Little List

1. I am extremely lucky to be married to Jus. I am even more lucky that he is my baby daddy. He has been so understanding during my pregnancy and never gives me a hard time for sleeping until noon or laying with a heating pad while he's working on the house. I can't believe that this little person growing inside of me is going to be part him. I'm the luckiest girl in the world.

2. After loosing sleep the other night while worrying that we'd never be ready for LBL I'm proud I announce that I purchased diaper rash cream & two hooded towels. This feels like a huge accomplishment. Plus the towels are adorable.

3. Are you as addicted to Draw Something as I am? I'm colekbl if you want to play!

4. I hate spring. I loved last week when it was warm enough to wear dresses & flip flops. I hate that we're now bundled up under the covers waiting for it to be warm again. (but at the same time this sort of scares me because when it's warm enough for dresses & flip flops that means I'll be a mom)

5. They started building our kitchen cabinets this week. I can't wait to have a kitchen, I'm looking forward to making myself tomato soup & macaroni & cheese (plus fancier dinners.)

6. I love baby kicks. Even though LBL has been taking aim at my ribs lately I absolutely love feeling all of the wiggling around. I don't know if I'll even get tired of them.

7. Lately I've been going thrifting every week hoping to find vintage baby clothes. I love when I find homemade sweaters.

8. Jus & I finally got to see the Hunger Games, we both really enjoyed them & Jus immediately declared that he should read the books.

9. I'm getting so close to my 3rd trimester. I can't believe it. I've been working to get the rest of the pieces for the nursery but am having trouble finding the right rocker.

10. I missed blogging about my mom's birthday this weekend. I promise I wished her a happy birthday in real life but thought I had to post it here too. I'm so excited to enter motherhood and be able to share another experience with my mom.

Little List of Things I'm Loving

Buying paint samples.

We're trying to pick a color for the mudroom and I think I want to go with mustard but finding the perfect shade is tough so for the first time ever I bought paint samples, unfortunately I think I struck out with all three.

Missoni for Target.

I'm sure this isn't a surprise, as everyone's in love. I didn't make it to Target until after work on Tuesday so I missed a lot of the clothes and other cute stuff but made sure to

Ice Cream Tasting Parties.

One of the benefits of working at a restaurant is that every once in a while that restaurant looks for new ice cream distributors and you get included in taste tests.

Apples.

It's started to feel like fall this week and I couldn't be happier. I have the strongest desire to go and get some McIntosh apples.

Matching Jammies.

The cooler nights mean that I can break out my matching jammies, throughout winter I live in these jammies. If you don't own some you're defintely missing out. Go and get yourself a pair now.

26 Things I Love

Today is Day 1 of my birthday week. Tomorrow I officially turn 26 and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a good year.

To kick off the birthday celebrations I thought I'd start with 26 things I love.

Jus.

Our little life in our big Behemoth with our girls.

The rest of my family.

And my friends (and bloggy friends!)

Taking long drives to nowhere with Jus & then discovering a yummy dinner spot.

A good book.

Caffeine, coffee in the morning & diet coke in the afternoon. (I've been trying to cut back but it isn't easy)

Changing seasons. Isn't it funny that the seasons always change when you're tired of the old one?

Puppy snuggles (and husband snuggles)

The first time you get to wear a new outfit.

Listening to a song over and over and over.

That people are basically good & kind.

Dancing, anywhere, any time.

Fresh flowers.

Being good to my body (it had been a while since I've been good but I'm back on the wagon).

Creativity, even if it comes in spurts, at least it comes.

Champagne.

Long summer nights.

Laughing until my tummy hurts.

Good food.

Being excited.

Knowing that fall is coming and that soon I'll be able to eat my favorite apples & wear tights.

Clean sheets.

Ice cream, I couldn't forget ice cream.

Lazy Sundays.

Love. I love love & I really love loving things.

Little List

Hello my dears. I've decided I simply must share a little list because it's been too long & my brain is about to burst (plus, I'm pretty sure we're all a little tired of kitchen talk).

1. Banan & I went on a sister date to see The Help. I absolutely loved the book & was a little worried that the movie would let me down, but the movie was such a beautiful representation of the story.

2. I've decided that I don't listen to enough Van Morrison. I'm trying to fix this.


3. This weekend is my 5th (and what I think will be my last) wedding of the summer. I'm not sure if I can tell you how much I love helping couples make their days special.

