Outdoor Living

We spent most of our sunny weekend outside cleaning up the yard.

So I thought this would be a good time to show off our amazing craigslist find a few months back: this pair of Restoration Hardware lounge chaises.



I am also excited to report that the roses in Ava's rose garden her Gramps planted for her on her birthday have already started to bloom.

We still have a long way to go to make the outdoor spaces cozy to enjoy this warm-weather season, but we put a major dent in it and are excited to break it in with the first outdoor get-together soon. (So stay tuned for the invite!)

Ava Elise, You're a Terrible Tease!

Ava is so fun and playful, and she loves a good tease (a girl after my own heart; one of my all-time favorite books growing up was Never Tease a Weasel). Lately she's been doing this prank where she'll say "More!" to tell me that she's ready for the next bite, even though she's really all done eating, so as I bring the spoon to her mouth, she turns her head quickly, resting her chin on her shoulder, and laughs. So I say (in a grumpy old man voice, because that just makes everything more fun), "Ava, are you tricking Mommy?" We go on and on like this a gazillion times, it's a riot.

It reminds me of the first little prank she used to play when she was only a few months old, barely crawling (so she must have been about six months). She would say "Up!" which is what she says when she wants someone to pick her up and hold her, and then just as I bent down to do so, she would crawl away really fast in a fit of giggles. That girl makes my heart melt.

In other news, I went to Baby Boot Camp class this morning for the first time in ages. I almost didn't go because I'm not used to getting up and moving early and we had a different car so I had to install the car seat and get Ava fed and dressed and all packed up, which can take forever so I was worried we'd get there too late. But I'm very happy we did go because unbeknownst to me it was Fitness Challenge Day so we tested squat jumps, pushups, plank, and a timed 1 mile cardio run. And I won the cardio run! I used to be a decent runner but I've only been running a couple times since I was pregnant (if you can even call it running with the baby jogger) but I ran that mile in 8 minutes and 38 seconds!

Funny story though... I was actually just jogging it and chatting it up with another mom, so we pulled up to the finish line together ending up with the same time. Which meant that we had to run another mile to break the tie. We started off jogging together the same way, and she asked me if I wanted to just tie again and split the prize. I said yes, but then a desperately competitive force took over me as the finish line was in sight and I asked her if she wanted to sprint it out to the finish line. She hesitantly said yes, but I barely waited for her response before I was off and at the end of the line. Maybe not the friendliest gesture if I'm trying to make new mom friends. But I think we were both happy that we pushed each other, and maybe I'll share the prize with her in the end, we'll see. ;)

A Modern Day Fairy Tale Bridal Shower Invitation Tutorial

Ava and I have been hard at work on the invitations for Kristen's bridal shower and I have to say, I think this is our best work yet!

We knew we wanted gray chevron stripes and hot pink accents to go with the theme we decided on.

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I found a great downloadable template for the gray chevron stripes and center cutout online. Sorry, I didn't save the source, but I manipulated it quite a bit using Paint (of all things!) so it's hardly recognizable from the original anyhow.

Then I imported the file to PowerPoint and added the lettering there, which was mostly inspired by these beauties (on the left, below) you may remember from here:

I downloaded a font called Baroque Script (available here) for the bride's name and date and other cursive wording. I used Niagara Engraved for the capital letters and Tw Cen MT Condensed for the rest of the lowercase wording.

Once the digital file was prepared, I just ran it off through the printer (we recently got a great, photo printer -- a Canon PIXMA MG5320 -- which has been treating us very well so far) onto 4.5" x 6.5" white linen card stock from CutCardStock.com. (I've done a ton of research over the last few years and this place usually has the best deals considering they trim to most sizes at no additional charge. And white linen is classic and works with most designs. I usually try to order as much as I think I'll need for a while in bulk to avoid multiple shipping charges, which is really the killer in my price comparisons.)

Next, I adhered each printed cards to some 5" x 7" Stardream Azalea card stock using Scotch Super 77 multi-purpose adhesive (which has a really strong smell and makes a big sticky mess, so you may want to do it outside and away from the kiddos) leaving a 1/4 inch trim all around.

Then I just printed the envelopes using the same Tw Cen MT Condensed font for both the return and delivery addresses and the same Baroque Script font for the names (because I like the envelopes to look fancy like that) using MS Word's Mail Merge Wizard (detailed instructions here).

After stuffing and stamping, the last finishing touch was to stamp the key (using a silver inkpad) onto the back flap of each envelope. I played around with several other images on the invitations themselves (like the ring in the No. 38 bridal shower invite shown above) as well as some scrapbooking embellishments (since I loved the flower and ribbon combo around Tori's shower invites above) but this is the only embellishment that made the cut with this design. Simple, modern, with a touch of romantic. Et voila!

