Budding

I can't believe how fast time flies... I mean really it is spring already!  

I'm excited.... except for the whole cutting grass thing.  I mean really, who is a fan of that...Not that I have room to talk since I am pretty nerd-y.

There is such promise at the beginning of each season and with spring and all it's buddings... it so beautiful.  This spring promises lots of change for Chris and me. 

Today I am at the Fix with Jasmine star... and that's a big part of the change.  I have been doing wedding photography for years now but I am determined to make it work... to plug on. 

Oh, spring be kind!

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BUWah HA ha

An evil laugh escaped my lips when I received Gussy Sews prompt for this week.  "You played right into my hand!"  I mused to myself looking around directly afterwards aware of how bizarre my behavior must have looked fingers drumming away in anticipation. 

Organization.  Makes me want to Oooo and Aahhh.  I'm pretty sure the rows and rows of plastic, basket and wood organization products was designed just for me (and only me ;P).  Organization is beautiful order in an otherwise hectic and crazy world.  It is the math of the household. You know what I mean.  In math: 1 +1 always  =2.  Cooking is like the spelling of the household: HAHA we tricked you into thinking their are rules!

It is for the rules that I love organization a little too much.  My husband has banned me from buying a label maker.  I told him it would be the best 16 hours I would ever spend.  "16 hours???  See that's what I mean, no label maker for you"

But alas without my label maker I still make due and have a lovely design for everything.  Chris tries to help me put things away.  I just have to smile, for I know that as soon as he is finished I will go back and put them were they "should" go.  I have told him but it only makes sense in my crazy crazy mind I guess.

If I were allowed everything would have it's place, a 0' 0' 0' 0' as Sheldon would say.  But then again my life wouldn't be as much fun if I didn't have a little crazy... I mean really who leaves books on the coffee table?  Crazy talk ; P

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"My Bedroom"

By Rachel Abi

Sounds like the start to one of those "how well do you know this person" games.  Sadly it is not.   

I once heard that when decorating a house the first room you should decorate is your bedroom, to keep a lively... certain type of life.  I do not know who told me this nor if it is true but it makes me wonder.  I have not taken that advice in my home.  We bought a little ranch style home a few years back and have slowly be redoing it and we are almost done: all that's left on the inside is one bathroom, a few small touches here and there (light fixtures mainly), and our bedroom.  It is kind of sad looking right now.  Having just been given a fresh batch of clothes (got to love giveaway bags) it sits in a pile on one side of the bed begging to get organized and used.  There are pieces and parts to the bathroom we have not yet finished sitting around.  When I look around the room I wonder who actually takes that advice.  Not that it is bad advice just that it seems a lot more pragmatic (hence why I did it the way I did... bit too practical for my own good) to decorate the areas to be seen often then where you sleep.   Don't get me wrong I am giddy over finally doing some decorating in my bedroom!  

Do you ever stare and wonder: what should I do?  My bedroom is like a blank canvas... just too many ideas. And no decisions.  If you'd like and have the time feel free to leave suggestions for what we should do!

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Simple decor for the holidays

  This is a great example of my super talented sister in law.  Simple white plates on a simple Christmas-ish table cloth with small apples for a color pop.  Takes only moments but adds so much.  Then it is not just for Thanksgiving: A Thankful Tree.  It is a simple centerpiece that is not only great for the eye but also great for a reminder of keeping a positive thought process.  Take some bare branches fallen or off the tree and make them all about the same length and get some clothes pins and paper... and your pretty much done and it is simple yet looks great!

By Rachel Abi

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Gobble, Gobble

Thanksgiving.  Such a unique holiday.  It is a holiday that is only market by food.  Other holidays are set around food, like labor day and 4th of July but they have other aspects (fireworks and water, generally).  The only other aspect to Thanksgiving then food is family...which in my mind go hand in hand.  I mean really Thankgiving's icon is a turkey: the thing that we eat during the meal.  It is an odd tradition but I'm ok with it if only for how tasty it is!  

What are your family traditions?  What are you doing this year?

By Rachel Abi

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Formal, Casual: just so long as I can eat!

I have always wanted a formal dining room, or really any dining room at all.  When I was little, 3-5 yeas old, my family lived in a pretty big house (compared to the 2 bedroom 1 bath we move into next anyway).  That is the only house I have ever lived in that actually had a dining room.  There is something so nice and formal about it.  Makes me want to host family holidays just thinking about it!  My mind cuts to the thanksgiving scene painted by Norman Rockwell.  The just almost too perfect.  It is like what people idealize about family.  In a reality I don't think that we would actually want our families to be perfect.  Perfect isn't fun.  But when we think about our holidays and how they are supposed to be, our desires can be boiled down to perfect. . . never going to happen.  But in the mean time we can enjoy a wonderful dinning room filled with people you love.

Ps. This is the face I would make if I had a fireplace that big... 

By Rachel Abi

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Sparing and on occasion.

Flowers...  

When I think of flowers I think of a few things, namely: high price, beauty, wonders of nature, weddings and most importantly the 90's.  Yup, I said it the 90's.  I recall most of my wardrobe was made up of floral prints growing up.  It is strewn all across Friends, I mean for the first two seasons you can't go three steps without running across floral prints everywhere.  

