NOT Obsessed with my office...

All the obsession I have with my house did NOT spill over into my office... much to the chagrin of my boss.


Today Joe begged me to do something about my office!

I told him that it wasn't in my job description.

(Yes, I am serious).

It turns out I AM sassy with everyone! And, you all thought you were the only privileged ones.

Obsessed... with "my very own bathroom"

Ladies and Gentlemen, here it is...


Not, that having my very own bathroom is a first for me or anything. I have had my very own bathroom for like 5 years now... aren't I such the grown-up!


Statistics: "My very own bathroom is located in between the kitchen and the laundry room across from the office (which I am pretty sure will never make it on the blog, since it's basically tantamount to a junk drawer except that it's an entire room... catch my drift???) It is big enough to not feel like an airport lavatory... and well that's all that matters, I won't bother estimating on the square-footage. It's cute. I like it. And, since I drink an enormously unhealthy amount of diet coke, I use it frequently.

"My Very Own Bathroom" Shout-outs: No one! I did everything in this bathroom by myself... another reason why this is "my very own bathroom". Oh wait, Rudy and Helaman hung my towel rods... but, besides that I did everything... because I am a ridiculously good consumer!


Sponsors: I bought my greenish/blueish towels at Pottery Barn (of course) and the brown one(s) at Target on sale... although, they only had one big brown one, but I made it work. The little white shelf came from Target too, oh and the blue vases (although those are FOREVER old). Have I mentioned lately how much I LOVE Target?!? The shower curtain and curtain rings are from Restoration Hardware (LOVE that place too!) The Vogue photo came from... well, I don't really remember, but it seems like Joe got it for me for some reason, which I can't remember now... and well that seems odd, but I am pretty sure it's accurate. The little "A" by the vases I got from my friend Kara (who I LOVE) for my birthday maybe... (I have 3 "A"s, I got each of them as a gift, but man does it make me seem a little narcissistic, oh well). And, the bath rug (which is so cute, but you can't really tell by the photo) and the apothecary jars I bought at Marshalls. I think that's it... done and done.

Puerrrrrrrrrrto Rico - Arriba Arriba!

There are SO many things I loved about Puerto Rico!

1.) First off, the scenery could not have been any better!



2.) The company was Top Notch! (I've decided to add this to my daily vernacular, I need to use more British words, currently I only frequent "wanker", but I LOVE it!) The 5 of us little ladies deemed ourselves ridiculously entertaining!



3.) My Aunt Lori and Uncle Dirk live in a beautiful condo right on Condado Beach... divine. Check out the view from their place! Not bad! Those two were so beyond gracious! What can I say, they are still hands down my favorites! Lori cooked us all amazing meals and Dirk made sure we knew exactly what we were doing and where we were going, which was nice because the GPS system was spotty at best. All the girls wanted to adopt the Puerto Rican Brinkerhoff's.

4.) Miss Air Flamenco 2008 was a RAD driver!

5.) The weather was divine! It rained off and on a few times, but the temperature never fell below 72 - can we say paradise!?!

6.) This trip was so well documented that I believe we could open a museum!

7.) We met some Goldman Sachs guys in the pool, and in addition to bragging about their lives and careers while in their drunken stupor, they gave us some wildly entertaining conversational topics and a few great restaurant recommendations!

There are also a few things that I did NOT love about PR.

1.) 12.5 hours on the way there and 13.5 on the way back! Are you kidding me!?! Every flight I had was SERIOUSLY delayed! I sat next to this hot little Aussie on the way home and he told me it took 13.5 hours to get to Melbourne Australia... understandable, because that's a different continent, but PR is NOT!

2.) Ummmmmm.... I mean no disrespect to Miss Air Flamenco 2008 - but, that plane ride was SHADY! There was a little sticker on the window that said "May God Bless This Flight!" - Never a good sign! And, um the 18-year-old who was flying the plane could not have been and LESS interested in keeping us alive. I echo the sentiment of the gentleman who occupied one of the 8 seats in the plane, he happened to be right behind me and as we were about to land he blurted out "Holy [insert expletive]! Does anyone else feel like we are in a video game here?!?"

3.) The Puerto Ricans sure don't know how to make any beach towels that A.) put any sort of chasm between the human body and the sand or B.) absorb ANY water whatsoever. Good thing we created the "long-term loan" policy with the parking lot attendant at the Ritz, borrowing 3 of theirs for 3 or 4 days!

