If you have been in contact with me about an August consultation, please touch base via email so we can set a start time and get rolling on your project! I really appreciate your patience while I adjust to the new baby!

[image of my charming little upstairs office which i rarely get to use because the stairs leading to it are not kid friendly..oh and it is HOT up there in August..but it is cute!]

My talented friend Tami took this beautiful picture last week on Henry’s one week birthday!

Thanks friend..we love you!

[image courtesy of The K Gallery]

Baby girl Spencer is getting a beautiful room in Virginia! Remember I showed you a preview here.. well mama (and daddy) have been working hard and here some pics of their progress.. Mama wanted me to be sure you know it is NOT finished and this is in progress but still..isnt it coming together nicely?? it is going to be just darling. (she has great bones in this room..great carpet and that window!)

the central park toile fabric panels were sewn by the mama (dont you just love the pompom fringe down the side??!), chair is from IKEA, the ottoman is from Old Lucketts Store and will be slipcovered…the crib bedding is going to be all white…monogrammed canvas piece coming from here and the plates, yall the plates..i love that one that is..MONOGRAMMED!;; these are going to look so nice hung together on the latte walls.

and finally, the controversial element that adds tension to even the simplest room;;;;

…the CEILING FAN…i really like it..we debated this and some of yall were not in favor but it looks great and will be functional..so please keep your comments nice about the fan..remember you have TWO hormonal mamas involved here…just wanted to share and will have the finished product ready to show soon hopefully!

[source for fan and light]

Sweet Kelly is doing another “This is your life” friday..first it was showing rooms in your home and yard and this week..lucky yall;; it is “show us your wedding dress.” You are probably thinking “enough with the personal stuff” first the baby room and then baby pictures and now the WEDDING..well i promise no first date stories here or pictures of my first car (or horse) but i do want to share this because it involves caring for your heirlooms and a MONOGRAM. You see my love for monograms was probably birthed around this whole “wedding frenzy” time..blame Martha Stewart if I remember correctly. More on the monogram below.

OK so in 1998, Mr Wonderful and I wed in the chapel at Baylor University where we were students. So, instead of concentrating on my graduate seminars (it took me longer to finish grad school then it did for my husband to finish LAW school) I had a blast planning my wedding. I had my dress made at Auzell’s (on Washington Ave i believe)which is no longer in business but was a Waco staple for many years for fine fabrics and sewing, in fact they made the Cotton Palace dresses. Ok so Auzells made my dress and they were great..i wanted shantung but not ivory and they had bleached shantung which is more white..who knew?

front of the dress

and the back..i love the back and one up side to having it made custom was i could add this detail..little buttons ALL THE WAY to the floor..i was convinced it made me look taller next to Mr Tall!

I dont have any digital wedding photos or i would share..boy that shows how old we are;;

Ok so on to the monogram, I wanted the inside of the bodice monogramed with our duogram (that was so modern and yet traditional in 1998;;) but even classy Auzells just could not get it right..you could see the monogram THROUGH the shantung..not gonna work yall (I tried not to be a bridezilla but i really Auzells!) soo they MOVED the monogram to the petticoat (it was an a-line dress..dont worry, i wasnt doing the Scarlett thing) which i was not really OK with and wanted redone (are you shocked) plus the M was not larger than the H and E like it should have been (shocked Auzells did not know this!) but that’s ok, i didnt want to be difficult or anything;;. Really, I asked, several times but in the end the dress was delivered to Tidwell Bible Building THAT morning by the little guy from Auzells and i was so thrilled to FINALLY be saying “i do” I didnt really care..but really, that is nuts..i cant believe i did not have my dress until that morning. So here is the monogram (in blue of course) on the petticoat idea..i still think you could do it in the bodice and that would be nice..and i am sure you can find better variations all over the web today but back in 1998 i thought it was pretty unique.
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On to storage of the dress. Museums use acid free boxes and tissue to store textiles for the most part..you could sew in muslin support straps and hang on muslin covered padded hanger if you had a case to hang in but really it is best to box the item so there is no stress anywhere..most archival people (ok all that i know) cringe at the mention of the dry cleaning box but dont feel bad if you have done that..I boxed my dress so i could open it and look at it occassionally… BUT if you have yours in a cedar chest remove it NOW..cedar off-gases terribly and it is not good for your textile.. See i used my degree for something, my parents would be proud! Oh and a great place to get these supplies is Light Impressions or Gaylord.

