Happy New Years!

You know you all will be yelling this at midnight tonight & crossing your fingers that it really will be a happy new year coming our way. This year has been amazing & hard all at the same time. I've watched many of my friends loose a parent- I watched my baby turn 1 learn to walk & talk- watched my little girl turn 2 & gain such a great personality & smarts- had friends who had babies born with difficulties thrive- helped friends get through breakups- watched my son who turned 12 enter junior high & love it- cheered as my husband found a job after a long 2 years of stress- watched friends fall in love- had friends having trouble getting pregnant, get pregnant or adopt a baby- had a niece get married- made a few new married friends- cried for days as I learned one of my best friends from high school past away- watched an amazing friend & her husband take care of 2 amazing kids for a whole year & show unconditional love for them- - entered the best book club ever- created a few new baby items i'm super happy with- got pregnant myself {for the last time}- started enjoying the gym- stopped going to the gym- had the most wonderful intern kilee help me through all my winters shows- got a great new pair of christmas shoes- watched my relationship & my love for my husband grow stronger- & really soooo much more- it would be impossible to sum up everything i'm grateful for in 2010.

Really I do have an amazing family & wonderful extended family & friends- I feel so blessed & truly wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR! Any New Years Resolution you plan on actually sticking with? One of mine is keeping my part of our room clean. We'll see how I do!

Family picture time at my cousins Christmas day

I'm amazed at how hard it is to get 3 kids to smile & look at the camera all at once & how hard it is for me to remember to look at the camera & not make a funny face while trying to get Ida to smile in the process... 

I like this one better cause you can see our christmas sweater t-shirts- but of course it's fuzzy & kaleb's closing his eyes- ida looking down- my boobs look really weird....

p.s. one day i will get a Christmas card out & the whole family will look amazing- even if I have to photo shop our heads from other photos to do it.

Happy 4th Anniversary Lover

4 years ago today Adam & I had a pretty rad wedding. Family- Friends & lots of food & dancing. Good times. Well we've accomplished a lot in our 4 short years of marriage. Love you tons.

we had this little gal in 2008 {elsa at 16 months}

this one in 2009 {Ida at 4 months}

watched this guy grow from this {with his cousins Hannah & Zoe at our wedding}

into this {same cousins today}

& expecting another in June

Ya I'd say we accomplished a lot! Anyone tired....

Modern Love/ Chairs

There's a  Magnetic fields song called Reno Dakota that has a line that says " Reno Dakota theres not an iota of kindness in you. You know you enthrall me and yet you don't call me 
It's making me blue, Pantone 292" 


Every time I see or hear the word pantone  I can't help but sing that line. Plus it's a pretty funny song. I'm loving these pantone folding chairs designed by Selab Studios. You can buy them at the  A + R Store online.

♻ andreally

Full lyrics to Reno Dakota or listen here

• Reno Dakota by The Magnetic Fields

More The Magnetic Fields music on iLike

Reno Dakota there's not an iota of kindness in you 
You know you enthrall me and yet you don't call me 
It's making me blue, Pantone 292
Reno Dakota I'm reaching my quota of tears for the year
Alas and alack you just don't call me back You have just disappeared
It makes me drink beer
I know you're a recluse, You know that's no excuse. Reno, that's just a ruse
Do not play fast and loose with my heart
Reno Dakota I'm no Nino Rota I don't know the score
Have I annoyed you or is there a boy who Well he's just a whore
I've had him before 
It makes me drink more

The True Story of Rudolph

I LOVE this story of how Rudolph the red nose reindeer's story came about. Read but don't blame me if you become teary eyed- I pretty much start crying over everything these days- these darn hormones.

had to add a picture

A man named Bob May, depressed and brokenhearted, stared out his drafty
apartment window into the chilling December night.

