Everybody's Working for the Weekend

Or at least I am.

What's on tap: taking my nieces birthday shopping, some Spring cleaning, hanging out with J, and hopefully meeting up with some friends for some much-needed laughter and libations.

Some incentive to tackle my jewelry box via Blue Hydrangea

Ribbon Watch

We're going on Day 8 of the Ribbon Watch, and these babies show no signs of falling out.



No, we're not frilly poodle owners. And the Trixster's not a frilly poodle. (See how excited she is about shopping for down-and-dirty home improvement items?)

But the groomer puts bows on her ears, much to J's chagrin, and this is the first time they've lasted more than 10 minutes. I'm curious to see how much longer they'll make it. (I'm thinking they're going "mysteriously fall off" soon.)

Po-Po-Po-Polka Dot Locket

After my last post, I was falling down the Etsy rabbit hole browsing Etsy for more lockets and came across this:

FreshyFig, $26

Locket? Check
Vintage? Check
Polka dots?! Check Check

Yes, please.

Secret Message

I volunteer in a hospital gift shop Wednesday nights. A few weeks ago I helped one of the security guards pick out a Valentine's Day gift - a heart necklace where the heart opened into two pieces where you can stick a little rolled up love letter inside.

It reminded me of something that's been on my wish list for a while: the letter-in-an-envelope necklace!

BeadinBabe, $32

Say it in Français:

littlewhitechapel, $20

chrysdesignsjewelry, $26

Or perhaps Español:

grigio, $22
I love the clasp on this one!

Or if you're the kind of girl that likes to save on postage, this postcard necklace is quite adorable too:

basilthecat, $20

I would love the ability to personalize the message. Do you think the back could be engraved, maybe at a jeweler?

Or I could just have my honey stick his own handwritten message inside:

anirtak, $14

I stumbled across some empty envelopes for just $2 each. I wonder if I should try my hand at adding a chain:

greenkitten, $3.80!

J & I didn't exchange Valentine's Day gifts (we're trying to beef up the travel fund, which sadly took a big step backward this month paying for some of his tuition and board exams...why they are so friggin' expensive and why we have to pay for one of the exams 9 months in advance is beyond me), but I may tell him I wouldn't mind being surprised with one of these sometime...because we should celebrate love every day, no?

Which one's your favorite? Do you wear any jewelry with a secret message, such as an engraved wedding band?

Hello From...

Cute idea...the Google Map envelope - use as a destination and/or return address.

via Unplggd

8.7" of SNOW...in DALLAS!

The snowiest day ever in North Texas.

Trixie loved it. I need to get the video of her frolicking off of my camera. Look at this squirrel instead. (Incidentally, I don't think she knows what a squirrel or a cat is yet.)

source

It's still falling.

It's so pretty.

I know this is nothing to you guys in the Northeast.

But we never get to see this, y'all.

Off to snuggle under the covers and watch yesterday's Modern Family.

I'll Never Let Go

I agree with the rule c jane passed on about how you shouldn't blog about blogging. Especially if it's to post something that along the lines of "sorry I haven't posted anything yet today, I'll be posting later!". Things like this just add to the ever growing number of unread items in my Google Reader*.

But I'm breaking that rule, because I'm annoyed that I've had some good blog ideas lately that I can't find the time to write. I had a clever (at least in my head) post planned about last weekend, but it's Wednesday/almost Thursday now and it's a little late for that. So instead, here's a little rundown of the minutiae of my day:

• Work - Nonstop. Began with a new fun daily beatdown meeting to discuss why our project's behind, followed by more meetings to discuss issues with said project, supplemented by another daily deluge of emails. One word: Titanic.
  
  I did manage to sneak out of the office for lunch with a friend who happens to work at my company and her last day is Friday. She's going to take some time off to travel across the pond before finding a new job. Lucky.


• Junior League meeting - The topic was on organization**. I signed up for it because that's something I can certainly use more of. While I didn't learn a lot of new ideas (I understand organization in theory, but not in practice), here's a tidbit for you (stolen from Martha): putting chalk in your closet will keep everything fresh & dry. Ta-da!
  
  I killed a little time before the meeting started at the Pier 1 down the street, which I haven't been to in ages. I figured it's easier for me to turn down buying home decor items than it is to not buy clothes, so I chose it over the Gap nearby.
  
  I did wind up buying an ice cream scoop on clearnace for $2.60. (Who knew they had kitchen utensils?) The cashier told me it's too cold for ice cream. Blasphemy. It's never too cold for ice cream. Especially when you're stressed and you want to eat your feelings.

