Pre-Thanksgiving in Apple Valley

Nov 20, 2012

We have an annual tradition of spending the weekend before Thanksgiving at my Mom’s house in the desert. We cook up a non-traditional feast of crab legs, shrimp, lobster tails, filet mignon and spinach & feta cheese stuffed salmon. Sadly, I didn’t get any shots of the fantastic food but let me assure you, it was yummers. It was such a laid back weekend. We just hung out by the fire, took a nature walk with Liv and the dogs and played around in my Mom’s music room *Antz on the bass, my Mom on drums and me and Liv on the piano*. I spent hours trying to set up my Mom’s new streaming player so she can watch instant Netflix and turns out all I had to do was enter her wi-fi password in caps. DUH!! Now she can access Youtube and Netflix on her TV but I had to make her a cheat sheet so she remembers how to do it.

It was stormy and cold in LA but we had pretty nice weather

This is just a fraction of my Mom’s gold & platinum albums

Sunsets are the best

I have a busy week ahead doing two of my favorite things, eating & shopping! We’re going to family and friend’s houses. I’ve got my Black Friday shopping list started but I’m disappointed that Anthropologie hasn’t launched the kid’s clothes yet, Boo!

My Game Plan
Target – Vacuum cleaner, sheets, a dress, socks and a Wii game for Liv
Bed, Bath & Beyond – Heated mattress pad, new pillows, a crock pot, and a comforter

I want all the Confetti system holiday ornaments so bad!!

West Elm – Duvet and sheet set, a Smeg Refrigerator *sike, don’t I wish*
Home Depot – Propane Grill *our 7 year old grill died* we’ll take a look at patio furniture too
Anthropologie – Clothes for Liv, maybe this tablecloth
Gap/BabyGap – Pajamas, clothes for this year’s Holiday card
Etsy – Christmas gifts and maybe this fabulous scarf for Mommy *hint, hint Santa Antz*

I’m doing all my shopping online in my jammies. Anyone brave enough to tackle the stores? I hear people are already in line at Best Buy *insane!*

WEST ELM just blew my mind!!!

Oct 26, 2012

West Elm is already the RADDEST furniture store ever. I have close to 75 items in my online shopping cart. I honestly get emails from them everyday reminding me I have items in my cart…I know guys, I’m poor! All reserved for when we buy my Dream House *hopefully in 2016ish* and I have $20k laying around in my checking account. So now they have upped the ante and have added the grand opening of West Elm Market.

When I saw the coveted Smeg fridge, I literally jumped up and down saying OMG! Like I won the lottery or something. I calmed myself down and started adding to my cart. So many goodies. It’s not fair, there is no way this awesome stuff will be available in 4 years. Would it be crazy lady if I started hoarding pieces now? Like a pink Smeg fridge stashed in the back of my closet?

Smeg Refrigerator

A Smeg is the Chanel of cold food storage. Sear’s sold them for $2,099 last year but they have completely sold out. My only option was going to be a third party vendor on Amazon *I only buy my appliances from reputable companies* The Smeg is super popular on Pinterest being featured in incredible kitchens that I’m sure are movie sets because there’s no way mere humans live that fabulously.

I am not a fan of stainless steel appliances. I prefer a more vintage *1950’s I Love Lucy style* cottage-y look in a kitchen. I will die if I don’t get a Smeg! I want one, NOW!!! Well played West Elm, you don’t know what a can of worms you’ve just opened.

Beddy Bye

Sep 21, 2012

Antz and I have terrible luck with our beds. We have been sharing a bed for over 15 years now and have purchased 4 beds together in that time period. We *well I* do all the research and test them out in the store. They always seem comfy and solid, at first, then next thing you know I start tossing and turning and waking up with a sore back. I don’t know if it’s our mattress or my old lady back but we have been pretty miserable this last year. I blame our tiny bedroom. Antz and I are both, to put it mildly, GIANTS! So our giant bodies, along with a little lovely 30 lb. girl who sneaks into our bed in the middle of the night *most of the time I am surprised to see her in our bed in the morning, she’s that quiet* and this huge cat lady

My large Lola

Our queen is maxxed out in such a tiny space.

