Monday, December 31, 2012

2012

2012 will forever be remembered 
as one of the best, 
and busiest, 
years of my life. 
---

January
We saw American Idiot. 
We celebrated Mike's birthday. 
We got a touch of wanderlust
We hung out with old friends, and celebrated new ones

February
We had the first special lady weekend
We painted & watched football.
We celebrated April's engagementValentine's Day
the science of wine, and the love of painting

March
We celebrated St. Patricks Day,
 our Anniversary, (where we won trivia)
We enjoyed our weekends and weekdays

April
We celebrated Eastover,
ate chili, drank wine, and went to DC.
Read More: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)
My knee and I broke up (again.)

May
We watched some baseball,
celebrated Mother's Day, and my Birthday. 
Mike went to China
We went to Asheville. 
Read More: (1) (2) (3) 

June
We saw concerts & went painting.
We went to Durham.
We found Shiva.  
Here's our updated family :) 

July
We brewed
I went to New Orleans, & hardly blogged about it. 
We went to the Outer Banks
introduced Mama and Daddy to Shiva
and crossed a goal off my list. 
Mike interviewed in California. 

August
 and celebrated Raleigh Beer Week. 
We traveled to New York and announced our move,

September
We went house hunting and succeeded.
We said our goodbyes to Raleigh
Mike drove to Cali and I got real.
We celebrated weddings, & packed.

October.   
We went to Europe,
and packed some more. 
I got engaged to my best friend. 
I went to Charleston for April's Bachelorette.  
I quit my job, went to Charlotte
and made one last trip home

November
We went to April's AMAZING wedding. 
We traveled 3000 miles across this AMAZING country. 
We had our first California weekend
We went home to NY for Thanksgiving.

December
We said goodbye to Grandpa Joe & Mike went to Brazil. 
I decorated for Hanukkah & Christmas
We went to Ikea
We traveled back to NC for Christmas. 
We were overwhelmed by the presents. 
Mike's family came to visit US the week after. 
We celebrated NYE on our couch, in pajamas. 





HELLOOOOOOO 2013.  
You're gonna have to be pretty spectacular to beat 2012. 
I have faith in you though 

Thursday, December 27, 2012

Southern Comfort

Southern Comfort, 
while being a nice drink (with lime)
is also what I'm missing today. 



But, as the song says, 
gotta get outside my comfort zone. 

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Happy Holidays

Between spending the week before Christmas with my parents in NC
and the week after Christmas with Mike's parents with Cali, 
this blog will be a bit quiet for a bit. 


See you Soon. 

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Let's Talk Subscriptions...

Still looking for Holiday ideas?
How about something that KEEPS giving?
----


So, it's no secret that I love mail. 
Really
I won't let Mike check it because I get such a thrill out of opening the mailbox. 

It's also no secret that I've subscribed to a couple different boxes. 
Birchbox, which I no longer receive, and Julep, which I love. 
And if you like nailpolish, you should click HERE and get a box for a penny (use code PENNY), and you'll love it too. 


BUT, There are so many other boxes that I had never heard about, 
but I want to hear about. 
I also want to open up a few of these every month..
LOOK!


Pets Love Toys
PetsLoveToys Monthly Dog Subscription Box Giveaway!
via

$25 and you get to CHOOSE the box of either Treats, Toys, or BOTH that comes to your pups door. They even have catagories specifically for chewers, or swimmers, or tuggers. Too Sweet. 


Amazepack
via
$25 (intro price!) and you get EVERYTHING YOU NEED to create a craft project every month. 
I. Need. This. Now. Consider this gift idea #1 (GI1)


Julibox
$40 and you get everything you need (with instructions) for how to make two different cocktails. 
Pretty sweet if ya ask me. 


PopSugar's Must Have Box
$35 and it's packed full of..well. EVERYTHING. This specific box had a book, movie tickets, face wipes, make up, hair ties, a scarf, snacks and a notepad. 
Consider this gift idea #2


Hammock Pack
                                                 Bed & BreakfastSometimes all you need is a night away to feel rejuvenated. Your B&B stay comes complete with all the essentials for a peaceful sleep and quiet morning. Wash up with a sweet peach scent using soft towels. Relax with a warm lavender pillow over your eyes and end your night with a little midnight snack. Wake up feeling rested while you start your day right with a cup of coffee and fruit jam for breakfast. After your stay, we hope you’re nice and rested for next month’s doorstep getaway.
See what was in the August pack here
Enjoy!Erin
$25 and each month a little vacation/getaway themed box of goodies. 
There have been beach days, camping boxes and bed and breakfasts (among others)


Create Crate
via
$20 for a monthly dose of creativity. Each box includes things to help and inspire you to celebrate major holidays (like halloween) or the everyday (like a wine tasting party)
This is too cute to both give and receive. (ahem)



Seriously y'all, there are some CUTE boxes out there.
I might have to check out some of them for myself. 
Anything new catch your eye?

