ooh! piece of candy!

Moving

2011-01-12T18:03:00.002-07:00

ooh! piece of candy!

has moved to
Wordpress

Follow me at:

http://www.oohpiececandy.wordpress.com

xoxo-Kimberly

Weekly Eye Candy

2011-01-05T19:06:00.009-07:00

Weekly Eye Candy is a series on Ooh! Piece of Candy! that will run every Wednesday or Thursday evening each week. What follows are the things that caught my eye this week. Hope you enjoy!

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Minx Shop as seen on Going Home To Roost

This house tour on Apartment Therapy

Woman's best friend

Pistachio Crusted Raspberry Cheesecake

The Black Keys "Everlasting Light"

Tape Measure Bracelet

xoxo-Kimberly

always green in my house

2011-01-01T20:50:00.003-07:00

Are you getting tired of all of my lengthy posts? Maybe you'd rather just look at images than read, read, read. Well, I can appeal to that. In fact, I've got the most delicious eye candy for you to look at.

xxx

Isn't that fantastic? The Moroccan pouf, the greens and purples with that pop of white. It all blends into a lovely oasis, don't you think? The wall mural is especially stunning. I think that's what I need. That way, it wouldn't matter if it was cold and snowy outside, it would always been green inside!!

xoxo-Kimberly

First Day

2011-01-01T16:52:00.003-07:00

I just wanted to pop in and say hello on this very first day of 2011. I love it. Even though it's just Saturday, which follows Friday and precedes Sunday just like every week, it still feels like something new and different- a fresh start, with Monday bringing new things. It really is awesome putting that new calendar up on the wall, isn't it?

So I waxed my eyebrows today. Yes, that's right. I waxed my eyebrows. I couldn't take it anymore. I was feeling like a sasquatch. Knowing that it might be a couple weeks before I could meet up with one of my sisters and have them do it for me, I decided to do it myself. So I bought some microwavable wax (Gigi brand if you're wondering,) watched a Youtube tutorial and went for it. I still have both my eyebrows so I think it went well. Looking in the mirror is much less scary now. It's really awesome how waxed eyebrows can feel like a fresh start too, isn't it? haha.

I also decided to do some much needed purging...from my closet. I took every single item of clothing out and laid it on the bed. Then I divided it into items that I wear on a regular basis and items that I rarely wear. After that, I counted it all and did a little math. According to my inventory, I was only regularly wearing 56% of the clothing I had in my closet. The other half was just hanging in there taking up ridiculous amounts of space.

I knew it was time to take action- I was holding on to a lot of those things just because I thought that someday I might wear it. But several of those items of clothing hadn't been worn in two or three years. So I decided it was time to simplify and donate the clothing that was just taking up valuable space.

I mean, it's just plain crazy to have 54 tank tops hanging in your closet and only be wearing 23 of them on a regular basis (yes, I had 54 tank tops.)

So anyway, my closet looks great now and I feel so relieved to be rid of all that extra crap. The next thing I need to tackle is my shoe cave. I have so many heels that I never wear in there. They're really cute, but not practical for my day to day routine. Maybe I'll give them away. First I have to come to terms with parting with them. Anyone want some cute heels?

Anyway, I think I'm ready for Monday. This week has been awesome but it's time to get back in the swing of things.

xoxo-Kimberly

Happy New Year

2010-12-31T20:31:00.001-07:00

Andy and I are celebrating at home with a delicious array of yummy foods and a movie. We may even get ambitious and start the puzzle that I picked up today while I was out for a little 'me time.' That pedicure was just what I needed. I also picked up a darling little trench coat with lace cuffs at the Charlotte Russe after Christmas sale. I've been searching for the perfect trench for so long. Successful day, I think. I can't believe it's the last day of 2010. So strange how fast time goes. School starts back up again on Monday. I'm ready, but then again, I'm not. Well, cest le vie!

May 2011 be everything you hope for and more.

xoxo-Kimberly

2011 Goals

2010-12-30T11:25:00.003-07:00

As I said before, I don't typically make New Years Resolutions. But that's just because I'm superstitious about it. It almost makes me feel like I'm jinxing my goals if I make them at New Year's. But what the heck. I'm going to give it a go this year and see what happens.

Without further ado, I present:

Kim's 2011 New Year's Resolutions

1. Complete the rest of the credit's for my bachelor's minus my senior seminar which I'll save for January of 2012.

2. Read five new books of my choice. I know this doesn't sound like much, but it's hard to get any pleasure reading in when you're a full time student. (One of my classes this semester has six required texts-yikes!)

3. Finish my spreadsheet and research on my chosen grad schools and narrow it down to the top three choices.

4. Finish the new Master bedroom and get everything moved in there. This includes coming up with a functional and organized closet plan that works for Andy and I (and our shoes.)

5. Put together a comfortable guest room so I can finally feel at ease having friends and family stay overnight.

6. Maintain the budget plan that I have followed this year but be better at reconciling it weekly.

7. Clean and organize the basement and all the accumulating random stuff that is just laying around down there.

8. Set up a weekly schedule for homework and study and stick to it. No more procrastinating.

9. Walk/take Ash to the park twice per week at a minimum. Boy do I get lazy.

10. Double emergency fund. I dipped in to this for Christmas so I'd like to get it back to where I had it as well as double it by the end of the year.

11. Pay off GL student loan. I'm close on this one so hopefully I'll even be able to get cracking on the other student loan I have. I got a small scholarship for this semester so that should help a bit.

12. Remove my makeup and wash my face before bed every night. I don't know why this is so hard for me to do, especially because I wake up feeling so much better and refreshed when I take the time for it.

13. Try one new recipe per month. I wish I could do more, but it's hard finding the time or energy to really cook during the week.

14. Continue my dance lessons and work out on my own one additional night per week.

15. Do one thing off my projects list every weekend.

16. Complete the wedding plans and then enjoy the fruits of my labor!!

So that's it. What is your number 1 goal for 2011?

xoxo-Kimberly

2010 in questions

2010-12-29T13:26:00.006-07:00

Recap from Kim at PCL.

I have to say that 2010 was a pretty good year for me. I thought I'd participate in this little recap survey to sum it all up.

1. What did you do in 2010 that you’d never done before?

Went to Washington DC and did all the touristy things. Love, loved it. I want to go again.

2. Did you keep your New Years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

I actually don't make any New Year's resolutions. You'd think it'd be the perfect excuse for this list/goal/accomplishment obsessed girl to have some fun but it's just something I don't do.

3. What countries did you visit?

America. Let's hope the honeymoon will bring something a little more exciting next year.

4. What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010?

I'd like to have an organized basement. A nice office and guest room. A gray couch & armchair. A kitchen floor. A new master bedroom. Peonies in the yard. A new front door and dark shutters instead of white.

5. What date from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory?

May 16.

6. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Get my new job in special collections and getting my associates degree.

7. What was your biggest failure?

B- in History of England. Ugh.

8. Did you suffer illness or injury?

Bruised up my arm in a car accident.

9. What was the best thing you bought?

My wedding dress. Can't wait to wear it.

10. Whose behavior merited celebration?

Lindsey's

11. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

Genny's and a couple other people.

12. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Planning a wedding, getting my new job, being so close to graduating, finishing my first crossword without any help from Andy.

13. What song will always remind you of 2010?

I can't think of one particular song but I've been listening to a lot of dance music these days. It seems that last year it was all about dreamy stuff from Sia and Bon Iver.

14. Compared to this time last year, are you happier or sadder?

I've gotten progressively happier over the last five years as things start moving in the right direction, so I'd say I feel happier this year.

15. What do you wish you’d done more of?

I wish I had gone to the gym more. I wish I had read more. I wish I had gone camping more.

16. What do you wish you’d done less of?

Homework. Although, I didn't really have a choice on that one.

17. How will you be spending Christmas?

It's over but we spent it with family.

18. Did you fall in love in 2010?

No.

19. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

Nope. Still hate the same people I hated last year. ;)

20. What was the best book you read?

Can't pick just one. The Hunger Games Trilogy and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo Trilogy

21. What was your greatest musical discovery?

Kinda fell in love with Michael Grimm's sound and got hooked on Glee.

22. What did you want and get?

I wanted Andy to ask me to marry him.

23. What did you want and not get?

The house remodels to be complete. The honeymoon to be booked. The truck to be sold. New couch and chair.

24. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I was 29 on March 1. It was kind of a let down. I'm hoping that this year will be much better.

25. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

If I had graduated, moved out of state and been accepted to grad school.

26. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010?

Evolving. I've spent much of the year wishing I could wear my heels again and being sad that it's not really practical to wear heels while walking around campus. I gave in to the skinny jean craze and was surprised to find that I love them. I've let my hair grow longer than it's ever been. I bought my first pair of Toms.

27. What kept you sane?

Andrew's patience, cuddles from the animals, Miss H, books, music, blogging.

28. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

None.

