favorite places

Tonight I took my husband to the airport and now I'm bumming.  Not just because I'm going to miss him, but because he's headed to one of our most favorite cities...without me.  

Madison, WI.  

I love it so much.  It's home to me.  It's not just because I went to college there and I miss the "glory days," it's because this city is amazing.  

The Lakes, the people, The Farmer's Market, The Terrace, Spotted Cow, cheese curds, a little bar named Blue Moon that is home to the best burger I've ever eaten, the SSB at Amy's Cafe, Bucky, Camp Randall, Dotty's, food carts, Capitol Square...the list could be endless.  

I wonder if it's an amazing place to visit and we need to just savor the time that we get to spend there.  Or if Madison is where we will end up one day?  It's hard to say, because we love our life here very much and have worked hard to have that life.  Maybe it's a case of grass is always greener, I guess only time will tell.  If you've never been to Madison, please put it on your list because you'll adore it.  If you have ever lived there, do you miss it sometimes like I'm missing it now?  

For now, I'll sit on my patio, open a cold beer and pretend that I'm at the Terrace with my best friend.  

On Wis!  

I just had to share this picture because I think it's awesome.  

Wedding Wednesday - who she's wearing

People are all a buzz about the upcoming society wedding of the former first daughter.  I too am pretty excited.  I can't help it...I mean, it's no surprise that I love weddings.  

It's also no surprise that yesterday she was spotted walking into her designer's salon, that's what Bride's do the week of their wedding...get their final fitting.  

And it's no surprise who she went to see.  

I mean, duh.  First Daughters are like the closest thing the USA gets to a Princess.  (did anyone else see First Daughter starring Katie Holmes?  yea, me neither.) An "American Princess" wearing the design of our very own American icon and wedding guru, Vera Wang.  I think it's a perfect match.  

But what will she wear?  Well, no question that it's going to be a custom design.  

But we can play.  

Is it going to be...

a traditional ballgown with some lady like ribbon details?  

 

a trumpet silhouette that is soft and feminine?  

a modified mermaid gown with lily of the valley embroidery?

something similar to Vera's Spring 2010 line, a ballgown with fun, funky and whimsical elements?

My vote is on modified mermaid or trumpet.  I can't wait to see what she wears!  Sounds like Vera is also custom designing the bridesmaid dresses.  I'm thinking they'll be elegant and traditional with a touch of sass and modern. And probably black.  Or maybe navy.  

There have also been rumors that she's been seen at Oscar de la Renta with her mom.  Another "of course" choice if you ask me.  Are they shopping for mom?  Rehearsal Dinner dress?  Or....a reception dress maybe?  Only time will tell.  

delish dinner

Our dinner last night consisted of only fruit and veggies.  I've been feeling kind of unhealthy lately and just wanted something fresh and tasty.  Per usual, I had the food network on in the background of my home office yesterday and got inspired to make these. 

Grilled Panzanella Salad

from Barefoot Contessa

  

Seriously, get the recipe HERE.  And make it tonight.  If you only make one thing on the grill this summer...make this.  It was SO good and SO fresh!   Ina will never lead you astray.  Ever.  

and for dessert...

Momma's Southern Banana Pudding 

Ok, so this is not so healthy, but hey...it's got bananas in it.  And it's a comfort food.  And I needed it.  I just used the recipe on the side of the pudding box, but I call it Momma's because it's in my Momma's banana pudding bowl that she gifted to me.  It just doesn't taste right in any other bowl.  

I'm fighting the urge to have Banana Pudding for breakfast.  

Happy Weekend

Another summer weekend...another weekend full of plans.  Great ones.  Here's what's in my near future.

 

What are you up to this weekend?  Whatever it is, enjoy every second of it!  

 

discovery

Yesterday I made a wonderful discovery.  A blog that left me feeling...well, just check it out HERE.  

 It has homemade doodles like this.  

and this.  

