typically gravitate to and I couldn't figure out why it was so good. "Savignon Blanc from New Zealand," the girl next to me said. "It's always good." And she was right! It never fails: Cupcake, Nobilo...it's all perfect.
So that's it! Just my two cents on how you should spend your Christmas money... Happy exchanging everybody! Good luck out there...

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T20:12:00.001-05:00

Greetings from Nebraska! We're spending time with Tyler's family for a few more days before we head to Georgia to spend time with mine. We have savored time with our sweet nephews and eaten waaaaay too much food. It is unseasonably warm so sadly we didn't have a white Christmas... But enjoy our 2011 Christmas card and newsletter! {That makes it all better right?}

I hope today has found you well. I can't help but think of my friends and family who are without their loved ones this season. While today should be a day of joy celebrating a Savior, I know that today is just a strong reminder of their absence-- please know we're thinking of and praying for you today.

Merry Christmas

Y’know, some trips to Santa just go better than others…

2011-12-20T07:39:00.000-05:00

It’s that time again…Dress the kids up. Between nap times and mall crowds, coordinate the best time to go see Santa. And then email Aunt Kathryn & Uncle Tyler the pictures!

Kara emailed us these precious pictures of her boys…

{Cohen {4}, Grant {2}, Reid {3 mo.}—Grant favors Tyler a lot which I love….}

And then my sister Becky emailed us her pictures of Halley & Santa…

There was only one…

Happy Tuesday!

Christmas Tour of Homes 2011

2011-12-15T01:46:00.001-05:00

Helloooo bloggers! This is my favorite blog party of the whole year. And despite the house being finished for weeks, I’m always scrambling at the last minute to get my pictures up {I thought I was going to be all ahead of the game by getting this finished on Wednesday, but there’s already 226 links up—whew!}. So let’s get this party started—without further adieu, welcome to my little North Pole…

For the first time this season I’m sitting on the sofa with all of the lights turned out except for the tree lights and a burning candle. Hallmark movies are on and the house is quiet. This is one of my top 5 favorite parts of Christmas every year. The laptop is fired up, I just made hot chocolate, and I am thrilled to have an excuse to sit here for a few more minutes {or hours…or fall asleep on the sofa}.

We hosted Tyler’s office Christmas party here two weeks ago so the house has been done for awhile now. Though I’m prone to jumping the gun on decorating, it’s always nice to have an excuse so people don’t think I’m crazy Christmas lady… And it’s even better to be able to really enjoy the decorations for the entire month!

My favorite views in the house are the ones that have as much Christmas jammed in as possible:

Last year I did a “fah-ncy tree” in all golds and whites and silvers. This year I wanted to do something a little more fun—I call it "whimsical,” Tyler calls it “Dr. Suess” {but he’s complimented the tree about 18 times so I’m pretty sure “Dr. Suess” is a good thing.}

I don’t know how I missed this, but tree picks were a completely foreign concept to me! I was at Sam’s one day and saw this great box full of curly cues and glitter sticks and sparkly presents. Thus, the whimsy tree was born {I supplemented a few more from the $2 section at Target and the not-$2-section at Pier One}.

I saw this picture on Pinterest and decided to make sillhouettes of me and Tyler {the jury is still out if this is normal to do for adults without kids…thoughts?}.

I kept our Christmas cards in the same spot as last year—I really love it and it’s such a nice scene when I come down the stairs every morning to see all of these smiling faces of our favorite people. {Confession: I think I kept last season’s up until March or something ridiculous like that.}

This year I bought real garland—for $30 I think we got at least a few hundred yards. We had enough garland to wrap about 42 staircases. So we wrapped it here….

And here…

{My mom buys me a Wallace silver bell every year. I love them.}

And here…

{We also collect the Capitol Christmas ornament every year. This is our banister leading to the basement.}

And covered it here…

{With a spare set of Christmas lights wrapped underneath the trimmings… It looks really pretty all lit up!}

And even draped it along our backyard fence…

A new addition this year that I love is this nativity set. We didn’t have one previously, so Tyler bought it while he was in Israel with work last summer. It’s carved from olive trees… I just think it’s really special and unique.

And that’s it! Some garland, Christmas lights, ornaments, and festive pillows go a long way around here… I’m trying my best to slow down this season and not be overwhelmed with baking and wrapping and shopping. I’ll be the first person to admit I love Christmas for the movies and the lights and gifts…But at the end of the day, the lights and sparkle pale in comparison to the Savior King we truly celebrate this season.

Thank you so much for stopping by! I’ll be recreating my snug little living room scene from tonight again this weekend—next time to tour all of yours. I can’t wait! {My Pinterest just might shutdown the whole system…}

{And don’t forget—there are a gazillion more homes to tour here!!}

Check. it. out.

2011-12-13T11:41:00.000-05:00

You know what that is? My last Etsy shipments!! Praise. the. Lord.

Don’t get me wrong, I SO appreciate all of the business and orders but man, the last six weeks have been a ca-razy! For now, I’m done taking Christmas orders but will be back after the holidays to restart with some less seasonal items {check out the iPhone covers currently listed—they’re designed by my graphic designer extraordinaire-slash-friend Ashley. I love mine and get compliments all the time! And there are more designs coming soon.} . Through a process of trial and errors, I learned a lot about juggling orders and a full time job so I hope that going forward the shop will be a little more fun and a lot less stressful!

All in all, I sold 27 pillows, 19 sets of coasters, 14 dish towels, 15 ornaments, 3 picture frames, and 3 sets of gift tags. Whew. I’m ready for a nap.

Again, thank you SO MUCH to anyone that spread the word or made purchases—I really did have fun making everything and I hope they added a little handmade touch to your home this season.

Wait, it’s December?!?

2011-12-12T01:17:00.001-05:00

What is happening to time?? Between Etsy, Etsy, and Etsy every spare second of my calendar has been booked solid for the last six weeks. I sadly have been visibly absent from the blog world, Pinterest, and worst of all…Words with Friends. But here are a few things I’ve managed to sneak in…

I got really, really excited about the potential of Georgia beating undefeated LSU in the SEC Championship. And then I got really, really frustrated about Georgia not beating LSU for the SEC championship and changed the channel. Go Dawgs! anyway. They earned the exclamation point.

Tyler and I went to a benefit for International Justice Mission last week. The banquet was beautifully decorated for Christmas, I was wearing sparkles, and they had a hot chocolate bar to die for complete with homemade peppermint marshmallows. I was feeling really fancy until I spilled said hot chocolate all over the bathroom floor. Cue me squatting next to a toilet wiping up hot chocolate with tissue paper… {Beyond the superficial, this was an amazing evening that highlighted the work of a great organization that seeks to end violence and abuse against the defenseless. We’re very excited to get more involved with IJM.}

We spent an obscene amount of money on plane tickets to fly home{s} for Christmas.

We hosted Tyler’s office for a Christmas party—it was a great excused to have the house fully decorated and buy a wholelotta wine. It was also really nice to finally meet everyone in Tyler’s office, including the boss and his wife {yikes!}. The party came at the end of a very busy week for both of us though and the hours leading up to the party made me question why anyone in their right mind would EVER choose to work on Extreme Home Makeover, Iron Chef, Restaurant: Impossible or any other show whose premise is built around a ticking clock.

I stupidly ran the Hot Chocolate 15k the morning after the party. I was up at 5:30 to run the race and if that weren’t bad enough in itself, the race was a complete disaster. It seems everyone in the DC running community knows of the epic failure of the inaugural DC Hot Chocolate. {If you’re bored, go read their Facebook page…Drama!}

Other than that, I’ve just been hanging out with kids and sewing my eyeballs out! The Christmas store is coming to a close though, so the next two weeks are reserved for slowing down a bit and taking time to really enjoy the most wonderful time of the year. Are you guys hanging in there?? I’m on my way to go catch up on your world! I miss my blog peeps… {My “fake friends” as Tyler says. He means it with love.}

Don’t forget—Nester’s Tour of Homes is this Thursday!

How to decorate for Christmas…

2011-11-28T12:02:00.001-05:00

Well, Tyler and I have both been sick now going on a week. I think we’re both on the up and up but we spent a good four days house ridden. No friends or movies or shopping—just lots of time with football and On Demand in bed. {It was actually a little great!}

The other upside is that we were able to get the house fully decorated! We’re hosting Tyler’s office Christmas party this Friday, so that really forced us to get it done early. If you know me, you know how I begrudgingly pulled out the decorations… We were the very first customers at our favorite tree lot and they even opened an hour early for us on Friday morning.

{We brought home this 7 foot beauty…}

It’s only our second Christmas in this house, but I didn’t want to just do exactly what I did last year. So the first thing I did was jump on The Nester and click through last year’s Christmas tours for ideas and inspiration.

It’s funny because I remember my house looking awesome last year and I was all, “Well, I’ll try to find some new ideas on here but whatever.” And then I clicked on my own tour after checking out everyone else’s and my house was a total snore! Maybe the general décor has changed a bit over the last year or maybe it was just the way I presented it but…

I was pretty underwhelmed…

I remember trying to hold back last year because I didn’t want the house to look like Santa’s toy shop, but whatever. Game on this year! I’m not holding back…

This year’s Nester tour is on December 15th so get your nooks and crannies ready…

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Speaking of Christmas decorations… The winner of my giveaway is Abbie!! Excluding duplicate comments and my own comments, Abbie from Satisfy My Soul is the 10th submission and winner of the Christmas coasters!!

Thank you to EVERYONE who entered or purchased something from my new Etsy shop! It was so good to hear from everyone, especially the new ones, but it’s really fun to send a gift to an old blog friend! Email me your info, Abbie, and I’ll get them to you asap!

Happy Monday everyone. Hope you can get your jeans buttoned!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T22:37:00.001-05:00

Hopefully You'll not read this today because you're all among friends and family but I couldn't let the day pass without acknowledging my thanks and gratitude for the blessings in our life. It's been quite a year and we have much to be thankful for.

It was on this week last year that Tyler's former company cut half of their employees, Tyler being one of them. It was four days before Thanksgiving, four weeks from Christmas, and we'd been a dual income family for about two seconds. I'd just started a new job and my salary was barely covering my hefty student loan payments. Facing unemployment in these times was difficult and unexpected. And facing them during the holidays was a small nightmare.

But God provided as He always does (read the whole story here). Tyler was soon hired back on Capitol Hill and a few months ago was promoted to Chief of Staff-- he is too humble to ever share this but he's worked so hard, working his way up through the Hill, beginning as a college intern. I am so proud of him and thankful that God bestowed such a work ethic in him and that He provides these opportunities for us.

These days we are blessed with busyness. Work, traveling, and time with family and friends can be a bit overwhelming so while we miss our families, we relished the opportunity to spend the very long weekend here. We slept in this morning and watched the parade (anyone else see Newsies??), enjoyed dinner with friends this afternoon (and didn't have to cook a thing!), and are cozy on the couch this evening (where I am resisting the pull of anymore projects).

We are immensely blessed with our lives here in Washington and well aware that, just as we learned last year, it can all change in the blink of an eye. The Lord is the giver of every good and perfect gift and we relish and accept His blessings, in whatever form they may come.

"Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty, and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is Yours. Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom; You are exalted as head over all.

Wealth and honor come from you; You are the ruler of all things. In Your hands is strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give You thanks and praise Your glorious name."
1 Chronicles 29:11-13.

I hope today finds you all warm and full of food and love. THANK YOU for reading. Happy Thanksgiving!

Epic Napa Experience

2011-11-22T23:35:00.000-05:00

Helloooo… Long time no blog! The good news is that we’re super blessed to be able to travel and have great friends to come visit and have a booming little side business. The bad news is that I’m sick, a little overwhelmed, and very, very busy! But hey, who isn’t!

So last weekend, Tyler and I went to Napa Valley with my brother, sister-in-law, and a group of their friends to celebrate a friend’s birthday deemed the Epic Napa Experience. We’ve gotten to know this group over the last year while celebrating Andy & Christine’s engagement and their wedding. These super organized people put together a fantastic trip, so all we had to do was send them a check and book a hotel room. I highly recommend traveling with this St. Louis crew…

I would fill you in on all of the fabulous details, but frankly it’s all a little foggy so I’ll just share my pictures!

We arrived very late Thursday night after a very long travel day… We decided we could’ve flown to Paris in as much time!

We toured wineries and tasted a lot of wine…

We took in the gorgeous views of Napa Valley at harvest. {Words or pictures don’t do this place justice!}

We ate grapes off the vine…

We stood on the most expensive land in the country…

We hung out with family and fun friends…

Other notables that can’t be depicted: I learned what a bunghole really is, learned the term “butt skin”, and was educated on the Hot-Crazy Linear Relationship.

Sunday morning we reluctantly packed up our stuff and drove back to San Francisco to catch our plane. This was our first trip to the city together so we decided to sneak in a few touristy stops…

Like driving over the Golden Gate Bridge…

Driving down Lombard Street…

And of course, finding the house from Full House!

