Where the Heck Have I Been?

Hey friends! Sorry I haven't posted in a while. Thankfully, my blogging absence hasn't been due to any life tragedy. Although I did go swimsuit shopping the other day. I think it's safe to say that seeing one's backside magnified by florescent lights and a three-way mirror qualifies as a traumatic event. I'm still dealing with the lingering effects of PTSD.

Listen up, Macy's…. dim the lights or put trick mirrors in. No one needs to know the reality of what's behind them.

It doesn't help that my newest clients look like this…

I can't even hate them because they're beautiful. Because they are also the kindest, sweetest girls on the planet. Beautiful inside and out.

They own a fabulous boutique and have asked me to help spruce it up a bit. I'm really excited… it's got an industrial glam vibe and involves the color pink. Very cool.


I'm designing some new fitting rooms for the store. And, trust me, they will be flattering to all who enter. (I'm a quick study, Macy's!) I'll keep you updated on the progress.


More client projects are in the works. I'm currently working with a young family on their new home. We picked out all new paint colors, and we're starting to put the house together room by room.

The house is a beautiful brick Georgian revival. This was the design board I created for their front porch.

I absolutely fell in love with the black and white chairs, and thankfully, my client did too :) Pics of the finished porch and other rooms coming soon.


Between shopping for clients and carpooling my kids, this is what a day in my car looks like…

Life has been fast-paced and crazy busy, and sometimes, I need a good laugh to keep me going. Luckily, my 5 year old provided just the comic relief I needed.

For "U" week at preschool, the kids decorate underwear. All of my kids have done this activity, and I never really gave it a second thought. That is, until my child came home with this creation …

He told me it was a submarine, and couldn't understand why I found it so funny. I can only imagine what his teachers were thinking.

I'm contemplating adding it to the gallery wall. What do you think? :)


We're heading to Arizona for spring break in a couple of days. After this past winter, we weren't taking any weather chances, and decided the desert was the safest bet.

I'll be back on a bit of a blogging break for the next week, but follow me on Instagram or Twitter if you want to stay updated on my sweet chaos.


Thanks for stopping by!

I've Been Tagged

You may have noticed that there's a game of tag taking place in blogland. Well, today I'm "It."


I was tagged by Shasta from In The Old Road.

If you haven't had the pleasure of meeting Shasta yet, please head over and visit her. She has a wonderful blog about home design and crafting. She is also an angel on earth, providing around-the-clock care to her 9 year old son who has a rare genetic disorder. Much of her blogging is done at his bedside in the middle of the night so she can attend to him when he suffers seizures.  You can read her story here.


The rules of the game go like this: a blogger "tags" another blogger and gives them 11 questions to answer in a post, then that blogger "tags" another 11 bloggers and comes up with 11 questions for them to answer and so on.


Here are my answers to the 11 questions Shasta asked me...




1. What was the first blog that you followed?  Brooke Giannetti's Velvet & Linen. I stumbled upon it when I was searching for inspiration for our bathroom remodel, and I was immediately hooked on it. Still am!




2. Do you still have any Christmas decorations out? Um, I'm embarrassed to admit this, but yes. My husband leaves the lights in our backyard trees so that he doesn't have to restring them year after year. It used to drive me crazy, but I've let it go. You really can't see them unless you are under the tree studying it, but I still feel a little redneck.




3.  Who is your celebrity crush? Hmmm... can't really say that I have one, but Josh Lucas ain't too shabby.




4. Do you have children? (If yes, list age and sex)  I have 4 boys, ages 11, 9, 6 and 3.




5. Milk chocolate or dark chocolate? I know dark chocolate is better for me, but I still prefer the taste of milk chocolate.




6. What is your favorite TV show?"Modern Family" and "Dexter" have been my favorites for awhile, but I'm also really into "Smash" now too.




7. Do you have a nickname? If so, what is it? I've been "Ca" to my family my whole life (pretty creative, huh?).  And, my sister's family calls me "Sas." My nephew started calling me that when he was a toddler and it stuck. He's 15 now, and I'm still "Aunt Sas."




