Friday, August 10, 2012 at 5:00AM 
Albert Hadley
Fireworks by Albert Hadley | Hinson & Co.
Via Little Green Notebook
Confetti | Kelly Wearstler
Tommy Smythe
Les Touches | Brunschwig & Fils
Eddie Ross
Rio | Quadrille
Meredith Heron
Tanzania | Thibaut
I Suwannee
Togo | Premier Prints
I think every design blogger has probably done a post about these spotted and dotted prints at some point . And I am no different - I love them all ! Do you have a favorite ?
Thursday, August 9, 2012 at 7:29AM Now that we have mostly settled into the new house, we are getting to work on the barn . There are lots of decisions that still need to be worked out, but I am really hoping for the following :
Sliding doors ,
Unknown
Pippin Hill | Charlottesville, Virginia
Pippin Hill | Charlottesville, Virginia
honed concrete ,
Crate and Barrel
House and Home
Via Living Agency
and steel doors .
Unknown
Southern Accents
I think the first two items are definites . We will see if I can make the steel doors work .
Barn, Inspiration Friday, August 3, 2012 at 5:00AM 
Daily Dose of Stuff Tumblr
Sorority Life Tumblr
The Sartorialist
All Good Things are Wild and Free Tumblr
Pretty Stuff Tumblr
Unknown
Crisp, white sails, warm weathered wood, textured rope and patinated hardware. I am feeling so inspired by these elements lately. Their influence is definitely creeping into my interiors. What's inspiring you these days?
Boat, Inspiration Sunday, July 29, 2012 at 9:37PM
Sweet Hayes turned one today .
These images are from a party we threw on the beach a few weeks ago to celebrate the event with our family . The party was very similar to the one we threw for Riley last year - a tent, easy decorations, yummy food, cold beverages and, of course, cake !
Hayes did not disappoint when it came to the smash cake .
Tonight's celebration was a little more low key . Since I can't even see our dining table at the moment because it is buried under moving boxes, we decided to once again take the party outside .
We cut flowers from the yard,
grilled our current favorite pizza (Rosemary, Grape, Gorgonzola and goat cheese - even the kids love it!) ,
ate some more cake ,
and opened a few gifts .
Happy 1st birthday Hayes! You have brought so much joy and laughter to our family and I can't wait to see what's next !
Friday, July 27, 2012 at 11:21AM 
Anyone want to help me unpack???
Have a great weekend!
Home Tuesday, July 10, 2012 at 9:51AM Sorry for the long absence . If you read my last post you may think that I am still recovering from our weekend at the lake but I have to say, it went about as smoothly as anything involving 9 young kids can go .
There were a few meltdowns and I think we were there all of 5 minutes before one of the kids took a tumble down a flight of (carpeted) stairs, but no one drowned and none of the moms ended up in the looney bin so I think it was a successful trip . The irony of it all is that my days at the lake were actually rather relaxing compared to what took place the next week - completely packing up our current house and closing on the new house all during major power outages and record breaking heat .
And with or without power, we had to have everything finished by last Saturday because we were leaving for the beach for the next two weeks ! I really don't think I have ever needed a vacation more in my life . Things will be crazy again once we return because the movers are coming the day after we get home . While we are gone we are having the new house painted .
Brad Ford
I still can't believe I did this but I told the painter I want every single room white !
Unknown
I never in a million years thought I would live in an all white house but I really just wanted everything to feel bright and clean .
Steven Gambrel
I also really want the focus to be on fabrics, and finishes and accessories instead of the walls .
House Beautiful
We will see how it goes . In a few months I may change my mind but I am inspired by the whiteness of these rooms and hope that I will love the results when I get back .
In the meantime, I just want to focus on sand, surf and sun! It may be a while before I get to sit still again .
Thursday, June 28, 2012 at 5:00AM Today my 5 best friends from UNC and I are headed to the lake for a long weekend . . .
Sounds nice, right?
Did I mention that ALL of our kids are coming with us ?!? This trip will be the first time that we will have all of our kids together in the same place at the same time .
It's gonna be us
vs them .
We are way outnumbered : 6 adults, 9 1/2 kids all under the age of 4 . I think we have completely lost our minds . But don't worry - we are prepared in case of an emergency :
Wish us luck ! We're gonna need it !
Thursday, June 21, 2012 at 5:00AM Last week I did quite a bit of thrifting . Some of these items came home with me to stay, some to sell and some I reluctantly left behind .
This square coffee table did not come home with me although I am still thinking about it . It has great lines and would be easy to paint. And that ugly stained glass would be easy to remove . Honestly, if it had been priced a little better I probably would have gone for it . If I can find a place or a client for it, I still may go back and see if I can talk them down . . .
