pintrest is bad for my sleep schedule

I think Peeps are disgusting. They are awfully cute, I will give them that, but I still don't want them in my mouth. (That's what she said.) Luckily I have found a delicious alternative. I know Easter has come and gone, but these crescent roll dove things would be welcome at my table all year long.


found on Pintrest, and I followed the rabbit trail here for the recipe/instructions. woot!

if I could turn back time

Alright, so I know you said you didn't want to post any wedding things on here, but since I'm married I figure its ok for me (bekah) & not you (hampton)!

I'm pretty sure I've shared this with you before but just in case, here is a reminder. I really wish while I was planning my wedding I knew about blogging! So many great and creative ideas and products. I loved my wedding and I truly felt like it reflected mine and Pete's personality, but every once in a while I find something and think "Damn! That would've been perfect for my wedding!" While looking up rice & bean recipes (that's another post) I randomly clicked on an old favorite blog (that had nothing to do with rice & beans) and died. Twigs & Honey blog.

Glimmering rhinestone headband (my favorite!)

French bandeau veil with silk organza flower bomb

Flapper inspired Bridal Headband

Rhinestone & French Chantilly Headband

Eyelash lace trim bridal cap

Are they not gorgeous? Or maybe its just me. I think with my dress these head pieces would've been alittle much but if I saw these first, I would've planned the dress around it. Would it be to much for me to ask to wear one of these to your wedding (of course not the veils or bridal caps, but maybe a headband?!)?! No?! Aww, thanks friend! (I'm sorta kinda kidding, ha!)

Origami Pleaded Dress

Also, would it be weird if I told you I loved this dress & totally see you in it?! I think it's weird I think of these things. Please tell me I'm wrong and you love that I think of these things! And, of course I would never feel any type of way if you were like "uh Bek, that's nice but just not for me." I'm just having fun playing dress up with you!

Even if none of these things were your fancy, & maybe it's not really nice of me to show you these things but I couldn't resist! I hope you don't mind friend!

bekah xo

Thanks, man!

I'm alittle kinda frustrated with myself right now. So many things I want to do but motivation has left this heart & mind. & with Fritz & Baby Girl running a muck this morning I'm about ready to throw down.

Nothing is particular wrong (besides silly brothers but you know) & really life has been feeling great! It's taken a looooong time but I finally feel like I'm at a place of growth, & movement, but yet all I want to do today is sleep in. The irony is frustrating.

I am however going to force the push and get a move on today! RIGHT NOW! (right after I share a few things I'm thankful for)
Even though its been a tough time for Pete & I, I'm oh so very thankful that we are here today. Nothing is perfect, but we are certainly working hard on getting there. I'm very happy & excited for the future!
I know you know, but for those that don't. I'M HEADING HOME! To the great state of Texas. It's been almost 2 years but it feels like a lifetime ago since I've been home. I can NOT wait to see my folks, you (Hampton) of course! & a few other prized people in my life. I'm so thankful that it worked out that I can go home in May. Pretty darn amazing how things work out.
Also, I would love (& be thankful) to have this shirt in my wardrobe before I went home, but really it would only be cool to wear here in Jersey & NYC. But still, I may just indulge in some pre-trip shopping!
STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS! The first game of Round 1 between the Penguins & Lighting was pretty amazing. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the Pens will keep up with their aggressive play to shut down Tampa tonight. (Bummed I'll miss tonight games b/c of work, stupid jobs! but thankful to have one)
It kinda amazes me how much I have fallin in love with the game of hockey & the Penguins. As silly as it sounds, I know it's a big reason why things are getting better everyday. LET'S GO PENS!
I'm thankful I would know how to make these mouth watering lemon bars if I were to make them. But I won't make them because I have to slow it down with all my sweet consumtion. However, I am thankful none the less!

