Blogtober cheat day - What I'm pinning

I sat here forever trying to come up with content for a letter I would write to myself in 10 years...and I can't! I just can't. So, I'm taking a break from #blogtober14 to chime in with one of my favorite posts...

...what I'm pinning! I love Pinterest and I've talked about it a lot. The best thing about pinterest is that the content is always evolving. I finally sat down recently and decluttered my profile and sorted things and renamed boards. Am I an overpinner?

I also made a board of things that are tried and tested so I could keep making them, and so that my friends and family kind of have a 'testimony' from me rather than just seeing a random pin:

So here's what I've been pinning over the last month:

is that sweater not PERFECT?!

These are just the cutest. I love the gingham ties!

This makes my design heart go pitter patter.

This seems like a good combo of healthy and hearty, and different from all the other soups I see all the time!

I showed this to Mark and said "Man, make me this. Now!" I saved some old Dr. Pepper bottles for no reason and they are going to be PERFECT!

I made these a few weeks ago and they was super easy and a good twist on the normal tex-mex meal. Mark loved them and gobbled them up even as leftovers!

I'm thinking about going crazy and painting our bottom cabinets, but I'm not convinced yet. Love this though!

I have a 'wish list' board where I save things for myself and other friends and family to get 'hints' off of. I added this one as a bit of a pipe dream... ;)

Peplum tops are usually weird on me but I love this one! I think it would actually be long enough for me.

I need all the motivation I can get!

I'll leave you with this. :)

Happy Wednesday!

Weekend update

We had a nice low-key weekend, just like I like! 

Friday night I worked on a floral camera strap. Can't wait to see how it turns out! :)

I've been making a point to get up relatively early on Saturdays and Sundays because I'm slowly learning how much you can get done in the morning, so I was up by 7:30 both days this weekend! I used the time (and the nice weather) to go on a walk around our neighborhood. My Saturday walk was actually 3 miles because I turned on the location tracker .28 miles into my walk, and so it didn't count that distance. Mark joined me on Sunday morning before church but he didn't want to walk very far because the sprinklers were running back at our house...

I did come across this bus that is parked a few streets away from us. Classy, but ironic?

We came across this street sign and it reminded me of my friend Heather so I snapped a pic and sent it to her. ;)

I also did some errands and returned things on Saturday and happened to pop into the ALDO outlet at the right time and scored this bag for under $40. I've been looking for a new purse and I like the neutrals of this bag so I can carry it in all seasons!

Motley was exhausted running from the vacuum all morning so she claimed her spot as soon as the bed was made. #spoiled

I scored this necklace on super sale at J. Crew so I wore it to dinner to celebrate my Grandma's 80th birthday on Saturday.

I really want a new front door, so I finally started googling around trying to find the style I like. I want it to be half glass since our living room faces north and doesn't get much light. 

I'm thinking similar to these images below:

I hope you all had a great weekend too! Only 4 days until the next one!

checking in with Pinterest!

If you're new here, you should know I LOVE Pinterest. I was mildly active before we bought our house, but now that we own a home and are deep into the routine of  married life, I find myself using it all the time! I refer to it for recipes the most, and I keep a running list of decor inspiration and fitness tips to keep me motivated! You can find my profile here or click the button to the left.

Here's what I'm pinning (and doing!) : 

I am pleading with Mark to let me repaint our main bathroom in this slate blue color (shown above and below). It's currently navy, which isn't far off, but we went wrong when we chose to use satin for the bathroom (according to recommendations). It's TOO shiny and a little too dark. Help me convince him!

These look SO good! My mouth waters just looking at them...

I've been dying to make my tiny laundry corner a little more functional, so I've been pinning lots of ideas for worksurfaces. Look for a blog post in the future if I ever get around to it!

We have explored 500+ options for our next backyard landscaping project. Right now I'm liking the below image, but the grass would be pebbles because grass isn't growing in the area we want to do this.

I've seen SO many people repin this and they look super yummy! I have a jar of Nutella in my pantry just begging to be turned into this...

