there were two things i was certain of when i got engaged
the guy i was going to marry
and that there would be mason jars at my wedding
lots of them
everything else seemed to fall into place
around all the mason jars of course
...and then came baby...



Friday, December 31, 2010

finalmente


it's the final day of 2010.

i hope you're all enjoying the last of what this year has to offer & are looking forward to life in 2011.

the hubs and i were scheduled to be lying on a beach along the gulf coast this week, but the lovely blizzard of 2010 kept us grounded in manhattan. i'll admit, i cried a little, but once i realized how easy we had it compared to all of the people stranded in the airports, trains and lord knows where else, i got over it. we've had a relaxing week in the city and are looking forward to vacation "take 2" next year.

one of my new year's resolutions is to be better about blogging more regularly. you might notice i'll write a bit about babies. don't worry, i'll still blog my little heart out about weddings, entertaining and everything else that catches my eye, but i've got babies on the brain these days. mostly because i've got one in my belly right now ; )

i promise not to get all mushy and diaper-obsessed on this blog, but i can't promise i won't feature a baby shower or amazing new baby product every once in awhile.

i'll be throwing back some sparkling apple cider tonight to ring in the new year and am counting on all of you to throw back the real stuff for me.

cheers!

Monday, December 20, 2010

holly daze: getting into the christmas spirit

christmas finally exploded in our apartment yesterday. i was determined to check some things off my list and was in bed by 9pm as a result.

i managed to knock out several dozen of one of my dearest friend's anginettes. she of course didn't mention how many the recipe yielded and was also slightly vague about how much of each ingredient goes into the frosting, but hey, that's how we learn, right?!

wrapped a few xmas gifts to give our tree a little company. note to self, wrapping paper is extremely expensive in manhattan. i was heading to the register with a roll in my hand before realizing they were asking for $10!! i mean, i want the gifts to look pretty, but come on people, $10?!

and i capped off the evening by designing an extremely ugly christmas sweatshirt. we'll be spending xmas eve with the hub's extended family this year and have decided as a group to wear our ugliest xmas attire. this excites me because i greatly enjoy any excuse to dress up. we haven't mentioned it to the hub's grandparents yet, as we want to see if they can tell there is a theme or if they think we're all just going a little cuckoo.

oh & if you're looking for an easy gift for a friend/coworker/hot neighbor, i think a nice bottle of italian wine with a few amaretti di sarono cookies (that i wrote about here) sprinkled in a bag is a great treat!

and just for some afternoon entertainment, check out this hot couple:

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

winter weddings: guest blogger, F.I.L.

the hubs & i woke up to the following email from my father-in-law a few mornings ago & i thought i would share with all of you. it was totally random, unsolicited, but it got both of us starting our day off laughing. don't focus too much on how it all ends... ; )

If we go back to the late 70's or very early 80's -- definitely before 1982, there was a January evening when my brother Tom and I went out for dinner. I was his Best Man and he was getting married the following day. We had a great dinner and then stayed on for drinks until 1 or 2 in the morning. When we left the bar, it was just beginning to snow. How great for the wedding tomorrow! We thought some breakfast at a diner on 69th
street in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn was just the place to discuss the plans for the next day. An hour later, we left the diner, but the snow had fallen so thick and so fast and the City plows had done such a fine job that we could not get Tom's car out of the snow. Not a problem we thought. We'll just walk four blocks to Marilyn's and my apartment and Tom would sleep on my couch. The wedding was not 'til late afternoon and there would be plenty of time to get him to his house for the wedding preparations.

Not so fast, we discovered the following morning. Not just a snowfall, but a record setting blizzard. His fiancé was having a fit because the limos would not cross the Verrazano to get her in Staten Island. My father and mother and the south Jersey branch of the family was having a devil of a time getting to the wedding as was anyone who lived more than a block from the Church. By 11, forget the snowy backdrop because we had to forget the wedding -- for that day anyway. As it turns out, Tom should have forgotten the wedding altogether. They did get married the following weekend, by which time the snow was sooty, yellow spotted, and generally slushy at every corner. A divorce about a year and a half later made it clear to all that that the snow was an omen and not just a backdrop.

again, the ending isn't all roses, but there are a few things i love about this. first, the fact that they were out drinking until the wee hours the night before the wedding. second, that no matter how hard we all try, we absolutely can't control mother nature, so sometimes you just have to go with it. and three, that he decided out of the blue to type up this note & send to me & the hubs.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

you have my heart

{jaime le sole via we heart it}

this dress stole my heart.

i absolutely love the small ruffles around the heart cut-out that gradually form the fun sleeves.

i have no idea what the front of this dress looks like, but i'd buy it in a second based on the rearview.

happy hump day!

Monday, December 6, 2010

snowy bride: flurries in new york


i can't tell you how excited i was to wake up to snow flurries this morning. makes me love new york in december!

after my sister-in-law's amazing baby shower this weekend (pictures to follow), the hubs & i were on a mission to decorate for the holidays. i'd like to tell you that we drove out to connecticut & chopped down our own tree, but truth be told, we went to the closest corner store & picked the smallest one they had out on the sidewalk. convenience is key in manhattan.

the tree is all gussied up, we have far too many decorations up in our tiny one bedroom apartment and i absolutely love it.

seeing the snow this morning made me yearn for a winter wedding. one amazing thing about having your wedding in the winter months, besides the possibility of a gorgeous snowfall as your backdrop, is the holiday decor. most establishments decorate for the holidays around thanksgiving and keep them up through the beginning of the new year. most of your major wedding decor will be taken care of and all you'll need to do is add a few winter inspired centerpieces, favors and a wedding cake!

to all you former winter brides, any tips for future cold weather bride-to-bes?

Friday, December 3, 2010

have a sweet weekend: candy table

{via amy atlas}

apologies for being a bit MIA lately. between the holidays and life, i've slacked on blogging a tad...oops.

but, i am SO excited for my sister-in-law's baby shower this weekend!

looking forward to seeing everyone, celebrating the new bambino on the way and the overall party itself.

my SIL and her madre pretty much planned the entire event, so my mom & i wanted to contribute something fun to the day. we've been working on a red & white themed candy bar to go with the color scheme of the shower and tie in the holidays. we got our inspiration from the amy atlas display above and are hoping ours looks half as good : )

wish us luck!

have a great weekend all and happy december!