4.) That fine sand permanently jacket up my camera and my purse!

5.) I can still hear those roosters in my head!

Happy Birthday Livy Kate!

My niece is the cutest, sweetest 6-year-old to ever grace Texas with her presence.

And, she has the unfortunate luck of being the sole child on this earth that is almost an identical replica of my childhood personality, talent and charm... (if that's what you call it!)

So, happy Birthday (a day late) Livy Kate!


Here are a few pointers for the rest of your life...

~ You will learn someday that you do not ACTUALLY have to yell everything... people do hear you, they are just choosing to ignore you! ~

~ Climbing down the stairs will get easier, you will only trip and fall a handful of times in your adult life, but going up, that might NEVER get easier. ~

~ Keep on asking the postman, the cable guy and any other random service men their names and never stop telling them how much you love them, that will make for some REAL interesting stories when your older (plus they'll probably fix everything for free). ~

~ Don't ever stop smiling! It makes you the most charming little girl ever and it will draw people to you as an adult. ~

~ Always be as confident and comfortable in your own skin as you are now. It’s a gift no one can take from you unless you let it go. ~

~ When your mom gets out the camera, put pants on! When your my age, you'll totally wish you were wearing pants in at least one of your childhood photos. ~

~ Always be kind to you baby brother and your big sister, someday soon they will be your very best friends, and the rotten stuff is hard to forget! ~

I love you pretty girl!

Halted...

Ok, so I had such grand ambitions of posting my whole house, room-by-room, day-by-day in a week or so... but, I can't... I regret to admit it's not done yet. My progression is halted! I still need to paint the bench that goes in the front yard. (By the way, does anyone want to build me a swing?!?) I am waiting on some towels to come in from Pottery Barn for my bathroom. We are not getting our couch until March (yikes! - It's a good thing Wendy and I are not big T.V. watchers). The office still needs to have the entertainment piece painted and put together. I guess Wendy and I could post our bedrooms, but we'd have to clean them... which hasn’t been happening lately.

But, mainly for me this is where I am halted as far as my bedroom and the office is that I have ZERO nic-nac type items?!? What is wrong with me?!? (This is rhetorical, DO NOT feel the need to post your ideas about this question)! I mean, I am a girl, I am supposed to have dozens of decorative accessories, even boxes of them that I bought, but can not put out because I have too many. Nope! Not I. I think I am missing some girly gene that requires me to feel compelled to buy these items. I mean, when I moved I had to buy dishes, I didn't have ANY. (My old roommate, Cori, has 5 SETS!) What girl doesn't own dishes? And, do you want to know what kind I bought - white ones, plain ole', no pattern, no frills, white dishes! Just this weekend Robin and I were at the mall and we went into Crate and Barrel. Robin was in paradise, I think I started itching. There were so many plates and vases and… I had to escape to Banana Republic, where I could do some REAL damage.

Which leads me to this thought… with the exception of my vast wardrobe and my penchant for collecting make-up (yea, I don't know why I do that either), I am not all together that girly! I've been thinking about it a lot lately and I think I am missing some very important feminine genes. Here are 5 reasons why:

1. I work in a Construction Firm… around ALL men (and I kind of fit in, I can totally hold my own). My mind is pretty permanently in the gutter. Every joke I know is pervy! I own a hard hat and a safety vest... I mean, if I wanted to be one of the Village People for Halloween, I already have a costume! Not too feminine.

2. I am dead inside. I hardly ever cry. I am so unemotional. Seriously! I feel like Cameron Diaz in 'The Holiday' or Zach Braff in 'Garden State'... I mean I am supposed to cry when my car won't start or I see a bug or when things don’t go my way or SOMETHING... but, I don't. I hardly ever cry. I just go running (how very masculine of me), which is an odd female reaction. But, it's mine. And, I own it.

3. I don't pick up on hints very easily. When people are mad at me, I never can look at them and hang out with them and know. I just assume they are having a bad day and carry on with my life, as per usual. It seems presumptuous that I would have any effect on someone's day-to-day life, right? And when guys like me... I usually have no idea until they verbally say "I like you." (I could provide a list of references for this claim, but I won't). That not picking up on not-so-subtle hints - that's a male trait right?

