pause

I seem to have hit a bit of a rut here. 

Could be that I was thrown rather abruptly from vacation into working 10 days straight, lots of work drama, stress, and exhaustion. Could be that I just haven't seen a whole lot out there that inspires me. That I wonder sometimes if anyone actually reads this (comments are appreciated, FYI). That the few things I really do want to post about will simply take more time to put together than what I feel like I can muster at this point in time.

Whatever it is, I want you to know that I am still trying. One of the main reasons for doing this blog to begin with was to remind me that there are lovely, fun, inspiring, creative things out there. I am convinced that I will find something out there to get me out of this rut (personally, professionally, and bloggerly. You know what I mean).

Until then...

it's a sad, sad day

No, this has nothing to do with Anthony Weiner.

One of my favorite magazines ever has rather abruptly closed up shop and I am very very sad. Sad because it has always been a quality magazine, with great ideas and great values. Sad because it inspired me. Sad because it was one of the few magazines I have ever shelled out the money to subscribe to. I am cheap. No lie. I agonize over the decision to write that $12 check for a years worth of people's hard work. I just want to be sure I will really get the most out of it. And I made that tough decision, and got myself a two year subscription, probably a few weeks ago. And now it no longer exists. :(

I guess I could let you know just what exactly I'm talking about. Fine.

ReadyMade. I would link you to the website, but it's already gone. They apparently wrote a farewell blog post today but that is already gone as well. But at least someone apparently saw that coming and grabbed a screencap so those of us that aren't glued to a computer screen all day and missed this all going down get to see it. Here. I got the news from this post on DIY Life that the hubby shared with me.

Bummed.

I guess Real Simple had better keep me entertained from here on out. Do you have any other magazine recommendations for me?

killer heels

Katy of Dirty Hems took a plain old pair of black heels and turned them into neon fabulousness!

Spotted on Utterly Engaged. (I really need to rethink the nearly 50 wedding blogs I subscribe to. Probably no longer necessary. Probably never really necessary.)

honeymooning

So we didn't actually go anywhere for our honeymoon, but we did take the entire week after the wedding to spend some quality time together. Several of these days were spent inside, wishing to go outside but dreading the heat (record breaking temps, heat indexes up to 110 degrees, miserable), but we did manage to get out and do some shopping, get much needed massages, and even go to the beach on Friday!

We went to Assateague Island, which I had never even heard of before but my family went up there when they were in town last week and it sounded amazing! Undeveloped beaches, no crowds, decent water quality, and wild horses! It sounded spectacular.

That there is some of the only proof I got on camera that there were wild horses here. Yes, there was horse poo everywhere, including on the beach. But, well, you take the bad with the good I guess. It was still beautiful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah, I took a lot of pictures. What can I say, I love the beach!

Just the other day the mister and I were discussing some of the good and bad points for moving away from the area (no, we're not planning on doing it any time soon) and I think the hardest part for me would be if for some reason I had to move away from the coast. I mean it's not like I live right by the beach here, and I acknowledge that we don't even go there very often, but I really like knowing it's there. Knowing that whenever I really want to (like last week) we can just hop in the car and get there. I wouldn't want to give that up.

before I die...

Before I die I would like to write on this wall.

Created by artist Candy Chung, this abandoned house serves as a declaration of the things we all really care about. The things we most want to do in life. There are the standard answers (make a difference, save a life) and there are some more interesting responses (see my daughter graduate, write a book, feed an elephant, get my wife back, get clean, teach yoga, go to Florence...) and some that are a bit troubling (create a life and take 1).

Just a few things that I want to do before I die:

travel (Italy, Greece, Australia... the rest of my own country...)

write a book, even if I have to publish it myself

be my own boss

raise a family

What about you? What do you want to do before you die?

I was just going to link to the site but I can't resist posting a few more images. Sorry!

And more over here, of course. :)

Spotted and saved on Design Crush months ago and just got around to posting it.

I've been putting off the real wedding round-up posts because it's kind of a lot to process. Lots of photos to sort through, thoughts to think, etc. In general I had a pretty great time. The weather managed to stay pretty fantastic all day, despite threats of rain. Somehow, I don't know how, there were no sirens the entire day (we live just down the street from a fire station, and there are sirens all. the. time.) The ceremony was beautiful with lots of unique touches (a reading from The Jerk, sharing lemonade, guests blessing our rings), and our DIY elements truly stood out and served to represent who we are as a couple. And I loved that we were able to open our home and share all of this with our little group of family and close friends. We are so blessed to be surrounded by such wonderful people. :)

The things that didn't work out quite the way we had planned it, well, I don't even think it's worth it to talk about. So, I'll get on with some more photos! I borrowed some photos from my brother and sister-in-law (I'm not quite sure who was behind the camera) and did a little photoshop editing to come up with this little collage.

Enjoy!

Oh and my darling little sister took some real polaroids of the day, and I can't wait to share! Just need to get them all scanned in. And some film from my Diana and my Fisheye that I need to get developed since my niece was kind enough to finish off the rolls for me! So excited to see how they come out!

melting

In case you hadn't heard, we're having a bit of a heat wave here on the East Coast. Stifling, humid, suffocating heat. It's so bad I don't even want to go to the beach. And that's just crazy talk. But here's a few photos from the one day this week that we were able to get out of the house, before it turned into a sauna out there.

 

 

 

As it turns out, getting married creates some sort of chemical reaction in the brain that makes you want to make your house a better home. We're doing some organizing, and today we went home shopping and came back with a table runner, cloth napkins, and new silverware! Bring on the dinner parties! Oh yeah, and I'm really enjoying these last few days of quality time with the mister before we go back to work. It has been truly fantastic, calming, good for the soul. :)

insta-photodump

It all feels like a dream and these photos just contribute to that.

What you're looking at:

wedding directional signage painted by my lovely niece Chelsea

watercolor paper chains created by... a whole lot of us
boutonnieres by the best bridesmaids ever, Jessica & Kelly

bouquet by me (and braided wrap)

paper straws for days

random china cake plates

photobooth fun! (photobooth by me and the mister, signage by Chelsea)

the getaway car! by my family

just married spoon. we didn't really know what to do with it so we stuck it in some flowers

Mr. & Mrs. cake forks. love.

amazing hand painted marriage certificate by my now-brother-in-law Dave

I plan on doing some more detailed posts soon to talk about all of the DIY projects, our playlist, etc. Any requests?

we did it!

I feel extremely lucky to have the sorts of family and friends who have helped us so much this past weekend to put this little shindig together. We could not have pulled it off without them. Love you guys!

And you can see more photobooth madness over here! 

hello there!

Hello everyone, I'm so so sorry I've been neglecting you for so long! I really had no idea I hadn't posted anything since Tuesday. The time has just flown by with errands, DIY projects, hanging out with friends and family. I can't believe it's already Saturday. I can't believe I'm getting married tomorrow! Holy Moly.

My home is full of pretty flowers and special projects that everyone has been helping me with. I just love it. Here is a little sneak peek. :)