My favorite wall.

When I moved in with Brian back in February, we thought a lot about how we could update his space into our space. It was so fun to pick out new furniture and bedding together and rearrange our home to make it our own.  One project I was especially excited about was creating a plate wall in our kitchen. After seeing several plate walls pop up on my Pinterest feed, I knew it would be the perfect way to update our kitchen. Here are the steps we took to create our plate wall, my new favorite wall:

1. Shop!
It was so much fun to pick out the plates for our wall. My mom and I did most of the shopping around New York City when she was in town visiting. We loved the selection at Fish's Eddy and Anthropologie, and purchased most of the plates at these two stores. I also found a lot of amazing vintage dishware on Etsy.

2. Order adhesive plate hangers.
My mom found these for me on Amazon and they worked really well. I like that when the time comes to take the plates down, the discs can be easily removed with warm water. I ordered three different sizes to accommodate my plates.

3. Match up your hangers with plates, according to weight and size.
Before adhering the discs to the plates, I matched them all up according to size.

4. Get gluing.
The yellow discs were really easy to mount on the plates. After wetting the discs and letting them sit for several minutes, I firmly pressed them onto the backs of the plates. The discs needed to set for 24 hours before hanging.

5. Plan your wall.
While the yellow discs were drying, I traced my plates and cut them out. I labeled each plate with key words and colors that were important to keep in mind when hanging. With my pinned images open on my laptop, I arranged the plates on my wall with scotch tape. Personally, I think this step of the process was crucial. It allowed me to try out a lot of arrangements without damaging the wall.

6. Hang away!
Brian and I worked together to hang up all of the plates. It was important to measure the distance from the top of the metal hanger to the top of the plate before pounding nails into the wall. We used picture hanging hooks that could handle the weight of the plates.

We are so happy with how the wall turned out, and I am excited to add a few more plates soon!

Scenes from the weekend.

This past weekend everything caught up with me. The move, the unpacking, the report writing, and hours upon hours of family teacher conferences... I was absolutely exhausted. So, I decided to stay in my pajamas for as many hours as possible. I enjoyed several small naps on Saturday as the snow flurried outside. And despite my enthusiasm and plans for a movie date night in with Brian, I was asleep by 10 pm before the DVD was even loaded into the Blue Ray player. On Sunday, I somehow found the energy to change from my pajamas into more appropriate gym sweats, stop at the Gap to check out the Friends and Family sale (I found a dress I love!), and read an US Weekly on a bike work out. But as soon as I was home and showered, back into my pajamas I went.

Sometimes weekends spent curled up on the couch are just necessary.

Ice Capades

Our Christmas in Minnesota felt extra magical this year. Sparkly white snow covered the trees and homes, Christmas lights twinkled throughout my hometown, and the pond in our backyard froze into the most perfect ice. We took full advantage of our own private winter wonderland by skating every day.

Reese and Sage had never been on real ice before, and it was so fun to help them skate for the first time. "I'm gliding! I'm gliding!" could be heard throughout our week on the pond. These little Floridians were excited!

I will forever cherish the fond memories from our family Christmas together in 2012, and am looking forward to creating even more in 2013!

Happy New Year! 

Twelve dates of Christmas: On our tenth date of Christmas...

... we stayed in and watched another favorite holiday movie, Home Alone. 

(image)

Keep the change, ya filthy animal. 

Twelve dates of Christmas: On our eighth date of Christmas...

...we baked milk chocolate chip gingersnap cookies and watched Christmas Vacation (again). I may have fallen asleep about thirty minutes in the first time we watched it last week... 

Sometimes there's nothing better than a comfy, cozy night in with the one you love. 

Tulips, Snickerdoodles, and cat love. It's all about the little things.

Last weekend, I cherished every relaxing minute spent at home. My week off of school was coming to an end, and I knew that once March hit my life would spiral out of control with reports, parent teacher conferences, my class' transportation study culmination, and our school's first staff-led fundraiser. As predicted, I am now buried up to my ears in work, but these pictures from my quiet weekend make me smile and remember to breathe. 

Cheers to the little things in life... 

Tulips. I can't wait for spring to officially arrive. Until then, tulips might be my new flower of choice for my desk. 

Snickerdoodles. There is nothing more comforting than a plate of fresh baked Snickerdoodles and a glass of ice cold milk. 

Cat love. Boo may not be much of a cuddler, but she is always right by my side. Or on top of my laptop. I love her. 

Afternoon naps. There is really nothing better.

Love. This mug will forever make me smile and think of my beautiful nieces who helped me make it. Who knew so much love could be put into one little mug.

Hope your week was full of little things that made you smile. Happy Friday!

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Buongiorno

Yesterday morning I had my Italy girls over for brunch. I lived with these beautiful ladies seven years ago in Florence, and we have been great friends ever since. Once we sat down with our plates of french toast, eggs, and fresh strawberries, we realized that we had not all gotten together in months upon months. But, the wonderful thing is, it didn't even matter. We picked up where we left off and had hours of conversation about everything from engagements to jobs to our next shopping trip together. I am so grateful for my Via Cavour girls. Our brunch at home was the perfect start to my weekend.

Joys of a Saturday

Slowly waking up with no alarms set...

Phone calls with family...

Bottomless cups of coffee throughout the morning and afternoon...

Matthew and the Atlas, Guster, Beirut, and Ben Harper...


Lounging in the sun...

Tidying up a week's worth of clutter...

Slippers, pajamas, and 500 Days of Summer...

Updating calendars and starting a new countdown for my next trip to Florida...


Wearing sweatpants instead of jeans...


Iced skinny peppermint mochas... 


Planning my next baking endeavors...

Freshly painted nails... 


Thai food ordered in and a much needed movie date... 


Thankful for feeling refreshed, relaxed, and happy. 

Saturday Morning

Lazily pressing the snooze button as I burrow deeper into my covers for extra minutes of sleep...

Sipping coffee as sun beams down on my corner of the couch...

Kisses and I love yous...

Fleet Foxes, Bon Iver, Mumford & Sons, and Noah & the Whale...

Tidying up an apartment that never seems to stay clean...

Making plans for a summer night...

Working and reading at my desk with the smell of fresh lilies filling the air and Boo within arms reach...

Finding tasks that seem productive enough to delay my trip to the gym...

Pouring my second and third cups of coffee and browsing magazines...

Looking through old pictures...

Updating calendars and starting a new countdown for my next summer getaway...

Hunting for pigeons that are so close, yet so far away...

Grateful for feeling so content, relaxed, and happy.