missing my mac (not the computer, the dog)...

i've been having reoccurring dreams lately about my old westie, mac(kenzie). it's been breaking my heart each time i dream about him, i wake up crying & missing him even more, but thankful i have penny there in my bed with me during those moments. he's been gone for almost 4 years now, and while i have a new little miss sunshine in my life i can't help but wish he was still here...


you've never met a dog like him. he has survived a tornado (which my grandfather didn't hear the warning sirens and left him out in the yard for), a dog attack, a year at college with me, several bad boyfriend on my part, a couple of moves to 5 different states, and even cheated death (we were going to put him down but i just couldn't bring myself to do it, so we didn't, and we spent one last night with him and he passed away on his own).

i miss these kind of moments with my friend...


this was the last photo i took of him the weekend he died, resting comfortably in his bed, old & tired....he was 18 1/2 years old...

Happy Birthday Haley!!!...

haley, me & steph on st. patty's day

today she turns the much anticipated 3-0!!! She is actually the first among my friends to enter this 3rd decade of life! Her mom & sister flew in yesterday to surprise her and tonight we are all going (to stuff our faces) to ole mexican restaurant in cambridge to celebrate...and yes, i've already surveyed the menu and chosen my meal.

haley is such a super cool chick; she's got the most incredible taste in music (she's constantly introducing me to lots of new songs & bands so i can feel like i'm somewhat hip), she's a ski-bumm chick at heart, she's always got on a trendy outfit (not just halloween costumes as seen below) and is the only person i know who can pull off & total rock great hair accessories...i'm envious. oh, and she's got a killer 'america's next top model' runway walk (yes, i even tried to persuade her to try out for the show)...fierce!

haley was my friend steph's (friend from high school) friend in college and i couldn't be more thrilled she moved here too! i don't have a lot of girlfriends (hell, I don't have many friends period, but by choice), but haley has been a great addition and i'm very excited to celebrate this momentous day with her, her family, and her other friends!!!

haley & her sister dana on halloween

HAPPY 30th BIRTHDAY HALEY!!!

the wedding slideshow (finally)...

so i was finally able to figure out how to upload the slide show i made for my sister & chris for their wedding rehearsal dinner. like i said, there was A LOT of editing that had to go into this slide show to keep in under 15 minutes (barely)...these two are probably the most photographed couple i know, seriously...not to mention total cutie-pies as little kids....



songs:
my wish- rascal flats
stand by me- otis redding
lucky- jason mraz
you and me- tom petty & the heartbreakers
i will- the beatles

for the love of the irish (limestone that is)...

irish grey limestone (left) & irish blue limestone (right)

heavily pushing for her to use the forget soapstone, it's so last season. my new favorite kitchen countertop material is irish (grey & blue) limestone. a client of mine (a bakery owner!) is redoing her kitchen at home and i'mirish grey limestone for her counters.

it looks great against natural woods and/or painted cabinetry. yes, it etches if cut deeply by a knife (so you a cutting board!). yes, it's sensitive to acidity (so don't leave spilt orange juice on it overnight!). but no, it doesn't absorb oils (you actually oil the stone as part of it's maintenance) because of its tight compression (like granite) so it's not porous like a quartzite or other light colored marbles. see those flecks sparkling in the stone? this limestone is over 350 million years old and those flecks are actually formed because of the intense compression over those millions of years which have actually crystallized items within the stone.

check out irish natural stone, inc for more info. they have all sorts of finishes for this stone which also make it a great application for floors, wall tiles, & outdoor spaces!

short plug for the stone company i'm working for on this project...gerrity stone out of woburn, great people to work with and a huge selection of materials, it's a great place to take a client to walk through their showroom and warehouse full of slabs.

i'll let you know if i've convinced her to use it (otherwise i might in my own kitchen someday!)...stay tuned...

custom kitty litter box update...

just stopped over to the wood shop next door to check on the custom littler box (designed by moi!) progress...



i love, love, love it! thank you ishmael (the carpenter who made this for me!).

the door has concealed hinges for easy access to change out the littler box, two rows of holes were drilled on 3 sides to allow maximum airflow through the box, and there is a 4" overhang of the vertical panels to create a space for a custom cushion to be placed. it still needs to be primed & painted (it's made from mdf so it won't expand & contract with humidity & moisture), i'm thinking of doing a white on white vertical stripe, maybe??? and of course the cushion still needs to be made for the top. i'm going to place a little floor mat in front of the door so no litter is dragged through the house too. do you love it???

sleeping beauty...

my little princess, all tucked in under the covers...i couldn't help myself...

row, row, row your boat...

mom picked up these two painted wooden oars at antique shows recently, each were under $20, score!...


i've decided to hang them over a door way with these fabulous painted turned wood curtain brackets from west elm, on sale for $5.99 each, double score!...


finished product photos to come...

the city kitty life...

i never had a cat growing up, so i literally know nothing about being a cat owner. well that's all about to change when the boyfriend moves in with his dog & his cat, graydy. i've been trying to think of ways make my apartment more 'kitty friendly' (which also means i have to say adios to my beloved house plants) so graydy feels welcome. i'm in the process of making a little bed to sit on top of the radiator cover under my large bay window which looks out onto the busy street of commonwealth avenue, graydy will enjoy the people watching from there & it's a nice sunny spot for his afternoon 'cat' naps...