I like doing thankful post. Helps keep things in perspective. & I like them better when it's not Thanksgiving!

bekah xo

on embracing vanity

pic from weheartit

You may not realize it back in Jersey, but here in the Lone Star State, spring has sprung. Last week we had highs in the 80’s, and it’s been lovely. The grass is green and the bluebonnets are out. Naturally this is the time of year to unpack your cute sundresses that have been put in storage during the cold winter months, and I was super excited to do that a few weeks ago. It’s like going shopping, but it’s free, and you already know that (hopefully!) everything fits! We have a fairly casual dress code at my office, and last Monday I wore one of my springy dresses to work. It’s a black dress with off-white Mexican floral embroidery. Cute, casual, goes well with my Frye Target knockoff boots. Yay! It’s meant to be worn with a belt, and oh man, I have the perfect belt to go with it… but I see in retrospect that it’s perfect for a Friday night… not so perfect for a Monday morning. The belt kind of hikes up the skirt up a little more, til it’s pushing towards not-so work appropriate. I didn’t realize this until I was literally grabbing my stuff to walk out the door that morning, and I saw that my tattoo was peeking out a little bit from under the dress. Eeek! I made a split second decision to just keep on trucking in my outfit since I already had it on, and spent the rest of the day kicking myself. I should have changed clothes and run the risk of being 10 minutes late. When I got up for a mid-morning restroom break I saw myself in the full length mirror here in the office. Now don’t get me wrong, even with the belt raising the hemline a bit, I still passed the middle school “is it longer than your fingertips?” test, but after having realized, ‘oh shit, that IS really short for work!’ I spent the rest of the day totally self conscious and paranoid, and that's pretty much never fun. DAMMIT.

You know what the problem is? I don’t have a full length mirror at home. I’d initially intended to buy one, but then talked myself out of it, reasoning that I know what I look like from the thigh down. And I do. But it turns out, it's helpful to see it in context. (thighs = metaphor for life. It's all about the big picture. PUT IT CONTEXT, PEOPLE!) Now if we are being honest, I'm probably gonna go with a cheap piece of crap from WalMart or Target, because that's what the budget allows at the moment. But it never hurts to look, does it?



This one from CB2 is my favorite. I like that the wood frame is chunky but streamlined at the same time. It's on sale right now, knocked down from $299 to $199... but that still falls outside of my budget of zero dollars, so I'd better keep looking.



This one from West Elm is a little more understated, but I dig it. There is already a lot of wood in my bedroom (that's what she said) so maybe the sleeker narrow metal edge would be a better match. But the $300 price tag has deemed that this mirror will not be coming home to live with me either. Bummer.



And this one from Spiegel doesn't really qualify as a full length mirror, but it does qualify as awesome, so I thought I'd share it. Well... maybe "awesome" is over-selling it just a bit, but I like the shelf, and I think it would be nice in an entryway. Our apartment almost has one of those, and at $79, the price is way more manageable than the other two. None of that actually helps with the issue at hand though, so I guess I'll have to keep looking for a looking glass.

got milk?

You know how you (Bekah) and I (Hampton. Duh. Keep up, people!) used to have a recurring conversation about how I like fruit... and you would say "I wish I liked fruit" (which I still think is a funny thing to say!) and then you would talk about how you like milk... like you like it enough to get thirsty for milk, and then I'd tell you that was weird?

I don't know, I just have never really liked milk. I use it in coffee, and in cereal, but I have never really been crazy about it on its own. Unless it's accompanied by a brownie or a cookie, and that's just a classic pairing. And I guess, no longer on its own, which brings me back to my original point. Milk = meh. But I did see these on Oh, Joy a while back ago and I thought that maybe I could learn to love milk.



Milk straws! From what I understand the little flavor sprinkles inside the straw gradually melt to give a bit of flavor to your milk as you drink it. Is it more healthy to drink milk that has been doused with sugar, or to drink no milk at all? I am not sure, but it can't be any worse for you than a Coke!



This is a genius idea too. That milk looks like it knows how to party. In real life, sprinkles kind of annoy me, just because they fall off and get all over everything, but I have to admit that this is pretty damn cute. I found this picture on Pintrest, the latest greatest time-suck I've found online. Maybe if all milk looked this festive I would enjoy it more! Here's hoping!

xoxo
Hampton

ruffles and geese

You (Bekah) are sooo much better at keeping up with the blog than I am. So I have been shamed into posting more regularly. Normally I would blog from work, but we just got a new supervisor (my previous supervisor basically demoted herself, so now she is just a regular customer service rep- regular except she still makes more money than we do...) and I'm still testing the waters as far as how chill he'd be about things like that. For the moment, I'll just have to blog from home. I know, life is hard.

