the best car seats {by review.com}

Car seats. Ugh. Almost no other kids’ item gives me more anxiety than car seats.

If you know me, I am a bit of an anxious person and can keep myself together, but I am close to neurotic about car seats. There are so many choices and so much information, it is overwhelming, even to a non-anxious person. Continue reading “the best car seats {by review.com}”

my weekend in pictures.

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{at our childbirth class this weekend we learned about how baby lower will navigate the pelvic bones – pretty crazy stuff!}

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{sadie & my 35 week bump!}

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{in the middle of a diy project for the house & so excited about it!}

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{fro-yo doesn’t doesn’t last long around here when its 90 degrees. & there is no A/C.}

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{a much-needed car wash!}

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{admiring the gorgeous salvaged wood floors at the house. more pics to come on thursday!}

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{we dined in west seattle with some friends & enjoyed the view of the seattle city skyline.}

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{tried marination ma kai – a food truck turned restaurant – & it was awesome. there wasn’t shave ice since the freezer was out which was a bit of a bummer. 90 degrees + pregnant misha = wants shave ice}

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{walking out of whole foods this evening the sky was breathtaking!}

this weekend was hot, hot,, hot! a lot of you can easily do high 80s or low 90s without breaking a sweat {pun intended!} but I know you are doing it with A/C. I was able to make it most of the day, but by about 5 or 6 I was ready to be cooled down. luckily both mornings this weekend we attended a childbirth & breastfeeding class at swedish hospital – it was not only very informative but had A/C! I am gearing up for my last two weeks of work before I start my leave {!} & looking forward to enjoying some summer before baby lower joins the fam {though a bit cooler would be more pleasant!}. how was your weekend?

M

highlights of 2013.

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happy 2014!

i’ve said it before, & i’ll say it again!, yearly recaps are always my favorite kinds of blog posts. its a small way to sum up your year & to see how much the last 365 days have brought. as i look forward to the New Year, i am humbled & grateful by all of the wondrous events of 2013. here’s the rundown of ours:

january: I started out the new year with a bout of the flu. we hosted our first blog giveaway! we installed the west elm hanging capiz chandelier over our dining room table. I framed my diy polaroids for our bedroom walls. amanda & I met john & sherry from young house love during their book signing tour! I diy-ed campaign dressers for our bedroom.

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february: I did lots of diy-ing for valentine’s day {here, here, & here} I celebrated my birthday! we bought a kitchen island. I tried to be better about getting in front of the camera!

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march: I tried my hand at painting an antler {& was so impressed with the results!}. we took my 91-year-old grandmother to target for the first time! amanda & I diy-ed framed house keys on maps. we sold jez the jetta & bought a new car.

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april: we updated our bathroom vanity with a converted antique sideboard. we updated the closet doors by stripping off the old paint in a crock pot. we celebrated our one year anniversary in our house & I reviewed all of the house diys!

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may: we finally got some good weather in seattle! I painted the ceiling & hallway walls. we celebrated aaron’s thirtieth birthday with a beer tasting party! we had a fun-filled memorial day weekend. we were featured in west elm’s blog front & main.

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june: aaron replaced our toilet. sadie was featured in the seattle dog spot blog. my parents visited for a long weekend en route to the olympic peninsula. my diy his & hers maps were featured. we finally got some summer weather!

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seattle dog blog thank you

july: we celebrated the long Fourth of July weekend with a holiday parade, fireworks, & time with friends. I made a nine layer ombre cake! we replaced our kitchen track lights with globe pendants from west elm. we road-tripped to idaho for my ten-year high school reunion. we started growing our first eggplant.

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august: we celebrated our three year wedding anniversary. the blog got a Liebster Award Nomination. I diy-ed the tiniest baby hats for our friends’ new baby. we road-tripped to hood river, oregon to celebrate my cousin’s wedding.

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september: we went to the husky vs. bronco game to kick-off labor day weekend complete with husky-style tailgating {via boat}. we took advantage of the warm weather & cleaned up the front yard with a fun game called love it or lose it. we celebrated sadie’s ninth birthday! I attended the Alt Summit for Everyone blog conference.

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october: I attempted to start doing fashion posts again. we celebrated our two year blog anniversary at emerald city diaries! I finished up with the #embracethecamera challenge. we went to the pumpkin patch & carved pumpkins with friends.

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november: aaron joined a team for movember 2013. we snuck off to hawaii for thanksgiving.

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december: I reviewed some of my favorite weekend in pictures pics. I participated in A Pinterest Christmas for the third year {see this year’s projects here, here, here, here, & here}! we celebrated Christmas in indiana with aaron’s family.

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reflecting back on this year, i am reminded how blessed we are & also how different this year has been than the year previous. it has been such a wonderful year & ringing in a new one is a bit bittersweet.

how was your 2013 – was it a year to remember, or are you itching to start 2014 already?

M

see past yearly highlights for 2011 & 2012.

my weekend in pictures.

