Day 193's first

I just made my first Etsy purchase, and I have a sneaking feeling it's the first of many.

I've had my eye on these Anne Harwell notecards for quite a while, and when I saw "1 in stock" today, I couldn't resist. I'm sure more will come, but hey, I'm a sucker. My cube walls could use a little life, so I think I'll pin them up. Hooray!

Day 191's apparent obsession

Wes played poker with some guys from work last week (and came home with $140!), so I took the opportunity to meander through my files of magazine clippings, and flip through a few issues I haven't fully taken in. I started to notice a pattern, and it was confirmed this morning as I scrolled through my digital files. Apparently, I have some sort of weird obsession with blue bedrooms. Have a look.


Photographed for Southern Accents, the dramatic bed clearly makes a statement. I like the white shade on the white Christopher Spitzmiller lamp. Very cool.


I love this one. I snagged the image from a Birmingham real estate Web site (strange, I know), so I have no idea who was responsible for it. It's so classic and comfortable, and I love old sunburst mirrors - they're much prettier than the ones I grabbed at TJ Maxx ...


This Berrie Benson-designed room is another favorite. It's quite cheerful, but looks restful, too. The 'Imperial Trellis' curtains give currency to an otherwise classic room.


I think when I have a guest room to decorate, I'm going to do it in robin's egg blue and red, like this room from Cottage Living. Red is a bit much for me in a room I would spend a lot of time, but I love this combination. If it's in the guest room, I can go in and look, but I don't have to sleep there. Perfect!


Clearly, I have several favorites, because this is one too. The bedside tables, the lamps and possibly even the throw pillows don't match, they go. Further proof that your home doesn't have to come in one bag to look cohesive (although, we already knew that, didn't we?). Image from pointclickhome.com.

I actually have my own blue bedroom at home, no doubt inspired in part by these. Currently, there are no sheets on the bed, there's a box of Christmas decorations (that mysteriously haven't made it into the attic) on the floor and there's a pile of laundry in the corner, but when all of those things are taken care of, I'll snap a picture and share it with you.

Day 187's dream

I'll take two of you, Chatfield chair from Ballard Designs:


And if you would, please arrive clothed in this lovely crewel:


Thanks.

Day 187's distraction

Just, oh, yesterday, I mentioned that I needed to tighten up on my finances and thus would forget that there is a Banana Republic basically across the street from my office and adjacent to multiple fast-food vendors. So far so good. Problem is, I sit at a computer all day, and when my mind wanders, so does my mouse. Today, it wandered to j.crew's lovely Web site and straight to these:



I have been scouring both Birmingham and the world wide web for a terrific pair of winter boots for about a year. A year. There are plenty of boots out there, but most are too shiny, embellished, high, low, hooker-ish, cowboy-ish or expensive for me. Until these. I haven't come close to grabbing my wallet yet, but I already feel like Monica Gellar when she names her fabulous new boots something along the lines of "I don't have any money in the bank, but I've got great boots"-boots. Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure I've been looking for a pair since that episode aired live on Must-See-TV.

Day 186's resolution

I hope I’m not digging myself in too deep here, but this year, for once, I have a hefty list of “New Year’s Resolutions,” for lack of a better term. I haven’t formulated much of a plan yet (which is probably a bad sign), but I’m thinking maybe I’ll tackle them one month at a time.

First off, I’ve got to get rid of a few pounds. As cliché as it is, it must be done. 2006 was great. I lost about 15 or so pesky pounds that I acquired during college, and I did it the right way: I went to the gym, I cut Dr. Pepper out of my diet (well, for the most part anyway) and I reduced my meal portions. It was surprisingly easy, and I got rid of all my clothes with double-digit sizes on the label. Best of all, I felt GREAT. I was a lot more comfortable and I felt strong and healthy – like I could do anything.

I don’t know what happened in 2007. Well, I guess I do. Nothing. I got some combination of complacent and busy, and suddenly all of my pants are freakin’ tight. Gah. It’s time to get serious. Wes bought this trainer deal for his uber expensive bike so he can ride it in spite of weather and traffic, so I’ve vowed to get back to the gym, even though it’s not as geographically convenient as it once was.

