Things I'm Crazy About

1.) Young House Love

John and Sherry Petersik share their journey with the 54 year old ranch house they purchased in 2006. I've been a follower for almost a year and a half, I have read every. single. entry. that they have posted, and was giddy with excitement when they brought Clara into the world. They are a great couple that try to do their best in all things, and they have GREAT taste. 

2.)  Spring 2011, Alexander McQueen

Sarah Burton, who was Alexander McQueen's right hand woman before he passed a while ago, put out a GREAT Spring line this year. She definitely didn't go as crazy as McQueen is known for, but I'm loving the dresses. The dresses have a Nature theme, which is fitting for Spring. Love it! 

3.)  Barnes and Noble Nook

I love my Nook. It is basically the best tech thing that I have ever purchased... Besides my laptop. Or my phone. Okay. It's actually the only "techie" thing that I have ever purchased. My iPod was a gift from my friend Katie, and is now four years old. So... yeah. But its amazing. And it's going to get me in all kinds of trouble with the husband, but I mean, there are worse things that spending $6.99 a few times a month, right? Right!

4.) Candie's Bradley Tall Boots

These boots? SO CUTE. And comfortable. How do I know? I bought them. :) They are originally $79.99 and I bought them for $34.99. BOOM.

5.) Subway Tile / White Kitchens

(Images found via Google Images)

I have kitchen on the brain. I don't care if it is trendy to have white subway tile as the back-splash in the kitchen. It looks so clean, so airy. I could spend all day in any of these kitchens. I'm planning on having white subway tile with very light gray grout lines, with granite countertops and white cabinets. The granite will be white with the black and gray flecks and all my appliances will be black. My accent color with always be changing. Ahhhh... I die. I DIE. 

6.) Autumn

(Images found via Google Images)

Last night, Bryan and I had the door open so that our cat could explore the backyard. Bryan snuggled against me and said that he loved this time of year and that he couldn't wait to bundle up and go on walks, drink hot cocoa and watch movies on overcast days. I was feeling the exact same way. I love when Fall rolls around. It is such a beautiful time of year. 

7.) When my desk goes from this:

To this:

That pile of papers on the right are my "projects" thus they are always there. But it is a LOT smaller pile than usual. So that is good. I really want to get a few pieces of art or something for that white wall underneath the light. I hate looking at it. Its so BORING. I need a view, ya know. Something pretty. I have an idea so we'll see if it happens. 

What are some things you are crazy about?

Rug Rules

I don't think I have ever purchased a rug that wasn't for the kitchen or bathrooms... And maybe one or two mat's for guests to wipe their feet before they come into the house. Needless to say, I am not an expert when it comes to rugs. 

When you walk into the front door of our house, there is an entry way that leads to what I can only call a "great room". Even though it is not huge, it encompasses three different living areas. A sitting area, the living room and the dining area (which is on a raised foundation). 

Now, this great room is weird. It was weird when we first bought the house and we have been trying to, well, un-weird it. The house was built in the late 70s, and it used to have something called a conversation pit. The only reason I know this is because Denise was explaining our house to her coworkers and apparently one of them had been to our house way back in the day and called it a conversation pit. Small world, right? 

Still wondering what in the heck a conversation pit is? Here are a few I found.


This one is actually from some Museum of Art. Come to see our very colorful, artistic piano? Or how about our artistic bookcases? What kind of stinkin' art museum is this?

(Source: LA Times Blog)

This one is from the 80s. I bet ours looked a lot like this one.

(Source: Ugly House)

This one reminds me of the pit that was in Get Him to the Greek.  Except it had a bright green couch.

(Source: Flickriver)

Ours is basically concrete steps leading down to an area with a concrete bench that surrounds the perimeter. Super comfortable, right? I know. Maybe it had carpet on it at one time or another. The previous owners were obviously not conversationalists and they built a wood sub-floor to level the room and create a crawl space/storage area. Along with this genius idea they decided it would be prudent to put a trap door in the middle of this wood floor... which is so easy to hide when you glue wood flooring squares to the wood sub-flooring. Plus the large metal handle gave it away... Like I said, genius. 

Bryan and I (mainly Bryan) ripped up the wood flooring, down came the wall that separated the sitting area to the living room, and we carpeted the whole ding dang thing, and here is a picture of the trap door.

I'm thinking of submitting that picture to that Kodak photography contest this year. It's art, people. ART. Are you wondering what the heck rugs have to do with any of this? Why I went off on some wild tangent of conversation pits? 