And that's her actual handwriting!  How cool!  I like it so much it went into my google reader immediately.  Plus, both of these doodles really spoke to me yesterday.  A day worthy of celebration.  

Both photos are from the notebook doodles.  

Wedding Wednesday - a little something

I'm working away on a little something that I can't share just yet.  Next week though, I promise.  It's an awesome inspiration board...and this little beauty just might be in it. 

I'm telling you, it's delicious!  

back from the desert

It was so hot in Palm Springs.  Center of the sun kind of hot.  We didn't know that most of Palm Springs shuts down for the summer, so we had a very low key, quiet weekend.  Which was actually a little bit perfect.  Despite the heat, we had an amazing time celebrating our love and our first year of wedded bliss.  Here's a little look into some highlights.  

We drank a lot of champagne.  You know, you need to stay hydrated in the desert.

We didn't stray too far from our hotel because we fell in love with the Colony Palms.  And because everything else was closed.

We ate the top tier of our cake while lounging in the beautiful Moroccan styled bed.    

We relived our wedding day on Sunday which was so fun.  We'd look over at the clock and talk about exactly what we were doing one year ago.  We played the songs of our reception and had a mini dance party in the room.  We made new memories and had some delicious meals.  

One year later...and I'm more in love with him than ever.  Now onto year two!  

143, J 

vacation ready

Today I spent the day getting ready for our one year anniversary trip to Palm Springs. 

I cleaned house.   (does anyone else clean house before they leave for a trip?  I love coming home to a spotless house)  

I did laundry and packed.  

I shopped a little.  

And I got my nails did.  

Funny thing about me is this....I don't take many risks in my daily life.  Not in my fashion sense, not in my actions.  But every once in a while I'll throw an unexpected color on my nails and feel like a certifiable bad a**, which is exactly what I did today.  

I know, gold polish is not really that daring, but for me any departure from "mademoiselle" is pretty bold.  Especially this.  It's ok though...cause I'm going on vacation!  I've got hot pink toes and gold fingers, so look out cause...

Vacation ON!  

so you think you can...

dance, dance, dance.  

There are a few reasons that I love So You Think You Can Dance.  

#1 - the unbelievable dancing and choreography.  duh.  

#2 - Cat Deeley.  

I love her.  She has this positive light and beaming smile that makes the show even more enjoyable to watch.  And the fashion...forget about it!  Every week she shows up in a gorgeous outfit styled beautifully.  I love that she takes chances and that she can make almost anything look good.  Plus, I'm in awe of her tall, waif-like frame.  

Off the clock, she even makes summer festivals look fashionable.

She has a line of jewelry that she sometimes wears on the show.  It's vintage inspired with an Indian flare. Check it out here.  

Cheers to Cat!  

Wedding Wednesday - let them eat cake

As our one year anniversary is rapidly approaching all I've got on my mind is that frozen wedding cake taunting me in the freezer.  Well that, and this little detail about celebrating this most special year of life with my most special man.  Details.   

If my memory serves me correct, this cake was incredible one year ago.  I hope it'll still be delish after a year in the freezer.   If you are into wedding traditions, I say DO it!  There are a ton of nay-sayers about freezing your top tier, but I'm glad we did it.  Even if it tastes horrible, I think it's a fun tradition and something I'm really looking forward to.  

We were lucky to have a caterer that wrapped it all up for us (at least I think so, it was given to me ready to freeze) so I didn't really look into it then.  And to be frank, having someone else do this for you is a great idea because you really won't want to bother with it that weekend.  Ask a family member or friend that you really trust to take care of it for you.  

In preparation for this thawing and celebrating, I've been doing a little research.   Here are few tips that I've learned if you're planning on doing it.  

- Remove anything that will not freeze nicely, like flowers.  

- Place the cake in the freezer for a few hours to harden the icing.  

- Take the cake out and wrap it in plastic wrap three to four times.  

- Place back in the cake box and then wrap the cake box in plastic wrap.  

