Blog Vacation

I'm going to be taking a blog break for a while. I'm sad that I haven't had much time to devote to it this year, and I haven't felt much joy associated with blogging lately. And I think the content I've been putting up here has been suffering from my lack of enthusiasm. I remember declaring before that "I'll NEVER get rid of my blog" - that's still true. I like sharing my life and what inspires me. But it's time to re-energize, get through to the finish line of this whole wedding-planning thing, and focus on our home and my (still) new job. When I have new fun things to share I'll get back at it, and hopefully some of you will still be reading!

For now, enjoy some photos of Kauai:

I am very excited about the sugar plantation tubing.

and snorkeling...

and awesome scenery...

Stone Cold Sobuary: Done-sies.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!
YOU GET A GOLD STAR!

Hey Party People! May I be the first to say, "Congratulations, you did it!" if you made it through all of January aka "Mocktail Madness" without a drink. I applaud you! And guess what? Your body, your wallet, and your mind do too.

What exactly did you do? Well, assuming you are like me and enjoy and average of 1 beer, 1 cocktail, and 3 glasses of wine per week...
* You did not consume 4000 calories, which also equates to at least 1 lb of fat {facts here and here}
* $150 cash, in YO WALLET (if you are in a household of 2 people, double that, multiply by 12 months and you have $3600 a year. YIKES)
* ~30 hours of better REM sleep, you're welcome {info here}

Now, how about that? It's always nice to start fresh and challenge yourself to do something healthy. I personally found it to be much more difficult this year than it was for me last year. I think because last year I basically made myself allergic after my birthday shenanigans, and also the dark January weather really got me down this month. I still like to do this little experiment to prove to myself that I can do it and to better understand the compromise I'm making when I decide to drink. It can have a big impact on my body, budget and well-being.

So for those of you who made it the entire month: I have a surprise congratulatory gift for you! If you completed Stone Cold Sobuary, let me know and I will send you a gift!

Crafty Things

Why can't I live in the friggin' MOMENT?! Ugh. I was listening to one of my podcasts this morning and a guest of the show was chatting about her life now as an empty nester since her triplets have all recently left for college. She said she sleeps in, goes to the gym, goes out to ladies lunch, is remodeling the house, and overall is pretty "lazy". Omg that sounded so great! I found myself thinking: "wow, after my kids leave for college I can't wait for that time!" What? That's crazy.*

Anyway, if I was an empty nester right now I would spend my week making these crafts for my friend Megan's upcoming birthday:

Heart-pattern Friendship Bracelet via The Purl Bee.

A Handmade Giant Flower via Green Wedding Shoes.

This adorable sprinkle cake via KissMyCakes...

And I'd make some super cute bunting to mark the occasion...{via ohcrafts}

*I've sortof already had my "empty nest" time: aka "funemployment" but that was riddled with guilt and no money so obvs not a very desirable lifestyle.

It's That Time of Year

The New Year is one of my favorite holidays for many reasons (fireworks! food!) but I love it most of all because of the fresh start. It's a chance to wipe the slate clean, look back on a productive year and start over with endless possibilities in a new year.

Time for some goals.

My 2012 Resolutions:
* Lose 10 lbs. I know, I'm seriously over this goal. But just 10 more till the ultimate finish line and I think I can do it.
* Be present (hello, Wedding Day - I'm looking at you).
* Get organized. As in, purge all the junk we've collected over the years and organize our home.
* Do more stuff. I feel like I was so distracted in '11 that I didn't do hardly any of the travel/day trips, or seasonal fun things that I like to do.

How'd I do on those 2011 Resolutions?
* Lose 20 (*more, again!*) lbs. - Dude this is getting old. I did 10/20 of this, and am calling that good.
* Practice being grateful and appreciative of everything I have - am grateful as hell! But I could stand to do this more regularly.
* Strive for productivity more than perfection. - um yeah, a lot of stuff fell by the wayside, and that's a good thing.
* Get a job that is at least somewhat enjoyable or fullfilling. - WOAH! I didn't think this one would happen but it did!!! Again, grateful as hell.

So...what are YOUR 2012 Resolutions? Everyone ready for Sober January?

Champagne tower...achievable?

Betty and Don...supposedly coming back in 2012...why do I want them together? I mean, I don't, they're both awful. But I do? I'm so confused.

Nowhere I'd rather celebrate than Seattle...

Happiest Moments of 2011

2011 isn't quite over yet, so I know there will be more in store, but I wanted to share my Happiest Moments of 2011 and ask you to share with me yours as well in the comments (it makes me smile hearing your stories too!).

1. Palo Alto.
I got to tag along on K's business trip to Palo and I got high off the sunshine - it was glorious weather in the dead of January! Something this sun-starved Seattleite was dying for.