• Talked to J when he got home from call - He has a tough attending right now, but I take that Dr. Tough starting to call J "Chief" and "Stud" as he likes him and thinks he's doing a good job. That + me leaving him a burrito for breakfast tomorrow = he's in good spirits and not totally beat down = me happy.


• Work - That's right, I got to come home and work some more, which is turning out to be a recurring theme. I need a break or I'm ready to drop this like Rose dropped Jack***.

I hope to be back with more interesting (and more coherent) posts soon.

Please never let me go from your blogroll.

* When I checked Google Reader today and it said I had no unread items, I sort of flipped out. And then I told myself that this could be a good thing, a way to start fresh. Turns out I had forgotten to enter my new Google password and I wasn't really logged in, and all of my unread items were there, taunting me to get to them. How do you handle trying to read the entire goodness of blogland? Unfortunately, I think I need to start culling down the list of blogs I read.

** Every other month, the JL offers "fun" topics for meetings that you can attend to fulfill your yearly meeting requirement in addition to the regular topics focusing on community issues, such as domestic violence and homelessness. Is it totally bad that I get all of my meeting credits from the fun ones? They're shorter and we often get free samples. (I got a coin purse/clutch thingy tonight.)

*** Titanic's been playing on TV a lot lately. Have you ever noticed that she tells him she'll never let go, and then she seems to immediately push him into the ocean?

This Pillow WILL Be Mine

Recently I posted about some giveaways to win my dream pillow, and disappointingly, I didn't win. (Drat, in my quest to get an extra entry by blogging about it, I'm sure I reduced my chances. What was I thinking?)

Well, I'm taking that chance again because I my couch *needs* this pillow! Dream in Domestic is hosting a giveaway for any $50 and under All Modern pillow, and of course my glorious chevron friend is available in their store:
It zigs and it zags, and one day, it will no longer allude me and it will be mine*.

If you're not a fan of my love, here are some other fun options I found:

Enter here, and if you win, let me know so I can send you my address. (You're going to have them send it to me, right? Thanks, that's really generous of you!)

* Yes, I could go buy it myself, but I don't have $50. So instead I will be hunting down all pillow giveaways until I am successful. My couch will not let me rest until I bring this baby home.

Vroom Vroom

Having babies is still a "someday", but I will admit that I could look at photos of nursery inspiration for hours. The automobile wallpaper in this nursery found on Ohdeedoh caught my eye today.

James has a baby blanket made in the same Marimekko Bo Boo pattern as the wallpaper, and it has got to be featured in the someday nursery somehow (especially if it's a boy). We just recently got the blanket back - something about a nephew thinking it was his baby blanket and refusing to surrender it - through a super secret mission that involved stealing it from his bedroom when he wasn't looking. (Do not feel bad for him. While smuggling it out of the house was like stealing candy from a baby, he's 8, and to my knowledge has never even noticed it is missing. Muahahaha.)

Unfortunately (in the eyes of my husband), the back of the blanket has been defiled with the name of our nephew written in marker, as well as with the initials of J's brother, who had to pretend like it was his in a blanket show-and-tell assignment back in kindergarten when he didn't have one of his own. Someday, hopefully, the initials of its rightful owner will be added.

What about you? Do you have any keepsakes from childhood that you're holding onto for your offspring?

Room of the Day

This space from (new-to-me) Margot Austin is so calming and cheery to me. Off to check out the rest of her work!

Girl Crush: Lea Michele

Seriously, how tiny is Lea Michele's waist?

Love her and her style! Live Creating Yourself did a great round-up of all of Lea's fab red carpet looks; check it out here.

Hey now, don't you tell me you don't remember me 'cause I sure as heckfire remember you

Once a year the eyes of the nation turn to this tiny hamlet in western
Pennsylvania, to watch a master at work. The master, Punxsutawney Phil, the
world's most famous weatherman, the groundhog. Who, as legend has it, can
predict the coming of an early spring. So I guess the question we have to ask
ourselves today is, does Phil feel lucky?

+

My nieces' birthday is next week, and one of them told me that she can never tell people if her birthday falls in the winter or spring until the Prognosticator of Prognosticators makes his debut for the year.

For their sake, I'm hoping that the large squirrel doesn't see his shadow. You won't, right Phil? Don't you remember doing this every year? So there's no reason to be scared of your shadow like you were the last few years? 'Cause I'm sure as heckfire donezo with the cold weather!

I'm really hoping to catch Groundhog Day on TV tonight. Love it!

Get in Here

February already?! Happy Love Month!

by Christopher David Ryan
18" x 24" poster available here for $20 ($5 off right now with code "THANKS")

also cute in a baby onesie version