barn door.

couple of things: barn doors INSIDE? yes please. (they lead to a home office-- talk about a way to go to work!). hardwood floors are gorgeous. never thought i would admire an antler chandelier, but oh heavens that's cool. and all that natural light coming through the front door brightens everything. found here.

dinner for new parents.

last week, we took dinner to a sweet navy family that just had their first baby boy. in the basket was: my favorite tomato, basil and mozzarella wheat penne, a baguette, awesome grapes, a bunch of chocolate and a bottle of wine. recipe for pasta and more photos when you click through, but it got me thinking, what are some great meals to take to new baby families? anything you love making or that you received?

Click to read more ...

bright pink (really).

oh i LOVE this and it's sold out, but still so, so fun.

love this.

found here, via here, via here (a new blog i love!)

weekly bunch of peonies.

the only bad thing, flower wise, about getting married in november is it was impossible to find peonies. that's why my heart jumped over the moon when i saw this from terrain: a weekly bunch of 'em. listen to this description:

"we’re excited to announce a partnership with Styer’s Peonies for terrain’s Weekly Bunch program. Beginning this week, we’ll be offering a changing eight-stem bunch of lovely Styer’s peonies for $28. Some of the bunches will be mixed with peony varieties not otherwise found on the market, and others will be single variety bunches..."

p.s. i'll be happy just to see photos of the bunches!

p.s.s. you should check out terrain's amazing store

p.p.s.s. what's your favorite flower to have in your home? how often do you get them?

my parents meet for lunch sometimes.

last week, i called my mom during the day to ask her something quick and she said, "oh honey, i'm about to meet your dad for lunch." maybe it's because i'm a newlywed giving lots of thought to what makes a good marriage (and my parents have an amazing going on thirty-one year marriage), but this stopped me in my tracks. they eat breakfast and dinner most days together and yet, when it works, every now and then, they meet for lunch. when they were newlyweds, they would meet at the city market downtown with packed lunches. i love that.

ryan, see you for lunch in thirty some years and lots of times in between.

(photo is not my parents, but super cute and in a kitchen! can be found here.)

standing by.

i'm only six months into being a navy wife, but there's been one book that's really helped me think about (and talk through with ryan) what this adventure is going to be like. it's called standing by: the making of an american military family in a time of war. written by a navy pilot's wife (her husband flies prowlers), it's an incredibly honest, genuine and funny memoir. her stories on her learning curve as a navy wife, going through deployments kids (such poignant moments) and the amazing people they met along the way was really affirming. for you military wives out there, got any other must reads? would be so grateful if you shared some titles!

for those of you who aren't military wives, it's an honest memoir on being a wife and mother. it also had me laughing out loud more than i have in a long time while reading (embarrassing my husband as we were on a crowded plane :)

p.s. for a more practical guide (tri-care, moves, etc) this book was great.

good breakfast.

so, i made another batch of this granola over the weekend -- when added to greek yogurt and blueberries (first good ones of the season i've found!) & a little bit of honey, it's dreamy. recipe:

5 cups old fashioned rolled oats

2 cups wheat germ

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup coconut

1 cup sliced almonds

4T vanilla

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup honey 

1/2 cup oil (olive oil or another!)

mix dry ingredients; mix wet ingredients; combine two mixtures well; bake at 250 degrees for 1-2 hours (until dry and light brown), stirring every 30ish minutes; enjoy! xo 

two fun rooms.

happy monday! (here and here)

happy weekend!

alas, the weekend is here! what are you up to? we have no big plans (shhh don't tell anyone, especially mary & ryan or they will plan something!). i'm excited to sleep in, get some solid time with my husband, cook some good food, go to church, finally try out my christmas present and have at least one or two popsicles. i love this photo and this is my favorite popsicle ever.

so, so grateful to all of you who took the t&f survey, if you haven't yet, i would be so appreciative of five minutes of your day, just click here!