always good amongst the bad

when we have bad moments in the day i am thrilled to still find the good.
the good comes in these forms today:

*a letter from my sweet friend matthew.  especially when it starts out like this... "dear skye I miss you in my heart..."
and ends like this.... "skye please smile lovely.  i miss you sweetheart"

♥ him.

*getting the electric bill in the mail and discovering that we don't owe a dime because we had a credit from a year ago when we moved into our house.  oh and the added bonus is we won't have to pay very much next month either because there is still credit to be used up.

*coming home to the sweetest little fur baby kittens that shower me with cuddles.

watching them play and sleep and even get into things they shouldn't makes me smile.  maybe later i'll tell you a story of what happens when i sleep in and leave the wild ones to themselves on a sunday morning. 

*last but certainly not least the good, is knowing that we have love.  as stressful as life can sometimes be at  least we have each other and that is terribly important....the most important.

i can't think of anyone i'd rather ride the roller coasters of life with.

our home

just a little over a year in this place and i finally feel like certain rooms that lacked the right amount of charm/decor/organization are finally coming together. 

sometimes you can't rush that kind of stuff.  i wanted to have it all put together and picture perfect instantly but each room has finally evolved into what i dreamt of and i'm sure that will continue to happen as we live here. 

after looking at tons of houses this was the only one that felt right.  it spoke to me, unlike the rest.

we figured it would be a bit of an ordeal buying a house, but we were newlyweds with a dream that seemed attainable.  shortly after we started the process of getting the house we discovered that someone had done some very dishonest things which would set us back tremendously.  from start to finish this was 6 months full of extension fees, 2 different mortgage companies....the second one being the best in the world, letting the house go back on the market, us moving in with my mom, losing hope, being very thankful my sister was our realtor, fighting a fight that should have never been ours and feeling seriously hateful about it, the list goes on.

but i guess it really is true that when something is meant to be it will be.

against all odds this became our happy place

now for a tour of a few rooms....

our living room

our kitchen

our bedroom

our bathroom

my art room/the spare has been one of those areas i just couldn't seem to get right but all of the sudden it feels like the inspirational space i wanted after a few projects that were recently completed

where i make messes and masterpieces

just for fun here are the additions to my skeleton key wall

i was extremely lucky to find these super cool vintage door plates to add to my key collection.

we are still thrilled and sometimes in awe that our dream finally became a reality.

i find a lot of joy in making it more ours each day.



pellegrino....the kitty, not the drink.

i never thought i'd say this but it's official....we are crazy cat lovers.

our original intention was to keep one kitten from the litter. 

i didn't plan on falling in love with another kitten and keeping him

it just sorta happened.

i mean look at how adorably handsome he is.

the blue eyes, the pretty markings, and i can't forget to mention that he has a very slight underbite which i think is extra cute.....adds character.

he also has the sweetest disposition.  when i pick him up he is soft and cuddly, he lets me cradle him like a baby and usually closes his eyes like he's blissfully happy.

when he's acting all fiesty and i go to touch him instead of nibbling and scratching my fingers he licks them.

when he can't find me he lets out the cutest little squeaky noise that sounds a little like a meow but not really.

i'll call for him and he follows the sound of my voice then seems extremely content when he sees me.

he makes similar funny noises when playing with his siblings.

\

notice the open mouth....yeah that's the underbite.

makes me want to squeeze him ♥

the other reason we decided to keep him is because houndstooth really seems to love him.  i catch them being sweet with each other all the time.  cuddling, wrestling, cleaning each others ears.

it's simply meant to be.

oh and his name....

we shall call him

pellegrino.

wedding in the park

this weekend we went to an event that felt like a high school reunion and family reunion but really it was a wedding.  there were friends i hadn't seen in many years and we spent a great deal of time with our group of family that was in attendance. 

*my mom and my older sister rita talking about who knows what but probably something naughty.

*you could tell a lot of time went in to making this such a nice night.

there were certain areas of the park like in this shot below that reminded me of some sort

of whimsical scene from alice in wonderland.

*brian and lennette.

*i love will and having my handsome husband as my date

that night made me appreciate him even more.

*with my mom who said she loves this picture because the dark hides her wrinkles.

whatever mom...you are the best looking 50 year old i know.  i hope i'm lucky

enough to look like that when i get to be as ancient as you :)

*this guy here is josh and that is one of his little ones...we were best buds in high school.

it's weird to think that we are adults now and that we went so many years without seeing each other when it was normal to not go a day without spending time together 11 years ago.

*my brother brandon on the left and his best bud nick.  those two have tormented me for a lot of years.

*brandon, john, will.

i'm actually loving the look of this photo along with the other low light/slightly blurry ones.

pretty exciting to see my friend brian get married.

a lovely evening with the people i love most.

crib parts

i am a collector of random little tidbits like movie tickets, pretty clothing tags,  vintage cards, quotes, magazine clippings, photos, paper scraps of all sorts that either have sentimental value or are aesthetically pleasing to me.

ten or so years ago i started taping these sorts of things on the pages of a hardcover journal until i filled it up.

recently i had decided i wanted some sort of antique/industrial way of displaying items like these in my art room.

one day while at my grandparents i noticed the springs from a crib in the backyard, this item was most likely on it's way to the trash.  i asked my grandpa if i could have the rusting pile of metal.  he seemed to think i was a little strange for wanting it but he obliged and dropped it by my house. 

i was explaining my vision for this item to my mom last week but all she could see was an old pile of metal.  she did say that she was sure i would turn it into something wonderful though.

maybe she and the rest of my family might understand now that they see the finished product.....or maybe not.

so glad will helped me with the task of painting the pieces and putting it back together then hanging it up.  he's quite handy.

i have really taken a fancy to my new/old random tidbit displayer.

flashback friday #18

circa 1984.  taken at disneyland on one of our many family vacations there.

my obsession with that place began very early in life.

can you guess which ride i am standing in front of?