It is hard to tell in this picture but these scales were HUGE ! I already have a set that I posted about here but the sheer scale (Ha! No pun intended) of these was pretty impressive .
This sofa has great lines and is in great condition . Plus they were pretty much giving it away so I really couldn't say no . Now I just have to find the perfect fabric so I can have it reupholstered .
This cute little sake cup is perfect for holding earrings and other bits of jewelry in my closet .
I don't know what it is with me and tool boxes and caddies . I just seem drawn to them for some reason . I love having my art supplies organized and these just work for me . Speaking of art supply organization . . .
This linen cabinet would be perfect for holding art supplies, fabric samples, etc . It was a really simple sturdy cabinet but they wanted too much for it even after I haggled . So I left it behind . But I am totally thinking about making something similar . I think it would be pretty easy to do .
I love a carrera topped pedestal table . With a 15% discount I could not get this guy in my car fast enough .
Another item with serious reupholstery appeal . I didn't bite but I am keeping it on my radar .
And some of you are going to think I have lost my mind with this next (blurry) photo, but I really think these guys have potential in the right setting .
These Foo dogs are HUGE ! And I can just see them flanking the entrance of a fancy pool house like this one :
Architectural Digest
Are you with me or do you think I'm nuts ? If only I had a pool house .
And my favorite recent find - these old oil lanterns .
They have great patina and I am hoping I can have them converted to wall sconces .
I am not sure how much longer Hayes is going to tolerate my thrifting so I am trying to fit in as much as I can before she totally revolts !
Tuesday, June 19, 2012 at 5:00AM 
Today my sweet Riley turns 4 years old ! Something about age 4 seems so grown up . How did this happen so quickly? Even though today is the official day , it sort of feels like it already happened since we held her party a few weekends ago . We went with a circus theme this year .
Once the invitations went out, Riley and I got to work on the party games and decorations.
Four is definitely a fun year for a birthday party . Riley was so excited in the weeks leading up to the big day and she loved helping in anyway that she could . The day started off with gifts from the family and then everyone pitched in to help get ready for the party .
Luckily we had beautiful weather - otherwise I would have had a house full of sugar-fueled kids ! While the guests were arriving the kids stayed busy making foam animal faces .
Once everyone arrived it was time to start the games ! We had 6 games set out in the yard and the kids earned tickets each time they played a game . After about an hour of collecting tickets they could turn them in at the prize table .
Bean Bag Toss
Ring Toss
Go Fish
Walk the Tightrope
Pin the Nose on the Clown
And there was also a World's Largest Bubble game but I forgot to take pictures of that one .
And Riley's favorite part of any party - the PINATA!
Finally it was time to hand out the party favors and thank everyone for helping us celebrate Riley's big day .
It was a great celebration and I think it definitely made Riley feel special to have so many friends and family gather in her honor . Today's festivities will be on a much smaller scale and will just include the four of us. In her four short years, Riley has taught us so much about the important things in life and I love her so much that it makes my heart hurt . Happy 4th Birthday, Sweet Riley B !
*About half of these pictures were actually taken by my sister. She kindly sent me her photos from the party since I wasn't overly pleased with mine. Thanks, Katie!
Friday, June 15, 2012 at 5:00AM Have you ever seen that Seinfeld episode where Jerry is teasing Elaine with " the BIG news "?
It turns out the big news is that George is getting married . For some reason I always think of that scene when someone says they have big news .
Well, we also have big news around here - no, I am not pregnant ! (Isn't that what everyone always assumes???) Our big news is that we are moving back to Charlottesville !
Moving is something we have been thinking about for over a year now but we were waffling back and forth about whether to stay in VA or move back to NC . While we are sad that we won't be moving closer to our family in NC, we absolutely love Charlottesville and are both really excited to be heading back to the "other side of the mountain" . We have found a house that has so much potential and will be a great place to raise the girls . It feels like we are out in the country although we will actually only be about 8 minutes from town . Ironically one of my very first blog posts was about my dream of living both the town and country life and now we are getting to do it ! The new house even has a barn that is going to be my studio ! So EXCITED !
(Above is a little peak at the backyard . How great is that huge oak tree ?!?)
Of course my mind is spinning with plans for the new house while at the same time on the brink of shutting down when I think about how in the heck we are going to move everything out of our current house . As always, change is bittersweet . We love our current house and have so many great memories of our time here . We have made a couple of very close friends here and even though it will be easy to stay in touch, we will miss living right around the corner from them . We are really hoping this move will be our "forever" house, or at the very least our "for a long, long, long time" house, so we felt a lot of pressure to find the right place . I can't wait to turn it into our home !
Random 