me and vapo-rub

Boo! Instead of enjoying my last two days of 2013 doing fun things, I'll be spending it in bed, trying desperately to avoid barfing (and failing: twice yesterday) and fighting a gnarly cold as a pregnant person, which is to say SUCKY, 'cause you can't take any medicine. I haven't been able to sleep much since I'm so stuffed which is cruel since that had been my favorite part of the past few weeks since it's the only time in the day when I'm not super nauseated.


Anyway, feeling pretty sorry for myself at the moment. Say a little prayer for us two if you think of it. I'm supposed to go back to work on the 2nd so I really need to get well.

- iPad Post

well i guess it's time to re-paint the guest room

In this photo I just gifted my mother a picture frame and in said picture frame, an ultra-sonic photo of her 4th grandchild. This grandchild in particular belongs to Matt and myself.

Yes blog, it's true. The room that is now the guest room will have to be re-painted to accommodate one baby, estimated to arrive in early July, 2014.

Mom is thrilled. We're all cry happy.

are you guys ready for x-mas?

Are you ready for Christmas? I'm ALMOST there. 90% the presents have arrived via the magic of mail (just have two more to go) and I bought my family a few bonus presents in New York last time I was there and those are wrapped and under the tree. Saturday is my last day to wrap things up (literally) and then I'm taking a break to just chill and enjoy the family. On the day after Christmas I'll begin the preparations for the annual HUODmas party. Those items are slowing trickling in from the mail too and I'm pretty excited about putting things together since I'm trying really hard to avoid stressing myself out about this party as I do every year. Matt always has to talk me down at some point and reminds me that the only important thing is that your friends are there to see you, everything else is secondary. With that in mind, I'm shortening the amount of time I have to prep but it's during a time when nothing else is going on so I can focus on getting everything done quickly and thoroughly. 

 

Did I mention my sister Liz is 7 months pregnant? She's having a boy in February, right around a certain aunt's birthday. Anyway, they could only get this weekend off so on Sunday morning we're having breakfast at Dan & Jill's with my family (since La Mirada is closer for everyone than Burbank) and we're gifting Lyla & Liz & Cesar since they won't be able to make it Christmas night. Angie is also going to be with her mom (who is being a pill about being with the family on Christmas day, whatever) so we're taking advantage of the 22nd and giving her all her presents early too. Angie's really into Christmas trees. I had a spare teeny tree I gave her so she can decorate her own little tree at my mom's house and she was so into it. My mom isn't really keen on Christmas but she was happy to let Angie have her own little tree in her room. 

Matt's sister and her family are coming into town on Sunday so it's gonna be a triple dose of family. We're gonna spend the night in La Mirada on the 23rd and 24th and come back on the 25th to feed our starving pooches and have dinner with the family here in the new house. 

I'm feeling pretty blessed at the moment. So much to be thankful for this year and finally having a home to call our own is definitely near the top. Last year around this time we were frustrated about not having been able to find a place and then our offer was accepted and before the year ended we were on our way to being home owners. We've been so happy in our home, with our shorter commute, our new neighborhood, it's been a great move all around.

In case I forget to say it later, Merry Merry Christmas Everyone!

just kidding, i totally also want this for christmas

World Market, unbeknownst to me had a teapot and teacup set on sale in honor of the best thing on PBS. 

Oh the cruelty! I would have bought these suckers in a heartbeat if I'd known they existed!

What am I going to serve tea in for my Downton Abbey tea party in January?!

bunnies

Someone posted a link about how they remove the hair off of bunnies to make angora sweaters. I couldn't read the article 'cause I'd start crying (animal stories make me cry like nothing can) but it just made me wanna say: bunnies are adorable and amazing. 

So maybe… let's not buy anything angora. Huh pals?

my christmas wishlist: one thing

A Roomba. It's a robot vacuum people! You just press a button and it goes around your house cleaning up after your precious kitties and doggies pet hair.

As a bonus I hear it's a pretty fun ride for cats. And it's also a DJ.

new office TV!

My Christmas gift from matt/me to me was a larger TV for the office. It was once again like pulling teeth to convince Matt to get the TV. I honestly don't understand that, he's a man that wasn't super keen on buying another TV for his home. Boggles the mind!

Anyway, there it is in all it's glory. Much bigger and much easier on the eyes for ole EvY. We plugged the Apple TV into it and I can watch old Mad Men and Sex & the City episodes on it. I still want a blu-ray player though so I can watch some movies in here. The PS2 has gotta go.

The last thing two things to buy for the office before I consider it done is a new coffee table and a new light fixture. I think a pretty star outta do the trick.

the laundry room decorations

If you ask Matt, the only tree that matters is the Charlie Brown christmas tree. It found a home for the holidays in the laundry room.