This brings me to number 2. If I’m going to be spending more afternoons at the gym, I’ve/we’ve got to get a better handle on the housework. Doing piles of laundry, stacks of dishes and sweeping up mounds of cat hair isn’t my idea of a relaxing Saturday, so the only solution I can come up with is just to nip it in the bud during the week. I’m not the neatest person in the world, so it’s definitely going to be a feat to convince myself to put things away after I use/wear them. Convincing Wes to do the same will be conquest all it’s own ...

I don't really have a choice on number 3. The first car payment is due in t-minus five days, and I'm already feeling its strain on my pocket book. No more lunch-hour trips to Banana Republic. Dangit.

There are a few more things I'd like to improve in 2008, but this list is already giving me the hives, so that's it for now.

Happy New Year!

Day 165

Okay, I realize that, with this post, I am giving far, far too much of my dorkiness away ... but, I think it'll be worth it!

Get excited, a meteor shower is coming! The Geminid meteor shower, to be specific. The best times to view it will be post-dusk on Thursday and early Friday morning (2am-ish) and then again on Friday night and into Saturday morning. I know, I know, waking up in the middle of the night probably isn't your cup of tea (believe me, it's not mine either), but if you haven't seen a serious meteor shower, you are missing out!

My dad used to drag us out of bed for meteor showers, eclipses, comets and all kinds of celestial stuff when we were kids. I'm so thankful that he instilled in us an appreciation of such events, because I think I'm starting to really understand why they're so amazing -- they're a realization of God's glory on earth! I fully intend to set my alarm, tune my iPod to some Chris Tomlin and spend some time with my Maker!

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." Psalm 19:1


{image: Alan Dyer via SkyandTelescope.com}

Day 164's wish

It's supposed to be 79 degrees here today. Geez ...what does a girl have to do to get a little winter weather?? It felt so so wrong to be listening to "Winter Wonderland" on my way to lunch, and even more wrong to see women in tank tops and flip flops. Oh the horror! I mean, it's December, people.

Day 160's big purchase

Oh me. Wes and I bought a car last night! It was all very exciting and very scary at the same time. We have been planning to replace Wes' Honda Accord for some time. My 4Runner is getting up there in miles, but it's been our go-to car - the one we take when we leave town, or go basically anywhere together. We like having something with that much space, so we wanted to keep it, and with gas prices on the rise, we decided to look at getting something that would help out in that area. First we were going to buy a car in September, then November, then we decided to wait until after Christmas.

On Wednesday of this week, I was driving the Honda on the way home from work, and it started acting funny. I know next to nothing about cars and really really didn't want to break down on hwy. 31 in the middle of rush hour, so I pulled over. Wes met me and drove the car home while I followed in the 4Runner. Sure enough, it's got a problem (but don't ask me to explain it!). I guess half a day of having one car between us was enough for Wes, because he starting calling around about cars on Thursday. Long (boring) story short, we came home last night with a 2008 Nissan Altima! Our original intention wasn't to buy a brand-new car, but we got a great deal, and we're both quite pleased. Now begins the oh-so-fun task of making monthly car payments!

Day 158's inspiration

Style editor Heather Chadduck of Cottage Living has great taste and a quite distinctive style. Just before she joined the crew at Cottage, they wisely photographed her Dallas home and featured it in 2004. Her Birmingham hacienda underwent quite the renovation before it met her discerning standards. I tore out pictures of her blue and brown bedroom when Cottage published it last year, and today I came across the virtual tour of the house before, during and after her remodeling efforts.

Wow, has it come a long way! It gives me hope that the cottage we can afford now (er, when we start looking this spring) can one day be the cottage we love. Don't miss kitchen - it's definitely the most dramatic and inspiring transformation. Seeing this, I might even be able to settle for some truly heinous linoleum!

{image from Cottage Living}

Day 157's exciting discovery

Keeping in line with the robin's egg blue dictionary and letterpressed desk calendar, check out this great Web site. See Jane Work carries TONS of pretty desk accessories and office supplies so nice you might actually want to go to work! I said might ...