4. My birthday is 18 days away. It's not particularly a big one but it's the first one where I'll be closer to 30 than 20 and that scares the shit out of me.

5. I may have forgotten one or two of my kitchen inspiration pictures the other day.

via

via

6. Jus & I are planning a make up honeymoon trip this winter. We're going to head to the Florida Keys and I would gladly take any recommendations you have.

7. We've been meeting with contractors about finishing the kitchen. It's so flipping excited to be able to have a timeline and know that we are getting close to having a real kitchen. I'm already day dreaming of all the fresh food I can cook, it's been 8 months since I've cooked anything cooked anything outside of a microwave, and it's been 4 months since I've microwaved anything.

8. Jus & I have decided that we won't be getting another Basset Hound puppy. It's a little sad but definitely the best option.

9. I really hope you have been enjoying my posts about the kitchen, I love sharing more of what's really going on in our little life.

Lovin' Lately

As we've gone to decorate the walls of the Behemoth I've realized that I am more and more drawn to collections on walls.

I'm not much of a collector of little things, I've never collected dolls or toys or buttons but when it comes to hanging things up I dream of collection upon collection upon collection.

via 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Lovin' Lately

I've decided to revamp the Little List concept a bit, perhaps a little less random, a little more structured. Instead of being a little list of things I'm loving my posts will now focus on one major thing I'm loving.

And right now I'm loving Little Miss Edie Sedgwick. Even though she can be a pain in the butt she's a snuggle bug & sweet pea and about as cute as can be.
(Plus, there's nothing better than a Basset Hound captured by a DSLR)

Little List

1. Today is your last day to enter the giveaway. If you haven't entered go ahead and enter now!

2. I use a lot of terms of endearment but for some reason Honey is not one. It's not that I have anything against honey, I like it in my tea and I like sweet words. Baby Cakes, Sweet Pea & Sugar Plum fall in my lexicon but Honey not so much.

3. I spent the weekend helping Banan babysit the twins she nannies. Watching adorable two year olds does not help getting rid of baby fever. Also, forgive me for the crazy baby pinning on Pinterest, I've been hanging out with too many cute babies.

4. I think catching the ice cream truck is one of my favorite things about summer. The jaunty tune followed by bomb pops is perfect on a summer evening.

5. Recently some of our friends got a new house. Not a new, new house but a new to them house. It made me slightly jealous to go over to a house that didn't have 1002 projects that need to be done. Most days it feels like the Behemoth will never be done.

6. The other night Edie brought her toy to bed with her. I'm not sure if she thought we were going to play but she really is a stink pot.

7. Have I mentioned that you should enter the giveaway? Cause you should.

8. Yesterday one of my readers asked about my strapless bra situation. I suppose that since I post weekly photos of my outfits I shouldn't be surprised when questions arise. If you have any questions about my fashion style (or lack there of) leave a comment and I'll put together a post answering your questions.

9. Last Friday I was listening to Jus's radio show when I heard one of my new favorite songs. When the song ended and Jus dedicated it to "his pretty wife" I just about melted.

10. Then he melted me even more when I came home from work on Saturday and got the best gift ever.

I know, I'm an incredibly lucky gal.

Little List

Hello my lovelies.

It's been a little while since I've done a little list and I couldn't think of a better way to spend my Tuesday.

1. Summer is here, I know my slightly stylish post looked like we were freezing but warm weather came with the first week of summer.

2. Speaking of which, is there anything more delightful than sitting outside on a warm summer evening?

3. Ok, an afternoon date for ice cream might be more delightful but I can't decide.

4. I spent all day yesterday cleaning up one of our extra bedrooms. In the 6 months Jus & I have lived in the Behemoth we've painted 9 rooms & only set up 7, four of which are bathrooms. I can't tell you how nice it is to get another room set up.

5. Now that a guest room is set up we're in desperate need of curtains. I'm thinking of buying fabric & having them sown into curtains. I've had the fabric for the living room for a while but have yet to get curtains sewn.

all fabric via

6. I've been craving iced tea lately but I haven't been drinking nearly enough. I need more Arnold Palmers in my life.

7. The people we got Edie from just had another litter of puppies. I'm trying to convince myself that we don't need another Basset Hound.

8. Warm days make me wish that we had a pool in the back yard. I can't tell you how many times a day I would run out back and jump in the pool if we had one.

9. Last week I finally got around to getting new art for our bathroom, or should I say making new art.

10. I ended up making an extra painting that I would love for one of you lovelies to have. And cause I love you oodles I thought I'd give you lots of ways to win this giveaway.