I saw this picture and was like - YES - this is my style, to a T. Do you agree?

I made this baked cream cheese spaghetti last Sunday and it was pretty tasty!

I also had this chicken taco bowl recipe cooking in the crock pot all day Tuesday. It was really tasty, very similar to a chili I make in the fall, but I didn't serve it over rice because we didn't end up eating until about 9:45 that night! 

Love this print... 

...and this one too!

This California club pasta salad is DELICIOUS and perfectly light for summer. I didn't have avocados (oops) so I just put a tiny bit of ranch dressing in there, and it was SOOO GOOOOD. Seriously, this is going to become a staple recipe, which I don't currently have, other than desserts. :)

I'm still trying to come up with things to do for our trip to California in September. Santa Barbara is high on the list!

We've decided on pretty solid plans for our backyard, but now we just have to implement them! I'm thinking of doing a garden on one side of the house. I love this quaint one below! Looks manageable!

Happy pinning!

Currently

I've been hit with some serious writer's block as well as a DIY lull, but I wanted to pop in to blog land here to share what we've been up to.

Currently watching: 

"Orange is the New Black" (I'm a bit ashamed of this because it's super vulgar but I watch it quickly and get it out of my mind! Same with House of Cards...for shame!)

"The Bachelorette" (Sort of. I watch in between Pinterest scrolling)

"The Americans" (Mark and I started watching this together and it's really good!)

Currently reading:

Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer (I've read this before and just picked it up again as a summer read. I am a big fan of nonfiction and I really like his books!)

I picked up another book at Target to read by the pool and ended up leaving it at my parents. I'm not too far in yet but it is pretty good so far. Once I get it back I'll fill you in!

Currently listening:

Country on the radio in the car

James Taylor Pandora at work

These are both pretty standard!

Currently making:

I'm about 95% done making two wreaths for my friend Kelly's wedding this weekend. Can't wait to share them! 

Currently feeling:

Busy, but good! Excited about where we are in life right now. 

Currently planning:

Small scale - California trip

Large scale - our lives! We are on our way to being debt free after crunching some numbers and figuring out we could pay it off quickly if we really bear down. It's so funny how excited I'm getting about making loan payments, but it's easy when the relief is just around the corner!

Currently loving:

Summer! I am a summer girl and I love the sun. Texas has been kind to us so far this year (and last) but I'm loving the warmer temperatures, green grass, late sunsets, and the pool! 

Sucker for succulents

I hope everyone had a wonderful three-day weekend honoring and remembering those who have served our country! 

I had a well-balanced weekend and I feel refreshed to start this four-day week!

Today, since I've given you lots of updates on our outdoor plants, I thought I should share some updates on indoor plants. Spring and summer make me want to embrace living plants and the green and color that accompany the seasons, so I've gotten plant-happy both inside and outside my home. 

Mark's sister and her family gave us two little succulents planted in mason jars for housewarming gifts back in July. Unfortunately the smaller one succumbed to my black thumb but this one has been THRIVING! It has almost outgrown the jar but it's a constant reminder of my ability to keep it alive. I love the little "home sweet home" flag Andrea added and it's currently sitting on our coffee bar next to this cute Van Gogh quote print. 

Recently, I saw an image on Pinterest using more mason jars and teacups for succulents and I had a light bulb moment. I have a ton of mason jars (don't all bloggers?) and figured I could spare a few to feed my succulent habit.

I picked up these little guys at home depot for about $3 each and they live on my kitchen window sill. They make me happy every day!

Pink cacti are the best cacti.

They add even more happiness to my backyard view.

I chose to plant another little guy (my mom called it hen and chicks or something like that?) in this teacup that my aunt gave me when I was little. The china pattern is "Diana" and I've held onto it forever. It's super dainty and sweet but I felt so bad for not using it since I don't drink tea or coffee.

I found the perfect solution!

This little lady brings lots of life and joy to the shelf in our living room.

Do you have any living plants around your house? I'm convinced they have secret powers and just make the house feel better. 

Have a great week!