We paid for it on Monday morning, exhausted and full from a busy weekend but it was so, so much fun and of course, it’s always great to see family and spend time with great people!

Scratch #10 off the list—Napa was amazing! I’ll be back tomorrow to announce the winner of the giveaway {nope— I didn’t forget!}.

So I've been a little busy...

2011-11-16T00:10:00.001-05:00

The last time I worked out I was running the half marathon. And I'm pretty sure that calorie burn has worn off.

I haven't watched Glee since before the World Series...

The only Facebooking I've done is on my phone at red lights (don't tell Oprah)...

I haven't been on Pinterest in a WEEK..

And I finally changed my calendar tonight... from AUGUST to November.

But my hours have picked up at work, the Etsy store is booming enough to make me feel a little nuts, I'm getting good time in with girlfriends, and we're going away for a long weekend to NAPA on Thursday. So life is good, I'm just a little busy...

I miss you guys. : /

My first half marathon, a second birthday, and three days in Savannah…

2011-11-09T01:41:00.001-05:00

Picking up where I left off on Sunday…

I left for Savannah immediately from work Thursday afternoon. I was driving solo because Tyler was on a work trip and couldn’t meet me there until Friday night. So I reverted back to my college days and sang every Dixie Chicks song I owned at the top of my lungs. I got in at about 11:30, snagged the room with the coveted king bed before my sister got there, and let my mom spoil me with wine and treats that she always has waiting.

Friday was Halley’s big birthday celebration—she turned 2 a few weeks ago {yes, this little munchkin} and my sister decided to throw the party in Savannah this weekend since so many friends and family would be in town for the big race. The day was full of errands and party preparations—I bought a new running top, picked up my bib and running info {probably the only poor experience from the race—deciding to hold the running expo on an ISLAND and asking 23,000 people to come individually to pick up their bib. Traffic was insane.}, and came home to help decorate cupcakes.

{A little hard to tell when they’re all grouped together, but they’re owl cupcakes. Cute right??}

The party that night was great—we had a pasta party so everyone could carb load, adult drinks, and cupcakes; the grown-ups all chatted and the kids ran around entertaining each other. Halley had a ball until we started singing to her and she realized this whole thing was about her!

She quickly forgot all about it and had no time conquering the cupcakes!

Just a few pictures I snagged of little miss reading some of her birthday gifts with mom and dad. I know they can’t believe their itty bitty baby is TWO!

Friday night I didn’t get to bed as early as I’d hoped and I had trouble falling asleep in general. I’d gone through several emotions regarding the race—I really hadn’t done much running since the 10 miler and was feeling a little apathetic. Then I went to the expo and got excited. And then intimidated by the lack of overweight people who were clearly in over their head. “Crap. These people are all legit.” And the next morning after I woke up at 5:15 and put on all of my gear, I was just tired. I kept thinking “What if I don’t finish? What if something happens and I just shut down?” I just didn’t know what to expect.

But by race time, after navigating the crowds of people in downtown Savannah {it was freezing, by the way. Very cold, dark, and windy—not what I expected in my perpetually warm hometown!}, I started to get excited. I was with my brother-in-law who runs these things all the time and ran a half marathon up. a. MOUNTAIN in August, so I knew we weren’t running together! I was also with my friends Sarah and Vic but they were doing a walk-run, so I knew I was doing this thing on my own.

Me and Sarah

The race started in front of City Hall and people filled the steps and sidewalks, TVs were on in all of the surrounding businesses and we could see the live broadcast of us running by. I suddenly grew very excited and took off on my own, eager to set my own pace and see what I could do. I was a little emotional early on, I think because I was feeling proud of myself, but everything was making me emotional—the people out cheering, the woman I passed running on her prosthetic leg, the people handing out water....

The beauty of riverfront Bay Street quickly faded as we ran into west side Savannah. A lot of people grumbled about the first five or six miles that truly did take us through the hood {I saw many parts of Savannah for the very first time}—but the people were so sweet! Little old church ladies were out in their coats and hats at 8 am, “Good mornin’ baby!” “Keep running now!” “Y’all doin’ good!” Little kids stood on the porch in their PJs unsure what on earth was happening outside. Six or seven garbage men and women in the neighborhood, whose routes were obviously suspended, lined up their trucks and were out dancing and cheering and laughing and having the best time. Not a great neighborhood, no, but the people were so cheerful and happy to have us.

Anyway, after six miles or so, we were back in downtown where the people were lined three or four deep cheering us on. There were funny signs, runners were finding people in the crowd, there was cheering and jumping—it was so fun and it helped give me a boost since miles 3, 4, and 5 were relatively quiet.

I analyzed in my mind which was psychologically worse—having run three miles and knowing there were ten ahead of you? Or having run eight and knowing there five still left? I never figured out the answer but when I reached mile 10, I saw that I was a minute and a half ahead of my 10 Miler time so I was feeling good. I only had three miles left and three miles I could do.

But then I started to feel hungry. Like, truly hungry. I wouldn’t say I was faint, but I was definitely feeling my hunger and not sure what to do about it. I hadn’t trained with gel packs or energy shots and was too nervous to try the ones they were handing out at mile 9. I said a little prayer that God would show me if I really needed to stop and kept going. It was around 11.5 miles that the marathoners branched from the half-marathoners and everything in me affirmed that there is no way I could run a marathon. No. way. That’s all I kept thinking, “Nothing in me wants to run a marathon. FIFTEEN more miles?? After this? No way.” I have an insane amount of respect for people that can because I just can’t fathom it!

I knew I’d slowed down during miles 10 and 11 but mile 12, I picked things up to get this thing done. The only time I walked was through the mile 12 water station where I drank 3 cups of Cyclomax to fill me up a little and stave off my hunger. I was so excited because I knew I’d finish and finish strong! It was at this point that the first place marathoner passed me. 26.2 miles in the same time I ran 13.1. It was amazing to see.

{I yoinked this offline}

I crossed the finished with a time of 2 hours, 23 minutes, and 32 seconds. I didn’t realize that I’d made a goal for myself to keep my pace under 11 minutes, but I felt so relieved to see my pace was 10:57—just by the skin of my teeth!

{Me and Randy, my brother in law}

Mom, Rick, Tyler, Becky, Randy, and Halley were all waiting at the finish for me. I grabbed some fruits, picked up my finisher’s medal, got my finisher photo and that was that! It was still windy and cold and since we had a two year old in our party, we didn’t stay in the park for the Carolina Liar concert. I was a little bit disappointed but just as happy to go home and watch football on the sofa for the rest of the day.

And that’s just what we did! We watched South Carolina fall to Arkansas and the much anticipated LSU/Alabama game. Today I am happy to report Georgia is #1 in the East and I can walk down stairs without a railing again! The soreness keeps diminishing but man, nine hours in the car on Sunday is not what my stiff muscles needed!

All in all, the race was AMAZING-- I can’t wait to do another one! It was exhilarating and challenging and I’m proud of myself for doing it. It might seem like I’m making a big deal out of nothing, but y’all—I am not an athlete! My parents will attest. The only thing I ever half-way succeeded at was running on the cross country team in high school {Most Improved freshmen year, baby! Just call me Sue Heck.} and until the last month, I’d only run a handful of 5ks over the last ten years. I think I can officially call myself a runner now! This just goes to show that you really, truly can do anything you try at… {And I crossed off #6!}

{For a marathon recap by a REAL runner—go to my friend Ashley’s blog. She is amazing and finished the New York City marathon for the second year in a row on Sunday—her recaps are so inspiring and I think they’re always her best writing.}

And don’t forget to enter the giveaway—just a few more days left!! Happy Wednesday and happy running!

THANK YOU!!

2011-11-06T22:50:00.001-05:00

Hey fellas!! Greetings from my second most popular blogging spot—the I-95 corridor. We are heading back from Savannah after my big race weekend! It was SO. FUN. but I feel a weird sense of obligation to share the weekend festivities in chronological order, and I just don't have time to do that tonight!

it I couldn't let any more time go by though without giving a huge THANK YOU for your feedback on my little project! It has been a ca-razy week! I was so nervous to debut my Etsy shop on Tuesday afternoon and I had been working my big ol’ butt off trying to get everything done—finishing the products, figuring out the pricing, writing the descriptions, putting on a photo shoot {thank you, Tyler!}… Once the shop was up, I immediately started getting orders and in five days I sold eleven pillows, eleven sets of coasters, and a handful of towels and picture frames—you guys are AWESOME! I’ve even gotten orders from people I don’t know-- more than just the obligatory pity order from my mom! I didn’t expect this much traffic but I am SO excited and so flattered that I’m getting positive feedback. Y'all are awesome! I’m working hard to get everything out to you as soon as possible—hopefully by the end of the week!

Don't forget- it's not too late to enter the giveaway! Tell your momma, tell your friends... I'll be back tomorrow to tell you all about the weekend. Until then, me and my lactic acid legs are gettin' out of this car!!

Testing the waters…

2011-11-01T15:24:00.001-04:00

So I mentioned the other day that I’ve been busy working on a little project that I was excited to show you. And I AM excited. But I’m a little nervous too…

Because I decided to start an Etsy shop! I’ve been toying with it for awhile, but I decided to stick my little baby toe in the water and narrow my merchandise down to Christmas-y things.

I love making things, but you know…my house can only hold so much stuff. {Somewhere, that just made Tyler sing.} And every time I walk in to those cute little gift shops, I drool over everything…and then gawk at the price tag.

So I wanted to provide a little place in the world for cute Christmas/hostess/stocking stuffer gifts for the upcoming season! I made one of everything as a display item and everything ordered will be custom made—at least until I get an idea of what people want or if they even want.

I’m a little terrified that no one will buy anything. But then again, I’m a little terrified they will! So here it is…my little venture into the etsy world. Be kind.

There are picture frames…

Personalized coasters…

“Vintage” coasters…

Pillows…

And more! Go check it out!

I’m still working on a few more items and a friend of mine from the graphic design world is potentially joining in the fun—see keep checking back for fun new items.

If it doesn’t go anywhere, no harm, no foul, right??

HOWEVER. It would be more fun if it at least took a few steps…

So let’s do a GIVEAWAY! Here’s how to enter…

1. Become a BD follower! {Use your email account or create an account.}

2. Leave a comment telling me your favorite item—this is what you get if you win. Or I guess you can pick something else. But don’t you want to win your favorite item? Whatever. Your choice!

3. Tweet the giveaway and mention me in it @KateGrassmeyer OR if you don’t have twitter just tell me what your favorite Christmas/holiday movie of all time is.

Tell your momma, tell your friends… Thanks for your help and thanks for playing!!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T17:38:00.001-04:00

XOXO,

Maverick & Charlie

Check Baby, Check

2011-10-30T18:45:00.001-04:00

Well, hopefully you guys have been as busy as I have and haven’t noticed my little disappearing act lately. Call off the search parties, I’ve just been hiding in my house. My patient case load was a little slow this month so I decided to take on a little project that I can’t wait to share with you {soon readers, soon}. I’m also starting a company newsletter and blog for my office, doing a little blog design project for a friend, sewing projects for another friend, AND training for the half marathon NEXT WEEK {ack!}. This all culminated over the last two weeks, so I don’t intend for this to be my new normal.

We did manage to make a little progress on my list last weekend though and went camping with some friends of ours, Cora {who I mention on here frequently} and her husband Jared—thus checking off item #12. It only took six years of togetherness, but we finally slept outside by a fire. It was so fun! We drove to the mountains and did a little hiking and camping in Shenandoah National Park. The leaves were at peak color change and the temps really felt like fall, so it was beautiful, fun, and freezing!

My m.o. is leaving the camera memory card in the computer and realizing it only when I’m out and about trying to take a picture. which of course occurred to me as soon as we started our hike. I at least had my camera phone, so the weekend wasn’t a total loss.

Whole lotta stuff for a 24 hour trip!

We hiked to the summit of Matthew’s Arm. At this point on the trail, we’d just intersected the Appalachian Trail.

Setting up camp!

Cora & Jared had this cute little 2 person tent. We set ours up and it was huge—we called it our tansion. {Tent + mansion = tansion}. We had a little doormat and everything.

Me & Cora

My “it’s cold!!” face. The sun hadn’t even set and the temps were in the 40s, so I knew there was a long night ahead of me….

Luckily we had a fire {and a two-man sleeping bag}—it took a mere two hours to get it going. I did my part by handing over discarded pages of my House Beautiful mag. Aren't I a sport? We cooked hotdogs, cheeseburgers, and beans for dinner and planned ahead, cooking biscuits cowboy style for breakfast the next morning…

Of course the night wouldn’t be complete without SMORES! {And apple cider to boot.}

I was only a little excited about these jumbo marshmellows.

We had to be back to the city early on Sunday so we were up and adam by 5am…or at least the boys were. Jared had the fire going and Tyler cooked eggs and sausage to go with our biscuits—it was delicious. I’d otherwise call it divine had it not been in the o’dark thirties. Isn’t it great how guys take over everything with camping?

