An Aviator's Bedroom

If you're new to my blog, thank you for stopping by! I'm linking up with Kelly's blog today for a tour of children's rooms. Due to the nature of my job, I'm kind of a de facto aviation geek. So when we found out we were having a son, it was only natural that we gravitated toward airplanes!

These pics were taken right before Jack was born (he's 16 months now) so I'll make note of any changes I've made.

My aunt and I made this bedding one weekend after the Christmas holiday,
and I'm pretty proud of that bed skirt there. Since our little man has
gotten bigger, we've dropped the mattress and removed the bumpers.

Over the crib is framed blueprint of a P-51 mustang fighter jet, a WWII era plane.

Those pretty blue birds on the sheets are vintage airplanes. The mother of one of my oldest friends made
the pillow on the right, and my mother in law made the quilt. They are very special to me!

A close up of one of the planes in the mobile. It's one of my favorite details about the room.

There is now a mirror over the dresser and some much larger diapers in that basket!
And like any good Texas boy worth his weight in guacamole, there are a pair of cowboy boots.

The other side of the room has this great bed. He slept in his crib from the first night we came home from the hospital, and it was nice the first week or so to have a place to collapse on some of the long nights. It'll be his big boy bed when the time comes to make that transition. The bedding is from Pottery Barn Kids.

The blueprint above the bed is a Boeing B-17 Bomber, and the book shelves are re-purposed IKEA spice racks that I painted red.

I love this framed vignette. On the left is an FAA reminder that I found in a set of old flight instruction manuals from when my dad got his private pilot's license back in the 70s. It says "Attention Pilots: Avoid Accidents" which will probably be punny-er when we potty train. The middle is an old flight plan that my dad filed flying from my hometown of Corsicana to Dallas. And to the right are some old sight word flashcards my mom (a teacher) had that I loved. A perfect addition!
I love this room. From the time we picked out our houseplans, I knew this would be my first baby's room. It's really cozy and closest to our bedroom. We have some sweet times curling up on the bed reading before bed, and we've taken some pretty epic naps!

The Eyes Have It

It's time for more Things I Recommend to My Friends, a somewhat irregular series of items I've found that I feel the need to pass along because I like them that much.

I don't know about you, but occasionally I like to feel like I'm reinventing myself without really doing much of anything. These moments usually are accompanied by a trip to a nearby makeup counter for a new eye look. Easy, painless, no sweating. I had one such occasion not long after I had my son. I was feeling particularly frumpy, lumpy, and tired that day, so I thought I'd boost my self-esteem and buy myself something that always fits: makeup.

I stopped by the Bobbi Brown counter on a whim where a girl did my eyes, and I bought the whole look. Before I had only used a pencil eyeliner (MAC eye kohl or technakohl, both very good), so the idea of using a gel was a little out of my comfort zone. But the movies always make applying things like this with a brush so glamorous, so I thought I'd give Bobbi Brown long-wear gel eyeliner a try. For a while.


The while turned into a permanent home in my makeup bag. I have both cobalt and espresso. And when I picked up InStyle's Best Beauty Buy edition a couple of months ago, I felt validated since it held their top gel eyeliner spot. They described it very well although I'm not quoting them exactly: it's very dry, but with the perfect amount of slip to fix any issues before it sets. It's almost like clay, in my opinion. Anyway, I love it. It works best with the Bobbi Brown liner brush. (I've tried it with a MAC 211. It doesn't go on quite as well, but it works too.)

But you get a two-fer today, because it took me about 6 months to find an eye makeup remover that can truly take this stuff off without using 10 cotton rounds. I tried quite a few brands, from expensive to drug store, and the winner was Neutrogena Oil Free Eye Makeup remover. Listen, I have no idea how this is oil free because there are clearly two substances that separate overnight, but it works to take off even the most waterproof of mascara. At less than $10 a pop, it's a great product for your beauty vault.


These products both pass months of my daily testing. I simply had to pass them along. Find more Things I Recommend to My Friends here.

Balancing Perspective

Some days I come home at the end of an extra long day, and I look at pictures of this boy. I realize how much I missed him during the day, and I wonder what we would've done that afternoon if I had taken off at lunch to play with him like I had considered.

On the other hand, those same evenings, I think about how blessed I am to have a job that is stimulating, interesting, and also takes great care of my family. I'm accomplishing the things that 21-year-old-not-yet-Mrs.-Gentry set out to accomplish. And that feels really good.