Some schools of thought say to place the wrapped cake in an air tight container, same idea as wrapping the cake box, you just want to keep it from the elements.  

When it's time to thaw it, take it out of the freezer and thaw it in the refrigerator for 48 hours.  Then, place it at room temperature for two to three hours and you're ready to dig in!  Apparently one of the most common mistakes is to thaw it out at room temperature, don't do this...put it in the fridge to defrost.  

Next week, I'll let you know how it turns out.  Here's hoping for yummy goodness!  

all photos by Nataly Lemus

fabulous

I want to live in this picture and feel this fabulous everyday.  

Here's to living the good life.  

XO

pretty perfect days

Yesterday was one of those kind of days...a pretty perfect kind of day.  We spent the day at the beach with family.  Munchkins who love to play, cousins who we adore spending time with, and an aunt and uncle who pretty much rock.  Here are a few highlights...

After helping Aunt Marge with a gorgeous drip sand castle, Adam, Katelyn and I built "Sport City".  A bit of advice, take an engineer to the beach to help you build sand castles...they'll be so solid and have all sorts of fancy moats and spillways.  

Justin loves to model.  If you ask him to pose, this is what you get.  Amazing.  

This little one held my hand on the way to get yogurt after dinner and said, "I miss you when you're not here."  MELTED my heart.  I adore her.  

Have you EVER seen a more gorgeous pregnant woman?  I have not.  Can't wait to meet Baby Newman!  

Hope you had a pretty perfect day this weekend too!  

XO

summertime?

Los Angeles is being mean right now.  It's being gloomy and overcast and cold.  And quite frankly, I am not ok with it.  I am more than ready for summer.  It's all that I want right now.  Warm summer evenings and hot summer days....hurry up!  Since LA is not giving me the season that I want, I put together some pictures of the things that I'm longing for that make me love summer so very much.  

(wisconsin state fair cream puffs...yup!)  

Here's to hoping that summer and all of these lovely things are on their way!  

Wedding Wednesday - new look

I know that in previous posts I've mentioned my best friend who's getting married next year, and I'm talking about her again.  I'm all excited because she just changed her color palate and I am absolutely in LOVE with it. 

 She switched from pink, chocolate brown and green apple green to PINK and GREY!  It's so much more fun and up to date.  It has tons of possibilities.  We can go chic and modern or we can go whimsical and romantic.  Or we can do a little of each.  I love the change and have spent some quality time creating an inspiration board for her so I wanted to share it with you.  I hope you enjoy!  

wow.

I am simply giddy with some thrilling news!  We got published!  Today our wedding was featured on the delicious wedding blog, Style Me Pretty.  SMP is an inpsirational haven for all things wedding!  And now we are on it.  eeeek!  I am still in shock and cannot wipe this grin off my face.  For a wedding geek like myself, I can say (not so secretly anymore) that this is a dream come true. 

I will be celebrating tonight with the hubs a glass of bubbly! 

Oh. my. goodness.  I feel so honored and grateful. 

Here is the LINK to see the post about our magical wedding day.  Enjoy! 

Wedding Wednesday - Inspired

I know it's been forever since I did a Wedding Wednesday, which is crazy because it seems that weddings are all I think about lately.  So for today....I thought I'd give you some eye candy of things that are inspiring me right now.  

I'm LOVING....

A Scrabble couple who turned sweet words into magnet favors.  Adorable.    

Best save the date ever?  I think so.  I mean, he's a firefighter by trade.  And he's literally saving the date.  I'm in love.    

Possibly the coolest ring shot I've ever seen.  I'm thrilled that I was there to witness this creation.  This lady is just that awesome.   

As our one year anniversary stands in the wings, I am a flutter of wonderful memories.  The anticipation, the stillness and the pensive moment of this picture says it all for me.  

Have a great rest of your week!  

XO

Photos:  project wedding, project wedding, hazelnut photography, nataly lemus photography