Always a bridesmaid...

Ok, ok, I got to be a bride too! Today we had such a beautiful shower for one of my best friends Tiffany. Here are just a few pics of the decor which was so super cute! It was so fun getting all of the friends and family together. And most of all seeing the fabulous goodies the future MRS gets to take home! She has such great taste.

We had all of the brides favorite snacks. Powdered donuts, gummy bears, and skittles were scattered throughout the house....and lots more yummy food. We had so much fun putting it all together before the guests arrived. I have to say it was the easiet shower I have ever thrown. Can't wait until the big day.

I also have to add that I recieved a bomb diggity hostess "thank you" gift. Kate Spade hot pink earrings! Ummm, I will throw a shower everday if I get fun gifts like this. I am going to publically apologize for the hostess gifts I gave....not this cool!

Hello new everyday earring! I love you!

Happy Wedding!

Laundry Love

Well it's kind of a before and after. More like a before and "currently in the state of functional". The washer and dryer have arrived and I could not be happier. I am using I and not we here because I have been the one tromping back and forth to the laundry mat.

Unfortunately the laundry room is not quite a room, more like a closet. It is right off the main living area so I want  it to be pretty at a glance.There is a lot of space though. Plenty of storage cabinets and enough wall space to hang the ironing board. The original floor was a disgusting linoleum circa 1975. Dirty, dusty, and dingy...the trifecta that has been the most common theme for our little house so far.

Are you grossed out yet?

Cabinets and walls were a dingy yellowed cream??? With a splash of gross! Ever inch had to be scrubbed and painted. The grey on the paint swatch turned out to be the babiest blue I have ever seen. Words of wisdom, buy the sample paint before you buy the gallon! Well, I made it work. I got over the fact that the laundry room could double as baby boy's nursery and moved on. I also wanted to put a decorative element on the cabinet doors, just to give a little interest. I brainstormed for about a day....or like an hour. Chalkboard paint on the cabinets? Chevron? Stripes? I went with a herringbone print. Instead of solid color I decided on a rougher look.

My very technical measurements.

A pattern like this needed to be semi accurate so I made myself a homemade pattern. I just measured a few things and figured out what looked best. I little ruler action and some tracing I was ready to roll. I recruited a little helper along the way too. Look at that concentration! I will say the area she painted is my favorite. That girl is gifted!

MG hard at work....gosh I love her!

I want to put something clean and fresh on top of the cabinets because it feels really empty up there. Milk glass maybe??? Ideas??? I had this totally awesome "A" just laying around the garage. An awesome wedding gift from my sister-in-law. I thought it went perfect with the grey and blue paint. I will hang the ironing board underneath once I get it finished.

What we still need....
Lighting
Ironing board hooks
Ironing board cover

What would be nice to have eventually but not high on any priority list....
Cool narrow rug

Happy Washing and Drying!

Mad about Mad Men

I know the entire world is mad about Mad Men but we especially love it. After every episode I ask Mr. R to go out and buy me a pack of cigarettes. While he is out I'll put on my house dress and paint my nails red. This never happens by the way....but doesn't Betty make smoking look so glamorous!

I have a love hate relationship with every character. Pete...hate! Joan....love! Betty.....crazy! January Jones is so stinkin' beautiful though! Don...I go back and forth. Peggy....I question her decisions almost daily but I like her most of the time. I feel like I know them!!!

We love the show so much we might have had Mad Men themed engagement pictures taken. Ok, we did....but it was a very loose theme! They were pretty amazing I have to say. Thanks to Emma Goode Photography who is just all around awesome! If you forgot how photogenic my husband is, here is a little reminder.

We haven't seen the season premiere! I keep plugging my ears when I hear people talking about it. But tonight's the night. Two hours together watching our favorite show. I am super excited!

Happy Imaginary Smoking!

Everything but a Break

This past week has been everything but a break! They should change Spring Break to Spring Busy. After the walking food tour of New Orleans we had a hectic day of errands in Dallas and then packed up for a quick road trip. Some of our best friends moved to Amarillo last summer and we have been dying to see their new place. Mr. R, my sweet sis, and her three kiddies, packed up Friday morning at 4am and drove for 6 hours! Well, Mr. R drove, I slept, changed DVDs, and provided witty commentary. We had a great visit. I did a little shopping thanks to my awesome friend and her antique shop….eeer garage. Who knew there were such great treasures in Amarillo Texas?!? Seeing their amazing house really lit a fire under my butt to get things decorated around here.

Amarillo by morning!