Of course, some of those half day off thoughts do actually convert into half day off realities. Those cheeks don't kiss themselves, now do they?

Monday Morning Blueberries

We've had a lazy weekend at home, which was great after a couple of busy weeks in a row. I am daydreaming about the sleeping in until 8 AM we did on Saturday morning. It was oh so wonderful. And? AND? I cooked all weekend long. The only meal we ate out was QuikTrip donuts on Saturday morning. I know. We are fancy.

If you have not tried their chocolate donut, then you are missing out. I hope you know that I do not play around about something like donuts. I would put these second only to Round Rock donuts.

Anyway, I came across a couple of blog posts this weekend that I made a mental note to share this morning. Number one, my friend Ashley at Happiness Is... has a great giveaway for personalized kiddo things going on. I'm feeling good about a win here, but if I don't win it, then maybe you should.

The second item is a list of toddler-friendly apps with reviews by a real mom, Kelley at Our Adoption Journey. These were road tested on an 8 hour trip.

And the third and final item for Monday is this recipe for (and I quote) "To Die For Blueberry Muffins" from allrecipes. I didn't name them that, but it's a pretty accurate name.

They have streusel on top. STREUSEL!!!

What are the odds these will last past Tuesday?

And in our latest attempt at training up a child in the way he should go, we let Jack eat some of the leftover streusel.
He was so proud to be eating out of the big bowl with Dad. (OK--mom too.)

That kid. He is too much.

Happy Monday to you!

Suppertime at our House

I'm a couple of days late, but I'm linking up with Kelly's blog to show you my dining area. When we built our home, we chose a study, rather than a 4th bedroom or a formal dining room, so our kitchen is eat-in.

We eat every meal at this table, except on nights where we eat pizza. (Pizza was meant to be eaten in front of the TV, no?) It's a rule that we've enforced religiously in our home, even prior to having Jack. To each his own on this, but I'm convinced that good family communication happens at the dinner table.

The table has a leaf that stays in all the time. I love hosting friends for supper or pretty much anything. The dining furniture is a discontinued line from Broyhill called the Painter's Shed. We bought the table a month before we married, and my husband bought me the hutch for Valentine's Day a few months later. The window treatments and window seat cushions were custom from Calico Corners.

This is a great space, and I have a feeling someday we'll find a table for 8 that I can't live without that may come to live here.

Jack ate in this high chair up until just a few months ago, as I mentioned here. We love our Prince Lionheart boosterPOD and that he's now at the table.

I talked about the hotel silver in the shadowbox here and the birdie pillow here. Looking at my archives, I made both of those in 2009, so that must've been a particularly crafty year for me.

Here is a better look at the hutch. Eventually, I will put my slow growing collection of white stoneware up top,
but, you know, slow growing. I tend to forget I'm collecting it.

This is a collection of red transferware and silver plate that I've picked up at a few antique shops over the year. Except some of those pieces are from my everyday china, which I talked about my love for here. I love dishes!

This is my tea set from my everyday dishes. I want a footed silver plate tray to keep them on, but I haven't found the exact size I need yet. The pink cake plate was from my mom at my first wedding shower. I also love pink.

And here is my little Jack's view from the table. He sits directly across from me. Those placemats are a sun-washed yellow that isn't photographing well with the light behind me.

I also posted on the living room and kitchen if you're new to my blog. Thanks for stopping by!

Are the sweetest days really yet to come?

I heard from many parents (both moms and dads) when Jack was born who told me that each stage of his life would better than the one before. I didn't comprehend that at the time, because how does it get better than my downy-cheeked little sweet snuggly boy? Enter the boy that acts like a parrot and has his own little sense of humor.

He'll be 16 months in 5 days, and while I haven't been the best at documenting his life on a month by month basis here, I felt compelled to write down some of the sweetness today. Mostly, it's his speech that is just slaying me.

Last week he started saying ah-men at the end of our prayers. I mean, I thought I was going to buy him a pony right there on the spot because it was so adorable. Every day there is something new: bunny, dog, "oh Jack", "I don't know" (tossed up hands and shrugged shoulders included), overly dramatic "oh nooo!". The list just goes on.

