Sister!

I don't know about you, but I live to eat and I especially love dessert.  Well, I was shocked to find out a few years ago that one of my sorority sisters (Go KKG!) had opened a catering business, The Hospitality Sweet.  I don't remember her serving us delicious homemade goodies when we came back from class.  

I decided to forgive (and pretty much forget) my lack of college freebies and have used her for the monster's birthday goodies... and basically any chance I get.

Her designs are ADORABLE and even better they taste delicious.  I was so happy to fete her last summer when she opened the London Cafe within Timothy Oulton.

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And I am even prouder to tell you all about her first full service shop, The Hospitality Sweet, in Downtown Dallas.  I was lucky enough to attend her preview event, but it officially opens to the public THIS Monday, the 29th.  I cannot recommend Meghan enough.  

Her cake balls are da bomb and her lunch menu was spectacular... again, why didn't she feed me during our college days?!? :)

This is Kevin, the barista.  Hootie is obsessed with him and might have a new favorite man crush.  I wonder if this is why he has been growing his beard out?

Please go try it for yourself.  I promise you will love it.  Congrats, sister... so proud!

Cheers,

Jessie

Extra, Extra... Read All About It!

Apologies, I didn't mean to take a mini-hiatus, but that's just what I did.  Combine one part girls weekend + one part sick monster = Overloaded mama!  Regardless, I was able to do a little magazine catchup this weekend which got me to thinking... what is everyone reading?

This is not about great, life-altering literature.  I'm talking about the relaxing and not really using my mind literature... i.e. Us magazine.  So I thought I would provide you with a top 5 list of everything you should be reading, but maybe aren't. (Blasphemy!)

#5. People StyleWatch - InStyle has decided to try too hard to be like Vogue and Vogue is too unrealistic for everyday life.  This is the perfect balance.  Give me a list of products under $100 and I'm there!

#4. HGTV Magazine - While I could do without Vern Yip, I do actually really like this magazine.  I think the ideas/ products/ rooms are livable and workable.  I think the DIY projects are doable and it has not yet been overcome by ads.  (We'll see how long that lasts.)  

#3. House & Home - Let's be honest.  Everything is cooler when it is foreign.  I realize this is a Canadian publication, but somehow that gives it a leg up on its American counterparts.  It is modern and cool without being stark and boring. 

#2. House Beautiful - Old faithful... the rooms are beautiful and inspiration is everywhere.  For the most part, it is all about the traditional with a twist.  It's a classic in my book.

#1. Domino - This is the best magazine you never read.  Yep, you heard that right.  This magazine is no longer in publication, but it lives on through Special Edition issues.  If you haven't ever bought one, then go get one and see what I'm talking about.  They just do it right!

So what about you?  Any suggestions on what is missing from my reading room... please don't suggest War & Peace!

Cheers,

Jessie

That's A Step Up

The time has come to allow the monster slightly more freedom... such as washing his hands and pretending to brush his teeth.  However, this requires a stool - a necessary evil in my book.

Of course, I didn't want any plain jane stool.  I wanted something cool and not too kiddish.  I looked at a few different options...

Love the turtle, but didn't look like the sturdiest option.

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Cute, but didn't just love it.

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After some debate, I decided to forgo my initial findings and opted for the Ikea Bekvam stool which could be easily painted.  

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Which lead to this... 

 And then this...

 And of course this...

 Which left us with... the world's tallest step stool!

Unfortunately, it is a little big for the monster right now, but I think it will be an excellent stool for the kitchen once he can handle sharp objects.  So for now we are back to this...

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What can I say?  I'm on a roll these days.  :)  

Cheers,

Jessie

Let's Try That Again...

Ever make a mistake? Yeah, me too... and it kinda sucks. (Sorry just being honest.) I feel like I have had more than my fair share lately. Let's recall here and here.

Regardless, you gotta dust yourself off and try again. So that's what I did when I ordered our new bedroom rug. It was actually a VERY belated bday gift that was backordered forever, blah, blah, blah. You get the picture. So I was thrilled when it showed up as we were moving back into the house!

I'd been dying for an overdyed rug, but didn't want to pay for the original.

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So I was thrilled when I came across this guy. I wanted a semi-neutral colorway since our bedding is already a little crazy and I liked the subtle pattern. It was traditional without being stuffy.

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Well, that isn't exactly what we got. It turned out to be pretty green with streaks of pink throughout. You can see it a little bit in the photo above, but it was quite apparent rolled out in our bedroom. (Sorry, there wasn't a whole lot of photo taking while I unpacked the house!)

