2011 in Numbers

18 flights, travel to 6 cities, including 3 new ones (Washington, D.C., Boston, San Diego).

1 trip to see millions of tulips! 

At least 15 donuts consumed.

1 pro soccer game (my first!).

Married 1 incredible guy.

1 move across town. Gladly leaving behind 570 crammed square feet.

Adopted 1 adorable puppy.

2011 set the bar pretty high. 2012, you sure do have a lot to live up to! 

Happy New Year! 

Top 5 Songs of 2011

In no particular order...


Metronomy - The Look 
I actually found this song on accident, but it has since become one of my favorites. Not just the song, but Chase and I have become big fans of the band, too.



Alex Ebert - A Million Years 
I love Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, and Alex's voice is amazing. Very glad he came out with a solo album.



Arcade Fire - Sprawl II
Great song, great video.



Beyonce - Countdown
Try telling me you don't secretly love Beyonce. Try it.



Youth Lagoon - Cannons
So pretty.

Merry Christmas Eve Eve

I can't believe it is already December 23rd! Thankfully we finished all of our shopping earlier this week and we are driving home this evening (Zander's first road trip!).

Wishing you and your family a very merry holiday!

Happy Friday

It's the weekend! What do you have planned for this pre-holiday weekend? We're hosting a close group of friends for a while elephant party. There is a yummy menu planned (lots of cheese is key!), and I can't wait to see the funny gifts passed around. Our white elephant party is an annual event and isn't a serious affair. Gifts are encouraged to be as crazy as possible, and whatever you receive must be displayed in your home for one year. Here is what we received last year: an olive oil dispenser shaped like an outhouse and a golden angel bust.

And the gifts we brought:

And a blanket similar to this one.

Have you ever had to buy an awful gift? It's always tough because there are a lot of horrible things out there, but they have to hit the right note of funny. We're going out this evening to buy our gifts, wish us luck! I'll be sharing everything on Monday.

Sending you into the weekend with some of my favorite things this week:

A favorite things party! (read that in your best Oprah voice) This would be fun to do with a group of ladies.

Fish house punch. Chase loves to make this - it is very strong.

I really want to do this to our kitchen and bedroom windows.

These chairs are great - but a bit hard on the wallet.

Happy Friday

My husband and I are both feeling a cold coming on, so this weekend we'll be taking it easy. Possibly heading to the local Holiday Market, and I should finish painting that rug I started *ahem* a month ago. It would be nice to have that 9'x6' square of the garage back...

I send you off to the weekend with a few things that have caught my eye recently:

Brandini Toffee. Love, love, love toffee!
A quick fix for putting up your hair. I've done it a few time in the past week or so and love it!
A cool idea for Halloween next year.
I really want to start making plush toys - inspriartion here and here.
Now that we have a yard, I'm dreaming of all the things we can do once the Oregon rain stops. In June.
Quick & easy DIY Christmas gifts.



(image via Martha Stewart)

Christmas Wish List 2011

I always see wish lists floating around this time of year and thought I'd throw in my two cents. When Christmas and my birthday roll around, I'm always the worst at giving ideas. I don't want something impractical, but at the same time it'd be nice to receive something I wouldn't normally buy myself. That being said, here are somethings I wouldn't mind seeing under the tree this year!





Clockwise from top left:

1. Cat in a suit. His name is Alan. Yes, please.
2. New pajamas. I'm on a mission to replace all of my ugly sweats and baggy T-shirts with cute pajamas.
3. Urban Decay Naked Palette. I'd use all of those colors - a rarity. Even the crazy blues!
4. Sticky note pad origami for the office.
5. Signet Stardust ring
6. Warby Parker Sinclair. My current glasses are almost two years old and the lenses are getting a bit foggy.
7. Momofuku Milk Bar Cookbook. I've only heard great things about this place. Making "Crack Pie" is on my list of to-dos this weekend!
8. Butter Nail Polish. Because I never buy nail polish that costs over $4.00. Also, I was wearing the blue one all the way on the right when I got engaged!
9. Anthropologie Fluted Ponte Dress. If someone bought me a dress at $158 I'm pretty sure I'd feel too guilty to wear it.