Looks roomy until you add 2 1/2 people!

Antz and I practically have to play rock, paper, scissors to see who has to squeeze against the window side. Our mattress is on year 6 so it’s definitely time to purchase a new one. Here’s my dilemma, I don’t want to spend a fortune on a fancy one in a queen size when I hope to be getting a king size one in 3 years *when we move, God willing* plus theres no way a king would fit in that tiny room, so it’s another bargain priced Ikea mattress for us. Our bed frame is a total mess. We thought we scored a deal when we bought our Malm frame.

Our brand new bed frame and Serta mattress 6 years ago

I loved the platform style and Antz liked the dark wood finish. Little did we know that “wood finish” is merely a sticker which began to peel months after we bought it. What happened next was I found the most adorable desk at West Elm

Sheesh this is the only recent photo I have of that side of the room. That printer stand takes up too much space and clashes with the room design 🙁

*I thought it was perfect for bill paying yet I rarely use it* so now we have very little space between it and the foot of our bed, which means Olivia and I are constantly hitting our shins on the sharp corner of the bed. Antz is smarter than us so he hasn’t bruised his leg but even the bumper we put on the corner didn’t work. I have been searching for a bed that is in our price range, in the color we want and doesn’t ruin my shins. I almost bought this guy but it was only in white before it sold out.

Roebling frame from West Elm

It’s so lovely but I wasn’t keen on spending $699 on the queen frame along with $599 for the mattress from Ikea. So I waited and waited for it to go on sale and it finally did, and then immediately sold out of all sizes except king. Bummer! So again, we are going with an Ikea frame. It’s too tempting to pass up. It’s a queen size frame with storage drawers underneath which we need for all our extra bedding that barely fits in our linen closet.

OPPDAL Bed frame with storage IKEA The four drawers in the bed frame provide a lot of storage space.

Oppdal queen bed frame with storage drawers

I think it’s perfection for $249. Antz is tearing apart our dilapidated old bed frame and building our new sleek, fancy-pants bed tonight. Of course I’m on the hunt for some new bedding to accompany such a cool frame. These are my top choices so far, we’ll see what’s on sale on Black Friday.

Striped sheet set from West Elm. Yellow or grey?

Orla Kiely bedding for Bed, Bath & Beyond *sold out in stores, may be hard to find a complete set*

Still waiting on bedding from Anthropologie to go on sale. Another sucky thing is we go through featherbeds every year. We got a rad one last Christmas and it’s already flat as a pancake *a very thin pancake* so now I gotta buy a new one too. Antz has been plugging away on the new bed for an hour now. I’ll post pictures when he’s done. Here’s to a good night’s sleep!

Here’s the old beddy.

Tomorrow is the Big Day!

Sep 6, 2012

I went to Target today to finish my back-to-school shop-aganza. Normally I spend about $100 – $125 monthly for our household stuff. I’m no longer buying $25 packs of diapers and A&D ointment, so there’s some savings. I’m a VIP shopper at Target *in my mind* so I am send coupons each month that I try to use before they expire. Today I had so much stuff I needed to use 2 carts! I spent $165 *that’s with $11 in coupons and 5% discount for using my Target Visa* and I didn’t even get our normal household junk. I stocked up on juice, fruit snacks and items for Liv’s earthquake kit. I didn’t find any cheap shoes *I was nauseated when I walked in the kid’s shoe aisle, they only have pink sequin and glitter shoes and I don’t think that would work in an emergency. So she’ll be rocking her black Converse until she grows out of them *I give it a month*. The big project is labeling everything.

We bought iron-on paper, which is working out pretty well, except her backpack, lunch bag and thermos which isn’t working. I don’t want to use a Sharpie on her nice, new stuff, so I’m going to attempt to make felt labels and stickers for the plastic things. I also have to label all her shoes but dude, what if I wanted to resale her shoes in the future? Lame! I have to figure out how to label them temporarily *I’m thinking of sewing a label on the tongue that I can cut off later* I don’t think it’s registered with Liv that we won’t be staying with her tomorrow. She is all about going to school but I am concerned about her potty-time. You see, she takes her underwear off along with every stitch of clothing when she goes potty. I really hope my kid doesn’t give everyone a show tomorrow. She also hasn’t mastered wiping herself yet. She’s good on #1 but needs assistance for #2. I really wish there was a camera in the classroom so I could spy on her. My friend Story sends her dog to doggycare and she watches what she does on a camera *which is typically jumping in the dog pool* Lunch is all ready to go…PB&J, veggie chips, raw almonds, fresh blackberries, Babybel cheese and V8 fruit juice.

