winter – emerald city diaries

my weekend in pictures.

{watched part of the opening ceremonies of the olympic games. not going to lie that the alphabet video was a little weird.}

{a fun valentine’s day prop for a photoshoot we did this weekend. I love how festive it is!}

{finally got to nordy’s to drop off some pants for alteration.}

{it snowed on saturday night! it was magical & so beautiful!}

{in the spirit of the olympic games I convinced aaron to watch cool runnings with me. #ilovethismovie #yeahmon}

{sadie takes her job of cleaning dishes & take-out boxes very seriously.}

{we dined out this evening with some friends at naked city. good times & good food!}

what a fun weekend! we had a beautiful sunny saturday in the morning & then snow by nightfall. we’ve watched a few snippets of the olympics here & there, but not going to lie, I am a much bigger fan of the summer games… we got to catch up with a few good friends this weekend which is always such a treat. I am in disbelief that we are heading into the middle of february, but also excited/terrified that I will be a year older by the end of the week. eep! how was your weekend?

my {long} weekend in pictures.

{I joined some girlfriends for some lift, tone, burn at the pure barre in boise.}

{in an effort to pack light I didn’t bring my own hairdryer & planned on borrowing my mom’s. little did I know that hers recently bit the dust & she has been using this one from the 1970s…}

{on saturday I had the great joy of showering a soon-to-be-mama with my best & oldest girlfriends. it was so amazing to see these ladies & makes me wish we all lived in the same city again. {sigh} maybe someday! thanks jen for throwing a beautiful shower & congrats to beth!}

{watch out world, according to my fortune I am about to unleash some talents!}

{this morning my mom & I caught up on the men’s final match at the australian open & did our best not to read any news. I felt so, so bad for rafa but excited for wawrinka!}

{I dined with my mom & dad at an old favorite, da vinci’s, this evening. really good italian food if you ever find yourself in downtown eagle, idaho.}

{hopped on a plane tonight for the quick trip back to seattle!}

this long weekend was spent in idaho visiting family & friends, & was much-needed for me. we didn’t make it over for the holidays, so it felt good to be home at least for a few days this winter. it is always such a treat to catch up with family & old friends, & this weekend did not disappoint. we got to see my brother, sister, sister-in-law, & nephews for dinner one night, & I got to see all of my very best & oldest girlfriends all in one place at once – amazing! even though I am sad that the weekend is over, it is great to be home & to see sadie!

how was your weekend?

my weekend in pictures.

{sadie’s post-surgery meds cocktail. we found a lump on her when we got home from the holidays & she had a lumpectomy on friday morning.}

{we had monsoon-like conditions of wind, rain, & sleet on saturday afternoon. crazy.}

{after a very rough friday night, sadie was able to rest by saturday. its not a wonder given that enormous incision on her belly. luckily the vet was able to internalize the stitches, so no cone-of-shame necessary.}

{aaron & ben went to the seahawks play-off game on saturday afternoon. it was rainy, wet, & cold but the hawks were victorious!}

{sadie & I watched the game from the comfort – & warmth – of home.}

{saturday night brought us a last-minute dinner & a movie double date with our neighbors. girls won the movie vote with father of the bride. a classic! not exactly the action film aaron had in mind.}

{finally went thru all of the christmas cards we received & updated the contact pictures in my phone. best idea!}

{grocery shopping on sunday isn’t very fun since everyone else is also grocery shopping too…}

{sadie was like this most of the weekend. I think she wants to just become an appendage. so needy!}

{there was lots of football watched in our house this weekend. the colts may not have advanced, but we are definitely payton manning fans in this house!}

this weekend was lovely, mostly because I had so little planned & so little I “had” to do. why can’t all of my weekends be like that? something to work on in the new year. we are feeling refreshed going into the coming work week, though the winter weather is starting to get old. sadly, we are looking at lots of weeks of cold weather as we always have such a late spring in the pacific northwest. oh well. someday. there was a lot of snuggles & naps for sadie this weekend as she recovered from a minor surgery. we don’t have the test results yet from her lumpectomy, but the vet is optimistic from he removed. fingers crossed! how was your weekend? M

highlights of 2013.

{via}

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.

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!

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.

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!

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.

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!

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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?

see past yearly highlights for 2011 & 2012.

my weekend in pictures.

{caught the end of the fight hunger bowl game. go huskies!}

{saw our cousin kait’s new house. aaron & oliver had fun launching arrows everywhere.}

{we drove out to lafayette to see tim, meg, & silas yesterday.}

{si was such a ham at lunch. this is his new squishy face!}

{pool party at our hotel with all of the little cousins!}

{happy birthday cari!}

{all of the littles in one pic – amazing!}

we are wrapping up our indiana christmas vacation & fly back to seattle today. it has been great to unplug & catch up with family & friends over the holiday. it seems like we have had no less than 6 christmas celebrations! plus, we finally got some snow this morning! hard to believe we are in the final days of december – where did the year go? how was your christmas week and weekend?

my weekend in pictures.