He's got a lot of rhythm. I can't keep him away from the piano, and he sings while he's banging. I need some video, but about the time I have the camera rolling, he notices I'm there and stops. Clearly, I need to work on my mom power of stealth. We can't figure out where he has seen someone play and sing at the same time. At church they use a cd, so it's not there. (You know what that means: musical genius.)

These are such sweet, blessed times. I hope I never forget them.

Rent the Runway: A Sparkly Success

When I received my save the date for the big awards banquet back in April, the first thing my mind went to was wardrobe. This is the only natural response to such things, of course.

I knew I wanted to wear sequins, so I set out on a vast search of the Internet to find the dress. On a whim I popped over to Rent the Runway to check it out. This dress immediately became the winner.

Badgley Mischka 5th Avenue Showstopper dress,
L.K. Bennett Sledge heels in Nude, Lauren Merkin clutch,
Kate Spade Lever Back Round earrings in clear,
J. Crew Pavé Link Bracelet
I only knew the premise of Rent the Runway and not the specifics. You rent high dollar dresses and return them. Kinda like a guy rents a tux, except this whole transaction is done over the Internet and no one takes your measurements nor can you take the dress for alterations. That scared me.

But once I read up on it, I knew this was the perfect plan for an event like this. They actually send you two dresses: one in the size that you think you need and a second in the size they recommend (for example, they might recommend that the dress runs big so order the second dress in a size down.) This is precisely what happened in my case, and the smaller of the two dresses fit. For long dresses, they have them in regular, long, and extra long lengths.

Also, you can rent for 4 days or 8 days. I went with 8 since I didn't know what to expect and wanted to receive the dress early enough to have some buffer in case I had to make an emergency mall run. If neither size had worked for me, I could've just returned them by mail for a refund minus the cost of shipping.

And the returning was so easy! They send a pre-stamped and addressed mailer, so all you have to do is fold up both dresses, seal them in the mailer, and drop them at the post office before noon on the day your rental is due.

I really loved this service, because as much as I love to hoard clothes, a special occasion dress like this is a one-time wear for me. We may go to a couple of charity events a year, but I don't like to wear the same thing. I know: ridiculous first world problem.

Rent the Runway is the best of both worlds--the cost is less than it would be to buy a brand new dress, and you get something awesome. I will definitely use this again.

A Ten Year Anniversary of a Different Kind

One reason I'm able to continue to work after becoming a mother is because I work for a really great Company. So great, in fact, that I have been with them for 10 years!

Each year on the weekend closest to Southwest Airlines' birthday (June 18th), they host the Annual Awards Banquet to honor surprise awards and major milestone service awards (10, 20, 30, 40!) This year it was at the Anatole in Dallas, which is also where Mr. G and I stayed both Friday and Saturday night. We did it for convenience rather than run back and forth to Cowtown all weekend.

Saturday we spent the day lazing about the hotel then getting ready. It was a really great party, and never one to miss the opportunity to wear sequins, I fully embraced dressing up. My dress was Badgley Mischka via Rent the Runway, and I'll have a full review of my thoughts on that service tomorrow.

As we walked in, they had the year each group being honored that evening began working at SWA. This year (2002) is especially dear because it holds such a big ending and beginning of a new chapter in my life. I graduated from Texas A&M on May 11, 2002 and reported to Dallas for work as a Programmer/Analyst on June 24, 2002 at SWA. I've been here ever since.


The Dallas String Quartet performed during the dinner hour. They sounded a bit like the Trans-Siberian Orchestra and played everything from Lady Gaga to Guns 'N Roses. They were incredible entertainers!

After dinner, the Pentatonix were the main talent, interspersed with the surprise awards of the evening. I didn't watch the reality show they won last fall so I was blown away by their talent. And I didn't realize it was kind of headed by Scott Hoying, who was a Kidd Kraddick find several years ago. You could tell so much work went into the planning. It was a blast.


And after the whole shebang was over, Sugar Ray played in the adjoining ballroom. Yes, Mark McGrath sang his big hits. It actually kind of took me back to 2002 or thereabout. After they finished, a cover band played well into the early morning hours. We danced and had a great time.




And then we headed upstairs to bed to sleep past 9! I am so proud to work for my great Company. I moved to the big city, lived as a single girl for 3 years, met my husband, dated, got married, bought a house, and HAD A CHILD in the past 10 years. In a way, I've grown up here. The People there have been part of my family through all of those moments, and it was so fun to reflect on the past 10 years in style!