We crawled through the front door at 9:30 the next morning, tired and reeking of camp fire—it was so fun! We can’t wait to do it again, we’re just not sure when. It SNOWED here yesterday and we’re out of town for most of the upcoming weekends. Here’s to next time, Terrys!

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In other FANTASTIC news, anyone catch this game on Saturday??? I was ready to curl up under a rock after that first half but the boys rallied and made this Bulldawg proud! We’re 6-0 since the rocky start that had me on my heels earlier this season… It’s great to be a Georgia Bulldawg!

I’ll be doing my St. John’s River Dance for the rest of the week—GO DAWGS!! With an exclamation point!

Fun with Contact Paper!

2011-10-21T14:35:00.001-04:00

First, let me say this:

Look, I followed through!! I told you I was going to post something and I did!! After all those times when I say I’m going to show you pictures from a trip or recap a weekend or post a recipe or tell you where to eat in Savannah and I NEVER do it, I finally did it!! I tell ya, I have a graveyard’s worth of unfinished, never published posts… But this isn’t one of them!

Okay, now that I go that out of my system, you can return to the regularly scheduled edition of Barefoot Daydreams.

What can you do hanging out solo on a Thursday night that will completely transform a small space and cost you nothing? I’m so glad you asked!

You guys know I’m a sucker for a horizontal stripe. And I have loved the idea of a tan and white striped wall ever since I saw this bathroom on Young House Love. Striped walls have really hit the scene since then and I have been salivating over rooms like this and this and this. Remembering an idea I saw on Pinterest {see how I’m tying this all together?}, I was bored one night and realized I had all of the tools I needed to join the striped wall gravy train.

A roll of white contact paper, a measuring tape, level, and a pencil is all I needed.

I measured the wall floor to ceiling and figured out I could have eight 12 inch thick stripes—four white and four beige. I measured the width of the wall—about four feet—and cut three strips of contact paper to a little bit more than four feet. The stripes on the back of the paper made this whole process relatively easy.

Ready to go!

At this point, I was still a little skeptical this whole thing was really going to work. Sure, it looks great in a picture or from a distance, but in reality, isn’t it just going to look like I stuck contact paper to my wall? But this was literally going to cost me nothing but time, so what did I have to lose?

Before: entry way wall

I taped up a few just to get a feel if I was really going to commit to it. I realized these stripes were way too big for such a small wall, so I recalculated to put up 16 stripes instead of eight. I cut the strips 6” and got started.

Using the level, I penciled in a line across the wall to help me position the contact paper evenly. I found it easiest to start positioning the paper from the center and adhering it moving outward. It’s just shelf-liner, so it’s not too sticky and easily came off if I needed to reposition it. {Avoid doing this too much though so it stays sticky} Since I’d cut the stripes slightly longer than the width of the wall, they rounded the corners a bit.

After just three I was spazzing out I was so excited. I l-o-v-e-d it! The contact paper adhered perfectly to the wall—it looks just like paint.

Once I got the hang of it, the rest of the stripes went up in a breeze. After they were all up, I just took a sharp knife down each corner and pulled off the excess paper that rounded the corner. The whole thing, start to finish, was done during the two hour season premiere of Gray’s Anatomy.

Now, are you ready for the after??

You sure?

It looks pretty fantastic, so I just want to make sure you’re prepared.

Okay….

TADA!

Isn’t it adorable?

What was that? You want to see a close up? Okay!

I was thrilled with the outcome. Except when I was done, NO ONE was there to appreciate it so I just sat on the sofa beaming for a few minutes. I texted a picture to my mom and went to bed, deciding not to point out the change to see how long it took Mr. Husband to notice the change… I waited…and waited…and waited…

Finally, I brought it up later the next day. “So did you notice anything different about the house?” He looks around. Makes his I’m-trying-to-think-of-something-so-I-don’t-get-in-trouble face. “No?”

“YOU DIDN’T NOTICE THE STRIPES IN THE ENTRYWAY??”

“Oh. Yeah. I saw those last night. Looks cute babe.”

Boys.

Whatever.

Anyway, heads up to my fellow renters—this project was easy, fun, cheap, and drastically changed the space. The stripes have been up for about a month now {or whenever the Grey’s Anatomy premiere was} and there is no sign of them budging, curling, or coming off.

So, do you think it would be bad to have striped walls in every room of the house? {I know, I know….}

Life Imitating Pinterest

2011-10-20T14:57:00.001-04:00

As I’ve mentioned no less than 842 times, I’m ob-sessed with Pinterest. I evangelize it to everyone. I will never be short an idea for what to wear, what to cook, what to paint, or how to paint it.

If you haven’t experienced it, it’s a place to catalog things you find on the internet in the form of pictures. See a recipe you like? Pin it! See a pair of shoes you want to remember? Pin it! Love that room layout in the PB catalog? Pin it! You also get to see what everyone else pins, and if you like it, you can pin it yourself! It’s half cataloging your ideas and half borrowing from everyone else. {Or if you’re like me, 25% cataloging, 75% borrowing.}

Here are my latest pins come to life.

{Don’t judge the food:décor ratio…}

Pinterest…………Me……….Pinterest

Bacon-wrapped jalapeno & cream cheese stuffed chicken bites

Pumpkin Roll

Stuffed French Toast

Moss Letters

Split pea candle filler

Cinnamon Apple Donut Holes

Homemade Pop-Tarts

And hopefully some of these pins will come to life in the near future…

Probably not, but that’s what Pinterest is for!

So, most of mine are a poor imitation but I’m never short of ideas or inspiration! Anyone else tried something they found on there? I have one more Pinterest-inspired project to share tomorrow—and I already wrote the post so I SWEAR I’ll follow through with this one!

{All pins can be found on my boards here}

Happy ~~Thursday~~ Pinning!

The Big 3-2...

2011-10-16T21:09:00.001-04:00

What's up gang? I hope y'all had a fantastic weekend. Around here, we celebrated Tyler's birthday which was super fun for me. I love birthdays and think the birthday-ee should be spoiled and made the center of attention. Tyler doesn't get into birthdays as much as I do but after six years together, I think he's starting to get the idea. Or at least learned to play along because I heard no less than 16 times, "But it's my birthday!"

That's the spirit!

More importantly though, I FINALLY GOT AN IPHONE!!!! We spent the whole weekend getting everything set up, picking out apps, and thinking of the most ridiculous questions we can ask Siri. My blackberry was three and a half years old and barely functioning so the whole upgrade in technology is ca-razy! You could've given me a Nokia from 1998 and it would've functioned better than my old phone. Anywho, those dog days are over and i spent the whole weekend documenting every second of our life on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you follow me, sorry for the virtual over share!

If you simply can't get enough, here's Tyler's birthday weekend via pictures from the coolest phone in the world.

The morning started with homemade cinnamon apple donut holes and pumpkin coffee...

We did presents early in the day because I just can't keep surprises (even though his gifts were just a bunch of new clothes...).

We enjoyed a great dinner at Evening Star Cafe in Del Ray-- one of our favorite neighborhoods. Everytime we walk around the avenue, we always comment that we feel like we're in a movie.

Our appetizer-- fried brie with truffle honey and Granny Smith apples. I died.

Isn't he handsome?

And then we tried to take one simple birthday picture and well...we're just not very good at serious sometimes...

It was a great weekend. Today we did church, made a few exchanges in the mall, grabbed a few accessories for the new phones, and spent the rest of the day hanging out. Hope y'all had an equally great few days! Happy Sunday!

Just little stuff…

2011-10-12T01:00:00.001-04:00

Hey folks! First, thanks so much for your comments and support on my last post! I admit, I too was impressed with how the pictures came out—they look like I was just trotting across the finish, casually checking my watch when in actuality I was feeling like, “CanIstoprunningyet?CanIstoprunningyet? CanIstoprunningyet?CanIstoprunningyet?”

{You get the idea.}

Anyway, I only half feel like I need a hip replacement today, so I’m feeling good! Despite work being slow, my week is staying ridiculously busy with life stuff and everyday I’m dissatisfied with the number of remaining to-do items on my list… I owe several people a phone call, a FB message, or a check in the mail. {If you read this, I’m working on it!} However, there are a few fun things worth sharing:

Numero Uno: I LOVE Dunkin Donuts Hazelnut coffee. I swear by it. I can’t live without it. I don’t get mani-pedis, I tweeze my own eyebrows, I only get my hair done every 3 or 4 times a year, I shop at Old Navy. Let a girl pay $77 for a bag of coffee, okay? So I was super disappointed when Tyler brought home a bag of this…

and not this…

They were sold out of my favorite so Tyler took the very unrisky move to buy me pumpkin coffee. And omg. It’s amazing. Ah-mazing. Pour a little hazelnut creamer into it and it is to die for. It’s almost worth forgetting all about that favorite Starbucks concoction of mine.

{Okay that’s a lie. I would never abandon the PSL but I’m trying to communicate to you that the Godiva Pumpkin Spice coffee is very, very delicious.} Do yourself a favor and make a short-term investment in Godiva’s Pumpkin Spice coffee.

Number two: Guess what slipped right by me? My first anniversary! As of October 7th, I passed my boards exam one year ago. Do you know what that means? I haven’t taken a single test in over 365 days! I have not written a single sentence for a single paragraph for a single paper. I haven’t circled a single multiple choice question. I haven’t crammed, I haven’t been graded, and I haven’t listened to Josh Groban sing in Italian {my best study habit established over seven years of higher education}. I have learned more in one year that I ever could have imagined and it’s amazing to reflect on how much I have changed and grown in my profession. I love my job and I am so lucky to get up every morning and look forward to what I get to do.

T-h-r-e-e: Guess who’s turning the big 3-2 this weekend?? I’ll give you a hint. He was about to lose his mind during the Nebraska game on Saturday, works too hard, and his name rhymes with Schmyler. I can’t tell you what I got him a) because he reads this and b) it’s kind of boring. But Happy Birthday anyway!

Four-o: Speaking of football…I am going to calmly and conservatively state that I am proud of my football team and am experiencing a mild dose of hope that I will not allow to fester should the said football team fall apart and break my heart like they so often do. But while all other SEC East QBs are dropping like flies, I think we’re finally on a roll and I’m proud of them. Go Dawgs. No exclamation point. {Cue this year’s dance party music: “Edge of Glory”}

Cinque: We’ve missed church the last two weekends because of our trip to New York and Sunday’s race, which was unfortunate because Dick Foth was speaking. One of my absolute favorite speakers was in town for two weeks and I missed both Sundays. Bummer. He is wise and kind and always has something profound to share. Join me in listening to his messages here and here, won’t you?

So…that’s kind of it. In other news, I’m refinishing more furniture, helping my boss decorate her condo, trying to decide on our Halloween costumes this year, and waiting for our iPhones to be delivered. {That’s right. I’m finally gettin' an iPhone!}

Happy Hump Day!

Army 10 Miler

2011-10-09T18:24:00.001-04:00

Done and done! This morning I ran my first big race with 30,000 of my closest friends—the Army 10 Miler which started and ended at the Pentagon and ran the streets of Washington. I shared earlier my hardcore training tactics—this morning I didn’t have any great expectations. I was excited and ready to run. I didn’t want to walk, throw-up, or pee my pants.

Corralled runners ready to start.

My neighborhood is the most visually boring place to run, so I figured this morning would be a cinch—running over Memorial Bridge, down Independence Ave, past the monuments, along the Tidal Basin. I thought I’d be so distracted by the sites that I’d just float through the race.

Well. That’s not exactly what happened. I finished and I’m proud of that but it wasn’t as easy as I was hoping it would be. I felt good through most of the race, but the last two miles were over the interstate and overpasses that seemed to be all inclines with no down hills. I let myself walk for 30 seconds around 8.5 miles which was the worst idea ever because my body was like, “Oh, we’re done? I can go to the bathroom now?” Nope and nope. I immediately started running again and finished the race pretty strong (though I was really questioning the existence of the finish line after I’d been running by the Pentagon for several hundred yards and people kept yelling “You’re almost there!” “The finish line is right there! You’re so close!” And it never seemed to appear).

Here I come!

I was lucky enough to have my supportive husband who was up at 6am and waiting at the finished line for almost two hours for me and grabbed these pictures. {My unofficial finishing time was 1:49:04.}

Me and my friend Ashley after the race

Glad to be done, but I have the half marathon coming up in a little less than a month so the training’s not over! I slept for a good two hours after I got home and have been enjoying pumpkin beer and this week’s TV ever since. It feels nice to relax…

A few fun memories of the morning:

- The wall of men with their backs turned to the road peeing in the bushes 2 minutes after the race started. {I was so jealous.}

- The running flutist who was playing “If you’re happy and you know it” and everyone yelling requests for “Free Bird!” {Yes, you read that correctly. He was running and playing a flute. And playing it well.}

- The Wounded Warriors walking the race in their prosthetics. Everyone broke out into applause as we ran by.

