-- Her Royal ... SweatShirt? --

Its here!  Its here!

After Erika from Urban Grace posted about the gorgeous sweatshirts from Joules I stalked their site for a day or two and finally bit the bullet and ordered my favorite.  

I know its embarrassing to admit, but I was actually really nervous while placing my order.  I rarely order clothing online and this sweatshirt wasn't just online.  It was online and from the UK (hence the royal comment *giggle*)!  Obviously I was a little concerned about the fact that shipping was almost as much as the actual shirt, but I absolutely love it (and its still more affordable than one on sale from Lululemon)!

Its a little heavier than I had expected it to be - especially in the hood - but its going to be great for those fall evenings at the cottage and early-morning walks with the puppy.

If you happen to take a look at their site and also get tempted, do be aware that their site is super slow to get your order processed.  But the good news is that shipping is super fast!  I ordered on July 22 and my package arrived this afternoon...

 

And just for fun... I called Lucas out of his workshop (he's working on a piece for an upcoming wedding that I can't wait to share) to take my picture and just when he passed me the camera he turned to me and said: "C'mon, take a picture of the Phelps..."  Yep, that's right, he's named his swimming arms after Michael Phelps... I'm so proud :-)

-- Izzy --

While taking pictures of one of my husband's latest Clark Wood Creations products before it headed out to the customer, our dog Izzy came up and plopped herself right in front of the camera.  So we had a little photo shoot - just her and me on our bedroom floor.  It was awesome... she barely moved once she got into her poses which was great because photos of Izzy are often blurry because she moves around a lot.

Even though she didn't exactly smile for the camera - I figure she's quite an attractive little girl!

*swoon*

-- DressUp --

I posted last week that I am a new Pinterest addict (follow me if you'd like).  I just love how its a place to save all my favorite images without having to be careful about the source of the image ... because its all saved for me!

Lately I've been pinning a lot of dress pictures since I'm shopping for a new dress for an upcoming family wedding.  The wedding is going to be outdoors, beside the water, on a Saturday afternoon in August so I don't really want to be super dressy or hot.  But, the reception doesn't start until 7pm and its taking place at a relatively swanky hotel.  So I'm kind of torn between something casual and something more dressy...

Here are a couple dresses that have caught my eye...

Source: modcloth.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: modcloth.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: modcloth.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: lechateau.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: lechateau.com via Amanda on Pinterest

I really love the fuschia colored dress but it might be a little short on me.  I also love the style of the deep purple dress from ModCloth.

But, I'm fortunate enough to have just gotten a black jersey dress from Tristan on a great sale about a month ago and I'm tempted to just try to make it work for this wedding.  Maybe by pairing it with some coral or cobalt wedges and a simple bangle and a great statement necklace it would be spicy/dressy enough for a wedding?

Source: None via Amanda on Pinterest

What do you think?  Any favorites?  Any recommendations or suggestions?

-- Last Weekend: RibFest 2011 --

First a warning: If you are a vegetarian or vegan and you weren't already tipped off by the title of this post, avert your eyes.  Carnivorous activities lie herein...

We spent Saturday afternoon at a local park that was celebrating RibFest 2011.  I get the feeling that many towns celebrate RibFest, but we'd never been before - rather surprising considering our love for all things BBQ'd and smothered in sauce :)  We showed up about 30 minutes after the place opened and there was already a swarm of people...

Enjoying some of "Pappy's Old-Fashioned Soda Pop" while waiting in line for our first 1/2 rack of ribs from the folks at Kentucky Smokehouse.

The Kentucky Smokehouse Secret... who knew?

Hmmm... looking at this now, the picture doesn't look too appetizing.  In person, it must have looked pretty good though, because these guys lasted less than 10 minutes!

Taking a break for some veggies dipped in butter (seriously, these slow roasted corn on the cob people had two slow cookers full of melted butter!!)

After walking off a tiny bit of that first 1/2 rack helping, we moved onto our second stop... we had to choose between Boss Hogs and Jack the Ribber :-)

 Both places used BBQ's with wood fires, so we chose Jack the Ribber who ensure us that his ribs were more tender then your Mama's love... (the ribs were awesome, the grammar, not so much)

 

The BBQ-er at Jack the Ribber was saucing up our lunch with a paintbrush!

Super Yummy!

And we finished just in time to take in some of the local talent!

-- Refinement --

Its no secret that every person, every marriage and every family encounters its fair share of challenges.

Because everyone has their own struggles I choose not to dwell on mine (or at least I try) and I certainly don't choose to air those struggles over the internet.  That being said, I think there is much wisdom to be gained through sharing our stories.  So without over-sharing, our extended family has been dealing lately with the surprise, hurt and disappointment of a failed relationship.  Certainly something that many of us have encountered in one way or another.  Through this experience, it has surprised me to learn how conflicted my heart is about the issue.

