Long time, no blog.

Ok, so once again, it's been a while.

Here's my excuse: We hosted 10 people and 2 dogs at our home for Thanksgiving. I am still recovering.

I'm happy to report that feeding 12 people for 5 days went very smoothly, and Thanksgiving dinner was especially fabulous. My dad did have to borrow/steal/later return 2 chairs from the hotel he and mom were staying at as we only had 10 seats. Having family around was, honestly, a zoo (add in 3 nutty dogs) - but it was really special to have everyone travel from so far to spend time at our new home.

My favorite get-ready-your-family-is-coming-to-town project was my Wedding Shrine. I had a few (ok, way more than a few) wedding photos printed and I splurged at Kohls (a store I hate with great passion, but their frames were buy 1 get one free...) However, I cannot take credit for my hanging technique which is seriously the best idea ever. EVER. I think it came from the Home Goods blog... but I was so excited about thier genius plan that I never bookmarked to noted where this came from. Forgive me. See genius below:

You will need a bunch of frames, photos of your fab self, a pencil, butcher paper or wrapping paper, hammer, nails, and possibly a level.

1. Lay butcher or wrapping paper on a table and arrange frames in your desired collage mish-mosh fashion.
2. Trace each frame onto the paper.
3. Measure the back of the frames and note where the hook-ie thing is... and let X mark the spot on the paper.
4. Tape paper to the wall, and hammer nails directly through the paper.
5. Tear down paper and hang your frames! Ta-Da!!
Please excuse the blurry photo - maybe including my beauty queen puppy, Lola, will make up for the bad photo.

Isn't that a hanging technique such a good idea?? I can't tell you how many times I've nailed 27 "whoops" nails into a wall while trying to achieve the perfect collage. Hope some of you can use this sometime too!

No more pink tights?

As of Saturday, I am no longer a ballerina. When I gave my 35-day notice, November 8th sounded so far away... and before I knew it I was saying goodbye to my "babies" (who actually are not babies but definitely teenagers, and I am very bonded with these girls.) But I will save the super-sappy post about my love of ballet, teaching, movement, choreographing blah blah blah for another day. The good news is that today is the first Monday since August that I do not have to drive an hour and 20 minutes to go to work! Hallelujah, praise my sweet Jesus! It is also the first time in about 22 years that I'm not putting on a pair of pink tights and pinning my hair into a bun - which is seriously weird and I will most likely have a breakdown.

Back to the good news: I'm going to make an actual dinner at a reasonable hour tonight, a weeknight! And I couldn't be more excited. I've accepted a pretty sweet opportunity at a huge-o fitness facility in our little town and Mr. Gym (boss man) asked me to come in and set up my office on Wednesday - and he's going to pay me for my time! Imagine that, a job that actually pays someone for their work... I will NOT miss working for a non-profit. Ever.

So today, on my glorious day off before I begin my new journey into the world of gym rats, I am drinking coffee, snuggled with my puppy on the couch, crushing on these adorable plates at Anthropologie. Not for food, my friends, but for my empty walls. Take my favorite collection: Lisa Congdon's wall o' plates in her SanFran apartment, as featured by my favorite Design*Sponge.


I love it. Husband does not. You can see more of Lisa's place here.

And so begins my new adventure into lots of pilates and lots more free time...!

"So when are you due?"

I've had an OBGYN appointment on the calendar today for quite some time - my doctor must be in high demand because it is nearly impossible to get an appointment with her. So I arrive at 9:45 for my 10 a.m. appointment, fill out new paperwork with my big-girl Mrs. name on it, and tell receptionist I've moved from Memphis to Jackson. I find a seat and diligently fill out the forms, trying to remember Husbands SSN (without luck). And then, it begins...

Just for a visual, I'll describe the ensemble that was seated next to me:

• Acid washed jean cut-offs... so terribly short she was nearly showing her no-no parts to everyone in the waiting area
  
• Black suede clogs paired with a smashing set of black socks, hiked up mid-calf
• Fleece zip up that looked strikingly similar to this:
• Oh, I almost forgot the red lace camisole underneath, which quite possibly doubles as lingerie

And because everyone wants to talk before their lovely appointment with their gyno, she struck up a convo. Let's call her Wolf Woman.

Wolf Woman: So you live in Jackson? (*be sure to use your best Red accent while reading*)
Me: Yep... (pretends to read magazine)
WW: Have you ever been to the fairgrounds?
Me: Nope, I have not.
WW: Well I'm going this weekend, can you tell me how to get to the fairgrounds?
Me: Sorry, just moved there... I don't know my way around very well.
WW: I'm going to the gun show this weekend. Are you and the Mr. going too?
Me: Most definitely not.
WW: It's the best one around! Ya'll should totally be there. Best deals in on rifles, shot guns, EVERYTHING!