Yet despite all the floral print my mother dressed me in as a child, I still like it.  Sparing and on occasion but I still like it.

By Rachel Abi

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Ain't no one like the one I got...

So with the holidays coming I can feel my pants growing tighter just at the thought of all the foods I will joyfully consume!  When Gussy said to say Favorite recipe my mind went whirling... I can make decision and choose when I need to but with food... oh gosh am I so all over the place.  I determined it is cute, no matter what my husband might say.  It is one of my endearing qualities!  

So for today I will feature a recipe instead of really choosing a "favorite".  One of the things that always shows up around the holidays is this Peanut butter pie (my husband LOVES pb).  It was passed down from my dear mother in law.  Each time we make it we make it a little different.  This particular time instead of the traditional crust be tried it with Oreos.  Oh!  I just remembered that I will be able to consume large amounts of a delicious thing called 300 dollar candy... *insert evil laugh*

By Rachel Abi

What are you looking forward to this fall and holiday season?

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Vest your chest!

This week prompt from Gussy:  Favorite accessory?

This took a while, I am a big fan of accessories.  They make little clothes seem a lot!  It is what's so great about accessories.  But if I had to choose on accessory: Vests!  I am such a sucker for vests.  

Maybe its the retro suit feel, or the kind of "power" feel of it, all I know is that it can take a terribly boring shirt and make it awesome in one fatal sweep, no matter the cut or color, buttoned or undone.

By Rachel Abi

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Seeing Red (Inspiration)

Red makes me think of life. Its a color that can make everyday appliances seem fun.  It is a color that makes me want to hear Christmas carols, eat pumpkin pie and enjoy a crackling fire.  It is so silly how many memories can be pulled up by one color.  It makes me think of blood and then of course vampires.  I feel like red is one of the few colors found somewhere in every season.  Anger and red are seemingly the same thing.  Everything about red screams life to me. 

by Rachel Abi

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Mirror mirror, not on the wall?

Do you ever see something and think... I'm not sure if I can do something with that?  Yea, that's me... pretty much all of the time but I figure I can't make it worse and I'm ok with that.  There is no measuring, there is nothing exact about it and since I know that I'm totally ok with pretty much any result.  And this is coming from a person with a pretty severe OCD's... but in my own little messed up world if I don't try and make it perfect it is ok.

So step one: I picked up this mirror in a throw away pile

Next I put a glaze on the frame,  it is a simple clear mixing glaze.  This allows for top coat of paint to be easier to see through and wipe away before it dries.

Let it dry fully before putting on the next coat

Then I put an antique white on top of the glaze and used a rag to wipe up areas to make it look more worn and faded.

What do you think? 

By Rachel Abi

Relax and Chill

"Family Room" makes me automatically think of a musky basement that is only partially finished, just enough that were children to jump around and fall there would be no maiming.  That could be do to my parents "family room"  when I was really little was pretty much that to a tee.  Now, if I were to have a "family room" it would look a bit different.  I would be more of a "den" situation.  I would want couches that are comfy enough to take naps in and be a lot more relaxed "in case".  Have my "entertainment stuff" in there.  It would be wide open enough to play "twister" and work on projects!  It is a room of life and fun... it is chill and relaxed.

This was brought to you by deep thoughts inspired by Gussy Sews!

By Rachel Abi

Manic or Bi-polar

Do you ever feel like you are a split personality?  I do more often then not.  At this moment I ponder over the prompt provided by Gussy sews: Favorite Shop.  This is what causes my trepidation today.  I sit pondering my favorite store.  Other than the obvious, "free" store, too many names pull to the front of my mind.  And the split personality doesn't come into deciding which is my favorite, indecision isn't split in my mind it is the barbarian that forged it's way to control, how it managed to make enough decisions to do that I don't know... maybe it's indecision bored everyone to death.  No, the split comes in the joy and pain that I have at the idea of any store.  The joy of the idea of new things, shoes, baskets, glasses you name it, the idea of simply walking the aisles and envisioning the world where it all these pieces would fit.  The pain comes washing over me at even the whim of an idea to purchase anything.  You see as I have mentioned before I am super... tight.  I'd like to use the frugal but it isn't even close to how I feel about money.  It causes me actual pain to swipe my card, write a check or hand over cash.  When I look around my house I see dollar signs instead of flatware and savings account instead of china.  So the idea of choosing a favorite store... I feel like a manic depressive, washed over with joy only to have a wave of pain. 

By: Rachel

Inspiration by any other name

Inspiration, such an odd word.  It can mean music that references God, it can mean movies that make you cry, it means muse to others.  To me the idea of inspiration in the sense that Gussy: inspirational books.  To me that makes me think of children... not in the sense of having my own but the joy, ease, energy, and imagination!  I miss my imagination!  It could turn a table and chairs into a pirate ship or a cave on a lost island.  Now it is just a place to eat dinner... When was the last time you brought out blankets and sheets to make a secret tent?  When was the last time you wanted a secret tent.  Childhood is an amazing thing because not even if you were locked in at age 8 would you keep the childish joy you have life experience would get in your way.  Thus Peter Pan is my ultimate inspiring book.  I place where a child can live on as a child... what a great thought.