“Olivia, Happy Happy 1st day of school. Mommy and Daddy are so proud of you. Meet new friends and be polite. Enjoy your yummy lunch. Kisses, Mummy & Daddy”

So now I’m crybaby. I have her 1st day outfit all ready so I hope it doesn’t rain. Nightys!

Exxxxxxx-cited!!!!

Back to School!

Sep 4, 2012

So the end of Labor Day is drawing near and I am feeling bittersweet about this week. I am anxious and stoked for Liv’s first day of school but I also feel sad my little girl is growing up. It’s really unfair how you start off on a 24/7 relationship with your new baby, then gradually they grow and gain their independence. You actually miss doing everything for them. I am so blown away by how much personality Liv has. I am aghast with pride when I hear her make complete sentences, sing the A-B-C song or go to the bathroom unassisted. She can also operate an ipad like a pro! It’s a huge step for me and I can’t believe it’s here but I’m excited for her first day of school. Every morning she says to us, “Mommy, I go to school today!” It will be difficult for me to not cry.

She’s so big now Antz has to carry her on his shoulders

Our friend Keith had his annual pool party on Saturday and we had an excellent time. I love his pool, it’s saltwater and heated so we spend hours in there. Going to their house makes me want a pool BAD!

So we had to do some back to school shopping on Sunday. I really wanted to get Olivia this lunch bag.

Totoro Insulated Lunch Bag with Adjustable Strap

Of course it’s sold out so I thought we should try Little Tokyo village since that’s where I bought her Totoro plush. Turned out that place is out of business so we ended up at the Hello Kitty store. I am a major HK fan but I didn’t want to go the typically pink and girlie route with Liv. I was super tempted to get her Little Twin Stars but the light color would get filthy and I wanted a matching lunch bag and backpack. Here’s our winner:

Keroppi is classic and *hopefully* noone else will have it at her school.

I bought some super cute earrings for me and for Liv *although she isn’t getting her ears pierced until her 3rd birthday* but I couldn’t resist these adorable guys. I got Hello Kitty red bows and she got apples.

I made a donation and added my wish to this wishing tree. I hope it comes true!!

We had lunch at Tenno sushi, and someone chose to not use chopsticks. We shopped for some new clothes and I am ordering these shoes

adidas ‘Gazelle 2’ Sneaker, they are on backorder until October, Boo!

Converse 'All Star®' High Top Sneaker (Baby, Walker, Toddler & Little Kid) available at #Nordstrom

She’s already outgrown her low top converse so this time I wanted something other than black, love teal!


If I could, I’d buy her saltwater sandals in every color but Nordstrom is sold out of her size in beige, so we’re getting red.

I just need to get a pair of shoes for her earthquake kit and to label everything and she’s all set. I decided to make good use of my free time while she’s in school. I’m going to swim laps for an hour, I figure I might as well get back on the workout wagon. How was your holiday weekend? Are you excited, or bummed about the new school year?

Oh! We didn’t go to the Wildlife Center cause it was too hot for Antz. I think we’ll go at the end of September when it gets cooler. We are planning a trip to the Los Angeles library and Angel’s Flight next week.

Anniversary Dinner Plans

Aug 19, 2012

*I wrote this post last Friday 8/10*

Could it really be a week from my 10 year wedding anniversary?

So what will it be? Aulani Resort Hawaii…?

Sadly, not this year.

W San Francisco…?

Nope!

As wonderful as it sounds, we have school starting in a month. $$$! Holy Cow, she’s really starting school already?