{we woke up to SNOW on friday morning. it was very, very exciting!}

{sadie does not at all look comfy, does she?}

{got a festive holiday mani on saturday morning.}

{packing…}

{sadie’s dog walker becca gave sadie her christmas present. it was a 3 foot bully stick. sadie is obsessed.}

{we had a crepe brunch with our friends cale, jessica, & their daughter jazmyne. jaz & aaron took sadie for a little stroll afterwards.}

{lounged on the couch sunday afternoon & caught some of the seahawks game.}

{again, not at all comfy sadie…}

{we went to the drug store with my grandmother before seeing a movie this evening. this is what was in her cart. all of that is candy.}

{a movie isn’t a movie without popcorn & junior mints!}

we had a fun last weekend before the big holiday which was spent spending a lot of time with friends & family. that is how the holidays should be, right? we are gearing up for some more family time & are very much looking forward to spending the holidays with lots & lots of family this year. but, geez, can you believe it is christmas already? how was your weekend?

my weekend in pictures.

{sadie made a christmas ornament at the groomer on friday. yep, that is a lock of her fur. #wearecrazydogpeople}

{a fortune after lunching at p.f. chang’s on saturday – a break from last-minute holiday shopping.}

{we got lots checked off the christmas wish list this year at nordstrom.}

{sadie is enjoying her fleece blanket in the backseat this time of year. & she is sporting her christmas bow from the groomer.}

{we visited the new anthro at bell square & I couldn’t resist trying on these fun party skirts. you wanna guess which one was an early christmas present?}

{my grandmother picked the christmas sugar cookie to go along with her dinner this evening at panera. it was the one with the most sugar, I am sure!}

it was a fun, but oh-so-quick weekend! my mom made a somewhat last minute trip into town and it was so good to see her & spend an early christmas this afternoon. we avoided the grey winter weather with lots of shopping cardio & catching up. just this one last work week to get thru before the christmas holiday & I am so excited (& so ready!). how was your weekend?

my weekend in pictures.

{loving that we can turn on the heat remotely with our nest to warm up the house before we get home. hating that it is in the low 30s however.}

{which wich for dinner on saturday night. keeping it classy by eating on real plates!}

{sadie was all snuggles this weekend. it was cold enough that we put on her sweater & she didn’t seem to mind.}

{picked up our christmas tree today. what, you don’t put your christmas tree in a shopping cart?}

{tree atop the car. nice work husband! it didn’t fall off, not even once.}

{the view of the christmas tree from the sunroof.}

{loving the winter dream tea from the coffee bean & tea leaf, & my new mug from the SBUX + alice & olivia collab!}

{I have learned the hard way in years past what happens when you try to string christmas lights without stretching them out first. no fun. this year was so much better!}

{while decorated the inside of the house, aaron was out putting up our outdoor christmas lights.}

we returned on saturday afternoon from a week & a half in hawaii {which is why we were noticeably absent from social media the past few days} so the first half of our weekend was spent sitting on a plane over the pacific. this was a trip that was months in the making as we started planning last spring! it was awesome to get away just the two of us for a while for a much-needed break from the real world though it was a little weird to be away from family over the thanksgiving holiday. we soaked up the sun & unplugged {well I did} which was lovely. I will be sharing pics from our trip over the next few days {once I get the photos uploaded & lightly edited}. now we are back to a very, very cold beginning of winter! brr. on the plus side, I can get to decorating for christmas this week! how was your weekend?

my weekend in pictures.

{saturday afternoon marked my first starbucks drive-thru experience. yep, for real.}

{aaron started patching the holes in our ceiling where our old lights were.}

{we went to out for quinoa pasta & ended up with a basket full of snacks for the superbowl. darn you whole foods!}

{on sunday morning we took a family stroll around greenlake.}

{sadie wanted to swim with the birds.}

{highlight of the walk: the bald eagle perched high up in a tree.}

{mini vegan, gluten-free pizzas. not too shabby. february 1 marked the start of gluten-free month. cheers to diet restrictions & eating more veggies!}

{despite the 49ers not winning the superbowl, i did enjoy beyonce’s half-time show & the brief reunion of destiny’s child!}

{aaron thinks this gal in the budweiser commercial is my doppelganger. i am on the fence.}

we had a pretty relaxing weekend without a lot of solid plans which was a nice change. how was your weekend?

my weekend in pictures.

{after the electrician was here we had lots of fun unwrapping every. individual. piece of our new dining room light.}

{better late than never: 2013 let’s do this! i think this might be this year’s motto, at least to begin with.}

{sadie could be found here pretty much the entire weekend as we finally had some sun! #sunbather}

{nope, that’s not snow, it’s frost. it was so chilly that frost has been covering everything the last couple of days.}

{shopping for pipe wrenches. there were a lot of trips to the hardware store this weekend to fix our bathroom sink.}

{we had a quick date night at chipotle {in our finest cocktail attire} on saturday night.}

{happy engagement party dave & mary alice! we celebrated the engagement of good friends. we will both be in the wedding party for their fall wedding.}

{after a few setbacks aaron fixed our sink – hooray!}

i am just over a week into the flu & finally feeling better. week one had me down, but i am determined not to let week 2 keep me from being a person again. how was your weekend?

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