When we finally got back into Dallas we were exhausted! We were ready to see the renovation progress and finally sit in a quiet house and relax. Wouldn’t you know….we got locked out! Sunday night at 8pm! When we moved in all of the house keys were just in a random pile. We really had no idea what key opened what door. Changing the locks are somewhere between buy a microwave and landscape front yard on our ever growing to do list. I threw together two front door sets, one for us and one for the contractor. The rest are still in a pile on the kitchen counter. Isn’t it funny when you grab the wrong keys? No it isn’t funny at all! Really, we had the right keys to the front door but I had locked the glass door (I have no idea if a key to this door even exists). What made it even less funny was that we could actually see the door we couldn’t unlock.

Our neighbors think we are two dizzy kids. My very kind next door neighbor searched her house and even drove me to another neighbors house looking for keys. No luck, all of the keys were to the front door. Is anyone concerned so many people have a key to our house. I’m not…I get locked out a lot. And so we were still standing in the front yard debating on whether breaking a window or kicking in the glass door was a better option. We had attracted two sets of neighbors, had our contractor on the phone, and Mr.R was about to loose it. I was trimming bushes in the dark, I tend to redirect my focus when things get stressful.

Well we finally found a key! My awesome neighbor called the previous owners son, who had a back door key! Yay! No broken windows.

To do list…

#347. Make more keys

#348. Pass keys out to all the neighbors

#349. Save locksmiths number just in case

We came back from the ‘Rilla to find some great progress. We have been so happy with everything so far. I cannot wait to have the floors finished so we can install the fridge and washer and dryer.

 3 fans and a popcorn ceiling

Popcorn gone....yay!

Finally opened up to the dining room.

Sub floor installed.

Oh my goodness we have a floor....sort of! I love this photo beacuse you can see the guys working in the background.

Gosh, and if that wasn't enough our wedding was featured on Hello, Love. So fun! A huge shout out to all of the photographers. Emma Goode Photography, Zenia Curiel, and Jim Martin. Go and comment and say how pretty it was!

Phew.....and done!

Oh My Grout

I hate that my first before and after is about cleaning but it had to be shown! Our sweet little house had been so neglected while it was on the market. For the past two years I am confident no one even wiped down the sinks let alone the floors (or the potty....insert gag here). It was a very unique case and it is all cleanable so I will not complain...it is ours and it's precious no matter how disgustingly gross it was. Let me set the scene for you......

There is a wallpaper from 1983 that will be coming down soon but that was not my first project. You can see a little peek below. The bathroom cabinet was filthy. Like, 25 years of bathroom soaps and sprays filthy. Like, a thick layer of Aqua Net (which I am not trashing at all b/c I love that stuff) filthy.

Before I put anything in the cabinet I had to scrub with soap and water then sand paper! Did I mention the Aqua Net? Then for a nice clean coat....errr three coats of white paint. There is just something about white paint. It can instantly transform a space, making it feel clean and open. I think the cabinets had been white at one point but time had yellowed them.

While I was waiting for my paint to dry...for real....I started wiping at the floor. My grout is not black?!?!? It's actually white?!?? And this is when the real crazy started y'all. Tile by tile I began scrubbing. I had a bucket of water, a bottle of 409, and a tiny scrub brush. I want to start endorsing this scrub brush. I don't even know how I acquired it but it was made in Taiwan. Should I send them a letter or something?After each tile I felt like I had won a small war. And this is something you just don't stop half way through...oh, I finished the entire floor.

Before

After

Hello white grout, I am your new owner. It is the year 2012, I will love you and scrub you weekly. 

This is the original bathroom tile from 1949. I secretly love it. We will be keeping it for awhile anyways. I wish this was a complete before and after with new wallpaper but that will have to wait. And the other bathroom is a whole other story.

House update: So far we, the crew of guys who comes to the house everyday, has scraped the ceiling of the worlds thickest popcorn. Put in new crown molding. Knocked down two walls. Cut off the gingerbread accents on the cabinet, and re-wired the kitchen. Tomorrow we, ok the guys, start laying out the new floor. So stinkin' excited!

Happy Scrubbing!

Who Dat?

Who Dat! Or how Mr.R would say it, "Who is that?"
Our life is so hard! Completely false…..we are so stinkin' lucky! My sister and brother-in-law started throwing around the idea of a little mini vacation to New Orleans a few months ago. Way before we had even put an offer on the house.  And way before any renovations plans had been made. Spring Break 2012 for grown-ups (ish) couldn't have come at a better time because the house is a wreck and we needed a break from the dust. And I mean, do you really need an excuse to go to New Orleans for a few days?!?!?! 

Love the street tiles! Had to get a pic of an R.