8. What would you do if, all of a sudden, you had a full day of "me" time?  (no children, no husband, just you.) I'd probably stay in my pjs for way too long drinking too much coffee and reading my favorite blogs. I'd eventually get motivated to go play some tennis. Afterwards, I'd treat myself to a little mani/pedi and massage. I'd have a nice lunch out and go shopping and antiquing. I'd meet some girlfriends for dinner and drinks. Then I'd come home, get back in my jammies, curl up with a good book and a bag of Twizzlers. Is it possible to do all that in one day?
    

9.  Have you ever gone "unplugged" for over 24 hours? (No electronic devices, i.e. cell phones, computer, etc.) Absolutely. Although I love the convenience of cell phones and laptops, I miss the days when being on vacation meant you'd be unreachable for a week.

10.  Would you ever dine alone in a crowded restaurant? There was a time when I would have been self-conscious to do that. Now I'd consider it a luxury :)

11.  What are you wearing? White shirt, black sweater, jeans, and black wellies.
  




The 11 bloggers I'm tagging are:


Alison at The Polohouse
Linda at A Toile Tale
Glenda at The Paper Mulberry
Joan at For the Love of a House
Maury at Life On Mars
Susie at Susie Harris
Kerry at House TalkN
Jenny at Simcoe Street
Mary Alice at Chateau Chic
Teresa at Our Southern Country Home and Farm
Amber at Simple Dwellings




Here are my questions for them:


1. If you could leave for vacation tomorrow, where would you go?
2. Would you rather have a full-time chef or a full-time housekeeper? 
3. What is the worst job you ever had?
4. What would your dream job be?
5. What is the best book you've read lately?
6.  City or country?
7. Would you rather live in a brand new house or an old one?
8. How would you describe your design style? Modern, traditional, eclectic?
9. Early bird or night owl?
10. Lake house, mountain cabin or beach cottage?
11. What is your favorite pastime?




Thanks to everyone who weighed in on my computer decision! I really appreciate your input!! I'm happily typing on my new MacBook Pro and loving it. 


Still hoping they can recover all my old pictures and files. I have some things I'm looking forward to blogging about once I get my hands on that stuff. Have a good one :)

Super Bowl

It's a super week here in Indy!  Our family spent last Saturday at the NFL Experience and Super Bowl Village.  Just thought I'd share some photos of our fair city, as we gear up for Sunday's big game.

Look up! See those people on top of that scaffolding? ...

Now do you see them?...

They're getting ready to do this...

Zip lining in the middle of the city. How fun! We headed inside here, the NFL Experience...

The whole family had fun punting, passing, kicking, catching and running the football. Not to brag or anything, but I made a field goal. Okay, it was only a 10 yarder, but still. The Ravens might need me :)

The Vince Lombardi trophy was in da house...

Need a cold one?  That's what's in this block of ice...

And, of course, it wouldn't be Indy without race cars...

The cars decorated for each NFL team...

The whole city is excited to be hosting this great event. We even made sure there was sunshine and temps nearing 60 yesterday and today... pretty unheard of in January!

So, tell me. Are you going to watch the Super Bowl? Leave me a comment and tell me who you're cheering for!

The Versatile Blogger

Kelly at the wonderful blog, The Essence of Home, recently honored me with an award.

Thank you, Kelly, for bestowing upon me such a prestigious and coveted award :)

The rules for accepting this award are as follows:

* Thank the person who gave you the award.

* Include a link to their blog.

* Select and link to 15 blogs that you've recently discovered or follow regularly for the award to go to next.

* Share 7 things about yourself.

So, here are 7 things you probably never wanted to know about me:

1. I have a serious addiction to Twizzlers. In fact, I am eating them as I type this.


2. I play tennis a few times a week. (So I can eat Twizzlers.)


3. I love to sing. If I were younger and didn't have 4 kids I'd audition for American Idol. Hopefully, I wouldn't end up in the early audition TV footage of the crazy people who think they can sing but are really horrendous.

4. In my life before children, I worked in PR and event planning. I had my own event marketing business until my second son was born.