I thought long and hard about how to spend our special day and, with an out-of-town trip out of the picture, I considered what would be meaningful locally. We used to have a tradition of eating at Duke’s Malibu, the restaurant we had our wedding reception, but the food has gone downhill since our last visit. I thought of Morton’s or even the rooftop at the Standard in Downtown but we’ve done that before, it didn’t seem all that special. Then it hit me. Our beach where we were married is the perfect place to have a pop up dinner party with close friends! I have to credit Jordan at Oh Happy Day! for the lovely inspiration. Antz made these incredible invitations for me.

I love my husband was kind when drawing my cankles!!

You can’t tell but the insert pops up

The dinner will be an intimate group of 10

I went shopping with Aimee today and found some great things at World Market. I fell in love with this cabana but sadly it’s not for sale. Maybe one day I can find one for future parties. We are going to use our chuppah from our wedding day.

I have butterflies in my stomach for how excited I am for this party. Tonight we are going to Ikea to pick up the dishes and look at fabric for the tablecloth. I was going to use my new tablecloth from BHLDN *I had to have it the second it went on sale!*

Isn’t it adorable? The bad news is, this guy measures 70″L, 50″W. Well, with 10 people sitting at our 8 foot table, I did the math and it will fall short. I may still use it as a runner because it’s soo pretty! This week will be crazy busy. We have Liv’s pre-school parent orientation on Wednesday and Thursday we are going wine tasting with Aimee. YAY!

My Favorite Things

Aug 14, 2012

It’s been awhile since I’ve done a My favorite things post. Not that my greedy ass doesn’t want everything I see, but with school tuition, home improvements, saving for a new house and all the upcoming trips I have planned, pretty things fall low on my priority scale. However, when I see pieces that are necessary, I cannot resist myself.

I love this sign “It’s super rad to be super sweet!”

My first favorite thing…

Classic Toms in green

This is now my 4th pair of Toms, that may seem excessive but Toms wear out really fast. I have holes in my red and glitter gold pairs and my grey ones are pretty worn out, now I’m getting holes in the back. Is it just me? I don’t think I’m hard on my shoes but I go through Toms like my husband goes through Converse *he averages 3 pair a year* I really don’t feel guilty buying Toms so often because every pair I buy, a poor child gets a free pair, so I’m fashionable and charitable at the same time. *high five to me!*

Adventure Time dvds – The Complete 1st Season/My Two Favorite People/It Came From the Nightosphere

Once upon a time Yo Gabba Gabba! reigned supreme in our household, but with so few new episodes *don’t forget to dvr a new Olympics episode, Sunday August 19th* and 2 straight years of the same show, we were all stoked to find something new and equally awesome. Adventure Time is amazing! We have 50 episodes *they are only 15 minutes long* saved on our dvr but I despise commercials so having all 3 dvds is much more convenient. I got them for next to nothing since I’ve been a member of Columbia House since the 90’s *yep, I did the 12 dvds for a penny deal, I now have over 250 dvds in my collection*. So whenever I buy a dvd they are always under $10. We still love Yo Gabba Gabba! as a matter of fact, we just completed the entire set of designer plush with the limited ComicCon edition of Gooble. *Thanks Cousin Hector for getting him for us!*

I also bought a few new items for the anniversary secret but I’m trying to keep my mouth shut until Saturday so more on that later.

Don’t you hate it when you know about something really cool but for some reason you slack and wait around too long and then next thing you know it’s gone for good, you know, like the McRib *gross, I’ve never eaten one of those but you get what I’m sayin’*
Well back in January, Kate Spade sold this awesome bag at Nordstrom and now I am obsessed with it.

The sad part is, I put it in my online shopping cart but for some reason, I hesitated. I thought it would go on sale but it never did. It sold out by March and now the $248 seems like a bargain since it’s only available on ebay for $300 and up. I have been on a global search for it for months. I even emailed the Kate Spade store asking about returns or if they would release the bag again but they were like, “Sorry girl, you snooze you lose.” Who knew this bag would disappear from the face of the Earth? I’m wary about ebay purchases because of so many knockoffs. Bummer!

