Work Brain: Power Up

Well, I accidentally took a week off of blogging.  It was actually a nice little break, considering all of the family gatherings and general busy-ness last week brought.  Our family had a nice holiday, but I'll share more on that soon.  It's time to officially get my brain back into "work mode".


For now, here is a little DIY I shared over on A Beautiful Mess.  Our curtains needed a little more length in the new house, so I used some Stitch Witchery and crocheted trim to modify them.  You can find all the details right here.

Happy Tuesday, friends!  xo.

Snapshots

Here are some iPhone peeks at life lately.  I finished painting the kitchen cabinets a couple of days ago and and I absolutely LOVE the change.  Beyond that, we've been enjoying lots of food dates, relaxing in our new spaces, and doing all the Christmas-y things.  Tonight, we're taking the girls to our historic theater to watch "Elf" on the big screen.  I never, ever get sick of that movie during the holidays.

What are you up to this weekend?  Our band is off (yay!) so we're fitting in as much as humanly possible!  Have a great one, friends.

Creating A Relaxing Space

Unpacking always seems to go a little slower than expected, don't you think?  Right now, I've been focusing on the girls' rooms.  I believe having a space of your own where you can escape the chaos is really important in these transitional times.  Before we moved, I decided to surprise both the girls with new beds.  Poesy has graduated from a toddler bed to a full-blown "big girl bed" (a twin bed), and it seems to make her feel pretty cool.  Plus, as we adjust to new sounds at night (have I mentioned we live very close to a hospital?  Oof), I wanted to set up for as much sleep success as possible.  For her sanity AND mine.

Poesy and I had a little bit of a time agreeing on a new comforter for her bed.  As much as I love to let the girls express themselves in their clothing, toys, decor... whatever... there just seemed something so sad about slapping a "Frozen" blanket down in this lovely space.  In the spirit of keeping things lovely, we settled on a super soft, Ultra Light Down-Alternative Comforter and cotton sheet set from Sleep Number®.  She wasn't 100% sold on the bedding until it arrived, but once I got everything all set up, it was instant joy.



Here's a peek at my favorite part of the set.  There's an elastic band under the fitted sheet to keep it on the bed.  Genius.  AND the flat sheet has a Smart Button™ system to attach to the fitted sheet, so there is no sheet-slipping when Poe is tossing and turning... or jumping on the bed.  Hey, I still do that, so who am I to tell her she can't?

 
I'm glad she's been loving her new space more and more.  Oh... and I'm also glad not to see any Disney princesses in this gorgeous room.  Basics for the win!  ;)

**This post is sponsored by Sleep Number.  All opinions are (of course) my own.  

Last Minute Gift Idea: Inkdot (Metal) Prints!

 
If you guys are looking for a last-minute gift for a friend or a family member, Inkdot is AWESOME.  You might remember my wooden prints back from when they were called InstaThis-- I got a few of their metal prints for around the house (I LOVE having family photos around the house), and geez... I love how sharp and vibrant the metal prints are.  They are my new favorites!  (Photo above by the wonderful and amazing Wonderlass.)


I sent a few of my favorite photos over and couldn't be more pleased with the results!  Now to find the perfect places for them...

I believe their holiday shipping runs through Friday, so get 'em while you can, friends!  xo.

 

Weekly Wears: Holiday Delight

This is my favorite time of the year for parties.  Everyone seems to be having them, and I'm a gal who loves to sip a cocktail and taste all the snacks in a snazzy holiday dress.  Hopefully, this time next year I'll be throwing my own party in our cozy home!  Oh, I can't wait!

Dress: Nasty Gal;  Tights: UO;  Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell;  Sunnies: KC boutique

I'm off to conquer my beginning-of-the-week TO DO list.  I hope your week is starting off wonderfully, friends!

Weekly Wears: Fairy Treat

So... it has become entirely typical of me lately to stay in jammies all day and work or unpack (or whatever).  This week I've been making more of an effort to dress in a way that makes me feel awesome, and it's been a great reminder:  Don't dress up (or dress down) because anyone wants you to, OR expects you to.  Put clothes on that make YOU feel awesome.  That's what matters when it comes to getting out of jammies for work or coffee dates or trips to the store (I sometimes still wear yoga pants there.  Ooooooops).

Dress: c/o Family Affairs;  Socks: UO;  Shoes: Bali ELF;  Shirt: UO;  Necklace: Donna's Dress Shop

As I'm sure you already know, I'm 100% fan-girl when it comes to Family Affairs.  No joke.  Well, this gorgeous dress is half off for rest of this week with the code "fairytreat", so if you feel like you want it on your body... DO IT.  I bought myself a Ryan Adams cat sweater last night.  Sometimes you have to gift yourself, ya know?

I hope your week is wonderful, friends!  I'm off to prep for a super fun show with our band tonight!

Snapshots: House Peeks

Here are some peeks at progress over here at the new place.  We just got our new couch yesterday after not having a place to sit for a week, so that's awesome!  The acrylic coffee table we ordered came busted into pieces the first time around, so number two is finally looking pretty in the living room.  Oh, and after a broken light fixture, one that wasn't bright enough, and one that caught on fire (that was scary!), we now have light in the living room!  Woo hoo!  My current house projects are painting the kitchen cabinets (please don't hate me for ditching the yellow) and getting our wallpaper hung in the study so we can actually put things on our shelves.  We're still a mess over here, but small victories are still victories, right?

I'll share more house peeks as I can.  Now... off to DIY that dresser... again.  ;)

Happy Anniversary, Johnny Shelton

Somehow, 15 years ago today I got married.  I actually don't even know how I've done ANYTHING for 15 years, BUT... time is weird.

So... marriage is hard, guys.  And WONDERFUL.  (Maybe I should've said wonderful first?  Hashtag honesty.)  Getting married at 18 was crazy, but I'm so thankful it worked out.  Happy 15 years of being married to this guy.  I actually like him more today than I ever have before... and I think that's probably a great thing.

Poesy's IG // Round 2

I shared a little while back that Poesy girl has her own Instagram account.  It's private for close friends and family only, but every-once-in-a-while I'll be sharing some of the photo gold here.  There are lots of pictures of Google, Hope, and toys, but above all, the gal has her selfie game down!

 

My favorite part of Poe's feed right now is the fact that she's started using voice text for her captions. Here are some highlights:

"People are so judo."
"Something is really great about Hopey."
"Google is the best at eating fish."
"I'm ill and."
"Please don't let the first time since I isolate ornamental."
"I'm not a good time with you and."
"I'm only the best thing ever when I get a job at."
"Best day ever I love it so much more."
"Forever be said forever to me forever be said forever what did it say now telling saying well what you still have the voice thing on so it's copying everything were saying on the oh that's weird."

Sometimes Siri has a hard time interpreting through the adorable lisp, so you never know what's going to come out.  If you're interested in video highlights, you can follow along on Snapchat (I'm katevonskunkboy).

Have a wonderful day, friends!