A Modern Day Fairy Tale Bridal Shower Planning

As Kristen's flower girl, Ava is helping plan the bridal shower. (It was all her idea, honest.)

The Matron of Honor and I decided on a Modern Day Fairy Tale theme to look similar to this one:

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We still have some planning to do, but we know we want to incorporate the gray chevron stripes with hot pink accents, a little bit of bling, and some softer, more romantic details.

The shower is going to be a brunch at a restaurant so the food and drinks are taken care of, as are the table linens, flowers, menu cards, etc. Which leaves us with the rest of the decor to really set the tone of the event, games, favors, and dessert.

Decor: Scrabble letters and vintage books wrapped in twine (as shown in the tablescape above) and several silver antique keys I've been collecting.

I found this table runner and matching napkins with the gray chevron stripes on Etsy (but I also kind of like the combo in the pic above, so we'll see):

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I've also been collecting various white and silver picture frames that I'll fill with pictures of the bride and groom, epic love quotes, etc.

I think we can also manage a few strings of dangling crystals like these (but not the banner, I'm not really a huge fan of this one and I'm not sure there will be a place to hang one, as much as I love them in general):

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Games: So far, we like this one with the cute he and she silhouettes (with the right colors of course)...

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And it's always fun to see the bride's childhood pictures...

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Favors: Favors always have me stumped. Generally I like to go with something edible. Any suggestions?

Dessert: We're thinking a buffet table with mini cupcakes, Parisian macarons, mini lemon bites, and some pretty candy accents (hopefully ending up along the lines of the candy bar here).

Portrait of a Bride-to-Be: Kristen

I know I promised (here) to reveal the bridal shower invitations we've been working on around here, and am totally prepared to do so now that I know they have safely arrived at their intended destinations, but I feel I cannot expose any more about the upcoming wedding festivities before introducing you to the next lovely lady in my portrait of a bride-to-be series.

I love, love, love this girl and after reading about her wedding in her own words, I'm sure you will too!

Kristen and I have been close friends since high school. (I have Jennifer to thank for sharing her best friend with me.) Kristen is probably the sweetest, most caring, most genuine person I know. She is never less than flawlessly dressed and the wedding details she's shared with me so far reflect her refined and sophisticated style.

(You can see more of Kristen's wedding inspiration on her pinboard here.)

How would you define your style in general (using 3 words or phrases)?
Classic, modern, feminine.

Which celebrity or character in a movie, book, etc. do you feel you most resemble (or want to resemble)?
This is tough. I can say my favorite is Julia Roberts. I love her infectious smile, I love how down to earth she seems and what a dedicated mother and wife she is, even through the glitz and glam of Hollywood. Simple is good.

How would you define your wedding style (using 3 words or phrases)?
Organic, orchard, pure.

What did you dream your wedding day would be like when you were little?
I pictured the full on Catholic Church wedding, packed with people, a full bridal party, followed by a reception in a big dance hall (pretty much the opposite of our current plans!).

What do you anticipate will be your favorite wedding details?
My favorite wedding detail will be the first glance of the ceremony. The moment where I stand there, before my walk, admiring those who made that moment possible, looking at my handsome almost-husband, my closest friends and my dog, all there, with the backdrop of an orchard that makes me feel like I'm home. That and my peony bouquet!

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What has been your favorite part about the planning process?
I have loved following etiquette and design blogs, becoming fully intoxicated by everything wedding. Stopping by the library every weekend to get the new round of wedding magazines, and watching Say Yes to the Dress, even after finding my gown.

What has been your least favorite wedding planning task?
I have to say looking for a makeup/hair team! It's surprisingly difficult and a big decision, plus a very expensive commitment!

Is there a married couple you admire and hope for your marriage to emulate?
Without sounding cliché, my great-grandparents, Ed and Frances Lagorio. They were married for over 65 years, and were the most loving and committed couple I've ever been graced with knowing. Ben proposed, using my great-grandmother's ring, so every time I look at my engagement ring, I am reminded of the strength of their union and inspired to make ours just as special so that when this ring is passed down again, the dignity stays with it.

The beautiful embossed flowers on Kristen's wedding invitations leave me breathless every time I look at them.

Now that you know and love Kristen as much as I do, you'll be more fully prepared to appreciate the fun bridal shower details I'll be sharing with you over the next few days.

Bridal Shower Musts

The beautiful bride-to-be, Tori's bridal shower on Sunday was even more lovely than I could have imagined, complete with the most perfect candy bar (probably the best ever I've seen) and champagne bar (I took serious notes on this one; I think I need to add this to my breakfast bar at home).



Tori has an incredible bridal party with some really creative, talented, and all-around awesome ladies. I was so impressed with how organized everything was (spreadsheets!). This shower was a great source of inspiration for a couple others I'm planning over the next couple months (including Tiffany's here; also see my invitation tutorial and the rest of my planning inspiration for Kristen's shower later this week), so thank you Tori's bridal party!

