Little Changes, Part Two

Part one here.

So, I've always wanted curtains... long, touch-the-floor curtains. I've considered purchasing them, but have discovered that I am frugal, at least where curtains are concerned. I've thought about making them, but to get fabric I'd really love, and to sew all of those long straight stitches scared me; plus, it's not always the most cost-effective way to go either. 

Every time I went to Target, or TJ Maxx, or Tuesday Morning or a similar store, I'd see what was up for grabs in the clearance section. Apparently, people aren't fond of purple and dark red... because those are the ones primarily on sale. I'm not fond of super mismatched curtains, nor is my color scheme purple and red, so I left the stores disappointed that I never found a set of drapes for $8. 

Long story short (not sure why I AM making this a long story), Groupon had a sale on long brown curtains - $30 for 4. Done. They shipped faster than the promised 6 weeks (I think they came in 1) and they work perfectly. They let in light but also let the room look more "finished". 

And then Bed, Bath and Beyond had two polka dot valances on sale for $4 each, so I bought those, knowing that though they may not go with our room currently, they work, and they could possibly work in a future guest room or kids' room... I felt like I had to buy them because I couldn't pass up $4 and had a bunch of gift cards.

The other change is in our room... we moved the rocking chair (Carson found it at a thrift store) upstairs under this little window. It makes a cozy nook for reading or just storing folded clothes (*ahem*).

Love how homey our little space is getting!

We Are Pigs

I was going through pictures from this month, trying to think of something to say that didn't involve snow or cold weather and, well... if you ever wanted to know that we eat, we proved it in February.  Pictures of healthy meals? Not so much... but I guess those aren't fun pictures to take. 

One of my favorite snacks in college was mandarin oranges from the can... then you only have to wash the fork! I have pictures like this from 2008. 

We were at the grocery store for something else after church and somehow left with knock-off Samoas cookies, mac and cheese ingredients and fried chicken. I guess we figured out why we shouldn't shop while hungry.

We had "breakfast for dinner" one night recently because I decided that donuts sounded fabulous (I seriously don't think I'd had a donut in the last year and it turns out that I missed nothing - no offense to Dunkin; I guess I just don't love them anymore). I declared the donuts to be the dessert for our meal and we happily ate bacon and eggs for dinner so that we could justify our dessert. Like anything justifies six donuts for two people.

Okay, so one of our absolute favorite favorite FAVORITE places here is Piada. It's like an Italian Chipotle... basically they'll make a salad bowl, pasta bowl or this sort of "Italian burrito" (my words, not theirs) from all of these amazing fresh ingredients. They give us so much food for a really decent price. It's two meals' worth of food, so very tasty, and fun because it's customizable and they have Italian sodas on tap (do you say that with sodas?) which is just different. Anyway, we've been there a million times since they opened in December because it's SO GOOD and around the corner/ right next to my work (I work next to a Chipotle, Five Guys, Panera, Frozen yogurt place, Jimmy John's and a Chinese restaurant that we mean to go to but keep choosing Piada over it). 

And then while I was at Jillian's in January, she made a neat little pesto and served it with mozzarella on tomatoes and cucumbers. I introduced the idea to Carson and he gave two enthusiastic thumbs up. We eat some form of this at least every week (here, we had a quick dinner and just used basil, no pesto).

Little Changes

As the winter days go on and on, I enjoy finding projects to do. I like to prettify things and be happy that if I can't change what's outside the walls of this house, I CAN do something about he inside.

The other night, we acted on a plan I've had for weeks, but couldn't do myself...

We had two bookshelves upstairs and I liked that - it was nice seeing those old familiar titles every time I went to my room. I don't like to keep my books to myself though - I wanted them in a common place where we could see them and I had the perfect place - the living room. So one night, deciding that I had had enough, I unloaded the bookshelf in about five minutes. 

Carson took it downstairs (not to make him seem less strong but it's one of those cheap Target shelves so thankfully he didn't need my help at all) and moments later I was reloading books onto the shelves. They're no longer categorized and alphabetized (I'm sure it will drive me crazy and that will happen) but I love them in their new space. 

What do you think? Do you enjoy the little changes that cold (or just long and dreary for those of you in snow-free places) winter days seem to bring about?

Lots of Love {Valentine's Day 2013}

Valentine's Day has always been near and dear to my heart. 

My dad would give me a stuffed animal and small box of chocolate every year (once he sent them to Spokane), and I always loved the fluff and cheesiness of the holiday.

I celebrated with roommates.

I celebrated by myself.

I just really liked having something to look forward to during months of winter gloom. 

I don't have a lot of Valentine's Day decor, but I do try to make things or put things up to decorate and make the house festive. 

Banner made by Mom/Carolina Ribbons. 

Paper flowers I made (so easy) and Target vase 

Heart dish from Dollar Tree // some of my favorite V-day candies


Two days before Valentine's Day (Carson went out of town on the day), we celebrated.