One pricey shipping label later and the original choice has been returned. I'm still debating my options, but feel a little gun shy at the moment. Anybody else want to foot the bill for my mistakes?  No?  It was worth a shot.

I guess I'll just continue with my window shopping for now.

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Cheers,
Jessie

Pillow Talk

If you'll recall back to one of my first posts regarding the gallery wall, the addition of black and white canvases was making me feel blah in combination with our neutral pillows.

After going on a little fabric finding expedition, I decided to cut loose and go crazy with color.  I wanted something bold and bright... and could possibly hide throw up stains. (I'm just sayin' it's a reality these days.)

While we were out of the house, I had some larger pillows made.  We made the jump from 16" squares to a very impressive 20" square.... side note, in order to make your pillows look fuller (i.e. more expensive) use the next size up insert to fill out everything and give you that great "chop" in the center.

Without further adieu, may I introduce our pillows!

I wanted a clean shape so I opted for the knife edge instead of a cording or pleat of some sort.  To break things up, I selected a large scale pattern - the ikat, a medium scale pattern - the floral and a solid with ribbon trim.  That way there is some variety, but they don't complete with each other.

I decided the overly manly leather chair needed a little sprucing up as well so he got a cute little lumbar pillow complete with monogram!  (I seriously think I might have a monogramming problem.)

Anywho, the new pillows are just what I needed to brighten things up a bit.  Now to sell the old ones on Craigslist!

Cheers,

Jessie

Rub-A-Dub-Dub

With the rain bringing my spirits down, I thought I would share one of my new found happy spots.  Our bathroom!  When I decided to have new pillows made, I thought I would throw in a shower curtain just to spice things up a bit.

I made a spur of the moment shower curtain decision when we moved into this house almost five years ago and I've regretted it ever since.  While there was nothing particularly terrible about my choice (dark brown with circles), I was just unhappy with the lack of planning and the dark color palette.  Fast forward a few years and I was ready for a change.

If you recall back to this post, I fell in love with several fabrics from City Craft and decided that this was the source of my new shower curtain.  After adding a little flair with a mint border and some ribbon trim, we are left with this...

I love the fresh colors and bold pattern.  Nothing says good morning like a sassy print!  Just to keep the good feelings coming, I even upgraded the shower caddy to this cute little number.

Just don't mention to Hootie that I think we need new bathmats now.  

Cheers,

Jessie

Taking Shape

Well, it only took a little over 4 months and a lot of nagging on my part to get the gallery wall in our bedroom hung... and I'm in love.  Before I go showing you the after, let's reflect back on its humble beginnings.

I know.  It didn't look like much.  Hootie had his doubts as well, but I could see it developing and knew it had great potential.

Fast forward a couple of months and I was ready to bust out the graph paper again.  I'm telling you that this is the best way to hang a large grouping.  Just trace out each picture, cut them out and paste them on the wall.  You have instant hanging measurements.  Genius!

With all that said and done, may I present our newly hung gallery wall...

The beauty of it is that I can continue to add to it as I find new little treasures.  Currently, it consists of a few family photos, 2 incredible paintings by my new friend, a love letter, a silhouette and a family needlepoint.  (The last one really had Hootie in a tizzy, but I think he knew better than to question it.)

Anywho, I am happy with the progress and I'm sure you all are happy to see that we have actually been putting things back together in our house.

Cheers,
Jessie

Back In The Swing of Things...

It's been a long couple of weeks, but I think we've turned a corner and are settling back into our normal routine.  We hosted the monster's birthday bash this weekend... complete with a pirate photo booth (think sad homemade crafting at its best).

So while I continue to polish off the rest of the bday cookies, I'll leave you with this image of our fun celebrating my favorite 2 year old!

Cheers,
Jessie

PS - I promise lots of new pics this week of the built ins, gallery wall, etc!

The Happiest of Days

I don't know about you all, but I ate my weight in candy yesterday!  Seriously, I think I have a problem.

But enough about my lack of self control, I am popping in today to wish a very happy #2 to my favorite monster!

It is unreal that he is already TWO years old!  Long gone are the days of my newborn or even baby...

They have been replaced by a toddler who is funny, kind and downright crazy most days.

You are my BEST accomplishment and I love you more than you will ever know. (Now stop growing!)

Cheers,
Jessie

PS - I cannot forget to also wish my favorite niece a happy birthday as well!  She's the reason I knew I could love a little monster of my own.  Happy birthday to the bday cousins!