- Ashley’s friend Shana standing in a median all by herself who looked like she was jumping three feet in the air when she saw us.

- The spectators and the soldiers manning the water stations. The spectators were so encouraging and I couldn’t help but think how sweet these people were to spend their Sunday morning cheering us on. And the soldiers not only did an excellent job efficiently running the water stations but they were always really funny. “The water is just around the corner. And it’s FREE!” “Beer! Get your beer! Yager Bombs next!”

It was a great experience for a first “big run.” Thanks for reading! I’ll let you know how the next one goes…

Best. Day. Ever

2011-10-02T19:04:00.002-04:00

When I went to bed Friday night, I’d planned on getting up early to go for an easy run, coming home and making apple donuts and coffee. The lows were in the 40s and we were going to spend the day watching football, have friends over for the Nebraska game, and pull out the fire pit.

That’s what I thought when I went to bed on Friday night… When I was woken up on Saturday morning, it was clear this was not going to happen.

After I posted yesterday, the day only grew more mysterious. After we bypassed the turn-off for Philly, we {Jamie and I} were sure we were headed to the Big Apple. But then Michael pulled off of the interstate and Tyler began directing him from a page of printed Mapquest directions. We were heading west in New Jersey and Jamie and I were completely clueless.

“Maybe we’re going on a picnic?”

Honestly, I started to grow a little bit disappointed because there’s not one single thing I could think of that I wanted to do in New Jersey. Then we pulled into a public library parking lot in Millburn, New Jersey, adjacent to a small Amtrak train station. We parked and got out, and were told we wouldn’t be back to the car for several hours.

WHAT?

Maybe driving to New Jersey was meant to throw us off and we’re taking the train to Penn Station? Jamie and I at this point had given up all hope of figuring this day out. We got out of the car and started walking….away from the train station. We walked by signs and advertisements along the platform and next to the train station sign, there was a small sign that read “Home of the Paper Mill Playhouse.” I barely took notice of it, but then it all started to register… It looked something like this:Me and Jamie and our big cheesy grins.

Now, for most people, I wouldn’t expect you to know what on earth the Paper Mill Playhouse is. I wouldn’t have EXCEPT for the fact my favorite movie on the planet was finally being turned into a Broadway musical. Tracking the latest news on its progress, I knew that the musical was being previewed for one month to see if it would be picked up for Broadway. And it was being previewed where else but the Paper. Mill. Playhouse.

“ARE WE SEEING NEWSIES???”

For those of you not familiar {blasphemy}, Newsies is a movie musical that came out in 1992 starring Christian Bale, David Moscow, Bill Pullman, and Robert Duvall. It is absolutely one of my favorite movies of all time, I know every word to every song, and if I were a dancer I’d know all of those too. For years and years I’ve hoped this thing would be produced on Broadway.

Jamie and I share an equal love of this musical so we were giddy and squealing and flipping out the whole walk to the theater. After such a confusing morning, to realize we were about to go see Newsies…on stage… in one hour. There just weren’t enough words to express how excited we were {clearly, if you saw those pictures}. We were calling our moms {who completely understood our reactions}, texting our friends, and updating our FB statuses.

So, to speed up this story and spare you a full review, the musical was fantastic. It was so fun to see everything played out on stage, listen to all of our favorite songs, and see how they adapted the movie for the stage. It did not disappoint, though it was clear early on that we had to turn down our expectations because they made a lot of big changes to the lyrics and characters, though the storyline is essentially just the same. In the end, there were a few things I didn’t love, changes I’d make, but that’s exactly what this month in preview is for. The dances were phenomenal, the music outstanding, and the set was really, really cool. It was so, so good. If this thing doesn’t make it to Broadway…

{Just in case you love Newsies like I do, you can go here to watch sneak peek videos of the production.}

So, after the show we happily walked back to the car, content with our surprise, Jamie and I singing and Michael trying to swing around lamp posts. It was only 4:00 and the big Nebraska game that Tyler’s been waiting for all week was on at 8:00, so I assumed we were hopping back in the car to drive south on I-95.

Instead, we drove east to Manhattan for dinner! We walked around the Flatiron District for a bit, down to Union Square, Jamie and I window shopped in fabric stores where the fabric was $150 a yard, and our husbands {as if they hadn’t earned enough points with us} walked around ABC Carpet & Décor with us. All six floors of it. {It was pretty close to heaven…}

Then we headed to Bar Almond for dinner which was outstanding. Tyler ordered this macaroni and cheese with truffle oil and prosciutto that I could have eaten for days and Michael ordered a grilled cheese to end all grilled cheeses and required a steak knife.

Jamie & Michael were celebrating their 2nd anniversary so we spent the night dissecting our highs and lows, sharing how we’d each grown and changed in our marriages. It was a great night. After dinner, we headed to Maxie’s to watch the Nebraska game for a few hours and once it was clear that was not going well, we decided we should be getting back to DC. Our last surprise of the night was a stop at Magnolia’s for cupcakes and banana pudding. Sadly, they were all out of banana pudding but we happily settled for half a dozen cupcakes as we finally headed home.

Bleary eyed, we were home by 3am and I crawled into bed with a tired, happy smile.

Best. Day. Ever.

Mad props to Michael and Tyler for putting this thing together and pulling it off without a single hitch. I hope you had as much fun surprising us as we had being surprised. You’re truly the best and we’re lucky to have such thoughtful, fun husbands.

"Babe, I need you to trust me..."

2011-10-01T10:25:00.001-04:00

That's what I heard at 6:15 this morning as I groggily woke up to my husband Shaking me and tapping me on the shoulder. I was told not to ask questions but to hop in the shower and be ready to go by 7:30. After an interesting back and forth on what exactly I should wear (because "I'm wearing jeans and a button down" has absolutely no translation to female attire whatsoever), we left the house with my purse, a camera, a pillow, and no idea where we were going.

This followed by pit stops for Chick Fil A breakfast and PSLs, we are now with our friends Michael and Jamie a hundred miles or so up 95 north. Jamie and I met each other with equally quizzical looks this morning as we were loaded into the car by our grinning but silent husbands. I have so far ruled out a hot air balloon ride and a winery. Our latest guesses are Philly or New York but we're not asking questions and enjoying the ride...

Stay tuned for where exactly this day is headed...

Training Day

2011-09-25T23:36:00.001-04:00

So I casually slipped it into a post awhile back that I finally signed up for a half-marathon. Like, I paid for it and everything. Which means I’m actually training. Homegirl’s too cheap to pay $75 for a race and not run it. So here I am. Training.

But I use that term loosely… By train, I mean I run a long run once a week and hate every second of it. I’m not following any official training schedule, I’ve just been bumping up my distance by half a mile every week since June and doing regular workouts during the week. Prior to this season, I’d never run more than six miles at a time {and it was not a common occurrence} and had only competed in 5ks. Running has always been my exercise of choice but I’d always considered myself a 3 mile kinda girl. Nothing more and why would I?

But my friend Ashley, after two glasses of wine mind you, asked if I wanted to run the Army 10 Miler with her in October. I said yes and we signed up immediately for a coveted spot in a race that fills up within hours. {I even felt bad that my poser-runner self got a spot…}

The Rock ‘n Roll marathon series also announced they were adding Savannah {my hometown} to the schedule and it was a month after the 10 miler—the perfect amount of time to train from 10 miles to 12 miles. So I signed up for that too!

{Apparently, I really believe in myself.}

So here we are…two weeks from the 10 miler. I’ve been training REALLY HARD {sarcasm} and I’ve set really intense goals and standards for myself.

Like, finish.

Don’t walk.

Or throw up.

Or pee your pants.

I REALLY hope I can achieve these, especially that last one.

Training is actually going better than I made it sound above—I don’t actually hate every minute, I just had a hard run today. I ran 8 last week and felt golden; I ran 9.5 today and felt like bricks were tied to my shoes.

My friend Ashley {a different Ashley} writes these really eloquent recaps of her races and recalls how she felt along each mile {seriously, read her account of the NYC marathon. It made me want to sign up…and then I remembered I had to qualify}. Unlike hers, my runs generally go something like this…

Miles 1-3: “I’ve been running for 2 minutes…I’ve been running for five minutes….I’ve been running for 10 minutes…I have to keep running for another hour…I have to keep running for 50 more minutes… Can I step yet? How soon can I stop running?” I just can’t stop myself from thinking about time.

Miles 3-7, I finally get into a groove, my body loosens up, and I get distracted enough to stop focusing on how much longer I have to keep running. I enjoy my music, I pray for people, and just generally get lost in my thoughts. These miles usually go by surprisingly fast.

And then mile seven hits and it occurs to me, “Dear Lord, I have been running for over an hour and I have how many miles left?? I hate this. This sucks. Why am I doing this? Running is stupid. My hip hurts. Why didn’t I do my hip exercises this week?” And I suffer through the remaining miles…

I pay absolutely no attention to my pace or time, sometimes I don’t even run with a watch. I have no contraptions on my shoes and I can’t track my distance until I get home via the good ol’ Map My Run site. I’m kind of whatever about the whole thing.

The good news is that the Dear-Lord-why-am-i-doing-this-i-am-so-tired-please-let-me-stop-how-am-ever-going-to-run-13-miles feelings used to start at mile 5. And now they don’t sneak up until miles 7 or 8. So even when I have a runs like today and my time seems awful {even though I know they’re not that bad}, I’m encouraged to know that it’s gradually getting easier and despite how I feel, I am making progress.

And I’m encouraged because I’m putting FAR less into my training than I should. Veteran runners would cringe at my habits… Imagine how good I’d feel if I stopped eating barbeque two hours before my run…or a casserole dish worth of corn dip. Or didn’t drink three glasses of wine the night before. Or if I didn’t put off my runs until Sunday night when I cannot possibly delay it any longer. Perhaps I wouldn’t get so bored if I stopped listening to the same two Taylor Swift albums during every.single.run.

{But I really do love her “If they could see me now” songs and they really motivate me. Suck it all you mean girls in ballet class!}

But hey, this is my first go at it. I already have races scheduled through the spring and I’m sure once I run a few, I’ll be a little more competitive and take it a little more seriously.

For now, I’m just pretty impressed that my 3-mile-self can run nine miles… So far, I’ve finished my runs, occasionally I need to walk, and have not yet thrown up or peed my pants. But the first race is coming up in a few weeks—I’ll let you know how it goes!

Fall Nesting 2011

2011-09-22T20:00:00.001-04:00

With two hours to spare before the linky party closes, I’m joining the Fall Nesting Party The Inspired Room is hosting! I love the change in seasons, especially since we live in a place where the seasons actually change. Four whole times a year! In our house, fall means chili and football, homemade bread, and leather boots. And I change my décor out like I change my wardrobe.

Keeping all of the big ticket items neutral {like walls and sofas and rugs} allows me to swap out the accessories for a new look. And while this sounds expensive, if you just make or buy a few things each year, every season gets cheaper and cheaper. This I made four new pillows covers {cost = $30} and a wreath for the front door {cost = $25}—everything else is old news.

I changed out the blue curtains for the brown and put away the fish for the pumpkins…

The coffee filter wreath never went away but I finally hung the window frame {uh-huh—the one just sittin’ on the curb}, swapped a few candles for the divine, spicey fall ones {bird silhouette from last year}, and made this wreath that’s been finding it’s way through the halls of Pinterest {April also made one and did a whole tutorial, so just go there for the deets!}

I made a few pillows, set out a few fake pumpkins, and swapped out the blue shutter for another one I rescued from the streets and painted kelly green.

And this might be my favorite! I just printed this cute little guy from Graphics Fairy, filled in the blank spaces on Photoshop, and printed him out orange. I might never put him away…

And that’s pretty much it! At this point, almost 230 people have posted fantastic, creative fall décor ideas and recipes over at The Inspired Room. Head over there for some inspiration, have fun, and keep it cheap!

Happy Fall Y’all!

Recipe RTuesday

2011-09-20T22:29:00.001-04:00

The “r” is silent.

Oh, is that silent-letter-to-fake-alliteration joke getting old? It used to be funny.

That one time.

Anyway, I learned to make bread from my sister when we lived together in Colorado two summers ago {only the best summer ever}. The recipe is really simple and the ingredients are really basic— so basic that whenever I google something like “simple easy super basic bread recipe” I can’t find anything to beat it. Everything calls for milk and eggs and cornstarch and yeast…

Okay, so you can’t avoid the yeast.

The problem is, my fail-safe method of writing the recipe on a napkin falls through ~~every once in awhile~~ 100% of the time. {How can it be??} So then I have to call her and when she doesn’t answer, I text, and when she doesn’t answer I get frustrated because Iwanttomakebreadrightthisminuteandwhyisn’tsheansweringherphone??

This takes me to my Rtuesday Recipe.

“And the Blobby Award for the Longest Recipe Lead In Ever goes to….!”

