A weekend at home

(photo from our weekend in Long Island) 

What are you doing this weekend? I have little to no plans, and as sad as that may sound, I am fairly elated! A dinner with boy tonight, lunch with a friend tomorrow at Teaism and possibly a matinee showing thrown in there somewhere. Crazy plans, I know! I will however be . . .

Summer Must Haves (3)

I'm on the hunt for new summer reading as all my current books have landed on the nightstand gathering dust with only a few chapters read. The English major in me is saying to persist on, but I'm yearning for something new. How about The Makioka Sisters? It's been compared to a Japaneses version of the English show Upstairs, Downstairs and as an avid fan of Downton Abbey, this book sounds rather clever.

My {tried and true} friend Court posted photos of freshly cut hydrangeas the other day, and it reminded me that I have relaxed on having fresh flowers in my home as of late. I really do not think you can say summer more dramatically than with hydrangeas. Don't you agree?

(photo via Style Me Pretty) 

Time Capsule

I like to consider myself a minimalist and to a fault, sometimes. I constantly check myself to not over-purge my life as I have a tendency to not keep sentimental items- cards, certificates, letters and the like, around for too long. I toss things away with ease reminding myself that I have the mental memories and images, and it suits me just fine. I attribute it to my various moves when I had to fit my life's treasures in a few bags or a car load.

But, a few of my memories are hidden in a silver canister buried in Virginia soil somewhere. On Valentine's Day last year and after an elaborate gift giving from boy, I handed him a single water bottle for his gift. I went on to explain that he said he wanted to get to the gym more, and I thought he could use a new water bottle. As you can imagine, he wasn't too impressed. But, I jest- underneath the bottle were some of my favorite memories of us that I had collected and kept along the way- photos, restaurant matches, show programs, napkin notes. 

A few weeks later, we drove to the town we met in years ago and hiked to a secluded spot that we hope (fingers crossed) will prove to be recognizable years from now. We shall see . . .

(on our way to find the perfect spot) 

(buried but not forgotten) 

(carving our initials to serve as a marker) 

P.S. A real collector and one of my favorite books and movie. 

Summer Must Haves (1)

The weather here in Washington D.C. has been rather, shall we say, temperamental, but I think summer is right on our heels. And I love summer just as much as anyone- grillin' out, lazy pool days, impromptu beach trips. And with that, here's a roundup of a few things I'll be acquiring as "summer essentials."

Summer is on our heels, and so is the wedding season.  Every time I turn around, someone in my life is preparing to walk down the aisle. And what a better way to congratulate the happy couple than with a  "Just Married" bottle o' vino! I'll definitely be toting this to all the summer weddings, via Swanson Vineyards. 

Everybody is doing it- bright and bold pouts! Whether it's haute pink, cotton candy or rose, I have to get my hands on the perfect vibrant pink for the summer months. Don't you agree?