Mary, mary, quite contrary....

Our beautiful hydrangea bushes are popping out flowers like champagne bubbles from a shaken bottle of bubbly.  I'm not sure how it happened, but we have all three colors growing down our hill.  Last summer I think we got two blooms total (we didn't plant them until July), and this summer.....POOF.....here they all come.  So very pretty!!

These are just some of the blooms I cut last Friday.  Still going strong on the kitchen table!

As you can see, my planter boxes and pots are doing well too!!

As for the edible stuff??

The lettuce is starting to come up

We have our first tomato

and our first pepper.

Our raspberry bushes (all that green stuff in front) are looking good and it looks like I'll have enough berries for two pies.

And our basil is growing like gangbusters!  I made another batch of pesto tonight!!

I am hoping to find a gardening class or two to take this winter.  I adore gardening (way more than I imagined I would, even the weeding!!), and I know there is so much more I need to learn.  Has anyone taken a gardening class before?  Or does anyone have a favorite gardening website or book?

I'll continue to post progress throughout the summer!

Our Sneak Peek!!

On Saturday morning we had our first professional pictures taken since our wedding.  We had been wanting to do family pictures and decided to do them close to Spencer's first birthday so they could work as his one year pictures too.  We were lucky to be introduced to the work of Christy Pacanowski by a friend of mine and booked her as soon as I hear she was doing a set of mini sessions.  Our sitting fee was nominal due to it being a shortened session, and, if the rest of our pics are half as good as the one below, I am going to be one happy camper!!!

It's a keeper!!

Seriously, she is one talented photographer.  I am now planning on doing this every other summer, for sure!!

Want to see some more cuteness???  These are our fabulous neighbors

(aren't they one of the cutest families you have ever seen?  They're sweet as pie too!)

And this is the family that introduced us to Christy in the first place

Let me know if you want to see the rest of them when they're posted on her website, and I'll send you the link and the password. I'm really, really hoping she got a few cute ones of Spence. He wasn't in a very smiley mood that morning and that makes me a little nervous :( Ah, well, we'll just have to see!!

A little birdie told me....

that Bella Bliss is going to have a monster sale on Wed. 

Not entirely sure what it entails, but I know I will be heading over to the website first thing Wed morning to check it out.  Spencer has a few outfits from them and I just love them.  Made of true pima cotton, they are so soft, wash up very well (no fading!), and are almost all monogrammable!  I think it's hard to find sweet, simple, yet high quality boy's clothes, and Bella Bliss definitely has great items.  They also have fantastic sweaters that are pricey, but worth it for the quality.  My mom found one for me at an upscale consignment boutique, and it's beyond adorable.  It's a 2T, so Spence can't wear it yet, but once he fits into it, it'll be a staple!!  There are also gorgeous things for girls!

Check it out and, if you get anything, let me know!  I'll do the same!

Things I loved about June 2011

*Spencer started walking!  On Father's Day, none the less!!  He was exactly 13 months and just started going.  He still gets places faster by crawling, but he definitely walks a lot.  I'm really, really proud of him (because, seriously, what mom doesn't think that everything their child does is just adorable!?  Well, except the other new "skill"- i.e. throwing food on the floor when he is finished with his meal.  Uggggg.....anyone have any ideas how to stop that??)

*My flower boxes are out of control.  I have 2 colors of pink petunias plus white petunias, and they are gorgeous.  Spencer loves to "help" me deadhead- I pluck the dead ones and he throws them over the edge of the deck.  Cracks him up every time!!

*We have become yard nazis and are cutting down trees and pulling bittersweet vines like it's our job.  I wish I had before and after pictures b/c it's amazing the work we've done.  B even got up on a 28 ft extension ladder with a chainsaw to cut down a HUGE dead branch.  It is fun and really rewarding.

*I made my first strawberry rhubarb pie.  The lattice crust was beautiful and really good.  The filling was perfect in sweet/tart balance, but I would add more cornstarch next time b/c it was a little runny still.  Our guests (and B) loved it, so I'll definitely try making one again next summer.

*Our amazing hydrangea bushes.  I cut a ton of blooms Thursday night and need to cut more already.  They're just gorgeous.  We have blue, white, and pink blooms.  I love the way it looks with all the colors.

*We have three pots of basil and I've already made pesto twice!  It's gonna be a good summer!

*There are only 4 days left in the month, and then it's VACAY for 10, count them T-E-N, days!!!  Absolutely, positively cannot wait!! 

Summertime rooms that make me happy

These rooms all just scream summertime to me.  I can't imagine B letting me be this bold in our current house, but if I ever am lucky enough to own a cottage, you better believe it is going to scream pink, green, and yellow with florals, checks and stripes all over the place. 

Bright, bright, bright, but still warm and clean and oh so preppy.

(source unknown)

No way on earth would I ever do this to a kitchen, but, on the other hand, wouldn't you want to be friends with someone who does?  So grown up girlie, so fun, so interesting!

(source unknown)

Clean lines, love the beadboard, love the limier (is that a word?) green.

(via Sunset)

This would be a lovely room for a Southerner.  The ceiling is my favorite.  Oh and all the windows that let in all the light.  The flowers are a perfect compliment for this room.

