Weekend plans.

This weekend I plan to channel my inner Martha Stewart a bit. 5 things I'll be doing:

1. Bake/cook. The weather is finally cooling down, and I'm ready to fire up my oven. I'll be making some cookies for the husband to take on the road next week, and I also plan on dusting off the crockpot for some good ol' comfort food- taco soup.
   
2. Craft. I'm going to finish up the invites for my sister in law's baby shower. They are coming along really well and are so adorable! I'm going to try and put one together and show you guys the end result on Monday.
   
3. Gardening. Just some minor tidying in the garden- weed pulling, dead-heading and some trimming.
4. Meal planning. Following Meredith's lead, I want to start planning 3 meals (on Sunday evenings) for the upcoming weeknights. It's a great way to save money at the grocery store, and gone will be the days when we stand in front of the freezer at 6pm, complaining that there's nothing to eat for dinner.
5. Cleaning. I worked a few days this last week and you can definitely tell that cleaning took the backseat. We're talking overflowing trash, toys everywhere, and laundry piled so high that it wouldn't surprise me if there were 8-legged creatures lurking in them.

That's it! I'm off to get a head start. Anyone else have any cool weekend plans?

Snippets since the last time I blogged.

This post has been sitting as a draft for 6 days. The title has changed from "snippets from the week" to "snippets from the weekend" to "snippets since the last time I blogged". It's one of those posts where I think I was waiting for something funny or interesting to tell you all about. Sorry, peeps. I'm here to tell you that that didn't happen.

I finished the monkey artwork for Amy's nursery last week:

I sent them to her and she just informed me that she got them and loved them! I received so many sweet comments on them, and there were several that were even interested in ordering them. I've made prints and and they're available to be ordered! Also, now that I've got them digital, I have the ability to change the background color to work for a different nursery. I've debated opening up a little Etsy shop, but I think I'm going to hold off for the time being. However, if anyone is interested, I'd be more than happy to create some custom artwork- just ask!

I've been in the mood to do some major landscaping and tree planting around the house lately, but since we plan on moving in the next year or so, we've agreed that we really don't want to put much more into the house (inside and out) that we won't see a return on. We've already got great curb appeal, we'd just be adding more because we're tree loving freaks. (Not to be confused with those tree hugger-type freaks.) Anywho, I'm loving the look of potted trees these days, so I went out in search of a cute little tree that I could spruce up the back porch with. The nice thing is, we can take it right along with us when we get a new address, and it will go into the ground when it outgrows the pot.


In related news and to further prove that we're tree nerds, we've started growing these little cottonwood beauties indoors. We have 2 large cotton wood trees growing in our yard, and are apparently spreading some babies all over the rest of the yard. These little things never have the chance to grow, because they get hacked by the mower every week. We uprooted a few of them out of the ground to see if we can get them to survive over the winter, and then we'll replant them into something bigger if they do.
update: in the six days that this post has been sitting as a draft, these little trees are alive and well and have grown a little over an inch!

I need this. It's only natural.

One of my favorite decor inspiration blogs is Adventures in renovating a Brooklyn Limestone. It doesn't take much scrolling through her blog to realize she has an amazing little spot, and such fabulous taste in decor. Given the new cookie cutter house I live in that has absolutely NO architectural details whatsoever, it's no wonder I find myself drooling over her giant baseboards, crown moldings and stunning windows.
Anywho, one of my favorite rooms in her home is her office.
I love everything about it (how bold is that rug? What a statement!), but what particularly caught my eye was that fabulous, shiny steel desk from Ikea. In our office, we have a heavy, steel desk that was custom made by Jon's cousin. In short, if our desk was a male, that desk from Ikea would be its female counterpart. They'd live happily ever after. So, isn't it only natural that I introduce them? I do believe so.Jon's desk, above. Don't mind the mess on the floor. Or the picture frames that are still empty. Or the wall color that closely resembles that of Oscar the Grouch. It really doesn't look like that!

I've been needing my own workspace for awhile. Can you see how great they would look together? Unfortunately, the Ikea big-wigs haven't put a store in Kansas, the nearest location is about 5 hours away in Dallas. My brother and sister in law mentioned they we're going to Dallas at the end of the month, and specifically said they were stopping at Ikea in search for some baby gear. So, isn't it only natural that I have them bring this desk back for me? I do believe so.
Be sure to check out the details in the rest of her office! Trust me, your jaws will drop.

