Christmas and such

I can't believe Christmas has already flown by! I think it goes by faster and faster each year.

  Evan and I opened our stockings a couple of days before the festivities.  It was especially meaningful since this is the first Christmas in our new home. We have baked to our hearts desire, listened to old records, and danced a lot in this house already.

We spent a lot of time with family these past few days.  I will be the first to say that we didn't quite get to all of our 12 dates, but there's always next year!  Christmas Eve was spent with his family. Elton got an entire stocking to open!

We spent the night at my parent's house where we opened our annual Christmas pajamas. They were red with white pom pom trim this year. So cute! 

After presents on Christmas morning it was Christmas lunch at Evan's house.  The evening was spent in Joplin at my aunt and uncle's house.  There was an extra creative ugly Christmas sweater contest this year.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas.  I am looking forward to ringing in the new year, but I sure am going to miss this year quite a bit.

Orange Crush

One of my goals over break is to work on our bedroom.  It's a large space so it's a little daunting.  I want to keep the room feeling modern but still playful at the same time.  Orange has been on my mind a lot!

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I love the more creamy oranges.  It makes me instantly happy and it's not too girly for the mister. I remind him from time to time he should be happy that I don't make him sleep in a pink bedroom!

I finished my last final today and was over the moon about it. I woke Evan up (who wasn't too happy) and we picked our date which was "take Elton to the park."

It was cold. Geese are also hateful animals. But we had fun.

Elton enjoyed himself too. 

It feels great to be done with school for this semester. I love interior design, but I am ready to enjoy a much needed break from studying. I keep thinking of things I want to do right before I go to sleep and it is driving me crazy! Does this ever happen to you? I think I need to keep a pen and notepad on my nightstand! 

Hope everyone has a wonderful day! For those who are finally on break have extra fun!

12 Dates of Christmas

I saw this idea here and here and loved it.  Christmas can get so busy that it gets hard to spend time with the mister.  We both wrote 6 date ideas down and put them in an envelope to draw daily until Christmas.  Some of them are a little more low key for the week days (like make and decorate sugar cookies) and then others are for the weekends (go ice skating).  Each day we will be able to really enjoy each other during the holidays! So...

On the first date of Christmas we ate 99 cent tacos!

Our friend Seth showed us this little place and I think we are in love.  After dinner we stopped at The Cup before I had to take a final. 

After my final we ended the date at Jordan Valley where we walked around and looked at all the Christmas lights.

It was a lot of fun and we are definitely looking forward to the dates to come!

Collect : Horse Ribbons

When I was a little girl I always wanted to be a cowgirl with my very own horse.  I would wear white cowboy boots and watch Black Beauty like crazy.  I also dressed like a Dalmatian for a year straight, but that is a different story for a different day...

I think I started this collection because I still secretly want a horse.  They are also really pretty.

I have found a couple on ebay and then some at one of my favorite antique places. 

They are fun to use for parties or you can display them on a picture.  I currently put them on the backs of my dining chairs.  It's kind of fun to think of each guest as a prize. Or as Charlie Sheen would say "winners!" 

I also thought it would be fun to make a wreath out of them for our front door. 

I may not ever own a horse, but I sure can pretend like I did!

Around here

The holidays are in full swing around here. It's getting colder which means we are hiding under blankets for the most part. I am looking forward to Christmas break. I can't wait to have a little spare time away from school to get some things done around the house! Here's whats been going on according to my iPhone.

Tomorrow Evan and my dad are going to pick up an awesome couch my parents got us for Christmas. It is perfect for our bedroom and I am so excited to start making it feel more cozy!

First Annual Pie Social

Last Saturday, Evan and I hosted our first annual pie social. We thought it would be fun to have all of our friends come over, bring a pie, and enjoy each other's company before the holidays kick into full gear.

I have never seen so much pie!

By the end of the night there were pies everywhere!

Kate's strawberry rhubarb pie, Lyndi's pecan pie, and Keeley's apple pie. I made a coconut cream pie, which was the first pie I've ever made. It was an adventure to say the least!

There was lots of laughing, pie, snuggling baby Charlotte, coffee, and over excited puppies to make it the perfect Saturday evening.

I am so thankful for these crazy people who are my friends, for a new cozy home to share, and my wonderful family. 

Tonight there are pies to be made again. Hope everyone has the best Thanksgiving.

The Swing of Things

I am happy to report that Evan is home safe and sound. This weekend we did a little bit of shopping, saw baby Charlotte, and got tasty cupcakes at The Cup.  It feels good to have him back.  I think Elton would agree.

Hope you had a wonderful weekend!

Two months

I pick up Evan this Thursday from Illinois and I am over the moon! I can't believe it will have been 2 months since we last saw each other.  I guess one would say our marriage isn't a "normal" marriage, but what is normal?  Having a husband who tours for a living is extremely hard.  There are some downfalls. (time zones, horrible reception, our crazy schedules...) At the same time, it is the best feeling in the world when I see that bearded face for the first time after he has been on the road. I always buy a new dress for the occasion and then plan 1,000 activities for us to do. He is home for the rest of the year, but we have some serious catching up to do!

A typical Friday night date.

A girl's getaway

At the end of September my sister, mom, and aunt went to Kentucky to visit my other aunt who lives there. It is the ultimate girls weekend, jampacked with tag sales, amish farms, and chocolate pies. 

This year we were able to tour a huge tobacco farm. After the tobacco is cut it is hung in a barn and then fired. The smoke is so intense you can barely stand it! We also rode in a huge combine. 

We had the the truck packed down with pumpkins, mums, and some amazing vintage finds. It is the best way to celebrate fall.

Diagnosing myself

Here's a secret...Ready?

I. love. gray

Every room in my house is a different color of gray. Ask Evan how many times a day I tell him I want a gray sofa.  I was in the fabric store today and I was this close to buying gray chevron fabric to recover a chair. I've got the sickness. If I fed into my addiction too much then my house would feel like there wasn't any depth or richness to it. I guess it would just be um gray?

Case and point. Gray tights and gray cardigan.

This is why I love the show Secrets from a Stylist. Emily decorates in "layers." First, she has the client go through a series of tests to determine their "style" and then diagnoses them.  The diagnosis names are always clever, something like Manchic industrial. She is hilarious and too cute and I love the concept of the show.

As of lately I have been attempting to layer my own home. Since I don't have Emily knocking on my anytime soon I have tried to diagnose myself. Basically I just looked at images from my inspiration folders and then picked out similarities and differences. .

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So this is what I've noticed. I am a modern girl at heart. I like white/gray with clean lines and a pop of color. BUT I love antique elements like iron, oil paintings, and chandeliers. I like a little bit of nature too, such as rough woods and antlers.  So what is my diagnostic? Rustic Moderntique. That's the best I've got guys. If you have any other names send em my way.

Now that I've diagnosed myself I am trying to layer my house accordingly.  I have the modern part down, and now I am looking for things to layer with, like great wood pieces and oil paintings. So far I've found this guy. (please forgive the picture, it was just a quick snap.)

It's actually pretty fun to diagnose yourself. Plus it gives you things to hunt for if you are into thrifting. I will keep you guys posted on how my little journey goes. How would you diagnose yourself?