This morning though, I found the blog Sanctified Pearl through the recommendation of Jones Design Company.  K.C. wrote today about sea glass and how it is that something so beautiful can only become that way through the pain and struggle of hardship.  She wrote:

"I see my life (and the life of my friend) as a little piece of beach glass. We aren’t always sure how we will survive different circumstances in our lives. We think we will break under the constant crashing of disappointments, hardships, and trials. But, if a piece of discarded trash can become something beautiful and valuable, I have to believe my Creator is doing much the same with me. He is refining me. Smoothing the rough edges. Softening the exterior that can cut and be dangerous. He values me and with the break of each wave, I am becoming more of who I was created to be. And you are too."

K.C.'s post touched me today.  I wanted to 1) save this for another day as a reminder of the refinement that is happening in my own life and heart and 2) share this with anyone else who might stumble across this post because I truly believe that we can learn and grow by cautiously opening our hearts to each other.

-- My Relaxing Time --

Most Sunday nights (and often other evenings as well) Lucas finds me painting my nails.  He calls it my relaxing time.  And as much as I hate to admit it, he's right.  I'm quite particular about making sure that I don't get nail polish all over and so it takes a fair bit of concentration... its my quiet time.

Granted, in a house without kids, its never really loud around here... but still.

My new favorite polishes are from Essie: a smoky plum called 'angora cardi' (I've got this on my fingers right now)

and a bright coral called 'e-nuf is e-nuf' (I've got this on my toes for now and wore it on my fingers over the weekend)

During my last visit to the grocery store I was also tempted to buy this one, but resisted... maybe for the Fall ;)

 

Do you spend time on your nails?  If so, can you please recommend a quick-dry top coat?  If not, how do you like to spend your relaxing time?

-- I Made This --

A couple weeks ago I came across a really neat idea and it led me to Pin.Sew.Press and a project tutorial that she had posted.  Around this time, my mother-in-law was celebrating a birthday and I was wracking my brain trying to think of something to buy/make/give her.  Perfect timing!  

Because I was short on time (only had one evening), I stopped at Walmart and was able to pick up everything I needed.  I bought two kitchen towels, a stack of coordinating fabric, some thread and a spool of ribbon.  After an hour of cutting, pressing and pinning, here's one of the finished products.

 There are two strips of fabric sewn on the front side of the towel, just far enough apart that it makes it possible to wrap the towel over the oven handle.  I strung some ribbon through each strip of fabric and tied the ends so that the towel stays securely on the bar.

Now I won't find myself searching for a towel that my husband has "relocated" :)

-- Have You Seen This Before? --

I was flipping through my pile of magazines the other day trying to decide which we going to the recycling bin and which would find a place on my shelf... and I noticed this cover.  All I could think: "She is gorgeous and looks so great in that gold dress!"

Only moments later I found this cover and thought "Whoa! I guess I'm a fan of Heidi Klum because she looks great here too..."

Ok - so looking at it now, its perfectly obvious - how on earth did I miss that these magazines have the exact same cover picture?  One from SELF for December 2010 and one from a UK magazine, Easy Living from April 2011.  Crazy!

Have you ever noticed something like this before?  Believe me, I'm going to have eagle eyes from now on!

-- A New Place to Spend Time --

Oh my - posting has certainly been light around here!  Mostly because I recently joined the rest of the world and joined Pinterest which has kept my free time quite occupied.  If you Pin, make sure to follow me and leave a link to your boards in the comment section.  Here are a few of the images I've been loving lately...

Source: flickr.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: emilyaclark.blogspot.com via Amanda on Pinterest

Source: wetbehindthears.com via Amanda on Pinterest

In addition to perusing tons of lovely photos, Lucas and I have spent two wonderfully sunny days on the motorcycle (*warning iPhone pics coming your way*).  One day visiting Grand Bend on Lake Huron...

Mmmm... ice cream in a waffle cone... on the beach...
Can it get any better?
Why yes it can - Toasted Coconut dip on the ice cream - Perfection!

 And another cruise a week later when we visited a super interesting burger joint called Chucks...

The decor was quite interesting at Chucks... Very woods-y... definitely our kind of place ;)

This place was so great that despite my best intentions to capture an image of my lunch, I completely devoured it before I got a chance :-)

I also got a chance to spend a couple days at the lake with my sister-in-law and niece Evelyn...

All in all, its best a great couple of weeks but I'm getting behind in my work and really need to plug back in this week.  Here's to hoping I get back on the blogging band-wagon!