Monday, December 17, 2012

Weekend Update

After the heaviness of Friday, 
there are no words. 

I guess I've always felt that the show must go on. 
I hope this isnt perceived as callous, but rather a celebration of life. 
Along with a reminder that life can be cut way to short, and must be lived. 

==========That said: ===========
The last weekend of Hanukkah,
and I got a present! 
Mike came back from Brazil. 

Here's a few shots of our weekend. 

Cat Naps & Dog Naps 



Hanukkah lights & Hanukkah presents. 




 -AND-
A visit to Mecca. 
er, IKEA. 
  

Mike wouldnt let me buy ANY of these for Shiva





Finally, 
we went outside for the fruit haul, 

and made some caipirinha's!  




stillbeingmolly

Friday, December 14, 2012

Friday Mashup

Helloooo Friday :)

So, I've had a ton of fun getting into the Christmas-Hanukkah spirit,
and I'd love to show you some of my favorites:

You've already seen my mantle,


and my favorite festive wine glass & bottle stopper,


but allow me to show you my wreath,




and the key holder thingymabob.



Here's a cute closeup of the cute pinecone snowman:



ALSO,
Here's a couple adorable family photos from our first annual Sled Race



what? Of course we have a sled race.
Click this link, and watch for yourself.


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Now on to the silly stuff:
To celebrate the last night of Hannukah tomorrow,
with a dash of sparkles, of course:
This week's Friday Fancies

serious sparkle





and this weeks manicure,
sponsored by my homesickness:
Juleps (sweet) Caroline: (bah bah bah!)


linked up with tara & vicky
Photobucket life rearranged


Have a good weekend, y'all!!


Thursday, December 13, 2012

My first Mantle

one of my favorite parts about this new house
is that I have a mantle

Somewhere to hang garlands, put decorations and be a real "focal point"
So, for our first holiday, I knew it would have to be excellent. 
I had seen this on Pinterest:
via

Sooo, I made my own. It's SUPER easy. 
Step (1): gather all your supplies. 
I used plain white acrylic paint, Martha stewart white pearl and some flaky iridescent glitter. 


Step (2): Paint it. Paint it good. 
I used a TON of all white paint, and then only 2 coats of the Pearl paint in order to get a completely opaque coverage. (Which is HARD with white..) 
Hint: I let the white dry overnight before adding the pearl. 


Step (3): After letting the pearl paint dry 6 hours, 
I mixed a ton of white & pearl paint together and really smooshed it onto the letter. 
While it was still wet, I went over the area with the glitter. 
I did this in sections, and went back with a smaller brush later to add paint/glitter in missing sections. 

Step(4): Let it dry while lying down, then shake it off lightly. 
and voila! 
Pretty wintery wonderlandy Joy. 
Accessorize with dreidels and christmas balls as you wish ;)


And the final mantle piece: 
I'm not -completely- convinced she's done, but I love it so far.  





Wednesday, December 12, 2012

christmas stockings


Everyone wants to find their pretty trees filled up with lovelies
but you dont wanna forget about the stockings!

how about...
 A pretty clutch,   or maybe a new bauble.

 Spruce up the iPhone, or always have a  battery backup.  
 Some snazzy magnets, or the coveted Naked palette..
Or, get productive with a new coffee mug,
  or charming  notepads to help you get it done?


What do you hope to find in your stocking?

Pinspiration

psssst,

there's some craftyness happening over here,
and all of it,
came from these pins




                                                                    Source: jesslc.com via Jess on Pinterest

                                                                      Source: whathopesanddreamsaremadeof.blogspot.com via Terri on Pinterest

                                                                Source: lorrinteriors.blogspot.com via Terri on Pinterest


                                                               Source: acasarella.net via Terri on Pinterest


                                                                  Source: hgtv.com via Terri on Pinterest



be sure to pop back by tomorrow for my first
Saw It, Pinned It, Did it.

and, if you've got any awesome DIYs to share, lemme know!