Inspiration

So I've been surfin' the net over these last few days and have come across so many amazing blogs. Some are just about the daily happenings of family life, some are about sewing and crafting, but all of them are fun to read and explore. These have inspired me to be a better blogger - not only to keep you posted on what's new with us, but also as a sort of journal to look back on. I'm going to attempt to post pictures of my latest projects and highlights from our oh-so-exciting life on a much more regular basis. On that note, here is what's been going on that I have not yet posted...

1. My grandma came to visit for a week! I love her so much and we had so much fun together :-) 2. Just because (and in anticipation of #1) I have done some updating in the guest room. 3. Casey and I took an overnight get away trip to Lake Havasu last month and had lots of fun.

and the biggest, most exciting news....drumroll...

4. My mom and The Todd got engaged!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

~~~~~ Best Grandma Ever ~~~~~

I love my grandma - she is so amazing. We always have the best time together so I was so excited when she decided to come visit for a whole week! The first night she was here we stayed up until almost 2am just laughing and talking :-) While she was here we went out to eat, visited the Desert Museum outside of Tuscon, visited some extended family and family friends in the area, she taught me how to knit, we saw Coraline (Which I could write an entire post about - what a creative movie!), and just generally enjoyed each other's company. I know we did more things, but I can't think of them at the moment. If you're reading this grandma and want to add a comment about something I missed go for it!

At the Desert Museum

Enjoying the sunshine (it was snowing in Boise this day)

Pretty desert flowers

This was a cool hummingbird exhibit at the museum. See the little guy?

Oh, and we found this dish in a little shop - look like anyone we're related to? We sure thought so...

Obviously we had a marvelous time together (as always).

As you know you're welcome back down here any time - I love you Grandma!

~~~~~ Guest Room ~~~~~

I'm big on making a house feel like a home. Sometimes that's hard, like when you're renting and don't have large piles of cash sitting around to spend on super adorable fabric and wonderful furniture you find at Crate & Barrel or Pottery Barn (like this, or this). Anywho, I've been wanting to make the guest room /sewing room a more inviting place to be - for guests as well as for me when I'm sewing. Lucky for me Linens & Things was going out of business a few months back and we scored an awesome bed in a bag set for a million percent off. I also found some great frames on clearance at Target and put some elegant printed paper in them for some instant wall art. Oh, and I fell in love with a lamp that I just had to buy. My favorite addition to the guest room, though is a great little nightstand I found at the Goodwill in Fountain Hills. It was in pretty sad shape when I bought it so I gave it a new coat of paint, added some hardware and some cute printed paper to the drawer. Add all of this together and viola - a more welcoming guest room! It's far from perfect but it looks a thousand times better :-)

My Goodwill nightstand makeover:

Come on down for a visit and check it out for yourself - we'd love to have you!

~~~~~ Lake Havasu ~~~~~

Last month Casey had just finished finals and I had the weekend off so we decided to take advantage of this rare no-homework-no-hospital weekend and explore Arizona. We settled on Lake Havasu, filled up our gas tank and hit the road. The drive was nice and the weather perfect. We saw London Bridge (Wondering why it's in LH? More info here.), enjoyed a little Marti Gras festival with tasty food and a ferris wheel ride, ate some mediocre seafood, and took a boat tour of Copper Canyon. It was a great little overnight getaway.

London Bridge behind us

I loved all the flags - so official!

A red phone booth - it was almost like we were on a European vacation!

We attempted to take a self portrait from the top of the ferris wheel.

We were not very successful.

A cleverly named vessel...

Copper Canyon (on the California side of the lake)

~~~ The Happy Couple ~~~

My mom and The Todd are getting married! I am so thrilled for both of them. I always hoped my mom would find someone who would make her this happy and Todd has done just that. They are so cute together and compliment one another so well. He is such a sweet guy - he even asked for permission from Ben and me before proposing! I love you both so much - CONGRATULATIONS!