Tag: Brandon

  • A Birthday, A Surgery

    A Birthday, A Surgery

    Calvin had his first birthday!

    Calvin and His First Birthday Cake

    First piece of cake, too. He’s a fan.

    Calvin and Ginger, the Dog

    Nicole and Calvin

    Calvin

    We celebrated his birthday the night before because Brandon was scheduled to go into surgery the next day.

    Calvin and Brandon

    Brandon hasn’t been well for a while and he delayed his surgery until after my sister’s wedding so that he could take part, but then the next available date was Calvin’s birthday. It was an outpatient procedure and I was able to take him home after a brief recovery period in the hospital. He isn’t feeling much better yet (there’s still a lot of pain), but hopefully he’s on the mend. He is supposed to take it easy and rest so that he can heal, and he won’t be able to lift anything heavy for several weeks at least, which means no picking up the baby.

    Calvin and Brandon

    It’s frustrating for him, feeling so weak right now. Hoping for a speedy and full recovery.

    Brandon and Calvin

  • Push the Little Daisies

    Push the Little Daisies

    I was doing a television appearance once, and there was a stylist on set for wardrobe. She had some great options for everyone, but then she zeroed in on a giant beaded daisy necklace for me. “This looks like you!” she chirped, and I politely declined, all the while thinking of Drew Barrymore in the 90s. I may have tried to emulate her skinny brows at the time, but I’ve never been much for daisies.

    I’ve written before about my sentimental jewelry pieces. I always wear my wedding ring, but when I travel, I also wear a little elephant necklace that reminds me of Eleanor, and a heart ring for August. I had been looking for something that would remind me of Calvin too, but nothing I’d come across had been quite right.

    I associate him with flowers. I was working on a post about my entryway a few days before my due date, and I’d almost finished my setup. I went out to the florist and came back to arrange everything, but I couldn’t take photos because the sun had set. I joked with Brandon that the baby was going to arrive before I could get my shots in the morning, and sure enough, I went into labor in the middle of the night. I had Calvin, and the first thing I saw when we came back home the next day were those flowers.

    Making it Lovely's Entryway

    hr 644

    I just got back from Salt Lake City because I was there to speak at Alt Summit again. I’m lucky to have so many opportunities to travel because of the blog, but it’s the times when I’m away from my family that I love having those sentimental pieces with me the most. I’m not a superstitious person, so it’s not about them being my ‘good luck charms’ or anything of that sort, but I have for years worn my wedding ring, my elephant necklace, and my heart ring when I fly. I like the tangible reminders of home.

    I don’t like to wear too many types of jewelry at once. My wedding ring, a necklace, another ring, and something else is a lot, so I’d been looking for another gold ring that I could stack. I wanted something delicate with flowers or leaves for Calvin because of the association and I’d come across a few nice ones (along with plenty of not so nice ones), but I would know it when I found it, and I finally found it.

    I wasn’t familiar with Alex Monroe before, but his floral designs are exactly what I’d been looking for: delicate, modern, and pretty, and not giving me flashbacks to nineties Drew. Some of my favorites are below and his other designs are fantastic too (mouse and tea cup ring, anyone?), but I chose that second ring. So glad I finally found my little Calvin reminder.

    Alex Monroe Gold Floral Jewelry

    1. Fine Buttercup Ring

    2. Forget Me Not Fine Stacking Ring Number Two

    3. Fritillary Flower Hook Earrings

    4. Little Bluebell Necklace

    5. Little Fern Leaf Bracelet

    6. Baby Pearl Chrysanthemum Stud Earrings

    7. Floral Fayre Brooch

  • Wink!

    Wink!

    Some people buy one set of bedding and only replace it when it starts to fall apart. Strip the sheets, throw ’em in the wash, put ’em back on. I’ve never been a ‘one set of sheets’ kind of gal.

    It’s not even that I have a million sets (I have three), it’s just that I like to have some options. I’m not going to repaint every season, and as much as *ahem* I like a good rug, I don’t change those out as frequently as my recent shenanigans would suggest. Bedding though? Instant mini-makeover!

    I spotted a pair of the best pillows ever in an Instagram shot from Wit & Delight a few weeks ago, and I began searching for them. Five variations of “wink/winking pillow” down the search engine internet rabbit hole, and a pair of my own were on their way. About a week later, I was running errands with Eleanor when I spotted a cute set of pink and coral sheets that of course had to come home with us.

    I made up the bed, fulling intending to photograph it for the blog the next day, but the wee ones were not cooperating. First, just a few hours after putting the new sheets on, Calvin uncharacteristically threw up all over them. Strip the sheets, throw ’em in the wash, put ’em back on. The next day was rainy, and the light wasn’t just right. The day after that, two little monkeys, jumping on the bed. Today, rumpled sheets that can wait because look at that smile.

    Calvin and Brandon

    I feel like I may have had this problem before. Same quilt and everything.

  • Ten Years

    Ten Years

    We’ve done so much together. We met in 1999. We were dating two years later, and married a few years after that. We’ve shared personal and career highs and lows, two apartments and two homes, and have two kids with a third on the way. In a few more years, I’ll have known Brandon for half of my life.

    Wedding

    NY Hotel Shot

    Happy tenth anniversary, love. We’ve done so much more together than we ever could have apart. Thank you for being there every step of the way.

    Photo Booth

    A Man and His Cat

    August and Brandon

    Snowy Day

    Eleanor and Brandon

    Love you.

    Wedding

  • A Snowy Day

    A Snowy Day

    Eleanor on a Snow Hill

    These photos are from last week; it’s all mud and slush now.

    August in the Snow

    Brandon in the Snow

    And I know better now than to buy pink for things that will be seldom worn and then passed down.

    Eleanor and August in the Snow