Earrings were a Valentine's gift from Carson two years ago 

Necklace from Juney Faye via Very Jane // Target clearance dress from four years ago // Lipstick Covergirl Lip Perfection in Burn (my new fav)

We had a mini photo shoot, and took a very cheesy picture - which makes it a GREAT picture.

For dinner, I had Tilapia and white cheddar mashed potatoes
Carson had Peppercorn Steak and Macaroni

We went to the Cheesecake Factory for dessert and we will be returning. So many options. I had the strawberry cheesecake and Carson had banana cream.

Then we exchanged gifts at home in front of the fireplace

On Valentine's Day itself, we didn't do a lot. Carson finished packing for his trip, while I slept in.
He made me breakfast in bed and while he was running to the store for bacon (oops), I snuck downstairs and made this for him to take. I saw the idea here and loved it. Hope he did too!

Aaaaand these went on his trip as well. I've seen the idea around the internet and probably couldn't find the original source if I tried, but it was really easy.
We had a random unopened deck of cards that my bridesmaids gave us for our honeymoon (sorry ladies) so I opened it, wrote something different on each card, punched a hole in the corner (my hand wanted to die) and couldn't find ribbon, so I tied it together with baker's twine.

I put the sandwich, a piece of candy, and the cards in this tupperware so that they wouldn't get squished on the plane. It all went into the suitcase where he hopefully found it and loved it!

Oh, and I wore this:

pink sweater: Forever21, striped shirt: H&M, jeans: Aeropostale, locket: Target (this was one of my gifts) 

And then we had to take a picture together.

After dropping Carson at the airport, I ran some errands and finished up by stopping by work. Not only did I get a tasty drink but some very kind coworkers had dropped off treats, so I snagged some too!

And this was waiting by the back door when I got home. (about that outlet... I KNOW.)

Carson had flowers delivered!

 All in all, a lovely day. It wasn't overly cheesy (though that was there too) but it was very sweet.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Half-Birthday

Well, we've lived in Cleveland for six months now. 

The road had seemed particularly endless that day. It was HOT and we didn't have air conditioning, so we'd roll one window down and have one up in order to hear our books on tape. Our car was completely packed, and every time we stopped for gas or food, people made comments about how cramped it was. It's funny now.

The day was strange because we realized this is it. The butterflies I'd had when we crossed the Washington/Idaho border grew stronger with each mile marker we passed. We were going, in my dramatic mind, to the great unknown world, the uncharted territories. For better or for worse, Cleveland was going to be our home and the little house we'd found on Craigslist would be ours for at least 22 months. Would we like it? We didn't know. Would we find friends? A church? Jobs? Would we start our family here? Would it feel like home? 

There was so much on our minds as we passed through cow-scented pastures and smelly cities (and we couldn't do anything about those because there wasn't any air conditioning). 

It was nearly dark outside when we crossed into Ohio. I remember thinking that it was very boring, something I found pertinent, since days before we'd kissed the sights of mountains and pine trees goodbye. Ohio was hilly but sort of blah. It could have been anywhere. Was it home?

We were staying with friends that first night, since we weren't entirely sure that our landlord would love us coming by for a key at 11pm, so we didn't see our house, but we were able to see the surrounding area. It was very suburban, which I hadn't expected. There was road construction that made Google Maps reroute a million times, so we didn't get to the Storey's home until after midnight, where we were greeted with loving but tired arms and a wonderful air mattress (I mean that). 

It was August 16th. 12:21am on August 16th, but I think it counts.

After a not-long-enough rest, we picked up the keys and made our way down possibly one of the worst roads in the area, to our new home. The lovely suburban area vanished and I felt like we were in the ghetto (okay not really, but the roads were horrible and everything looked absolutely dirty and broken-down). It was not the best first impression, but we pretended that it was, and laughed about it. Just about every other road in the area looks better than that one. Of course.

Finally, we turned onto our street. We'd searched it on Google Maps before, so that we could see what it looked like, but it was still quite different, seeing it on a screen and seeing it in real life. We drove slowly so that we wouldn't miss our house (we sometimes still have to do this - for whatever reason, we've driven past it several times) and suddenly there it was. 

Carson turned the key in the lock while I snapped pictures, and suddenly there we were. We were home. 

-- 

We're somewhat settled now. We've answered those friends-jobs-church sort of questions and we're familiar with street names and the fact that the weather is really crazy. Since we know that it's so temporary, I think that's still in the back of our minds, and we aren't truly settled here. It doesn't feel like home in the way that Spokane did, which is probably normal, since we were there for four years, but we do like it. We're making a list of places to go and see and eat while we're here, so that's fun. Mostly, I can't believe that six months ago it was hot outside. I think I've completely forgotten what it was like to be warm. 