ok yall I may have lied because now i want to do more personal posts about Waco and how much i miss it and the things i love and/or miss from there like Castle Heights, the Elite Cafe, Cox’s Department Store, OUR FIRST HOUSE on Morrow, the house on N 33rd St… (see gag!)..on and on..so you are forewarned!

The amazing design blogger Joni Webb over at Cote de Texas is highlighting a great Texas girl this week…Lauren Ross. When I met Lauren about six years ago she lived in the West U area of Houston, near Joni…you need to go read..Joni is so funny telling about how she “stalked her house” so sad they never got to meet..they could have really bonded over issues such as ceiling fans;; I bet they meet soon!…but LUCKY ME..I did get to see inside Lauren’s beautiful Houston home before she moved to Austin, she was so gracious and invited me to stop and visit while I was in the area on dr visits..and it was SUCH A TREAT! I think Lauren said the home was built in the 1930s..she did an amazing job! The home was featured in the very popular New Cottage Style book by BHG in 2005..the pictures are gorgeous! Lauren now lives in Austin and her home was featured (last year??) in Country Living..GO here to read Cote de Texas’ post on the Austin home..the photos and indepth coverage are actually better than the Country Living article..Joni didnt miss a detail!

My favorite things in the West U home…well every room..but I especially loved her little girl’s bathroom, check out Cote de texas to see a picture..you cant see the sweet linens she used in the windows but i remember them as soo cute…i just love how she made the original tile work so well for her daughter.(oh yes, Lauren has FOUR children..including THREE boys!)

and this pink bombe chest..it was in the entry of her Houston home with yellow damask Colefax paper if i remember correctly..GORGEOUS! and she is using it in her Austin home too!

and her use of linen (and seagrass and chandeliers..the trilogy Joni calls it;;)(see this stool..so inspired what i just did in Henry’s nursery for my rocker stool)
AND her kitchen island..yall, it is vintage linen sheets (right Lauren??) so pretty..my absolute fave thing in the entire West U home! Check Joni’s first post to see a picture..

My fave thing in the Austin home..well that precious laundry room..it is insane..i love it! Check it out over at Cote!

Sooo, if you love slipcovers and pretty dressmaker details..go read Joni’s posts on Lauren and check out that BHG book..you wont be dissapointed!

[all images from Lauren's Austin home via County Living.com
for more beautiful images of Lauren's homes visit Cote de Texas]

I promise this hormone-fest will be over soon…or not..this is semi-home related (although what is more “home” than a new baby so i will stop apologizing, after all this is MY blog)…see what I mean..HORMONES. RAGING. (stay out of the way)

Ok so i mentioned the “push present”.. we are not big into this kind of thing at all..just having a baby (especially after experiencing infertility) is such a blessing, who needs gifts..but i did mention it on this blog in relation to the Lisa Leonard necklace.. I think my poor husband saw the hint to late and felt the pressure (sorry baby, no gifts required) BUT i am excited he DID come up with a great idea..much better than the necklace (sorry Lisa)… he had our friends who horticulture-y people redo some of our front flower beds! Remember i posted a while back about how it was all a little shabby..some overgrown shrubs that needed shaping..my love affair with mulch that just never happens, etc.. WELL they did it all IN THE ONE EVENING I WAS IN THE HOSPITAL..awesome friends, awesome husband..I only had to do three pushes so i am not even sure i deserve the gift but i sure am enjoying it…

