From One Project to Another

Due to the large influx of babies in our lives we have decided to take some time to enjoy everyone else's new bundles and maybe even take a few for a test drive - just to see what we might be getting ourselves into. In the mean time I have been renovation dreaming. So far, the pop-top reno has not moved forward an inch, but we are secretly hoping that something is mysteriously happening behind the scenes. Right now these are the spaces I am dreaming about...

Fresh and Crisp!

I find this back porch area so inspiring. I love the bright cheery blue the designer picked and the white trim - so crisp! If only I could get mine to look like that...

Say Goodbye to the Fridge

We are finally going to say goodbye to the very ugly, alarmingly low class piece of art we have had on our porch for the last two years. The guys are coming to pick up the old rusted fridge tomorrow - yippee!!! I can't wait for that embarrassing eyesore to be gone. There are only so many excuses and explanations a person can come up with for why they have a large kitchen appliance on the back porch - you would think we would have one of those old worn granny couches sitting next to it collecting mildew! Well things are a-changin' and we are up grading. What do you think of these planters to rim the edge of the back patio?

Snow, Again!

We spent the weekend at Steve's parents' cabin, which will from here on be referred to as "the cabin". It was foggy when we arrived and proceeded to snow for the duration of our stay. This is not unusual for the spring time in the Colorado Rockies. What I didn't expect was to come home and wake up to snow in DENVER!!! I know we always get an April snow and I know I should stop wining, but please, we already had our April snow and then I totally jinxed us by saying that we were finally out of the snow season - I guess I was wrong. Again.

On a good note, before the morning snow we had the pleasure of falling asleep to the sound of rain. Steve even broke with his no-open-windows-at-night policy to leave a crack in order to optimise the sound quality. it was wonderful and I slept really really well.

Making Out at the Opera

Went to Cosi fan tutte last night and it was wonderful! I loved the costumes, I loved the singing and the light hearted story was adorable.

We attended the dress rehearsal performance and besides the other donors and possible future donors sitting with us the audience was filled with teenagers. It is an out reach program Opera Colorado does. They invite students from high schools all around the Front Range to attend a dress rehearsal performance for free. I am all for this - as much expose to the arts as our youth can get! What I am not all for was the young couple sitting just down from Meredith and I who managed to change a nice evening at the Opera into a soft-porn performance.

Come on people - I know you are loved crazed, hormone fueled beings right now, but please do not use the school trip to the Opera as your one and only chance to be alone together in the dark. Simple hand holding would have been preferred. Not to mention... please put your shoes back on, it is starting to stink in here!

Wow, do I sound like my mother or what?!

Napa Dreams

The other night as I stood at the kitchen sink making a pretty bland salad for dinner I turned to Steve and asked, "Do you know where I want to be right now?" And much to my surprise he nailed it, "Napa". Maybe it was our wish for brighter fresher ingredients which seem so abundant in California or our desire to stroll through the vineyards and taste wonderful palates of food and drink. Either way were enjoying the same daydream.

Maybe we will have to plan a trip to the wine country very soon. Anyone care to join us?

Check out these blogs all related to the happenings in and around California Wine Country...

http://www.uncork29.com/blog/ - great restaurant and wine reviews for future weekend visits and other tidbits from Napa locals.

http://www.365corks.com/ - Great reviews of inexpensive wines, something we can all use in today's crazy financially stressed world (wine and on the cheap!) I also love that he ends all of his reviews with variations on this wonderful sendoff, "Sit Long, Talk Much, Laugh Often, Drink Cheap Double Dog Dare Chardonnay!" I plan to try to find some Double Dog Dare Chardonnay this weekend!

http://www.napafarmhouse1885.blogspot.com/ - a woman living the dream.

Our Little Piece of Earth

Since it doesn't look like our pop-top addition will be starting before the summer (if it ever does), I am planning a resurrection of the tiny amount of backyard we currently have. At the moment it is known throughout the neighborhood as the best place for dogs to "do their business". I swear whenever a friend's dog comes over for a visit the first thing he or she does is to scoot on out to the little grass we have left to deposit a nice fresh present. I mean I have heard of hostess gifts, but this is getting out of hand! In the spirit of the new White House Family I am planning on making this pooping patch into a lovely garden with a focus on vegetables and flowers for cutting.

Wouldn't it be lovely to spend an afternoon in one of these gardens?

Cultural Exchange?!?

