Aquarium Toilet, seriously.

We have been having some issues with our bathroom lately. The tub, the toilet, and the sink all have decided to strike at one time or another in the last month or two. Since we are looking to renew our lease for another year, we wanted to make sure we had a plumber come take a look before our tub wound up in the living room, “Money Pit” style.

So today, our landlord sent a plumber and while he was clinking and banging, I was secretly fantasizing about what I would have in my dream bathroom…

Two things: dual shower heads and an amazing mosaic (via for Modern in MN)

Unique his and her sinks (via)

Claw foot Soaker Tub (via)

I think I’ll move in… the sea foam green mosaic tile and that lighting fixture alone have my heart and that tub just screams for bubbles and a good book. (via)

One thing I can honestly say is not on my dream bathroom list is this toilet aquarium.

Come on, this cannot be serious!

Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately in regards to the fish tank loo,) we didn’t get any of these; in fact all we got was a new drain for the sink. Oh well, here’s to dreaming and to a sink that doesn’t leak! 

What’s on your dream bathroom list?

Poppa Stud

OK, its clearly not Fathers Day, but I had the best of intentions! In all honesty, I have been completely messed-up this year with the whole holiday. I sent my dad his card two weeks early and some how Sunday turned into Wednesday in a blink of an eye. Although the holiday has passed, I didn't want to go without saying a few things...

Pops and me on my wedding day

I have been blessed with an amazing father, a modern day Renaissance man. After a a twenty year career as a set designer and home remodel-er, my dad was ready to make a change. That change came when he decided to teach at a private all-boys high school in our town. He does it all from collecting classic literature to building the bookshelves in which to store them, truly the total package.

My house has become a gallery of his workmanship, with a home made bar/kitchen island, a coffee table, and even a custom bed frame. These priceless items have become some of my most prized possessions. (I will save pics of these treasures for another day.) Besides the material gifts, my father has given me the gift of perfectly timed sarcasm, unapologetic sensitivity, and most importantly, love.

Here's to you Dad, Happy Father's Week- hey, it's my blog, I can do what I want! 

"It was times like these when I thought my father... 
was the bravest man who ever lived."
- To Kill a Mockingbird

 You will forever be the Atticus to my Scout. I love you.

A Summer's Welcome: Patio Makeover

My husband and I are lucky enough to have a great backyard and patio. Finding a rental with a fenced yard was a dream since we had two very young puppies and the patio was just icing on the cake. When we moved in it was late in the summer and we didn't exactly have the money or motivation to get patio furniture that would just need to be stored for the winter. Logical at the time but when the hubs and I invited his family over for a bbq earlier last month, we realized we had nothing! In an attempt to provide a seat for herself, my mother-in-law gifted us her three old robins egg blue [read hideous] plastic patio chairs. We now had a place for 3 people to sit at a time, musical chairs anyone??

Who thought this was a good color, honestly?

About a week or so later, we began our search for a table and some chairs for no more than 150 and went straight to the thrifts stores. (Again, since we are renters, any larger of an investment seemed risky.) We hit the jackpot at a local thrift store with a great 6ft black wooden table with a steel frame. It cost us 40 bucks and a few painful hours trying to load it in our just too small CR-V. I cringe just thinking about about that day in all honesty, but at least we now had a table and 3 ugly chairs. Fast forward another two weeks and a purchase of four patio chairs (one sale for 20 a piece at a home improvement store) and we were well on our way to the great entertaining space we knew we could have.

Its not perfect, but its outdoors and it was 40 bucks people!

We needed at least two more chairs for us to have family and friends over but we were already close to our budget, so we were going to need those hand me down plastics after all -mothers do know best! I grabbed some black glossy plastic grade spray paint and got to work.

Two coats of black Valspar Plastic Spray Paint (6 bucks at Lowes)

A few hand cramps later, we had our functional party patio...for now anyway! We have already had the family over for dinner and some friends over for a bonfire and smore's. I have a good feeling about this summer!

The finished project, love it!

A Girl and A Key: The Beginings

my cousin and I (right) at the top of Croagh Patrick in Ireland

A mixture between homebody and adventure seeker, this girl is looking for the answer to age old question, "what do I want to be when I grow up?" Quickly approaching 25, newly married and a business women by trade, maybe I should already know but this is where my journey begins...

I could rattle off twenty career choices that I have thought of in the last two years, but nothing appeals to me longer than a few days. This question doesn't apply simply to the money-making career choices, but also to who I want to be and the legacy I want to leave behind. All this leaves a lot of ambiguity (trust me, you should see the mess of questions inside my brain) but there are some constants in my life, things I love, things that create light when everything else is a dark shade of gray: my two pit bull pups, art, home design, antiques and vintage items, DIY projects, and of course my family and friends.

So here it goes, this is my journal- my coming of age story so to speak- of following my passions and finding my way. As I unlock the doors and find inspirations along the way, I will share with you and hope that you share with me, too. Thanks for joining me on the adventure, sit back, hold on, and let's get going!