By Rachel Abi

Coveting: appreciating someone else's stuff and desiring it for your own

There is something awesome about "Vintage", just typing it gets me excited as to all the possibilities.  Just a few minutes from my house there is an awesome vintage store filled with amazing household items and a small section of eclectic clothes.  Every time I push through those doors it is as if there are endless possibilities... Well almost, if  I had endless funds ;P.  One of my favorite things to find vintage is clothes.  Due to my proportions the cut of clothes from the 50's and early 60's I have found to be the most flattering... but the price is not usually.  Maybe it is the history, maybe it is because it is in limited supply, maybe it is because they really are awesome... I don't know but oh man do I like them!

Colors, Mash and inability to choose

Thanks for the prompt Gussy... Favorite color.  Makes me think of playing around the playground as a child playing MASH.  "Name three guys...Name three colors..."

As a child I loved red, for my older brother loved red.  Later I decided I would stick with it cause it was easier than trying to choose another.  Years pass and I still would just answer "red" cause... well, why not.  Being truthfully honest I don't know what my favorite color is.  I love bright colors, but then again I love muted colors too, dark winter greys, the jewel tones of the fall... It is easier to say what colors I don't like instead of the colors I do like.  But that's very me.  My husband says that I am a classic "Yes/No" person.  I can't give a straight answer.  I always have to give qualifications even for something as simple "Where do you want to eat?"  I guess it is hopeless for me to pick something as permanent as a "favorite color".

Joys of Imagination

The front porch.

  What does it mean to you?  So many people have memories and dreams of "one day".  I have a front porch... kind of...  We never sit out on it but mainly it is because it would mean setting Indian style on the wood planks, not the most comfortable.

When I think about the front porch I smile at the small bistro set we could have sipping cappuccino why I don't know since i don't like coffee (heretical I know), maybe even wearing a barre and looking out over some cobble stone street.  But that's the whole thing: it's all in my head for as soon as I walk outside and look to my left (it is a small porch, leave it alone) I see planks... that's it.  Whatever happened to my childhood imagination... I guess I use it on the porch?

One day I will have a bistro set, one day I will sit and try to like coffee once again (I should amend this, if you add enough flavored creamer, sugar, blend it and top it with a lot of whipped cream then I'm ok with it... but I feel like it is more of a milkshake then anything else at that point).  I will hold hands with my darling and talk about... well, anything.  I will be bundled with a blanket and scarf because there is no way I am volunteering to sit out in the heat of the south till it is winter, and there is no heat.  (hard to tell my preference on things isn't it?)

Thanks for the prompt Gussy Sews.

Weeds not such a musical fruit

Have you ever seen the scene in Just Like Heaven with Reese Witherspoon is sitting resting her eyes in the midst of that beautiful garden.  That.... is not my garden.

I don't plant, ho (that is what you do to a garden right?)... and I really don't pull weeds.  I'm pretty sure there is a circle in hell reserved specifically for pulling weeds.  It's the devil.  Pretty sure.

In my dream garden, there is no upkeep, no need for planting, no need for pulling weeds, no watering... it just grows beautiful... pretty much anything, just so long as I don't have to do anything.

Don't get me wrong, I really like flowers, vegetables, fruit, things that grow and well... green things.

Thankfully I have a darling husband who likes things that grow.... even grass, he wants to plant grass.  I looked at our yard and said, "what's all that green stuff on the lawn?" Chris smiled and said one word, "weeds".  So he will help me with my like of growing things and flowers but he is ok with the work related to them... even pulling weeds.  God works in wonderful ways!

Thanks for the prompt Gussy!

A day in my life

Thanks for the challenge Gussy.

Well, let's see aside from being awesome what do my days entail?

I wake up in the morning feeling like, well not Pdiddy.  There is no brushing my teeth with a bottle of jack, in fact not much of anything that epic or wrong.  I spend the early morning hours with my dear and darling husband.  The hours following that is a torrid of awesome that is working from home.  I can multitask by handing all of this blogging stuff, cleaning, projects and work.

I am photographer, a wedding photographer specifically.  So my day is filled with looking up new and exciting techniques in photography, practicing, editing photos and responding to emails.  Seeing as I am starting out as a photographer I also help business with their online advertising.  The only thing that would make my day and life better: my husband.  I dream is that our photography business can take off enough that he can work with me all the time.

Then after I rejoice at the return of my dear white knight we start our escapade that is our night.  If we are in luck it includes those we love and loads of fun.

Silly and basic is our rule for life.

What's your day like?

Sunrise, sunset

There is nothing like driving through the night to get to the beach moments before dawn and watch the day come to be.  It is even better when you get to do this with amazing people!  I love the beach for the beauty but mostly and selfishly: it is hot and the ocean doesn't ever get as warm as the pools do here. But a sunrise over the ocean... breath taking.  Next step I got to go to the Pacific and see it set!  We only went for a day trip but since that day trip I don't think I not go in time for sunrise.  So Gussy: I apparently like to watch the sun rise at the beach: who knew... so not a morning person!