spring is coming in a hot air balloon

this target ad is seriously making my life right now. these little colorful people and alouette song (learned all the verses to that one in high school french class) are just beyond happy.

random fact: did you know that the popular children's alouette song is about plucking parts off of a lark? it's true. je te plumerais le tete, la plume, etc. means "i am going to pluck its head, its feathers..." kind of ruins that song for you, huh? not so cute and happy after all.

monday mums

why is it that when you get out of a habit, it's much harder to get back in the swing of things? runway has been finished for two weeks now (best two weeks of the year so far) and i've so been looking forward to blogging again, but as it's no longer a part of my routine, i'm spending a lot of time thinking about my blog and not a lot of time actually blogging. with three major grant deadlines at work this week, however, i'm thankful that blogging is something that i can do when i'm in the mood and no one is forcing me to write when i don't feel like it. there are few things in life without rules and obligations and i'm glad that this is one of them.
in the meantime, above is a photo of my coffee table currently (the last surviving buds from my lovely runway bouquets), and i've made a new playlist, to which i've been listening pretty much nonstop. it's lazy and lovely as we wrap up these last few weeks of winter-with-an-identity-crisis. much more to come, including what i learned from co-chairing runway (a lot) and a few recent great deals. thanks for hanging in there with me!

p.s. in a random side note, the top book in this stack is one of my favorite possessions - it's a book of henry wadsworth longfellow poems from 1898. it's in surprising good condition considering its age and has a number of items stuffed in the pages (newspaper clippings, church bulletins, a funeral program for an infant) that are all dated between 1900 - 1910. i love thinking about who owned this book before me, what their life was like, and how the lovely words on its pages are still meaningful and timeless. while we're at it, the book below it is a 1950's unabridged version of victor hugo's les miserables (my favorite book) and the one below that is an old collection of cezanne's sketches and paintings. the final book isn't old, but is a stunning photography collection of france's lavender fields. all of these books came from the goodwill. go figure.

happy valentine's day!

"the boy at the far end of the train car
kept looking behind him
as if her were afraid or expecting someone

and then she appeared in the glass door
of the forward car and he rose
and opened the door and let her in

and she entered the car carrying
a large black case
in the unmistakable shape of a cello.

she looked like an angel with a high forehead
and somber eyes and her hair
was tied up behind her neck with a black bow.

and because of all that,
he seemed a little awkward
in his happiness to see her,

whereas she was simply there,
perfectly existing as a creature
with a soft face who played the cello.

and the reason i am writing this
on the back of a manila envelope
now that they have left the train together


is to tell you that when she turned
to lift the large, delicate cello
onto the overhead rack,

i saw him looking up at her
and what she was doing
the way the eyes of saints are painted

when they are looking up at God
when he is doing something remarkable,
something that identifies him as God."

love, by billy collins


image via weheartit

tomorrow's the day!

runway for the ballet has finally arrived - i couldn't be more excited!

love x10

there are no words to describe how happy every little second of this commercial makes me. there's lots to love about february.

someday i will blog again

but until february 11th, my life is consumed. quite frankly, i've never been more excited for something to end. nonetheless, the show should be super. come support dance theatre and all of our hard work please? see you then! (i'll likely be the haggard sweaty looking one among all the pretty people.)

my feelings exactly...

image via hallmark

blog to book

tonight i got home very late and this little baby was waiting on my front stoop thanks to amazon and their free two-day shipping. if you don't already read design sponge, it's time that you start. i can not wait to find ten minutes to sit down, drink some wine and flip through these pages. it's going to make me want to redecorate my entire house, but you know...

i've really missed blogging lately. runway for the ballet has been taking up nearly every moment of my free time, but i'm looking forward to a little peace and quiet this weekend. more to come soon!

so in love

so i've never been in love. with a boy my age, that is. but this boy? it's official. we love each other.

it's a boy!

i'm an auntie! unofficially, anyway. as of this evening, brave bestie sarah delivered sweet baby parker in to the world after being in labor for a little over twenty-four hours. sarah and lacey and i have been friends since about 2005 (our sophomore year of college) and i am so thankful to be sharing life's big moments with them. sarah, you're amazing and i can't wait to see the new little man in your life! so proud of you!

playing preggers with sarah at the maternity store shortly before thanksgiving. i prefer the baby bump that you can un-velcro. i'll let sarah handle the labor/caring for an infant thing for now. isn't she the cutest?

lacey, sarah, and i before stuffing ourselves with two tables worth of brunch goodies at her shower.

and also, while we're at it, lovely lindsey lee also delivered sweet baby sharpe last week as well. it's a baby extravaganza! i'm not nearly ready for my own little one at this point, so in the meantime i get to play with all these adorable tiny ones. so thankful and proud of my friends!

top image via simplygoodstuff

hometown holiday

the historic downtown concord holiday tour of homes was much more enjoyable than the charlotte one, to be honest. downtown concord is so sweet and boasts a lot of really beautiful historic homes. i love them and going inside them and enjoying all of their historic quirks and impressive renovations is so much fun. especially when your mom buys you a homemade peppermint ice cream cone at the cabarrus creamery after you're done.

home #1 had the most fantastic art collection - including a lot of local artists - and was almost condemned before the current owners gutted and renovated the entire thing. very impressive.

my favorite pieces in the house - totally smitten.

 the cannon house, one of concord's oldest and most well-known homes is for sale and can be yours for just 1.3 million. and just when you weren't sure how to spend your christmas cash. you're welcome.

my favorite home on the tour:

the dining room was the best, however i didn't get a very good picture.

quite possibly my dream kitchen. my entire house could fit in this room.

love big prints in small spaces. this wallpaper was top-notch.

house #3 is also a favorite - i spent two summers nannying for the family that lived here at the time. it's lovely and it was fun seeing the changes that the new owner has made over the last few years.

the owner collects antique british tapestries like the one shown here. cool.

 
quite possibly the sweetest girl's room ever.

and i would really love it if this were my bedroom.

 

more gorgeous powder room wallpaper.

some shots from a few other homes on the tour...

yes, that's a silver leaf ceiling. stunning.

my most favorite house in concord. if it were for sale (and i could afford it) i would live there. wish it had been on the tour so i could see inside!

love this living room (above and below).

why, yes, that is a coffee maker in the bathroom. genius.

 

i also used to nanny for the family that lives here. i didn't take a lot of photos (it was crowded), but the home is also one of my very favorites. it's so quaint and cozy with a great backyard. and, in case you're interested, the front yard is a great place for sword fighting with a five-year-old.

stay tuned for my christmas house tour!