Becky’s Bread
1 1/2 to 2 c. warm water
4 c. flour
3 T. sugar
2 t. salt
3 t. yeast
1-2 second pour of EVOO

1. Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl {you may have to play with the water and flour proportions, so just add little by little}. You want it to be doughy—not wet and sticky, not dry and cracky.

2. Cover the bowl and let it sit at room temperature for 30 min to 1 hour to let it rise.
3. Beat it down and knead out the bubbles, let it sit again.

4. Beat it and knead it again. This time, let it sit in the bread pan.

5. Once it rises, put it in the oven and bake it at 350 until it’s golden brown, usually 30 to 45 minutes.

Don’t let it cool. Cut into it right away. Eat it immediately. With real butter. Sitting on your back steps. Possibly with a pumpkin spice latte.

{Sorry sis. Looks like my phone calls will be on the decline…. By about 1%.}

Crafty CFriday: Refinished furniture

2011-09-16T01:36:00.001-04:00

I say it all the time, there’s nothing you can’t fix with spray paint {Or just paint paint}! So I was salivating when my friend Cora called to ask if I wanted these dining chairs she found on the side of the road during our neighborhood’s monthly Dump Day {also known as my favorite day of the month}. The seats were a little gross, but the chairs were solid wood, sturdy, and in good shape so they were prime candidates for a quick makeover.

To jog your memory, here they are before {there are two of them}:

I’ve had these for about a month, so I’d been looking for the perfect fabric for awhile. My original perfect fabric was this serafina multi, featured in Pottery Barn’s fall collection a few years ago.

I loved the primary colors and the floral-but-not-floral, paisley-but-not-paisley look to it. After much searching, I finally found it online and FREAKED OUT with excitement and ordered it, only to get a “Psych. We’re out of the fabric and we’re not getting anymore” email the next day. So I started the search all over and finally settled on this fabric from Calico Corners {among several other places its sold}:

I thought I was all cool for finding this fabric {which I kinda love} until I saw it here, here, here, here, here, here, and here. I apparently, I’m super late jumping on the Wilmington Multi gravy train. {But if Emily A. Clarke used it in her own house, I think it affirms I’m on the right track…}

Get it? Train…track…

Anyway. I ordered one yard of the fabric for $17. It’s a thin linen, which isn’t perfect for reupholstering, so I bought some iron-on batting at Michael’s for $4. I wanted to provide more structure to the fabric and also block the color from the seat cushion from showing through the white background of the fabric.

So, step 1, I wiped the chairs down with 409 to get rid of the dust and cob webs.

Step 2, I took the seat off the chair. When I shared my stool project awhile back, someone complained I didn’t explain this step thoroughly enough. I won’t say who it was, but her name rhymes with Smashley Glass. So, Smashley, here’s a picture and a few more details…

Four screws hold the seat bottom on—they’re in those holes in the four pieces of diagonal wood. Just stick your screwdriver in there, unscrew, and the seat bottom comes right off!

Like so…

Step 3, I primed the chairs with white interior Kilz primer. I didn’t worry about it being thick or even, it just has to be enough for the next layer of paint to adhere to.

Step 4, I painted the chairs with a $3 sample of Behr interior paint from Home Depot. The color is Thyme. It took two coats to get an even, covered look with a few touch ups here and there. I lurve it.

Step 5, I sanded down the chairs along the edges to beat it up and distress it a bit. The chair on the left is pre-distressing, the right one is post-distressing—you can see how much it lightened it up.

Step 6, I removed the fabric from the seat covers. The chairs were clearly old and the fabric was a little rotten which made for easy removal, but it was kind of a gross process. The fabric ripped right off without removing the staples and I didn’t take any of them out unless they were already coming out {for that I used needle nose pliers.}

Step 7, 8, and 9 were re-covering the seats. I cut pieces of the iron-on batting big enough to wrap around the seats. I positioned the portion of the fabric I wanted on the seat and cut it accordingly. Then I carefully moved the fabric and batting as one to the ironing board and ironed them, so they were now one piece of thick, fluffy fabric. I tightly wrapped the fabric and stapled it to the underside of the seat one side at a time.

Step 10, I coated the chairs with Minwax polyurethane to shine them up a a bit {you just pour it on a rag and wipe it down} and let it dry. Then I screwed the seats back on and…

Are you ready for it…

I kinda love them, I’m just not 100% what I’m going to do with them! I’m considering putting them at the ends of the kitchen table or just keeping them around the house as extra seating. Or maybe I’ll just keep them in the middle of the living room just to sit and stare at them. At the end of the day, this project took three hours and cost $25 so I’m not too worried about it!

----------------------------------------------------

Those took awhile to share so I’m going to make this next one quick. I’m just too in love with it to save it any longer!

Remember a million years ago, when my boss gave me her kitchen table for free? And I didn’t love the color of the stain so I asked for your opinion on how I should refinish it? And then nine months went by and I didn’t do anything with it?

Yeah, me neither. So while I was in project mode with the chairs and a beautiful weekend was finally in the forecast, I decided to refinish the table on Saturday. I didn’t want to deal with re-staining so I found the perfect Rustoleum spray paint from Home Depot—Dark Walnut in a satin finish. It’s a very dark brown that almost looks black—just what I’ve been looking for foreeeever. Here’s the fast forwarded version of how we got it done… {Yes, I said we. Tyler made his Crafty Cfriday debut in this one.}

Step 1, took the table apart and quickly sanded it just enough to rough it up so the paint would stick. It was really a five minute step that I did by hand—nothing lengthy like removing the varnish down to the original wood.

Step 2, I slowly, carefully, and patiently took different pieces of the table at a time outside and spray painted it in 3 coats, waiting 20-30 minutes between each coat. My MO is to be inpatient and do everything as fast a possible, mess it up, and then get really mad at myself, so it took a bit of self-control to get this done right.

This is what it looked like after they were painted. I let them sit inside for a few hours before distressing {Step 3} to make sure the paint was really dry. I hate it when you start to sand and you find out the paint is still gummy. Aren’t the legs beautiful?

Pre and post-distressing

Step 4, after putting the table back together, I wiped it down with the Minwax polyurethane. I did three coats to get the shine I wanted {there were a few uneven spots, so I sanded it with 220 grain sandpaper to even it out but still protect the paint}. Then I let it dry for 24 hours before putting anything on top of it.

You ready for it?

You’re going to love it…

Eventually, the wooden chairs will be gone and there will be four seagrass chairs with something different on the ends.

At the end of the day, I spent $18 on spray paint, $10 on the Minwax, and $6 on sandpaper. I LOVE the table—the only thing I hate is that I didn’t do this sooner! Seriously, I’ve had this table since January. And it only took 24 hours to go from this…

To this…

Happy Friday y’all! Go get crafty, just don’t spend a lot of money….

Ten years and two days ago…

2011-09-13T23:56:00.001-04:00

Yes, I realize it’s September 13th. I have no thoughtful or meaningful reasons for doing this two days late, like “Oh, I’m extending the remembrance of Sept 11th because shouldn’t we always remember…yada yada yada…” We just had a really busy weekend and I was glued to the television Sunday watching all of the services and ceremonies, while simultaneously finishing up some projects and well, I only have so many hands. But I know that a few years from now, I’ll be clicking through my blog reflecting over old posts and I’ll think, “Why on earth didn’t I post anything on the tenth anniversary of September 11??”

So, read it or don’t… We all have our own recollections and I know I’m not of enough importance to warrant the time it takes to read something as long as this might be. But for my own record of history, I wanted to take a minute to write and remember…

I made a few brief reflections on the attacks when Bin Laden was killed in May, but this past weekend I was trying so hard to remember what life was like back in September 2001. I clearly remember sitting in the library during a recruiting pitch from Georgia Tech my senior year of high school. Someone walked in and told us that a plane had flown into the World Trade Center. I had never been to New York City and had no idea what the WTC was, so it didn’t immediately mean much to me. The meeting was cancelled and I went back to class, where we stayed for the rest of the day. As we watched the events unfold on a small TV hanging in the corner, it became clear what a terrible event this was and that it was going to change our country. I remember that I felt like I should be crying, but I never did—at least not while I was at school. Just like everyone else, I watched the news incessantly, night and day for the rest of the week. I took it all in and thought it was awful. I was moved and saddened and shocked.

But I was 18 and I wasn’t sure what else to do with that information. I wasn’t a self-involved teenager who didn’t care about what was happening, but it felt so far removed from me and I just didn’t know what to do with the events. The world was changing, but I was just beginning to learn what the world was—in a sense, I guess it didn’t change my world view, it shaped it.

Beyond that, when I remember 2001, I don’t remember grief and tragedy. I was a senior in high school, I was applying to colleges, I was on the homecoming court and celebrating pep rallies. I had a great group of friends and we were together constantly, watching wrestling matches and basketball games, going on Young Life weekends, and planning our senior trip. The best part of my life was just starting and I knew it. But looking back, I think I feel a little guilty for having such fond memories of such a terrible time.

Ten years later, I have watched hours upon hours of the 9/11 specials. National Geographic and History and ABC and NBC, the Bush interviews, and the documentaries, listening to the firefighters, the widows, the survivors tell their story…it rivals my obsession with the Royal Wedding earlier this year. But with this I just ached. I have run out of tears. I think some of it comes from making up for lost time—grieving for Americans in a way I didn’t then and didn’t know how to. Another part comes from now being a wife and on the verge of having a family. Still more from living in DC and loving this terrorist-target city. I cannot fathom this city without the Capitol and simply can’t utter enough praise and thankfulness to the brave men and women on Flight 93.

Ten years later, September 11th was a Sunday. The sky was bright blue and we woke up early to go to 9 o’clock church on Barrack’s Row. In the car, we listened to the live coverage just beginning on XM radio. Bagpipes were playing as we drove past the Pentagon, draped with an American flag. A plane was simultaneously flying low overhead, heading to Reagan airport. The Capitol building and the Washington monument clearly emerged from the low DC skyline. And there were police everywhere, strategically blocking exits along the interstate. And as we drove along taking in these sights and sounds, I cried imagining so many people who were making the identical trip that Tuesday morning, who watched that plane clip the light poles as it didn’t land at Reagan. I cried thinking of the people on the plane whose last images were of the same skyline I was admiring. I cried thinking of how it could easily have been me or Tyler, just a few years off in life’s timeline.

And with that, I have no eloquent way to wrap this up. That’s it. If I waited to journal this, it would never get written. So a blog it is…where I was then and now. To acknowledge the families of the heroes and the victims: I’m so sorry you suffered such travesty and grief. We have not forgotten your loved ones and I pray that the peace that transcends all understanding has brought you comfort in this time.

We will never forget.

Fa La La La Fall

2011-09-09T13:28:00.001-04:00

Guess what folks? We’re one week into September, I’ve already have two PSLs, and we have NO travel plans for the entire month! That means fun weekend projects and plenty of time at home to enjoy the decor. Of course, my pinterest addiction has been my prime source of inspiration, the only problem is I just don’t have enough front doors… If it ever stops raining around here, these are some of “my” ideas!

Wait, you’re not on Pinterest? You’re not on Pinterest?? Not. on. Pinterest?!? We need to change that. Need an invitation—I’ll send you one. Already on? Follow me!

Happy Fall Y’all!

Five cool things that happened to me today…

2011-09-07T23:32:00.000-04:00

1. A sweet parent of one of my favorite patients at work gave me the world’s coolest travel mug that I was in love with before I even opened it. And it’s green. AND there was a Starbucks card with it.

2. Coincidently, my pre and post lunch patients re-scheduled this week, leaving me with a three hour gap in my day that I’d already planned to spend at Starbucks catching up on paperwork. Three hour break at Starbucks on a rainy day = cool.

3. I had my FIRST PSL OF THE SEASON!!! {Pumpkin Spiced Latte for you Starbucks-impaired…}

4. I decided to skip the gym and go run crafty errands after work. Coincidently {Part 2}, I ran into a fellow blogger/blog reader at G Street Fabrics! I was totally caught off guard {in case you couldn’t tell, Cherish!}, but it was so good to finally meet! Cherish lives in the same area and we’ve emailed a bunch over the last few months. If only I’d put on a bit more make-up today…

5. Tyler was at work until about 10:30 tonight {not the cool part} which left me alone with my projects for the night {the cool part}. My chairs are now primed, the upholstery has been ripped off {which was super duper gross}, and the seat cushions were bleached, Lysol’d, and Febreezed. A gross rainy night, re-runs of Modern Family, and a DIY project? Yes please!

Pardon me while I talk about football…

2011-09-05T13:47:00.001-04:00

I’m not sure how to be a Bulldawg fan anymore. How do you get excited about a team that continuously makes terrible decisions over and over and over? Calling the same unsuccessful plays over and over and over. Dropping passes over and over and over. Throwing Hail Mary passes on 3rd and two over and over and over. Running up the middle on 3rd and 14 over and over and over. Giving the opposing QB 25 seconds in the pocket untouched over and over and over. For 13 games last season and now we get to do it all over again.