I found these perfect shoes for our trip to Paris and they are on sale but I’m still not 100% sold. I am so worried I might get blisters on the back of my heel. Another reason for my hesitation is the European sizing. Like many folks, I’ve got one foot slightly bigger than the other, so when I buy my size, my left foot always feel more snug. Most shoes give enough to be comfortable but all my past experience with EU sizing has hurt my left foot. I wish they had my size in the store but they are online only. I love the bright color and they are similar to my beloved Saltwater sandals but I was planning to get a new pair in red anyway so 2 pair of red sandals seem redundant. I’m so indecisive and then I regret not getting them when they sell out.

Let’s not forget about Livvy. While at the Star Wars birthday party, we couldn’t get Liv to leave Aiyana’s bedroom for 2 reasons; the first was Hammy, Aiyana’s pet hamster. Antz and I are thinking a hamster would make a nice 3rd birthday party gift. I had a hamster and a mouse when I was a kiddo. Then there was the kitchen playset. We were planning to get one for Liv for Christmas and after seeing her play with Aiyana’s kitchen set, we have to get started building one.

Antz is the craigslist master, so he’s in charge of finding an entertainment unit. I’m the designer so I’ll be sewing curtains, and buying materials like these play sets by Melissa & Doug.

Melissa & Doug Deluxe Wooden Kitchen Accessory Set

Melissa & Doug Deluxe Wooden Cutting Fruit Crate
Melissa & Doug Wooden Sushi
How cute is the sushi set?? I’m definitely getting these on Black Friday. Although we have no more space in the tiny house, I am so excited to play chef with Liv. Thankfully she’s totally into sharing with us now and we have rad tea parties everyday. She’s a delightful tea hostess! I picked up some school clothes since Gap was having a 30% sale, I’ll have Liv model them when I get them next week.

Any summer sales or big ticket items you lovelies are lusting after?

Out & About

Aug 5, 2012

Summer!!!

We were sophisticated Mallrats today. Liv racked up some rad new clothes and shoes while I scored new bras *okay, I know they aren’t that pretty but they are mega comfortable and after 22 months of itchy granny-style nursing bras, it’s a big upgrade for me* thanks to Nordstrom’s Anniversary sale. Hurry, sale ends Monday!!

Family photo time!

I seem to always get a boob shot when I use my camera remote. At least you can see the close up of my adorbs cameo from the Renegade Craft Fair

I was on a mission to get these kitty ballet flats for Liv, however I ended up with a Goldilocks situation, one pair was was big and one pair was too small and they couldn’t find the just right size. We went with the larger ones, I’m sure her feet will grow in a week. Wish they had them in my size *sads*

We stopped by Sephora so I could test and smell everything in the store while Antz wrangled Olivia. I tried on NARS lipstick in Schiap but it looks identical to the pink lipstick I already own by Makeup Forever.

It’s supposed to look like this!!

Obvie, my skin isn’t alabaster enough for the neon pink to pop


What a bunch of croc! Liv needed a pair for getting dirty in the backyard garden. She was always getting her Yo Gabba Gabba Vans filthy so now we all have a pair.

Now it’s Olympics time. I’m loving the trampoline and track & field events. I want to try shot put, the spinning looks super fun!

Renegade Craft Fair 2012

Jul 29, 2012

SO…FREAKING…AWESOME!!

Magnolia Photo Booth

We took the Metro train to the fair which is fun and convenient. It was lovely weather but still pretty hot. My brilliant hubby made these mini signs to hand out as our etsy cards since last year everyone asked us for business cards.

Aren’t these the sweetest?! We put a label on the back with our esty shop info and a mini pouch to hold the chalk.

Waiting patiently on her dice for the train

I wanted to buy EVERYTHING!

This was super genius, all these guys are gourds!

Hope I won’t regret not buying the bacon studs!

Best packaging ever

This Deer Ol’ Chunk antique plate unfortunately did not come home with me. This precious little dish was $52!! I do love it so much and one day I hope to own it. Sorry this is blurry, I notice that I shake when I get excited.

Holy Balls this butter crunch was so delish!!

We bought a bag of the wicked awesome brittle in Almond Rosemary flavor. So good!!

Liv enjoying her strawberry lemonade popsicle, she totally wouldn’t share with us

This Foxy guy looks like Liv’s Foxy dress!

Somehow I showed restraint and I only got a pair of these adorable earrings and we found the perfect birthday present for an upcoming party.

