Happy Glamorous Friday

Working on finding balance on a Friday. A Mom in an evening gown, I am not, but man, some days I wish I was this glamorous....

source.

Happy Friday. Are you doting an evening gown tonight or cuddling up in some white PJs?

PS this is officially post 500 for this little blog- thinking about doing some big changes around here- more structure and more design inspiration. What do you all think of that??

San Fran Fab

Ok, so this country living, City girl might be totally 100% obsessed with the City by the Bay this week. Please indulge me, I have to share with you a FAB print.

Seriously, it's Fab from Fab.com. Do you Fab? I do, and I love it. It seems to be the hippest shopping site that I have found so far. Today, some sweet things from Honey and Bloom have caught my eye.

This little SF number would look so great in my living room:

San Francisco Rise and Shine and for only $23!

Who doesn't want super cute $11 Calling Cards- these would be a perfect way for me to make more Mommy friends:

I also love that each day of the week has a theme- kids, pets, vintage, clothing, etc- and you can customize what emails you get each week.

Do you want to Fab- follow this link! It's fab, probmise!!

A piece of the Golden Gate?

Yes. Please.

How freaking cool are these pieces of furniture made from pieces of the Golden Gate Bridge!?!?

Amazingly awesome in my humble opinion.

All by the Golden Gate Bridge Furniture Company. I am too afraid to ask how much.

Fall Mantel (Debate)

Hey Everyone, Today I am participating in the Autumn Link Parties: Fall Mantels with Kate from Censational Girl. 

I have to admit, our mantel isn't anything that crazy or super exciting, I dressed it up with less than $10 worth of flowers and a couple small pumpkins (I am really waiting to get on the pumpkin action when we take Sugar Bear to the amazingly awesome wine country pumpkin patch, which hasn't opened yet!).

So that said, I need your help on a design question. Right now the pictures are just leaning on the mantel. My original intention was to hang the pictures, but Mr. Spice likes that they are just leaning.

Here's the debate:

Hang them: It will take up some of the visual space above the mantle and it will free up the actual mantel for more seasonal specific decor.

Example- with the pictures hung, you can add more stuff:

source: One Fell Out of the Cuckoos Nest.

Don't hang them: It looks cool, and it will give you free reign to switch the whole look up whenever you want to?? I like that this mantel looks really similar to ours, but their ceiling looks lower, or is that just a trick of a bigger picture and tall sticks??

source: cleverlyinspired. 

Or do a mixture of both?? 

source: Sweet Something Designs.

I am excited to see what others do with their Fall Mantels. Leaning or Hanging?? I'd love to know your thoughts.

Radar Love

Schoolhouse Electric does it again- LOVE the Radar light. 

Not sure where I would put it in our house, but since it has a cord, I'd love to put it in my square beige box that I call an office on blue or orange!

Sigh, love Schoolhouse Electric.

Other things I want:

For the entrance:

For the hallway in bronze:

And for anywhere, so cute:

And this clock, living room or kitchen??

This is my second Schoolhouse Electric post. I think I am officially obsessed!

Sugar Bear Friday

Just swinging by to say Hiya. Happy Friday!!

Thanks for the all the great back yard suggestions (admittedly, all I did was hose off everything this morning!?).

Also, a HUGE thank you to all you lovely readers for commenting on my work supervising gig. It's still a work in progress. I'll keep you wonderful readers updated.

I am so excited for the weekend. Two great days with my Little Lady. No plans- except a big BBQ and a house full of overnight guests tonight. 

One reason I am loving wine country, on clear mornings there are always gorgeous hot air balloons in the sky. This morning there were six. The most I have seen are eight. So as I walk out the door, I tell Sugar Bear- look it's a eight balloon day!!! She doesn't seem to care too much (yet) but I know she'll love them when she is a bit older. Here they are on there way down. I'll have to get a pic of them high in the sky. So cool:

That said. I have to share with you this adorable pic. Yes, my Sugar Bear is just a spoonful of Sugar and she had soooo much fun hanging out with this adorable cutie when we were in Washington:

And yes, my pint sized lady has HUGE Grandpa size ears. I think it just makes her even that much  more adorable!!