29. Who was the best new person you met?

The girls I work with in the library.

xoxo-Kimberly

Luisa Beccaria

2010-12-28T21:01:00.004-07:00

My favorite designer:

xoxo-Kimberly

dull

2010-12-27T22:05:00.003-07:00

Winter is just not my thing. It depresses me to see everything so gray and dead. I miss the vibrant colors of summer. Every year the cold weather does a number on my emotions.

linen and lavendar

linen and lavender

linen and lavender

marie claire

I can barely stand it. I need to get back to being busy so I can have something to distract me. The last few days at home have found me staring sadly out the window wishing for bike riding weather.

xoxo-Kimberly

for you

2010-12-23T16:43:00.003-07:00

I think I'll be checking out for the next few days, but before I do I thought I'd leave you with some cozy Christmas images.

images via Love Nordic

Happy Holidays!

xoxo-Kimberly

Something blue

2010-12-22T12:53:00.004-07:00

1. Tiny wall art
2. Handbag
3. Keyhole flats
4. Recycled Security Envelope Coasters

xoxo-Kimberly

Future Self

2010-12-21T20:04:00.004-07:00

Reverb 21

"Future Self. Imagine yourself five years from now. What advice would you give your current self for the year ahead? (Bonus: Write a note to yourself 10 years ago. What would you tell your younger self?)"

It's been about a week since I responded to any of the Reverb prompts. I thought I'd check back in and try to answer the last few.

The advice I'd give to myself for the next five years would be all about taking chances and not letting things hold me back. Over the next five years I'm certain my life will change drastically. Andy and I will have a lot of serious choices to make and I don't want fear of the unknown to stop us from taking chances. I don't want us to stick to our comfort zone just because it feels safe.

As far as writing a letter to myself, I did that here. Now, I'm off to wrap some presents.

xoxo-Kimberly

Thank you

2010-12-21T08:41:00.005-07:00

Yesterday Andy and I spent the night watching The Muppet Christmas Carol and relaxing. I can't believe Christmas is just days away. Time goes so quickly-especially when you're busy. This week will be the busiest yet. Projects to finish at work, family Christmas parties, my sister's birthday and lots of fun planned. I'm excited for it all.

When I left the house for work this morning, there was just a light dusting of snow on the ground. It looked so pretty and it gave me the happiest feeling.

Since I didn't do this at Thanksgiving, I thought now would be the perfect time. As the year comes to an end, there are so many things that I have to be thankful for.

-I'm thankful for Andrew. I can't imagine my life without him. He is the most patient and loving man I've ever known. He puts up with my quirks, loves my Ashland and Mauney, and makes every day better than the one before.

-I'm thankful for my family who are always there for me at the drop of a hat, if I need them. We have each others backs and through the years we've been shoulders for each other to lean on. I'm thankful for all my mom did as we were growing up to give us all the amazing opportunities we had. I'm thankful that she realized the importance of family vacations once a year, holiday traditions, and teaching us to be each others biggest cheerleaders. I'm thankful for my sisters. Growing up with them was amazing fun and I'm grateful that we got to share so much.

-I'm thankful for Andy's parents who treat me as if I was their own kid. I'm grateful for his dad who really seems to 'get' me. I'm thankful for his mom and how I know I can call her any time, whenever I need to chat. I'm thankful that when I go to their home I feel just as comfortable and welcome as if I was at my mom's house. I'm grateful that they've welcomed me into their family with open arms and never once judged me. I'm thankful for Andy's brother's- Corey who is always willing to watch the animals when we go out of town and who puts up with Mauney's vendetta against him and tells me thank you when I make dinner and Bret for always being so nice to me whenever we are all together and thinking to personally invite me to the family camp out.

-I'm thankful for Heather, Andrea, Stephanie, Erin, and Dana who have proven to be true friends and have stuck by me and make an effort to keep in touch. I'm thankful for lunch dates and facebook messages and packages and phone calls that remind me what great friends I have.

-I'm thankful for the chance to finish school and for everyone's support and encouragement in accomplishing this goal.

-I'm thankful for a good job that challenges me and a boss who sees my potential and gives me the opportunity to learn more.

-I'm thankful for this blog that really allows me to be myself. I'm thankful for all of my bloggie friends who keep in touch and care what's going on in my life. I'm thankful for all of the other blogs that I read that inspire me and spur my creativity on a daily basis.

And I'm thankful to be moving into 2011 and starting new adventures. I wish you all the best this holiday season. May 2011 bring good things to you and yours. Much love.

xoxo-Kimberly

From 'meh' to yeah! Someday.

2010-12-19T19:15:00.010-07:00

If Andy and I ever get the kitchen remodel finished, then we'll go back to working on the bedroom remodel. And if we ever get the bedroom remodel finished then I'd like to tackle the living room.

Right now our living room is 'meh' at best. It's seriously lacking. Our couches are comfortable and in good shape, but they don't fit the space-especially now that we've knocked out the wall between the living room and the kitchen. Also, while I typically love green, it's just not the right match for what we envisioned.

I've been playing around with some ideas and this is what I came up with.

(CLICK)

Both Andy and I are sold on the gray couch so I tried to work around that. It's just an idea of course, and will most likely change, but I had fun dreaming of having a living room that fit our style and personality a little better. This is something we'll have to work our way towards.

What do you think?

xoxo-Kimberly

Organization + pretty = love

2010-12-19T11:23:00.006-07:00

I am completely in love with this mudroom.

xoxo-Kimberly

Just what I needed

2010-12-17T09:12:00.002-07:00

The other day, when my sister Jen came to visit, I was complaining to her that I couldn't find a cute wreath for my front door. Little did I know that my mom and Jen were actually in the process of making a wreath for me! What a great surprise. Isn't it cute?

I think Jen said they made five of these wreaths. It took them a couple of days to complete them as it required cutting out quite a few circles of burlap and cute fabric. I'm so lucky that one was for me! Now my front door can have some Christmas cheer.

xoxo-Kimberly

Wednesday Christmas Wishlist-on a Thursday

2010-12-15T21:17:00.004-07:00

2011 Owl Calendar- so cute!

I've had my eye on this sweater for awhile now.

Wouldn't mind a reason to spend more time at Barnes & Noble

These earrings. Love them.

One of my favorite perfumes from Clinique-Heart.

This clock would be awesome.

This houndstooth purse would be perfect!

Love this print!

What's on your wishlist this year?

xoxo-Kimberly

Oh Christmas Tree

2010-12-13T15:38:00.002-07:00

xxx

xxx

xxx

xxx

xxx

xxx

xoxo-Kimberly

Weekend Images

2010-12-13T10:59:00.004-07:00

What an awesome weekend! I took a half day on Thursday and then took Friday off so I could go with Andy to his company Christmas party. This year we stayed at The Canyons in Park City. I thought I'd share some pictures from the party and from the rest of the weekend.

My sisters, Jen and Lindsey came by on Thursday afternoon for a visit.

Jen brought Nellie and we had so much fun playing with her. She's discovered that she can stick out her tongue so we kept trying to get her to do it.

Lindsey also cut and colored my hair. So convenient to have two stylists in the family.

Then Andy and I headed to Park City. Our room was gorgeous! Here we are all fancied up ready to go to dinner.

The view from our room. It was nice to relax in that hot tub and heated pool after dinner and the show.

This is at dinner. The food was so good and the talent show after was really funny. We had a great time.

I had to take a picture of the centerpieces because I thought they were so pretty. They even had an ice sculpture in the shape of ES3's logo but I didn't get a picture of that.

The next day we bummed around Park City for a while but it was raining to we came home.

On Saturday I did some Christmas shopping. I also made my ornament for the family ornament exchange. I thought this one was going to be easy this year but three hours later I was still working on it!

We also watched some movies. Last night we watched To Catch a Thief by Alfred Hitchcock.

And I make Chocolate Crinkle Cookies and hot apple cider. I found the cookie recipe at Little Brown Pen.

Definitely a successful weekend!

xoxo-Kimberly

Action

2010-12-13T10:19:00.003-07:00

Reverb 13- Action

"When it comes to aspirations, it’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen. What’s your next step?"

I'm big on Action. Once I decide that I'm going to do something or that something needs to be done, I make a plan for getting it finished, and then do it. I hate dilly dallying. I'm incredibly impatient and I tend to make decisions very quickly. Maybe sometimes too quickly, but I hate dwelling on things. I love that feeling of accomplishment when you're able to cross something else off your to do list.

Your mind would be boggled if you saw the intricate system of files, lists, and spreadsheets on my computer. I pretty much have a spreadsheet for everything. It's seriously the only way I can function.

Right now the spreadsheet that has been getting the most attention is my "Spreadsheet to Graduation Awesomeness." My biggest aspiration right now is to graduate with my bachelors and then move on to get my masters. I thought about getting that degree for a long time and now that I finally have the ability to make that dream come true, I'm all about action, action, action. Wanna see the spreadsheet?

I also have this handy dandy Graduation Schedule:

Both help to keep me focused and on track. I love looking at them and seeing how much closer I'm getting to my goal of Graduation Awesomeness!! They are a great way to keep myself motivated.

xoxo-Kimberly

Body Integration

2010-12-12T20:48:00.005-07:00

Reverb 12-Body Integration

"This year, when did you feel the most integrated with your body? Did you have a moment where there wasn’t mind and body, but simply a cohesive YOU, alive and present?"

