if not now...when?

saying goodbye to november and fall...

even though it hasn't really felt like fall outside, the season was in full swing inside my house and my heart. i dislike the move to skip thanksgiving and move right from halloween to christmas. i like fall. :)

our mantle. my "new" bulletin board fashioned from an old frame i got at one of the barn sales down in san diego, my harvest kitty picture from country living, and some other special goodies.

 

my new banner - i am pretty much totally in love with the cosmo cricket nutmeg line. SO cute - i had a lot of fun making this! :) i think i need a banner for every season...

 

i got to spend a nice weekend with my sweet friend karen for a big birthday weekend. we got to go have dinner at the matador. i sure wish that place was closer. we also got a chance to spend a couple of days shopping. hit a great little store by my house - home•o•logy. hmmm, be on the lookout for a post about them soon. but in the meanwhile, you should stop by and do some christmas shopping. AMAZING deals... you won't regret it. i picked up this cornucopia for about $10.

 

we also had another delicious meal at the ramos house cafe in san juan capistrano. the food at this place is so unique and so tasty. i'd highly recommend it. it's kind of pricey, but a lot of fun for a special occasion. it's in one of the most charming areas of orange county (los rios street in SJC) and their food is really special. the restaurant is located in one of the old homes in the historic district, and the "dining room" is an old cobbled patio in the shade of a hundred year old mulberry tree. 

 

lemon pain perdu

 

mac and cheese with veggies and lemon gremolata

 

i didn't get anymore food pictures, but i think i missed my favorite part: the fresh baked huckleberry coffee cake. to. die. for. the beignets are tasty, too. add a mimosa or a fresh sqeezed OJ and i think you have a weekend brunch as good as any in orange county.

 

 

 

after brunch, we headed over to old towne orange to meet up with wendy for some more shopping and well, more eating... it was a great weekend, and i feel lucky to have such amazing friends! <3

and now that the end of november is upon us, we are heading into the new season at full speed.

look at this cool burlap christmas tree up in orange... makes me wish i had a big, blank wall somewhere in my house.

 

and today, an early christmas tree purchase. i don't think i've ever bought my tree in november before. i hope i can keep in fresh and green. any good tips for prolonging christmas tree life??

 

sarah is also ready for the holiday season with her new shirt from old navy. i wish they had it in adult sizes...

hope that your november was as good as mine! :)

happy thanksgiving!

 

i hope that everyone has a wonderful thanksgiving, and that we can all remember, even in hard times, all that we have to be thankful for.

i am thankful for my husband and my children, our home and our pets. i am thankful for our wonderful family - great parents and in-laws.  i am thankful for my amazing friends who i am so lucky to know. i am thankful that my husband still has a job in these crazy times, and that he takes such good care of our family. i am so thankful to live in this beautiful country and for the military that protects us and allows us to have the abundant lives that we enjoy. i am such a lucky girl with the best family and many, many blessings to be thankful for.

love to you all today and everyday. happy, happy thanksgiving!! :)

 

the genius of anthropologie

imagine my delight when i opened my mailbox today and found the november catalog from anthropologie. oh my goodness, i was blown away. the thing i adore most about anthropologie is their ability to take the ordinary and make it beyond extraordinary. there is no better example of this than their amazing store displays and gorgeous merchandising. the things they can do with newsprint, stone, moss - it blows me away. i never get pictures since they have always frowned on photography in the store. i have heard a rumor that they have loosened this policy. i may have to take the old camera down to the store and see how far i get... 

but back to the catalog. again, take the simplest materials. books, cardboard, just plain old junk. and behold... brilliance.

love the tree ipod dock

 

LOVE the christmas lights!

A-MAZ-ING!!

these i might actually need...

  

i love how they made the sail with the red/pink/brown blankets and water with the blue/green. sigh.

i wish i actually had a use for this tree puzzle because it is to die for...

vintage-inspired bingo. 

i swear, they really must bottle creativity at that store. what a wonderful treat for the eyes! <3

some new additions to the blog. over there <--- on the left is a widget from kids eat for... website. it lists the myriad of "kids eat free" deals that restaurants are offering these days to help save you money. they also have an iphone app. very cool!

and over there ---> on the bottom right i have added links to some of my favorite orange county bloggers. if you are an OC blogger and a facebooker, come on over and check us out. i love finding new local bloggers. such a great resource for finding lots of fun things to do in your area.

on a much more serious note, i have the soldiers and families of fort hood on my mind and my heart. what a terrible tragedy. :(

another halloween in the books

 

just a few scenes from our halloween this year. actually, i guess it is more like the halloween SEASON than just halloween. legoland, parties with friends, carving pumpins, and good old trick or treating. i was kind of sad that there didn't seem to be as many partaking in trick or treating this year... but i guess it is a sign of the times. 

and now we move on to thanksgiving (which starbucks and target apparently don't believe in) and then christmas.

hope everyone had a great halloween, and that no one gets too many cavities from all the goodies! <3

a very happy halloween to you!!

have a safe, spooky, and fun halloween. it's one of my favorite holidays! i'm mostly about the cute and vintage halloween - not so much the scary and gory variety. we will trick or treat until we drop, and fun will be had by all! i'll post pictures of my little green elphaba and my suave, confident obi wan kenobi tomorrow! 

