and I'm just now jumping on the bandwagon to read this book:
I'm only a few pages in, but I can already tell it is good, good stuff. Any of you read this one? If so, what did you think?
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
A day late...
and a dollar short...
and I'm just now jumping on the bandwagon to read this book:
I'm only a few pages in, but I can already tell it is good, good stuff. Any of you read this one? If so, what did you think?
and I'm just now jumping on the bandwagon to read this book:
I'm only a few pages in, but I can already tell it is good, good stuff. Any of you read this one? If so, what did you think?
Monday, February 14, 2011
Happy V-Day.
I've never been a big fan of V-Day, but V-Day took on a whole new meaning for me five years ago (or really, the day before, if you want to be technical). It was the day I met my son! I'll never forget getting the call in my hotel room from the lobby saying he had arrived, riding down the elevator, shaking nervously, the doors opening up, and seeing his little brown drooling face pulling up on a chair. Instant, instant falling in love for me. So in our household, we now celebrate V-Day for a different reason -- more like celebrating the love of family rather than as much the romantic side of things. It's how we roll.
How are you celebrating V-Day?
***
I rarely put anything about fashion on this blog, but it's definitely something I enjoy. Anthropologie has been a huge influence in not only my own personal style but also in the decor of my house. I need to start putting some more fun fashion-y posts up on the ol' blog, don't you think? And as a proud team member of Anthropologie, I thought I'd draw your attention to the romantic love side of things and tell you about the newest member of the Urban Outfitters company, BHLDN. Today, the day of all things loooooove, just so happens to be the highly anticipated launch of BHLDN's online shop.
One of my favorite Anthropologie-bloggers, Kim, has a great three-part blog post series all about it, chock full of swoon-worthy pictures. She was one of the lucky girls invited to the Urban Outfitters campus to see it all for herself! What a dream.
BHLDN (pronounced "beholden") is a whole separate brand under the Urban Outfitters umbrella, although it's quite obvious it was heavily influenced by its sister company, Anthropologie. I can't tell you how many times girls have come into our store and mentioned wanting their wedding to have that "Anthropologie look" -- and now it can!
Now, I've been married almost nine years (our anniversary is coming up soon in May!), but if I was a bride-to-be, I'd be saving my pennies like crazy to deck myself out head to toe in any of these looks!
Just for fun, I'm posting what I would pick if I had to plan a spur-of-the-moment gorgeous affair:
If I was tall and leggy (which I'm not, by the way), I'd pick this unbelievable frock --
Since I'm all kinds of short, I'd probably pick this little number --
My bridesmaids might wear either this (oh who am I kidding, I would totally want this one for myself!) --
or maybe this one since most of my friends are usually taller than me --
And since my mantra is "always the pianist, never the bridesmaid" (get it? instead of "always the bridesmaid, never the bride"), I'd deck my best musician in this one --
There's no question that these might be my shoe of choice --
although going with the "something blue" idea warrants these a place in the spotlight --
There are also oodles of other things to shop for as well -- lingerie (ooh-la-la!), jewelry, hair accessories, and wraps. Grab your heart-shaped box of chocolates, put your feet up, and go window shopping. Their gorgeous online shop is truly a feast for the eyes.
How are you celebrating V-Day?
***
I rarely put anything about fashion on this blog, but it's definitely something I enjoy. Anthropologie has been a huge influence in not only my own personal style but also in the decor of my house. I need to start putting some more fun fashion-y posts up on the ol' blog, don't you think? And as a proud team member of Anthropologie, I thought I'd draw your attention to the romantic love side of things and tell you about the newest member of the Urban Outfitters company, BHLDN. Today, the day of all things loooooove, just so happens to be the highly anticipated launch of BHLDN's online shop.
One of my favorite Anthropologie-bloggers, Kim, has a great three-part blog post series all about it, chock full of swoon-worthy pictures. She was one of the lucky girls invited to the Urban Outfitters campus to see it all for herself! What a dream.
BHLDN (pronounced "beholden") is a whole separate brand under the Urban Outfitters umbrella, although it's quite obvious it was heavily influenced by its sister company, Anthropologie. I can't tell you how many times girls have come into our store and mentioned wanting their wedding to have that "Anthropologie look" -- and now it can!
Now, I've been married almost nine years (our anniversary is coming up soon in May!), but if I was a bride-to-be, I'd be saving my pennies like crazy to deck myself out head to toe in any of these looks!