I haven't talked about it at all and I haven't really mentioned it to anyone either, but I've started dancing again. For those readers who don't know, I grew up dancing. Dancing was a huge part of my life. No, it wasn't just a part of my life-it was my life. It was everything to me. It was something that I shared with my sisters and I loved it.

In 2004, I accomplished my goal of opening my own studio. I started in a tiny, dilapidated old building with 13 students and an old boom box. A year later I had moved to a 1500 square foot studio complete with two dance rooms, an office, a waiting room, closed circuit cameras in each room for parent viewing, over 100 students, and a competitive team with two Best of Show awards under their belt.

In 2005 I was offered the head coaching job for a local high school's drill team. In 2008 I won Coach of the Year. I'd found my niche and was loving it.

-----------------------------------

In 2008 I closed my studio and in 2009 I quit my coaching job. I walked away from the world of dance cold turkey. Just like that. The reasons for that are in the past and personal. But leaving it all behind was hard. Really hard. I cried a lot. For a long time I felt so lost- like a part of me was just gone. I didn't know who I was anymore. Before, I had defined my life based on dance. Before, I was a dancer, a teacher, a coach. Now, I was just....I didn't know.

Slowly, over the past couple of years I have figured out just who I am and what I want to do with my life. What I want to do doesn't have anything to do with dance- but I still miss that feeling. The feeling I would get every time I was in the studio.

Back in August, a lady that I used to teach for, invited me to come take the alumni class at her studio. I hesitated at first but I've been attending the class for two months now and when I'm in the studio that is when I feel the most integrated with my body and my mind. It all fits and it feels really good. I'm having so much fun. She's hinted about me coming back to teach for her again- but I'm not sure that's what I want to do.

Right now I'm just enjoying being back in the studio again...moving...feeling like a cohesive ME, alive and present.

xoxo-Kimberly

Pantone's Color of the Year

2010-12-09T10:43:00.005-07:00

Pantone has announced the new IT color for 2011 and I'm loving it!

"Energizing Honeysuckle lifts spirits and imparts confidence to meet life's ongoing challenges."

Some things I love in Honeysuckle:

xxx

xxx

xoxo-Kimberly

Party

2010-12-09T07:46:00.004-07:00

Reverb 10- Party

"Party. What social gathering rocked your socks off in 2010? Describe the people, music, food, drink, clothes, shenanigans."

This one's easy. My BFF, Heather's bachelorette party last March in Vegas was by far the party that rocked my socks off this year.

The bachelorette party started at Heather's house with some dinner, games, and presents.

Then we met up with Heather's fiance, Joe and the rest of the guys and headed out to the Voo Doo Lounge. Heather's sister in law had scored us a VIP booth. Andy and I had so much fun dancing the night away.

It was seriously good times for everyone.

Aside from Heather's festivities Andy and I had fun gallivanting around Vegas and driving up to Red Rock.

Seriously awesome time and I'm so excited for Heather to come out to Utah this year and celebrate our wedding with us!!

xoxo-Kimberly

Beautifully Different

2010-12-08T13:04:00.005-07:00

#Reverb December 8 – Beautifully Different.

"Think about what makes you different and what you do that lights people up. Reflect on all the things that make you different – you’ll find they’re what make you beautiful."

I often think that I'm nothing special. I'm just me-another person on this planet who's going to work, studying for tests, doing laundry, and shopping for groceries. I can't really think of anything that sets me apart from any other person and often times I feel quite ordinary and plain.

But then there are those tiny moments when suddenly I realize that I must be different.

Those are the moments when I look up and catch Andy watching me. Those are the moments when Andy tucks me into the crook of his arm and kisses my ear lobe. Those are the moments when Andy picks me up, squeezes me real hard and says, "I just love you so much."

Those are the moments when I realize I must be different. Beautifully different.

There must be something beautifully different about me that sets me apart from all the other girls Andy has dated. There must be something beautifully different about me that causes him to stare and smile while I do ordinary tasks like load the dishwasher. There must be something beautifully different about me that made Andy want to buy me a ring and promise to spend the rest of his life by my side.

I'm not sure what that something is, but I'm sure glad Andy sees it. Maybe it's similar to the something I see when I look at him.

xoxo-Kimberly

ps- Have you looked at our sidebar lately? We've passed 200 on our wedding countdown!

Victory

2010-12-07T16:54:00.004-07:00

I am finally free! I just passed my last final and now I can officially enjoy the holiday season! I think this calls for a celebratory slice of pie!

xoxo-Kimberly

Until then

2010-12-06T16:01:00.003-07:00

Everyone's posting all sorts of Christmas goodness in the blogosphere these days and it's totally killing me. I really don't feel like I can totally participate in all the fun until my last final is out of the way.

That last final happens to be tomorrow morning and it also happens to be for the class that has been a living nightmare all semester. I will seriously breath a big huge sigh of relief when I walk out of that classroom tomorrow at noon. Ugh. I'd like to punch that professor in the nose for all the migraines he's caused me over the last few months.

Anywho, seeing as how my final is tomorrow-AM, I should be studying my butt off right now. Well, I'm trying. But the truth is, my brain checked out three days ago and I haven't seen it since. All I can think of is Andy's company party on Thursday night and how I will finally be able to kick off the holiday season the right way.

I've already made my Things To Do in December list. It includes:

Making cookies

I'm getting a lot better at this cookie making thing.

Wedding Hoopla

Yep, still got some wedding planning to do. Our invites should be arriving on Wednesday so I'll be spending some time getting those sorted out. I've also got some other little DIY projects up my sleeve that I'd like to work on as well. And while I'm at it, I might as well try on my wedding dress again- you know, just to remind myself how freaking awesome it is!

Shopping

I've only got a little bit of shopping to do this year but I'm still excited to do it.

Movies

I've got some great movies on my Netflix list that I'm hoping to have some time to watch in the next couple of weeks.

I could get to all of that if I could only get past tomorrow morning. But first, I need to find a way to cram all the details of English monarchy from Henry IV through the War of the Roses into my uncooperative brain. Wish me luck!

xoxo-Kimberly

Countdown to Christmas

2010-12-05T13:27:00.010-07:00

December just isn't December without advent calendars. When I was growing up each of us girls had 'Days.' When it was "Your Day," that meant that not only did you have to help wash the dishes and take out the trash, but you got certain privileges as well. When it was Your Day, you got to sit in the front seat of the car and make all the important decisions like what movie to rent or what dessert to have with dinner.

Having "Days" eliminated a lot of sibling squabbles and provided opportunities for teaching us to do chores, rewarding us, and having fun. Despite the chores, we each always loved when it was our Day. During special times, like the month of December you got to do the advent calendar when it was Your Day. That was my favorite thing.

I've put my own advent calendar up now and it's just mildly fun, since I'm the only one who really cares about it. But someday, I'll have little tykes who will hopefully get a kick out of it just like I did when I was little.

If you don't have one, it's not too late to put one up! Making your own is pretty simple. To help you out I've put together some of my favorite DIY advent calendars that you can get ideas from.

1 2 3 4 5 6

Have fun!!
xoxo-Kimberly

Let Go

2010-12-05T12:39:00.002-07:00

#Reverb December 5 – Let Go.

What (or whom) did you let go of this year?

FEAR

* Fear of the future
* Fear of the unknown
* Fear of making the wrong choices
* Fear of not being accepted
* Fear of making people angry at me or disappointed in me
* Fear of time
* Fear of losing people I love

Fear is such a crippling thing. I spent much of 2008 and 2009 afraid of nearly everything. I actually started dreaming about my fears so vividly that I would wake up feeling terrified to the point of tears. It was then that I realized I had to let go of them. I understood that I had spent way too many nights lying awake just worrying and being afraid about every little thing.

Fear was tearing me down and preventing me from enjoying life, moving on, taking chances, and accomplishing new things. I've worked very hard in 2010 to stop being afraid. Instead, I'm trusting in the natural ebb and flow of life. I'm making choices that I think are right for me, without second guessing myself. I'm trusting Andy that together we can figure anything out. I'm believing in myself and cultivating the fact that I deserve to be happy.

Most importantly, I'm accepting the fact that no matter what I do, things will go wrong once in awhile. I'm no longer afraid of that happening. I've just accepted it along with the realization that I'm strong enough to handle any bumps that I might come across.

xoxo-Kimberly

Moment

2010-12-03T07:31:00.003-07:00

#Reverb December 3 – Moment.

"Pick one moment during which you felt most alive this year."

Yeah, I know it's cheesy, but it's true. The moment I felt most alive this year was the moment Andy proposed. Everything was absolutely perfect. We were outside-the temperature was just right. It was a gorgeous summer day.

We were having fun planting the garden together and then, just very suddenly, there he was with a ring. Totally unexpected and I immediately started to cry. It was the most amazing feeling, the perfect place, the perfect moment.

xoxo-Kimberly

Writing

2010-12-02T18:17:00.002-07:00

#Reverb10- Post 2

Writing.

"What do you do each day that doesn’t contribute to your writing — and can you eliminate it?"

