Back in the Saddle Again!

Since I basically spent most of March out of town, I needed the month of April for re-entry.  I finally feel like I am back to my schedule, have the suitcases put away, have caught up on mail/appointments/to do lists and then I realized in 3 weeks my kids will be out for summer!

There is definitely something about travel that always makes me want to come home and zhush up my house.    Parisians are all about their flowers so I now I feel like I have a green thumb. I seriously could not stop taking pictures of windows and doors.  I don't know what it is about those Parisians but they make everything from how they outfit themselves to how they outfit their homes look effortless.  These photos should make you want to run to your local nursery today and start planting...

and the darling florist right across the street from our apartment.

Lucky for me, my hubby knows about my quest for a Parisian patio so for mother's day he and the kids spent the entire day planting and cleaning up our deck.  Time to have a deck party!!

It's coming along, hey Rome, I mean Paris wasn't built in a day!!

Back in the Saddle

Not only has our stint in Michigan come to an end, but so has our summer.  With just a little over a week before the kids are back in school and we have to get back into some sort of routine, we still have a few things to cross off our summer bucket list

A day at the beach

Right so if you know anything about geography you know that STL is land locked.  Well I discovered a little gem about 15 minutes from me.  A man made lake perfect for swimming, paddle boarding, kayaking, and playing in the sand.  Pools are great but there is something about a picnic on the beach that just can't be beat

Staycation

Since I spend so much of my summer away, I don't get to see my girlfriends much during these 3 months.  The perfect way for us to catch up, a little getaway in our own back yard.  Our decision on which hotel to stay at is based solely on who has the best pool, our top pick is always here

Chase Park Plaza

but there were some close contenders

The Four Seasons

The Cheshire

Moonlight Ramble

Every year there is an 18 mile bike ride at midnight through the street of downtown.  Every year they close the streets to cars and set up party tents throughout the bike course.  Every year I am usually in Michigan, but not this year.  This Saturday the hubs and I are meeting my sister and her hubby downtown at midnight for our bike race, so excited!!

Make my deck pretty

I don't focus too much on flowers/planters because I am gone so much in June and July that if they were to survive I wouldn't even be around to appreciate them.  Now that I am home, I need to spruce up my deck and make it pretty.  We still have a good 2 months here before dining outside is no longer an option.

I better get busy!!

Home Sweet Home

After 3 weeks of traveling, all I can say is that it is good to be home!!

Now I am just waiting for the laundry fairy to arrive

There's No Place Like Home!

After almost 3 weeks on vacation, it is so good to be home!!

We have so much catching up to do!!

My Old House

We have been in our new home for almost 8 months. I absolutely love my new home. It is perfect for our family. It was a 3 year on again, off again search but we found it. I will, however, always have a soft spot in my heart for our old home. This was home to me for 10 years...We moved here when Matthew was a year old. I brought both my girls home from the hospital to this home. We have so many happy, happy memories in this house.

In our new home, I have started a little mini-makeover in our kitchen. Just a few things to make it ours. We gutted our kitchen in our old home about a year before we moved. I loved my old kitchen and I am copying some of the ideas from my old kitchen for my new one.

Here is my old kitchen. It's hard to tell in the pictures but my colors were cream, taupe and light blue.




My new house is less than a mile from my old one. I hate when I drive by my old house and all the blinds are pulled and the lights are off. I want to see what they have done with the place. I love driving at night when people have their lights on and the blinds up, you can get some great decorating ideas that way!