Notice the crying face as I walked out the front door..as soon as we got home with Henry i said “lets go out front” (we can in the back door from the garage)”and take Henry’s picture”..Daddy’s all like “sure lets go outside”..and the moment i opened the porch i could see..FRESH MULCH. PLANTS. TRIMMED SHRUBS. I started crying over landscaping..it was great, until we accidently locked ourselves out of the front door..but we got in fast…

So that’s my push present story..does anyone else have one????

oh and, i know you are tired of seeing me in this brown dress, i am sure my husband is too..it has been that or pajamas since we got home last monday!;; I have no idea if anything else even fits and i really dont care right now (and if you want to make an issue of it i just dare you to leave a comment) See?? the hormones are bad..pray for my family;;

I promise I will get back to home/decorating posts soon..in fact, Henry will be getting his own blog soon so you will get a permanent break if needed…but i want to leave you with this tonight..my favorite song on our playlist we took to the hospital..when you are hormonal and goopy it is great;;; i love the lines “deep enough to reach and touch the face of the One who made you”…see the lambs and the lions playing..holiness is the air i am breathing…” so good..better than good fabric even??!

GET THIS OFF OF Itunes, much better than this youtube version.. BTW, this is Chris Rice (who also sings the popular UNTITLED HYMN..you might be more familiar with that and of course we had Chris Tomlin playing too but this one “got me” every time.

and stay tuned, i will post soon about my unique “push present”..i love it! and how do i have so much time to be online?? because my baby is that good..he is sleeping and so happy and big brother is doing great…Daddy goes back to work tomorrow though..so if i dont post for a few days, you know why!

I’ve gotten so many sweet inquiries as to how big brother is handling the new baby..i am thrilled to report that Drew is doing great..we had some awkward moments in the hospital but he warmed up fast and has even been giving visitors “the rules” upon their arrival. It has been a lot of fun watching them get to know one another…i know there will be bumps but so far, big Brother has been a real sport.

My friend Lynsey captured this sweet picture of them on Thursday..thanks friend!

and a couple more of baby Henry, 4 days old here!

Well it is Friday, and sweet Kelly is continuing her home tour with children’s birthday party ideas. I had a BLAST planning Drew’s first birthday in 2005 so I am eager to share…Also, baby Henry needs a break so we will let Big Brother be the star today.;;
I chose a vintage cowboy theme and it was really easy..here are a list of the basic elements and ideas:


i stuck with a blue and brown color scheme because of his outfit;; (and i found cute brown and blue stripe plates and napkins at Hobby Lobby that year..their party things really are pretty cute sometimes..

for party favors I used photo stickers from shutterfly but there are so many more options for tags and stickers now..check etsy, places like Sarah and Abraham and tiny prints…
no bouncy castles yet..that is the joy of the first birthday..you can do what YOU want..this year (he’s turning 5) I may have to buy optimus prime pinatas;( and really the first birtday is about the child and his/her birthday but it is also about YOU and your husband surviving that first year!;;; (I think i read that here)



we had old bouncy horses and teepee for the kids to play in..

coca-cola in glass bottles in an old claw foot bathtub of ice..this was a hit (but took a LOT of ice so be warned;;)..painted the tub brown;; this was a cute idea BUT these old tubs are very heavy and i thought i would never get my husband to move the tub after the party was over..i should have just planted flowers in it i guess;;


. . . if you active 1 year old wont eat his cake in his high chair, put it in a wagon.


i made a banner from felt but again etsy is a great source for these..


FABRIC…cowboy fabric and polka dots (of course) on the table to ties the theme together..

I covered the tables with brown kraft paper and put out crayons..andcenterpieces were old kiddie cowboy boots with daisies..

So that was Drew’s first birthday…have fun celebrating your little one’s birthday whether it is the first or the fifth..but something about that first one (epecially for the first child) is truly a celebration of survival for everyone! Cant believe I get to do this first party thing again in 12 months..fun!

we are so in love with this baby. better pictures soon i promise.