Have a great weekend! 

Backyard Inspiration

So we've been putting off seeding our back yard in case we got a late September heat wave, but with the early morning chill, I think it is safe to start seeding the yard ASAP. It just means watering it a couple times a day- and our back yard sprinklers are NOT on the timer. Bummer.

Another bummer- the yard looks pretty sad, and we are having friends over on Friday night for a BBQ- yes, that's tomorrow.

Just a reminder: Here's where we are on our backyard:

For the yard area, I envision a nice plush grass. A swing for Sugar Bear hanging from one of the limbs on the Redwood in the corner.

And maybe a couple colorful Adirondacks chairs from o.co for $122, yes please.

Or this wood one is sweet, especially at $120:

And here's what I wish our dining area looked like:

I'd love the 1964 corrugated roof to be gone, and a wood trestle in it's place.

Sigh, this isn't going to happen by tomorrow.

But maybe I can hose everything off and at least add some candles, placemats and flowers to the table??

Any other quick fixes that I can do in the next 24 hours?

Little update for the Little Lady

Just a little update in Sugar Bear's room.

I brought in our old office cabinet to hide her toys and hung some Ikea curtains.
  To the cabinet: I hope to add casters to the bottom to bring it off the floor (the air vent is under it)- yet right now it is the perfect height for her to craw to a stand and walk along it.  I also want to make an official seat cushion when I get a moment to sew. To the curtains: I want to add a pop of pom poms along the edge, and some day we will replace the dark blinds with something light.

And because I can't resist. Some serious Baby Bear cuteness. I have her Lovely in my hand, do you think she wants it??

Her official 9 month picture. Showing her gorgeous eyelashes with a little mischief in her eyes!!

Some day, I'll get to those projects and add to the walls- hopefully before she needs a big girl room!

Entrance with Inspiration

Well, I did it. I painted our entrance.

Using DVF Fall 2012 as inspiration:

Yet I decided to go with a more muted gray color:

Ben Moore Wisteria:

It still needs a second coat, but I couldn't wait to share:

It matches our BOB and my iPhone and everything I wear- since 90% of the time I am wearing something purple. I think my purple obsession is becoming a problem!!

Plus, I have two new inspirations:

First, Mr. Spice has given me free range over the boob light above to do something like this, from the fantastic Emily Henderson:

(at least until we have the budget to replace it with something that reflects light better).

Second, I found inspiration over on Love & Renovations. A fantastic little home remodel blog of a super cute couple!! I want a Cutting Edge Stencil for this space, STAT:

Initially, I wanted the Birch:

But with the purple, I am thinking something more sophisticated:

What do you think of the purple gray?? 

And for the stencil- fun or sophisticated?? 

(We really aren't sophisticated people, but maybe I can use the fun in the guest room??)

New Life

You could say that I embarked on a new life's journey the moment that I said, 'Let's have a baby.' And yes, having a baby completely changed our lives in the best way possible.

But this post isn't about my favorite topic, Sugar Bear. It's about the blessing and the curse of getting what I wanted for years- a new job with new responsibilities. (I've avoided this post because I want to keep things positive, but I am struggling and just need to share).

The new job was a bit like a transfer with a small raise and a big step up into Supervision!

Beyond a slight pay increase and supervising, I really took the job because it allowed Mr. Spice and I buy a house and work in the same community. No more commute for the Mister, saving him 2 hours in his day and soo much $$$ I can't even tell you.

Of course with benefits are negatives that I didn't really foresee. First, I work out in the country, so our offices are much more remote than my old downtown SF gig. I don't even get cell reception.

Second, I just don't have work 'friends.' Maybe this is something that will just develop over time, but with the remote location of our offices, I am just feeling stranded out here.