I guess I'd have to say the thing that keeps me from really writing is just having a lot on my plate. I keep extremely busy all day long at work and school and when I get home, I do whatever homework I have and then use the last half hour of the day to just chill. I know that's not really a great excuse- I could eliminate some things and make more time for writing and other things I used to do but that's just not a priority right now. Staying focused in school and working hard at work to maintain great references is at the top of my list.

Rarely do I have the energy to write anything of substance. Not to mention my brain is just complete mush from the million things I've had to keep track of all day long. Asking it to work just a little bit longer is just asking too much these days. It's sad but I have to admit that my journal has been reduced to bullet points and incomplete sentences.

It kind of has to be this way right now but I can't wait until I have a little bit of a break from school and can steal some more time back for myself.

xoxo-Kimberly

One Word

2010-12-01T21:19:00.003-07:00

I'm participating in #reverb10 this year. I want to say that I'll participate religiously like clock work, but I think I'll just commit to saying that I'll do my best to hit up every topic. With today being December 1, the first topic is 'One Word.'

My word...Light. I'm choosing light because 2010 has shined the light on/answered a lot of questions that had been plaguing me as far as my future was concerned.

-I got engaged. I'm constantly filled up with the light of love and gratitude-not to mention the light/bling on my ring finger. This, of course, answered the question "Will I ever trust/love a guy enough to want to walk down the aisle again?"

-I got a job in the archives which led to a job in special collections and the lightbulb came on. This answered the question "Is library work right for me-should I get my master's in library science?"

-My sister had a baby who I totally fell in love with. I now see that kids have a sweet little light in them and they aren't all just little demons. That answered the question "Will I ever want to have kids of my own?"

-I've now made it to the end of the semester alive and realized that I only have 8 classes left to take-I now see the light at the end of the tunnel. That answered the question "Can I really get through this and graduate?"

I thought that in 2010 light was the perfect word. What do I want my word for 2011 to be? Create. I want Andy and I to spend our first year as a married couple creating an amazing life together and I wouldn't be sad if we actually ended up 'creating' ~~someone~~ something together either.

xoxo-Kimberly

Room Crush

2010-12-01T13:32:00.005-07:00

Love, love, love this room photographed by Eric Piasecki as seen on Desire to Inspire. The rest of his portfolio is quite stunning as well. There's just something about gray and yellow that has still got me hooked!

xoxo-Kimberly

stick a fork in me

2010-11-30T12:50:00.006-07:00

xxx

Dear internets- I'm dragging today. I didn't want to go to class this morning and all I could think about during the whole lecture was "I only have to come to this class one more time. Just one more time. One more time!" and then I just sat there and wished that today was that one last time.

I walked really slow up to work because I just didn't want to face the mounds of paperwork and projects that have magically piled up on every surface of my desk. Normally I can't wait to get to work. Today I just wanted to go home. Now, I sit here blogging instead of working and I'm feeling only slightly guilty about it. Four more hours on the clock and I'm not sure I'm going to make it. I have zero motivation to do anything that I need to.

Next week is finals week. I've got it pretty easy this semester so I'm not stressing too bad. I asked for some extra time off next week to 'study for finals.' But now I'm thinking that I'll work really hard to get all my studying done by the end of this week. Then I'll use my extra time off next week for a little 'me' time to hopefully recharge.

There's a light at the end of the tunnel and I'm almost finished with school. We're getting married this summer and that little bit of excitement brewing inside me is keeping me going. I think I may just have a touch of the winter blues. Hopefully it's nothing a little 'me' time can't remedy.

xoxo-Kimberly

Pigs Flew

2010-11-28T16:56:00.003-07:00

Well, it's a miracle. Never thought I'd see both Mauney and Henry sleeping peacefully in the same room. They're mortal enemies and if they're ever in the same room, they're fighting.

Corey called me in his room to check out the little furball that had taken up residence in his top dresser drawer.

That's when I noticed two eyes peering out from under the covers on his bed.

Surprised the heck out of us to see the both of them just snoozing away totally unaware of the other one.

I made chicken with chile-lime sauce for dinner tonight. I think I'll serve it with the squash that Andy cooked up. Andy and I are starting P90X next week, so this will be the last week that we can eat whatever we want!

The snow has been falling all day long and it's so absolutely gorgeous. I wonder if I'll still love it at six am tomorrow morning. Here comes Monday!! Goodbye glorious vacation!

xoxo-Kimberly

Happy Turkey Day

2010-11-25T10:15:00.000-07:00

xoxo-Kimberly

Leaf

2010-11-24T21:49:00.002-07:00

Leaf cable ties. Love.

xxx

xoxo-Kimberly

Mauney Crazy

2010-11-24T21:01:00.003-07:00

Yes, I put up the Christmas tree. I couldn't resist. I haven't put up the rest of the holiday decorations though. Those can wait until after I've gorged myself on Thanksgiving goodness.

The second I got out the Christmas tree (which is fake) Mauney perked right up. While we were assembling the tree she took the liberty of laying claim to the empty tree box.

Then Maun decided to have a party with the tree skirt- which she does every year.

If I had a nickle for the number of times I have to straighten the tree skirt every year, I'd be rich.

Not only that but she has a thing with the ornaments. This morning I found three that she'd swatted off the branches and scattered around the living room. When her and Ash were babies they were partner's in crime. Mauney would swat an ornament off the tree and then Ash would scoop it up and I'd find it all slobbery and ruined in her mouth a little while later. Many an ornament has found it's way to ornament heaven that way.

Anyway, Maun was on one and she still is. She commandeered Ash's bed tonight and I don't think she's giving it back any time soon.

Did I mention that a couple of weeks ago Corey found a Mauney surprise in his dresser drawer?

What a crazy cat!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

xoxo-Kimberly

Gorgeous Little Bits (White)

2010-11-23T15:58:00.005-07:00

Just some images to make your jaw drop. Lovely.

xxx

xxx

xxx

xxx

xxx

We'll be getting some of our own white stuff this evening. Sounds like it's going to be a doozy of a storm!

xoxo-Kimberly

Geometric

2010-11-23T15:25:00.004-07:00

Wow. I am kinda lovin' this a lot.

xxx

xoxo-Kimberly

Signs of Winter...

2010-11-20T11:08:00.003-07:00

Well, the leaves have all fallen, the wind has started to blow, the clouds have rolled in. The weather man predicts snow on Sunday and I'm kind of excited about that. We've had really decent weather up to this point. I can't believe I'm saying this but I think it's about time we saw some white flurries.

Getting Cozy

Winter is just around the corner. Time to break out the hot chocolate and scarfs!

Artwork by Room & Board
Boots by Sporto

xoxo-Kimberly

Happy Friday

2010-11-19T07:40:00.000-07:00

"There is a certain majesty in simplicity which is far above all the quaintness of wit." ~Alexander Pope

xxx

"Love is a canvas furnished by Nature and embroidered by imagination." ~Voltaire

xxx

"If knowledge can create problems, it is not through ignorance that we can solve them." ~Isaac Asimov

xxx

"The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible." ~Arthur C. Clarke

xxx

"Life's errors cry for the merciful beauty that can modulate their isolation into a harmony with the whole." ~Rabindranath Tagore

xxx

xoxo-Kimberly

I pity the foo...totally lame title, sorry.

2010-11-18T21:48:00.010-07:00

I have been dying for a pair of foo dogs for so long. But I'll need to save my pennies for a little longer before any will be mine.

Source

What are foo dogs, you ask? Well, foo dogs are what we westerners call them, but they're really known as Chinese guardian lions. They always come in pairs and are believed to have powerful mythic protective powers in Chinese culture. They traditionally stand outside of tombs, temples, or palaces.

Chinese Guardian Lions at the Forbidden City in Beijing.

No, I don't plan on putting two Chinese guardian lions on either side of our front door. That would be cool but I don't think it's gonna happen. Instead, I'll take them in the westernized version- as book ends or just plain decorative statues.

Anyway, I about died when I saw that Ada and Darcy had some back in stock. Of course, I can only admire them for now...but someday...!!!

While we're on the subject of Ada and Darcy...please run on over to the shop and see all the other lovely things that are available. I have several of them on my wishlist already. Also make sure to add Ada and Darcy to your Google reader. You won't be sorry, I promise!

xoxo-Kimberly

Okay fine

2010-11-17T19:38:00.003-07:00

I'll admit it. I'm totally addicted to Glee. I tried to resist because it's just so conformist, ugh! But I can't help it. It's the performance aspect that gets me and pulls me in. I'm such a sucker for music and dancing.

So there. It's out. I can now openly admit that I'm a total Gleek. But while I'm outing myself, I'll just out Corey in the meantime, since he's the one who got me hooked. It's all his fault.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm right in the middle of "The Substitute" episode with Gwenyth Paltrow. So..."Forget you!" ;)

xoxo-Kimberly

PS- Speaking of performing. I may just have a little announcement coming in the next couple of weeks. Nothing outrageous or anything, but still pretty cool to me.

Closet raid

2010-11-17T07:13:00.003-07:00

Olivia_Palermo. I wouldn't mind raiding her closet for a piece or two. I love her style.

xoxo-Kimberly

Weekend Images

2010-11-14T19:47:00.005-07:00

The last of the flowers surrounded by fallen leaves.