4. I don't think ALL babies are cute. I am sorry, but I don't. A lot of them look sort of raisin-esque to me. I mean, I'd venture to say I only think about 30% of all babies are REALLY cute. (Don't get me wrong, I LOVE kids... and my future kids will definitely fall within the 30% - because they'll be mine, just as ALL my neices and nephews fall within this minority, because their also mine - AND because they ARE all cute...) but, most of the time, I just lie and say babies are cute because it's easier! I KNOW isn't that HORRIBLE?

5. I don't have any decorative home accessories! - What the...

But in my own defense, I am rather verbose, I tend to mother everyone and everything in sight (to a fault, I've been told), I ask a TON of questions, I am really good at multi-tasking and I am rather affectionate - these are girly traits right? Plus, I do LOVE to shop for clothes and shoes, so I hoping my excessive collection of jeans makes up for the lack of feminine genes I seem to have missed somewhere along the way.

P.S. I WILL eventually post every room in my house, it just might take a while. Stay tuned.

Obsessed... with 'the backyard' (Day 4 - Sorry for the Delay)

Again with the quotes...'the backyard' is pretty much what everyone calls a backyard... but, don't forget, there's a theme here.

Our backyard is so so so so... you guessed it - CUTE.

Statistics: The backyard is about 24' x 36' (once again, an estimate). There are 2 trees, one concrete pad which is perfect for the hammock! I have wanted a hammock since I moved from my childhood home in Santa Barbara. I always loved that thing! And, this weekend it got a lot of good use. We have a patio with 2 little tables and 4 little chairs. We have a FABULOUS Bbq grill, which we have also put to great use. There are plants and plant stands, tulips in pots and the CUTEST doormat ever! And, we have a chicken coup (in case we ever want chickens). Plus, this weekend we (meaning Karen and Wendy - I supervised) planted flowers in the flower beds! Oh how I love the backyard!

'The backyard' shoutouts: We need to thank Helaman and Mike for putting the grill together! They did it for hours and the best part was we forgot they were at our house, we never even made it home to thank them! Oops. (And, an honorable mention goes to Brian for fixing the side burner - yes you ARE amazing!) Helaman also put together the hammock (my FAVORITE part) and hung my plant shelf. Wendy and Karen were fabulous landscape architects. But, I ACTUALLY put together the patio furniture and planted the plants and tulips all by myself! I know, I too am AMAZING!

Sponsors: The hammock - Pottery Barn (of course). The Bbq grill - Home depot. The tables, chairs, lanterns and galvanized gardening bin 0 IKEA. Plant shelf - Marshalls. The CUTEST doormat EVER - Smith & Hawken.

And, as an added bonus for us (and for you guys) - 2 squirrels doing it like they do on the discovery channel!

Obsessed... with 'the kitchen' (Day 3)

Ok, so don't ask me why I put 'the kitchen' in quotes. Let's be honest, it is called a 'kitchen' by most everybody! But, in sticking with the theme.... I introduce to you 'the kitchen'.

Statistics: According to Dizzy, the kitchen is approximately 14 x 16. It's HUGE! It has large tiles and dark counter tops. There is a chandelier (of sorts - whatever a less fancy version chandelier is) which is altogether too low, about 12 guys hit their heads on it when they were over for the Superbowl party. But, it's cute! We have a walk-in pantry! We have Seinfeld-esque supply of cereal therein. And, Wendy would like all of you to ooooooh and aaaaaaaah at the cute trash can.

'The Kitchen' Shoutouts: The refrigerator was dropped by Erik and now the temperature inside is a little off (Thanks Erik). The kitchen was strategically organized by Robin (who threw very little away, actually). The table was damaged by Helaman and Mike, but Aaron took it back and got a new one that Dizzy built because she's AMAZING! And, guess what I carried that microwave in myself because I have freakish upper body strength - that's right, I do!

Sponsors: Table (1 and 2) - Target. Fridge - some weird guy I located off Craig's list who lived in a very shady part of Anaheim that smelled entirely of feet. Sugar, Flour, Sugar Containers - Cost Plus. Photo hanger - Pottery Barn. That cute white flower holder - Jan (a.k.a. my mom) bought for me, because she's the best mom ever!

Obsessed... with 'Dizzy's Bathroom' (Day 2)

My roommate's name is Wendy. She got nicknamed Wendizzle, which I think was a nickname borrowed from a way less "amazing" Wendy (or something). Anyway, Wendizzle got shortened to "Dizzy" so that's my roommate's nickname.