His 4-year-old daughter Barbara sat on his lap quietly sobbing. Bob's wife,
Evelyn, was dying of cancer Little Barbara couldn't understand why her mommy
could never come home. Barbara looked up into her dad's eyes and asked, "Why
isn't Mommy just like everybody else's Mommy?" Bob's jaw tightened and his
eyes welled with tears. Her question brought waves of grief, but also of
anger. It had been the story of Bob's life. Life always had to be different
for Bob.

Small when he was a kid, Bob was often bullied by other boys. He was too
little at the time to compete in sports. He was often called names he'd
rather not remember. From childhood, Bob was different and never seemed to
fit in. Bob did complete college, married his loving wife and was grateful
to get his job as a copywriter at Montgomery Ward during the Great
Depression. Then he was blessed with his little girl. But it was all
short-lived. Evelyn's bout with cancer stripped them of all their savings
and now Bob and his daughter were forced to live in a two-room apartment in
the Chicago slums. Evelyn died just days before Christmas in 1938.

Bob struggled to give hope to his child, for whom he couldn't even afford to
buy a Christmas gift. But if he couldn't buy a gift, he was determined to
make one - a storybook! Bob had created an animal character in his own mind
and told the animal's story to little Barbara to give her comfort and hope.
Again and again Bob told the story, embellishing it more with each telling.
Who was the character? What was the story all about? The story Bob May
created was his own autobiography in fable form. The character he created
was a misfit outcast like he was. The name of the character? A little
reindeer named Rudolph, with a big shiny nose. Bob finished the book just in
time to give it to his little girl on Christmas Day. But the story doesn't
end there.

The general manager of Montgomery Ward caught wind of the little storybook
and offered Bob May a nominal fee to purchase the rights to print the book.
Wards went on to print,_ Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer_ and distribute it
to children visiting Santa Claus in their stores. By 1946 Wards had printed
and distributed more than six million copies of Rudolph. That same year, a
major publisher wanted to purchase the rights from Wards to print an updated
version of the book.

In an unprecedented gesture of kindness, the CEO of Wards returned all
rights back to Bob May. The book became a best seller. Many toy and
marketing deals followed and Bob May, now remarried with a growing family,
became wealthy from the story he created to comfort his grieving daughter.
But the story doesn't end there either.

Bob's brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, made a song adaptation to Rudolph.
Though the song was turned down by such popular vocalists as Bing Crosby and
Dinah Shore , it was recorded by the singing cowboy, Gene Autry.  "Rudolph,
the Red-Nosed Reindeer" was released in 1949 and became a phenomenal
success, selling more records than any other Christmas song, with the
exception of "White Christmas."

The gift of love that Bob May created for his daughter so long ago kept on
returning back to bless him again and again. And Bob May learned the lesson,
just like his dear friend Rudolph, that being different isn't so bad. In
fact, being different can be a blessing.       

Christmas Decor 2010

& So this is Christmas..♪♫♬♫♪♩{I love that song} I'm always a little sad when Christmas Eve comes around. I feel like I just finished decorating the house. In fact I just finished Elsa's stocking today & the Nativity Wreath {look at previous post} last night. Here are some pics of Christmas at our house this year.

we decided to go with our silver tree this year

stockings finished ✓

pom pom wreath made at diy club last year

vintage ornaments- from adam's childhood

decided to do a different kind of garland this year by bunching some round ornaments together- may also be considered the lazy garland

nativity wreath -we needed to add a little spiritual value to our decor

advent calendar- adam's mom made us a few years ago to be just like his childhood one

I usually fill the glass trees with peanut m & m's but with two sugar loving toddlers around I found it was just impossible this year

vintage redone- ornaments made by darlybird

land of misfit toys- bought at urban outfitters years ago

I bought this little modern tree at retro rose a couple of years ago- I believe it's made out of tuna cans- it's one of my favorite finds ever. This is definitely something you could DIY at home.

Nativity Wreath

My Mother in law gave me these tiny nativity ornaments but I didn't really have anywhere to hang them so I decided to make this wreath. I like how it turned out but my son & nieces keep asking me why I have a snowflake hanging in my wreath {they think they're really funny}- so I may have to find something that looks more like a star...