Homemade chili for dinner.

And homemade banana cream pie for dessert.

A trip to the bookstore and the library. Two of our favorite places.

And some couch lounging.

xoxo-Kimberly

I love gooold...

2010-11-13T20:08:00.006-07:00

Watch, Candles, Necklace, Pumps

xoxo-Kimberly

Check, check...check it out!

2010-11-10T18:48:00.005-07:00

In case you didn't know, I work on campus in the library. I work as the Digitizer for Special Collections and Archiving. What does that mean? Well....I take all of the cool things that Special Collections and Archives is storing and digitize it. Digitizing means a lot of scanning, transcribing, metadata, and everything else that goes into getting everything digitally available to the public.

Anyway, the digitization department only opened in 2007. So for the last three years, the department has been working around the clock to pull slides, documents, diaries, photo albums, reel to reels, and tapes out of the archives and get them digitally up to date. It's a daunting task that will never end.

My point-Remember the website we were trying to get up for work? Well, it's up and we're all pretty excited about it. There are still a ton of things to be added, but it's a constant project and always will be, as we add new things to our collection.

So for those of you that care, I thought I'd tell you a little bit about the site. If you're from Utah then the collections will be a lot more cool to you as they pertain to Utah history.

Okay...yada yada... here's the site:

Digital Collections

If you're so inclined feel to free to click around in there. There are a ton of cool things to check out. I'll just give a brief description of the collections that we currently have added to the site.

The featured project is the WWII Collection. This collection includes photographs of troops in Ogden and photographs and interviews concerning the POW camp at the Depot.

Community Collection: This is one of my favorite collections. It includes photographs of schools and churches in Ogden and a collection of Diaries of a prominent doctor in Utah that we transcribed.

Dee Collection: The Dee's were a very important family in Ogden (Dee Hospital.) The collection includes their marriage register, correspondence, family photos, as well as an oral history of interviews conducted with some of the Dee Nursing students and their experiences in the Dee Nursing school.

David Eccles Collection: If you live in Ogden then you've most likely heard the name Eccles. The collection includes their LDS church correspondence, business correspondence and personal correspondence.

Utah Construction Collection: Sounds boring right? It's actually pretty cool. Check it out for scrapbooks of the construction of the Hoover Dam and Feather River as well as Railroad Construction.

Weber State University Collection: Basically a collection of the history of the University.

Anyway, just thought I'd put that out there since I've been talking about how busy I've been with work lately. The website is just one tiny part of what I've had to work on. It's very rewarding to have it up and available to the public now.

xoxo-Kimberly

there's something in the air

2010-11-10T09:01:00.004-07:00

Why do I always feel like going on a massive shopping spree this time of year? Must be something about trading my summer wardrobe out for sweaters, scarfs and boots. Any time I start moving things in my closet around, I always seem to want to go shopping for new stuff.

Aside from clothes, I'd love to go crazy at the book store. Maybe just one new book will satisfy my craving to shop.

xoxo-Kimberly

PS- I registered for classes this morning and managed to secure a spot in all the classes I needed to get in. Score! Can you believe I actually almost forgot to register?! Seriously. I'm losing it!

Now, it's time to set up for the book sale. Totally not looking forward to it. It's going to be an all day thing. At least lunch is catered. Hopefully that will get me through because I have to work at the computer lab until midnight tonight.

on "whooo" I am today....

2010-11-09T08:34:00.003-07:00

-Quiet--It's been a tad bit quiet on the blog front as of late. I'm in that place where I have so much going on in my head and so much to say that I really can't find anything to say at all. So I've just stayed quiet.

-Worried--I can't register for spring semester until tomorrow. I already see the classes I need filling up and I'm just praying there will still be room in them by the time I get to register.

-Loving--The gorgeous view of the newly powdered mountains on my drive to campus this morning. The rising sun was hitting them so perfectly and everything seemed so crisp and fresh.

-Enjoying--Tis' the season for gingerbread latte's. I think it might be a good thing this only comes around once a year.

-Stressing--The annual book sale is this week, of which I'm supposedly completely in charge of. This means that I have to miss class in order to oversee the sale. The thought of that is giving me hives. I hate missing class and I hate relying on someone else to take decent enough notes for me.

-Excited--I'm getting totally amped to put up the Christmas tree this year. I'm not sure I'll be able to hold out until after Thanksgiving- which I'm also getting amped for. Mmmmm....Thanksgiving....

-Longing--Totally longing for the day when I don't have to spend my weekend cramming for an exam.

-Grateful--I can't even say how much I love my new job. I've only been doing it for a few months now but it's like a match made in heaven.

"Whooo" are you today?

xoxo-Kimberly

Weekend Music List

2010-11-06T07:43:00.002-06:00

So I haven't done a weekend music list for a few weeks. I don't know if anyone really checks these out but I like them so I'll keep doing them until I get bored of them.

First up: "Firework" by Katy Perry (thanks Heather-you're amazing)

"Moth's Wings" by Passion Pit

And we have to go back in the day a little bit too:
"Radio Romance" by Tiffany
I seriously loved this song growing up.

Speaking of Tiffany- Ogdenites, do you remember when she shot scenes for "I Think We're Alone Now" at the Ogden City Mall? Sweetness!

Did you know that I'm a huge Zebrahead fan? They're kind of my secret love. And still one of the best concerts I ever went to. That was a crazy concert. Did I ever tell you the story about crowd surfing and the security guard who saved me, then found me after the concert to ask me out and who I ended up dating? Yeah, that was a crazy night. Anyway...

"Get Back" by Zebrahead

"Only Girl" by Rhianna

"Mushaboom" by Feist

Okay, that's all for now. It's time to clean the house. Have a great weekend!

xoxo-Kimberly

A letter to myself...

2010-11-05T07:41:00.005-06:00

Dear Sixteen Year Old Self-

You are a wonderful person, much more wonderful then you give yourself credit for. You love dancing more than any of those snotty other girls on the team, so why do you bother to listen to their insults. They only tease and make fun because they are insecure too. Just remember, you're on the team because you love to dance. They're on the team because they want to be popular. One day you will do a thousand times more with your dance talent than those girls will ever dream of doing.

You are beautiful. You don't need to hide behind t-shirts and ponytails. Who cares if you never go to Prom. One day you will meet an amazing man who will love you inside and out, just the way you are and tell you that you're beautiful every single day. (Oh, and T.D. is a waste of all those hearts you're scribbling in your notebook.)

Be nice to your mom and sisters. They love you and someday when no one else cares, they will be there with a hug and a Christmas stocking full of encouragement. Never take the ones you love for granted. You never know when they will be gone.

You don't need to be perfect, funny, a straight A student, or devoutly religious to deserve to be loved. You deserve love just like everyone else. You are not wrong. You are you and that is okay. Never let anyone else make you feel like you're stupid because you're not. You have a lot going on in that head of yours. You're smart.

Don't get caught up in what other people think about your choices. Yes, you'll make stupid decisions just like everyone else. But you'll never regret them because you'll learn from them and that knowledge is more valuable than anything. It will shape you into an amazing person. You'll also make choices that other people will think are foolish. That doesn't matter. They don't know what is in your head and they don't need to know. No one else can define your worth but yourself.

Try to refrain from judging other people. You know exactly what it feels like to be judged and it doesn't feel good. Remember that you don't know why other people talk, think, or act the way they do. Give everyone the space to be themselves, act the way they want to act and believe the things they want to believe.

Most importantly, if there's something you want to do- go for it. Never let anyone discourage you or talk you out of your dreams. Take chances. Experience everything you can. Learn everything you can. See as much as you can. Enjoy life and cram as much fun in as you can.

Hang on to those friends who love and accept you for who you are. Remind them how much you care about them and how important they are to you. Make those friendships last for life and give up the people who bring you down or force negativity onto you.

One day you will be fretting about turning thirty and the fact that you haven't finished school yet or that you don't have any children. Try to remember that thirty is just a number. You will finish school- eventually, and if you are meant to have children then you will-when the time is right. For now, enjoy the fact that you have the freedom to do anything you want with your life.

Most importantly, don't sweat the small stuff, laugh a little, cry a little and be yourself.

xoxo-Kimberly

PS- In case you ever forget: you drive a manual transmission, it's okay to be a book nerd, and red M & M's are poisonous and always will be.

A-choo!!

2010-11-04T17:48:00.002-06:00

Poor Ashland has been sick with a cold for the last couple of days. Her eyes are watery and she sneezes and sneezes and sneezes. Last night she kept me up half the night with her sneezing. Poor baby.

She had a vet visit this week. I'm hoping she starts to feel better soon. I hate to see her moping around like this. It makes me sad.

xoxo-Kimberly

mmmmMagic!

2010-11-04T07:36:00.003-06:00

That's what Fabio Bartelt's Photography is to me. Pure magic.

Andy comes home from his business trip today!! I can't wait to see him.

xoxo-Kimberly

Inspiration Daily

2010-11-02T08:41:00.004-06:00

Andy and I were talking last night about how every day just seems to fly by and that there never seems to be enough hours to get everything done, let alone enjoy it! I think we are both looking forward to the day when our lives don't revolve around school work.