graydy asleep last night on my lap

i'd like to be able to get him a few new items for the apartment so he feels special (it's hard to compete with our 2 dogs). i still need to get used to the idea of having a littler box in the house but i thought if it could look more like a piece of furniture it might be alright. i searched high & low and found one from grandin road i like, but i can't justify spending $129 on a little box, so i've asked one of the carpenters next door to make one from plywood (for about 1/3 of the cost) similar in design to this one that i could paint white and sew a little cushion in fabulous fabric to sit on top...

cat chateau litter pan enclosure from grandin road

next item on the graydy shopping list is a food/water bowl (although i think he'll just drink out of the dog bowl like he does now). i was actually thinking of going to one of those 'paint-your-own-pottery' places in town so that i could customize his bowl. but if i don't do that i think i'd opt for one of these...

fish shaped wood cat feeders from tails by the lake


black & white sloped bowl from melia luxury pet


dapper cat bowl from melia luxury pet

graydy is an indoor cat so the boyfriend doesn't really keep a collar on him. but i'm wondering if we should when he moves to the city in case he gets out? just one more reason to spend a little money, right? i'd have to get him something masculine though, no pink (although is would look great against his gray fur). i absolutely love the idea of this patent leather collar though, how cute is it?...

'faux' patent leather collar from tails by the lake

my biggest fear about having a cat is the scratching. graydy doesn't seem to be that bad of a scratcher from what i have seen at the boyfriends house, but i'm sort of psychotic when it comes to my own furniture. i cannot find a decent looking scratching post for the life of me...maybe this is something i should also make myself??? i'm currently doing a project where we're carpeting and i actually like the carpet type & color, maybe i could use some of the remnant carpeting to make some sort of post. stay tuned...

great fall nail color...

i went to a client meeting yesterday and she was wearing this fabulous opi shade on both her nails & toes...yes, i immediately went to the nail salon after work and had a mani/pedi with this great fall color, no spain no gain. with 2 coats on it's more of a cranberry color than the pink it looks like in this image...i adore it, actually, i'm obsessed with it...

ps- i have to promote my nail salon, jennifer's nails on newbury street. i've been going there for 5 or 6 years now and i just adore the girls who work there & they have an enormous selection of colors (opi & esse)...so if you're ever strolling down newbury street stop it, you won't regret it!

scarf season is upon us...

it's a chilly 63 degrees in boston today, but the sun is shinning...and it's friday! i've got on my legging, long shirt, sweater-jacket & my new scarf from h&m...gosh i love scarf season, scarfs are my favorite fall fashion accessory...

wedded bliss...

i've returned from the wedding weekend in colorado and am proud to say my sister is finally married!!! the weekend was exceptional...the weather in the mountains was spectacular all weekend long, mid- 70's... and then the night after my sisters wedding it snowed!!! talk about luck! there were a million things going on all weekend long but i'll just highlight a few specifics. their rehearsal dinner was held in allie's cabin, a private, secluded ski club on the side of the mountain that took about 15-20 minutes by shuttle to get to. but it was worth the drive...the view was to die for! the table settings were labeled with all their favorite mountains to ski across the us, very clever... the location made for some gorgeous backdrops to pictures...

bride & groom

abby & rob (future bride & groom, to be married in 2010)

me & the boyfriend

we returned to the hotel for the 'welcome party' for the rest of the guests in the buffalo bar, where the slide show (made by moi!) was played for all the guests to enjoy. let me just tell you, this was the most difficult slide show on earth to make...do you know how many photos there are of these two? uhh hello, they've been dating since 8th grade...millions of photos! i somehow managed to keep it to a relatively minimal amount of time. if i could figure out how to upload this 14 minute slide show to my blog i would (sorry!)...

everyone gathered around to watch the slideshow

the day of the wedding us girls spent most of the day in my sisters suite getting hair & make-up done, having lunch, laughing hysterically, dancing to biggie smalls, and getting dressed for the big moment...

mom fluffing out the dress

bridesmaid, friend from college, abby

yours truly, maid of honor

the flower girl, cousin, kelly

bridesmaid, friend from high school, kate

bridesmaids, lily (friend) and kate (sister-in-law)

bridesmaid, friend from college, hannah

ringer bearer (nephew) little tim, and his bridesmaid mom (sister-in-law) randy

the same zip up sweatshirt her sister-in-laws wore on their wedding day

bride!

the hits of the show (other than my sister) were the ring bearer and the flower girl...

all that anticipation amounted paid off the moment my sister walked down the aisle with my father...she looked stunning!...

so then the photographer had us take some fun group photos, which i can't wait to see...

and then it was a much needed cocktail hour out on the patio with friends & family...
then on to the reception. other than being absolutely terrified to give my maid of honor toast, the reception was so much fun! my sister and her husband came out and danced their first dance together as husband & wife to their band playing rolling stones loving cup...so unique, and so them! i wish i had video clip of their dance, it was so cute...

then there was the usual stuff...the cake cutting, the father/daughter dance, the toasts...

and then all hell broke loose with the most incredible wedding band on earth coming onto stage. honestly, THE BEST BAND EVER, funkiphino. they were so awesome and people were having such a good time that my mom extended them playing for another hour. my sister and her husband are really into music, and it showed...EVERYONE was dancing!...

these were the funniest pictures of my sister out on the dance floor with the patches of grass from their table number display (but trust me, there was a lot of other randomness going on that night, stuff i can't post!)...

CONGRATULATIONS FARRELL & CHRIS!!!