I love working for a private foundation. In fact, I think this is the biggest perk of working as a tax accountant for an oil and gas firm. Not only do I get to assist in helping the Foundation Ladies (the 2 wonderful and might I say stylish ladies who run the foundation) give away money to deserving folks, I also get other little perks. For example, this Thursday I get the pleasure of attending a cocktail reception and dress rehearsal performance of Opera Colorado's Cosi fan tutte. It is a comedic opera from Mozart about "fiancee swapping", according to Wikipedia (my first source for all things I do not know).

Now this is an interesting concept, fiancee swapping. Suppose as I had neared my wedding, I decided to fiancee swap for a few weeks. I wonder what I would have found out. At first I probably would have been excited to find out that this "new" fiancee loved to do the dishes, shared my passion for skiing, thought picking up the dog poo was a great chance to enjoy the outdoors and didn't think tickling me was the best pastime EVER. And I would have been very pleased for a week or two.

Then the missing would set in and I would miss all of the things I love about Steve, like his gigantic back scratching hugs, his handiness around the house (it turns out from talking with my girlfriends that not all men are handy???) and our silly inside jokes. And the new man would probably start to grate on me. I would hate his toe nail clippings on the living room floor (yuk, who does that?!), his incessant throat clearing and his unwillingness to vacuum. And I would start to regret this whole swap thing, but being the optimist that I am I would try to focus on the positive.

The turning point would come when I realized that I was actually missing all of the things that annoy me about Steve, which in the end aren't all that many (I am even starting to enjoy the puns). And we would end up re-swapping just like in the Opera and live happily ever after.

Let's just hope that during this whole swap he finds out the same things about me... that he misses my incessant tipsy talking, my million and one projects and my return back scratching hugs. I think it is a good thing we didn't try it!

Our Little Sewing Club

As I think I have previously mentioned my good friend Amy and I have started sewing together. You might wonder how this works seeing as how there is only one sewing machine at each of our houses. But actually it works quite well. First and foremost we are each other's cheering squad. Since neither of us is very good at sewing we dole out courage at every turn and when that doesn't work we turn to wine. Another thing we have noticed is that sewing is not just about whipping things out on our handy sewing machines, in fact it seems to be more about measuring, cutting, re-cutting due to bad measurement, ironing and pinning. So when one of us is doing all of this and cursing up a storm the other is happily playing with the machine. We have a ball chatting, drinking and eventually making something however lopsided it may be. So if you happen to be the recipient of one of our creations please know it was made with love and chalk up the little mistakes to our inexperience or the amount wine. Here is a sample of what I have made so far...

Book Suggestions?!?

I need a new book. I just finished The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham. It was enchanting, captivating and I loved the imagery. Now I am rereading Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes for maybe the third time. Steve hates that I can watch certain movies over and over and love them every single time. I have explained to him that the reason for this is because I LOVE the way these movies make me feel or what they make me day dream of. The same goes for Under the Tuscan Sun. I read it before bed each night and I often dream of living in Tuscany and growing my own grapes and olives – mmm such sweet dreams! But lately after these nice dreams the shock of my reality (office full of tax returns) makes me a bit depressed, so I think it is time for a new novel. What have you read lately?

The blizzard

True to form Colorado delivered its annual Spring blizzard last week and we got a half day snow day! Yippee! I took a few pictures of our little blooming tree in the front yard before and after the snow hit. This is exactly why they say "In Colorado no matter how tempted you may be, DO NOT plant anything before Mother's Day"!

Almost done...

Well we are nearing the end of the bathroom remodel. Kay has kindly offered to make the shower curtain (red/white damask kind of mod, hopefully). The fabric is on order! And Steve is in the midst of making some amazing cabinet doors for the corner cabinet. He was out in the shop all weekend last weekend and taught himself how to make raised panel doors out of Alder. My dad would be so proud! They are really too pretty to paint, but I will have to in order to stick to the theme. Here is a little taste of what is to come once we are all done as well as a picture of the doors (I am imagining designs for future built-ins and armoires - Steve will be busy)...

Bring it on 30's!

It is no secret to my friends and family that I have entered my dreaded thirties – yikes?!? Up until now I have tried to take this new number on with grace, politely saying goodbye to my twenties and embracing this new era… up until now! My favorite ski pants are all of a sudden too tight and much too uncomfortable to be sitting in and totally inappropriate for navigating mountains. So unless any of you have noticed that stretch ski pants are back in style, I am going to buy some new ones hopefully at a cheap end-of-season price. What do you think of these? Keep in mind that I am a skier NOT a teenage snowboarder…

Giggles and Smiles Galore!

