the waiting game

I bought the exterior paint for our house today, so now we're just eagerly awaiting a break in the rain!  Watching the forecast like a hawk.  It'll be so awesome to finally have it all painted and finished!  Siding and painting will definitely be the biggest project we'll do on the house for a while, I think.  Assuming the pipes don't burst or something and we have to re-plumb the whole house.  It'll be nice to have the exterior of the house done so we can move on to other more fun projects.  I'm not getting my hopes up for spring to arrive anytime soon, but I am excited to start gardening!  I might get some little pots to start a few herbs and veggies indoors so I can transfer them outside when the temperatures are more plant-friendly.  We briefly had a veggie garden back when I was a kid and I remember loving to eat the veggies we grew.  I think especially as a kid it's kind of a magical experience to watch vegetables and fruits grow, certainly more so nowadays when most kids' only experience of fruits and veggies is seeing them stacked up neatly in the produce section of a grocery store.  I'm still convinced there's almost nothing as delicious as a freshly picked, homegrown strawberry. dress/courtesy of mata traders :: cardigan/thrifted :: shoes/payless  necklace/handmade :: raincoat/courtesy of mrs. prints tights/courtesy of the stylish fox :: umbrella/courtesy of modcloth :: photos by Dan

life lately

Reading...
The Omnivore's Dilemma.  I'm really enjoying both Pollan's writing style and the info in the book in general.  It's pretty crazy how much stuff goes on in the food industry that we as consumers just don't even have to think about.  We just hop in our car, go to the grocery store and buy food that looks good. So much goes on behind the scenes, it's kind of mind blowing.  I like reading about that kind of stuff though, so informative.

Watching...
The Walking Dead. We hadn't been keeping up with this season, so we're just now getting back into it. It's so interesting watching it having read (most of) the graphic novels.  Last season was painfully slow moving, but this season they've really kicked it into gear and I really like where they're going. They're keeping it close enough to the storyline of the books, but with just enough different that even those who've read the books are on their toes.  I think I'm like 100% stressed out the entire time I'm watching an episode though.

Wishing...
I had more time to do stuff!  I want to fix up the bike I thrifted, make our new dining table (which will be sort of similar to the coffee table I'm working on - pix below), make our living room shelving system, paint the house, do photography projects, blog, make e-courses, and more.  I'm so inspired right now but there's just not enough time to do everything!  I'll have to embrace being patient and only take on one or two projects at a time. So hard!

Proud of..
Climbing my first V4 this week!  Probably means nothing to most of you, but I'm super excited about it. When we stopped climbing for a bit back in July I was getting V3s pretty consistently but could only start a couple V4s and wasn't really close to finishing any.  I was worried that after taking a few months off (unintentionally) I'd be back to square 1, struggling with V1s, but I've been making great progress and got another V4 tonight, and am working on another.  I think doing Insanity is definitely helping in the strength department.  One of my 26 before 27 goals is to climb a V5 so it feels pretty good to get one step closer!

Excited about...
Getting my new camera in the mail!  I finally took the plunge to get a full frame camera and got the Canon 6D.  It doesn't have the feature that I use to take my outfit photos (self timer that takes continuous pictures), so I probably will continue using my T2i for daily outfit posts, but I'm looking forward to learning about this new world of Full Frame!  I did a lot of research trying to figure out whether to go with the 5D Mark III, 5D Mark II or the 6D, and I think I'll be happy with the capabilities of the 6D, the wider angle of view, and also with saving the $1000 not buying the Mark III.  Once I've used it for a while I'll let you guys know how I like it!

Impatiently awaiting...
A break in the wind/rain.  I really want to paint our house, but this rain isn't really letting up so we can actually do it!  We've decided on the color, now it's just a matter of watching the weather report for a couple days break in the rain so we can slap it on the siding!  The woes of trying to paint a house in Tacoma in the middle of the rainy season.

painting the kitchen // poker night at our place // couldn't resist this bike at goodwill 

tasty brew down at the Wingman taproom // new scarf + pink lips 

amazing breakfast at Marrow // climbed my first V4 at the gym this week

WIP coffee table inspired by Ariele Alasko // coffee table detail

made a hook for under our chalkboard thing // new favorite shirt from The Great PNW!

The internetz:

 I'm sure you've all seen this by now, but it makes me die laughing every time.

 This one too.

 I could watch Corgi videos all day long.

 This is so beautiful.

  I really enjoyed reading this post.  So encouraging.

 A peek at the engagement session I did a few weeks ago.

 Oh the flashbacks to when I was a barista.  This is too good.

partner with me!

Holy moly.  February is almost done, what a sneaky month.  I've still got some ad spaces left for March if you're interested in partnering with me and this here blog.  Check out my partnership page to find out more info on advertising rates, blog stats and more.  If you have any questions, aren't sure if your shop/blog would be a good fit, or just want to chat go ahead and email me!

miscellany

I always know that something is a good buy when I want to put it on before I leave the store (or even check out).  This scarf was one of those things.  I have quite a few scarves and I don't have a very artful way of displaying/storing them yet.  Scarves are always so pretty, it seems like a shame to have them stuffed in a drawer.  Do you guys have a good way of storing scarves?  I know I've seen some cool things on pinterest and blogs before, but I can't think of anything that would work good in our closet space.  Any ideas?  I've never been a big accessory girl so accessory storage/display hasn't been an issue until the past couple years.  
On a totally unrelated note, on Sunday morning(ish) we went out to brunch with some friends at Dirty Oscars Annex here in town, and the Sunday before that we went to brunch with some of Dan's coworkers at Marrow... and now I'm thinking every Sunday needs to be a brunch with friends day.  A ton of restaurants nearby do brunch on the weekends and it's so delicious.  But maybe even just special brunch at home would be fun.  Maybe reading Sara's blog has been subconsciously influencing me because she always does weekend brunch posts, and they always make my mouth water.  

top/courtesy of tailor & stylist :: hat/courtesy of yiskah knits :: scarf/thrifted jeans/courtesy of modcloth :: bag/courtesy of handbag heaven shoes/courtesy of blowfish shoes :: jacket/courtesy of tulle

style yourself giveaway ends soon!

Hey folks!  Just wanted to pop in and post a little reminder that the Style Yourself giveaway ends on the 28th, so if you want to enter the giveaway make sure to sign up for Style Yourself before then!  I'm giving away 9 different prizes to 9 lucky winners, including:

• $100 gift card to Lulu's
• $75 gift card to Emerging Thoughts
• $25 gift card to ModCloth
• Your choice of shoe from Blowfish Shoes
• Any shoe from Minnetonka
• $50 gift card to Ruche
• $20 gift card to Radiant Cosmetics
• $50 gift card to Spotted Moth
• $50 gift card to Lace Affair

You also get access to a discount code for 20% off any of my other e-courses when you sign up!  If you don't have the time to focus on the e-course just yet, don't worry, you'll have access to it for up to a year and I'm working on making all my e-courses into downloadable PDF's so eventually you'll be able to download it and access it forever!  So while you'll have access to the e-course itself forever, you'll only be able to enter the giveaway in the next couple days.  Want to learn more about the e-course? Click here to find out more about what the e-course entails.  If you have any questions, go ahead and email me!

E-course giveaway will be open until 2/28 at 11:59 pm and can be accessed to enter on the front page of the e-course. all sales on e-courses are final and non-refundable. This giveaway is a work at your own pace giveaway and can be started at any time and worked through as fast or slow as you like. The e-course will be accessible for at least 1 year after you've signed up. You will be emailed your username and password to access the e-course within 24 hours of purchase.