a vacation is calling...

yes, we are going on vacation next week, and i have been packed and ready to go for almost 2 weeks. can you tell i'm excited? i went through all of my summer clothes and tried everything on, restocked a few wardrobe items and still managed to over pack, oh well, you never can have enough outfits for paradise, right?

the boyfriend and i are headed to the montego bay hilton rose hall resort & spa in jamaica. aside from sitting at the pool all-day-long, i might spend a day in the spa...


and you'll find the boyfriend on the golf course (since we'll be spending his birthday on vacation)...


and you'll find us both floating along the lazy river or at the swim up bar on a daily basis...


sun, rest & relaxation here we come!

meet me...

everyone else got to fill out their answers for my blog (which i hope you liked reading because i certainly did) except me, so here's my stab at it...

Home town? South Salem, NY

Where did you go to college and what was your major? Hobart & William Smith- Bachelors Degree Art History, New England School of Art & Design- Masters Degree Interior Design

Current job? Project Manager/Interiors Coordinator for Residential General Contractor

Dream job? To run a dog rehabilitation farm in Vermont

What website(s) do you check daily? the 200 blogs on my google reader, boston.com, nytimes.com and facebook

Best piece of advice you were ever given and by whom? my mom used to tell me & my sister in college, ‘don’t drink & dress OR drink & dial girls’. I also liked when the boyfriends Dad told me, ‘the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”

One word your friends would use to describe you? organized

What has been your greatest accomplishment? finishing graduate school and/or building a career that i love

What is your least favorite thing about yourself? my OCD-ness, or the crows feet around my eyes

What is the first thing you notice about other people? their body language

Outfit you feel the best in? sweatpants & a hoodie

Beauty product you can’t live without? under eye concealer & mascara & chapstick

Is it easier to forgive or forget? forgive

Biggest pet peeve? being late, people who stand too close to me, people who don’t say please or thank you, leaving wet towels on the furniture, lying, talking on your cellphone while sitting at the dinner table, stingy people, and people who leave their dogs mess on the sidewalk (the list could go on & on)

If you were a crayon what color would you be? manatee

If a Hollywood movie was made about your life what actor/actress would play you? kate bosworth (although I secretly wish gwenyth paltrow or heidi klum)

What book are you currently reading? Rooms by Emma Donoghue

If you could live anywhere in the world for one year where would you live? finland

Who has played the most influential role in your life? my mom

Favorite Quote? the golden rule “do unto others as you would have others do unto you”… I try to remember that as often as I can because they're good words to live by.

currently reading...

the 3rd book chosen for our monthly book group is room by emma donoghue. i'm very interested in reading this book because it's based on a relatively recent, horrifying event in austria, the fritzl case in 2008, i love a good historical fiction read. i plan on reading this one poolside while we vacation in montego bay next week!...


i also picked up this book just in case i fly through the first one...


and this one, just in case i'm on a roll...

and while i'm on the subject of dogs...

i saw these on design crush today, a-m-a-z-i-n-g. i think the kids (and by kids i mean our dogs maple, penny & hank and our cat graydy)might get these chilewich mats for christmas next year...if not sooner...

doctors visit...

penny had to go to an emergency vet appointment this morning (she's got the squirts bigtime, tmi.). we LOVE our vet, i mean love her. and we also love their new facility...


especially the stephen huneck prints they have hanging everywhere....

party of the year...

the best party of the year was last night, southie apres ski. this year they made commemorative cups and all. i took a hiatus from my usual onsie and decided on faux fur (which i was calling my vintage flying squirrel vest of course), and a lot of people decided to bring their 80's neon ski gear back in action. here are a few shots from the night...

a little note from...

handwritten notes are a tell-tale sign that your parents taught you some very good manners. i love a good personalized notecard too, especially a few of these ones from minted...

lululemon parody...

i'm one to talk, i love lululemon clothes. if i could afford it i'd buy a lot more of it...but i do think this is pretty funny...

courtesy of yogadork

my aching back...

i do not deal with stress very well, at all. aside from the fact that i get intense migraines and have severe insomnia, i carry most of my stress in my upper back. i had a 90 minute deep tissue massage a few weeks ago at g2o spa and the masseuse said my back was one of the worst she's ever worked on (sweet) and suggested i try craniosacral therapy & reiki therapy...which i intend to soon.

in the mean time, i informed my boss today that not only would i like an extra weeks vacation, but one of these bad boys for my desk chair at work...

bar carts, all the rage...

remember my yardsale find?...


and then the transformation?...


well i've added some things since then, like a new sterling tray with marble handles that holds the glasses (because I wasn't loving the yellow round tin thing), oh, and some more alcohol! i'm also thinking about replacing the bottom piece of glass with a mirror, but still not sure. and i'd love to replace the wheels, they're kind of cheap-o. go check out belle maison's post today about chic bar carts too, she posted a lot of great looking ones that put my little thing to shame...

diagnosing your dog...

my mom bought me, my sister and herself this book...as if any of us should be self diagnosing our dogs. my sister and i are the queens of webMD'ing ourselves and others, it's scary, and we're usually wrong. but i started to read through it last night, and it's actually pretty helpful.

meet christopher...

yes, he's finally completed his questions, after weeks of me badgering him to do so. meet christopher, 'the boyfriend', and you can read about that whole love story here.