WE HAVE TO HIDE THE TRAP DOOR. Duh. If you didn't make that leap, I don't think I can help you. Who cares if you didn't ASK for help. I can't help you. 

Now, that is our first problem. The second problem is that we bought engineered flooring from Lumber Liquidators that is a deep, darkish, not-red-in-any-way color and our dining room table is that light oak color. They clash. It looks awesome. So, another rug is needed. 

And of course, Bryan, love of my life that he is, insists on having a rug in the entryway. Because his sole purpose in life is to complicate mine. This super reasonable and not hard at all request now requires me to find three rugs that will all be in the same space. 

So, I've been pursuing different websites and stores and I really had no idea what I was doing. I mean, how do you LIKE a rug? It's just a...rug! Basically, I would go to a website, and control-click on the rugs I liked so that it would bring up a separate tab. Then, I would look at all the different tabs and I started to find that a lot of the rugs had defined similarities. The colors were often cool tones, the patterns not busy... I could definitely see a pattern. The other pattern I saw was that most of them were in the $250-$300 range, which was not in the budget. Especially since I needed three rugs. 


Now, armed with a defined preference in rugs and a budget in mind, I had to decide what I was going to do about three rugs in the same room. 

Three of the same rug? No. That sounds like a bad idea, even to me. Pretend that each room is separate and buy a rug that fits that particular room? Eh... That didn't sound good either. I was talking to Kari about it and she reminded me that I could ask Stacie. Stacie is Alison's sister-in-law and went to school for interior design. So I text messaged her and she said three different rugs, that coordinate. Whew. Done and done. 

A few weeks ago at Lowes, I fell in love with this rug, the price, and the fact that it matches the vibe I want my house to project.We went last night after dinner and Bryan approved of it. We bought a 5x8 for $129. Such a great price!

I'd been thinking all day about what type of rug to get for the dining area. I felt that a natural fiber, soft rug that had dark and light wood tones with cushion the blow of the two opposite woods being next to each other. We looked, and found one that had different tones of brown and a black border. The rug we bought was a 8x10 and it was $139, I think... I couldn't find it on Lowes.com but I'll post an update later. 


***Updated to conclude picture of Rug***


Our rug looks a lot more... Brown than this... Oh well. 

Once everything is in I'll take pictures. Hopefully, I won't hate it and have to buy and return a million rugs. :)

Can it be true?

Oh... Hello, there. 


I'm sure you have been waiting on pins and needles for my return. Yes? Yes. Or maybe you have been as busy as I have been. That could possibly be true. Well, I'm back. Eight months later. We'll see if it was worth the wait. 


I think the best way to get everyone (all five people that read this blog) caught up is to give a really quick rundown of what the heck has been going on. 


Here is the recap!


In January, this happened:

 Aww, poor little Skeeter. Breaks my heart to see her like this... Although, that looks kind of like blood right there in the right part of the picture huh? It's not. It's engine fluid of some sort. The fire department came and sprinkled some stuff on it, so it must have been flammable.


So, also, as well, this happened in February:

Heeeellllooo, 2007 Vue. Sorry for the poor quality, but I took this on my phone. Well, my old phone. More on that later. 

To prove just how insane Bryan and I are, we also got this in February.

Yeah. Two cars, one month. Luckily, our pocketbook survived. 

March came around and... I don't really remember March. All I remember is that I cooked a lot... and it was Kari's birthday. Except that I never bought her a present, because I promised her that I could make her a Shutterfly book of her wedding pictures, but we haven't gotten around to doing that. (HI, KARI!)

April rolled around, and we were ready to look for a house. So, while Bryan worked, I looked at house, after house, after house, and I found one. And we put in an offer. Then it was accepted. And then we were in escrow, and then it was ours. It closed on May 7 and we received the key on May 8. There was a whole lot of running around during this part, but I'm going to write a separate post about it. 

May was our 6-month anniversary. So, we went to Carmel-by-the-Sea and enjoyed a few blissfully quiet days. 

We spent one night in Carmel, and then we took the road above, named Old Coast Road, to Big Sur and spent the night there. It was really a great vacation. Honestly, any vacation that allows me to have lobster is a good vacation. :)

Once we got back to work and to reality, we waited and waited for some paperwork to go through. Finally, at the end of June we moved into my father-in-laws' house which was all kinds of stressful, but soon a little bit of this started happening...

Yep! We got a bunch of construction done on the house. We took down a few walls, put in a new garage door, and put in some brand new carpet. The construction went on from the end of June to the middle of September. It was a ridiculously long process and we think that it was part contractor laziness and part city inspector laziness.