Weekending in Dallas

This weekend was quite out of the ordinary for us, but oh so much fun. Friday night was the Dallas Arts District Summer Block Party, and none other than my brother's band Sundress was playing the Late Night stage. Of course we couldn't miss it. The summer block party was awesome! They had several free shows throughout the evening, with free admission to the Nasher Sculpture Center and half price to the Dallas Museum of Art, where Sundress played.

I meant to announce it on the blog all week last week and kept forgetting. It was the perfect Dallas date night. With my fam, naturally. I am so proud of my brother and his friends and all their hard work. They've recently relocated to Austin from Denton and are staying so busy. The first weekend in June they played the Free Press Summer Fest in Houston and are planning on going on tour soon.
Sundress, sounding great as usual. My brother is on the far right on the bass.
They even had an encore request. Of course!

Even the little man himself was allowed to stay up wayyyy past his bedtime to watch Uncle D.
He was so good, despite the late hour.
Can you tell he is very loved?
My brother and the man of the weekend, our dad.
We transferred Jack into the care of my parents for the weekend after the show was over and headed to our hotel. I know, a week and then a weekend away from the baby. I don't even know who I am anymore!

More on our weekend away tomorrow. I think it deserves a post of its own. It includes false eyelashes and sequins, so you know it has to be good.

I might be overselling that a little. We'll see.

Friday Favorites

All of a sudden I realized it had gotten a little too quiet in the living room.
Here are just a few of the things I found around the web this week that I thought I'd pass along:

• This is a great article on Hurry Sickness over at HomeLife magazine. It's a great note on slowing down and being content with where you are and what you have.
• Oh Happy Day is talking about having a pie party. Isn't that a great idea? Who doesn't love pie?!?
• This observation by Melissa Fitzpatrick. We can't help but apply the Scripture to our lives. God uses Scripture to draw us to Himself.
• These Native shoes for little men. I think we're going to need the Howard in bright green. We had to size up in our first pair (Miller in regatta blue. They are adorable.)

Wedding Shower Fun

I'm helping host a wedding shower in early July and what better place than Etsy to look for invitations? A quick search for "custom wedding shower invitations" led me to the above. The bride described her wedding as "vintage, with pops of mustard yellow, sage green, and some pink." I thought this totally fit the bill. And it reminds me of the opening sequence of the Gwyneth Paltrow movie adaptation of Emma by our favorite, Jane Austen, of course.

"Now I need not call you Mr. Knightley. I may call you my Mr. Knightley."

LOVE.

But back to the invitations, the design was done by Yellow Brick Graphics. They have so many beautiful designs to choose from, and Mickenzie was so fast with her responses. When I asked her the best way to have FedEx print these, she e-mailed me back with a pdf that had two invitations per page in place of the original one invitation jpeg. I thought that was so sweet. They were printed on ecru paper and mailed in craft paper envelopes.

I love the way these turned out and can't wait to see how the shower turns out!

More Dishing on Dishes

If you're just joining me today, you may want to back track to yesterday's post where I geek out about my dishes.

This next set is somewhat controversial in the 2000s so I want to hear what you think about this topic in general. I know a lot of people are choosing not to register for formal china, and I understand why, but I'm nothing if not a traditionalist. And honestly, I'm sad that we've lost a bit of formality in today's culture, but that is entirely another topic for another day. {See also: wearing hats in church. Or church dress, in general, now that I think about it.}

My formal china is plain but leaves me many options to mix and match. The pattern is Lenox Solitaire which is an ivory china with a platinum band. My Grannie might not approve of this, but I run these through the dish washer after I use them. After the dry cycle, I just run a dry cloth around the platinum to polish up the edges, and they are none the worse for it.

I received service for 12 when we married, with most of the place settings coming from Brad's and my grandmothers and aunts. We use them when we celebrate major holidays (we designate a time to celebrate Christmas and Thanksgiving as just our small immediate family) and celebrations like our anniversary or another special occasion. I most recently pulled them out on New Year's Eve. There were children present, and they ate off of them too. The only piece I'm missing in this set is the coffee pot and some of the accent luncheon plates.