I wasn’t so sure we’d win that game on Saturday but I sure didn’t think I’d see the EXACT same team that lost to Central Florida last year (and Colorado…and Mississippi State…). I thought I’d get a glimmer of hope in seeing changes in the offense…a more aggressive defense…ANYTHING better than last year. I would have taken ANY nugget of improvement to cling to for hope.

But I watched the exact. same. team. get spanked. On national television.

Make no mistake, I LOVE Georgia football. I had butterflies in my stomach since last Wednesday. I’m already planning the tailgate for our annual pilgrimage in November. Isaiah Crowell and his bulldog puppy were tattooed on my lower back by February 3rd. I love Georgia football. I’m not a fair weather fan—just a sad one.

But, in an act of self-preservation, the emotional investment in my team has been on a gradual downslide since oh, 2007 or so. Following last season and an even worse off-season, my excitement going into this fall hit an all time low—I think I even went six straight months without reading DawgSports.

And I still woke up on Sunday morning feeling like Tyler had asked me for a divorce the night before. I still had to say a little prayer before church that I’d be able to focus on worship. I’d still rather kiss Kasey than run into a Boise State fan.

Nope.

I’m sorry, that’s a lie.

I’d hold hands with interlocked fingers and sing “I Got You Babe'” with Kellen Moore before I’d even graze Kasey and his beating forearm tattoo.

{Pardon me while I shudder at the mental image.}

What was I talking about again?

Oh right, Georgia sucking my heart out of my chest.

I’m still sickened by the memory of Saturday’s game and I’m just not sure how to move forward when it looks like there’s a looong season ahead of us. I know we open up with two tough games, but a decent season just because we have an easy schedule thereafter doesn’t make me feel a whole lot better. I’d rather win because we’re good, not because everyone else sucks {And right now, I’m not so sure everyone else sucks}. I will only be mildly distracted if we win our games by a margin of 3 points. I will only be happy if we win by a thumping of 36.

So, here we go. I hope against all hope that I’m posting pictures of team pile-ups and St. John’s River Dances in a few short weeks… But for now, I’m trying out this whole stoic thing. I’ll give a "Go Dawgs” but exclamation points will be reserved only for exclusive moments of victory. Like beating Florida.

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Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming. After a fabulous week in Savannah, we’re spending our Labor Day on 95-north. I’ll be back soon to tell you where you should eat in Savannah…and how I gained 36 pounds in seven days.

Happy Labor Day!

Summer Vacay 2011: A day on the dock

2011-08-30T12:52:00.001-04:00

It’s day four in Savannah and we’re having such a nice time. It’s been the perfect mix of productivity and relaxing. We’re already seen a handful of friends and have spent plenty of time hanging out on the dock. Yesterday was our first day without an agenda while everyone else worked (suckers!), so TGrass and I layed on the dock all day listening to Pat McGee and Matt Wertz and devoured some Zaxby’s (wasn’t on the original list but it should’ve been!).

Caveman catch dinner…wife bring beer. Feast on crabs ‘til 11 o’clock. {Grunt}

(My brother Charles is in the orange, he lives just a few minutes from my parents)Man vs. Food

Dinner before…

During…

And after…

So here’s where we stand on our summer vacay progress…

- Vinnie's
- Wright Square
- Lulu's Chocolate Bar
- Pearl's or Oyster Bar
- Mrs. Wilke's
~~- Heiwas~~
- Crab Shack or AJ's
- Rocks on the River
~~- Crabbing off the dock~~
~~- Host crab boil or low country boil~~
- Francesca's
- Charming Charlie's
- The Pink Door
- EJ Scandals
- Sand Gnats game
- Sewing lessons with mom
- Tybee Island
- Sugar Shack
~~- Wassaw Island~~
- Bonna Bella
- Charleston or St. Simon's for a day
- See a bajillion people

All signs are pointing to no day trip to Charleston and no Sand Gnats game, which is perfectly fine—there just isn’t enough time. But we’ve still got six days left and plenty of eatin’ to do! It’s a little overcast today, so I think that spells s-h-o-p-p-i-n-g! Throw in all of our craft projects and sewing lessons while we watch football on Saturday and this list will be dunzo by next weekend!

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In other news, while Tyler and I enjoyed a leisurely day on the dock, my sister-in-law Kara was working hard to deliver her third baby boy! We’ve only seen cellphone pictures so here’s what I have to show you…

They’re still deciding on a name but he weighed in at 9lbs, 11 oz so right now he’s going by Tank! Who knows what he’ll look like in a few years but right now, he sure looks a lot like his big brother Cohen.

Happy Birthday Tank! We’re proud of you Kara.

Summer Vacay 2011

2011-08-26T14:59:00.003-04:00

Well readers, we're Savannah bound! Summer has just flown by and I can't even BELIEVE it's the end of August. While we've been plenty busy, we just haven't done our usual summer stuff, like all the usual outdoor concerts and movies. Tyler and I decided we needed to get away for awhile so we figured we'd head south to my hometown. We get there frequently for holidays and family events but we've rarely gone without an agenda and definitely not for an entire week! My parents have a great house on the water so it's like a real vacation when we go home.

We started keeping a list earlier this summer of things we want to do while we're there, as we were daydreaming of our time off. Tyler has never been for this long and I haven't been this long since the week before our wedding (and I certainly wasn't hanging out at the beach that week!) so I've been trying to think of things he's never done, things that are new to the city that I'VE never done, and then just our favorite ol' things. We ended up compiling quite a list, most involving food...

- Vinnie's (best pizza, hole in the wall downtown)
- Wright Square (food, delicious)
- Lulu's Chocolate Bar (never been, mom always talks about it)
- Pearl's or Oyster Bar (if i die young, bury me in their hushpuppies)
- Mrs. Wilke's (Paula Deen, Shmala Deen)
- Hyawas (take out japanese, shrimp sauce please!)
- Crab Shack or AJ's (or anywhere where I can eat crab legs in my bathing suit)
- Rocks on the River (newish bar downtown, never been)
- Crabbing off the dock (Tyler's been dreaming about it for months)
- Host crab boil or low country boil
- Francesca's (shopping)
- Charming Charlie's (shopping)
- The Pink Door (shopping)
- EJ Scandals (shopping)
- Sand Gnats game (minor league baseball, old school Savannah and T's never been)
- Sewing lessons with mom (so I can stop gluing pillows...)
- Tybee Island (our local beach)
- Sugar Shack (Tybee landmark, ice cream on the way home from the beach)
- Wassaw Island (small beach you boat to)
- Bonna Bella (great food/bar stop when you're out on the river)
- Charleston or St. Simon's for a day (T's never been to SSI and it's a great town)
- See a bajillion people

We have to squeeze all of this into ten days between all of the lazy days on the dock I'm counting on! But I couldn't be more excited to hang out with friends and family getting in all of my favorite food and places. I'm HOPING to do a blog series on Savannah while I'm there but if you know my track record on blogging while busy, you'll keep your expectations low...

Until then, happy hurricaning! (Can you believe we're heading SOUTH to safety?? I can't get over it...)

A Tale of Survival

2011-08-23T23:58:00.001-04:00

Well, it seems we’ve survived it all… hurricanes {Dean in ‘07}, two blizzards, and now…an earthquake!

It was all pretty shocking and the state of our home this afternoon was really devastating. We’re struggling to cope with the aftermath.

Oh wait. That’s just our living room. Regular style.

In other breaking news, Prince Charles & Camilla bought a puppy today and the 5th season of “Real Housewives of New York” has been postponed.

In all for realness, the quake itself was really frightening as it was happening but it was more out of shock than fear for my safety. I was at work with a patient in our gym which is on the 3rd floor of a tall building and completely surrounded by windows. It was really loud and it felt like a huge gust of wind was shaking the building…except when I looked outside, the branches weren’t moving. It only lasted a few seconds and we were all just really confused afterward.

“Was that an earthquake?”

I’d never felt anything like it. But after buzzing around the office and checking our phones for a few minutes, things returned to normal. I completely understand the initial mayhem in DC considering we’re so close to the 10th anniversary of September 11th. Tyler works in a congressional office building across the street from the Capitol and you can only imagine what went through their minds inside of a loud, shaking government building on Capitol Hill. They were all evacuated and weren’t allowed back in for the rest of the day. Several schools and office buildings in the area remain closed until they’re structurally inspected, the National Cathedral has some damage, as well as a few embassies, and traffic was flubbed up on the trains and in the airports.

But other than that, it really wasn’t a big deal and the news coverage all seems a bit excessive. Yes, a 5.9 magnitude is impressive and I’ll admit that I’m a little eeked out that there was an earthquake in Colorado last night. But don’t we all have bigger things to worry about…like Hurricane Irene?

Have a mentioned we’re heading to Savannah this weekend? Just add it to the list.

The Grassmeyers survived…

THE GREAT QUAKE OF 2011

My name is Kathryn…

2011-08-22T18:55:00.001-04:00

And I have a problem.

Perhaps an addiction…

…called…

BACON.

I always knew I loved this decadent pork product, but it wasn’t until I received the following birthday gifts that I realized maybe I’m teetering on the edge of atherosclerosis.

Not one... Not two… But three different people thought to give me something bacon-themed for my birthday.

Clearly there’s an issue here.

Not that I’m complaining—quite the opposite. I jumped up and down when I opened my Baconnaise, especially because now I can cross it off my list!! THE list.

So here before you…all 84 of you…I share photographic documentation of my very first taste of Baconnaise. Scratch #3 off my list folks!

My review? Well, first you should know that I love mayonnaise.

{So if you don’t like mayo, you’re not going to love Baconnaise. Sounds like a sin to me, but to each his own or whatever.}

Anyway, it tastes like mayonnaise but saltier and with a definite smoky flavor to it. There are also little crumblies in it that might be peppercorn, but I’m not sure. I don’t know if in a blind taste test I’d immediately identify it as bacon flavored mayonnaise, but it’s definitely a good condiment!

And a lick wasn’t good enough, so we went ahead and made BLTs. I can’t remember the last time I’d made one but let me tell you… BLTs with Baconnaise are double the good of old BLTs!

My life can now be classified into BB and AB: Before Baconnaise and After Baconnaise. I’m channeling my inner Bubba and listing everything I can now make with it: Baconnaise Potato Salad… Baconnaise Deviled Eggs… Baconnaise Egg Salad… Mmmmm.

The possibilities are endless, my friends. I speak the truth when I say everything’s better with bacon!

Happy Finger Lickin’ Bacon Eatin’ Monday!

That latest and greatest…

2011-08-16T00:47:00.001-04:00

I finally ordered new running shoes…

Because I was developing some foot issues from training…

{You don’t need a picture of that, do you?}

So I stopped running until they arrived.

But in the mean time, we went to New York, celebrated my birthday, and our anniversary {numero four-o}.

Which means I ate a lot.

And then we had friends over for brunch on Sunday.

{Which means I ate more.}

And on Saturday it rained…

So we watched this…

While I made these…

I didn’t do any of this…

Which means I didn’t showed you these…

{Rescued from the streets by Cora the Awesome, just for me!}

Or tell you about how I’m going to paint them bright glossy green…

{Sorta like this}

And cover the seats in this…

But who knows if I’ll actually get around to that.

After all, I never showed you how I made this…

{Which I meant to last Friday.}

Because this Friday, I’ll have some extra special guests.

Yes, that’s already there waiting.

Three days early.

Because that’s how ready I am for them to be here.

{I just hope the flowers live.}

Until then… Happy late night Monday!

Bon Fete!

2011-08-10T08:19:00.000-04:00

While my birthday on Monday was a low-key day of work, errands, and leftovers, the real celebration took place at Chez Grassmeyer on Saturday night. I have been salivating over blogs and party ideas for weeks, a problem only spurned on by my recent Pinterest addiction, so I made a last minute decision to throw myself a party. Everyone acted like I was a little crazy for wanting to host it myself— if they only knew how much I was loving all of the planning and preparations!

The original plan was for the party to take place on our patio under the stars, complete with Christmas lights and hanging decorations from trees. But we were weary of the forecast and ended up literally rearranging our entire house to make room for a table set for sixteen {I couldn’t stop thinking of Father of the Bride “Well, if you're bringing in chairs, then why are you moving the furniture out??”}. There’s still like 2% of me that’s bummed we couldn’t do it outside, but I think it all turned out beautifully and I’m pretty sure everyone had just as much fun as I did!

The menu was Italian themed and served family style—bowls of spaghetti carbonara were passed, baguettes lined the table with butter and oils for dipping, with plates of caprese salad and grilled summer squash, carafes of white table wine and chianti to boot.