Just for fun, I'm posting what I would pick if I had to plan a spur-of-the-moment gorgeous affair:
If I was tall and leggy (which I'm not, by the way), I'd pick this unbelievable frock --
Since I'm all kinds of short, I'd probably pick this little number --
My bridesmaids might wear either this (oh who am I kidding, I would totally want this one for myself!) --
or maybe this one since most of my friends are usually taller than me --
And since my mantra is "always the pianist, never the bridesmaid" (get it? instead of "always the bridesmaid, never the bride"), I'd deck my best musician in this one --
There's no question that these might be my shoe of choice --
although going with the "something blue" idea warrants these a place in the spotlight --
There are also oodles of other things to shop for as well -- lingerie (ooh-la-la!), jewelry, hair accessories, and wraps. Grab your heart-shaped box of chocolates, put your feet up, and go window shopping. Their gorgeous online shop is truly a feast for the eyes.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Captivity Log - Day #8
I kid, I kid. Well, maybe sort of...
As we move into Day #6 of NO SCHOOL (really it's Day #8 since we also had two snow days a couple of weeks ago) and Day #8 of Snowmaggeddon, we're all getting a little crazy here in T-Town. I can't stress this enough: this type of winter is UNPRECEDENTED here.
We don't EVER get this much snow, especially not all at once.
We don't EVER get these below-zero temperatures.
The snow NEVER sticks around this long.
We don't have the set-up in our city to deal with this sort of thing.
We don't have the snow plows like other cities (or at least not even close to having enough of them to deal with this).
We don't have the driving experience to deal with this. It's a free for all out there, and people are driving like idiots for the most part.
But we persevere. And in true Oklahoma fashion, we're all helping each other out, keeping smiles on our faces, and braving the weather. Even when there is a forecast tonight for another possible 4-12".
No joke.
And yesterday afternoon, we got MAIL!!!!
I was backing out of the driveway when the neighbor down the street yelled over to ask if I had checked my mail. When I said no, he told me that he went and got the mail for the entire street and hand-delivered it into our boxes himself. How nice was that?!
And yesterday the boy and I were on our way home from the grocery store (stocking up) and the library (also stocking up) when we came upon a poor soul stranded in the snow. Sure enough, this gentleman had gotten out in his brand spankin' new uber-expensive BMW (the $80K or so costing variety). His tires were spinning, and he was going nowhere. I rolled my window down to see if he needed a tow. (Keep in mind, I have no towing experience, but my husband, who LIVES to tow people out and rescue them from the snow, keeps a tow rope in our car.)
He hemmed and hawed (just like a man) for five to ten minutes, trying his best to get out, and finally had no choice but to take up my offer of either towing him or driving him to his destination. Since he couldn't find the place on the front of his car to hook my rope, he ended up opening the hood and hooking it on to a thick piece of steel on the engine. (I was nervous about this, but since he personally hooked it there on his car and still wanted me to tow him, I figured I wasn't liable if it went south.)
Slowly slowly I pulled him out UPHILL almost a block. With barely a thank you, he was on his way, albeit a bit embarrassed that little ol' me had hopped out of the car to rescue him, haha. Dang, it felt good.
Yay for my first tow! My husband was crazy proud. And the boy was in the backseat cheering, "Hurray, Mama! Hurray, Mama! We did it!"
As we move into Day #6 of NO SCHOOL (really it's Day #8 since we also had two snow days a couple of weeks ago) and Day #8 of Snowmaggeddon, we're all getting a little crazy here in T-Town. I can't stress this enough: this type of winter is UNPRECEDENTED here.
We don't EVER get this much snow, especially not all at once.
We don't EVER get these below-zero temperatures.
The snow NEVER sticks around this long.
We don't have the set-up in our city to deal with this sort of thing.
We don't have the snow plows like other cities (or at least not even close to having enough of them to deal with this).
We don't have the driving experience to deal with this. It's a free for all out there, and people are driving like idiots for the most part.
But we persevere. And in true Oklahoma fashion, we're all helping each other out, keeping smiles on our faces, and braving the weather. Even when there is a forecast tonight for another possible 4-12".
No joke.
And yesterday afternoon, we got MAIL!!!!
I was backing out of the driveway when the neighbor down the street yelled over to ask if I had checked my mail. When I said no, he told me that he went and got the mail for the entire street and hand-delivered it into our boxes himself. How nice was that?!