This last set is Spode Christmas Tree which is a ubiquitous pattern, but I love it. It's clearly seasonal, but we absolutely give them a workout during the stretch from Thanksgiving to Christmas. I have Christmas plates coming out of my ears (something like 25-30 dinner and that many more salad) because I like to use them for parties during that time. My secret to owning that many? I loaded up the day after Christmas on Dillards.com when they were something like 50-75% off. I probably did that the year we married because I was especially addicted to stockpiling dishes then.

I chose mugs over teacups because those get a bit more use at my house during that time of year. For the past few years, I've added one serving piece per year as a little sussy to myself during the Christmas season.


I also counted and have 6 casserole dishes, so either I have some hoarding tendencies that I need to deal with or I intend on having a very large family. Obviously, there is no point to having this many dishes unless you're going to use them, so you won't be surprised to hear that I don't pull out paper plates unless we're going to be eating outside or something.

My favorite thing, without a doubt, is cooking up a meal to serve my friends and family on pretty plates. My dishes are nothing without memories to go with them.

{Tell me what you think about formal china in the comments!}

Dishing on Dishes

I realized the other day that I have a little blurb in my bio regarding how I love to collect dishes, but I've yet to talk about them!

Even when I was a single, I thought it was important to have a well-dressed table. I thought my roommate and I should be able to serve our guests in style with matching dishes. That was when I started collecting my first set of china, complete with matching serving pieces.

Fast forward a few years to my engagement to Mr. G. The time had come to register *squeee* for fancy china and everyday dishes. I mean, that's part of the whole wedding deal that girls dream of, right? Somehow I ended up with a nicer everyday set than than formal, such that my husband's grandmother asked him what he was going to do when he accidentally broke one of our plates. He called me to relay this conversation the night before one of our showers in his hometown. I said, "Did you tell her that you're going to replace it if that happens?"

Anyway, my kitchen post got me thinking about my china. Because somehow I have 4 sets of dishes up in those cabinets. FOUR.

That's a lot of plates.

I love dishes--enough to mention them in my "About Me"--so you know it's serious. I could write an entire blog about dishes. My favorite style is transferware. I love to collect them, add to my current sets, ponder what other sets I might want to collect and how I'd set that table, research discontinued pieces... How I have escaped blogging about this obsession, I have no idea.

First up is my favorite--absolute favorite--Spode Tower pink everyday dishes. They were discontinued back in 2007. While the scene in the middle is so very serene and pretty, that is usually covered with food, and what is left are the gorgeous flowers and scallops on the edge. Plus, it is pink, and well, I love pink. I probably have service for 16 in this pattern, complete with serving pieces down to the tea set. The tea set is my very favorite.



Next up is a recent addition to my collection: my grandmother's Johnson Brothers Blue Willow. Last fall, my grandmother moved into a nursing facility, and these came into my possession. I grew up eating big family meals off of these, so they are very special to me. I remember my grandmother explaining to me how to tell the difference between Johnson Brothers pieces and the other Blue Willow set she had in her original collection. (We talked dishes, my Memaw and me.) This is such a beautiful, classic pattern, and a treasure trove of memories to me. I have some serving pieces on my wishlist to complete this set. Right now I have service for 10.


This post is getting so long so I think I'll save the other two sets for tomorrow. I know you're on the edge of your computer chair. While you wait for the second half, give me the scoop on your butler's pantry. Is Chinet your favorite set? Are you waiting until your kids get older for the dishes of your dreams? Are you still collecting pieces from when you got married?

I love to talk dishes!

Weekending.

Like I mentioned several times last week, Jack spent the week with my parents off in my hometown. He had a blast, we did some things that we normally wouldn't do (like a midnight run for breakfast on Thursday night,) and when we picked him up, he was so, so glad to see us!

Yesterday was my mom AND dad's birthday, and it happened to be my dad's 60th, so after we picked up Jack, we hid out at my grandparents', waiting to surprise my dad at the downtown street dance. In my little hometown, they barricade one of the blocks and have live music occasionally. It just so happened to fall at a great time to throw a surprise for Dad. My mom invited their friends and Sunday school class to join them for cake and music. I left before any Baptists started dancing.

He was completely surprised!

See the cute downtown brick streets in the background?
I love my hometown.

My mom ordered a cake to feed 100 people. I don't think she had much left at the end of the night!
We left around 9:30 to get our boy back to Fort Worth and his own bed. The remainder of the weekend was well spent resting and hanging out at home. I've been sick for two weeks straight and needed it. Mr. G planted some crepe myrtles in the backyard, and I cooked a pot roast, squash casserole, and mashed potatoes, with veggies straight out of my parents' garden.

