Ch-changes!

(Bowie's song always gets stuck in my head when I want to use the word changes... anyone else?)

Happy to report Jeff and I are in our new home. (Home- yes, it feels like it already.) And, we love it. We did discover a couple of issues that we could only discover while moving:

a. Our bed didn't fit down the stairs.

We bought an older home (built during World War II), so our box frame won't make it down the narrow stair case. Oops. Now, we have to buy all new bedroom furniture. (I think Jeff's secretly excited about this.)

b. We just purchased a brand new front-loading washer and dryer. However, our dryer needs to be a gas hook-up, and we have electric. Another oops.

c. Our cute dining table doesn't match our new kitchen. Have to buy a new table. (Eventually, as this is not a priority. But, it actually is quite apparent that it does not match.)

d. In between moving, hauling boxes in and out, putting everything in its new place, I really hurt my back. I'm talking- I-walk-like-an-elderly-person-back-problem. And, it really, really hurts.

e. This is not good, as it's my bestest friends wedding- tomorrow! And, I need to be able to attend to her every needful thing.

f. I'm also getting a cold.

g. I think that's it.

Ah life and all it's ch-changes... good changes, of course. (If only my body would cooperate!)

Buds.

Yay for the warm weather! Starting to feel like spring now...



(Took these at the Tulips Festival.)

She & Him + Yo La Tengo

Did anyone else catch She & Him backed by Yo La Tengo on Conan the other night? Zooey sounds a little nervous, but the jam is sweet:

Mmmm... cupcakes.

Maeve gave me the sweetest (literally) gift of Sprinkles Red Velvet Cupcakes, and I finally made them this weekend for a Bachelorette Party. They were delicious, and so fun to make.

signin' my life away...

Tonight I'm feeling like this...

We're supposed to close on our new home tomorrow. And. It's stressful.

But. I'm excited.

After we've signed the dozens and dozens of documents, I'm sure I'll be feeling like this... 

High-five.

Wish us luck!

ashton

I took pictures of the cutest little boy on Saturday morning...











What a doll!

Tulip Festival

On Saturday, I went to the Tulip Festival. It was a nice morning (despite that crazy wind) to spend by myself snapping photos.

I will admit, though, I was sorta disappointed by the Festival. I thought I'd see acres and acres of Tulips. I didn't. They were planted along the trails, and there were a lot that had not yet bloomed.

So, I found myself snapping buds on trees and people more than the actual tulips.

However, it was still fun; the gardens at Thanksgiving Point are beautiful.



More tulips here.

to listen...

Here are a handful of bands I've been meaning to check-out... If there are any new bands you recommend, or bands you've recently discovered, please fill me in. Gonna buy some music this weekend...

+ Basement Apartment
+New The Notwist
+ Sparrow House
+Noam Dagger
+ Efterklang

Happy weekend!

Lookin'

Happy news, if you already haven't heard, Jeff and I will be closing on our new home next week. (Knock. on. wood.) If everything goes smoothly, we'll be moving in next week. And, it's all I can think about. We are getting so excited.

New house also means new furniture. In good time, we'll be filling up all the extra rooms we now have.

I spotted this sidetable at Ikea:

And, I think it would look lovely in our living room with our black couch. However, Jeff thinks the space would look like too bumble bee'ish... But! I'm trying to convince him otherwise with all of the other accent colors I could bring into the room.

What do you think- too much?

Need some sun?

There were so many good suggestions from this post.

I compiled some suggestions here:


SeeqPod - Playable Search

Already helping me feel sunnier. Listen. It'll brighten your day.

Portraits from this weekend...

Cavin.

Savannah.



Millie.

I love my nieces and nephews.

In Bloom

A Little Bird Told Me...

That she’s coming to play in July at Deer Valley. And, I just ordered tickets (pre-sale).

Yay.

Saturday Shower

Saturday was a perfect day to have a shower for my dear friend Camie.

The sun was out, the food was delicious, and the company was fun! We had a great time.

Here comes the sun...