SILENCE.

WW: So, when are you due?
Me: Excuse me?
WW: When are you poppin' that baby out?
Me: Uhhh I'm not pregnant.
WW: You sure?

SILENCE again.

Seriously? This lady was for real. FOR REAL. Let me just say that I am 5'4'' and on a bad day I weigh 128 pounds. I do not, in any way, look pregnant. Or so I thought.

Oh, but there is more.

WW: Well I've been a'waitin for my doctor lady for 2 hours. I've got some "things" on my "area" she said she's gonna fry off. I just hope this procedure ain't gonna hurt none.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is a direct quote. And also when I nearly vomitted. She even used air quotes when "things" and "area" were said.

On a happier note, I have 2 more days of work left... and then I might be able to breathe.

On a not so happy note, I have one word: Election. But I will keep my comments to myself as I'm sure everyone is tired to hearing about it.

On a fat note, I'm going to drag my pusdo-pregnant belly to the gym ASAP.

Obsessed...

...with Design*Sponge sneak peeks. I seriously can't get enough - if only Husband would approve of my favorite rooms... it's going to take some convincing.

I'm planning on creating a wall, similar to below, in what we like to call our "nook" - technically it is a "dining area" but it makes zero sense when used as one - and currently we do not have any friends to actually dine with in said area... we're losers.


This shelf/cute B&Ws and white accessories are part of my potential plan for our weird bedroom situation...
p.s. last day countdown: 11 days

Freedom is coming.

Master not so masterful...

I love our home, but the master bedroom is driving me crazy. The problem? The lonely, single window located in the corner of the room. It is totally asymmetrical and is seriously throwing me off. I love asymmetry in almost everything else... but this is just a p-r-o-b-l-e-m. I personally think we should play-up the asymmetry... HGTV suggests creating a "fake window" to balance the other side of the room - but I think I'll pass on the faux window. Gross. Husband is clueless and trusting my judgement. Anyway, here is our Brown Beauty - she leaves a bit to be desired.


Because we seem to have a surplus of Ikea shelves, I thought maybe we could do something like this: (please excuse my less-than-stellar photoshopping)

Toss a couple accessories on the shelf and what do you think? (Yes, I did photoshoped in the painting I just purchased on eBay. Hope you approve!) We could also lose the shelf and just hang the painting... Any opinions? Does anyone even read this?? I'm also trying to distract from the fact that nearly everything in the room is from Ikea. (We added the hardware to the dressers and nightstands and it made a huge difference). I'm not crazy about the chocolate walls, but they came with Husband as-is. We've got plenty of other rooms in need of paint before we tackle this room.

Is anyone out there? Help!

j.crew love

A little nugget of joy appeared in my mailbox the other day... the new J.Crew catalog! It is safe to say that I'm totally obsessed. And if I didn't have to talk about my wedding in the past tense, I would totally be ordering these dresses for my fine bridesmaids:



Can't go wrong with a wrap dress - and the ruffle is too cute. I'm in love.

Anyway, my current projects consist of trying to get our home to look like and Etsy-ish version of Pottery Barn, but on an Ikea budget. So far I'm having some mild success. Lucky for me, Husband already had purchased his home before we met and it's adorable. It wasn't the worst bachelor pad ever - no posters hanging up or anything - but he does seem to have a love affair with these damn Ikea shelves:

They are everywhere. On every wall. In every room. And I really and truly do not have anything left to put on them. I'm gently trying to coax him into the idea that we don't need a shelf on every empty wall... They might slowly disappear while he is away at work over the next few weeks...

I've been reading Making it Lovely and Decor8 for serious help as to what to do with our empty walls (and shelves.) Decor8 has been a huge tool in finding new Etsy sellers - I could spend hours (not that I have...) on Etsy looking for, well, anything, but seeing these featured artists has been really wonderful.

I'll post pictures of my latest "Design Challenge" in our home later - check back soon! (I need all the help I can get with this one...)

In about 15 minutes I'm going to give my 30-day notice to my boss and I'm thinking that I could really use a Xanax right about now. I'm anticipating some strong words and quite possibly fire shooting out of her nostrils. However, I did buy myself a You're Finally Quitting Your Job present... a super cute new bag!

On a much less stressful note, as of November 8th I will actually be able to spend time with Husband, finish knitting project from last winter, decorate our home, and maybe even take my new sewing machine out of the box! Speaking of decorating, classic bride posted this adorable fall decor pic that I am totally loving:


Ok... guess I really have to do this now. No more procrastination. Wish me luck.