To Enter this giveaway:

Tell me where you'd hang this painting.

For an extra 6 entries: 

         (Be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry!)

1. Follow Adventures in Love & Happiness

2. Follow me on Twitter and Tweet about this giveaway

Feel free to use this tweet!

I just entered to win a painting on @colekbl's blog! http://bit.ly/lbkacs

4. Like Adventures in Love & Happiness on Facebook

5. Blog or Facebook about this giveaway

You have until June 28 to enter! Good luck my lovelies!

Little List of Love for Summer

Hello my darlings.

I hope you had a wonderful long weekend. This weekend reminded me of how wonderful summer really is and all of the things that make summer lovely.

1. Spending time at the lake. Growing up in the Midwest I learned to swim in lakes, I love lake swimming and the exhausted feeling that comes at the end of a day of being in the sun & water.

2. Reading outside. Whether its on a boat, hammock or porch, feeling the breeze blow as I read is hard to beat.

3. Summer feet. Brightly colored toe nail polish encased in sandals are pretty much my fave.

4. Ice cream. Lots of ice cream, after every meal.

5. Warm nights. Jus & I have an ongoing argument discussion about the benefits of air conditioning versus open windows.

6. Sunshine. We live in a very grey area of the world. For 5 months of the year life is grey so when the sun finally shines it's hard to beat.

7. Fresh flowers. Our giant peony bush has opened and they're gorgeous. All of our regular peonies are close to opening & I can't wait to fill our house with fresh flowers.

8. Fresh fruit & veggies. We've been eating like crap now that we don't have a kitchen so I'm planning to stock out fridge with fruits we can eat raw. And fill our freezer with blueberries (my second favorite summer snack).

9. Barbeques, bonfires & get togethers. Cold weather turns Jus & me into hermits and warm weather brings our social sides out.

And for the sake of being fair, one thing I don't like about summer...

10. Forgetting to take Baz Luhrmann's advice and not wearing sunscreen. I absolutely forgot about sunscreen yesterday and am paying for it today.

What are your favorite parts of summer?

Little List

1. First off I want to apologize for my continuous lack of commenting on your blogs. Life is crazy right now but it should mellow out in a couple of weeks.

2. Last week I met a little girl named Sloane. Sloane reminds me of Ferris Bueller's girlfriend so it automatically sounds very 80s to me. Very awesomely 80s.

3. Lately I've been craving dessert every single night. Unfortunately our entire house is empty of dessert and most nights I'm too lazy to walk down the block to CVS. The dessert & laziness are probably directly related.

4. I have waged war against our garden. There are scrub trees & myrtle everywhere. I've been yanking everything up in an effort to let the peony & hydrangea bushes. In the last couple of weeks our garden has gone from looking like this, to looking like this.

5. Our neighbor has two of the biggest peony bushes I've ever seen. You can imagine my delight when I realized we had one that was just as big in our back yard. And not only that but it's surrounded by hydrangeas!

6. My life is all about flowers right now. I'm currently making dozens of paper flowers for my next wedding in a couple of weeks. Planning weddings allows me to do all of the fun things I didn't get to do for our wedding.

7. Strawberry shakes are my new fave. Jus used to get them all the time and getting a bite or two every once in a while got me hooked. The only flavor of shake I like more than strawberry is raspberry.

8. I take that back. Arnold Palmers are my new fave. I definitely think 1/2 iced tea 1/2 lemonades will rule my summer.

9. I'm really proud of the hard work Jus has done to make the Behemoth our home. I know I've done work too but to see what he can accomplish in a day is wonderful.

10. Stop back by today for an extra special surprise. I've been wanting to put together something fun for my bloggy friends & can't wait to share it with you!

Little List

1. Last week was the third time I've been sick in 2011. Not exactly something I want to brag about. But with sickness comes extra special treatment from Jus. I can't tell you how special I felt when Jus walked into work with a raspberry milkshake for me.

2. My little sister, Banan, is home from college for the summer. I'm pretty excited to get some sister time in.

3. We've still got a long ways to go on the back yard. I've dug a ton of trees out of the flower beds but there are loads more to go. Once the other beds get cleaned I'll start planting flowers.

4. Thank you so much for all of your sweet comments about my outfit posts. I feel a little silly posting pictures of myself and even sillier taking them. If anyone has any suggestions as to how to get Jus more comfortable taking pictures of me I'd love to hear them.