If any of you out there need a reason to giggle with unexplainable glee, check out my good friend Cindy’s blog and her adorable son Landon. I can’t think of a better reason to smile! Thanks Cindy!

http://cdeily.blogspot.com/2009_02_01_archive.html

To Sew or Not to Sew

While I was in New Mexico not only did I get new curtains, I also learned how to sew. My good friend Kelly and her mom Linda took a day out of their busy schedules to teach me the ropes of using a sewing machine. With so many babies on the way (11 and counting) in my wider circle of friends I wanted to be able to make these special mothers something personal, cute and straight from the heart. And although I did teach myself to knit while I was sick in bed for four days, I thought perhaps sewing would be a more effective (and hopefully faster) way of making baby things. Check out the blanket and burp clothes they helped me create. Thank you ladies!

Hopefully I can figure out how to make the ancient machine I have in the basement work like Linda's much newer and lighter model.

Wish me luck!

Sorry for my hiatus - I was in Santa Fe and Albuquerque visiting some of my very favorite people. It was such a wonderful trip made even better by my return home. I came home to new kitchen curtains installed and ready to enjoy!

This is why I have the most talented and wonderful mother-in-law. She made these beautiful shades for our kitchen in a fabric that I love. I am not sure if you can tell from the pictures, but they are a nice mix of golds, reds and greens and they compliment the new cabinets beautifully! (Or at least we think so). Thank you so much Kay - I couldn't love them more!

So now our kitchen makeover is complete (I will post some before and after photos in the next couple of days). Steve got his walnut (not painted) cabinets, no covering wood in this family - a neurosis I got used to growing up with an avid woodworker. And I got my green corner cabinet and beautiful curtains!

The Search for a Decent Shower Curtain

Has anyone else had this problem?

I have searched high and low for a somewhat presentable shower curtain. I never thought this would be a difficult thing to find, but after endless hours of browsing the web and comments from my husband like "whoa you are putting way too much time and thought into this", I have to agree with him. Where have all the nice shower curtains gone?

This would be a GREAT business idea - create a company devoted to hip/chic/cool shower curtains ( I hope one of you take the initiative so I can hop onto etsy and enjoy your talented sewing skills during my next bathroom remodel project). We need fabulous shower curtains! Ones that are not themed with college logos (sorry Jack, I will not be having a shrine to the Aggies in all its burgundy glory), ones that (although eerily cool) do not depict a scene from Psycho, just perhaps a shower curtain or two with nice colors and original prints. There are a million fabrics out there that are beautiful and would look lovely as the focal point of my new spa/Steve's toity. I may have to find one of these fabrics and beg Steve's mom to help me sew it (I already owe her big time for some beautiful curtains and kitchen shades which you will see in a future post).

In the mean time here are a few I have found that don't make me totally repulsed.

A shower curtain from Kohls:
Anthropologie had several interesting choices. Steve even liked this one:
Here is another from Crate & Barrel - I love the pattern of the leaves, but I am not sure if it is enough color for the black and white tile:P.S. All you wonderful people out there who are much more stylish then I, please feel free to forward any other ideas that you might have.

Bathroom Progress

Ugh! I have been down and out with Bronchitis since Tuesday and am finally feeling a little more chipper today.

While I was sequestered to the cave downstairs some positive changes have happened upstairs - progress on the bathroom! We were hoping it would be done by now, but due to a change in the tile design and a few other things we still probably have a week to go (keep your fingers crossed that this is all it will take). Here are some progress photos in the mean time...

Didn't Kevin do an awesome job on the subway tile so far?!Where the linen closet used to be:Our new/retro looking floor:
Now the question is: what color should we paint the walls?

Babies, Babies, Babies!

A couple years ago it was the summer of weddings. We had something like 10 wonderful weddings to go to in one season! This year it is the year of babies... I have 7 friends so far who are pregnant and all due some time between Spring and Fall. We just had two new arrivals within our extended family and a new little baby born last week just around. Their locations range from England to Portland and everywhere in between. I love that all of these babies means that I can make and buy things for both boys and girls, because surely of the eight babies on the way (one of my beautiful ladies is having twins!!!) we will get a nice mix. With all of these babies on the brain I am sure Steve is getting a little nervous ;-)

Here are some of my favorite handmade baby gifts (from some amazing people who crotchet and knit posted on http://www.ravelry.com/):

The BIG 3-0!!!

Happy Birthday to my main squeeze Steve! He and his twin brother Kevin turn 30 today. We are throwing them a little party where I am sure there will be lots of beer, tons of food and plenty of heckling to get a brother on brother wrestling match going... something it seems men never grow out of?!

There has been some debate around our house about which years are "the best years of your life". My mom says they were her thirties and forties. Some others say it was the best in their twenties. Still others, including me, wish they could return to their childhood from time to time. I choose to embrace being 30 (it was 5 months ago for me) - I am more sure of myself now then ever before, I adore my husband, I have wonderful friends & family, a career and lots to look forward to. Here's to the future!

