july porch

my goal for mid july is to have our porch finished. this will include:

*retro glider
*lots of throw pillows
*hanging lights
*vintage radio (from brookie)
*tv trays so we can eat breakfast, lunch and dinner
*coffee table/ottoman

some throw pillows I found that I love:



I found a rocker on ebay that I am thinking about. it would need to be sanded and painted cream. I think I just want 1 chair because I don't want the porch to be too crowded:


I love the indiana summers!

check out this kitchen

yesterday I stumbled upon rare and beautiful treasures blog. it is awesome. she has a really great decorating style. she featured a $10 kitchen makeover. check out what some paint can do!

BEFORE:



AFTER:




how amazing is that?!

fun sunday

today was a really good and fun day for me. I started off this morning by visiting target and stocking up the fridge


I washed all the produce and cut it so it is ready to eat. then I made homemade granola


homemade croutons


and lasagna for dinner


bry brought home the lovely flowers. that always makes my day even better. after dinner, we went outside because it is beautiful here and laid in the hammock. I perfected my nap.

happy sunday!

the 1952 toaster

while in ohio, we visited bry's other grandmother too. bry kept saying, wait until you see her toaster. it is spotless, he said. so we arrived to her house and bry asked that she show me her toaster. she got it out and I made her pose for a picture


it is not just any toaster. she has had it since 1952 and received it at her bridal shower. I think it is so neat that she has had it that long and it looks BRAND new! I found this ad from when that very same toaster came out


it sold for $22.50 in 1949

friday babies!

ohio 2009

bry's mom was visiting us this past week. over the past few days, we drove to ohio to visit bry's grandmother. oh my gosh, what fun. I am so lucky to be able to say that!! I had never been there before and was so excited to see his "granny's" house because it is OLD. probably 1895-1905. check out her porch.




I'm on the mission to find a glider. as you can see, it is so comfortable


his granny showed us all around the town. she's lived there her entire life. it was really neat. we had breakfast from a local landmark



her house felt like a bed and breakfast





she even gave me a foot massage before bed. really love her. and she played the piano for us in the afternoon. she is just the sweetest.


and took us on a tour of an historic neighborhood





and to a local ice cream parlor in the evening



I can't wait to go back!

love love

look at this face


and this sweet girl (she is going to be 4 soon!)


and this dessert we had at our family cookout this weekend


it is called "striped delight". super easy to make. here's the recipe:

crust:
1 1/2 graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup butter
1/4 cup sugar
-combine and press firmly to the bottom of a 9x13 pan

middle:
1/3 cup sugar
1 package cream cheese
4 ounces of cool whip
-mix until smooth. top graham cracker crust

next layer:
3 boxes of instant pudding-2 chocolate, 1 vanilla
4 cups of cold milk
-mix until it is thick enough (like pudding)
-layer on top of crust & cream cheese layer and chill for several hours or overnight

topping:
before serving add 4 more ounces of cool whip to the top.

am I a teeny bopper?

this is my new favorite song



I am not really even a fan of hers
but this song makes me happy and want to dance.

office chair

I have been thinking of ways to decorate my office once I have my new desk. I want an "island" type work area so stools will be on one side of the desk. probably like this

in the other area of the office, I want to have a sitting area with some comfy chairs and a side table inbetween. I found this chair on target today and LOVE it. great price too. $169

special video

grab a kleenex (or a box)

craving

I really want this material for some baby bedding


and some vintage stuffed animals for the window
from a local antique store


and this cute shade


dreaming. hoping. praying.

welcome home

bry arrives in about an hour. I spent saturday evening rearranging this house. it didn't feel homey yet and my goal was to make it just that by the time he came home. here is a tour of our home.

our bedroom. I moved a rug here, lamps and lots of pictures.
so nice in here now!




our bathroom. I added a shower curtain for some color and FINALLY hung my simple wall vases. I love this space now.




elsa's room/guest room/baby room. I rearranged this room. and I have more curtains they just aren't here yet! I love the simplicity of this room.



hallway. I added these picture frames I've had since 2004. still need pictures!


landing. I added this bench and picture we already had. I love this picture. my grandma made it


our family room. nothing was done in here. I still need to take the sheer drapes down and add the linen curtain we purchased. soon!



the dining room. LOVE this room now. I added mini chairs I've had for years and frames. I still need to add pictures to them and add a curtain but this room feels so homey now. let's eat!


added this entry rug made of jute. sophie approves.


one side of our kitchen. I framed these pictures. I love the color it adds.


half bath. I moved this rug from our room. I have one more idea for this area to make it feel more like a room....


laundry room. I moved this dresser, chair, picture and accessories so this space felt more like a room. I LOVE this area now.


bry's side in the basement. I added this rug and some pillows for his couch.



we are really lucky to have such a beautiful home to rent. I love this place!

i want these

but not for house shoes, for real shoes.


