New House Design Meeting!

We recently had the design meeting for our new house, and let me tell you, it was so much fun! They have you go to this huge design center and you get to pick out everything, from carpet to cabinet pulls. I never knew there could be so many choices! We basically got to go shopping for three hours, and we even got to pick out the color of grout for the kitchen backsplash. I didn't even know that grout came in different colors, let alone about five shades of grey that looked the same to me.

Here is a photo of some of the bigger things we chose, although it is a little hard to see the details.

Starting at the top left:

1. Tile for entryway and bathroom floors.

2. Our carpet color is the one the paint swatches are touching in the corner. It had a cute name, but I just kept calling it "mushroom color."

3. Our paint swatches - the tan will be the wall color, the off white is the ceiling, doors, and trim.

4. Wood floors in living room, dining room, and kitchen.

5. Cabinet color and design for kitchen and all built-ins and bathrooms.

6. Marble for bathroom countertops and showers.

7. The little grid below the marble square is the floor of the shower in the master bath.

8. Underneath the hardwood floor sample is our kitchen backsplash.

9. Our granite countertops in the kitchen.

We also picked out handles for the cabinets, which look like this:

And we got a few extras, like matching wood railings, a designer-y sink for the kitchen, some upgraded appliances, and brushed nickel fixtures.

Now I am even more excited to move in, and it seems like the house won't be finished for forever! Can December hurry up and get here already?!

Straw in San Francisco

A few weeks ago we went out to a gourmet carnival themed restaurant in SF called Straw. It was adorable and the food was delish. Here are some photos from our dinner!

Straw signage; the inside of the restaurant and Shane's head; a sake lemonade rimmed with fun dip.

Homemade potato chip nachos; homemade soft baked pretzels; the Hot Tamale sandwich.

Funnel cake dessert; donut bread pudding; our check with lollipops.

And btw, the funnel cake came with dipping sauces ... yum!

I heart Asos!

Over the past week, a store named Asos has popped up in several of the blogs I read. I had never heard of this store before, and all of a sudden it seemed to be everywhere! I decided to take a look at their website, and they are the cutest store! They have an amazing mix of professional, sexy, and free-spirited clothing on their site.

Here are some of my favorites showing off their unique mix of clothing:

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As you can see, they offer quite a mix of styles. Most of the dresses seem to be between $50 - $80, although some can go into the hundreds.

Just what I needed, another dress store to tempt me!! :)

Miette Cupcakes

Mike and I headed into San Francisco yesterday to meet up with some of his friends and take them out for pizza. Since we were in the area, we made a quick stop at Miette bakery for some cupcakes. I've been wanting to try these for awhile, because not only are they completely adorable, but the gingerbread cupcake was recently voted the best in the country by the Food Network.

The gingerbread cupcake is on the right, and the one on the left is vanilla with strawberry butter cream frosting. Aren't they so pretty? The little flower on top is so precious. I do have to say that the gingerbread cupcake was absolutely fantastic. It's topped with cream cheese frosting, which is my favorite. The frosting was my favorite part, and the cake was very delicious, not too heavy, very moist, and had a really nice gingerbread flavor.

Inside their little shop they also sell sweets, and Mike found Fralinger's taffy. This taffy is made in New Jersey at the shore, where Mike spent most of his summers as a kid. He picked up some to munch on before the cupcake.

I'm so glad we finally had a chance to go. I know I'll be going again whenever we stop in the city! For the record - The banana cupcake at Icing on the Cake bakery in Los Gatos is still my all time favorite. I've yet to find a cupcake that can beat it.

Dresses I Love

So many adorable dresses are available now that I would love to buy! They could all be worn to work, too. I think the patchwork circle one is my favorite, but it is a little pricey. I'll have to wait on that one to make sure I really, really want it.

All dresses can be found at Modcloth.

New Teacher Outfits

Although the new school year is still a month away, I have been slowly getting ready. I've purchased some things for my new classroom, planned a few units of study, and updated my classroom website. I've also planned a few new pieces to add to my teacher wardrobe!

Here are some new things I've added into the mix for the new school year.

I love this maxi dress from Downeast Basics. It doesn't look like too much in the picture, but on it is so adorable. I also love that I can just pull it on and have my whole outfit ready.

I know not all schools allow their teachers to wear open toed shoes, but here in sunny California, all of the schools I have worked for have allowed it. I think a pair of ballet flats would look cute, too, or even cowboy boots in the cooler months.

This dress from Modcloth is so me. I really like the silhouette of the dress, and this coral color is so pretty. One of my goals for this year is to wear more color - with this dress, I would definitely be doing that!

Back to School '11 by goldenpoppypress featuring a heart dress

For the pretty lines of this dress I would like to keep things simple. I'm not much of an accessories girl anyway. If I could actually get my hair to work in that style, I would totally do it. That would be a small miracle!

For right now, that is it. I've been losing weight and a whole bunch of outfits I previously purchased that never fit are now fitting. I feel like I doubled my wardrobe for free! I also have my annual back-to-school shopping trip coming up, so I'm sure I'll pick up a few pieces then. Every year, I invite all of my coworkers out for shopping and lunch before school starts. It is always a blast, and each year I've been able to get some pieces that I truly wear all year long. I'll be sure to update after that outing!

A Butterfly Wedding

My beautiful sister-in-law Lori is getting married (hooray!), and she chose a butterfly theme for her spring wedding. I love weddings, and so of course I have been searching for everything butterfly themed ever since she announced her engagement. There are so many gorgeous butterfly wedding items out there, I thought I would put a post together to showcase all of the great finds.

Flowers

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I love the soft colors of these flowers, and the purple ones (not the roses) almost look like fluttering butterfly wings. Is that just me? Either way, these are too pretty.

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Lori was telling us that she liked purples and greens for colors, and this bouquet has both of those shades in the most lovely spring tones. I love how soft and romantic this is.

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Not only does this table centerpiece have lush purple hydrangeas, but is that a butterfly I spy on the table number?? How perfect!

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How sweet are the pink roses mixed into this bouquet? And I love the jewels around the stems. So pretty!

Bridesmaids

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These dresses from Boden are so pretty and practical. I love the two shades of sweat pea and blueberry, and these could definitely be worn again to other dressy events.

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This dress from J. Crew is more dressy but still very versatile. I love the hemline and the flattering cut.

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This shade is really lovely, and the neckline is so unique. It reminded me of butterflies, although I believe they are flowers.

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This is a pretty option in a longer length, very simple and elegant.

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Here is one in a darker shade of plum. I love this whole picture - so effortless!

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These necklaces from etsy would be a perfect gift for bridesmaids. You get to choose the stone for each girl, and the initial. They come in a set of four.

Cakes

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How perfect is this cake? Simple, elegant, with purple flowers and butterflies. Love it!

Decorations

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All of these place cards and table numbers can be found on etsy. They are so beautiful - I wish etsy were around when I got married!! Click on the number for a link to the seller.

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Invitations

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All of these invitations are from etsy. Click on the link for seller's info. I know some of the colors are wrong, but I liked the look of these, and I think for some of them the color can be changed. There are so many options!

Fun Things

Favor Bags

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Favors

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Congratulations Lori! We can't wait for your wedding!