Back From A Little Vacation
I know I have been kind of MIA, but I am back! I have taken a small blogging vacation as well as a trip to the Midwest Old Threshers Reunion. We had a wonderful break, but now back to the real world. I am working on a few projects in particular, and hope to show you soon. But, there are some major changes in the works, so we are super busy, therefore blogging might be a bit more sporadic that usual.
Here are a few pictures from our recent trip…
Road Trippin'
Our little campsite. See the log cabin in the background?
Heidi Newfield in concert. She sings 'Johnny and June' which is going to be our wedding song!
We got her autograph and a Good Luck, and even a high five when I told her we were using her song for our wedding!
And here is Tony with a very large steam engine, the main reason for the event!
Apartment Therapy Package
Yesterday I received my Apartment Therapy package in the mail! This was my prize for being picked as one of the “My Great Outdoors” winners. This means they featured our backyard on their site. This also means that I got a T-shirt, their book, and a sticker for my car! Check it out:
Awesome, huh? Apartment Therapy really is an awesome site and an awesome group of people. Check them out here: www.apartmenttherapy.com. You can see our yard there, too, under big back yard!
Thanks AT!!
More Flowers
A few of the seeds we planted in the spring (which I forgot about!) have popped up now! They are tall purple flowers, and oh-so-pretty! They are in the front of our house by the mailbox. Not very exciting out here, but they do brighten the space up a bit.
When I got home last night I was surprised to find flowers and candles on the table and a spaghetti dinner waiting for me! Aw! I had this vintage table cloth (from the engagement party) on the table the other night when we had friends over, so it looks all fresh and summer-y in here!
Sweet, huh? And, don’t worry, I do have a few more (and more exciting!) things to show you all this week! I am trying to figure out how to change bitmap pictures into something I am able to upload here. Any ideas? Anyway…stay tuned! 
Tid Bits and Projects
It seems like I havebeen so busy around here… but where is my progress? I have so my projects currently on my plate, and have been working on them, really! But, none are officially completed yet. So, I thought I would just fill you in on some of the tib bits going on around here and a few of the before shots of some current projects.
Some awesome flowers have sprouted up in the back yard. I forgot that I had planted them there in the spring! I love lillies, any kind, especially orange ones!
We are also still taking care of Gillian, the salamander. He is still in the rubber tote sitting on the table, grossing everyone out. But, we are searching for a small tank to keep him in. In this picture he is right next to the end of the leaf. Those two black dots are his eyes; he is burrowed in the dirt.
The dogs made a nice mess for me to clean up this morning. They decided that the five minutes they were left alone in the yard was just long enough to dig for moles. Here they are trying to look all innocent and quite muddy! Also check out Marley’s new collar. She thinks she’s tough!
Tony was the sweetest last night and had his amazing spaghetti pizza ready for me when I walked in the door! I even have some for lunch today.
And, here are just a few sneak peeks of the projects I am working away on…
Stay tuned…
Meet Gilligan
Last night Tony came home after a farewell party for our friends, to wake me up in a very odd way. “I found a creature and he needs us to take care of him. Can we keep him?” Yes, its like having a little kid in the house. I, half asleep, was a little concerned. “Here,” Tony said, “stay there and I will bring him to you.” Before I could say a word he was bringing a box into the bedroom to show me his new friend. This got me up and out of bed quickly. He’s so lucky I’m an animal lover. I peered into the Busch Light box (nice, eh?) and saw a fairly large salamander! I was a bit surprised, but after some convincing I helped to set up a temporary home for the little guy. A rubber tote, some dirt and a water bowl. Back to bed.
Meet Gilligan:
Tony is on his way to the pet store today to find out if we can keep him, and how we would go about doing that. I think he really wants to be able to keep the little guy (just like a kid, huh?
Simple Fix and 4th of July Weekend
Sometimes the tiniest details of your home can make life so much more organized, easy, and even pretty. Well, the other day I was very annoyed by my growing collection of costume jewelry. My good jewelry is hung neatly in my jewelry box and some of my most often worn costume pieces are held in jars in my dresser and vintage medicine cabinet in the bedroom. But, the rest of it has been hanging in clumps on hangers and hooks in the closet. You couldn’t see them easily, and you definitely couldn’t grab one easily. Here is the pile that I hurriedly threw on the bed.
So, my grandma gave me some vintage hand crochetedhangers. And I picked up a package of sewing pins with bead heads.
