vases, videos, and vignettes

here are some thoughts and a little eye candy for this last day of may.

this pretty much says it all.

love this vignette.

and this cat organization.

and have i mentioned that this is my favorite candle in the world? it reminds me of the start of summer.

and 2 plugs for small businesses in rome. the first one is for rome resale on 5th avenue. it is a thrift/junk store that has great little finds. like these we found at lunch today...the orange vases are my favorites

the 2nd is for our local video store. we love going here. i know there is netflix and comcast on demand. but this store has the best customer service, the friendliest owner, we can walk there, and we simply enjoy supporting the local small business owner. every time we walk out of there, we comment on how much we appreciate it. if you are in rome, visit echo at rome video on 2nd avenue!

hotsaucecommitteeparttwo

is it memorial day? life has been a blur since we got out of school last thursday. we had a busy weekend, started cleaning out some closets, went to 2 parties on saturday night, em left for camp on sunday and we spent the day at the lake. today has just been weird...a monday, but not really?? tonight pb is grilling some shrimp, wil has a friend over to spend the night, and i am reflecting. my morning started with a walk and the first song on my ipod was the dixie chics doing "landslide". boohoo! that song just triggers the tears for me. i listened to the whole song, thinking that i must need to release some stress, and then i changed it to ludacris.

here are some random thoughts for today...

it was a gorgeous day to be at the lake yesterday and wil had the best time on the water. a great day with family and friends.

a new favorite of pb's...he is enjoying it tonight. it has been a hellacious day for him today...i will thoughtfully blog about his dealings as a small business owner when the smoke clears : )

2 of my favorite products. smith's rosebud salve is the best lip balm, i have decided that for sure. and this eye base by trish mcevoy is a staple. it's perfect alone. no eyeshadow needed. just add a little mascara and you are done!

and speaking of mascara, i have tried several this past year and have determined that loreal voluminous is my tried and true drugstore favorite. i used it for years and have found my way back. if you want a more expensive brand, the trish mcevoy high volume is a-mazing. i have a travel size of it and i must say, it is the overall winner. it washes off your lashes in little tubes like the loreal double extend, but not as messy. the double extend freaked me out a bit...seemed like all of my lashes were falling out with the tubes of mascara. here is the lineup left to right...favorite to least favorite.

and another picture of emerson from emersonmade. love this shirt.

and i just like these 2 images. the jars and bowls! the green shutters!

and look out for a new addition to the left hand side of our blog. the category: things that do not make pb happy. have a safe memorial day!

the final countdown

this is it. our last week of school. we are so excited about all that we have going on this summer even though it is going to be a busy one. here are a few things to share on this sunny wednesday:

these notes that several students left on my desk yesterday. this makes me smile.

and this precious bracelet. 5 school meals were provided through the united nations world food programme with the purchase of this bracelet. i love it. and how cute is the burlap bag?

thanks to all the kiddos for a great year!

photo of the week. enjoy!

photo of the week-flowers,singing to your new bride, dancing and standing next to dad-edition

sunday somethings

soooo, we're playing around with the blog today. still in progress but adding some new gadgets. despite the fact that pb is silent 99% of the time, he is my partner. and he helped me a lot with this today. we are still tweaking it though.

in the meantime, he has just made the best batch of guacamole and we are currently listening to this:


earlier today we went to the antique mall. it is a million degrees here and it was even hotter in the antique place. i am currently loving any kind of vintage or eclectic dish/bowl to use for jewelry and makeup. hence all the photos lately. i found all 3 of these for $3.00 today. they are pink glass with a gold rim.

use #1

use #2

and i found this tiny blue vase for $1.00

yesterday i went to atlanta with a best friend of mine that will be leaving rome for the summer. we lingered longer at lunch over wine and didn't shop very much. it was a perfect day. we did have a few finds though.


one of my favorites was this easy, breezy top on the sale rack at j. crew. so cute with white jeans or shorts.

and i finally got to check out the calypso st. barth things at target. got this super cute dress for em.

and this bathing suit for her.

and i got a t-shirt similar to this for wil.

and last, here is my new favorite summer wedge. the kate spade bali cork wedge. goes with everything and comfortable.

cheers on this warm sunday evening!

do you play?

last november, we celebrated thanksgiving day at my parents' house with all of our families together. it was a warm and beautiful day. everybody brought something yummy to eat, we had "cornhole" set up in the front yard to play (although our set was ailing a bit, we rigged it with a few rocks so we could play), and a fun time was being had by all...until words with friends got started. my sister was playing, her friend was playing, i was playing, lizzie was playing, and pb was playing...until he decided we all looked ridiculous sitting around the den, not talking, playing a game on our iphones...with each other. it looked like a room at a retirement home.

what is it about this game? it is addictive. it has the power to steal hours out of your day without you even realizing the time has passed...or that someone might want to have a conversation with you in bed at the end of the day sans words with friends being played. if you meet someone that plays, there is an instant connection! "do you play? i play! start a game with me!" you can spot moms waiting at cheer practice that are playing. it bridges the gap between generations and puts you in touch with people that you may not have seen in years. this is ridiculous, but i think i have 11 games going right now. several with friends of my mom and several with friends of my daughter. i can go days without touching it and then when i have a free moment, i will pick it up, get caught up on all my games, and if i have time, i'll be sucked in to playing for an hour or more...

words with friends. if you don't have the app, you might wanna try it. but you will be hooked. it's good for the mind though. and the heart.

uses for oreos and etsy

happy saturday! i am up early to walk and have coffee before heading to the atl with a friend for the day. i ran out of time yesterday but had a few images to share. we enjoyed dinner with friends in cartersville last night and pb is shooting a wedding all day today/tonight. hope everyone has a great sunshiny day!