While the construction was going on, however, Bryan got bit by the technological bug, and we bought two of these:

...Which would be why the picture clarity changes so much in-betwixt the photos above. How much do I love that I worked in-betwixt into this post? Lots.

July and August we busy months but I can't really remember anything that happened because well, I have a horrible memory. Have I mentioned that before? Probably. OH. Big news. In July, Bryan and I went to San Diego so we could visit Alison and family, and so Bryan could play at a wedding that Alison's company, One & Only Events was coordinating. (You can also read up on their blog.) When we returned from said trip, my other sister, Kari and her husband Adam had HUGE news. 

That is right! Kari is pregnant. In this picture she was 16 weeks. :) She is due in February and I'm SO EXCITED to have another niece or nephew. I think it's a nephew but we shall see!

On September 18, we finally moved into our house on Birch. Our wonderful, crazy, project house. Now its October and we have a ridiculous month ahead of us. Let's highlight... 

-October 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 - We're having our wood flooring installed in the kitchen, dining area, entryway and hall way. We're also having our house painted!

-October 8 - My 23rd Birthday. Woo-hoo!! 

-October 9 - Birthday get-together at my place and the unveiling of our house. Hopefully I get everything I can organized and straightened! 


-October 10 - Kari and Adam's Gender party. We're all going to find out what they are bringing into this world at the same time! So cool!


-October 25 - Anniversary.... ONE whole year. I honestly can't believe a year has passed. It's unbelievable. We're taking off on a BIG TRIP. More on that later. :)


That is the end of our catching up journey. I'm sure there is a lot that I forgot, but I'll be adding things in and updating after my husband reminds me of all the stuff I forgot. Did I mention I have a horrible memory? 

Lists, Houses and Chipotle

Looking for a home can be frustrating, intimidating and scary. It is the biggest financial investment most people ever make in their life, but it can be a truly satisfying and exciting experience.

Bryan and I are just in the dipping-the-big-toe-to-test-how-cold-the-water-is stage of buying a home. A few months ago when we were frantically trying to find another rental home, we were told about a local grant that gives a loan (with great incentives) to first-time home buyers that meet a specific income. We weren't even thinking about buying a home at that time, but we figured it couldn't hurt.

So, I met with a broker one evening after work armed with all of our personal information. Unfortunately, the news was not good, we weren't qualified. We made "too much" money for a family of two people. I'll never forget, she looked at me hopefully after telling me that we were denied for the grant, "Do you have a child?" I've never seen such disappointment on a strangers face when I said I didn't.

The good news was that we both have good credit and were approved for a loan. GREAT news. So, I filled Bryan in after the meeting and we decided to try to find a home.

After we find me a new car.

After we buy him a new truck.

After we pay off all of our credit cards.

After we start up all of our new insurances and create a new monthly budget.

Finally, all of that is done and we are ready so start looking!

We had plans tonight to go to Guitar Center and Chipotle. I heart Chipotle. It's delicious. Bryan and I always share a burrito now and we sometimes spring for chips and guac. Mmmmmm.. Oh, sorry back to the point of this post.

During our meal I pulled out my handy-dandy notebook that I keep in my purse. I started writing down things that are important to me about a house. Obviously, you can't get everything you have ever dreamed of in your first home. But there are some things you are willing to let go of and some things that you are adamant about.

My list (below) included four items that were important to me, in no specific order.

1. Bathrooms - Are the big enough? Is there at least one tub? Would we have to renovate? Is there potential to expand?

2. Kitchen - Are the cupboards in good condition? Are the appliances older/newer? Is there a gas stove? Is the kitchen roomy enough to actually cook in? Is there enough counter space?

3. Location - Is the property in a nice/safe area? What school district does the house fall in?

4. Fireplace - Does the house have a wood burning or gas insert?

Of course, every one has different priorities when thinking about purchasing a home. But those things are important to me personally and I am obviously not saying the above four things should be on every one's list.

I turned the page to a fresh sheet and hand Bryan the notebook after explaining my list and I say, "Don't be flip. I need to know what is important to you."

Here is a picture of Bryan's list.

Apparently, the only thing Bryan cares about in picking a house is if I am going to be there and if there is a big backyard for his dog.

I definitely have my work cut out for me.

Google Vs. Yahoo

Yahoo:

Why is it always about me?

Google:

Why is it always about you?

Touché, Google. 1:0.

Jonah's EB Auction

Right now, until February 27, you can participate in an auction that benefits the organization DebRA.

DebRA helps families like the Williams Family and the Turnquist Family during some of the hardest moments of their lives.

