a father's day card.

happy father's day to the man who taught me the values of life that are so important to me today. thank you for being so present in our childhoods & lives:

 from holidays & playgrounds,

 to every single birthday.

 from growing up at chatfield hollow... 

(that is the most badass state dep jacket i've ever seen... where is that now dad?) 

to feeding my love of ice cream!

 to teaching us how to grow flowers from just seeds. 

which instilled a love of gardening that all four of us will pass on to our kids one day

 and for your endless love. 

happy father's day dad. wish i was there to give you a big punk-a-doo hug. enjoy your day!

a dreamy valentine's day.

i woke up this morning to a husband with a smirk on his face...

he handed me an envelope,

 and the sweetest card,

 and a taped up package,

 and i knew instantly...

he had gotten me my dream shoes!!!

 aren't they perfect?!

i posted about these heels recently because i literally am in love with them... and what do you know... husband sneaked on the blog & got them for me for Valentine's Day! i got him hockey skates & he got me shoes. boy do we know each other well! it isn't all about gifts, but man there is nothing like lavender suede striped heels to put a smile on my face. i'd take these over chocolate & flowers any day.

pete is on duty this whole weekend so we are spending quality time together on this lovely holiday. so far we went to the gym, ran errands & now are home on the couch relaxing, about to watch Skyfall... my husband is on cloud 9 because of it. he absolutely LOVES james bond movies (he has every single one) so we have been waiting for this one to come out on dvd! so add some funfetti cake with strawberry frosting i made & a bottle of wine and that is our perfect Valentine's Day to us :) 

hope you had a great day full of sweets, treats, & love. 

sending you all x's & o's

love, LA.

over the past week

 we decorated for Christmas,

 hung our favorite ornaments on the tree,

(this year's tree had really weak branches so only the best ornaments made the cut)

husband and i rocked our trench coats to Christmas Eve Mass,

and we had our extended family over afterwards for Christmas Eve celebrations,

where we sang carols while my grandma played the piano.

the next morning we all opened presents by the fire

(my mom gave me this bumble bee Alex & Ani bracelet)

and husband surprised me with a camera!

(since i take almost ALL of the pics for the blog on my iphone)

to which i immediately started running around the house trying it out

taking pics of the bedroom,

and this happened shortly after...

(my little brother Liam thinks he is pretty clever)

and even Leo posed for the camera

pretty, pretty boy.

over the past week

the tree quickly became the permanent cat napping location 

 see what i mean?

 the stockings were hung with care

i FINALLY figured out the perfect way to curl my new haircut:

the trick is to curl one side NOT away from your face

 kairos wanted to get in on the wardrobe post

 rachael & my cousin came over for a marathon baking session

 we had a flour fight while sipping on daiquiris

 we made santa brownies... recipe here

 while using the most random assortment of cookie cutters ever for the sugar cookies

batman? a cross? & lots of animals came out to play

 & cookie pressed the cutest little trees of all.

merry night-before-christmas eve!

xox.

'tis the season

 the cutest, and i mean cutest, holly jolly print via: A Cultured Pearl

 old ice skates with new peppermint laces from: Wet Paint

holiday pancakes + candy cane & chocolate syrup from: The Glitter Guide

 the most whimsical fireplace of all via: The House of Belonging

 the prettiest mint cups + candy cane accents from: Seasonal-Love

 another darling fireplace + mantle from: Young House Love

& words of wisdom from this holiday tag via: Thunder and Starlight

Take it easy. Relax. Eat, drink & be merry. Do NOT diet. Smile. 

happy holidays!

love, LA

these images are for inspiration only. all images are properly credited & links to sources in turquoise.

manly wish list: Christmas

1.) hockey Precious Moment ornament from here +  2.) a book that all men should own from here

3.) a favorite hoodie from here +  4.) the best backpacks in town from here

5.) the man can from here + 6.) an engraved golfing flask from here

*i take pride in picking the items for all my silly little wish lists. when it comes to this Christmas list, these are the actual gifts i purchased for husband this year... i hope it gives some (affordable) ideas to all you ladies... enjoy!

1.) we get each other an ornament every year & since he played hockey in college, i let out an "eek!" when i saw this darling Precious Moment.

2.) i thought this book would be hysterical for him to have & i am kind of excited to see what it's all about!

3.) these Urban Outfitters hoodies are the BOMB. Pete has worn them for years. perfect fit, a whole selection of colors... my brothers always steal them from him so my mom got each of my three brothers one as well.

4.) when we were in the airport on our way to California this past November, we saw two stylish people in the airport with these backpacks and we both fell in love with them. i actually purchased the green version of this backpack for pete, but it is now sadly sold out. 

5.) pete specifically asked for the "man can" this year. i said "the man what?!" ... turns out it is the perfect gift for those who have to keep a clean shaven face (like my military husband)

6.) this flask not only holds any liquid you want, it has storage for all your little golfing essentials and can be engraved!

meep meep!

with hurricane sandy threatening to ruin our halloween, 

we all celebrated early. i was the Road Runner...

and pete was Wile E Coyote.

we partied with a ballerina, a penguin, & a naughty housewife

 & danced the night away

(sadly this is only picture pete and i are in together)

my sign was put to good use 

& a dream team was put together

i love holidays, love my husband, & love my friends.

all of you east coasters, hope you have all the necessary items for a long haul of a week with this hurricane fast approaching. we've got the generator standing by. this Sandy looks like one bad ass bitch & hoping everyone stays safe & sound. i am off to punch this hangover in the face with waffles & the ManU game by the fire. happy lazy Sunday!