It's been awfully stressful filling every extra second with school crap. I think we're both kind of tired of it but we just keep plugging along knowing that it will benefit us in the long run.

In the meantime, I've been feeling terribly uninspired and just plain tired every day, both mentally and physically. To get me out of this rut, I think I'll pull from other people's inspiration boards for awhile until I can find my own.

XXX

XXX

xoxo-Kimberly

Hello November!

2010-11-01T07:00:00.001-06:00

1, 2, 3, 4, 5

xoxo-Kimberly

Goodbye October

2010-10-31T16:35:00.005-06:00

Well, I survived my week of crazy and topped it off with a relaxing weekend home. Andy and I opted to rent a bunch of movies, cook a delicious salmon and asparagus dinner and veg on the couch this Halloween.

No weekend images this week-I forgot, sorry. But I did take a really crappy video of Corey and Mauney battling it out.

Also, I'm starting a second blog. For those of you that didn't know- I'm a history nut. I've been craving a place to blabber on about history so that's what the second blog is all about. If you're interested in that sort of thing, feel free to pop on over and check it out. HERE.

That's about it for this weekend. I'll be back to normal blogging tomorrow. See ya then.

xoxo-Kimberly

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-30T13:13:00.002-06:00

xoxo-Kimberly

Craziness

2010-10-25T16:43:00.002-06:00

I'm signing off for the rest of the week. Yeah, I know it's only Monday but I can see already that I'm going to be busier than a bee clear until next Monday. All day long, I've been answering my boss with, "Of course I can also get that done by Friday!" and then cringing just a little.

I have a book to finish reading and then write an analysis paper on, a five page midterm assignment for Art History, and an Art History Exam to study for and take.

On top of that we are going live with our new web page at work this week so there is a lot of pressure on me to finish processing several collections so they can be included in the unveiling of the new site. I also have about a bazillion donations to process, about 100 boxes of books to haul to our book sale room, and several new oral history interviews to archive. So basically I'll be working late, studying late, and racing the clock all week.

No time for blogging, face-booking, or etsy-ing. Hopefully I'll have my sanity back by Monday and then I can come back. Until then, I hope you all have a less crazy week then I will!

xoxo-Kimberly

Factory 20

2010-10-24T20:36:00.002-06:00

"Factory 20 is a multi-disciplinary art and design collective which strives to create an ever-evolving nonlinear consumer lifestyles collection. Reclaiming salvaged materials, using uncommon combinations and adhering to modernist tenets..."

xoxo-Kimberly

Lookbook

2010-10-24T20:03:00.002-06:00

LuLu*s

xoxo-Kimberly

I'm addicted

2010-10-21T06:56:00.005-06:00

I can't get enough. Remember this gorgeous owl print?

Oh man. I love, love owls so much and I can not stop staring at it.
It's done by one of my new favorite artists.

Oh yes. I love it oh so very much. Except I can't afford it.

So I went with my second love:

Awesome! Andy asked me if he was just for Halloween. I said no way! This guy's a year round piece of art. I don't care that he's a skull. He's super cools!

Even though he's only a wee 5x7, I still love him.

Now...where to hang him?

xoxo-Kimberly

PS- Just for fun, here are a few of the artist's other pieces:

States of Dress

2010-10-20T15:39:00.006-06:00

Artist Robin Barcus Slonina is working on the coolest project! She's creating 50 dresses, one for each mainland state. Why are these dresses cool? Well, just see for yourself:

New York's Garbage Dress

Iowa's Prairie Dress

Maine's Pine Cone Dress

Minnesota's Corn Dress

Nevada's Casino Chip Dress

And she's not done yet! I'm kind of curious to see what the Utah dress will be- a beehive maybe? You can read all about how she constructed these dresses on her blog. Pretty fun project if you ask me!

xoxo-Kimberly

Wednesday Wishlist

2010-10-20T08:19:00.002-06:00

Pear Hazelnut Vanilla Scones

Radio

What's on your wishlist today?

xoxo-Kimberly

Weekend Images-Around the House

2010-10-18T07:00:00.003-06:00

Yesterday I spent some time making apple bread and apple crisp. My dahlia's also decided to open up!

Andy and I had the entire weekend to ourselves. It was completely glorious to have some time with just the two of us around here. I really look forward to getting married and finally being able to have our own space, with time alone together whenever we want it. One of the best weekends yet!!

xoxo-Kimberly

It's here

2010-10-15T16:10:00.003-06:00

The weekend, that is. Yay! Let's all do a happy dance.

I'll do it to even though Andy and I will be spending the entire weekend studying for the exams we have to take on Monday. But we won't let that spoil it!

xoxo-Kimberly

laurageorge

2010-10-14T08:22:00.005-06:00

I am just completely in love with these cute and clever illustrations from laurageorge. I originally found her on Flikr and then followed her over to Etsy.

Stress Release

Things I'm Thankful For

Tree Hug

Now I just have to decide which one I want!

xoxo-Kimberly

Calypso

2010-10-12T07:46:00.002-06:00

So in love with the gorgeous items at Calypso right now.

And this vid:

So dreamy. As much as I'd like to continue browsing around their lovely lookbook, I have to keep my nose stuck in the books today. So much homework and studying to catch up on! But it's a beautiful fall day so maybe I'll study outside.

xoxo-Kimberly

Weekend Images

2010-10-11T12:31:00.003-06:00

It was Andy's birthday yesterday! I took him out for fondue to celebrate.

Andy had never had fondue before and he ended up loving it. We went to the Melting Pot and it was so much fun because your table has a heat plate in the middle of it where the waiter mixed the ingredients for your fondue right in front of you and the food was so good!

The first course was a cheese fondue with a mix of bread, veggies, and apples to dip. Then we had salad for the second course. The main course was a mix of filet mignon, duck, shrimp, steak, and chicken that you dip in a caribbean flavored brothe fondue and the dessert course was a platter of strawberries, cheesecake, marshmallows, rice krispy treats and brownies to dip in chocolate caramel fondue. Yum! We had so much fun trying all the different combinations!

It was a fun weekend and I hope my man had a fabulous birthday!

xoxo-Kimberly

Exposed

2010-10-07T08:02:00.004-06:00

There's nothing like exposed wooden beams to make my heart leap!

I absolutely love homes that use natural elements like exposed wooden floors or ceilings, stone, rock, and brick, etc.

So much prettier than just slapping up a piece of dry wall all the time.

Most of the homes around here are boring cookie cutter, clones of the next home. Ugh.

Using a couple of different materials throughout your house can really add that gorgeous detail and uniqueness.

xoxo-Kimberly

Images courtesy of Desire to Inspire, Pretty Little World, Design is Mine, Pure Green, Style Files, Brunch at Saks, and Bliss.

Fall decorating....

2010-10-06T18:03:00.004-06:00

I love decorating the house when fall comes! Halloween is one of my favorite holidays to decorate for.

But I have a little problem-- since moving into this house, I've realized that none of my holiday decorations are really "fitting" anywhere. You know how you live somewhere for a long time and each decoration kind of has a place? I remember when my mom would get out the decorations and we would all help put them up. Everything had its special place and we all knew where everything went. If anything got moved, it just didn't seem like 'home.'

So I have all these decorations that fit perfectly in my old house, but not so well in the new house. And that means I'm feeling a little lost in decorating this year. I've only really got the front porch and front door done and set out a couple of things in the house. I need to regroup and come up with a new decorating game plan.

Anyway...........................that brings me to my point. I decided to scout around for some inspiration. Boy, did I find it! At Thrifty Decor Chick. Check out how she decorated her stairs for fall:

Those adorable mice are just vinyl decals that can be removed when the holidays are over!

Now, isn't that just stinkin' cute?!

Talk about inspiration. You can read about her full transformation here. You can also read about how she got rid of the carpet on her stairs and transformed it into the beauty it is now! Love it!

xoxo-Kimberly

Something new

2010-10-06T07:43:00.002-06:00

for the kitchen...

for the bedroom...

I can't believe it's only Wednesday. This week is dragging, I'm slacking on my homework, and both of us agree we need a vacation big time. But we do have something to look forward to- it's Andy's birthday on Sunday! Can't wait to celebrate!

xoxo-Kimberly

purple

2010-10-05T16:26:00.003-06:00

My least favorite color transformed into something I really love:

That's my goal this week. To find ways to transform things I normally don't care for into things I can enjoy.

xoxo-Kimberly

Weekend Images- Day Trip

2010-10-04T22:07:00.003-06:00

Sometimes Andy and I just like to say, "To heck with our chores!" and then hop in the car and take off for a little mini day road trip. Usually I let Andy pick the route. This time he wanted to take the Alpine Loop Scenic Byway so that we could get some pictures of the fall leaves.

Next time we'll make the drive without Ash, so we can stop and go through the Timpanogos Cave. It was a really pretty drive though. We ended up circling around and having lunch in Park City before heading home.