Baby (and Big Kid) Birthdays

We've been spending a lot of time at birthday parties lately. Everyone I know with kids says birthday parties will take over your life. (I have an enormous family so this is nothing new to me.)

I wish I took more pictures of all the cute birthday party decorations (these mamas did a supermom job), but instead, here are a few of Ava with her beloved birthday babies.

She's so lucky to have so many adoring cousins... Whether they're a couple years or a couple months apart, they will surely be lifelong friends.

Ava is really tight with her boy Luke, but on his special day, he took an enormous birthday bite out of her arm as all the moms (myself included) were obliviously snapping away to capture the whole group. This picture was too priceless not to share, both for the moment it captured (Ava ferociously crying after the biting incident) and also because you can really see all the movement and chaos that ensued as we tried to assemble the nine children for a picture.

Portland Shopping Spree

I figured you might be curious about what I actually purchased in Portland since I was going on and on about the shopping there.

So here you go...

First up is the jacket featured in a horrendous 3-way dressing room mirror iPhone shot:

Houndstooth Jacket from Cache

And then a close-up of the necklace and the rest of the outfit I wore that day (including my attempt at "the half-tuck") in the full-length mirror back in my hotel room:

Golden Bead and Chain Necklace from Cache

I honestly don't think I'd been into this store since shopping for prom dresses in high school, but am so happy something in the window caught my eye (probably the sale sign since I'm such a cheapskate fantastic bargain shopper).

There were a couple other items very close to coming home with me, and I'm having serious non-buyer's remorse for not pulling the trigger on a coral square-neck dress from BCBG and a royal blue striped scarf from Ann Taylor, both on the final sale rack that I can't find online or at the stores at home. :(

Anyway, here are both items worn together:

I think it's hilarious that this picture reveals the camera remote in my hand!

And since I was obviously in the mood for a fashion show, here's the necklace above with the "mom uniform" I've been wearing lately:

Love, Audrey top; Candy Rain tank; Arden B. leggings; Bandolino wedge sandals; Movado watch

The Hundredth Monkey

I just realized this is my 100th post! So I guess I'm just another monkey mommy blogger after all...

Orange Espadrilles

There's a traumatic experience story behind the shoes I'm wearing here that I wanted to share.

We left for Rome early the morning after we arrived in Italy so jet lag was in full swing for Ava especially. Her sleep schedule was completely off so she happened to be asleep by the time the rest of the family was ready for dinner. This meant Alex and I were stuck in the hotel room with her, left to fend for ourselves. We were planning to order room service but it wasn't available so I went out to find some type of food I could bring back (even though outside food was strictly not allowed... shhh).

I went all over looking for any kind of takeout option (which is apparently practically unheard of there). Wandering alone through the dark streets of a foreign city gave me flashbacks of my crazy escapades almost ten years earlier. I even came across an underground bakery that very well could have been the same one where I befriended the baker at 5am and ended up with a lifetime supply of the most delectable cookies in existence which granted me celebrity status in the eyes of a plump Belgian kid who became my sidekick for the rest of the night early morning. (I knew he only wanted me for my cookies but having a groupie was much more fun than binging alone.) My former self would have gone in to find out (those cookies would have been well worth the risk; I have yet to taste anything even remotely comparable) but being a wife and mother kept me focused on my task at hand -- hunting for food to bring back to my pack. So I kept going and finally found a restaurant that agreed to let me take a couple pizzas to go.

On the way back, I realized that in my daydreaming of my past life in Rome I had completely lost track of where I was. I headed in the direction I felt made the most sense (I usually have a strong sense of direction) when all of a sudden I took a step and the strap on my sandal snapped. So I limped along the dark streets, not completely sure I was on the right track, my sandal flapping under each careful step, awkwardly balancing two pizza boxes, and avoiding eye contact with strange shadows lurking in the alleys. Thankfully I was only a few blocks away and made it back to the hotel. I was hoping to discreetly slip back up to the hotel room with my prohibited cargo, but that was no longer an option. The desk clerk must have felt bad for me being such a spectacle so he didn't say anything.

A few hours later Ava was wide awake and screaming at a pitch we'd never heard from her before to the point that her whole body was literally shaking. We were so concerned that we decided to take her to the emergency room. By the time we were on our way out the door (me in my slippers since I didn't bring any other shoes to Rome) she started to calm down. (We can only assume the poor little angel was having a rough time adjusting to the new sleep schedule and the milk that must not have agreed with her stomach.)