Anyway, I thought I'd share some internetty things I've been looking at for a while. I know that you know that I loooooove Anthropologie. One of the things on my birthday list for this year is to compile a portfolio that I could take in to apply for a visual display job there. Hello, dream job. Also, hello, employee discount!! One of their items that I've been drooling over for some time now is the Flamenco Shower Curtain.



So aptly named. Doesn't it look like something a Spanish dancer would bathe behind? There is also a red/pink/orange version, but these blues and greens are more doable for our bathroom. So, it's lovely and everything, but it's also $118. NGH. Not Gonna Happen. BUT the powers of the internet have brought me an alternative. Apparently I'm not alone in lusting after this bad boy despite the hefty price tag, and I've found a couple of different tutorials for how to make it yourself. I think that rather than buy the fabric for each layer separately, I will just buy a bunch of white fabric, and use Rit dye to get the colors I want. I do have a turquoise flat sheet that I bought at a garage sale (is that weird?) with the intent to make a dress out of it (is that weirder?), and it's just a tiny bit more green and more vibrant than the bottom ruffle on the anthro version. Just how I like it. So I may forgo the dress and use that as the bottom ruffle. Who knows. First I need to get a ruffle foot for my sewing machine. Which is actually my mom's sewing machine. And she mentioned last week she might want that back... so maybe first I need to get a new sewing machine. Details, details!



Here's another fun thing. I saved this picture a few years ago (before I learned about blogging etiquette, and that you should always note the source of the photos for the fun things you share... crap!) and now I have no idea where it came from. I think perhaps decor8 but I don't really remember. Anyway, i love everything about this pic. The loveseat with the curved back and the tufting, the mid-century style table (looks a lot like this Ikea coffee table on stilts), but especially the hodgepodge of gooseneck sconces on the wall grouped together. I think that some of them (possibly even most of them) are probably actually desk lamps that have been mounted to the wall. Since we are renters, I can't really go bat-shit crazy drilling holes in my walls for the time being. I did have the idea that i could just get a really large piece of plywood and mount a bunch of lamps to the plywood, and then lean it up against a wall. I'm not sure how I would keep the plywood upright at the right angle to make that work. I have visions of the weight of 40 different gooseneck lamps pulling the whole thing down and scraping up the hardwood floors in the process... so perhaps i should wait until the boy and I are in a place of our own that is more suitable for such experiments. Until then, I dream of wacky lighting installations like this one. And this one (from weheartit). And this one (also from weheartit). Especially this one (weheartit, duh. Do you click on the links when I link this crap? You should, they are good.).

And that is all I have for you tonight, my friend. The internet is tired, and it's going to bed. I am too, goodnight!

xoxoxo hampton

Mini Shopping Spree

I just indulged on a little shopping spree.

It all started when I was looking at iPhones.

Verizon finally has the iPhone and I've been itching ever since to get one. The only problem I see is Apple will of course come out with a new one just as I'm getting use to the touch screen interface. Although the more I think about it, I don't care and I want what I want. But luckily my shopping spree didn't start there. I still have a month to go before I can upgrade.

So what did I buy instead?! VANILLA BEANS!
I know, big spender! I've been dying to make my own vanilla extract for close to 2 years (ever since I saw this blog post), and now that I finally have vanilla vodka in my freezer I'm gonna do it! It takes a bit of time, but I want it for when I make cookies at christmas, so really I'm just planning ahead. (for once!)

Also, I finally ordered my Home Try-on glasses from Warby Parker. Excited to see if I like them or not. I desperately need a pair.

10 bucks on a feel good shopping spree?! Not to bad, I must say.

bekah xo

Interweb Bits

I'm all sweaty and gross right now. Perfect time to blog!

I just spotted this super cute tic-tac-toe stamp set via Design Sponge and I just had to share it. Truly a genius idea! I can picture Grandma Biermann and I playing for hours! Man, I love her.