A perfect end to our weekend!

xoxo-Kimberly

Thank you BTE

2010-09-29T21:36:00.010-06:00

I've worshiped Better Than Ezra for as long as I can remember listening to anything other than the Beatles. The lyrics are real. None of this "shawty" stuff and "bling" whatsit.

This is good music. Seriously good music.

It made me feel alive. Like I could survive and everyone else could just suck it.

Yes. Just yes. Ignore the creepy anime video. It's the only decent version of the song I could find.

So much of it was exactly what I felt/thought about in high school. Sometimes music was all that got me through those four years. Yeah, it was that kind of high school experience for me. Good riddance.

And thank you BTE for getting me through. The best:

xoxo-Kimberly

ode to gray

2010-09-24T08:15:00.003-06:00

pearl, flowers, cloud, dream, vase, purse, ring, scarf, bunny, sailing

Have a lovely weekend!

xoxo-Kimberly

Winter Wear

2010-09-22T21:12:00.002-06:00

This winter, I plan to wear plenty of these:

Argyle, Floral, Solid
(I've never been a tight wearer before, but last year I bought some, wore them, and loved them.)

I'll also be wearing lots of these lovelies:

Embroidered, Striped, Patchwork
And there's no way I'll be walking around campus in the snow without some of these on my feet:

Bow, Buckle, Button
xoxo-Kimberly

Quicksand...or not

2010-09-21T19:29:00.002-06:00

Did you ever play the Quicksand Game when you were little? You play by pretending the floor is quicksand and that you have to find your way from one side of the room to the other without touching it. My sisters and I played this game a lot making up our own rules and variations along the way. The floor would be hot or poison or spikey- making it deadly to touch.

While browsing around today I found several pictures of floors that I'd have no problem walking across even if they were rumored to be covered in poison!

I love unconventional options for flooring. It can really bring the room to life and give it a little personality.

xoxo-Kimberly

images via Desire to Inspire, and Ada & Darcy

Weekend Images

2010-09-20T21:02:00.002-06:00

Things that made me smile this weekend:

What made you smile this weekend?

xoxo-Kimberly

Tip of a pencil

2010-09-16T08:13:00.004-06:00

Last night was rough. I barely made it through to the end of the night. I was tired and cranky and after a night of not enough sleep, that mood carried over to this morning.

Andy has a habit of choosing (what I think are) really annoying alarms to wake up to on his cell phone. To me, they're about as enjoyable as fingernails on a chalkboard and not very pleasant to wake up to. Boy did I really let my annoyance show this morning when I threatened to sleep in the guest room from now on if he didn't find a normal alarm.

Yeah, not the most positive way for me to start my morning. I'd kind of like to go back and try that again cause now I feel guilty and even more like crap.

That's kind of how this week has been going though. I feel like I'm balancing on the tip of a finely sharpened pencil. I'm just hoping I can stay on til Friday.

Speaking of pencils, these miniature works of art created from the tip of pencils have me completely amazed! They're the creative genius of Dalton Ghetti who has been carving pencils for over 25 years.

Pretty cool huh? Read more about them here and here.

I need to go home now. Get back in bed. Rewind five hours and try again.

xoxo-Kimberly

I can't resist

2010-09-15T07:37:00.004-06:00

"Sometimes it's so hard to love art so much and not have a single artistic bone in your body." That's what my art history professor said to us on our first day of class this semester and I couldn't agree more!!

I suppose you could consider me somewhat of an artist, although my talents have always been in the performing arts-dance area, but I find myself wishing more often then not, that I could draw, paint, do graphic design or something of the sort. I spend so much time studying art, looking at art, and admiring art that it seems only natural to wish that I could create it myself.

Andy and his brothers are all artistically talented. I've seen some of the things they've done and I was pretty impressed. About a year ago, Andy bought some art supplies so that he could take it up again, but to this day they are still sitting in the closet unopened. Every time I see them, I wish I had the ability to put them to use and create something awesome to hang in our home.

But since I can't draw worth a lick, I can still admire the work of others. I've slowly begun a small art collection by grabbing a few things I like off of Etsy and I'd like to continue expanding that collection. There's so many great pieces out there!

I thought I'd just feature a couple of my favorites for now:

Snowy Owl by Alberto Cerriteno

Gorgeous, isn't it? Always a sucker for the owls.

Rock and Roll by Dirk Fowler

I love that it's called 'Rock and Roll.' Don't the wheels look like records?

Pistachio Ice Cream by Vanessa Tran

I'm not sure what it is about that print, but I keep coming back to it.

Bonnie by Caia Koopman

And I love when I find something that not only appeals to my eye but that I can relate to. I love that this piece reminds me of myself.

It's almost all I can do to keep from snatching up every piece of art that I come across and love. I have to practice some serious self control!

Are you an art lover or is there something else you can't resist?

xoxo-Kimberly

Before and After

2010-09-13T07:04:00.003-06:00

We had such a fantastic (and tiring) weekend. Of course, I carried my camera around the entire time but didn't manage to take any pictures. We went to Peach Days and checked out the car show and then headed up to Hyde Park so Andy could work on his car at his dad's shop. I stayed with his mom and she helped me make salsa with the tomatoes and peppers from our garden.

The car project took so long that we ended up staying over night. We came home with a really awesome looking squash that I'll have to take a picture of to show you. Andy's dad also loaded me up with some more flowers for our yard. I managed to get some of them planted last night and I'll have to do the rest tonight.

We're exhausted after such a busy weekend but Monday is here so I guess we can't rest now! Just had to share this before and after with you before I plunge into all the work I have to get done today.

Before

After

Now that is an amazing transformation! Read more about it here.

xoxo-Kimberly

ps- Happy Monday. It's darker when I get up in the mornings now. I don't like that one bit!

Being married is like getting a Colored TV...

2010-09-10T19:10:00.003-06:00

...you never want to go back to Black and White.

That's how I feel about my life with Andy. I never want to go back to being without him.

I bawled like a baby when I watched this sweet love story. Watch til the end if you don't mind having your heart tugged at a little.

Danny & Annie from StoryCorps on Vimeo.

I'll never be happier than on the day that I marry Andy. He is everything I always wanted, and everything I never dreamed that I would be lucky enough to find. But I did!! Or-- we found each other. Because that's exactly the way that it was supposed to be. And exactly the way that it will always be.

xoxo-Kimberly

I may have to give in soon

2010-09-10T08:38:00.005-06:00

Toms. I love them. I have wanted a pair for. like. ever. But I keep refraining from buying any because I'm a little worried. It could turn in to a serious addiction. One pair could turn in to two, and then in to three, and then four, until eventually they'll be spilling out of my shoe cave in masses. I mean, have you seen all the cute choices? And don't they look super comfy?

Not to mentioned that for every pair of shoes they sell, they donate a pair to a child in Argentina. Awesome!

Some of my favorites:

Now I don't typically care for wedges but these are super cute!

And look at the baby Toms. Aren't they just adorable?

I saw a girl on campus wearing some the other day and I accosted her and made her tell me how comfortable they were. She confirmed my fears when she said, "Don't buy any. You'll never stop. Seriously." And I believe her.

But if someone gives them to me (*hint hint) then I certainly can't be to blame, right? You see, I can be sneaky about this. Christmas is coming up and I'm predicting comfy Toms on my feet for the new year.

xoxo-Kimberly

Living

2010-09-09T07:25:00.002-06:00

Living rooms I wouldn't mind living in...

hus & hem

hus & hem

apartment therapy

apartment therapy

xoxo-Kimberly

I Can Haz?

2010-09-08T19:02:00.002-06:00

I want this gown so bad it's killing me.

Too bad it's a Monique Lhuillier and costs $5000 new and $3000 used. Gah! Sad face. That is my gown, man! It was made for me!

But it sure wasn't made for my budget. Le sigh. Oh well.

xoxo-Kimberly

typography treat

2010-09-08T13:02:00.004-06:00

xxx

xoxo-Kimberly

A fresh start

2010-09-07T08:19:00.004-06:00

Today is a new day and I'm so thankful for that. It means that I have the chance to start fresh and do things right this time. It means that I can try to avoid the same mistakes I made yesterday. And it means that I have the choice to see things differently than I did yesterday. Sometimes that's hard for me to do. But today is just as good as any day to try.

xoxo-Kimberly

I've learned...

2010-09-06T20:39:00.003-06:00

that if you need attention...

you have to give it to yourself.

xoxo-Kimberly

Exteriors

2010-09-03T08:36:00.004-06:00

One of my goals this summer was to paint our shutters and front door. Yeah, that didn't happen. That's really just because I could never settle on the color.

Mostly I think I'm just afraid that I won't like it when it's finished and I'll have to redo it. That's a job I only want to do once. But I'm going to continue to search for the perfect color though, because I'm convinced that it will really give our home a nice face lift.

I just love the first impressions these homes from Traditional Home & Country Living make, don't you?

Enjoy your weekend! I'll be enjoying an extra long one thanks to Labor Day!

xoxo-Kimberly

Hello September

2010-09-01T16:26:00.003-06:00

September already? Wowza! Where did August go? Where did the summer go, for that matter?