I borrowed my MIL's shoes the rest of the weekend (it really is a miracle we wear the same size) and splurged (for eight whole Euros!) on these hot orange espadrilles at the marketplace in Florence in desperation just before we boarded the train for our trip to the beach. They're pretty much the perfect walking shoes. I ended up wearing them almost every day in Europe after.

The Breakfast Bar Surprise

I walked in the door last night after my quick flight home from Portland to a fun surprise.

Alex had not only immaculately cleaned the kitchen but he also bought this fun dispenser for Ava's cereal and set it up next to the espresso machine to create a convenient little breakfast bar. Now we can feel like we're at a fancy hotel's breakfast buffet in the comfort of our own home.

We celebrated by having breakfast for lunch today!

A Mom at the Top

Alex just sent me this article yesterday about how this incredible woman balances her career and her family without either of us knowing that today I would have the pleasure of hearing Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg herself speak candidly about what it's like to be a woman at the top.

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As a career-focused working mother myself, she left me with a lot to think about as I prepare for the next step on my path:

• She recommends looking for growth potential as a number one priority in the opportunities you pursue. You can't go wrong with an upward trajectory.
• Clear communication, she proclaims, has been one of the most important skills to her success in a leadership role. Being approachable (which Sandberg very much is) and simplifying your language will ensure your message is clearly received and carried out. The truth is often buried beneath complex and convoluted language, she says.
• Sandberg suggests humbly accepting your shortcomings and claiming them in a way that's receptive to feedback before others point them out for you (because they always will).
• Another leadership tip? Hire people who complement you and your strengths and balance you out rather than people who have the same skills as you. The same holds true in marriage.
• I thought it was so appropriate that she attributes her success to marrying someone who pulls half the weight at home. (I will undoubtedly reiterate this to Alex often.) When managing the household is evenly balanced, both partners are equally able to focus on their careers rather than just one or the other.
• She spent a good portion of time talking about the challenges women face in the workforce today. I thought it was interesting that they're generally not the externally-imposed ones of the last generation, but are internally-imposed, meaning that most women don't succeed to the degree men do not because the opportunities don't exist but because women aren't as ambitious as men (mostly because of the double-standard that ambition is seen as a negative trait in women while a positive one in men).

I'm proud that Ava and her generation will have strong, devoted career moms like Sandberg to inspire her and help drive her to achieve success both at work and at home.

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To the Nines

Portland has to be the most underrated city! I've been here a couple times before but I have been loving this little mini-retreat more than I expected. (Of course I'm still homesick but making the best of it as I promised myself I would.)

The sites around Portland:

One of the many warehouse lofts/storefronts I admired on my walk to the office in the awesome Pearl district.

An adorable Asian-inspired storefront with really cool wooden fencing. 

The Pioneer Courthouse facing Pioneer Square, with this really cool chaotic street sign.

The square across the street.

A food truck foodie's haven with blocks full of all different types of food stands.

Window shopping: Did you know that Portland is the greatest place to shop? I didn't, but now I do. Here's why:

• No sales tax.
• Crazy sales going on right now (and I was just in the same shops at home where half the store was not marked 60% off already reduced prices).
• Amazing cute boutiques and vintage/thrift shops where you can find stuff you can't at home.

I just have one little piece of advice if you would like to take advantage of these attributes of Portland on your next visit and you have only one evening to fit in all of your tax-free purchases: Go to the small boutique shops first (they close at 6pm), then the larger chain stores at the Pioneer Place mall (which close at 8). Do not make the same fatal mistake I did and go to what's closest first. (Then, like me, you may be reduced to peering longingly through the windows of the smaller boutique shops and make the homeless man, who is so clean cut and high class for a homeless man he looks like a regular guy eating a sandwich on the sidewalk, move out of the way so you can take a picture of all the treasures that will not be yours.) Portland is wonderfully condensed and walkable as it is so if you have to make a few loops and then circle back to get to the shops you like best in the order they close, so be it.

Checking into the Nines... I had the choice between two hotels the company I'm traveling for has a corporate rate with, and I am SO happy this one was listed first even though the other is closer to the office because it is fantastic! I am loving every single detail of the decor; it is so my style, and perfect for my self-indulgent little overnight away from home. (Oh yeah, did I mention I'm actually here for work? So I guess it's not that self-indulgent, but again, making the most of it after hours.)

The hotel is in an old department store building so it's right downtown, close to everything.

Outside the elevators on the 12th floor.

The Club Lounge with a balcony overlooking the center of the building with skylight.

Pretty chandelier and rounded corner just outside the suites.

The hallway just outside my room. Beautiful shimmery "dressing room" wallpaper and coordinating carpet.

Full-length mirror in the hallway in my room.

My mini bar.

My beautiful bathroom and vanity.

My upgraded king size bed!

My view to the left.

My view to the right.

Of course I had to finish off the evening with room service... Who wants to eat out alone?