My brother-in-law has one priority on any trip and that is food. For weeks he has been preparing our food itinerary for "The Big Easy". Not a joke either, we all received copies before we left for the airport. Phone numbers, addresses, hours of operation, and what to order. Many dedicated hours of Food Network research went into this three day excursion. And so, unlike most people who visit New Orleans for the booze, beads, music, and culture, we went to eat! Of course we walked and walked and rode the trolley up and down St. Charles and then walked some more. We ate about every two hours just to be sure we scratched off every place on the list. Some outstanding establishments included Parasol's, Surrey's, Mr.B's, Coop's, and Joey K's. By far the best thing I tasted was the shrimp and grits at Surrey's on magazine street. We went there twice for breakfast. Also a little shout out to the home made fresh bagels and lox. 

Shut the New Orleans front door they were amazing! 

And of course we did the typical walk around the French Quarter and Garden District. Cafe DuMonde which is always crowded and our waiter was horrible but it's just one of those places you have to go when you are in the city. 

Jackson Square with a Bloody Mary from the best place in NOLA!

French Market

And now we are home and a few pounds heavier. Lots of love to my sweet sister and my brother-in-law for a great weekend in New Orleans. Can't wait for next year!

House update: The house is coming along, thanks to the gentlemen who worked here all weekend. Can't wait to post some before and after pictures of the house. Ceiling is clean of all traces of popcorn and two walls have been knocked down. It is really coming together. We have been shocked at how quick it is all going!

The Ol' Wash+Dry

I spent the better part of the morning at the washateria. Our washer and dryer arrive on Wednesday but we were in need of some clean undies. I don't know how exactly I lost this bet but it was me who went. And I was cursing my husband when I realized 90% of the clothes were his. I can remember our washer breaking when I was a kid and my mom hauling our laundry (and me) to such an establishment. We would start the washers and then go run errands. I remember being terrified someone would steal our clothes. I saw the same thing today! People walking in to start up a load and then leave. I wouldn't even let my cheapy laundry baskets out of my sight.

 It really wasn't that bad.

It was an experience for sure. And you know what? It really wasn't that bad. I watched Extra and Wendy Williams (that was the most irritating part), the constant hum of the dryers lulled me into a state of relaxation, and it smelled like dryer sheets! I might just go back.....might.....like if our dryer get lost or something.

Happy Folding!

Frontier Living

So we made it through the move, barely. Closing on Monday and moving out on Wednesday night made for a very busy week. Oh, and we didn't take off work and had an all day conference today! I would like to publicly thank my parents who worked their tails off not only lifting boxes but cleaning, packing, and of course my Daddy who was our realtor. My Lady scrubbed cabinets and bathtubs on her hands and knees! Also my siblings, who don't play around when it comes to moving. There were multiple cars and trucks packed to the rim with our stuff. My sister even recruited her neighbor who had my entire closet in the back of her car. She was trying to carefully hang my wedding dress and I pushed her out of the way to cram in another box!

Is this how normal people move?

It was such a rush at the end. There were so many people just throwing things in boxes and bags. Mr. R asked me if this is how normal people moved. How am I supposed to know! A personal highlight....eeer more like blooper, of the move was getting locked out of the apartment while everyone else was at the house unloading. After 30 minutes of waiting I decided that running the 5 blocks (at 9:30pm) to my sisters house was my only chance for survival. I made it unharmed....and out of breath. After four very physical hours we were all moved out. Again, we could have not done this without the help of my awesomely great family! Moving is not stressful when you are surrounded by people who know how to work AND who make you laugh!

We are surviving.

And now we are in. I wouldn't say settled...I wont even say unpacked. We are surviving. Working through this whole thing has been a little tiresome. Waking up Thursday morning with a moving hangover and not knowing where ANYTHING was located, was a little stressful. We find ourselves walking around in a zombie-like haze in the mornings. Lets just say my outfits have been creative. Mr. R calls it frontier living. No fridge, no microwave, no TV or couch. We have our little cooler set-up in the kitchen. Currently there is coffee creamer and wine soaking in an ice bath, we have priorities! Last night we cooked spaghetti and I felt very accomplished since 90% of our kitchen stuff is still in boxes! Tonight was grilled cheese and soup.

We met with our contractor yesterday and we will hopefully hear back from him on a start date tomorrow. Tonight we have been moving all of our belongings into three bedrooms in anticipation for the upcoming renovation project.  All other areas of the house will be unlivable. Oh-what-fun! You can see from the pics above that the color scheme in this house is very pastel. Our bedroom (not shown) is currently a lovely shade of mint green. This is so unsettling for me! Really, it is visually it's hard to look at. I will say that the laundry room and pantry painting is underway and will hopefully be finished sometime this weekend...when we get a washer and dryer. Add that to the list! We have had our first "that doesn't look like the paint swatch???" moment. Luckily it is in the laundry room and it's really not that bad.

 Happy unpacking y'all!