There are two ways to participate:

1. Go to JonahsEBAuction blog and start bidding on items.

2. Go to Meghann Turnquist's Avon page and buy items you would normally purchase anyways - but this time it goes to a very special charity.

Actually, there are three ways! You can always go directly to debRA.org to submit a donation and rest assured, you are donating to an a charity that provides assistance to families that are hit with a genetic disease that no one really knows about, they are searching for a cure, and they provide hospitals with knowledge of how to treat EB babies.

THANKS!

In Honor of Valentines...

Valentine's Day.

Where do I even start?

As trite as it sounds, I love love. Love is one of the most powerful emotions the creatures on earth experience. You have love between spouses, love between parents and their children, love between two children, and love is even so powerful it can be experienced between humans and animals.

I do not, however, love Valentine's day. I feel like a lot of men love Valentine's day because it can be their "catch-all" day. I would guess that for most of the other 364 days men don't pay attention to the romantic needs of their prospective wives and girlfriends. They don't woo their women after they have sealed the deal and they use Valentine's day as a way to go all out for their partners.

Which frankly, sucks.

I'm sure a lot of women say they hate February 14 on a rule, because if they set their sights low, the man they are dating could just take them out to dinner at McDonald's and it would be an improvement. But then again, a lot of women might REALLY look forward to it because they know it is the ONE DAY that their man might do something really spectacular and that falling-in-love feeling comes back for a moment, oozes into the next few days and then finally tapers away.

And lets not forget, some men might use Valentine's day to make up all the time they spent thinking about and watching football, and then also having three or four different fantasy football leagues to attend to. So, they do something sweet for all the time their wives wasted on making dip and grabbing them chips from the pantry.

Sigh. How sad. All of those versions up there just make my heart ache.

As much as I can see why the idea of having a day to honor love could be admirable; To actually sit down and think about where you would be without the love of your family and friends. To take a step back and just remember the feelings you felt for your man or woman when loved stopped being a flutter in your stomach and became more of a choice and commitment. It seems like a good idea, in theory. In practice? I don't know. I'm not convinced yet. I feel like there is just not enough expressions of love during the rest of the year.

Now, just for the sake of saying it, expressions of love don't have to be over the top and costly. When my husband takes out the trash without me having to ask, that is a huge expression of love. When he feeds our dogs every day like clock work, its an expression of love. Even when he carts off to work to provide for our life together, that is an expression of love. And most days, I have to remind myself to take a moment to THINK about it. To remember that doing the tedious things we do for each other is a very important expression of love.

But there also has to be more than that. A man should court his wife every day. He should give her devoted attention and he should flirt with her and woo her just like he would if he was still trying to spark up a relationship with her. He should do things on a weekly or biweekly basis, like write her love notes and/or leave a flower on his pillow if he leaves before her in the morning. It should be a constant. Romance is so absolutely and completely necessary in a relationship.

Such simple things can be done to keep it alive. Maybe Valentine's day has killed the meaning of romance. Romance doesn't have to be a grand gesture. It doesn't have to be running through a town in Italy to stop her from marrying someone else. It certainly doesn't have to be thousands of dollars worth of jewelry. That is not what it needs or has to be. Its small things. Small continual moments, running after her out the door to give her just one last kiss, surprising her with a cup of coffee and the book she's obsessed with on a Saturday morning. It's running her a bath at the end of a rough day. Such simple, non-monetary expressions of love that will keep her eyes only on you.

That is what love is all about... Well, at least to me.

What I DO love about Valentine's day is kind of specific to my job. Its so cute to get a couple of students in the office that hand out Valentine's day cards, looking so sweet and giving. They get so excited when they hand their special card to you.

Two days ago two little girls, of Kindergarten age, came in and one handed us each a book-marker and the other handed us a valentine. When I said thank you and they moved on, I looked at them both more closely.

The second little girl, Lainee, gave a Valentine's day card that was a jumbled puzzle! And each piece was a sticker, which you would peel off and stick to the other side, in the appropriate numbered box.

This is the front, almost halfway through the Valentine card.

This is the back! So far so good!


Ta-DA! So cute. Its a PUG. And its kind of awesome because I have... or had a pug. My dad kind of adopted her! :)


On other love-related news, its February 12. It would be my Mom and Dad's anniversary. And even though they don't celebrate it, us girls still do. It's still a part of our history. The best thing my Mom and Dad ever did was have us girls... for me, specifically Alie and Kari. I'm so happy that when I was little I had annoying big sisters to pick on me and be there for me. Now, I'm even happier that my big sisters are my best friends.

Always,