And yesterday the boy and I were on our way home from the grocery store (stocking up) and the library (also stocking up) when we came upon a poor soul stranded in the snow. Sure enough, this gentleman had gotten out in his brand spankin' new uber-expensive BMW (the $80K or so costing variety). His tires were spinning, and he was going nowhere. I rolled my window down to see if he needed a tow. (Keep in mind, I have no towing experience, but my husband, who LIVES to tow people out and rescue them from the snow, keeps a tow rope in our car.)
He hemmed and hawed (just like a man) for five to ten minutes, trying his best to get out, and finally had no choice but to take up my offer of either towing him or driving him to his destination. Since he couldn't find the place on the front of his car to hook my rope, he ended up opening the hood and hooking it on to a thick piece of steel on the engine. (I was nervous about this, but since he personally hooked it there on his car and still wanted me to tow him, I figured I wasn't liable if it went south.)
Slowly slowly I pulled him out UPHILL almost a block. With barely a thank you, he was on his way, albeit a bit embarrassed that little ol' me had hopped out of the car to rescue him, haha. Dang, it felt good.
Yay for my first tow! My husband was crazy proud. And the boy was in the backseat cheering, "Hurray, Mama! Hurray, Mama! We did it!"
Monday, February 7, 2011
Unanswered Questions
And the Snowmageddon Saga continues...
Will we ever receive any mail?
(Our last delivery day was Monday of last week. Any catalogs/magazines would've been greatly treasured and appreciated during our incarceration last week. The fabric I had ordered would've been lovely as well. But bless our postman's heart, our street is still not fit for a little mail truck to come around.)
Will I ever be able to get the trashcans to the curb?
(The trashmen finally came back this morning after a week of no trash pick-up, but alas, we were unable to get our trashcans down the ski slopes we previously called our driveway.)
Speaking of said curb, where is it? Will we ever see the curb again?
Did we accidentally move back to Minnesota without me realizing it?
(These below-zero temperatures are unheard of for Oklahoma. Before long we'll all be starting to speak the phrases "yah sure, you betcha", taking "hot dishes" to pot-luck dinners, and school being out of session for the fifth consecutive day will be a thing of the past.)
Will my kid finish out his year in kindergarten?
(I kid, I kid, but seriously, on this fifth consecutive day of no school AND the forecast this week for an additional 5-10" of fluffy white doom, well, it does make you wonder...)
Will my convertible ever cruise the streets again?
Will I ever get to wear cute shoes again?
Will this mama and five-year-old son come out victorious or will they eat each other alive in the House of Fluffy White Doom?
Stay tuned, my friends, for these highly anticipated answers to life's most difficult questions...
Will we ever receive any mail?
(Our last delivery day was Monday of last week. Any catalogs/magazines would've been greatly treasured and appreciated during our incarceration last week. The fabric I had ordered would've been lovely as well. But bless our postman's heart, our street is still not fit for a little mail truck to come around.)
Will I ever be able to get the trashcans to the curb?
(The trashmen finally came back this morning after a week of no trash pick-up, but alas, we were unable to get our trashcans down the ski slopes we previously called our driveway.)
Speaking of said curb, where is it? Will we ever see the curb again?
Did we accidentally move back to Minnesota without me realizing it?
(These below-zero temperatures are unheard of for Oklahoma. Before long we'll all be starting to speak the phrases "yah sure, you betcha", taking "hot dishes" to pot-luck dinners, and school being out of session for the fifth consecutive day will be a thing of the past.)
Will my kid finish out his year in kindergarten?
(I kid, I kid, but seriously, on this fifth consecutive day of no school AND the forecast this week for an additional 5-10" of fluffy white doom, well, it does make you wonder...)
Will my convertible ever cruise the streets again?
Will I ever get to wear cute shoes again?
Will this mama and five-year-old son come out victorious or will they eat each other alive in the House of Fluffy White Doom?
Stay tuned, my friends, for these highly anticipated answers to life's most difficult questions...
Friday, February 4, 2011
Puzzling...
What are snowy days good for?
Working jigsaw puzzles.
(How old am I?)
(hahahahaha)
What can I say? I LOVE working jigsaw puzzles. When I was a kid, every winter my dad would drag the big "puzzle board" out of the garage -- it was actually a large 3'x 5'(or so) sized piece of pressed board that he had painted -- and put it on the carpet in front of the fireplace. There was always a puzzle set up to work for anyone who wanted to work on it. This is one of my absolute favorite family memories.