(via BHG)

Those walls are a delicious shade of pale pink, I love the pillows, and I adore cabinets that have the inside of them painted a different color.  That round coffee table would be perfect for little peanuts to run around without fear of being hurt too!!

(via BHG)

So, could you paint your kitchen the same color as your toenails?  Do you adore yellow rooms?  Would you put beadboard on your ceiling?  Do you dream of screened in porches with great flowers?

What's going on at our house

*We had a delightful dinner on the deck tonight.  A little chilly here all weekend, but nice enough that we were able to eat on the deck with long sleeves on.  Classic summer dinner: chicken on the grill, sauteed zucchini and squash, and pasta with pesto.  Oh, yeah, and a bottle of wine.  It went down well :)

*Planning a cocktail party for July at our house.  Figured out a weekend tonight; now it's onto invites, planning the menu, and planning the cocktails.  Can't wait to wear a fun dress and see friends!

*Our peony bush is CRAZY right now.  It smells SO good.  We have cut a bunch of them and brought them into the house.  They're such pretty flowers.  I just wish they bloomed for more than 10 days out of the whole year.

*We need to buy new pepper plants as my seeds never took off, but otherwise our garden is looking pretty good.  We're going to be able to make a crapload of pesto this year as our basil is out of control!

*We've almost figured out SYT's big boy room.  I'm excited about it AND I'm glad we have a while before he has to use it.  It's going to take awhile to put everything into place.

*We spent a lot of the afternoon sawing down dead branches and tearing down bittersweet vines from trees.  They're awful climbing vines that essentially kill the trees they're climbing in.  One of our neighbors came over for awhile and lent us his saw that has a telescoping handle.  It's awesome!  I'm really proud of the work we've done in this specific area over the course of the last few weekends. 

*I'm so glad that I like to work outside and that I love to weed.  Living on the lot size we do would not be a good choice for a couple who doesn't want to devote time and energy to keeping things up.  I suppose you could hire it out, but do it oneself burns a lot more calories and is a lot more satisfying!!!! 

*Our flowerboxes are full of pink and white petunias, and I adore them.  I ccould deadhead petunias all day long!!

*I am slightly obsessed with Pinterest.  Should I be following you?  MMM, you and I must share the same dream house!! 

*Top Chef, can you please come back on???  I miss you.

*Craving chocolate?????  Make these NOW!!!!  One of the best cookies I have ever made.  Soft, chewy, chocolatey, and just downright delish.  People will be begging you for the recipe, I promise!  Even better if you add a little sea salt to the top!

Have a great week, darlings!!!!

SYT's gonna look cute in August!!

I picked these darling lobster shorts up for Spence this weekend.  Won't they be perfect for the Lobster party??  I have been searching and searching for lobster stuff for him, and I bought these as soon as I saw them.  L-O-V-E!!

Knowing that Michigan weather is very, very fickle, I also found a rollneck navy sweater with a red lobster on the front that is by LL Bean on ebay.  I'll take it up north just in case!

My two boys will be soooo cute together.  Cannot wait!

Anyone else love lobsters??

Then you need to buy this from Zulily today!!  It could be the cutest little themed hair clip I've ever seen!!  I just bought 3 of them.  One for each of my nieces to wear to the lobster party this summer.  I have to say that I almost bought a 4th for me, but I restrained myself :)  It's only $6.99, and at that price, totally worth it (even with shipping!!). 

More lobster to come......

Anyone going to a party?

If you are, here are a few cute dresses and skirt for your consideration........

via

via

via

via

via- in multiple colors!!

via

via

I just love pretty dresses.  I wish I had an excuse to wear fun ones more often!  My work dresses are so much more staid than the ones above.  Any other fun summer dresses you love??  Or any great work dresses that you love (and I need to order?)?

Happy Tuesday!!

Pretty feet!!

Have you seen these darling flip-flops?

The bows are interchangeable with any grosgrain or satin ribbon you have.

They come in a range of colors- gold, white, black, pink, navy, green, aqua, yellow, etc.

They have arch support!!

And, while I've heard that the rubber can occasionally rub if your feet get sweaty, it's easy to put a little powder on your feet prior to going out for the day. 

I had the darling pair above and can no longer find them anywhere.  At $30 a pop, they are going to end up on my feet again this summer.  They're too cute not to!! 

Anyone else have them?  Love them?

My newest mascara trick

I've tried lots of different mascaras over time (what woman hasn't??), and I've never been overly thrilled with the results.  In the past few weeks I've tried something new, and since I'm loving it so much, I thought I'd share it here. 

I start with Lash Discovery by Maybelline...

The brush is really tiny so it gets all of the little lashes on the edges, and I feel like it gives all of my lashes a simple coat of black.  I usually do two coats of this.

After that has dried for about 30 seconds, I add one or two coats of L'Oreal Telescopic

This adds some serious length to the already coated lashes.  I have tried this alone, but it works SO much better for me with the undercoat of the Lash Discovery.  Even at the end of the day, my lashes look great.  I've never been as excited about mascara as I have been lately!!  The nice thing is they are both drugstore finds and will often go on sale for buy one get one free, so it's a cheap venture, even though you're using two kinds.

Have you tried either of these?  Do you like them?  Do you have a different favorite?  Do share!!