Snippets.

By now you know I've always got a slew of projects going on at any given time around my house. Here's a little sneak at one I'm currently working on:
Nursery artwork for a girl from The Nest who requested monkeys. I am absolutely loving how these are coming along! After I complete these and ship them off to her, I have baby shower invites to do for my sister in law, and also wedding invites for my friend, both of which I want to have completed before we leave for Washington next month. It's shaping up to be a busy month for me!

A few days ago we went to a wildlife park where you can feed and pet almost all the animals. We all loved it! It was such a treat away from a regular zoo; at every station there were knowledgeable staff who knew everything about each of the animals. It was really neat! Among my favorites were the lemurs, zebras (couldn't pet these!), kangaroos, and all the tiny baby leopards that they had in the nurseries.




I'm so glad summer is almost over. I'm ready for Sunday football, apple spice cookie bars, crisp, cool weather, and the return of Desperate Housewives. A trip to the pumpkin patch. Hair that doesn't resemble an afro. Our first family trip! Starbucks seasonal billion-calorie drinks. I love fall!

Saturday we snuck out for a date and saw The Perfect Getaway. We wanted to see it mainly because it took place on the island of Kauai, where we went on our honeymoon.
It's a thriller movie and is shot along Kauai's arduous 11 mile Kalaulau trail to the NaPali coastline. I thought the movie was good, and definitely had an unexpected ending. Despite the murders that take place, that 22 mile (round trip) hike is still on my Bucket List (my to-do list before I kick the bucket).
Anyone have a bucket list? What's on it?

Chalk it up, folks.

I've been wanting a chalkboard in our house for quite some time now. I blogged about it here, and after seeing Holly's chalkboard, and Jessica's chalkboard, I decided that if everyone else was doing it, I certainly was jumping on the bandwagon too.
I had a long, narrow piece of a board sitting in the garage leftover from my map project that I thought would be perfect for a chalkboard. I decided that I wasn't going to make this a fancy-shmancy project by putting trim around it to give it a frame- I didn't have the time or patience for all that! I painted a couple coats of chalkboard paint, and it was finished and ready to hang. Easiest DIY project ever. After writing on it though, I noticed that I had a pile of chalk dust accumulating on the kitchen floor below. I can see it now: Cameron licks chalk dust off the floor. Delicious, no? I remembered I had some curved trim leftover from a previous project that would be perfect to catch the falling chalk dust while holding the chalk too. I cut it to size and slapped it on with some liquid nails and presto! a chalkboard with a mini-tray is born.


It fits perfectly on the previously blank wall space by the fridge in our kitchen, and is a great place to write quick notes, reminders, and grocery items. And just a forewarning for those considering buying chalkboard paint: it's fun and addicting. I've spent the past few days looking around the house for items that I can chalkboard-ize. I've got over half the can of paint left and no surface is safe from potentially being turned into a chalkboard! =)

Cameron-8 months!

It seems like everywhere I turn I am constantly reminded of how fast Cameron is growing up. Most of our baby food purchases (Gerber purees & snacks) have developmental stages on the back indicating when your child might be ready for certain foods. The next stage for us: toddler. Holy crap. I've also been purchasing some clothes for him for fall/winter and find myself debating whether to buy 12 month or 18 month sizes. I remember seeing those sizes while looking at all the cute newborn clothes and thinking it would be a LONG time before he would be wearing them. Yeah, we're pretty much there.
Anywho, I'll stop talking and get to the good stuff!







I love this baby boy. He melts my heart.

Booked!

We're going to Washington next month! We've been talking about going for 5 years- Jon grew up there (as well as Alaska and Oregon) and is always talking about how beautiful it is. I've never been to the northwest and I've been begging him to take me and show me his old stomping grounds. So today, we went ahead and booked our first family vacation! The best parts:

1. We paid for our airline tickets with points we've accumulated on Jon's business credit cards- so we didn't have to spend a dime!
2. We still have over half of our points left to use for another trip.
3. We're staying with Jon's sister- so no lodging costs. And, we're not tied to a hotel room for the night when Cam hits the sack.
4. I'll be going here...
5. And here...
6. And spending time here...
7. And seeing this...

I'm so excited, but I have to say I'm a little apprehensive about flying with a baby. I'm sure he'll be fine though and we can't wait. Time to put another pin in the map!