A Nugget and a Doodle

Many of you have seen or heard about bits and pieces relating to our work outside, but this phase is finally done and it's time to share!  Disclaimer:  I retain the right to start another phase tomorrow if I choose.  :) Where to begin?  Well, we bought the vacant lot next to us a couple months ago.  We did this to a) block a local builder from building a spec house there and b) to extend our landscaping so that our house doesn't look so smooshed into the end of the cul de sac.  If I could turn back time, we'd buy both lots at the same time and center the houses on them.  Ahh, hindsight.  When we bought the lot, the neighbors on the other side were devastated because they thought that builder [who happens to have just built one of the less attractive homes in the hood got the lot, and they had inquired about purchasing a couple times over the past few years but the developer wouldn't budge on the price.  So, they somewhat hopelessly asked wi...

This post is long overdue.  This handsome little man is 4 weeks old today, and the goal was to blog about his nursery before he was born.  He did arrive almost 2 weeks early, so I guess I'll let mama off the hook for the delayed photos!  :) This is Cole.  As you can see, sometimes he's really happy, and sometimes he's really sad.  But he's always super cute and so is his nursery!!

Chances are if you're reading this, you know I've been redesigning the office only months after moving into our new house, at which time the office was completely decorated in a jewel toned peacock-inspired scheme.  Lots of people have told me I'm crazy to re-do it, either because they can't imagine dedicating this much time to a single room, or because they're politely trying to imply they loved it as is.  :)  Maybe some of you did truly love it, who knows?!  But after literally like a day, I didn't love it, and in fact, I hated it.  In a vacuum it was kind of cool, but it was very visible from the main living area, which is a far cry from mod, wacky peacock colors.  It was the odd man out and needed reconciliation with the rest of the house.   Just in case you haven't seen it a million times already, here is what the office looked like before:    It felt really dark in here too, which was depressing.  We work from ...