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{on thursday evening i attended the anthro petite launch at the downtown store & got to meet joy from oh joy! she is as lovely in person as she is on her blog. #bloggercrush}

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{i needed a few jelly bellys to get me thru my friday at work.}

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{it is finally peony season – at least at whole foods. i am waiting it out until tj’s gets them so i don’t have to spend $12 a dozen. #mightbeworthit #peonyseasonbegins}

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{saturday was a beautiful sunny day which called for a floral dress & my fun new oxfords..}

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{i finally got a new wreath for the front door.}

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{i ordered some moo cards & am so excited!}

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{sadie was great at supervising yard work on sunday afternoon.}

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{happy mother’s day to my mom! #circa1992}

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{we finally hit 1000 miles on our new car. pretty exciting!}

we had a fun weekend with some sun & some storms. it was nice to get a few projects out of the way & gear up for aaron’s big birthday bash next weekend {spolier alert: he will be thirty!} we got a chance to catch up with both of our moms today, but since neither of them are in town, we took my grandmother out for a mother’s day dinner. how was your weekend?

M

my weekend in pictures.

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{finally arranging on our new bathroom counterspace. i picked up these fun silver mint julep cups from one kings lane to hold cotton balls & q-tips.}

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{got diesel for the first time in our new car. the green is fun!}

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{paint rollers & drywall – story of our weekend.}

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{ikea bins. i was in organizing heaven!}

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{finally sorted out the mess in the bathroom vanity. since i don’t have a label maker (yet) i used fun chalkboard labels instead.}

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{aaron joined me on sunday morning in my favorite vinyasa flow yoga class. afterwards we noshed on a bagel. carb loading post-yoga is totally legit, right?}

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{i had already prepped & primed the hallway before i realized we didn’t have the paint color i needed to finish painting it. alas, i see hallway painting in my future next weekend.}

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{i am glad that someone likes & enjoys these upholstered tables. they sit in front of our front window, so sadie has a view of everything in front of the house. plus, she likes to bring her favorite toys up to join her.}

we had a great weekend, but as always it went so fast! there were a lot of house projects which is exhausting but it feels great to get a few things off the checklist. we had terrible wet weather all weekend with the sun only peeking out for a few hours at the end, but we are in for a warm week (seriously, mid to high 60s you guys!). how was your weekend?

M

my weekend in pictures.

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{sadie was making friends at anthro on friday night. sometimes we have to be careful that she doesn’t fall in love with another person & follow them home!}

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{we had a yummy veggie lunch on saturday at chaco canyon.}

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{rain, rain go away. we had lightning & thunder that shook the house in the late afternoon on saturday.}

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{we hosted some friends for dinner on saturday night & aaron made homemade gnocchi – yum-o!}

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{sadie was hunting squirrels, & aaron & i enjoyed all of the spring tulips on our family outing sunday morning.}

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{the sun was out – after days of rain this week – so we celebrated with a bit of open sunroof.}

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{we had sunday night dinner with my grandmother & saw 42. it was awesome. go see it, stat!}

we had a fun weekend mixed with a few small house projects & some good quality time together – like a dinner date on friday {fancy!}. it is hard to complain about wanting spring to come faster after a sunny day like today, but we have had so much rain the last week that we are ready for a change {though the wet conditions have made growing grass seed much easier}. per usual, the weekend has come & gone so quickly leaving us wishing it was just one more day. oh well, back to the grind. how was your weekend?

M

my weekend in pictures.

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{my building’s cafeteria closed but there is always a food truck around. i got to enjoy a yummy meal while enjoying the sunshine!}

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{hung out in post alley at pike place market on friday to celebrate my friend miriam’s birthday.}

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{we saw an improv comedy show the pretty wonderful club. it was based on the john hughes 80’s high school movies. so fun!}

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{yes, that is a gum wall behind me. post alley is filled with gum. it is a disgusting tradition, but you pretty much have to participate if you are there.}

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{sadie & i patiently waited outside for aaron to get us lattes on saturday morning.}

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{when it is sunny outside, which it was ALL weekend!, everyone in seattle washes their car. including us.}

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{we went “car shopping” this weekend just to look & ended up buying a new car. this is the final picture of us with jez, our old jetta. bye bye jez, it was a great 9 years!}

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{bluetooth in cars is awesome!}

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{got a new coffee table book by the one & only kate spade, my fav. can’t wait to flip thru it for some inspiration!}

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{happy easter sadie! yes, that dog toy has bunny ears.}

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{good morning new jetta sportswagen! i haven’t had it long enough to give it an official name – any suggestions? we are thinking something german perhaps. what, you don’t name your cars?}

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{making sure the new bathroom hardware is level.}

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{had to paint a few touchup spots on the bathroom walls where old hardware came down. i think our latest bathroom project is nearly finished & i am hoping to be able to share it later in the week!}

we had a wonderfully sunny weekend, busy but fun. our weather was spectacular, especially for seattle in the early spring, & we were even wearing shorts to work around the house & in the yard this afternoon. we often get a burst of very early spring weather that gets everyone a little hopeful (& nervous for a very hot summer) but inevitably we will be back to normal cool spring weather. also, we accidently bought a car this weekend. i say accidently because we were really just going to look at cars on saturday. it was our first day out looking & there were a few types & models that were in the running, but next thing you know, we were buying a new jetta. we opted for the sportswagen because, you know, we could use the space for the constant lowe’s & home depot runs/sadie/future babes/etc. but the real reason why we bought the sportswagen was because of the full sunroof which is amazing! we had a great easter weekend – how was your weekend?

M