and to put you in a delicious mood for the holiday... a pumpkin crepe complete with pumpkin ice cream from lulu's creperie cafe in laguna hills. i will definitely be sharing more about this little gem later...

to. die. for. stay tuned for more, and have a wonderful halloween!

when you look up "procrastination" in the dictionary....

you will see a picture of ME! last week or so, i posted about my project for the inspired room procrastinator's party. i took me a few days longer than allowed to finish my table, but in my defense, i have been working on it during this time. it took much longer than i had anticipated, and then i decided to do a paste wax finish, so i had to wait a few days for my paint to cure. but it's done now. i'm not 100% happy with it - well, i was hoping for pottery barn-cheap chic, but it's not quite there. i can't get the right painting technique down, and i'm still not sure what i was doing wrong. but i FINISHED it!! yay me! :)

the big reveal:

the closest "before" shot i had...

 

and, drum roll please...

my restoration hardware bargain knob:

 

another view:

will i like the black and white after halloween ends? will i ever learn to paint furniture properly? will the paint i spilled on the bricks in my front entry way ever come out? we may never know the answers to these questions, but at least i finished my project, and i can go post my name with the other finished projects. check it out - there are a ton of CUTE projects over there! 

have a great monday!

fun times with OC bloggers at the matador cantina!

i made it to my first oc blogcrush meetup/networking/eating and merriment event this last week. we were hosted by the amazing matador cantina in historic downtown fullerton. i'm so glad i made it - we had a great time!

first of all, when did downtown fullerton get to be so cool? seriously - i went to csuf back in the early 90's and i don't remember a single interesting thing to do up there. but NOW - downtown fullerton is a pretty cool and happening place! tons of restaurants and shopping, all gentrified and revitalized. they have a nighttime farmer's market that is over for the winter, but will definitely be going on my calendar for spring!

our get-togther was hosted by the fine folks over at the matador cantina. really, i could go on and on about the amazing food here. the chile rellenos, the queso fundido, the cantina rolls. but just take a gander at some of the offerings you can find up there.

chile relleno

cantina rolls

 

jalapeno (!!) martini

 

cookie fundido

i think this is one of those times where a picture tells the story better that any words can. the guacamole was amazing. they had a pumpkin cake dessert (seasonal) that was out of this world (and i am a BiG pumpkin fan, so that says a lot). their margaritas were voted the best in OC by the readers of OC weekly magazine. so really, the trip for us south counteans up to fullerton - worth it in my opinion. a great date, a fun girls night out.  AND since it is in the old historic section of fullerton the building itself is actually pretty cool, too.

thanks again to the matador for your food and your hospitality! i know i'll be back SOON!

and oc bloggers - make sure that you sign up at BlogCrush over at facebook so that YOU can come to the next fabulous meetup. it's a great way to meet new blogging friends like suzanne, marcy, priscilla, dawn, lisa, and so many others. i had a great time making some new friends, and i can't wait until the next blogcrush get together! :)

oh, and 

GO ANGELS!!!!

i've got a bee in my bonnet...

to get a project done.

after reading about the procrastinator's party at the inspired room, i decided it was time to start painting my various pieces of furniture that are in desperate need of updating. i have a hutch that i have wanted to paint forever, but i am totally scared of messing it up. i had planned to take it on anyways, but then decided to start with a smaller, less important piece of furniture (which, incidentally, looks like crap and needed painting more desperately anyways...). and now that the kids are in school full time i really need a plan and projects in front of my to keep from whittling my time away...

i'm not quite there yet, but the deadline for the "party" is tomorrow. after i pick out some paint, hopefully i will be done!! go me! 

some pictures:

 

 

i love the painted furniture that catherine over the red shoes blog creates. she is a wiz with the brush and the color and the creativity. she had a post quite some time ago about  some fabulous ceramic paint that she uses (and that is apparently amazing according to some painting and decorating websites i was reading last night). unfortunately, this paint doesn't seem to be sold outside of the midwest. benjamin moore may have something similar, but it's only on their contractor's section of their website. i'm going to head over there and see if the general public can buy it...

i LOVE LOVE LOVE the black paint that they use on the kitchen cabinets and some furniture piece over at the lettered cottage. that is one AWESOME site btw - definitely check it out if you are into home decor and/or DIY. truly inspiring...

so i am trying to decide if i want to paint a black top with cream legs and base, vice versa or all cream. something like this, but with black instead of brown on top?

 

what do you think?

i hope to get it done tomorrow... i'll post it when i get it done! :)

oh, and GO ANGELS - it's do or die time, dudes!!!!!

this is why...

we do what we do as moms. a little scene i found in my family room today, complete with the holder.

 

by sarah. her little contribution to our halloween decor. made me smile. :)

i love chalkboards. and i love my little artist! 

friday flair

something new - i keep seeing all these "themed" posts on other blogs. they are so much fun, so i thought i might adopt some for myself! :)

for your weekend enjoyment - GO ANGELS!! 

 

big sports weekend around here. angels and dodgers playoff games, and USC/notre dame football. go team(s)!! :)