1. made these treats for dessert this week. what's not to like about this combination?

2. this piece of art.

3. another way to organize jewels.

4. this essie polish, nice is nice. thanks e! very summer pretty.

5. and last, this etsy vintage store. there are so many fun things that i can't include all the ones i love. obsessed.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ethanollie?ref=seller_info

there is this.

and how cute are these propped on a shelf somewhere?

and this mortar and pestle!

possibilities are endless for this one.

check it out!

off to never never land

3 thing thursday:

1. i usually prefer the "less is more" rule when it comes to accessorizing. however, i do like these 3 looks:

but then again, just this one thing on my arm would be my "go to", perfect choice.

2. "just sayin'"...a friend of mine and i are equally perplexed turned off by the use of this phrase. although, it did seem appropriate for this tidbit of info on the benefits of getting enough sleep.

"There’s a reason that they call it ‘beauty sleep’. Getting 7 to 9 hours of sleep a night can actually improve your appearance. While you’re sleeping your body releases human growth hormones. This helps your body create collagen which gives your skin strength and elasticity. (Fun Fact “kola” means glue in Greek and Collagen actually means “glue producer”). Also, while you are dreaming away, your skin cells are regenerating and all the muscles in your face that create wrinkles begin to relax. While the recommended hours of sleep you should be getting each night is between 7 and 9, this just simply isn’t a reality for some you busy ladies. So just think of this as a reason to catch up on weekends. According to FITNESS Magazine, when you have been asleep for 5 hours “Your skin’s temperature reaches its lowest point and your muscles relax, giving skin its deepest recovery.” So hit the snooze button ladies and dream a little longer."

3. another song...in honor of wil...and more sleep for me.

may 18 and 58 degrees...

happy wednesday! i'm wearing boots today. we are enjoying some much cooler temperatures this week so it feels so odd to be the last weeks of school! it is usually burning up by now. here are a few things i have stumbled upon lately and bookmarked to share...

1. this advice.

Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

Don’t have negative thoughts over things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

Don’t over do. Keep your limits.

Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

Don’t waste your precious energy on gossip.

Dream more while you are awake.

Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

Forget issues of the past. Don’t remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.

Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don’t hate others.

Make peace with your past so it won’t spoil the present.

No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

Smile and laugh more.

You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.


2. this wall of jewels.

3. this knot.

4. this song. i never get tired of it. a sweet 70's tune. i can sing all the words.




5. this painting. i know it is mine, but it was one that i truly loved when i finished it...the big girl tunic she is wearing is her mom's, a best friend of mine. i borrowed it for our honeymoon.

black and yellow, black and yellow

the sun was shining yesterday. it was a bit breezy. the perfect saturday. there were dreams. there were aspirations. there were hopes for a day of family fun. here is how our saturday went down...

1. we took wil to practice with the band that he and some friends are starting. i told him we would pick him up later in the day. we were planning on a family dinner with everybody home.

2. pb and i spent the afternoon together around the house. i watered flowers, he made a sam's run, we went to t.j. maxx together. our t.j.'s is getting a makeover so we saw lots of new things and came home with this little find.

and pb found these at sam's.

3. while in t.j. maxx, we got a call from one of em's friends inviting her to spend the night. one kid down. so much for family dinner.

4. then wil called and wanted to go downtown with "the band" and eat dinner. there was a band playing at schroeder's and they wanted to hear it. the guitarist was supposed to be incredible and had played with jimmy hendrix and inspired the grateful dead, phish, etc. wil's band, the daytrippers, was pumped about going. we couldn't say no.

5. next was a text from our friends and soon to be neighbors (fingers crossed) asking us what we were doing for the evening. now that all hopes for a family dinner had been dashed, we decided to join them for appetizers and drinks on their back porch. we made a yummy buffalo chicken dip with these organic chips. (photo of dip not available)

and we had this a-mazing champagne.

soooo, our plans for a family saturday did not pan out. but it was a great day for everyone and we can't ask for more than that. wil got to play the guitarist's bass. onstage. and that rocked his world. em got to spend the night out for a second night in a row with another friend. that made her day. and we got to hang out with our friends and have a great evening too. we are shooting for a family dinner tonight.

and last, here are 2 photos dedicated to "the daytrippers". good luck with the band!

before.

after.