Third, Supervising is so much tougher than I ever imagined. To say that I am challenged on a daily basis is an understatement. Part one of the challenge: the folks I am supervising have been with this agency longer and know more technically then I do.

Part two: personalities.

Part One, I can get over and learn. Part Two coupled with Part One is what I am struggling with.

Not only do they know more than I do; I also didn't hire them, so there is a small power struggle going on. Plus, I am really really struggling with some negativity that just won't go away. I try to come from a place of positiveness, but for a few folks, everything I say is taken negatively or misconstrued.

Another wrench, I have an Acting Supervisor, whom has been a great asset in this transition, but he is 'new' to his position and not everyone likes his decisions or the direction that I am getting from him.

I think about looking for a new job, but the kicker is- being a new supervisor/ learning how to supervise is going to be tough any where. Right?? So if I give up here, will somewhere else really be that different??

I have so much more sympathy for my old supervisors. I now understand and appreciate them soo much more. (Just like having a kid- you appreciate who got you where you are today).

I don't know where this post is going. But I just had to get my struggle off my chest. I just feel like in a few situations I am in a no win situation. And I have no one around me to take the weight off my chest.

I've started to reach out to other folks who supervise and get their opinion or feedback. But this learning curve is no joke. And being the new kid is NO fun.

Deep breaths.

Thank you for letting me just lay it all out there. Any suggestions are totally appreciated!!

Fashion Inspiration for Home Decor

Mama Sugar is in town all week, and of course we have many projects on the agenda to complete. As the saying goes, many hands make lite work. Or in our case, one more set of hands to catch Hazel as she explores the unknown!!

Our first project: Tackling the outdoor planter. 

Mr. Spice and I spent Sunday afternoon ripping out a 20 year old daisy plant that wasn't doing anyone (except a few snails) favors, and another unknown half dead plant behind it. Here's what we started with:

Mama Sugar then spent Monday morning cleaning out the rest, rearranging the succulents that were hidden in the planter, and arranging some beautiful silvery purple low growing creeping plants. She came up with a plan to put in lower plants to open up the entrance. And I have to agree with her assessment. It is on the way to looking so much better:

Of course, the planter updates led to Mama Sugar and I debating what color to paint the front door. 

We came up with two options. Kelly Moore- Great Blue Green.

Or Ben Moore- Affinity, Kalamata. 

We didn't come up with any solutions, but I realized that the color of the front door could either match or contrast with the color of the planter and entrance. 

As an aside, here's the entrance when we bought the house. You can't tell in this picture but the original door glass is yellow. 

Then this morning, while I was checking out DVF's Fall 2012 and Spring 2013. I found some great fashion inspiration. 

First choice: DVF's Spring 2013.

Front Door: Great Blue Green. Entrance a BOLD pop of Ben Moore 14 Carrots. 

I like this option because the blue is a bold pop of color on the outside; it is a better resale value color- aka it is not offensive; and the orange is an awesome pop of color that goes with the oranges in the living room. But is the orange too bold? 

Second choice: DVF Fall 2012: 

Front Door: Ben Moore Kalamata. Entrance a muted purple: Ben Moore Sanctuary. 

Why I like this choice: I love purple door, it will look great with the plants we choose in the front and the other plants in front that are purple; and I love that Sanctuary is a purple with a lot of gray. It is a more muted color choice, but I am slightly afraid that it will be too bold for most. We are not going to sell this house anytime soon, but we might have to repaint if we do sell??

So do we go Fall or Spring? I have been VERY conservative with my paint colors up to now, so I am READY to go bold. But what do you think? 

Sugar Bear Friday

Hi Lovelies, I have been a bit silently recently. Work has been an emotional roller coaster and we just got back from my Best Friends wedding, which was an unforgettable weekend in Washington!!

That said, Sugar Bear (NOT to be confused with Honey Boo Boo's Sugar Bear), is thriving.