5. Etsy has been incredibly dangerous to my our checkbook lately. There are SO many things I want to get but I'm trying to remember Jus doesn't like handmade headbands as much as I do.

6. This weekend I'm doing decor for a wedding. The venue is pretty ugly so I'm going to pretty it up with some mixed fabric backdrops.

Terrible iPhone picture with terrible lighting but I promise it's going to be pretty

7. We have lots of art to hang. Normally when we get a new piece I hang it right away but we've got four pieces waiting to be hung: some taxidermied butterflies, a watercolor I picked up at an antique shop, an original print I got at a thrift store & a photo I won in a giveaway. I'm a bit of a nut when it comes to having original art so I'm always on the look out and love entering giveaways for art.

8. I'm a little disappointed that so many of you forgot to watch my Vlog Friday post. I mean, Jus makes his first Vlog appearance and we act like goofballs, it's probably gonna win an Oscar or something.

9. I really need to get on dying the fabric for our living room curtains. It's a little creepy to be in the living room right now because all of the windows are so open. I'm planning to ombre the fabric but am finding it slightly intimidating, especially considering that I haven't dyed any fabric since I tie died shirts in high school.

10. I really wish we had an oven. I'd love some homemade mac & cheese right now, but alas, no oven.

Little List

1. Yesterday I had oodles of stuff to do but all I wanted was to continue dining al fresco and attempting to catch up on blogs.

2. I did manage to get some work done in the garden. Our yard is a jungle, seriously, flower beds have more trees than flowers in them. I pulled out lots of trees while trying to keep the peony bush in tact. I broke a trowel & a shovel in the process.

3. I've decided I'm not eating nearly enough ice cream lately. In the summer I require ice cream a couple of times a week and so far we haven't had nearly enough.

4. Yesterday after lunch I decided to stop by my favorite local boutique. Imagine my surprise when I walked in and saw 20 people in line. It turns out they were having a 50% off sale. I got a dress & a belt and while I was waiting to check out I decided on an impulse to buy a dress I hadn't tried on. Turns out it's actually a shirt.

5. Baby fever has been running rampant. I love to think about baby names, hold babies, and look at cuties. We're still not ready for one of our own but they're just so. damn. cute! PS If you want to have a baby name conversation I'm down. I love love love talking about baby names and Jus & I have some unusual favorites.

via

6. I think I'm getting sick again. I'm so tired of being sick, I'm ready to be (and stay) healthy.

7. On the bright side the weather is starting to feel like summer. Mid seventies yesterday meant that I could garden, wear a dress without tights, & wear sandals, pretty amazing.

8. I started ready Gulliver's Travels a couple of weeks ago but am stuck. I haven't been reading as much as normal and this makes me so sad! Are you reading anything good right now?

9. Along with jean & bra shopping swimsuit shopping is my least favorite thing. And what's worse is that I'm in desperate need of a suit this year. I'm toying with this one (I like the shape & color) but haven't worn a one piece since middle school and don't know if I'm up for it now. Plus it's from Newport News and isn't that a mom store?

via

10. I really apologize for the fact that I haven't been able to visit all of your lovely blogs lately. I can't believe how busy I am right now (work has been busy and I've got two weddings in the next month plus a garden to weed) I promise I'll try to get back to a normal schedule soon! I love & miss you all!

Little List

1. I spent this weekend visiting Banan in Indianapolis with my parents so I spent all day Monday thinking it was Sunday and forgot to write a post. (I suck, I know)

2. I am thisclose to buying a pair of Blowfish Shoes Garrens. I've been dying to add these to my closet and this week might be the week I do.

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3. Finding an egg of Starburst jellybeans in Jus's Easter basket was the best treat. It makes me sort of sad to know that  have a year until I can get more.

4. Last Friday I woke up at 4:30 to catch the Royal Wedding. I know it may sound silly but it was totally worth it. It was so much fun to share such a magical event with my twitter friends and to share my excitement with everyone else that woke up so early to see the wedding. I thought absolutely every single aspect was lovely.

5. Speaking of the Royal Wedding. I loved all of the hats & fascinators worn by the guests. I fully think that Americans should pick up this trend and I plan to wear one to the weddings I'm attending as a guest this year. One of my favorites from the wedding was Princess Beatrice's hat. I know I'm probably one of the only people you know that liked it, but I did, so there. Beatrice rocked it and that's all that matters.

via

6. I love that spring time is in full effect. Flowering trees make me wish for one for the front of the Behemoth. I'm thinking a dogwood, or perhaps a magnolia, or maybe even a cherry tree. One of the greatest surprises in buying a foreclosed home is discovering what the garden holds. So far, our yard is full of daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, peonies, chives, & a little asparagus. I can't wait to see what pops up next.

