Winter Meets Summer

Each summer as a child, the day would arrive when I'd crave winter.

Instead of swimming or playing outside, I'd eat a bowl of ice cream and watch a holiday movie.

I'm reminded of my little Christmas-in-July tradition lately when I see white objects drifting slowly through a blue sky. The cottonwood trees have gone crazy the past few weeks and their fluff is flying everywhere.

It really does look like falling snow. So now I get a dose of winter in the summer—minus the cold and snow.

Photo from here.

Paper Trail

I love the transformative power paint and color can have on a room. It is so satisfying to find just the right color for just the right mood for just the right space.

That said, I've always been a bit weary of wallpaper. I know, I know, wallpaper has changed. It's cool now. Still, I haven't tried any in my home. I'll stick with paint for the time being.

But looking at these inspiring photos posted on the beautiful blog My Favorite and My Best, I must admit, it would be fun to try out some bold-patterned paper!

This deep pink floral pattern is perfectly peppy with white floors and furniture.

An ornate motif works great as an accent wall of a long bedroom.

A slightly retro yellow print make for a cheery powder room -- why not make a bathroom this much fun?

I want to rock out a hallway like this!

Photos from this My Favorite and My Best post.

Lazy Days

Do you ever have a weekend that goes just how you'd hoped it would? Well, that's what happened to me this weekend.

With my husband out of town, the pup and I took the opportunity to spend the weekend at my parents' house. And it was blissful!

Maybe it's because my parents' house will probably always feel more like home to me than anywhere else on earth. Or because my mom and dad spoil me with good food and great conversation whenever I'm there.

But it was more this weekend, too. We enjoyed gorgeous weather, which I took as a cue to do absolutely nothing. I lounged outside, swam, read magazines and napped.

And I took in the beautiful forests and fields that spread out behind my parents' backyard. Not a bad spot to spend a few days, eh?

Photo by me.

Bon Voyage

My fella is out of town this weekend.

I'm so excited for him. He gets to spend a weekend with his three best friends, guys he's known since his childhood. I hope they have the best time!

But I am going to miss him. I always sort of hate saying goodbye to him. My sister makes fun of the long goodbyes we have, even when it's just one of us running out to the store or heading in to work. But I like this little tradition of ours.

I love photos like this one—found on the lovely blog Wide Open Spaces—because there's so much emotion in them. And don't you just feel the emotions right along with them?

Photo from ffffound! via Wide Open Spaces.

Thankful Thursday

My heart is fuzzy, white and weighs eight pounds.

That's because my dog is one of the major loves of my life. Seriously, I cannot get enough of her.

I'm so thankful that she's been part of our family for three years now. She's opened my heart in ways I never knew had been closed.

She can be a bit of a stinker (we're still working on her barking and listening skills, but who's perfect, right?) but truth be told I dig her spunk and personality.

Photo by me.

Latte Lusting

It is a dark, chilly day. I sometimes crave days like this in the summer. I like a moody break from the sunshine every now and then. 

However, this also means I'd like to spend the day holed up in a cozy coffee shop getting lost in a book and a frothy vanilla latte. 

Unfortunately, this scenario is unlikely to happen today. So I'm going to get my latte fix via these lovely Flickr photographs. 

I always like these simple white mugs at cafes. 

What's better than one latte? Two, of course!

This reminds me of my favorite coffee-sipping mug at home. 

Photos from here, here and here.

Backyard Bliss

I just found some backyard inspiration photos that I downloaded from Domino before the website was dismantled. Gosh I miss that magazine and website. But I'm glad to see these pics again!

I love our backyard in large part because it is essentially a blank slate. It's a big fenced-in rectangle with grass in the middle and some trees, bushes and flowers along the edges. And we have a simple wood deck above.

Gardening and landscaping intimidates me a bit, so it's fun to look at photos of people who really do their yards up well.

I love the geometric planes and right angles -- not to mention the crisp white -- in this modern yard.

Isn't this deck sexy? It's perfectly bohemian and messy.

Maybe a yard needn't be more complicated than this. The simple, natural and utterly beautiful color palette is great.

I bet this patio is fantastic for outdoor parties.

Photos from dominomag.com.