A Gem of an Organizer

Most people do everything they want in the month of December.  You eat until it hurts, shop till you drop and party like it's going out of style.  No wonder January feels like one long Monday. To help pass the time, my mission is to get myself organized once and for all (yeah right....this resolution will be broken by March!)

First up my jewelry collection!

With jewelry being a big trend the last few seasons, I've started to accumulate some fun pieces.  Not owning a jewelry box, my jewelry has been spread out all over.  As a married gal, I have to consider solutions that are aesthetically pleasing, but also something that works with my unisex decore. After recently seeing some fun ways to display jewelry, I was inspired to come up with a practical and stylish solution.

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Kelly Wearstler's jewelry collection.  Wish I could dedicate a whole dresser to accessories, but lack of space and collection doesn't make this a practical solution for me.

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Using tea cups is a whimsical solution to storing jewelry, but I don't think I'm dainty enough to use this idea.

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I love the shadow box idea, but I have too much jewelry for this idea.  

The Solution:

A vintage inspired 3 tiered thing I found from here...

It holds cocktail rings

earrings

necklaces

& bangles!

With a masculine metal finish, but a feminine scallop edge, this was a great find that can easily be integrated into any bedroom or powder room decore.

Now onto the next organization project!

Sundate: Stella & Roxanne

I couldn't resist taking a picture of this rare cuddle moment with Stella our 2 year old Boxer Lab mix and Roxanne, my parents 8 year old German Wirehair.  Roxanne normally isn't very engaging to Stella.  Having a love hate relationship I was surprised to see Roxanne letting Stella use her back as a pillow.  Perhaps in her old age she's finally warming up to Stella (wishful thinking)!  The fact is, it's extremely cold today and I think she was using Stella for body heat! 
Oh well, at least it made a cute photo.

OMG: Twenty Eleven

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Since I moved back home, my dad has brought it to my attention that I say OMG  way to much. When I look back on 2010, it was an OMG kind of year, full of travel, life lessons, and new beginnings. It was also a year when Nick and I really had to make a hard decision about where we saw our future.  After years of debate and multiple drafts of "our life plan," we  I made the plunge and moved back to San Francisco.  (Don't worry Nick and I are still two love birds).  My husband is getting ready to student teach and unfortunately wasn't able to move to San Francisco with me and Stella (our dog).  So we've been having a long distance marriage for the last 5 months. I wish I could say we are over the half way point, but we still have 7 months to go.  Oh vey! (It really makes me understand what a military family goes through when their love ones are away.)

It will be interesting to see what 2011 brings.  Although like everyone else in the world I have some resolutions, I think my theme for this year is to embrace my third decade with grace, style and no regrets.

Cheers to a new year!

PS.  A new year requires a new blog format.  It's still a work in progress, but I hope you like the new look.

Behind The Scenes: Sharp Park

Our 2010 Christmas card photo wasn't planned (clearly you can tell by my hooded sweatshirt and ponytail.)  Our family picture was taken the day after Thanksgiving during a walk on Mori Point trail in Sharp Park, Pacifica. 

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After climbing these stairs.....

We discovered this amazing view!  How could I deny this background for our family picture?  Even though hair wasn't combed and outfits weren't anything fancy, I had to go with the moment.

Thanks Steph for being patient as I try and position Stella.

After a couple of attempts we got this picture!

Although this picture isn't very traditional, it's one of my favorite shots of the day.  

Stay tune for this years Christmas card.  I was really happy with how it came out and hope you are too!

Bill's Hot Totty

Baby it's cold outside.  Better make myself a hot toddy drink!
Ingredients:
•1 oz brandy, whiskey or rum
•1 Tbsp honey
•1/4 lemon
•1 cup hot water
•1 tea bag (optional)

Preparation:
1.Coat the bottom of a mug or an Irish coffee glass with honey.
2.Add the liquor and the juice of the lemon quarter.
3.On the side, heat water in a tea kettle and add the tea bag to make hot tea.
4.Pour the steaming tea (or hot water) into the glass and stir.

Hot toddies are traditionally drunk before going to bed, or in wet / cold weather. They were believed to help cure the common cold and flu, but the American Lung Association now recommends avoiding treating the common cold with alcoholic beverages as they cause dehydration. - Thanks wikipedia for the health tip! souce

Bill's drink tip: whatever you use make sure it's not cheap!

I think this is going to put hair on my chest! oh vey