...That's not great.

Don't bum the hipsters out.

We attended my friends' wedding on Saturday evening. It was a very warm day (by Seattle standards) - in the high 90s - but the location was a park and cultural center on the Puget Sound, so it was warm, but perfectly breezy.

I wore my new dress, and even though it was supposed to be WARM, I brought my customary cardigan. The dress has an open back; and I don't usually make it a point to show off any part of the 19 inch scar that follows down my spine from a few inches shy of my neck. 

But the dress and my scar aren't really the point of this post.

RD and I were standing with our friends (not the bride and groom) discussing how much fun this wedding was. The husband (hers, not mine) remarked that there seemed to be a lot of "young people" at the wedding (context - bride is 28, groom is 36, the commenter is 51). We all nodded in agreement.

A few seconds later, it occurred to me:

Was I one of the "young people" he speaks of?

It's no longer clear.

I don't necessarily want/need to feel like one of the "young people".

I just don't want to bum them out.

And, hopefully this time - I didn't. Scar and all.

PS. This was the taco truck featured at the wedding, and OMG, it was delicious. TACO TRUCK!

Once every ten years.

The last time a decent photo was taken of me was (thankfully) at my wedding 10 years ago.

Until last month.

See you again in 10 years.

The dark horse.

So, I went with something OTHER than the choices shown. I just couldn't stomach the cost - and none went on sale further.

At Sears to see if they had some Lands End shorts, I stumbled across this dress. There was only one and just happened to be in my exact size and preferred color (navy).

It's PERFECT.

The wedding is relatively casual - held in a Seattle park. I didn't want anything too informal (the bride is telling people to be comfortable - wear shorts - ah NO), and I like that this dress is a more casual (yet still lovely) fabric (cotton lawn), but the cut seems more formal. Still undecided on the shoes, however.

Some things never change. 

A tale of two dresses. Or more.

Now that I am of a certain age (ahem....over 30) and RD's been of a certain age for awhile; we don't get invited to alot of weddings anymore. The last wedding we attended was my cousin's - over a year ago. Well, we have one coming up in August - this is pretty big news around these parts. 

News = reason to shop.

So, I'm on the hunt for a great dress for the wedding. I really don't want to do the little black dress thing - I want something fun, flattering and not crazy expensive. I'm sort of hard to fit for dresses. Bigger on top, broad shoulders, no hips and skinny legs.

I tried on about 10 at the Loft, but nothing stood out. I scanned Banana Republic - nothing. So I headed to Anthropologie today (which is sort of a hassle since there's not one close to us) to try on some I've admired online.

Two (well, three, actually) stood out as possibilies.

Obscured Flora Dress (which I probably would have just purchased if it was under $100).

  

Oroya Dress (now, if this one was $20 cheaper it would have been mine; freakin' gorgeous; for the record, I would tie the bow in the back)

Knotted Poppies Dress (again, very cute, but not cute enough for the price tag)

And now I wait and play the "sale game". Or keep shopping. Probably both.

Coveting: for the home. And a question.

We've lived in this house for more than six years now; and between a flood or two, two kids in diapers, potting training two kids, a new job for RD, a surgery (or two!) for me, etc., it's taken me a long time to decide how to "decorate" each of the spaces within the home.

We moved in with an 11 month old Bubba to freshly painted (albeit all off-white) walls in every room, new fixtures, and not alot of money left over from our move. 

My main priority was the kids' rooms - they were painted and decorated first. I mean, who can't NOT decorate a nursery first? We put up what pictures and art we had - NOT MUCH - and then I painted our bedroom and bathroom and hung framed photos in each space. The hall bath was next - new paint, shower curtain and towels. The kitchen got a coat of paint on it's three walls (a lovely green, the only foray out of the taupe tones in the rest of the house). Last summer I painted the daylight basement (no small feet at more that 750 square feet) to go with the framed photo wall I updated the winter before.

But the open entry/living/dining has always left me at a loss. Sure, we had a few art pieces up on the walls, one large wall painted (necessitated by a window we had added), and the area above the fireplace styled. But the rest? A big question mark.

While financing these endeavors is always an issue; it's not really all about the money. I think my problem is two-fold. One: I have an extreme aversion to what I call "mall art". You know, standard (and I personally believe, BORING) things I would purchase that I have no connection to - other than it matched my decor and color scheme. I would rather have not much on my walls (hello - the current state of my home) than be surrounding by things I couldn't pick out of a line-up. And two: my very common bi-level home's floor plan and related wall and window placement puzzles me. But I think I'm making progress.

