Turning ONE

Bella Bear officially turns ONE today!  Happy Birthday to my adorable little pup!!!!! 

P.S. I am definitely throwing her a bday party this evening.  Photos to come. :o)
Love B

Quick. Easy. DIY

Some times I surprise myself with how cute my DIY projects turn out.  Don't get me wrong, I get a handful of not so cute ones before I share one I like. :o)  This one is super easy to do, given that you'll need some patience, it's adorable once finished.  I am constantly trying to find cute things to put on the walls, and since I had some extra board laying around, I thought I'd put it to use. 

I stained the wood a dark mahogany to go with all the black I have lying around.  Then I bought some small nails with a larger flat head.  I found a cute font on my computer and printed out the word 'love' to the size I wanted it on the board.  Just place the paper on the board and hammer the nails in directly through.  I really like how it turned out - what do you think?

I wish I would have taken more pictures along the way, but I honestly didn't know how it would look.  Love the way the nails shine in the light.  It's the small things.

Love B

Louella's Coconut Cake

OM-freaking-G is this cake good!  If you are a coconut lover, you've got to make this.  This was my first real layered cake I've made, and I'd say it turned out pretty darn good.  I think the key was using non-sweetened coconut and the mixture of a little hint of lemon.  I used the larger dried flakes from Central Market.  DELISH!

I could eat the whole thing myself!!

Happy cooking! Love B

Happy Easter!

Hope everyone is enjoying their Easter with your friends and loved ones!  Here is a sneak peek of a delicious coconut cake that I made for dinner.  Recipe to come! :o)

Love B

Nostalgia

After an amazing wedding Saturday night, I really took Sunday as my day off. You'd think my body would be use to the wedding day hustle, but not so much. I woke up feeling like I ran a marathon. Any who, while the boys were being productive in the garage, I decided to go through a bunch of old pictures. I found some great ones from back in the day that I had to share.

 My dad at age 20

 My mom and Aunt 

Love the pictures of my cousin on my mom's side - we caused some trouble back in the day

 June 14, 1985

 August 1984

 My first birthday - October 1986

For the longest time, my cousin Jackie and I were the only girls.  We loved the Grandma would give us the same outfits on Christmas!

 I definitely still have that mouse we got with this set!

Here are a few more that I found of me - I'd say I was pretty cute!

Aww.. Me and dad!

This was at my preschool - Kiddie Korner in Hutch

This is in my first house on Joshua Street - I loved that house. 

 One more of the fam! 

Had to leave you with one of D - How cute was he at 11 months!!?

I love old pictures - They make me smile!
Love B

How was your weekend?

What lovely things did you do this weekend?  I must say my one 'free' weekend was filled with projects and plans.  My mom and I started the weekend with some shopping where I got these ADORABLE plates

And this amazing rug for my pretty bathroom - Love the design. 

I was so excited to take the parents and B to the farmer's markets on Saturday morning.  We got some butter lettuce and leafy greens to plant - my big weekend project.  I also snagged some yummy Strawberry Balsamic Pepper Jam for the boy. 

When I saw a poster for the Wiener Dog Races this last weekend, I knew I had to go.  It was hilarious, and B loved it.  There were all kinds of puppies for her to love.  Her favorite are the great danes!  I tried to talk D into getting one, but we decided we'd need a bigger car first.  :o)

My big project for the weekend ended up being my new little garden!  We bought wood and the boys built 2 for me.  We searched for all of our plants, and I stained and water proofed the wood.  By Monday, I had these little beauties!

 If you are wondering why these are so tall... Have you met B lately?  Gotta keep the pups out.

D did such a good job sanding them - Even in the dark

How beautiful are these? 

And yes, I am the person that makes labels for her garden! 

Well I have to post an update of our bathroom.  Really, not much has changed.  However, the shiny new fixtures are all on and we just have to save up to get the glass on the shower.  Any day now... 

Love how it looks!! 

Happy Tuesday! 

xoxo. B

Springtime in Austin

I had to share this hilarious picture of my little family.  We were enjoying the amazingly beautiful weather at one of my new favorite restaurant called Red's Porch.  Bella looks like such a goofball in this picture!  I love them.

Thank goodness tomorrow is Friday - lots of fun plans for the weekend!

Anthropologie = Dangerous

I LOVE Anthropologie.  How cute are these vineyard brackets... Where can I place these in my house??

Love B

Loves of Austin: ARW

Twice a year Austin Restaurant Week comes around, and my friends and I love the opportunity to try a new restaurant.

Every time there are new restaurants that partake, and the menus are always different.  This is the first session that they have offered brunch in their menu options.  All you have to do is pick where you want to eat and make a reservation.  Menu prices range from $10-35 per person.  I'm not sure where we should go this time, but if you are in Austin, you should definitely spoil yourself for ARW!!
Love B

DIY Frames

I wanted to share my 5-minute craft project for the evening.  I am sick of my barren walls, so I am on a mission to pretty them up. This is a start to my kitchen nook. 

The mustache was totally inspired by one of my latest brides!  I made the items in Word and printed them on my home computer.  Frames courtesy of Target.  I will be adding more items to this wall, but it's a start!  I still need to paint/stain my little table I got at the antique fair and craft a DIY rug for the space as well.  Good thing I have the weekend free!!

Love B