christopher and i 're-met' almost 3 years ago here in boston. we'd both been living separate lives before then, and had not seen or thought of one another probably in all of those years after college and in between , until our paths crossed again one spring evening over cocktails. and i'll give credit where credit is due...to our dogs. we showed one another countless cell phone images of our dogs that night and decided we'd hang out again soon with our fur-babies... and the rest is sort of history...


surprisingly, it's hard for me to sit here and write about him. i could say all the cheesy things i'm tempted to say as his girlfriend, 'he's my best friend', 'i've never loved someone as much as i loved him', 'we're so happy together', blah, blah, blah...but the truth is, he's the first person/relationship that's every challenged me...and i don't mean that in a bad way. christopher doesn't let me get away with shit, he calls me out on it and makes me accountable for my words and my actions. normally that would drive me crazy, and sometimes it does, but in a weird way it teaches me to be a better person. don't get me wrong, sometimes i wish he would be empathetic and tell me what i want to hear, but that's just not how he operates. he's incredibly smart, well spoken, witty and charming... all that combined with his good looks is a lethal combo! oh, and he's one hell of a hockey player too...i sort of have a thing for hockey players & hockey hair!

speaking of hockey...he was kind of a big deal hockey player back in the day. and even now he still plays in an old man league and coaches younger kids. growing up with my dad who is OBSESSED with sports, it was only natural that i'd be drawn to an athlete! but i'll have to admit, watching him coach is almost as pleasurable as watching him play. he loves children, and they love him.

another thing i admire about him is his loyalty, fierce protection, and love of his parents and of his upbringing. he'll deny it, but he is sentimental, especially when it comes to his family. and as someone who has had the great pleasure of being a part of many of their gatherings & festivities, it's a wonderful, lively & large family to be a part of. i cannot express how much love & support his family, and parents in particular, have given him and us together. because my family is so important to me, aunts, uncles, cousins and all, it's comforting to be around his so much too. and did you know he lives in the same house that his mother and all her siblings grew up in? how awesome is that? yup, it's in the town where both his mother AND father grew up, and many of his aunts, uncles & cousins still live in that town...talk about childhood memories galore.

the best part of christopher is that you can put him in any situation and he adapts. he can dress to the nines and hob-nob over fine wines & a good steak, but he's just as comfortable in a pair of jeans and boots hiking around the hills of vermont. it's that sense of ease that makes him remarkable in my eyes. and while he's certainly had to learn a few lessons the hard way, it's what's he's managed to take away from those lessons and grow as a person that makes me love him deeper than any man i've loved before. and i am very proud of him.

before i met christopher i was doing pretty good on my own...but now, i couldn't imagine my life without him. we've had our ups and downs, like any couple, but we're still building that foundation in our relationship together. so yes, he is my best friend, i've never loved anyone as much as i love him, and i'm looking forward to finding out how the rest of our story goes...

Home town? Born in Colorado Springs...raised in Melrose MA... reside in Winthrop MA

Where did you go to college and what was your major? Hobart College: English, World History, Ice Hockey, Sigma Phi, Sideshow

Current job? Sales for two different companies in very different industries, Hockey coach

Dream job? Golf Pro - Poker Player combo

What website(s) do you check daily? Boston.com, New York times, Google news feed, whatever's not blocked at work...the usual guy sports stuff, various blogs, Old Dirty Needle articles

Best piece of advice you were ever given and by whom? Tough one here - 'Don't eat yellow snow' - anonymous.

One word your friends would use to describe you? Confident

What has been your greatest accomplishment? Bouncing back repeatedly

What is your least favorite thing about yourself? Complacency

What is the first thing you notice about other people? Energy/Vibe

Outfit you feel the best in? Hockey Skates/Golf Gear/Bathing Suit/Flip Flops/Snow Gear - in that order

Beauty product you can’t live without? Hot Water

Is it easier to forgive or forget? Forgive

Biggest pet peeve? When my cat licks the silverware in the sink or eats Maple food before she is done eating it

If you were a crayon what color would you be? Burnt Sienna

If a Hollywood movie was made about your life what actor/actress would play you? Casey Affleck

What book are you currently reading? A Drink Before the War - Dennis Lehane

If you could live anywhere in the world for one year where would you live? Central/Northern Italy

Who has played the most influential role in your life? Andrew Patrick Connolly III

Favorite Quote? "Make it simple, but significant" Don Draper

temptation...

damned you rue la la and your amazing deals, i couldn't resist temptation this morning...




dear new kelly green jpk bucket bag, you will look so amazing on my shoulder this spring! janna, thank you for helping me during my 'emergency' phone call this morning, i think we selected the right color...your fashion sensibility is my savior, i already miss you in the office.

eye candy...

my client showed me the photograph by cig harvey she bought to adorn the one free wall of her newly renovated kitchen. it's going to be a wonderful large scale pop of color against the monochromatic scheme of the space, i can't wait to see it matted & framed & hanging in its new home. she purchased it from a local gallery on newbury street, robert klein gallery, i might have to stop in for a little day-dream-window-shopping of my own...especially after i read the bio of cig on her (yes, it's a she) website...

slug-bug...

walked by this teal vw bug this morning and thought of my mom, who owns the yellow one pictured below. did you know my mom wants to be buried in that car? no joke. she's a crackpot...