5. Someday I will write a book about disastrous family vacations and a screenplay about my high school in the 80s.

6. I have one sister and one brother. They are two of the funniest people on the planet, and two of my favorite people. (Thirty years ago, I never would have thought I'd be saying that.)

7. I recently saw my prom date's mug shot on the national news. 

I'd like to nominate the following blogs for this award. 

(I realize some of you may be award-free, but I'm nominating you anyway. I'm kind of a rebel)

lisa roy

A Toile Tale

Blondie's Journal

Classic Casual Home

Classic Chic Home

Design Indulgence

Emerald Cove

Fresh Picked Whimsy

Modern Country Style

My Old Country House

Roses and Rust

Susie Harris

The Paper Mulberry

The Polohouse

The Vintage Farmhouse

Don't forget to enter my giveaway! It ends at midnight tonight!!

Have a great weekend :)

Star Sighting

The Back Story

Just a few short months ago, I was virtually unaware of a place known to insiders as the "Blogosphere."  I knew that people wrote blogs, but I didn't "follow" any of them.  I didn't realize how many people were living in this parallel universe, writing posts about every imaginable topic.  The sheer number of home design/decorating blogs out in the Blogosphere is astounding!

Need to know the perfect color of black paint for your front door?  You can find it in a blog.  Want to create the perfect tablescape?  There's a blog to show you how.  Want to make curtains out of your old maternity clothes?  Someone in the blogosphere can help you do it.  Blogs are filled with before and after pictures, tutorials, and loads of inspiration.

It didn't take too much time in the land of blogs for me to determine that there are definitely some reigning queens of the Blogosphere.  They are the women whose blog name appears on every other blog; the women who have thousands of people following their blogs, recreating their design style and seeking their advice.  One blog that would definitely qualify for royal status is "Thrifty Decor Chick." 

My good friend and blog-enthusiast, Valerie, introduced me to the blog, "Thrifty Decor Chick."  Sarah, who is thee thrifty decor chick, shows readers how to create beautiful homes without spending a lot of cash.  She is witty and creative, and has a HUGE following. 

Valerie and I have had many conversations that began with, "Did you see that Thrifty Decor Chick did ...?; "Thrifty Decor Chick would probably do ...?"

The Sighting

I have 4 hours a week without any children at home, so this morning I decided to use some of that time wisely by cleaning my house, grocery shopping, heading to my local Home Goods store.  I was pleasantly surprised when I walked into the store and immediately spotted my friend, Valerie, in the lamp section.  (Great minds think alike!) We chatted, perused the lamps together, and then parted ways.  I made my way over to the bath accessories (of course!), when I recognized someone else I knew.  I was about to say hello, when I realized that I didn't really KNOW this person... I just knew who she was.  I did a double take.  Could it be her?  Was it really one of the reigning queens of the Blogosphere?  Thrifty Decor Chick herself?  I ducked behind the shelf of dog beds, grabbed my phone, and called Val.  

"Thrifty. Decor. Chick.  Can you hear me?  Get to the back of the store. Stat."  At this point, a guy stocking the shelves began to eye me suspiciously.  (Nothing wrong here, buddy.  I'm just stalking someone.  Go back to your work.)  Val came over right away and the two of us began following behind the woman and confirmed to ourselves that she was indeed "the chick."  We took a moment to gather ourselves.  Val steadied her shaking hands, and I applied some lipstick.  We then approached her...



Sarah and Valerie

Sarah could not have been sweeter or more gracious.  (I'm calling her Sarah now, 'cause we're on a first name basis.  Although in my excitement, I'm not sure I ever told her my name.)  Val expressed that she loved following her blog and mentioned to her that I just started a blog.  Of course, being a shameless self promoter dork, when she asked me the name of my blog, I could barely answer audibly.  I felt like a chorus member in a 4th grade play telling Meryl Streep that I was an actor. 

It's a Small World

When talking with Sarah, I discovered that we graduated from the same high school and she knew my brother.  She said she remembered him as being smart.  (She was probably wondering how such a smart guy had a sister who was stalking people at Home Goods and could barely put together a sentence.) 

So the moral of today's story is this... although she is a queen and I, a mere peasant, the Blogosphere may just be a small world after all.