I also saw this very cool DIY idea for art supply pouches. The idea of printing on fabric makes me nervous but I have a nice printer, & these are just to cool to pass up. I would love to make MAC ones for my co-workers, or cookie ones for my Christmas cookies. It also includes using my sewing machine, which is sadly collecting dust because I have no time! (I do, but don't tell anyone!)

& just for the fun of it. I kinda love this picture of Turner & I. My hair is outta control and he has the silliest face ever. Although that's nothing new for him really.


bekah xo

"my heart stops when you look at me"

When Katy Perry’s first single came out, I was digging it. I must have still had cable at that point, because I have a vague recollection of seeing the video for ‘Kissed a Girl’ at 2am. It was fun and ever-so-slightly sorority girl naughty. I wouldn’t call it great art, but it was entertaining. ‘Ur So Gay’ was fun too, in a novelty kind of way, and as it aptly described most of my guy friends at the time, I began to develop a soft spot for Ms. Perry. After a while though, the auto-tune shine began to tarnish. I saw her sing at a couple of TV awards shows, and it was rough. You can only cringe through her stiff, lifeless “performances” so many times before you’re forced to admit: maybe she sorta sucks.

And then came the earworm “Teenage Dream.” My soft spot re-softened, not so much because Katy stopped sucking, but more because the song is just sweet. It makes me smile every time I hear it.

I met Nathan when I was 18, but I knew who he was for a few years before we ever had a true conversation. His younger sister Natalie was my age, and we were goofy youth group kids together. After an especially goofy youth church choir performance that his parents video taped, mine and Natalie’s mutual friend CeCe told me that after seeing this video, Nathan had inquired as to who I was. Oh. Ok, cool. Cece seemed unsatisfied with my lack of excitement so I asked, why is that a big deal? And her exasperated response: “because her brother is REALLY hot!” She pointed him out to me later that day and she was right. He was really hot and it WAS a big deal.

We weren’t actually introduced until a year or two later, but my crush was born that day. We found our way to each other as adults (thank you, Mark Zuckerburg!) and I stop once a day and ask myself how I got so lucky. Now I literally wake up every day to my teenage dream, and sometime I sing that damn song when I think about it.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Okay, it's a day early but I won't have time to put this up tomorrow, so you know how it goes.

I grew up loving the color purple. I wanted everything purple, and my parents let that happen. I even one time painted the walls of my old bedroom back home purple. To this day I still can't believe Bob let me do it. I did an awful job but I was satisfied and felt accomplished. Over time I have cut ties with purple and have fallen in love with green. Your (Hampton) influences has alot to do with it I'm sure. Remember that time James (our old youth minister, I say this for the benefit of our other 2 readers.) told you I looked up to you?! That is definitely true but not because you took me to a drinking party, ha! I've always admired your artsy flare, and especially your flare for green. (your bedroom walls ring a bell!) There are many other things I love & admire about you, but I truly appreciate your influence on me in regards to the color green. (& amaretto sours!)

So since it's St. Patrick's Day (tomorrow) here are some cool green things.

I can never get enough of her, and I love that dress. 4 people the other day told me I looked like her. They are my new best friends that live in New Jersey!

Of course God loves green because just look outside. Could you imagine that being your view?! I think I would move away from the city if that was my view. Done & Done.

A green kitchen?! I am in love! Maybe one day!

Ooooooooh you'll like this. Green nail lacquer from OPI. The collection is all about Texas! So even better, green & Texas. I will be purchasing this tomorrow.

I love my bed, you know I do, but for the day when I have a guest room you'll be sleeping in a bed with a green headboard. Count on it!

Thank you for the love of green! It's just what true friends do for each other I'm sure. & don't worry, I still love purple it just has an amazing partner in crime thanks to you!

bekah xo

ps. OH HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Oh Spring Time!

Ah, the beautiful thing about daylight savings is that it's almost 6pm and the sun is still shining. I know I say it alot, but it makes such a difference. I hate getting to work at 9am with the sun shining bright, only to leave when the moon is rising at 6pm. You really miss the days. So even though I probably could've used that extra hour of sleep last night (staying out til 6am didn't help) I'm happy writing this at 5:45pm and seeing blue skies, with rays of sunshine. (aww how sweet!)