Every time they see me, they give me another two grocery sacks of squash. I'm giving it away to everyone I know. Seriously, I'm like the Oprah of squash (you get squash! you get squash!) Do you know me? Do you want squash? Give me a call.

Mrs. Gentry's garden fresh supper
That is the second time in my whole entire life that I've made mashed potatoes. Mr. G was willing to eat them as leftovers, so I guess they were decent. The crock pot roast recipe I used came from here (so easy,) and the squash casserole is here.

I hope you and yours had a great weekend as well!

What's Cookin' in my Kitchen

I'm linking up with Kelly's blog today. It's all about kitchens!

I love this room! It's probably almost as big as the living room, which is one of the main reasons we loved the plans for this house. In a big party, most of the ladies end up in the kitchen anyway, so there is a lot of space for that to happen. I had the builder put in all cabinet level counter-tops rather than a higher bar top because I'm a shorty, plus it makes for more serving space in here.

The arched doorway leads to a hallway back to the entry hall, the garage, and the laundry room.

A closer look at that side. I made the chalkboard. Here's the makeover.

I think I've probably failed Martha's Cooking school a dozen times or so. You can't tell here, but most of my
cooking implements are pink. If there is a pink option, I usually choose it.

What's a kitchen without a dance party?

That little bowl is where I deposit my jewelry while I'm cooking.
I got tired of taking it off all over the place and forgetting where I put it.

My counters are of black granite. They show dust like nothing else, so this is the place
that I most consistently wipe down. Pretty much everyday.

The view back into the living room.

A view from the hallway to the garage. That is our dining space over there, which is
washing out pretty spectacularly due to the morning sun.

I have some decorating work to do in here (which I'll get to eventually), but it works for us for now! Today I'm cooking a pot roast and making a casserole with squash and onions straight out of my dad's garden.

Thankful Thursday

I was thinking today about a hymn I loved from my childhood that is rarely sung anymore. It's called "Count Your Many Blessings." I've spent my entire life in Southern Baptist churches, so I'm not sure if other denominations are familiar with it, but the words are below.

When upon life's billows you are tempest tossed
Do not be discouraged, thinking all is lost
Count your many blessings, name them one by one
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

CHORUS:
Count your blessings, name them one by one.
Count your blessings, see what God has done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one.
Count your many blessings, see what God has done.

I love the rich language of our beautiful, old hymns. They are the original praise and worship songs, even though some may consider them antiquated. I don't. Isn't the idea of being "tempest tossed" just a fitting description of some our days? All is not lost. God is blessing you in all of the seasons of your life.

Today I'm linking up with Then I Got to Thinking to celebrate a thankful Thursday. I'm counting a few of my many blessings to see what God has done and acknowledge Him for it. So here's a list off the top of my head:

• great health insurance that provided low-cost meds to make us well last week
• my mother-in-law who left us with a casserole to eat on one day that I was particularly sick (and hungry!)
• the gift of prayer: that we have a God who hears us and answers our petitions
• encouragement from other young moms that God has placed in my path that are walking the same roads I am
• my parents who will both celebrate a birthday on Sunday and are in excellent health
• and very much in particular, these two below.

What are you thankful for today?

Day 2 and Parents Gone Wild

OK, so maybe we didn't go all that wild, but we did go see a movie tonight. On a school night of all nights!

We saw What to Expect When You're Expecting, and while I won't say it's the best movie ever, we found it fairly entertaining. It was mostly about pregnancy and less about parenting and brought back some funny memories for me of that nine plus months and labor and delivery.

One of the things I was waxing nostalgic about was our drive to the hospital while I was in labor. It was around midnight, with few cars on the road, and Mr. G was doing everything he could to keep my mind off of my contractions which were less than 5 minutes apart. Radio, conversation, anything he could think of. He was trying so hard, bless his heart. Finally I said (oh so very sweetly, no doubt), "Can we just be quiet? No noise or talking?"

If you've been there breathing through contractions, you know how it is trying to focus and get in the zone. Anything to deal. We still laugh about that drive.

Us, pre-baby, back who knows when.

Day 1 and a Snow Cone Reverie

I will spare you the play by play of how my tiny boy spent his first day away from us. And you know that I know how he spent his day, down to what he did and did not eat. He's going to sleep hard, and my mom who played with him non-stop will sleep even harder.