The dogs and cats have their stockings up too.

As you can tell, the cats are thrilled with the decorations as well as their seasonal collars. LJ is the Christmas cat and Gadget has a Christmas themed tie.

Our precious wittle angels.

Have a great weekend everyone. I'm heading to a lunch with my old buddy Gracie and a Christmas party at an old college friend's house. Mini reunions abound.

christmas stuff in the living room

The black and white tree is back up and running. It's right in front of the front window so you can see the lights from the street, it's so nice to see it as I come home.

This year's Target ornament is a little house, in honor of our first Christmas in our new home.

I really miss having a mantle. I also wasn't able to hang up my family's stockings, no room. I think I'll clip them onto their chairs as seating cards come Christmas dinner.

Hung up the black and white pom pom garland again.

The dining area I fully planned to switch to the gold stuff but I just kept it silver except the table.

A few switches here and there to make it festive.

Maybe for the Christmas party I will change it to gold. We'll see...

the burbank office with christmas stuff

To Matt's dismay the Halloween decorations came down and the Christmas decorations went up. The past few years I've whittled down the decorations to the basics and seeing them around our new house, our smaller new house I believe I've done it. Enough Christmas things to let you know 'tis the season but not enough to make it feel like elves barfed Christmas everywhere. No barfing please.

Sadly, this guy's getting kinda yellow. It's a bummer.

I'm planning on wrapping a few presents in pretty bright colors and putting them up here next to the trees.

I really need to get on the Christmas shopping and Christmas party planning.

thankful

So much to be thankful for. Thankful for our home. And for Urban Outfitters being walking distance.


Where one may obtain Mr. Hanky Christmas ornaments.

Saturday is the big deck the halls day. Wooooooooo!

- mobile blog post. spelling irrelevant.

guest bath little snippets

We're ready for people to come poop in our toilets.

The little wooden toothbrushes say "guest" on them. I really wanna buy one of those wall mounted toothbrush holders so I can put the toothbrushes and tumbler on them. I think it would look cute.

Today's last day of work for the week. Tomorrow we hang with the family giving them a tour of LA then Thursday & Friday we do the Thanksgiving thing in La Mirada.

Over the weekend: I GET TO PUT UP CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS. I am not excited for that at all. And in answer to your quandaries, I will be putting up all three trees. One in the guest room, one in my office, and one in the living room.

woz-kend

It's a Woz weekend.

I'm gonna kick my feet up and do nothing but sleep and chill. 

Woz understands me.

guest room bedding update

Ah that magical chilly time of year when the bedding gets switched out. As I mentioned, Matt & I got a California King sized mattress so we had all the queen bedding stuff to get rid of so the guest room was the beneficiary. We also have a spare mattress that's going to Arizona for my sister Liz.

I also got a new bedskirt that's a gingham pattern. Dear me how I love grey and white.

Our former striped duvet cover also got the boot so I mixed up the pillow shams with the plain duvet cover and the snowflake flannel sheets AND the gingham bed skirt.

I'm trying to be adventurous with the pattern mixing on bedding. Yeah so wild.

Hey content is content, let's not be picky.

yesterday

I met grumpy cat. The most famous of internet cats.


That's been the highlight of the week. Nothing much going on but work and preparing for the holidays.

- mobile blog post. spelling irrelevant.

the "hannger"

Remember how we have a little garage that was converted into a guest house? Since the Hanns have moved into it we've been referring to it as a "Hannger". It's a teeny thing. The square footage is 342 and while it seemed enormous as a guest house, having a married couple move in with their lives made it feel a lot smaller. Personally, I love the challenges of decorating a small space and lately I've been madly reading the makeover of a lovely blogger named Sara that bought a wee little cabin on Lake Michigan and has spent a lot of time fixing it up and boy howdy is it adorable. Having spent a few summer days in Chicago right near Lake Michigan I completely understood its appeal and have I ever mentioned my secret wish to someday have a little cabin by a lake? It's true. Something appealing about   being away from it all but with the conveniences of a little home that just has the bare necessities…

Here's the floor plan and what she's done with the place in images that pretty much speak for themselves.

The little kitchen is particularly inspiring. Especially those gorgeous open shelves with the perfectly styled everything. Not to mention the adorable 24" range that would be perfect for the Hannger.

Where's the fridge you ask? It's that shiny two drawer thing to the right of the oven. Even the fact that it has a tiny little fridge I love. You'd only buy the absolute essentials. Milk. Butter. Eggs. Ice Cream.

And then she has an outdoor deck/patio with a big ole dining table for a big group.

Can't beat that view though. DANG.

It really makes me wanna fix up the guest house but I suppose there's other priorities in our house (not to mention the back yard) that are taking precedence.