To Steve: I love you and I hope we never fully grow up!

Puppy Ancestry

A while back one of the local news stations did a story on finding out the breed of your mutt. Steve ran into Pets Mart to get some of that delicious rock hard dog food (which she is now allergic to) and came out with an impulse buy do-it-yourself kit. So we swabbed the inside of Koha's gums and sent off our pup's DNA for analysis. Three weeks and $60 later we found out that our black lab look-a-like is actually this:

20% Afghan Hound
20% Boxer
20% Great Pyrenees
15% Welsh Corgi
15% Rottweiler
10% Adorable (if the techs could see her I imagine that is what they would have put)

Does the dog in the picture above look like any of those things to you?! I think not, especially since we got her from the Golden Retriever Rescue and saw a picture of her mom who looked suspiciously like a golden/yellow lab mix.

So, in conclusion, do not spend the $60, do not pass "Go", return home and enjoy your mutt for all of the wonderful mysterious things he or she is, which most importantly to us is our loving companion and all time best snuggler!

To Pop or Not to Pop

We have been gripped by the desire to double the size of our little bungalow. By double I mean tear the roof off of the current structure and plop a second story on top of it, what people here refer to as "popping the top". It sounds so simple, right?!

Actually the main reason this topic has come up is due to some beautiful remodels some of our friends have done or are in the middle of doing (Kristen, Kim, Amy & Marlo to name a few). That and the fact that the idea of our very own master bathroom and closets bigger then the tiny phone booths we currently have make us giddy with excitement. I mean jumping up and down flushed in the cheeks giddy! Of course I would really miss the seasonal trekking of our fall/winter/spring/summer belongs up and down the stairs - guess I will just have to go to the gym instead.

Here are some two story bungalows that I have found on this great www...

Our Love, Our Work in Progress

I thought I should probably post a picture of our little bungalow and I would love to see pictures of your little bungalows (winking in Cindy's direction). I chose to post one of the pictures take in the dark, that way you can't completely see the hideous colors one of the past owners chose for the trim (gray and dark green for a yellow brick house, yuk). You also can't see the peeling paint, which I am secretly hoping will just continue to peel until the whole house is back to a natural wood color. Every year Steve and I swear August will be devoted to repainting the house, but weddings and travel just seem to be getting in the way... maybe this year?!

Personalize Your Feet

I love people who are out and about doing creative things and coming up with new innovative ideas. A friend of a friend has started her own shoe business. This is not any ordinary shoe company; it is a custom shoe company. My friend owns a pair and swears they are comfortable (well, at least for heels). How it works is that you go on their website, choose from a number of styles then customize it to reflect your own unique personality or needs. I plan to save up my pennies for a pair of red leather wedges - damn sexy! Check it out here: http://www.ateliershoes.com/

Bathroom Delusions

So here we are right in the middle of our bathroom renovation. Please see above for photographic proof. Something we found particularly funny was that all of the contractors we called for bids could not believe that this 6 x 7 foot space was our master bathroom. Sadly it is not only our master bathroom, but also our guest bathroom and hopefully our future kids' bathroom. That is a whole lot of uses for one bathroom! We do have an additional bath downstairs, which would be super helpful except for the fact that the toilet does not really flush and the shower won't completely turn off. Oh and did I mention that there is something funky going on with the outside wall in the basement bath - let's just say that it has mysterious streaks of humidity running down it. Like the good old house lovers that we are, we have decided to blame this on the lack of venting in the room and until we can afford to fix it, that is exactly how I will continue to refer to it. And please don't try to talk me into the reality of the situation - sometimes all we have to cling to are our delusions.

Starting from Scratch

I started out 2009 in a bit of a panic about what to do next in my life. You see, I have spent the past years, going to college, graduating, finding a career and then I got married in September. Now I have a wonderful husband, a fairly fulfilling career and I own the proverbial house, car and one black dog.

In response to said freak out I have taken up a writing course, am attempting to write my first novel, more on that later, have decided to expand my abilities in the craft area beyond crocheting, have decided to start this blog and last but not least, Steve and I decided to remodel the bathroom. If nothing else this blog will serve as a creative outlet for all of the things I do not get to express in my current occupation as a tax account (please do not turn away because I said tax or accountant - I aim to rile up against the usual associations with those two words and show you something different).

Something you should know about me from the start - I always mix up familiar sayings, but don't usually realize I am doing it, which I am pretty sure I did just there. Please just play along and try to grasp the gist of it, as I usually get fairly close.



Cheers!