And frugalite that I am, most of the costs of the party went toward the food—I was able to keep all of the décor to minimum. A brief breakdown…

We rented 4 folding tables from Craigslist for $6 apiece and borrowed 12 chairs from neighbors and friends {mismatched is in, right?}
We borrowed the plates from a friend and we used our own silverware and mason jars. The wine carafes are from World Market {$5 each}, the chalkboard tags I made a few months ago.
The white table cloths were paper from a local party store {$4 each, I think}, the runner is one yard of burlap that I cut into strips and stitch-a-witched together {$3.50}. The orange placemats were made from two yards of fabric I bought and seamed the edges.
The hydrangeas were cut from the backyard and the crates were $2, I painted and mod podged them for free {coming soon to a Crafty Cfriday near you!}.
The candles I already had {mostly leftover from our wedding} and I borrowed a few blue mason jars from a friend.

But you musn’t forget dessert! I channeled my inner Hostess with the Mostess and planned a table dedicated to every dessert I could dream up. Because I knew I was using colored platters, I tried to come up with sweets in the whiteish/yellowish family.

From left to right: zucchini cake whoopie pies, lemon squares, lemon drops, rice krispie treats, oreo truffles {dipped in white chocolate colored yellow}, powdered donuts, white chocolate covered pretzel sticks, and red velvet cupcakes

My friend Ashley made the adorable chevron food tags. The platters I either had or made {see Crafty Cfriday comment above}, the desserts I baked, and all of it we ate!

And then, faster than it had taken to set up… The party was over and we were left with this…

{Frowny face emoticon}

And this was all waiting for us Sunday morning…

But this is the only real memory I’m left with!

It was so fun to plan and prep and spend a night surrounded by great food and friends. Can it be my birthday again next month?? Any excuse to throw a party? Passed your emissions test recently?

Okay… Well here’s to next year’s fete!

Another day, another year older…

2011-08-08T23:57:00.001-04:00

Well, it’s my birthday. I made it to the big 2-8! And I have absolutely no qualms about it because I’ve felt like I was 28 since I was probably 22. So I embrace it—I don’t feel old, I just feel 28!

It was a great year and a lot of great things happened: we spent three amazing weeks in Italy, I graduated and passed boards, I celebrated my year anniversary with my practice, and we saw a wholebuncha shows at the Kennedy Center. And I made small but steady progress on my “30 Before 30” list…

We went on a family vacation with my family, I kissed Tyler under the Eiffel Tower, we saw South Pacific, and we went to the Kentucky Derby.

{Okay, so I only accomplished four things but those were pretty big ticket items!}

I’ve got two years to check off the next 26… A few of them are easy if I’d just get my act together…{eat baconnaise, go camping, Charlottesville winery, having a baby- ha},

A few are already in the works… {training for a half-marathon in November, planning a trip to Napa}

And many will only happen with a bit of planning and preparation… {Martha’s Vineyard, heading back to Boston, trips with friends and sisters…}.

Then there are some that I just have no hope of happening… {Golf lessons, water skiing, the Dawgs winning a national championship.}

{Oh, how that last one pains me.}

And that AFI movie list? Haven’t watched a single one. Nada one.

So, you know...I have some work to do! {Read the list in full here} Twenty-seven was good to me and I hope twenty-eight is even better. My actual birthday today was very nice—we had a big party at our house on Saturday, Sunday we did absolutely nothing but drink sangria at the pool, and today I had a short day at work that included a fabulous brunch-lunch put on by my co-workers. I talked to most of my family {which is a feat} and I think my phone started smoking at one point from all of the Facebook updates. I feel the love.

Thanks for being such amazing readers! Thank you for following along…always commenting, advising, and cheering when I need it…still reading when I’m inconsistent and boring. I tell myself I’d blog even if no one read at all but you are WAY more fun!

Thanks dudes. You’re the best.

Almost Famous

2011-08-03T14:38:00.000-04:00

Tyler was perusing espn.com on his ipad last night {per his usual sexy bedtime routine} when I overheard him say, “Hey, I think that’s me…”

He worked for the football team in college and was a sideline regular at Nebraska between 1998 and 2002.

And I’m pretty sure he’s right.

Just in case you want his autograph or something…

New York, New York

2011-08-02T23:09:00.001-04:00

Despite the recent budget ~~hell~~ crisis, my husband was kind enough to peel himself away from the office to drive us up to Manhattan for the weekend. My parents were up there for several days and we wanted to see them while they were relatively close by. And we’re always up for an excuse to go to New York!

It was a quick trip—it’s only a 3.5 hour drive, so we went up Saturday morning and came back Sunday afternoon. Plenty of time for shopping, one great lunch, one great cupcake stop, one great dinner, and one great brunch!

I’m not sure how much fun Tyler and Rick had, but Mom and I had a blast.

We went to H&M…

While they waited…

We went to Fishs Eddy…

While they waited…

We went to TopShop…

While they waited…

They eventually wizened {<—Blogger is telling me that’s the correct spelling…True?} up and went to see a movie. So we went to shop for jewelry and share some cupcakes over bubbly…

It was a quick weekend, but it was a lot of fun! July, in fact, turned out to be a great month with my family. August should be even better—my sister is flying up with my niece in a few weeks…

{Watch out DC! Not sure you can handle this much cuteness…}

….and we’re heading to Savannah for ten days while Congress is in recess.

{Yes, that’s what we plan our life around.}

It’s always good to be with family.

Birfday Giffs

2011-07-27T13:28:00.000-04:00

T-12 days until my birthday and just in case last night’s post was a little too serious for you, I thought I’d lighten the mood with my birthday-wishlist-daydreams. Tyler keeps asking me what I want and I simply can’t decide…

An iPhone? I’m only turning 28 but my Blackberry is turning 3, which is like 104 in cellphone years. It needs to be restarted approximately 3.6 times a day. It’s time to put her to sleep.

Then, of course, I’ll need one of these to protect my new baby…

Or perhaps some cowboy boots? I’m a Southerner, I have way too many cute sundresses to not own any cowboy boots, and it’s almost fall…

A cover for my Kindle? Shocked that is hasn’t been scratched yet. Lurv this one on Etsy.

Maybe a point and shoot? Yes, we have a big fancy camera but it is way too big to carry around for everyday use and our little camera is five years old and takes terrible, grainy pictures. In case you haven’t noticed…

Rachel talks about this book all the time and I know a ton of people who have read it. I think I would love it.

Or a Cricket Cutter? I don’t really feel like I can ask for this because I haven’t done my homework in researching them and there appear to be fifteen different models ranging from $85 to $500. All I know is that I want something that I can print vinyl stencils with from patterns I make in Photoshop. Just thinking about all of the pillows, distressed crates, etched glass, and word art I could make makes me salivate. Please advise.

Or perhaps a pony. Yes, I think a pony’ll do just fine.

So…I think that covers it. I, of course, would be lucky to get just one thing off here. Or nothing because I don’t truly need anything. This is my “Whoops—the bank accidentally deposited $1,000 in my account” daydream list.

So, which of these should I really ask for?

Over it.

2011-07-26T23:23:00.001-04:00

“They call me cumulonimbus ‘cause you know I make it rain …” This what we sangin’ at the G’meyer’s…

Word to your mother.

Crafty Cfriday: Reupholstered Stool

2011-07-22T07:39:00.000-04:00

I scored big time while Tyler was out of the country a few weeks ago. Our neighborhood has a big drop-off-your-junk weekend once a month where everyone drags anything and everything, big or small, nice or crappy out to the curb to be picked up and hauled away. So what happens is the whole neighborhood comes out to see the goods and see if there’s anything worth beating the garbage truck to.

{Read: I’m not the only one who does this!}

With Tyler gone, there was no one to stop me and Cora {and our personal driver Jared} from scouring the neighborhood drive-by style multiple times over. Didn’t score any big items, but there were plenty of window panes and shutters to be found. And this girl will never turn down plantation shutters…

The other items came from a garage sale we visited later in the afternoon. Stool = $12, blue mason jar = $2, glass transistor = $2, empty frames $4 for all of them.

There was just too much good stuff there, so I quickly went into project mode: a trip to Home Depot for spray paint, Joann’s for fabric and I was ready to go.

I couldn’t decide between the blue or the orange—the fabric was on sale so I just bought half a yard of each for $10.

I unscrewed the upholstered top, primed and spray painted the wooden base, then scuffed it up a bit…

I wrapped the top in fabric, stapled it with an office stapler, screwed it back on and…The “after” of the stool…The “after” of my legs…

Now it’s a great optional seating for guests!

And the cost breakdown… $12 stool + $5 fabric + $6 for two cans of spray paint = $23.

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As for all of my other finds, I’m still trying to decide what to do. I was initially set on hanging an empty frame wall above our bed like these…

But then…I started Pinteresting…

And I think I want to save one for Christmas {I love this for the front door) and use one for this photo keeper. Not for above the bed but for somewhere…

And all of those shutters?

Do I make something like this?Or do I save them to do something like this one day?

Pinterest is bad news for an already indecisive person! But I luuuuuurv it. So many great ideas and I love looking at everyone else’s pins. So, so fun…

So anyway, Happy Crafty Cfriday! Hope you’re all surviving this heat!

Pwerto Rico!!

2011-07-20T09:41:00.001-04:00

{Aiy Aiy Aiy Aiy!}

{That’s what I say whenever ever anyone asked me about Puerto Rico.}

I finally got off of Pinterest long enough to write a post about our recent trip to my brother’s destination wedding in San Juan.

It was fun.

We as a whole family just aren’t all in one tropical place together these days and even though not everyone could make it {and we sure missed them}, it was still nice to hang as a and fam and just relax and have fun. The weather was beautiful, the resort was great, and the company was even better. Andy & Christine have such great friends and Christine’s family is just as close as ours, so we all had a blast hanging out. It was easy, effortless, and so fun.

Tyler and I found great non-stop flights out of Baltimore, a mere 45 minutes from DC. We thought we’d make our lives easier by not taking a car and just hopping on the train. So we got a ride to the metro station…to take the metro to Union Station…to get on a train to Baltimore…to take a shuttle to the airport…to get on a plane to San Juan. Ridonculous. Lesson learned. Just drive to BWI.

Anywho, our flight was delayed and we didn’t end up checking in to our hotel until 2am. Family excited and ready to hang out called at 7am to wake us up. Awesome. This is pretty much how the whole weekend went—in bed at 3, up at 8. But it was only because we were having so much fun that we just didn’t want to waste any time sleeping!

We stayed at the Caribe Hilton, which was really close to the airport and easy to get to. The hotel was great and the staff was amazingly kind and helpful—I would stay there again in three seconds. If only the views from our room weren’t so awful…

Everyday, as soon as you walk out of the lobby toward the pool, this is what you’d see…

The pools wrapped all over the place, the pool bar is to the right, the useable part of the beach was to the left, and the ocean is straight ahead. I’m not going to lie, I spent maybe 30 minutes in the ocean. {And it was at 2am after the wedding reception with the rest of the wedding party.} The rest of the time I was here…

So Friday was a pool day. Eighty people turned out for the wedding festivities, so we quickly claimed our space at the pool bar, all catching up and getting to know one another. We’d met a few of Andy & Christine’s friends in New York when they got engaged, so it was fun to see some familiar faces and feel like we knew some of the group.

Pardon the cell phone quality of my pictures—I took them with my cell phone... Top: Me and my brother Andy {the groom}, Bottom: Tyler and my Dad. Tyler’s hair gets ridiculous in the humidity.

We pulled ourselves out of the pool long enough to make it to the rehearsal dinner via a very confusing transport requiring two taxis, many stops for directions, a six month old baby, a strobe light, and some Lady Gaga. But we finally made. I love this picture Stephanie captured of us sharing the video I made with Andy & Christine.

Saturday was more pool, but the wedding was at 3 o’clock so we didn’t spend too much time in our bathing suites before it was time for fancy clothes. Tyler was already planning on wearing his seersucker suit, but I convinced him that he needed to go all out and just be ridiculous. So we broke out my fedora {the hat of the weekend—see below} and his bow tie…

{Think I’ve gotten enough mileage out of this LBD? I feel like this is the only dress I wear these days!}

The wedding was at a beautiful little catholic church in Old San Juan while the reception was on the beach back at the Caribe. It was a little windy, but the temperature was perfect and it never rained a drop. There was a cocktail hour with mojitos and cheese bar {mmmm…cheese} followed by dinner and an open bar. I have no concept of time, but I’m pretty sure that all eighty of us were on the dance floor for the rest of the night. The DJ kept announcing “Okay, this is the last song!” and then he played five more. It was so. much. fun.

My hair was a little crazy after all that dancing outside, but I love this picture of me and my Dad.

Sunday was recovery day. Nothing planned, nothing on the docket, no places to be. So naturally, everyone went to the pool for a serious competition of beer pong.

Cutest picture of Charles and Landon ever.

I bought this fedora a few months ago that I love. And for the record, Charles made fun of me for it when I was home for Memorial Day. But he was singing a different tune once it was the hit of the weekend—I think everyone had it on at one point or another. See pieces of evidence #1, 2, 3, and 4 below.