2. When we got Pearl.
Oh happy day when we added that quirky mutt to our family!

3. Cali for my cousin's wedding.
I hadn't seen my cousins for almost a decade, it was so fantastic to see them and it felt like no time had passed at all. They had a beautiful, romantic fun wedding too.

4. Seeing my sister graduate college.
Duh, this was awesome. So proud of her!

5. 4th of July.
I don't have documentation of it, but this year we got to watch the 4th of July fireworks from a houseboat on Lake Union. It was the best 4th we've had in years!!!

5. When Keene won his first big case.
He worked really hard for months and it was so exciting when all that hard work paid off :)

6. Pittsburgh.
So cool to see my friend in her new city! P'burgh was such a fun town to explore and it was fabulous to hang with my friend.

7. I got a job!
Woo! Goes without saying, this came out of left field and I couldn't be happier. I'm so lucky.

8. I hit my weight-loss goal!
This one was less luck and more time and dedication. Lots of time, and some dedication ;)

Fun looking back at my 2010, 2009, and 2008 Highlights....what are YOUR happiest moments of 2011? Let me know if the comments!

Let me just take a moment...

To bask in the glory of this number:

*164.6*. Yes. 164.6, that's right. I haven't seen this number for almost a decade. 164.6 means I've passed the 50lbs lost mark. 50 pounds ago I was aghast at the number I saw here, and I decided to do my best to change it. I never imagined I would get this far, but I guess when I give myself 2 years and 3 months to lose weight I can reach my goal! Haha, how about that?

More Scarf Stuff

The best, most comprehensive Scarf Tutorial EVER!

Time Management...help!

Seriously You Guys, I need help with this. I think this is just one of those things that I suck at. But also, being pulled in a ton of directions doesn't help either. I imagine this is just 5% of what it feels like to be a parent. But anyway...balancing working for yourself plus school and all those household tasks can be tricky (unless you're awesome at this but that's clearly not me!). I feel like I turn around at the end of the day and I'm all "where did the time go - seriously!?" So I did a little research on time management to see if I could get a bit better at all this.

quote via {inspirationfeed}

My Discoveries About Time Management:

1. Keep a Time Diary. (aka: How many minutes of your life have been stolen by various Kardashians?)
This is interesting. Because: some of those little things that you don't even think about suck up your time more than you know. For instance: I usually spend a half hour reading through news on my itouch in the morning. A half an hour! That adds up to a lot. I think keeping a "time diary" is scary because I know that I spend a huge amount of time on stuff that is actually just crap so I guess the whole point is to be accountable, and be more deliberate about your time, even those small chunks of time that you may think won't add up to much - they do!

2. Make an Ignore List. {via GD}
Brilliant. Easier said than done. But already immensely helpful. Since I "do what I want", my bad working habits are deeply deeply ingrained in me by now so much so that I don't even realize it when I'm wasting time! It's like a nervous tick for me to check the internet every single time I finish a task. BAD.
Here's my ignore list:
- Google Reader
- Facebook (sad, but true)
- TV (I'll intend to take a "5 min break" but get sucked in for an hour - BAD)
- Phone (I need to let things go to VM if I don't have time to talk for an hour)
- Pinterest - oy major time suck

I love these "brain breaks" but if I want to actually get anything accomplished I really need to save them for the end of the day after I've reached some of my goals.

3. Set an Egg Timer.
Word. I need to get one of those really obnoxious timers, and set it for half hour increments to work on specific tasks. I think this would help me to A. Get started, because if you know a timer will go off in a half hour starting a task is less daunting, and B. Be more deliberate about setting all distractions aside to concentrate one one thing for a half hour.

Do you guys have any tips for better time management? Am I the only one who is terrible at this? Sometimes I feel like other people just really have their shit together and they always get things done quickly and timely. I'm jealous of them! What is your secret?

I'm Free!!! (for a month)

Whew. Just finished Summer Quarter, and now I get an entire month break until Fall. YAY! I feel so free to do WHATEVAHIWANT. I still have freelance design to keep up with, but other than that I'll be filling my days with socializing, home improvement, crafts, and wedding stuff.

List & Comment Friday: Ambitions for Over Break:
1.) Sand and paint my cruddy old bedroom furniture. I HAVE to do this now before the weather turns. For example: we've got mismatched bedside tables. I want to re-vamp them so they don't look like hand-me-downs!

2.) Design our Wedding "brand". Oy. I am really trying not to be a perfectionist on this project to the point of paralyzed. I think the majorness of the whole event makes me put pressure on myself for it to be the best wedding design the world has ever seen. It doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to be "us". Loving this invite for example (this is mostly more "me" than "him", but lucky for me, I'm in charge of this task!)...