I still remember my favorite puzzles from childhood as well. The more pieces in the puzzle, the better. It had to be at least 500-pieces to be worth working at our house, and preferably 1000-pieces and up. My absolute favorite one was called "Wee Folk" and was set in the forest with lots of tiny fairies and gnomes and mushroom houses, etc. My brother and I would practically fight over who would get to put in specific pieces of the cutest characters in the picture. My mom informed me the other day that she accidentally sold it in her last garage sale. Accidental, my foot. I think I might actually start scouring eBay for that one, I liked it so much. And my other favorite was a picture filled with stuffed animals -- and hiding in the sea of stuffed animals was E.T.! A child of the 80's, that I am. I know there were other puzzles that were favorites. I'm not as much a fan of real landscape puzzles, although I'll still do them. Most of ours were whimsical or paintings of make-believe landscapes.
So for Christmas, I asked for puzzles. No joke. My mom picked up three $4 puzzles from Target, and I was as happy as any little kid with my Christmas loot! And my husband bought me one of those "puzzle saver" mats. Talk about someone making money -- basically it is a big piece of felt with a telescoping cardboard tube and oversized ponytail holders. Dang, why didn't I think of that?
Here are the three 1000-piece puzzles I did all by myself since Christmas:
Well, actually the little man helped some. His idea of "helping" was to hide the last piece (grrrrrrr...imagine my frustration) so that HE could put it in. I know it's juvenile of me, but I was a tad irked that after putting 999 pieces together, someone else got to stick the last satisfying piece in there. But of course, I put on my big girl panties and allowed him the pleasure. And thank goodness I got over myself because I think I've created a puzzle monster in the five-year-old! I picked up a couple of 100-piece puzzles for him at the dollar store (including a United States map puzzle), and he's been in heaven. I'm pretty happy about that. I've been telling him that working puzzles is super good for your brain, and he's thrilled about that, as am I.
And you can bet your bottom dollar that I have him good and well trained, too -- always work the outer border first, then tackle the insides...
Working jigsaw puzzles.
(How old am I?)
(hahahahaha)
What can I say? I LOVE working jigsaw puzzles. When I was a kid, every winter my dad would drag the big "puzzle board" out of the garage -- it was actually a large 3'x 5'(or so) sized piece of pressed board that he had painted -- and put it on the carpet in front of the fireplace. There was always a puzzle set up to work for anyone who wanted to work on it. This is one of my absolute favorite family memories.
I still remember my favorite puzzles from childhood as well. The more pieces in the puzzle, the better. It had to be at least 500-pieces to be worth working at our house, and preferably 1000-pieces and up. My absolute favorite one was called "Wee Folk" and was set in the forest with lots of tiny fairies and gnomes and mushroom houses, etc. My brother and I would practically fight over who would get to put in specific pieces of the cutest characters in the picture. My mom informed me the other day that she accidentally sold it in her last garage sale. Accidental, my foot. I think I might actually start scouring eBay for that one, I liked it so much. And my other favorite was a picture filled with stuffed animals -- and hiding in the sea of stuffed animals was E.T.! A child of the 80's, that I am. I know there were other puzzles that were favorites. I'm not as much a fan of real landscape puzzles, although I'll still do them. Most of ours were whimsical or paintings of make-believe landscapes.
So for Christmas, I asked for puzzles. No joke. My mom picked up three $4 puzzles from Target, and I was as happy as any little kid with my Christmas loot! And my husband bought me one of those "puzzle saver" mats. Talk about someone making money -- basically it is a big piece of felt with a telescoping cardboard tube and oversized ponytail holders. Dang, why didn't I think of that?
Here are the three 1000-piece puzzles I did all by myself since Christmas:
Well, actually the little man helped some. His idea of "helping" was to hide the last piece (grrrrrrr...imagine my frustration) so that HE could put it in. I know it's juvenile of me, but I was a tad irked that after putting 999 pieces together, someone else got to stick the last satisfying piece in there. But of course, I put on my big girl panties and allowed him the pleasure. And thank goodness I got over myself because I think I've created a puzzle monster in the five-year-old! I picked up a couple of 100-piece puzzles for him at the dollar store (including a United States map puzzle), and he's been in heaven. I'm pretty happy about that. I've been telling him that working puzzles is super good for your brain, and he's thrilled about that, as am I.