TDF

bye bry

bry leaves for florida in less than 9 hours. I'm going to miss him. I am really happy he is going though. I bought him the ticket as a surprise but that only lasted 2 days and I HAD to tell him. he deserves it--time to sit and be with his friends, go to games and sit around the poolside all day. I'll miss this face:


he is so funny. he makes me laugh every day. one of my favorite lines that he recently said was just last week. we were at the doctor's office and they were explaining how the fertility medicine I will be taking works. the doctor explained that if I had more than 5 good eggs (sorry if this is TMI for some readers) that they would not proceed with the next fertility step. I said, "WHY?!?!?!?!" bry looked at me, looked at the doctor and again at me and said, "because we are trying to have a baby, not a tv show."

I love that guy.

have fun bry, and when you get back, I will have a whole house full of surprises, I promise you that!

picture it

indianapolis 1997. I was riding my bike to school and crossing an intersection. and then.
I got hit by a car. I flew off my bike. the song that came to my mind was from r kelly,
"I believe I can fly. I believe I can touch the sky. spread my wings and fly away. I believe I can soar..."
I called my cousin from the er to tell him what had happened and he broke out into the song from chumbawumba
"I get knocked down but I get up again, if you ever gonna keep me down, I get knocked down but I get up again..."

it made that moment memorable forever in my mind.
fast forward to indianapolis 2009. I am wheeled into surgery on monday


I am waiting for the drugs to knock me out as the music is blaring and this is what I hear by leona lewis, "....you cut me open and I keep bleeding, I keep keep keep bleeding l.....ooo....vvv...eee". I'm out...

if you don't know these songs by the written lyrics, listen for them on my playlist!

more pictures

need I say more about jenna?





she is SO good! AND she is going to be in indy in a few weeks to capture me, bry and our dogs! I CAN'T WAIT! I bought this jacket for one of the photos:


I showed it to bry and he said, "that is so my wife."

weekend recap

this weekend was pretty eventful for me.

thursday, I had some snuggle time with elsa


on friday, I made homemade strawberry jam


saturday I attended our neighborhood's annual neighborhood yard sale.
they had food stands:


lots of people


live music



more food stands


I had the BEST lemonade of my life


loved going into people's yards to see their houses up close


there are several of these fountains throughout our neighborhood. this one just shows where sophie runs when she gets out of her harness


more great homes


later that evening, I attempted to make that very same lemonade


red beans and rice


and peach cobbler for dessert



note there is no finished peach cobbler
picture because, as usual, I burned it.

happy weekend!

work table in progress

this is REALLY exciting news to share (at least for me!). my dad called last night and told me he had been thinking and that he wanted to make my work desk for me! not only will this make my work area REALLY special but I know he will do exactly as I have envisioned.
the dimensions: 36 high, 48 wide by 60 long. this will be massive but it will store all of my packaging supplies (equipped with my kraft paper roll on one end and the ribbon roll on the other), shelves on the backside, a place to store my cpu, printer with a pull-out tray. on the top, he is going to make holes for all of the wires so everything is very neat.
and my favorite part, if anyone knows me, they know my love for bead board. this desk will be made of pure bead board!


this is our old bathroom from our townhome. one day when bry was at work, I tore out the vanity, attempted to lay tile and hang this bead board. needless to say, we had to call a professional to finish the job.

what took me so long?

this is one of my best purchases EVER


a rice cooker. it makes making brown rice simple!

i LOVE this bed

it is way too much but I LOVE it

latest addictions

I've noticed lately I have been doing the same things this week. these are my latest addictions:
- 100,000 pyramid
-jimmy johns
-afternoon naps
-gas station coffee with flavored creamer
-my new white jeans
-mcdonalds iced coffee
-antique stores
-yats

productive things I want to be addicted to next week:
-preparing 2 new recipes
-cleaning out the guest room closet
-hanging pictures in the dining room
-making homemade bread
-putting the finishing touches on the master
-perfecting a nap in the hammock

sweet babies

i heart my customers.

found

contenders:

this one has an outlet. love the drawers and that it is red and very, very worn. I think it is really small though


this one is more industrial and it has a formica top. the metal would match my shelves that I store all of my garments. it doesn't have drawers though


my dream is to one day have an office above our garage in a carriage house.

i miss

my work desk


I didn't bring this from florida because
1. it was SO heavy. I had no idea how we would get it in our new house without scratching something
2. it wasn't deep enough
3. I wanted a two-sided desk

but now that we are in indy I changed my packaging to those UGLY white tyvek envelopes. it requires a lot less room for packaging since I am not creating an envelope out of kraft paper. that desk would be perfect now. it is sitting in our garage in florida. I wonder if bry will rent a truck and bring that up for me when he is down visiting in a few weeks!

almost in

seriously how cute?
I can't wait until the new site is finished and these will be for sale


and gift sets!

"Wish u were here"

today I received an EMAIL from bry titled "Wish u were here". I can count on two hands how many times he has EVER sent an email. he lives in the 1980's when it comes to technology (except for itunes) and I really don't get how he functions. so when I received this email AND a picture, I thought I'd share.


how cute is he?

new finds

I love the summer. it has been especially nice living in a new city and enjoying the weather. I feel the urge to get out and do things since this weather is not year round like in florida (except that it is HOT in florida most of the year and not breezy OR fun). I always feel a need to change pillows, bedding and rugs during the seasons. these are my finds and wants for this summer:





maybe I should inquire about a pt job at pb so I can get 40% off!