Can I tell you a little secret? Fall is my favorite time of the year. It's that time when everything is perfect. Not too hot, not too cold. It's the perfect shade of warm with a slight crispness in the air.

Do you know what I'm most looking forward to? The colors, so so pretty. Fall calls for a few drives up the canyon with your Nikon, wouldn't you agree? Hiking with a scarf, baking up a storm, and movies with hot apple cider.

I'm also looking forward to the holidays. Thanksgiving in particular. Everyone is always so happy on Thanksgiving. Sometimes it seems even more so than on Christmas. Christmas always seems like such a bustling time. But on Thanksgiving everyone slips into chill mode. Good food, family, chilling in front of the TV, laughing, hugs & pie. The most perfect day of the year if you ask me.

My Fall Predictions:

-Winter will come early :(
-I'll get plenty of snuggle time with my honey
-There'll be busy times at work and school, offset by fun times with family
-I'll be experimenting with canning, baking, or trying new recipes
-I'll take some time for new crafty projects

I'm kind of happy that September is here. Are you?

xoxo-Kimberly

What do you do...

2010-08-31T19:17:00.002-06:00

...when you have a pile of homework in front of you?

Procrastinate and play on Polyvore for an hour, of course!

Don't worry, I wrote an article review, studied for a quiz, and finished taking notes on Chauvet for Art History immediately following my stint on Polyvore. I have actually been somewhat productive.

xoxo-Kimberly

Things I love...

2010-08-30T20:30:00.003-06:00

xoxo-Kimberly

Leafy hairpiece, Bouquet, Wallet, Pillow

Music for your Weekend...

2010-08-28T10:27:00.003-06:00

Here's your weekly music playlist to make your weekend rock! Click on the links to listen for free or download. Enjoy!

Lisztomania (Classixx Version) by Phoenix--Download--Youtube
The Listening by Lights--Download--Youtube
Give Him Up by Faber Drive--Download--Youtube
Stuttering by Friday Night Boys--Download--Youtube
The Reeling by Passion Pit--Listen--Youtube
My First Kiss by 3Oh!3 ft Kesha--Download--Youtube
I'm Your Daddy by Weezer--Download--Youtube
Cross My Heart by Marianas Trench--Listen--Youtube
Where's My Angel by Metro Station--Download--Youtube
La La La by Auburn ft Iyaz--Download--Youtube
Just The Way You Are by Bruno Mars--Download--Youtube
DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love Again by Usher ft Pitbull--Download--Youtube
Savior by Lights--Download--Youtube
Butterfly Wings by Owl City--Download--Youtube
Kids by MGMT--Download--Youtube
The Suburbs by Arcade Fire--Download--Youtube

xoxo-Kimberly

Things I Love-Colorful Welcomes

2010-08-26T08:35:00.003-06:00

I love a painted door. Especially in a vibrant color. Something that says Welcome!! Come in! This is a fun place to be! A door that makes you smile as you pull in the driveway.

Red

Blue

Purple

Yellow

Teal

Pink

Orange

Green

Hmm. I wonder if Andy would let me paint our front door green. xoxo-Kimberly

wierd spot

2010-08-25T20:26:00.004-06:00

I feel wierd tonight. Like a wierd emotion that I'm not sure has a name. It's like a mix of nostalgia, relief, happiness and sadness. You know when things change and you realize your life will never, ever be the same? Then you get that wierd feeling in your chest, because this is good, really good- and the bad thing is gone gone gone. But at the same time, the bad thing wasn't all bad, so it makes you feel a little bit sentimental.

I know I'm being vague right now. I'm sorry. I won't be revealing what I'm talking about because it's oh-so-very-personal. But I feel so eery-strange right now that I really needed to write something down. I don't even know what to write. Just that I kinda feel like crying in both a sad and happy sort of way. I just feel that I need to have one of those cries that doesn't really mean something in particular- it's just a damn good cry. You know the ones?

I have such an abstruse realization of my existence being blessed beyond my total comprehension at this point, that I'm not sure how to react to it. Gratitude can be my only reaction. Humble gratitude.

Can you understand what it is to see the bigger picture and then to remember back to when you couldn't see anything at all? It's the most amazing thing in the world. It's like this incredibly brilliant light has been lit just for you.

xxx

I think I'll just close my door and stand in the middle of my beautifully bright room, quietly taking it all in. That's ok to do sometimes, right?

xoxo-Kimberly

Taking a small moment

2010-08-24T08:17:00.003-06:00

Yesterday my day ran from 5 am to midnight. I was on campus, either in class or at work, for 11 of those hours. It was a very long and very busy day. And now I'm back to do it all over again.

I'm tired. Really tired. But I'm happy. Work is good. Classes are good. People are awesome and my life is awesome. I had to take a small moment this morning to breath, smile and reflect on everything that I've been blessed with lately. It makes being tired so so worth it.

xoxo-Kimberly

ring, ring, goes the bell..

2010-08-23T07:08:00.000-06:00

Well, not quite..but classes do start up again today. I'm back full time with two jobs. Is it wierd that I'm excited about that? Hopefully I'll survive! Wish me luck!

xoxo-Kimberly

Friday Find- Bed in a Bag

2010-08-20T14:34:00.003-06:00

Bedding is expensive! Especially for a king size bed. Whose idea was it to get a king size bed, anyway? Just kidding. I actually love, love our huge bed. But finding bedding that doesn't cost an arm and a leg is tough! I was pretty tickled to come across this 7 piece King size bed set at Overstock.com with the ticket price of only $103!! Sweet deal!

I think I may just have to add this to my cart!

xoxo-Kimberly

Back with some fun stuff

2010-08-19T20:19:00.004-06:00

Well, hello again! My little blogging break was very refreshing, but truthfully, I really missed being here. I thought I'd come back with something fun- our engagement photos!

We just got them back yesterday and I could hardly wait to share them. We are really happy with the way they turned out.

Our photographer was Tawsha Hannig with The Color Blue Photography. Didn't she do a phenomenal job?

xoxo-Kimberly

oy

2010-08-10T19:20:00.002-06:00

So yeah, life has been pretty hectic lately. I kinda got surprised with a super awesome job offer a few weeks ago. So for the last two weeks I've been spending all of my time trying to absorb everything I can before the girl I'm replacing leaves.

Currently I'm at that new job stage where you're given a task to do and instead of getting down to business, you first have to sit and stare for ten minutes while you process all the steps you have to go through in your mind asking yourself "Okay, what do I do next and how do I do that?" Then you have to try to implement all the things you rushed through during training.

I realize this little hump will pass and I'll be zipping around the digital program, our three different servers, and the paper files in no time. But for now, it's slow going and I find myself getting temporarily frustrated because I just want to be good at my job, right now!

Not only that but I've been doing a lot of extra work for my other boss to help get ready for our annual training day.

Needless to say, much of my free time has been spent creating, editing, researching, discussing, brainstorming, and pulling my hair out while grinning ear to ear. I really do love these new goodies in my life.

I've been realizing for some time that the summer was slowly getting away from me but I haven't been able to do much about it. Classes will be starting in less than two weeks and I'm feeling a bit mushy in the brain about it. I'm not too excited about trying to get settled into classes, develop and discipling myself to stick to a homework schedule as well as try to get comfortable in my new position.

When I get home at night, I can't think, I can't be creative anymore, and I can't possibly come up with a decent blog post to entertain you all. So for now, I'm not taking a blogging break (because then I may never come back!) I'm just going in to chill mode for awhile. I'll be focusing on classes and work and posting when I have enough energy to. I think that's a better plan than just posting something blah just for the sake of posting, don't you?

xoxo-Kimberly

ooh! piece of candy!

Moving

Weekly Eye Candy

always green in my house

First Day

Happy New Year

2011 Goals

2010 in questions

Luisa Beccaria

dull

for you

Something blue

Future Self

Thank you

From 'meh' to yeah! Someday.

Organization + pretty = love

Just what I needed

Wednesday *Christmas* Wishlist-on a Thursday

Oh Christmas Tree

Weekend Images

Action

Body Integration

Pantone's Color of the Year

Party

Beautifully Different

Victory

Until then

Countdown to Christmas

Let Go

Moment

Writing

One Word

Room Crush

stick a fork in me

Pigs Flew

Happy Turkey Day

Leaf

Mauney Crazy

Gorgeous Little Bits (White)

Geometric

Signs of Winter...

Happy Friday

I pity the foo...totally lame title, sorry.

Okay fine

Closet raid

Weekend Images

I love gooold...

Check, check...check it out!

there's something in the air

on "whooo" I am today....

Weekend Music List

A letter to myself...

A-choo!!

mmmmMagic!

Inspiration Daily

Hello November!

Goodbye October

Happy Halloween!

Craziness

Factory 20

Lookbook

I'm addicted

States of Dress

Wednesday Wishlist

Weekend Images-Around the House

It's here

laurageorge

Calypso

Weekend Images

Exposed

Fall decorating....

Something new

purple

Weekend Images- Day Trip

Thank you BTE

ode to gray

Winter Wear

Quicksand...or not

Weekend Images

Tip of a pencil

Wednesday Christmas Wishlist-on a Thursday