I did more forward this winter and paint the entire length of the hallway to match the one wall of color in the shared living/dining wall. I now only have two more walls to cover - of course they will be the most challenging due to the height of the wall over a staircase.

But the painting is motivating. It's gotten me to start looking about to see what I might like to see everyday on the walls. A few of the items already up on the walls may stay - namely a needlepoint my grandmother made and a painting I was given (i.e. kinda stole) from my parents.

Here's the items on my list:

"Edition" Wall Art, CB2.
Oh, you will soon be mine. I love the mix of colors and the use of recycled materials.

Portland Steel Bridge, reproduction by Michelle Maule.
How I wish I could afford her gorgeous originals. This morning I purchased three prints from this Portland-based artists through Esty. They were very reasonably priced and I can't wait to get them and explore how best to frame them.

Seattle, Ork Posters.
Who doesn't love an Ork Poster? I plan on purchasing both Seattle and Portland and then have them framed. I just wish they were the same size print; as it would make everything about this project a wee bit easier.

Now sure, these aren't items I can hang on the wall, but I am coveting them just the same.

 

Metal Counter Stools, Overstock.
We desperately need stools to replace the ones that are wobbly and beyond repair. The reviews on these are great and the price is even better.

Cameron Cotton Drapes, Pottery Barn.
I'm generally not a fan of curtains or drapes, and since our house is relatively secluded, they generally aren't necessary. We have wood blinds in all the bedrooms, plus blackout fabric drapes (for the kids' rooms). That said, I think a set of simple, white drapes would complement the large window in our dining room. They will help establish the the dining room as its own space as well as formalize the room a bit. Or at least I hope so.

The only undecided problem is WHAT THE HECK to do with the two story wall space above the bi-level stairs? (Sorry for the horrible cell-phone photo.)

Obviously I still need to paint (which will help), and perhaps once I have other walls better accessorized, this lack of coverage won't look so glaring.

Any thoughts?

Yah, yah; I know.

It's almost 9pm on Sunday evening and I am EXHAUSTED.

As a working mom of two, I am used to relatively crazy weeks. But this past one was OFF THE CHAIN.

It started off with a wonderful Mother's Day - which also happened to be Bubba's 7th birthday. Monday and Tuesday I was out of the office in a training. I'm busy enough at work that I really don't need to be spending days on end out of the office. Really.

So back in the office I am busy, busy with meetings, projects, reports, etc., ETC. During lunch I'm running errands in preparation for the two birthday parties we just hosted this weekend - crafts from Michael's, balloon orders, treat bags.

In the evenings I am cleaning, grocery shopping and then, of course, NOT SLEEPING. You know how bad it is when I have 300 unread items in my Google Reader.

On top of this, RD (god love him) orders $200 worth of bark delivered on Thursday morning. I tell you, it looks terrific now, BUT, MAN; it took him awhile. We have a LARGE-ASS yard. 

Of course on Saturday I couldn't just leave well enough alone with the princess tea party for Sis. My day looked like this:

•    Brunch down the street at our friends
•    Run back home and decorate Barbie cake
•    Host tea party for 6 little girls
•    Get changed; go to Bubba's baseball game
•    Run home and make oriental cabbage salad
•    Go to park for BBQ with baseball families
•    Wish I could have wine at the park
•    Go to mall with 2 friends to use $25 Banana savings card
•    Buy really cute pants
•    Stop for a drink; wish it could have been 9
•    Come home, collapse; yet somehow sleep wrong and wake up not being able to look to the left

And today, we held Bubba's party with 11 of his friends at a indoor entertainment-type place. Which, is short of my nightmare, but I have to say it wasn't that bad and everyone seemed to have a great time.

Of course, pictures to follow. I'm going to hold off until I can move my neck to the left.

That's me yelling, "Run, run, run, RUN!!"

WWEPW?

My new favorite website - What Would Emma PIllsbury Wear?

Nothing's better...

...than a day at the ballpark.

Sometimes, this has to be enough.

Today, spring break for Bubba begins. (Oh, yah, he has told us he no longer wants to be called Bubba, but that's a whole other story.)

So, this afternoon, we'll break out of school early and hit the road to Portland for the next 5 days. We'll stay with family and see the sights of my beloved hometown.

I feel pretty luck that he is so excited to spend this one-on-one time with me. Because I'm sure that won't last too much longer.

Who knows? He may surprise me.