How did we spend our evening, you ask? Working late. And then snow cones. Parents gone wild, that's what it is.

I know that it's not unique to have memories of the snow cone stand of your childhood, but I just have to tell you that my hometown has the best snow cone stand I've ever visited. Even Mr. G agrees, and he's not from there so I feel as though he is terribly fair and impartial in this matter. It's called Sno-Biz. The ice is shaved to perfection, they serve it flat top style in a bigger cup so you don't lose any of it (those smarties at Sno-Biz!), and the juice is rich and delicious. My favorite order there is called a sunset, and it consists of strawberry, cherry, and orange. A perfect sunset.

That's what I order every where else I go too, but no other snow cone stand calls it by its more poetic name. Sad story, but it's totally true. Scientific testing has proven that sunsets are more delicious. Other stands are missing out.

The lesser snow cone I had last night.
I had a deadline at work yesterday that I'd been dreading so much because it was something out of my comfort zone. I even worked until midnight Saturday morning to finish so I wouldn't have anything hanging over my head the rest of the weekend, but I was still dreading Monday. And you know, Monday actually was pretty good to me. {insert long-winded lesson about stepping out of comfort zones here.}

I'm praising God, the Creator of this Monday, for that unexpected turn.

3 more days 'til I pick up my boy.

Missing that Face.

These two yahoos are probably having a great time together somewhere right now.
Yesterday we went to the annual cemetery association meeting (explained here) in my hometown and dropped off the little man for a week with his grandparents. I know he's having a blast, but I miss him like whoa.

As for us, we'll try and pass the time by working and oh-you-know going to a movie in the middle of the week, eating at reservations-required restaurants, and otherwise crying (me) about how we miss him.

Even that last part's true--that other stuff doesn't compare to my boy. I'm praying for a short week!

Welcome to My Living Room.

If you're new to my blog, welcome! This weekend Kelly's Korner is hosting a living room tour. I love it! Things like this provide such great decorating inspiration. We moved into our home in June 2007 (wow, 5 years!), and it's still a work in progress. I'm still a work in progress too, so it only makes sense.

Stepping into our entry way, you have a direct view into the living room.
There's a study to the right, though you can't see it here.

I have been wishy washy about potentially hanging curtains in here. I love the plantation shutters
and don't want to cover them up, but I think some colorful curtains would be perfect. Decisions, decisions.

The mantle is decorated with frames from Goodwill, lanterns from Pottery Barn (here),
and the votives are from LaurieAnna's Vintage Home in Canton. The mercury glass votives
add a little jewelry sparkle, and I love them.

Oh! And I made the monogram over the fireplace several years ago. It cost me about $10.

We bought that cute secretary at Canton a few years ago for Valentine's Day.
My husband was terribly excited about that V-day gift, as you can imagine. He's
a good egg. The apothecary jars are filled with antique matchbooks, buttons,
and a bird's nest. And here's the story about the rocking chair.

My Coralie Bickford-Smith Penguin Classics, some family pictures, and my slow growing white pitcher collection.
My maid of honor/BFF/college roommate gave us the Waterford cross when we married. I hope it'll be a family heirloom.
The drawers below are where we hide our junk. Everyone needs an easy place to stash the random stuff.

Another corner of the room, with one of my favorite pics of our boy. Details here.
(Taken on a different day than the rest of these photos. There are usually more toys in that corner.)

Another corner of the room. That basket (from HomeGoods) houses a small Apple store.
It's where we keep laptops, other gadgets, and their respective chargers.
The barley twist lamp is from Pottery Barn several years ago, and the cross is from Canton.

Our floor plan is open, so it my kitchen looks right into the living room. We love it. So great for entertaining!
That's a sweet little Pottery Barn anywhere chair in the corner for a sweet little boy named Jack.
I know a lot of people like to see a glimpse of the way people "really" live, but I'll be honest with you--our living room looks this way most of the time. Unless it's been a very tiring day, I pick up everything before we go to bed and clear the kitchen counters. Our bedrooms may be a disaster, but the common rooms of the house are usually ready for company with just a quick breeze through to pick up toys or shoes. It's a discipline I've worked hard at to keep the homekeeping part of my life together, even though we're all over the place during the week.

Now, dusting is a different matter entirely.