3.) Frame and hang some stinkin' art already. We have so many fab pictures from Europe that I'd love to have printed and frame, wouldn't they look great? We still have almost nothing on our walls, even though we moved over 6 months ago. How do other people get it done so quickly? I love how all these tiny frames right next to each other make one big piece of artwork.

4.) Stay tuned for a really fun storytelling of how I found a piece of wood for "free" on the sidewalk and am going to turn it into a headboard. I want to paint it with a border similar to this one, but add a pattern in the middle.

5.) Sign up for Dance Classes. The fiance very sweetly got us certificates to take a dance class, and I really really want us to learn at least one dance. Now I feel like I finally have some time to sign us up!

side-note: culturally, don't you think it's crucial that Keene watches this movie with me?

Makin' StatementZ

Do you have the Self-Improvement Ballz?

Have you guys heard of this "Nohari Window"? It's crazy.

This is how it works:
"By describing your failings from a fixed list of adjectives, then asking your friends and colleagues to describe you from the same list, a grid of perceived and unrecognised weaknesses can be explored."

Oy. I don't think I have the balls to hear what my friends and colleagues find my failings to be. But - I do think that if I did have the guts, it could be a really helpful way to improve upon yourself.

What do you guys think? Would you ever consider doing something like the Nohari Window?

Ask MansionMogul: Advice?

Y'all want advice? From Moi? Well ok then, but take all this at your own risk!

A while back my little sister asked MansionMogul: "I'm getting ready to graduate college. If you could give your 22-year-old new grad self any advice, what would it be?"

I thought today would be an appropriate day to dispense such advice, seeing as how my sister just graduated Saturday! Woo! So proud of her. Sitting there at the ceremony, I just couldn't believe that 4 years had already gone by. TIME FLIES. I never had any doubt that my sis would graduate and do a fantastic job in school. But getting your Bachelor's Degree is still a huge accomplishment. So much foundational learning, and life lessons, and growing up happens in those four years. I think she definitely got the most out of her experience there and left her mark!

Here's the little bugger walking in now! I might've teared up a bit...or a lot. Held it back though! I don't know why, guess I don't want to look like the crazed older sister.

Speeches n' stuff...I wonder why didn't they just ask MansionMogul to speak?! Seriously. They would've saved a lot of money probs.

I made sure to get a pic of Court's shoes. On my grad day I broke in a new pair of FABULOUS shoes and in the photo that the photog took when I got my diploma they were not in it! I put in some good 2 hours in those pumps so I was bitter! Courtney's looked great. A nice nude color to elongate the leg. I always look at people's shoes on grad day. I know that's tacky of me but they're all just wearing robes so it's the only individual thing they're wearing!

And before you know it...TA-DA! All graduated! Court is right there below that guy making a goofy face. He kinda looks like "Dan" from Gossip Girl. Anyway, so glad Courtney looked back at us so I could get this pic. She was really happy and had a great time that day :)

YAYAYAY!!! You've got your entire future before you - so excited!

And on with the advice...follow at your own risk, graduates!

Phone vs Email

{via Natalie Dee}

I'm terrible at phone calls. I only call people when it's been on my "to-do" list for EVER. And I dread it. I don't know why but talking on the phone is just awkward for me. I feel like I have to be in a perfectly quiet space, with absolutely no distractions. And how often are we in that position? I also feel like I can't choose my words as carefully or think on my feet as well. And then there's no polite way to end a phone call. It's all just awkard and totally not a replacement for being face-to-face.

Email, on the other hand...oooh, I loves me some emails. I get to carefully craft an email at a time that's convenient for me. The other person can respond when they have time. No one is put "on the spot" and you don't have to awkwardly end an email. You just end it "xoxo :) :)" and it's all good.

Except that: some people are the exact opposite of me! I have found over the last 3 years that people are either email or phone people. When we moved, I feel like it was a lot easier to stay in touch with friends that loved emailing back and forth as much as I did (like pen pals! I used to love writing letters). We just naturally had more communication. That's not to say that I wasn't still friends with my phone-preference peeps, but I wasn't as close to them. I do have friends however, who are only phone people, and they call me regularly and I credit them with keeping our friendship going (Annie!). They are awesome at checking in with me even when I've been negligent about calling them. It is a challenge when two people are opposites as far as communication goes though. I think it just means that I need to keep email, email, emailing, and they need to keep call, call, calling. Eventually, we'll reach each other.

So I want to know if I'm weird - what is your preference? Phone calls or emails?

Materialistic Dreams do come true

Let's just say of this list I made in 2009 of "Things I Want", I never would have guessed that in 2011 I would have a sectional but not a wind chime.

I have been stalking this certain sectional for about a half year now and it finally went on sale enough that we made a move on it:

This one is less modern and a little more practical than the one featured on my wish list two years ago. I also think it goes with the style of our house better than something uber modern would.