7. I'm not trying to downplay the other huge news from this weekend. What the brave men & women do in our army is no joke. At times like this I'm incredibly proud of our army & leaders. However, I could do without the people on twitter & facebook that are negative one way or another.

8. While visiting Banan we visited two of my favorite places. Midland Arts & Antiques Market and Docs Architectural Salvage. I found a shelf, a sconce, a painting, a picture frame & two glass jars.

Docs Architectural Salvage

9. As you may have noticed I've been blogging once a day instead of twice. This month is super busy wedding wise for me and I find that I don't have the time/energy/creativity to think of a second post every day. So some days will have two, others will have one.

10. Last week we got the email that our wedding pictures are done! 6 1/2 months after our wedding I got to feast my eyes on over 1000 photos commemorating the happiest day of my life. I can't wait to share a full recap with you all!

via Imagination Photography

Little List

1. I have been eating far too much Easter candy. Normally, I never keep candy around so to have an abundance is crazy pants and my self control just can't keep up.

2. I've been working on our back yard. I'm a total dunce when it comes to gardening but one thing I know is that there are several peony & lilac bushes in the backyard. I can't wait to start filling my ball jars again.

3. Jus says that Grace Potter & the Nocturnals is becoming one of the hottest live shows to see. Grace seriously puts on the best show but if you aren't able to see them live I recommend downloading Grace Potter & the Nocturnals Live at the Fillmore. Jus downloaded it a couple of weeks ago and I have been absolutely loving it. I may have been seen rocking out in my car.

4. Have you seen Modcloth's new dog line? I would love to get this bow tie collar for Edie but she's far too girly for that. Plus we confuse enough people as it is with her name.

5. I was looking over Google Analytics yesterday and saw that someone reached my blog by googling "is seventh grade too young to kiss" this sort of delights & disgusts me.

6. I love belly laughs. One of the best recipes for belly laughs is a 6 pack and old friends. Another recipe is to invite Jus over and let him tell you stories about his childhood.

7. I've been scanning pinterest looking for other headboard ideas. I found this lovely driftwood headboard but unfortunately we don't have access to that much driftwood around these parts.

8. Yesterday my mom treated me to a pedicure & manicure. It was the first time since the wedding and I went with one of OPI's new Texas inspired colors, "Big Hair, Bright Nails."

9. We still haven't gotten our professional wedding pictures back (I know, yuck) but I was looking through some pictures my mom posted to facebook from the day and started tearing up. Jus is an amazing person and I am so lucky to be making this journey with him.

Jus & my dad on the morning of our wedding

10. Last night I spent a half hour looking at baby names. Don't get excited and think that we've changed our mind about waiting to have kids. Last week I searched for Basset Hound puppies and we are certainly not adding another to our household.

Little List

1. Every night Jus & I overlap our feet in bed. Sometimes if he falls asleep first he'll move his feet in his sleep.

2. I know I blog about clothes & home goods a lot but in reality I very rarely buy things. Maybe 1 thing every 2ish weeks.

3. The local ice cream shop opened this past weekend. I made Jus take me and I was thrilled to get my favorite combo of raspberry & lemon.

4. I love jammies. Especially when they're paired with lazy Sundays, take out, and Netflix.

5. We've been saving our change for the past couple of months. As a waitress I get a ton of change and hopefully we'll be able to cash it in soon. A DSLR & another laptop top our list of wants

6. I'm still dying to DIY a headboard. I'm thinking a simple silhouette upholstered in white velvet with nailhead trim. Too ambitious?

via

7. I think I should host a DIYing session where all of my lovely blog & real friends can come to the Behemoth and make headboards together.

8. I'm really digging white & nude tights right now. I was a little unsure of them last year but this year I find myself wishing I had more.

9. Last week our friend from Texas sent me a message saying she had seen one of our engagement photos pinned on Pinterest. I was looking more that night and saw another. I know the pictures were on Green Wedding Shoes but it's still odd to see myself on a website I frequent.

10. I'm starting a new series this Friday and I am beyond excited. I've found a way to combine my interests in fashion & home design. I hope you'll stick around to check it out!