So, in lieu of this weekend's bright forecast (hope I don't jinx it), I went into my iTunes Library (it's just my library at work, so there's not too much to work with), and searched for the word 'Sun.' Here are some of the songs that came up:

+Sun Giant, Fleet Foxes

+A Sunday Smile, Beirut

+These Days Nothing But Sunshine, The Clientele

+Sunshine Barato, Mosquitos

+Sunrise, Yeasayer

I am sooo looking forward to warmer weather, and these songs add a nice soundtrack to that feeling.

(If you also do a library search for 'sun,' I'd love to know what comes up!)

my grandma...

I got to take some pictures of my Grandma on Sunday. We also celebrated her birthday.

(I, truly, feel so blessed to have her in my life.)

April Music!

If you need ideas of what to do one night this weekend, you can always refer to Your Heart Out's April Music Guide...

There were so many good shows this month, so it was difficult to pair down who I wanted to highlight.

Are you going to any shows this month? Lemme know! I'm curious.

(Currently listening to: Blonde Redhead's Silently. Preeetty.)

to bake

I have an ongoing battle with chocolate chip cookies... I have yet to find my favorite recipe... But, I refuse to give up.

Do you use butter or Crisco with your recipe? Milk Chocolate or Semi-sweet chocolate? Any other tricks I should know?

From one cookie lover to another, please share if you feel so inclined.

Viewfinder

My dad has a really old camera that he uses for decor. Last night I picked it up and started playing with it... and, I had so much fun trying to figure it out.

I ended up taking pictures with my camera of the viewfinder in the old camera. Can't wait to play with this more when I'll have better light.



Tree up close



Distant tree

Big Announcement

Anyone else (secretly) excited for this?



But, don't they, suprisingly, look like they've still got the... right... stuff?

(Sorry, couldn't help myself.)

Around the House...

inspiration

Need a little inspiration this morning? Me too. Here are some links and things:

+ Allison started a new blog, and she's recently posted many of her stunning pictures from Hawaii. Beautiful.

+Alyson (yes, another Alyson)started an inspiring Flickr Group called white space wednesday, and the contributions are lovely.

+This live clip (I want a red keyboard):



+And, another sultry-singer's, Goldfrapp's, newest video:




Happy Thursday...

(And, happy birthday wishes to my mother yesterday and my grandma today!)

Part-ay Shuffle

Figured it was time to turn-on the Party Shuffle and have a mix-all-around...

To play:

1. Open iTunes
2. Click on Party Shuffle
3. List the 10 bands that come up first. (No cheating.)

Without further ado, here are my ten:

1. Oliver James, Fleet Foxes (New band- haven't given them much of a listen yet, but I'm working on it. Like 'em.)
2. Fake Palindromes, Andrew Bird (Love this song, and this is a live version from a Black Session in 2005. Great track.)
3. The Upper Peninsula, Sufjan Stevens (Haven't listed to Greetings from Michigan in a long time. But, I love this mellow track; think the guitar and dueted vocals are pretty.)
4. Gila, Beach House (Must be on a mellow trend! I really like this song... especially the chorus of oh-oh-oh-ohs. Think there are a dozen of them.)
5. 2080, Yeasayer (Not very familiar with this band... yet. Though, I do know they are coming to SLC this month. Gotta check them out. Interesting vocals.)
6. Hide and Seek, Imogen Heap (Thought I'd get sick of this song with the over-use of it. But, I haven't. Still feels refreshing.)
7. Middle Management, Bishop Allen (I like the sorta-punk hooks and catchy vocals.)
8. Grow Old With Me, John Lennon (Always think of Jeffrey when this song comes up. I love it.)
9. Paint a Babe, Jana Hunter (Very haunting vocals... but, I really, really like it.)
10. Somehow, Jason Collett (Been listening to this album a lot, and he's definitely grown on me. This specific track is quite mellow... pretty fitting with this weather.)

If you feel like playing, please leave a comment- I'd love to know what's shuffling in your library!

Reading on a Sunday Afternoon...

More of Elizabeth

She's so sweet...