My Favorite Love Song Was Written About a Sandwich

I thought the above title, rephrased from the movie 27 Dresses, was appropriate for this short (8 seconds) video I made of a treat I created for Carson.

It's a PB&J with sprinkles, in case you wondered.

Happy Valentine's Day!

My Crazy College Days...

Once upon a time, I went to college.

I didn't have a crazy college experience. I went to a Bible school and lived with four relatively normal girls my first year. We would stay up late, yes, but it was mostly because we were studying or making music videos to Disney soundtracks. We would stay up till 2am creating funny pictures like this one:

Embarrassing, but not really crazy. 

Anyway, Molly and I both really REALLY wanted to get our noses pierced that year. Apparently, we're not the sort of people to make an impulse decision (plus, it costs $50. $50 is a COMMITMENT.) because we did not get our noses pierced during our first year. We did, however buy glue and a package of rhinestones commonly used as nail art. And then we... well, we glued little rhinestones to our noses just to get the effect.

We LOVED the effect. But we never really had $50 dollars and we weren't sure what our dads would say, so we stuck with rhinestones that kept falling off our faces.

So on and off, we would talk about piercing our precious little noses. Friends began to pierce them and we thought that maybe we'd look too much like we were following another trend. Still, we thought about it. 

Time passed, and we laughed about our rhinestone days. 

More time passed, and we both got married. We still talked about our noses. 

Fast forward to our senior year.

I asked Carson what he thought about my nose getting pierced (I showed him the picture I just showed you) and he said he liked it. I told Molly and we decided that the time had come (this was probably early 2011).

I really don't think I've communicated it enough here, but I am scared of needles and sometimes hyperventilate after I have blood drawn. I also happen to know that they don't use a staple gun on your nose like they do with ears - they use a needle. 

But then again, I had wanted to pierce my nose for over three years. The time had clearly come. I didn't want to be 75 years old and still considering it. There is a window after all. (ps - if you are 75 and want to get your nose pierced, by all means FEEL FREE...)

So we discovered that one of the piercing places nearby had $10 off on Tuesdays. Tuesday it was. Carson was working, and just in case I'd decide to chicken out, I risked the embarrassment of telling him what I was going to do. Days before, I asked for his permission, just to be clear. "So, if I were serious about getting my nose pierced, what would you say? Are you really okay with it? Because I think this time I'm serious." And he said go for it (I don't think he actually cared at all). 

Molly and I went to the mall, full of trepidation. Well, I was. She'd decided not to pierce her nose after all. 

I signed medical releases (scary) and we went into a little room. I had my nose marked with a marker to show where the piercing would go. I okay'd the spot, then they cleaned my nose with a q-tip (I don't think I would like cleaning noses and such as part of my job. I bet they see really gross things.), stuck a little tube up my nose (it was weird), and told me to close my eyes (if I can't see the needle, maybe I won't know it's there). She said "I'm going to count to three and then you'll feel a pinch. "1... pinch". Smart going, lady. I didn't even have time to tense up. It pinched and made my eyes water and then I was told (this is tmi) that it was "gushing" so I kept a cotton ball on it. 

So after that, we went to get ice cream (we'd saved $10, remember?!) to celebrate the accomplishment of a first-year goal... three years later. 

I loved it. Carson was surprised that I went through with it but said he liked it too.

I would have expected that I was responsible enough for such a piercing. And I was, for exactly three days.

I went on a retreat and was toweling off after a shower when suddenly - ow! My nose ring came out and I couldn't get it back in (it was the corkscrew kind and I still don't know how to work them). I used the only substitute I had - a real earring, which seemed normal-sized on my ear, but was ridiculous on my nose. Someone called "diva" because of my bling and everyone laughed at me. I deserved that.

But then one Tuesday later, we found ourselves in that very same little room for Molly - who'd decided to get her tragus (the little flap thing on your ear) pierced. I imagine that hers was much more painful, but she has the highest pain tolerance ever so it wasn't a big deal.

Anyway, that's the story of how crazy we were in college. 

Insane, right?

This is a post about curtains

I think that the reason that I am at a loss when people say, "What's new, Lindsay?" is that I don't have a lot of new. We work, Carson goes to school, we go to church... but nothing particularly thrilling happens during the week. 

And then... we got curtains.

I know.

 ABOUT TIME - that's what you were thinking, isn't it?

(I've been thinking that it was about time since right after we got married, except then I realized that I am far too cheap to want to spend $32.50 [or even $10] on just ONE curtain panel, when I'd definitely want more than just one. Thankfully Groupon had a deal or these windows would have been naked for probably forever. And then I found two polka dot valances for $4 and thought that $4 was too good to pass up... and one day we'll hang them in a baby's room or something because they're polka dots but for now they're in ours because I HAD to buy them and they didn't have grown-up looking curtains for $4)

Now you want to see my windows, right? 

Well, feast your eyes. 

What have I been doing lately? Oh, just admiring my new curtains. That's all.