cut a box spring in half = check.

Yes, we did it for real. And it totally worked. When faced with the dilemma of our queen-size box spring not fitting up the stairs we had three choices: 1. Buy two separate smaller box springs; 2. Be hippies and just leave the mattress on the floor; 3. Cut the box spring in half. After some research, Tim was confident that choice 3 was the best. Turns out he was right, and it went off without a single hitch. I wanted to take more pictures of the process, but it was sort of a two person job and we worked quickly to get it flat again. Here's the full tutorial we used with much success.

Happy weekend!

lately...

...my days are filled with

eating frozen pizza since we haven't really gone grocery shopping since the move
soaking up the MN summer sun over my lunch break
getting my nails dirty from weeding the landscaping (see photo below)
listening to Airstream Song on repeat
learning how to keep wood floors clean
late nights in the sunroom
daydreaming of hosting a party in our new digs
meeting neighbors
figuring out how to fit a queen sized box spring up narrow stairs
finding a new evening walking route around the neighborhood

life is good.

let the painting begin!

What do you get when you mix a new house, paint and a continuous playlist of 90's country?

Yep, you get a Mandy covered in green tape and a t-shirt that says "Rebel Attitude." 

I knew Mom was planning on coming to help paint for the weekend, but Mandy didn't want to miss out on all the fun so she surprised me. I may have screamed a little. We they got SO much done. While I was at worked, they painted their little hearts out. It was epic, and I am in love with how everything turned out. After much deliberation, every color is perfect. But my real pride and joy is the striped wall in dining room. I couldn't be more ecstatic with how it turned out! I can't help but smile every time I walk past it. It was worth every minute of careful taping/measuring/marking/painting. Here's a sneak peek at the piece de resistance in progress...

moving day

Can I just tell you how thankful and blessed I am? So much has happened in the past few days that has literally stopped me in my tracks. God is so good. On Thursday, Grandma M. called to report that the cancer found in body last fall has dwindled to less than 1% and the doctors are calling her cancer free. On Friday Mandy took her nursing board exams and passed, officially giving her the title of R.N. And as of Friday, we have officially joined the homeowners club! I've had to pinch myself several times over the last few days. I am so thankful.

As for the house buying/moving - everything went so smoothly that at one point I was waiting for the we-don't-have-the-right-documents moment or the there's-mold-growing-all-over-the-house discover. The only downer was breaking a glass pitcher that I had bought at Walmart for $5. And I'm pretty sure we moved in record time - everything was in the house and our apartment was cleaned for inspection by Saturday afternoon. Amazing. We couldn't have done it without our Miller Moving Team! 

Right after our final walk through.

Moving in the first U-haul load.

Our official moving day mascots!

The first morning in our new home.

Enjoying pizza in the sunroom after a long day of moving/cleaning.

We are getting settled in, although it still sort of feels like I'm house-sitting or on vacation. It doesn't feel like "our home" just yet. Tim is loving every single minute of it. He's spent that last 2 humid nights cleaning and organizing the garage. His goal is to get it so clean that you can walk in the garage with white socks. I love that man. Painting is next on my list, and I've recruited Mom to help me this weekend. Stay tuned for some before-and-after pics!

bridal shower invitation :: pretty pretty princess

I am taking a break from packing up our life to share a little something I've been working on. Jenna, a good friend of mine from college, is getting married in October (yay!) and she asked me to design her save-the-dates and wedding invitations. In the meantime, her sister asked me to design Jenna's bridal shower invitations with a "Pretty, Pretty Princess" theme. I was so pumped! I'm a sucker for surprises.

packing up

It's here - the week we move! Big life changes are always a sort of surreal experience for me - graduating from college, getting married - in that I wake up each morning and think, "This is the last morning I will..." And this week is no different, and being the nostalgic/sentimental girl that I am, I keep thinking how much I will actually miss things about this little apartment of ours. I'll miss the coziness, the view out our patio door, the fact that if something breaks (aka the washing machine) it's someone else's expense. It's been a good little place for us during the past year.


This is also a big week for other reasons:

• Grandma M. had her 100 day check-up yesterday to determine if the medicine/chemo worked enough to put her into remission. I talked to her last night and she sounded tired, but good. Now the hardest part - waiting for the results.
• Mandy takes her board exams this week! I know she's a total wreck stressed to the max, but throughout all of nursing school, she rocked any and every test she had to take. So proud of you, Nurse Mandy!

Thank you, Lord, for these blessings and celebrations in life. I owe you everything.

our weekend :: birthdays & vacations

We just spent a wonderful weekend along the beautiful North Shore of our beloved Minnesota with my family. It's such a blessing that we all have such a great time together. There was much laughter, good food, and a little R&R by a giant Minnesota lake. We...

• stayed in a cabin overlooking Lake Superior
• ate breakfasts of omelets and pancakes on the deck each morning
• slept with the windows open
• fished for northern
• took in the sites of some of the most beautiful MN state parks
• stuffed ourselves with pasties and pie at Betty's Pies
• got sunburnt
• explored Canal Park and its museums and antique stores
• celebrated father's day/mom's birthday/Tim's birthday all in one night

Now it's Sunday night and as we watch the storm clouds roll out our patio door, it's sinking in that this is the week we've been waiting so long for. It's officially we-become-homeowners week! The boxes have been found, the lists have been made, and we have a goal of not buying any groceries this week. Let the craziness begin!

my home town

I don't know if it's the warm weather or just plain ol' homesickness, but I'm really missing the Minnesota prairie lately, and am having a total Cheers theme song moment of wanting to be where everybody knows my name. And I also know it's partly the phenomenon that seems to be really good at happening to me where the thing that I think I don't want, I actually love and miss after I don't have it. Yeah, fairly big character flaw of mine. I'm working on it - on being happy with my current situation, surroundings, etc. But even still, I miss...


the sunsets
Legion baseball games
running into familiar faces at the grocery store
knowing all the back roads to every neighboring small town
country living
friends
bagel shop coffee dates with Mom
shopping the downtown stores
summer night band concerts
farmland
gravel roads


I do love you, Southwest MN!

goals :: june 2012

Is it really June already? Have we really been living here for a year? Do we really move in 2 weeks into our very own home? Yes, yes, and YES! Amazing. 


Goals for June:

• Pack/move/unpack
• Start taking a multivitamin
• Be a better friend
• Enjoy the moment without always looking forward to the future
• Take a family vacation
• Bake a birthday cake for Tim
• Really take to heart Philippians 4:6-7
• Crank out some Pinterest crafts
• Start one new design project

June, with all your warmth, sunshine, and big life changes, I welcome you with open arms!