Next week she'll be 8 months. So I guess here goes on a 7 month update.

She's a master crawler and she can find any spot of dirt in the house and put it in her mouth. She can easily get herself to a stand and is 'walking' along the couch to get those little pieces of dirt to put into her mouth. She's still very wobbly when you try to get her to walk.

Still NO teeth- pretty sure she's going to walk before she gets teeth!!

She still loves her 'circle of neglect' or exersaucer.

She loves all food- as long as she can do it herself. She can even eat an entire stick of cheese all by herself. Other favorites, chicken, mango, avocado and sweet potato. I will admit, we need to start being more adventurous and just give her what is ever on our plate.

We had two big flare ups of a yeast infection this month. Yeast infections are NOT fun- to the point that we had to cancel a weekend trip to meet our friend's baby. I never thought that I would cancel a trip based on diaper rash!!!! Lots of naked baby time (with towels down), anti-fungal cream, and Palmer's Coco Butter Bottom Butter, (which is our favorite over Desitin, CA Babies, and A+D).

Due to the yeast infection and a rash on her chin (drool?? thrush??), she is now getting probiotics again, once a day.

She's clapping like a mad women- and she claps on purpose- usually after you say YEAH!! She's starting to work on waving Hi. And she loves to GRUNT like a frat boy.

She's growing like a weed- she's almost out of her 9-month clothes, and she's onto 12-month clothes. Seriously- where did my baby go!?!?

Her hair is VERY slowly coming in. And her little birth mark on her forehead is starting to fade, as the Doctor said it would.

Finally, she was a rock star on her first flight to SEA and (knock on wood) she's sleeping at least 11 hours a night (now that I have written this she is going to have a horrible weekend!).

Speaking of weekends, off to a baby shower tomorrow- for a future boyfriend!?? And tomorrow we pick up Grandma Sugar from the airport for the whole week!!

Hope you have an amazing weekend!

Big wet kisses from Sugar Bear.

Little Things under $50

It's the little things in life that can make a day go from bad to worse or from bad to better.

Yesterday things went from bad to worse- just by a couple emails- and today they went from bad to better- just by a kind gesture and lunch.

Not sure what tomorrow will be like. But this year has been all about change for me, and now that the big things have settled down, I am noticing the little things. I am also noticing how BIG of an impact those little things have on me. In fact, most the time when I am down- it is from the impact of the little things. Not the big ones.

I am sure there is some self help book out there that could help cure my obsession on the little things. Or a test out there that would document this- like introverts vs. extroverts. Big change person vs. little change person?? Or is that what not sweating the small stuff is about??

Sorry, I didn't mean to write such a vague (slightly bummer of a) post. Basically, I wanted to write about adjusting to life's changes.Apparently, I have mastered the big ones. But the small ones are like a pebble in my shoe that I just can't shake.

That said, I really wanted to write about a few little things that I want. All under $50. Don't ask me why I just won't go out and buy them, but I will, some day- just not today!??

I just bought the Day Tripper from Scout by Bungalow in Denim. Love it!! Now I want the Weekender in Ziggi Stardusto. I need something kid proof, with a zip top and that can fit stuff for both Sugar Bear and I. Mr. Spice can take care of himself. And the price- a perfect $45.

Second, my wonderful Hubby gave me a simple gold necklace with a little "H" on it for my Sugar Bear. It's sweet, and I think Dogeared's little whale charm would look even sweeter with it. At my shower, someone gave me the sweet little whale 'Make a wish' bracelet; of course, it fell off at some point in my pregnancy. So now I want the gold whale charm to keep forever. And only $34.

Or maybe I need the 'not to worry' bracelet in rose gold for $38? Sound right up my alley!!

So there you have it. Little things in life are getting me down, and three little things that 'might' make it all better!! Well, at least put a bandaid on the situation.

When you see little things that you want- do you go out and buy them or hold off?