Although the pins didn’t stick into the wood hanger underneath very well, they stuck in the ends enough to keep any slippery necklaces from falling off the hanger. And, viola! Simple, yet cute and organized. What an easy fix. Thanks grandma!
Oh, and if you were wondering why the big bandage on my hand… I burned my hand that night while cooking dinner. Yes, I think it was a sign from God to quit cooking and get some take-out menus. But, the sloppy joe’s turned out well, so Tony didn’t buy that. By the next day I had to go to the doctor for it and my hand was completely wrapped up for the whole holiday weekend.
And, as with most of my projects, the dogs helped of course!
So, on to the 4th of July celebration! We camped at our local park, and it rained here the entire day (of course). That didn’t stop us! We waded through the mud the entire weekend. It ended up clearing up just in time to have amazing fire works! Here’s the guys playing in a horseshoe tournament right through the rain!
You can see all the umbrellas out there! You can also see the river in the background. That’s the rock river, and right were we camp and also sit and watch the fireworks. Here we are playing games together.
Our softball team also won another game Sunday, so we are now 6-1! Yay!
How was your 4th of July? Hope it was a great one!
Thanks Apartment Therapy!
Apartment Therapy just added our big back yard to their “My Great Outdoors” features! Thanks so much! We love to get some feedback on our projects and love some constructive criticism, as we are new at this! So, welcome everyone who finds us from AT! Thanks again!
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/chicago/my-great-outdoors-2009/my-great-outdoors-jessimaries-big-backyard-088556
A Sad Day and Some Things I Love
What a sad day today is. Words cannot describe how much Michael Jackson will be missed. He is such a huge talent and has always been a big part of my life.
http://www.fanpix.net/picture-gallery/892/1216892-michael-jackson-picture.htm
http://www.fanpix.net/picture-gallery/144/1095144-michael-jackson-picture.htm
I really didn’t think anything was fitting to post about on such a sad day, but then decided to pay a tribute and then cheer up with some things that I am loving.
http://materialgirlsblog.com/
I love clear furniture, I love lucite. Need I say more?
http://www.jonathanadler.com/shop/product.php?cat=&productid=16554
I know these are tiny pictures, but I am totally wanting these cookie jars! Hilariously funny.
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=26756392
I also know that this bowl is a bit sick, but also freakishly adorable. Tony loves zombies, so I thought he’d like this!
http://cgi.ebay.com/WOW-VINTAGE-RETRO-RED-AND-WHITE-METAL-TABLE-LAMP-COOL_W0QQitemZ250448205000QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item3a4fe054c8&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A12%7C66%3A2%7C39%3A1%7C72%3A1205%7C240%3A1318%7C301%3A0%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50
This red retro lamp would look perfect in my kitchen!
http://www.theposterlist.com/ via: More Ways To Waste Time
I love this poster! I would like to hang it in the office. Check out More Ways to Waste Time to see the deal they have going on!
Wax Seals
When we first got engaged I happened to find a W stamp and some silver wax on sale. Of course I snagged it, but we have yet to use it. Although I’m not technically a “W” yet, we decided to test out the seal on our thank you’s from our engagement party. They turned out pretty cool!
Our supplies and our blank thank you notes:
Tony melted the wax for me. We did a few practice runs, but he started to get it down pat.
He said it worked best to slowly swirl the wax stick around while on fire, then as it drips to move the wax into a larger circle. I then stamped the wax with the seal, and viola!
Simple, but fun and a very cute touch. We thought we should make this our signature for all of our cards from now on. And, it was fun to do together!
Our Engagement Party!
We finally had it! It’s all over, even the cleaning up! It all went great, and we also wanted to thank everybody for coming and for the great gifts and cards! And, I have a few pictures to share!
The above is the general view of the backyard before the party. The picture doesn’t really do it justice. It was really nice, relaxing, and cozy. It was impressive for those who had seen our backyard a few months ago when we moved in!
The above is the table before all of the food. The vintage table clothe came from Fred and Ethels. The vintage letters are always hanging in our bedroom, and of course we had to have a big diamond! Isn’t that silverware bucket cute? My mom found us that. We also had some big dice (of course!) on the other end.
There were antique Ball jars scattered on the table tops and even in the grass that held candles for lighting up the night.
I love all of the paper lanterns. These were so easy, they had batteries! And, they were only a couple of dollars at the dollar store! They set a nice mood.
And at night everything glowed!
I hope some of these simple, but fun ideas help you with your next party. I loved them so much that I will use some of them for our casual BBQs and bonfires!