I looked around on the net for mangers but soon discovered they were quite expensive so I made mine out of cardboard- gold paint- & moss. 60 min & a little hot glue later this was made.

HO HO HO!

Hope they don't always feel this way about Santa Clause...

p.s. santa clause was completely void of personality which was really disappointing cause his beard was totally authentic.

Modern Gingerbread Houses/ Gingerbread Part-ee

So I attempted my own modern Gingerbread house at my friend Amy's Christmas party last week {see picture at the end} & let's just say it turned out nothing like the houses below... These are a few of my favorite modern gingerbread houses I've found around the web. Check out the first one- it's by far my favorite. There's an Eames  lounge chair,  a George Nelson clock, a Noguchi table- a Pierre Paulin lounge chair- a Jackson Pollock Painting & more- 

found on left coast mini see more on flickr
front


back- come on!

  

miro painting- are you kidding me

the next few were found on inhabitat

These are a few of the gingerbread houses from Amy's party

Amy & Chris'- they couldn't win because it was their prize giveaway- but seriously one of the coolest gingerbread houses i've ever seen in person & yes that's a couch & a coke machine- so great

This is Ben & Ande's {my sister & brother in law- they won- deservedly so} their house was on stilts & it had a river running under it & stained glass windows. Pretty cool- plus look at that cute little mini cupcake snowman- love it

This one is mine! I know- I know- but my husband was out of town so I was flying solo. My house seriously struggled to stay up by itself- so I was holding on with one hand, creating with the other. Not an easy task when you have no idea what you're trying to create. One thing I did like on mine was the christmas lights though- but really that's about it... 

All in all I got to eat lots of candy- lick my fingers every couple of minutes & scarf down yummy mexican food & about 5 cupcakes {they were mini} Thanks Amy & Chris

Lizzy House/ Textile Designer

Do you love Lizzy House's fabrics as much as I do? Well she lives right here in Salt Lake City & is having a sale at her studio Friday & Saturday. See you there.

DIY Night/ Christmas Style

One down One to go...

I failed to make the girls their own stockings last year so I figured DIY club would be the perfect time to get them finished- well I finished Ida's at least.  The little girl holding a doll & the deer are from the Etsy shop Gingerly 88- I think they are cake toppers. Do you think she'll still like it when she's 16...

So can anyone draw a ballet dancer for me? That's what Elsa requested on her stocking.

** update- elsa's stocking finished

p.s. -I know should of fluffed up the tutu before I took the picture. 
p.s.s. -a chain stitch is really easy- trying to draw a head that's not too big for a little ballerina's body when you're not an artist- not so easy. This was the 3rd stocking try. Luckily I hadn't sewed anything together first...
p.s.s.s. -I know the point shoes look funny- but i'm ok with that.

Ida/ 18 months

The night started out pretty good- dinner at Adam's sisters then off to see the lights at Temple Square. The first 25 or so minutes went pretty well but then this little creature decided she wanted to be miss independent- wanting to walk around on her own, not wanting to hold anyones hand, resulting in the biggest freakout/ tantrum i've ever seen come out of her. Poor girl- she just wants to be big already.

Also she's 18 months today. This may not mean a lot to some people but at our church it means she's off to nursery & I can once again listen in church!  Don't get me wrong sometimes it's nice to have this little distraction around but I think I'm just ready to relax again. (it's been a couple of years) 

Ida & me

the family with devil eyes - my iphone not always the best camera

Salt Lake City Temple

Women’s Booty Pop Enhancing Panties

I'm not sure what makes me more uncomfortable- the word booty, pop, enhancing or panties.  & I'm pretty sure I never want my booty to POP!

just in case you do need a booty lift 

Artist Love/ Under the Crystal Sky

UGH! I can't remember where I first saw these photos but I think they are magical- colorful- crazy- & wonderful.

Nicole Andrijevic and Tanya Schultz - better known as the duo Pip & Pop.