Sunday night, most of the group went kayaking at Bio Bay while Charles, Landon, me, and Uncle Rob {Tyler left earlier that day} went and enjoyed a great dinner at Jam Rum Bar. It was hard to find an open restaurant that night, but we were so glad we found this place. It was seriously delicious. By the end of the night, I was exhausted that Uncle Rob bought me some ice cream and I took it straight to bed and watched TV until I fell asleep. It was a great Sunday.

Monday morning I went to clean out my bag while I was packing on and this is what I found…I just started laughing. Somewhere along the way, my pool bag became a bootleg transport of rum. I could have been the most popular person on the plane!

Proof that we actually did leave the resort at one point… Monday afternoon before catching our flights, we walked around Old San Juan and took in some of the gorgeous sites. It is such a neat city—so pretty and clean and I never felt unsafe.

Another official endorsement: San Juan was just a beautiful place to vacation and get married! We loved the resort, the restaurants, no passport needed, easy flights, and relatively inexpensive overall.

And it was so fun to hang out with my family and have my parents in one place together. We missed my sisters, but I’m still so thankful for the time all had together. Andy & Christine did an amazing job making sure we all had a great trip and we had a blast celebrating their love, their wedding, and their future. Sign me up for the vows renewal!

Slowing Down

2011-07-17T23:23:00.000-04:00

“How many books are you reading right now??”

That was Tyler today at the pool after I pulled out yet another book to read.

He’s right. I’m reading too many things right now…

There’s the Dietrich Bonhoeffer bio I’ve been working through for a few months now {It’s heavy and can be a little dry, so I need a break every now and then. Church history + theology + conspiracies against Hitler isn’t exactly chick lit…}.

Then there’s “House Rules” by Jodi Picoult that I’ve been reading on my Kindle {I’m exactly 19% through}. And there’s “Bossypants” by Tina Fey that I have to finish in time for bookclub this week…

Have I mentioned I haven’t started it yet?

And today I pulled out my latest. A book I’m reading for small group… “Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World: Finding Intimacy with God in the Busyness of Life.”

The title’s cheesy, yes, but I was nodding and nodding through the first two chapters wishing I had a pen…

“The thought intrigues you. Deep inside of you there is a hunger, a calling, to know and love God. To truly know Jesus Christ and the fellowship of the Spirit. You’re not after more head knowledge—it’s heart-to-heart intimacy you long for.

Yet a part of you hangs back. Exhausted, you wonder how to find the strength or the time. Nurturing your spiritual life seems like one more duty—one more thing to add to a life that is spilling over with responsibilities.

It’s almost as if you’re standing at the bottom rung of a ladder that stretches up to heaven. Eager but daunted, you name the rungs with spiritual things you know you should do: study the Bible, pray, fellowship…

‘He’s up there somewhere,’ you say, swaying slightly as you peer upward, uncertain how to begin or if you even want to attempt the long, dizzy climb. But to do nothing means you will miss what your heart already knows: There is more to this Christian walk than you’ve ever experienced. And you’re just hungry enough—just desperate enough—to want it all.”

So many days I just feel overwhelmed. Between working and working out and keeping the house clean and going to church and Bible study and blogging and making the house look like what I want the house to look like…oh, and being a good friend and maintaining a social calendar, and keeping in touch with family…grocery shopping, laundry, errands, watering the plants… All the while wanting to be the best wife, the best employee, the best therapist, the best cook, the best blogger, the most creative… It goes on and on. And when I come home exhausted, I just say to myself,

“I don’t even have kids yet. How am I ever. going. to make it?”

Spending time in the scriptures or praying or serving always gets pushed to the back seat because it’s the one thing that doesn’t have a deadline. And every night, as I fall asleep with that closed Bible sitting on my nightstand, I feel bad about it. I feel guilty. And I know I’m missing out on the best part of my life because I’m trying to make my life the best.

If the fact that I’m reading four books is any indication of how much I take on at once, you can see that I’m in need of a good kick in the butt. I’m truly excited to get into this book, take in its encouragement, and slow. down. Dive into the Word. Experience this Christian life as it should be.

So here goes.

{Happy Sunday}

This one’s a snoozer…

2011-07-13T23:37:00.001-04:00

What’s up readers! Bored yet?

Me too.

I have been so busy lately I haven’t even had time to Pinterest! {That is some serious busyness right there.} And since I’m busy, I’m tired. And so I sleep and then I work and then I travel and then I’m tired again so I sleep again. So then nothing interesting happens to blog about.

But Puerto Rico was an absolute blast and a welcome few days away from DC, with plenty of sunshine and daiquiri permanently glued to my hand. I haven’t even uploaded my pictures yet, but a recap is on its way! We all had a great time and Christine & Andy are married so I consider the trip a smashing success.

What else has been going on, you ask? Well…

I signed up for my first half marathon {In Savannah this November. I can finally scratch off #6.}
I got addicted to Pinterest.
We saw Next to Normal at the Kennedy Center which was phenomenal. I am currently memorizing the score.
We said goodbye to our friends Chris & Alison, which made me super sad…
Cora and I went junking and garage saling together unattended, which is always dangerous. So I spent a whopping $20 and came home with all these beauties. I smell my next three DIM projects. {And spray paint. Lots and lots of spray paint.}

I’m taking a continuing ed course this week which is a nice way to come back from vacation. It’s called Brain Gym and I am fascinated. Caution if you ask me about it— I might not shut up. If you’re a teacher or therapist, I highly recommend it.
My birthday is next month. Maybe I should post a wish list? I’m thinking of hosting a fun dinner party and making our back patio look like this…

{Perhaps on a slightly smaller scale.}

I’m watching While You Were Sleeping right now, a movie I will always heart. I remember my 5th grade teacher told me I reminded her of Sandra Bullock after she saw this movie and I loved her for saying that because homegirl did not look like Sandra Bullock in 5th grade.
I have not seen an SJT since the blog post! Thank you for all of your emotional support—I laughed out loud at your comments.
Every craft store within 10 miles is sold out and continues to be sold out of “Thunder Blue” Folk Art, which means half way through summer, I still have one blue and one brown curtain hanging. Cool.

So…that’s kinda it. Up next though, crafty crafts and Puerto Rico!

Happy Wedding Day!

2011-07-09T09:14:00.001-04:00

We’re down here in San Juan, Puerto Rico enjoying the beautiful weather, a few days off of work, and these two lovebirds…

Happy Wedding Day! Be back in a few…

Guess Who’s Back??

2011-07-03T20:18:00.001-04:00

Mr. Grassmeyer flew home this morning after nine days in Israel on a work trip! And while I always relish the downtime, I always realize how much I missed him once he gets back…

I went to sleep last night after falling asleep to a movie with a glass of wine in my hand… But I woke up to a dark sky thinking it must be very early in the morning…

But it was only 2:15.

I never wake up in the middle of the night, so I immediately started to worry. Something must be wrong. I prayed and worried until I eventually fell asleep.

But I woke up again. This time it was 5:30.

And it was thundering and lighting something good outside.

So I really started to worry… Why do I keep waking up??

So I turned on a movie until I fell asleep again.

{Maid in Manhattan— logical choice.}

I woke up again, this time at 8am.

And there was a text from my husband that had come at 7. He was safe, drinking a Bloody Mary in Philadelphia, waiting for his flight to DCA.

Thank God.

So I climbed out of bed, took a shower, and watched Father of the Bride on TV while I got ready. Have you watched that movie lately? I cried like 8 different times. Even after seeing it 2,598 times…

And then it was time to go grab Tyler!

I picked him up and we headed to brunch at Bayou Bakery…

I have wanted to go since they were featured in Southern Living a few months ago. I was under pressure from a lot of great choices, so I don’t think I ordered that well…My biscuit was a little dry, but the grits were ah-mazing.

{It’s hard to find good grits up here.}

I will definitely be going back. If for no other reason than the beignets or the grilled pimento cheese sandwiches!

Then we headed home and napped together for much longer than any sunny Sunday afternoon should have allowed. But he was tired and jet-lagged, so we slept.

Then we spent the rest of the day talking and laughing and catching up on our week.

And we figured out that while he was gone, on the same night, we separately ordered the same movie—he on the plane, me at home.

{Unknown.}

I missed him.

And before we knew it, it was time for dinner! We ordered pizza and wine and bruschetta from Café Pizzaiolo… They messed up our order and delivered two pizzas.

“Cool, we can overeat.”

It felt like we were cheating on Lost Dog. But it was really good.

In the mean time, the sky turned black, the wind whipped up, and we guiltlessly took our food and wine to the basement where we’ll hide out for the rest of the night riding out the storm…

Our biggest concern is what we’ll order On Demand. The Adjustment Bureau? The King’s Speech?

I’m glad he’s home. It’s been a happy Sunday…

What I Wore This Week

2011-07-01T17:20:00.001-04:00

My sister called me on Monday and asked, “So you’re really going to take a picture of what you wear everyday?”

Yes, Becky. I was and I did.

And Kristin was right when she said it was boring.

Well, maybe not boring. It was fun taking a picture every morning, but I thought the end result would be much more interesting than it really is. I look at the series and think, “Yuck. Who on earth is interested in these outfits?”

And it feels very self-involved.

But I took the pictures and made this little series thing, so I will finish this post and move on.

{Warning: I do not put on make-up before I leave the house. That’s what red lights are for.}

Monday: No, it was not Dress Like a Pirate Day at work. Nor did I go sailing. Nor did I think those bermuda shorts looked that tight on me. I really don’t love bermuda shorts anyway on me because I just don’t have the legs for them but I’ve started wearing them to work this summer since shorts aren’t really an option. I’m re-thinking this outfit… Top: H&M this season, belt: Old Navy ($15) this season, shorts: The Limited circa 2006, sunglasses: Kenneth Cole from Marshalls ($10).

Tuesday: I actually really like this outfit. I think it’s cute and very comfortable and easy to work in. I am obsessed with this light sweater from J.Crew Factory I bought this spring and wish I’d bought one in every color. Top: J.Crew outlet, shorts: Editor shorts from Express circa 2006 {apparently 2006 was the year of the long short}, sandals: Target circa 2009 {I wear them all.the.time.}, necklace: Target 2010 {I really splurged here, this necklace was behind the glass case…}

Wednesday: Easy outfit. Just hope my hair looked better in person! Top: Ralph Lauren polo circa CLASSIC, pants: Old Navy perfect khakis rolled up {I LOVE these pants and if they made them in more colors, I’d probably never buy pants from J.Crew again!}, belt and flip-flops: J.Crew.

Thursday: Another easy outfit. I overslept this morning and it’s a go-to for me. T-shirt: Target circa 2006? {I have this shirt in 3 different colors—it is so soft and fits perfectly. Love.}, pants: J.Crew Classic Chinos, necklace: same one from Tuesday, shoes: pom-pom flats from Old Navy last winter ($20, wear them constantly),

Friday: Overslept again this morning {this is what happens when my husband is out of town…} and am always tired by Friday so I wanted to be comfortable. I could live in these brown palazzo pants from The Limited. They are OLD but make very regular appearances in my wardrobe in all seasons. Summer, fall, winter… I love them all year. Top: Old Navy ruffle tank, pants: The Limited circa 2005? Too early for accessories.

Pretty uninspiring huh? You can tell where my favorite places to shop are! But I’m not sure there will be another “What I Wore” post—I feel self-conscience already… Except I may try it one more time, but the challenge would be to put together five completely new outfits. We’ll see.

So, are you judging me on the age of my wardrobe yet??

Happy Friday and Happy 4th!! Tyler is still in Israel and having a great time, and I’m off to drink a margarita at any outdoor Mexican restaurant that will seat me…

What I’m Wearing This Week…

2011-06-26T23:30:00.000-04:00

So everyone seems to be doing these now. Kristin claimed it was boring, but I was captivated by what she wore everyday! There is something just so interesting and revealing about a person based on what they wear! People’s clothes are such a reflection of their personality and dictated by jobs and lifestyle and kids and body type and…so many factors. I’m fascinated.

So I’m going to try it.

BUT, you should know a few things about my job, which so strongly dictates what I wear Monday through Friday…

- I work with kids. I spend all day on my knees, I get up and sit down a thousand times a day. I lay on the floor to demonstrate exercises. I squat down and reach overhead about a million times a day.

- I work with babies. They pull on my hair, my jewelry, my earrings. Homegirl gets spit up on far more than any homegirl who doesn’t have kids should.

- The air circulation in our office is a little sketchy. It’s either too cold or too hot or it’s just right but you’re trying to position a kid’s feet on the treadmill correctly, so you’re sweating to death.

- I don’t wear shoes. I’m either in socks or barefoot because of the mats and flooring in our office. Shoes are irrelevant for much of my day.

- We don’t have a dress code for work. Just a general rule to use your best judgment…

So here goes!

I’m only afraid the results are going to make me self-conscience and want to go buy new clothes… But I’m really hoping it will just force me to become more creative with my closet. After all, Kristin isn’t buying ANY clothes for all of 2011 and she still did it. Isn’t that inspiring….

Happy dressing!