These girls were too cute

Liv wore her wings and got tons of compliments. One of the best parts of the Craft fair are the people. We meet the nicest folks and everyone is super friendly and smiley. I even got an inquiry if we shipped to London. Here’s the lame part, I officially suck in the camera department. I brought my Nikon J1. As you can see things were going well, I was getting decent shots, the lighting was okay and I didn’t have to carry a 20 lb camera with tons of parts. All was good until my battery died. Not really a big deal cause I had my backup battery, so I popped that guy in…and found out that battery was dead too. WTF? How in the hecks did I forget to charge my backup battery. Two dead batteries and no room on my iphone for photos left me camera-less for the remainder of the fair. BOO! Yet another lesson learned, the night before charge everything, TWICE! When we go somewhere awesome, I always end up with camera drama, really not fair. Here’s a few photos I got using Instagram.

It’s weird my sign ended up backwards, it says Violently Happy in case you can’t read backwards. We had a fun time but the first time we went was definitely radder. How nutso is little Liv a year ago? She’s like a teenager now. Nighty Nights!

PS Yikes, the men’s gymnastics teams are falling all over the place, watching them is giving me a heart attack. I always feel horrible when they fall but then I’m like, “DON’T MESS UP!!“

My Favorite Things

Mar 30, 2012

So it’s been an entire week since I perused my 5 fave shopping sites (Anthropologie, Gap, Nordstrom, ASOS & Mod Cloth) *because I have absolutely zero will power and I buy everything I see* so yesterday I proceeded with extreme caution when I took a quick peek while my girl was napping.

**Bri (DesignLoveFest) posted about the Anthropologie event!! *why can’t my photos come out this awesome?* How did I miss Joy & Emily Henderson? We were at the store for like 2 hours. Oh well, I signed up for the Oh Joy! event at Kate Spade in April so I’m see her there.

Tell me, how can you resist this skirt?

Field of Vision Skirt *Boo, it’s sold out online but I’ve seen it stores*

I love the vibrant colors and I have no maxi skirts….super practical!!

Speaking of maxi skirts…yes please!

Crinkle maxi skirt

I would wear this top with it.

Embroidered floral top

OMG, I almost died when I saw these! They will make me look 7 feet tall but…

I am dying over how amazing these are, but of course they only have 1 left in my size!

Angelic Houston Wedge

Ridiculously adorable!

I have mentioned the Bossi camera bag before but in black. I kinda NEED it in nude.

The Bossi Camera bag

I really must have it for our Paris trip, really!

Here are a few other items I find to be necessary for Paris. Does anyone have any suggestions for fun things to do in Helsinki? I will be with my friend Aura who will be our host but I’m not up on fun things to do there besides sauna and the beer trolley.

Like this adorable tote for souvenir shopping.

Thursday Friday Black Diamonds Tote

I think these would be comfy for all day walking and will go with everything.

Børn Ibis Oxford

Asos is killing it with this romper. I love how Puritan it looks. I would totally wear it with those wing wedges and these tights.

Playsuit with Collar

I am obsessed with playsuits!!!

This model is adorable! Floral Playsuit in 40s Print

FABulous!

OMG! I have been wanting a scarf from this etsy shop for over a year now.

Puffins Circle Scarf by Yokoo

This hat is too much for Disneyland Paris

I adore this model, so androgynous.

Liv’s sparkly blue Toms are starting to lose their sparkle, so I’m considering these as a replacement.

Toms Cruz Slip On

or these so we can be twinsies?

Toms Glitter Slip On

I am not giving up finding Liv an agent. It’s harder than I thought but we put together a new comp card. I love it!!

Contact Momager Elizabeth

I’m submitting her to a bunch of new agencies today. *Fingers crossed!!*

And lastly, I am normally not a fan of the oldies. They are slow, grouchy and can’t drive *I’m such a bitch!* but this memaw is all kinds of awesome. I usually don’t give a shit about sports but when it comes to gymnastics, I’ll all about it. Get it Granny!!

She wins at life!!

It’s quite sad I can’t do most of what she’s doing at 86. I am on the verge of my sore throat leaving me, still have that damn ringing in my ears. Note to self; wear ear plugs next time I go to a show!