Five Things I Love Sunday

{Favorites} that have been on my mind this week...

Music
This was the opening band for the Vampire Weekend concert I went to last month. Quirky, weird, but totally addictive. Ian HATED it--maybe a part of why I loved it:}

Summer vacations
Yep, itching to go on another vacation! Trying to piece together funds for a family trip to this place. Sounds so magical I can't even stand it.

Four Seasons Resort Hawaii, Lana'i at Manele Bay

Books
Picked this up at Anthropologie. Crush all over interior design. Have got to stop spending money on trips so I can do some of this stuff! I like this book because it talks about transforming your living spaces without undertaking extensive and expensive renovations. And the cover is totally cute:}

Restaurants
We took a family road trip down to the Brick Oven in Provo yesterday. This place is sooo good. Everything is yummy, homemade perfection. I think part of the fun is the road trip down. A chance to talk, listen to music together, and hang out. Mack informed me he has graduated from the kids meal to the adult menu, but we ended up sharing as everything here is massive. Highlights were the roasted red pepper sauce over pasta and the Brown Cows (homemade rootbeer blended with vanilla ice cream). So yum:}

Paris Flower Market
Gorgeous, springy perfection in Paris.

Staycation

We celebrated our anniversary with a little overnighter downtown. Ashley and Keith had told us about the new Hyatt's that had been popping up around the city, so we decided to try the Hyatt Place at the Gateway.

Super nice, brand new hotel. It was really modern and sleek--loved it. It was right in the Gateway, so we parked our car and walked around.

I was thinking that night that I seriously can't remember the last time we went on a date. Just Shane and I. It was so good for us. I would highly recommend! It is so easy to take Mack everywhere with us, but I realized after that night how important it is to work on our relationship alone. Without someone begging for PokeMon and Gummi Worms every five seconds.

Thanks to my awesome in-laws for taking Mack for us:}

DIY Souvenirs

I usually never pick up souvenirs anymore when we go on trips. I generally take gift giving very seriously, so the added stress of finding just the perfect thing when the focus is on relaxation or work is just too much:} But, Paris was special, and I knew I had to share the beauty of this trip with my family.

Paris souvenir shops are pretty much like any other souvenir shop everywhere. Spoons, t-shirts, pencil and pen sets, mouse pads, etc. Nothing really conveyed the vibe of everything amazing we were seeing. So, I decided to convert the best thing I brought home, my pictures, into souvenirs for everyone.

These ideas were a million times easier than lugging home stuff and hoping it doesn't break, get ruined, or you exceed 50 pounds in your luggage. It took a bit more work on the back end of the trip, but I was on a weird, euphoric high for the first couple days I was home, so knocked these out quick.

I picked up these shadowbox frames at IKEA and framed a few of my favorite shots. I added some little vintage Eiffel Tower charms I had picked up in Paris. A quick date stamp of the day the picture was shot, and you have an instant personal gift. I thought this baguette pic would be so cute for a kitchen.


My next project were these necklaces. I Photoshopped down pictures I had taken of the Eiffel Tower and the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, inserted them into these glass necklace charms, and added some vintage charms I found around Paris. I also brought home a handful of Euro and drilled a small hole through them to hang off the necklace. I put everything on a simple ball chain necklace. Nothing you could really wear to work, but cute with jeans and a t-shirt.

And this is another necklace I did last night. Love these glass circle charms you can add your own paper and charms to. Think I am addicted!

Catching Up!

Got a {bit} behind on my blogging! It has been a busy, fun filled last month. Some of the highlights:

Vampire Weekend Concert
Ian and I got tickets to go see Vampire Weekend. I so love this band, but have fallen out of love with going to see live music. From my first few concerts that included being so far away from the band to really see much of anything, to getting pushed down the stairs during U2, to someone full on smoking a joint at the Jack Johnson concert next to me, I kind of had written off going to anymore concerts. They all just kind of sucked. But, I decided to try one more time with Vampire Weekend. SOOO glad I did. The concert was so fun. It was at a small venue, aptly called The Venue, which made a huge difference. We could actually see everything! There were sparkly chandeliers all over the place, and the band sounded absolutely amazing. Loved everything about this night. Thank you Ian!



Our big day
My sweetie's birthday and our anniversary. Love our little family so much. Words just can't express how lucky I feel everyday to spend my life with these two Matheson boys.

We celebrated M's birthday with...

Donuts for a class treat...
SkyBox birthday dinner...

Lots of fabulous gifts from family and friends...

A big birthday party...

with a trip to see Diary of a Wimpy Kid & a sleepover. More on our anniversary later:}



Paris
Sharing a few pictures and a story right now, but I think I will share pictures throughout the year when the days are long and I need those memories to give me inspiration:} It was wonderful. It was magical. And inspirational. So lucky to have gone. Can't wait to share it's beauty with you!

So, getting to Paris was a bit rough. Our flight from Dallas to Paris was delayed by 10 hours. It was a long road to finally get there. Pair our exhaustion with an insane Parisian shuttle ride to our minuscule European hotel room, and I was a bit disheartened. But then, amid all of that first day, there was the Louvre. We walked from our hotel on a glorious, sunny, spring day down the Seine and the Rue de Rivioli to the museum. The walk itself was living art. THIS was the Paris I had dreamed about! It was divine:}

This was my favorite sculpture in the Louvre. Canova's neo-classical white group in marble of Cupid and Psyche was in a small corner just soaking up the afternoon light. It was so beautiful it took my breathe away. I couldn't believe I was seeing this in person. On a Thursday afternoon. A perfect first day in Paris.

Casey's Picks for the week

Favorites this week....

Shoe pick

Crocs - Olivia

I still love Crocs. Not the uncute ones with the holes, but all of their stylish, uber comfy flats. Saw these in US Weekly this week. Love!

Jewlery

Crystal Lattice Necklace-J Crew

Sparkles, ribbon, pairs with everything, enough said:}

Font Pick

Giddy-Up

So cute, and free!

Music Pick

Broken Bells

If you took my advice and picked up the Shins last week, you are all ready now for Broken Bells. Pick up now!

Paper Flowers

Amanda and I hit Heartland Paper today in Bountiful to check out the new Girls Paperie collection. Sooo beautiful, but couldn't get over all the Teresa Collins goodies too! Check out this handmade lampshade done with her line. Swooning!

To make it, head to http://teresacollins.typepad.com/

Card club

Card club fun again! Still stuck on butterflies:} Thanks for all the beautiful cards girls!