My birthday was pretty chill, but a good one all around. Grandma B did a shot of Jameson with me, and Pete got me some much needed work out shoes. I ended up making the Texas Sheet Cake for the actual day and then this past weekend I made the Dulce de Leche Cupcakes for my friends at work. I was presently surprised when Mari made some cupcakes for me as well this weekend! Not only were they delicious, but it was so sweet of her to do that! I have a great crew at MAC.

Apparently it was quite the process to find the yellow & black Crosby ZigTech's but Pete did it! It was truly a surprise because generally we don't do gifts. They are pretty bad ass and anything having to do with Crosby (or hockey in general) is right up my ally!

The Dulce de Leche Cupcakes turned out super sweet and super fluffy! I must've eaten probably 10 of them, but hey! it was my birthday and now I have the new shoes to burn them off! No judgment.

& doesn't this meatball sub from Smitten Kitchen look amazing?! I'm not big on meatball subs but this one just made my mouth water. I think I'm gonna makes these up tomorrow since I have no class this week, thank you spring break!

After getting home at 6am this morning, it's been nice enjoying the lazy, sunny Sunday! Penguins won! (although at the price of my Oilers) and I have no class or work tomorrow. Who could complain?!

xo bekah


ps. yes, you read that right, Grandma B did a shot of Jameson on my bday. She is amazing!

Decisions, Decisions.

The best way to let your nails dry is to blog right?! Nail lacquers is definitely a good subject for us to chat about, but not tonight.

Did you know that my birthday is on Monday?! No?! Hey! Guess what jerkface my birthday is on Monday and I expect you to out do yourself over the cupcake courier (still the best birthday gift ever!). That being said, I've been putting alot of thought into what I would like to bake for my birthday. Cupcakes of course, but what kind? I really do believe that nothing, NOTHING, can be "too sweet" , & I always think people are being ridiculous when they say that something is "too sweet". Give me a break, its dessert! That's the point! My 3 choices are definitely on the sweet side and I can just hear someone saying, "they're were good, just alittle too sweet for me." Good thing about baking for myself is that it's finally all about me! I get to make what I want and if it's "too sweet" for you, tough.

Dulce de Leche Cupcakes, I love me some dulce de leche!

Ah, Texas Sheet Cake. So amazing, cinnamon-y and fudgey. I've made this a few times and it never fails me. And it's all about me : )

White Chocolate-Coconut Brownies. I love the idea of this combo, & really anything with coconut in it, I'm ok with.

So whatcha think?! I realize that there is only one cupcake option, but that's really for work, the others are for the actual day. What would you want for your birthday, since we share March?! Maybe I'll just make all three! I can always diet on the 8th, mmmhmmm.

bekah xo

ps. & btw, I was totally joking about the jerkface part. Love you!

Tomato, Tomatoe

I really should be studying, but instead I researched how to grow tomatoes. Not the studying I paid to do, but I'll get to that eventually. I'm sure I've mentioned to you before that I wanted to grow tomatoes. I've talked about it at least with myself for the past few years and I think 2011 is going to be the year. We have a nice balcony that we never use but always talk about using. It's always in the sun, and from what I read, it would be perfect for growing tomatoes. I've even talked about this with a few customers that are gardeners and they agree. So that is my plan. Grow tomatoes this summer!

I'm hoping to maybe make my own sauce?! Or at least have some fun snacks to take to work and be able to say, I grew these mother fucker! Okay, maybe no f bombs, but still, how cool would that be?!


sidenote -- Reading Lake Jane (haha I love her!) she had this great birthday post that I am sure you could identify with about getting older (not because you'll be 30, but just because its true). These few words have stuck with me the past few days. Not sure why, but they make me feel good.