Moving On...

Dizzy's bathroom has some unfortunate pink tiles in it. The tiles are reaching their maximum potential now that we threw some "tumbleweed" paint on the walls. (It was originally the same yellow color as 'the breezeway' which did not work with the pink tile... but, now it does.)

Statistics: It is about 6 feet x 6 feet (maybe). Equipped with a sink, medicine cabinet, toilet and bathtub/shower combo. Dizzy's bathroom is located upstairs between my room and hers. The pink tiles presented a design challenge, which Dizzy overcame, because as we all remember, she is "amazing".

Dizzy's Bathroom Shout outs: I have to give Dizzy due credit for making her own bathroom rad... she painted, she hung the star and the hooks on the back of the door. And, thanks to Rudy and Helaman for putting up the towel rods. We could have done it without you, but it would have required us to stand and move about a lot more than we wanted to.

Sponsors: Paint - Lowe's. Star - T.J. Maxx. Towels - Mama Pugmire (Christmas present). Shower curtain and rings - Restoration Hardware. Bathmat - Pottery Barn.

Obsessed... with 'The breezeway' (Day 1)

Ok, so as you all know, I moved into the cutest house EVER! If there are any doubts to the cuteness of this house I could give you a list of various and sundry references. I can not be certain these references will attest to the sheer cuteness of my house as much as they will definitely attest to the supernumerary times I have used the word cute to describe it. I would be lying if I pretended that it doesn't make my heart smile when guys mimic me and say it's cute! And, I would also be remiss if I failed to mention that I am probably a wee bit obsessed (or a lot) with my house. It's highly possible that I have an unhealthy love for it! It has been the cause of many sleepless nights (in the past two weeks I have stayed up until 2 AM, 4 AM and 5 AM trying to finish projects)!

And, now to feed my obsession, for the next few days we will be viewing our new house... room-by-room (this will also keep me motivated to finish)!

Today's highlighted room... ‘the breezeway’. I am not entirely sure what most people would do with this room, but our kitchen is huge, so we put a table in there. I think maybe 'the breezeway' was intended to be a more formal dining area. But, since neither Wendy nor I are all that formal, we like to call it 'the breezeway'. See, she has a ridiculously rich uncle and he ACTUALLY has a house that is grandiose enough to ACTUALLY contain a breezeway. Well, to us that's what our house feels like. So, I introduce to you 'the breezeway.'

Statistics: This room is the portal to the kitchen, the family room and the backyard. It is about 10 feet wide and 12 feet long (I am guessing here). It has cute yellow walls and white baseboards and ceilings and Pergo wood flooring. At the moment, this is the only room in our house that is completely finished (with the exception of the herbs that need to be planted in the ceramic pots)!

'The Breezeway' Shout Outs: I would like to thank my mom for being the best mom EVER. Just when I think she couldn't get any better she got a job working for William-Sonoma (parent company of Pottery Barn! - Love that) and she totally redeemed herself! I would also like to thank her for raising me to be a daughter who is obsessed with fresh flowers and live plants! I would like to thank the movers (Aaron, Erik, Helaman and Mike) for moving in my kind of heavy bench and inviting us to the “gun show” – that was for you Erik. Special props to He-man for hanging my mirror, it was beast, but he pulled it off. And, the shelves were hung by my roommate Wendy, who never fails to remind me "remember when I was amazing?!? Oh wait, I still am!" And, ladies and gentlemen, it's no lie - she is AMAZING!

Sponsors: Bench, shelves and ceramic pots - Pottery Barn (I don't usually shop at stores with the word 'barn' in their titles/names, but for Pottery Barn CLEARLY I'll make an exception). Mirror - Pier 1. Curtains (which are actually shower curtains, but I LOVED them too much not to convert them into regular curtains) - Cost Plus. Curtain rod - Target. Baskets and vases - IKEA (Those Europeans sure know how to make some fine cheap furniture and home decor! - But, can we talk about their instructions!?!)

Stay tuned for tomorrow's room-of-the-day... (I'd like to tell you what it is, but I am not sure what will be finished by tomorrow, so you'll just have to check back and see...)

Superbowl Surprise!

I won $50 in a Superbowl pool at work.

Which is crazy, since I have NO idea what I am doing as far as sporting events go.

But, just so you know, in my opinion it's always a good idea to vote for the team with the cutest uniforms!