Tufted and Navy and Beautiful, oh my

Emily Henderson's ridiculous, amazing, incredible sense of design just slays me. Every. Single. Time. I adore her. And she recently posted a master bedroom makeover that literally had me drooling when I laid eyes on it. Major MAJOR inspiration for my next bedroom here folks. And by "inspiration" I obviously mean "totally knocking this off as closely as possible the second I have a new bedroom".

I have to have that bed. I mean, I HAVE to. I have daydreams about a curling up in a beautiful tufted kingsize bed on a regular basis, and the fact that this one is a stunning navy AND HAILS FROM TARGET is seriously just absolute perfection. And can't you just picture my awesome new faux fur throw at the foot of the bed? I can't get over it. And the campaign nightstands with those gold geometric lamps?? I'm obsessed. 

In other news, as long as I can work out the timing, I will soon be the proud owner of this adorable little settee for a whopping $20 -

Tell me that wouldn't look stunning reupholstered in a funky pattern or a gray linen for a sweet little sitting area in that dream master bedroom?!? It's meant to be.

Anyone want to buy a charming little 3 bedroom house in a fantastic location?? I'm ready for a blank slate.

Cuddle Time

The other day, I got an email from my Upshot friend Gail (who's wedding invitations were designed by yours truly) that said "I know you want one of these. It's part of our thank you to you. Pick a color. Just do it." The email included a link to the infamous West Elm faux fur throws, and Gail was spot on in knowing that I really really really wanted one. I also appreciated her "just do it" because she knows me well enough to know that without that, I likely would have written her back and said no :). Have I mentioned lately that I miss my Upshot pals?

So after a LOT of going back and forth and asking Bridget for her opinion, I settled on the ombre mocha color, and a few hours later I had a confirmation from Gail that this gorgeous throw is on it's way to me next week.

People. I cannot WAIT to cuddle up with this thing.

Good luck getting me off the couch when this baby arrives, hubby. 

Happy Friday friends! Here's to the weekend where I swear I'm getting back into a gym routine. Wish me luck.

Words of Wisdom

Ever since my time with The Everygirl didn't really work out, I've been struggling with thinking that I should have done more to remain a part of it. I have to remind myself that I have written the girls with a few different submission ideas over the last year and not gotten a response, and that overall, it just wasn't meant to be. I love the site and am eager to see what's coming in the future from it, but it just wasn't, and isn't, my dream. It's someone else's - and I'm thrilled that it's working out for them! - but again, it's not mine. I have so many other dreams and ideas and opportunities of my own, and one of them is becoming a bit more real this week thanks to a new online pal, Pinterest, and this little blog of mine. Get this people - I am going to design someone's wedding invitations that is NOT a friend or family member! A total stranger, who saw a pin of Bridget's invitations (now lovingly named "The Alexander Suite) and took the time to send me a note saying she loved them. A few emails later and here we are going over pricing and design so we can get started. She's halfway across the country which is a total bummer because we can't meet and chat in person about her big day, but STILL. This is exciting stuff for me, and I can't wait to get started.

Now don't get me wrong - I have loved every single invitation, program, menu, save the date and thank you card that I've designed for friends and family members, and I have no intentions of not helping others in the future. But to be honest, I haven't put a whole ton of time into trying to actually get any kind of design or wedding "business" off the ground, and this project has given me a whole new sense of motivation to finally start making this dream of wedding planning more of a priority, and hopefully eventually, a reality. 

Here's to beginnings. Happy hump day!

A little bit of Leopard

I'll just go ahead and let you guess which trendy little pumps I bought this weekend.

If you're looking to spend an insane amount of money on a pair of shoes, look no further than here, here or here... OR you can do what I did and snag a pair of fun kicks up at Target for a whopping $20 or so. They're online for $29.99 and currently on clearance in store. I found mine for $20 but saw the same ones at another store (though not in my size) for just $14!

Baby Jax

I realized last night that I never blogged about something super exciting that happened recently - I got a brand new nephew! And I'll be darned, he looks SO much like my baby brother it's crazy. They're in Florida so I haven't met the little guy yet, but I am smitten. A belated blog Welcome to the World to you, Baby Jaxson!

Yesterday, my sister-in-law posted this picture of Jax and I burst out laughing at my desk when I saw it. Her "why so serious?" caption made it even funnier, and I immediately printed it out, cut it out and put it up at my desk for a smile whenever I need it.

Just LOOK at him. Good gosh, that face! I cannot wait until this kid can talk.

In other news, I suckered the hubs into our annual apple picking trip last weekend and we've been baking up a storm with our bounty. Recipes to come!

Words of Wisdom

I had what can only be described as a complete and total meltdown last night, and poor Dan was stuck not knowing WHAT to do with me besides trying to calm me down enough that I wouldn't make myself sick from crying. I guess sometimes you just need a good cry, and last night was one of those times for me. I was emotionally and physically exhausted, and my body and my brain had just had enough. This also came after we polished off a big homemade apple dessert without bothering to eat dinner, so I imagine the sugar rush - and then impending crash - didn't do a whole lot to help me out.

I've been overwhelmed in general lately, and I suppose it finally took it's toll on me. I'm in one of those places where I'm realizing just how many big decisions come with being a real full-fledged adult, and it's freaking me out. I realize that about 85% of this stress comes from just THINKING about selling our house, and when I get this overwhelmed, I tend to crash and burn before I pick up the pieces, push forward and find the positive in everything that's going on. I could barely convince myself to do a load of laundry for the past couple of weeks, much less write a blog post, cook something decent for dinner or drag myself to the gym. I realized last night in my fit of tears that I need those things - I am hardwired to create, to write, to organize, to DO. Without those outlets, I am not myself, and I am in turn a big giant mess.

And so begins my latest endeavor - finding a little quote (probably on Pinterest) as inspirational words of wisdom for the week. I'm a visual person, so while having something moving written in a pretty font is simple, it is powerful for me. I've joked before about getting the word "blessed" tattooed on my wrist as a constant reminder to myself, and I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought about it a lot again lately.

Happy Monday friends. Here's what I'm working hard to remember this week -

Yep

I feel like my picture should be next to this definition in the dictionary.

#amiright

Also, because of said excessive desire to stay in bed all. the. time. I am looking to invest in one of those snazzy alarm clocks that simulates the sun rising and gradually brightens your room. Currently, we sleep with one of the curtains open so it's not totally pitch black for me in the mornings, but that's super annoying when we're trying to go to sleep at night and there's a streetlight glaring through the window. I also tend to get a good dose of S.A.D. when good old winter rolls around and it is dark something like 18 hours out of the day, so I'm thinking something more "natural" than an obnoxious beeping or my song choice at the time would be nice to wake up to. Anyone tried one of these before?