"Obviously, as you grow up, you come to realize that you never really have that moment where you feel like a proper grown-up. I think you always sort of feel like your 14 year old self (or a younger version of yourself anyways)."


bekah xo

it's not easy being green

This weekend Nathan and I met his parents over at his grandad’s house. Marv (Natedogg’s dad, for those who don’t know) was asking me about my job. What a typical day looks like, that sort of thing. The things that I actually do at my job are pretty boring, but I’m trying to focus on the positive these days. Trying. ;) Anyway, he asked if I had a cool cubicle. I had to laugh. As cubicles go, I guess, mine is actually pretty nice! He asked if I had any live plants, and again, I had to laugh. The cube farm is not a healthy place for any living thing, and my black thumb would not exactly bring life to the workplace. But I was looking on the Craft zine blog this morning, and they linked to this badass needle felted terrarium by Tiny Apartment Crafts that had been posted to their flickr pool. This is more my speed. I could do succulents, for sure, and I can totally handle crafts. I sort of wish that she sold them, because, let’s face it, do I really have time to take up another crafty hobby? (I do not.) But this is so damn cute, and I have about a million wool sweaters in the craft closet at home that are ready to be felted and fulfill their crafty destiny. I may have to lady up and take on a new skill.


In the meantime, I brought a small bud vase to work this morning. I figure for the time being I can bring a tiny bit of life to my cube that way.

....in bed.

It's late but I felt the need to get a blog in before bed.



I save fortune cookie fortunes. (You probably already know that.) I was looking for a higher resolution file of this picture here so that I could print it out for a project, and in my search ran across the one above. I dig this one too. I had this idea one time (idea-stealers of the interwebs, stop reading now please) to do a series of drawings, depicting whatever the fortune cookie talks about, but it happening (wait for it) in bed. Like, for this fortune, it'd be something like a girl with her surfboard surfing the waves of her comforter. I'm not sure that this idea translates as well verbally as I think it would visually. Also, it's after midnight, so if this post doesn't make sense there could be a number of reasons. Anyway. I tried to make my own fortune cookies one time. They didn't work out too well, but maybe it's because I wasn't using this recipe from Craft zine- I think may try again.


:

I might make some for Jared.



Can you imagine opening your fortune cookie and getting this fortune?!?! This picture cracked my shit up.

all pics are from weheartit. i'm too lazy to link tonight, i'm tired. goodnight friend, and goodnight world. see you tomorrow.

love, hampton

Sight for Sore Eyes

I've been in desperate need of a new pair of glasses for quite some time now. My vision isn't to bad, but I have noticed that it is slowly getting worse & I certainly don't wear my glasses as much as I should. Tonight, I stumbled across Warby Parker via Making It Lovely & For Me, For You, & instantly got excited to get a new pair!

Sinclair

Owen

Crosby
I may be bias to these because of the name alone, crossing my fingers they are the ones!

They have this great program where you can pick 5 different pairs and have them sent to you for free (free shipping as well, whoa) to try on. What a great idea! The excitement to make an eye doctor appointment is overwhelming, ha! now I just need to get Pete on board. The other great part is all their glasses are $95 bucks. Yes ma'am, that includes your prescription too. That was one of the reasons I've been waiting on getting a new pair. A decent pair of specks can really reach deep in the pockets, even with insurance, but I can definitely do $95 bucks.

Once I get my try-on's I'll post pictures so you can help me pick a pair!

bekah xo



ps. the Penguins lost again, ugh! I couldn't bare to start another post that way.

Happy UnBirthday!

Once again I have to start another post with yet another Penguins lost. Really guys?! This one was more disappointing because they tied it up with under a minute left to go, and then lose it in the final 4 seconds of overtime. I'm sure they're more upset about it than me, but still! When will Crosby come back?! I miss him so!

I know I'm a little early on this, but I figure I should start now so maybe, JUST MAYBE, I could actually accomplish what I plan on doing. Besides March 17th being your birthday, it is also St. Patrick's Day. Did you know that?! Haha, I still remember that St. Patrick's Day that we went to On The Border (mmmm) and we called that Matt guy, remember that?! Good times for sure!

My plan for St. Patrick's Day (besides celebrating your birthday, of course) is to mail out cards to all of our friends and family. I never got the chance to send out Christmas cards this past year, and that made me sad. By the time I realized I didn't send them it was the middle of January, talk about #fail. I think it would be a nice surprise to all the people we think are cool in our lives. I'm pretty damn sure that I've never received a St. Patty's Day card, so I'm guessing that there is a good percentage of people out there like me. I found some pretty bad ass ones on Esty, and if funding allows I may just indulge.

mjayelle

LeMotPaperie

seasonaldelights

artnoose

So, keep an eye on your mailbox!

bekah xo