And you can bet your bottom dollar that I have him good and well trained, too -- always work the outer border first, then tackle the insides...
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Another quilt...
I finished this baby quilt a couple of weeks ago. I was going to wait to show it until after it had been received, but the "Snowtorious B.I.G." happened (my latest favorite name for the blizzard) and who knows how long it will be before I can give it to it's intended recipient!
I found these adorable little girl fabrics at JoAnn's -- there is a smaller print with little girls and moms all over it, and there is a bigger print with old McCall sewing patterns all over it that I used for the back of the quilt. I threw in a light green fabric with white polka dots and a traditional striped rose fabric as well. (You might need to click on the pictures to see the fabrics better.) It's not exactly baby-ish, but I figured it was better to make something she can grow with, right?
As you can see, I'm really getting into the simple strip piecing for the fronts. It's easy, it looks good, and when you're cranking out a pile full of baby quilts (I feel like a quilt factory as of late), it gets the job done.
I hope they like it! (And shhhhhh, if you know the recipients, don't spoil the surprise...)
I found these adorable little girl fabrics at JoAnn's -- there is a smaller print with little girls and moms all over it, and there is a bigger print with old McCall sewing patterns all over it that I used for the back of the quilt. I threw in a light green fabric with white polka dots and a traditional striped rose fabric as well. (You might need to click on the pictures to see the fabrics better.) It's not exactly baby-ish, but I figured it was better to make something she can grow with, right?
As you can see, I'm really getting into the simple strip piecing for the fronts. It's easy, it looks good, and when you're cranking out a pile full of baby quilts (I feel like a quilt factory as of late), it gets the job done.
I hope they like it! (And shhhhhh, if you know the recipients, don't spoil the surprise...)
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Snowmageddon 2011
(I prefer this hilarious name since it kind of rhymes -- "Snowmageddon 2011"...)
I've been a bit MIA only because my laptop seems to have bit the dust. And since we received a whopping (and historic, record-breaking) 14"+ snow yesterday, we can't take my laptop to the doctor yet. So I'm borrowing my husband's laptop here and there when I can...
But I've been busy. I've been cranking out the baby quilts again, so here is a peek at one for a baby boy born almost two weeks ago:
*I had a willing helper in Harry...
*It was so nice to sit in front of the fire while I was handsewing the binding on.
*Quilt front - I know it has purples and pinks in it as well, but I'm hoping this is versatile enough that if they had any more kids in the future, it could be used for all of them. It might be hard to tell from the picture, but these are all reproduction-type prints with dogs in them. I think it was a line from Moda that was released several years ago to benefit the SPCA. I added the scottie dog sihouette at the bottom just for some extra panache...
*Quilt back - again, Harry is so helpful for these sorts of things...
*14" baby! We think we actually got a little more than this, but with the blizzard-like conditions, a lot was blown around. Our drifts, of course are several feet tall.
*My poor little Celica buried under the snow. I know, I know -- you'd think we would've been smart enough to move it into the garage the night before.
*the back of our house -- Oklahoma hasn't seen snow like this ever before!
I've been a bit MIA only because my laptop seems to have bit the dust. And since we received a whopping (and historic, record-breaking) 14"+ snow yesterday, we can't take my laptop to the doctor yet. So I'm borrowing my husband's laptop here and there when I can...
But I've been busy. I've been cranking out the baby quilts again, so here is a peek at one for a baby boy born almost two weeks ago:
*I had a willing helper in Harry...
*It was so nice to sit in front of the fire while I was handsewing the binding on.
*Quilt front - I know it has purples and pinks in it as well, but I'm hoping this is versatile enough that if they had any more kids in the future, it could be used for all of them. It might be hard to tell from the picture, but these are all reproduction-type prints with dogs in them. I think it was a line from Moda that was released several years ago to benefit the SPCA. I added the scottie dog sihouette at the bottom just for some extra panache...
*Quilt back - again, Harry is so helpful for these sorts of things...
*14" baby! We think we actually got a little more than this, but with the blizzard-like conditions, a lot was blown around. Our drifts, of course are several feet tall.
*My poor little Celica buried under the snow. I know, I know -- you'd think we would've been smart enough to move it into the garage the night before.
*the back of our house -- Oklahoma hasn't seen snow like this ever before!
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