And we also bought a new mattress. Why work on all this physical therapy if I'm still sleeping on a crappy mattress? Exactly.

So we're slowly rotating out the college furniture. I suggested we have a "red wine and fried chicken" farewell party for the ole purple couch. Spill some food on it for the last time. Grown-up high five!

CND Shellac Manicure

So my friend Wendi and I have been curious about these "CND Shellac Manicures" ever since we read about Hillary's experience on her blog. When she posted her not-chipped day 13 mani photos I was convinced! So Wendi and I went and got ours done at a nice little place in Everett, Bliss Spa. For being right next to the Jiffy Lube, this spa was a total pleasant surprise! They were really great. Gave us a lot of information along with our manis. This technique is about $25 more expensive than your average manicure, but I would TOTALLY get it again. I'm particularly excited that I could get it done before, let's say, my wedding day (!) because then I won't be paranoid about chipping it that day. It would also be great for vacations. I swear, I should've ruined my manicure about 100x by now, but it's still perfect - this is Day 4:

It's a little hard to tell on mine because I got a very light polish, but there are NO CHIPS. It's also way shinier than your average manicure. AND - there is no dry time after your manicure, so you can literally reach right into your purse for your keys or credit cards right after. I can't tell you how many times I've just finished paying for a mani and ruined it seconds later. Totally recommend this - I'm so excited about it!

May: I guess it's "Slacker Month"?

Yeah so I fell off that posting wagon...fast, eh? I've got to confess: this week I've been feeling a little bit like...like I'm tired of "working on things"...I know that's lazy. I am committed to self-improvement but even I, lover of all things goals & self-help, can reach my saturation point sometimes. Basically I put all of these things in motion after The Great Depression aka Jan/Feb 2011 aka Jan/Feb every year, and now they're kindof a lot to keep up with!

Just a few things saturating my brain right now:
- We got a dog...she is a big responsibility. That we love, but still, she came with about 20 things right away that needed to be taken care of.

- We set a wedding date. Do you know what that means? That means we have to start planning things. The venue hunt has me discouraged and overwhelmed. But we set a date - yay :)

- I started web classes. They're going great, but have made me realize just how much I need to catch up quickly and know how to design web sites. I think I'm going to take two classes this Summer and that will be a lot with freelance on top of it.

- I started walk/jogging with the dog each morning as part of GET IT TOGETHER 2011. I also started physical therapy for my back. Woohoo! Apparently Step #1 we need to buy a new mattress ($$$).

- Went from taking care of 800sq ft 1 bedroom apartment to a 3 bedroom house. Here is when you are rolling your eyes, I know. But it takes a lot longer to clean and there's a yard to take care of too. I little one, but still. Wish I could talk to 2009 Brooke and tell her about this realization.

So these are good happy people things to have on my mind, and I am grateful for them. My head is swimming lately though! I think I need a Saturday :) Perhaps, a Saturday spent lounging around one of these delightful spots, listening to music and painting my nails and flipping through chick magazines:

APRIL Add Month

Hey Y'all! So, it's April 1st. Admittedly, not my favorite quirky holiday. Yeah...gullible people not so much fans of the April Fools. Anyway, new month, new goal! This month is an "ADD" month, so I've decided to make a huge commitment to April: Blogging daily. Not just weekdays, but EVERY day. This is going to be a hard one! Blogging takes time. But I'm in a bit of a blog funk with the less-frequent posting making me feel like all posts have to be really good. I think if I have to blog any and everything all month it might snap me out of it!

Check out these fabulous calendar desktops from artist Christiane Engel. She has a new one each month!

Let's not even talk about how I did with last month's Subtract. I'm better - but by no means were those ugly words completely gone from my vocabulary. I'm gonna keep workin' on it. You guys too!

Around the Ole Internet...

Just because I'm a blog slacker doesn't mean I stop reading the internet! Nope, not for a second, People.

Check out this San Juan Island for sale, sent to me from Alica, our resident real estate huntress:

Fantastic, right?

And another tip she sent - what a hot mansion! Oh, the entertaining possibilities...

I have scouters all over the internet, y'all! Here's a list of Fabulous American Castles for Sale sent to me from Josiane. I particularly fancy this little number:

The Searles Hopkins Castle: $11 Million.

Phew! Those are some hot properties. In other links...I'm currently obsessed with Snippet & Ink's wedding video by Sandbox Love. Like...obsessed.

Where was this list for me in January? How to Survive When Everything Sucks. {via Gala}

@Humblebrag's twitter feed is hilarious. {via Gala}

Apparently coloring in eyebrows is a whole thing that lots of ladies do? I already take waaay too long to get ready, so I don't know if I could start doing this everyday as well. Do any of you ladies really do this? Here's a how-to tutorial. {via CapHillStyle}