Introducing Gwenyth Eileen

My little(est) sister Tessa and her husband Duffy welcomed their first baby into the world today.  Gwenyth Eileen weighed and measured the same as her three preceeding girl cousins (also first babies for me and my sisters), Reese, Olivia and Blair Kelly, at 19.5 inches at 7lbs 9oz.  What wonderful birthing genes our mother gave us! Baby Gwenyth was a week early but a healthy and beautiful little baby. I wish Cincinnati were just a little closer to Utah - I positively can't wait to meet her.  What a sweetie ... don't you agree?  Tessa wrote an email to Dean (on his mission) telling him about her labor and delivery and said, "I can't believe all I had to do was be pregnant for 9 months to have her here."  I love how she put it.  How perfectly sweet a brand new baby is to a loving mother and father - there is no more precious time I can think of in life (so far anyway!).  So happy for you Tessa and Duffy, here's to parenthood!

(p.s. Eileen is my Granny's first name, my mom's mom)

Bird on a Wire - Family Photoshoot

At the end of last summer I wanted to have some family pictures taken and it coincided with Blair turning one.  My friend Nicole, an old friend from the dorms (but an unforgettable one!) has a photography company based in Portland, Oregon and on a vacation to Utah she agreed to take our pictures.  I was thrilled! I have admired her (and co-photographer hubby Alma's) work since Bird on a Wire's first shoot.  Their photos have a casual beauty about them.  Wonderfully honest, un-doctored and yet still ethereal.  I knew we three were in good hands. 

It was so great reconnecting with Nicole and meeting Alma. We had a great afternoon at Memory Park in downtown Salt Lake.  I love that park. Ben and I would go there a lot when we were first married and lived nearby.  Part of our wedding video was filmed there too.  Loved going back, especially that time of year.

The pictures are wonderful.  Since having a baby I get really sentimental looking at family pictures.  Pictures of anyone's family, not just my own.  There's something wonderful about seeing what two people can create and also the moment in time those pictures capture.  These pictures are so special to me. I keep thanking Nicole for her talents but it never seems enough.  I'd recommend her a thousand times over.  Her website is great too.  The 'about us' page is awesome, totally 'Nicole'. She recently posted our shoot (graciously giving me time to send out our v-day card) so I thought I would too!  Here are a few pics from our shoot and if you really like us and want to see more, you can follow this link. Bird on a Wire : Lauren & Ben.

Studio 5 : "Tray Chic"

Today's segment was really great. I came up with the idea of "Tray Chic" and had a fun time exploring my creativity in pulling four displays together, each for a different area of the home. Enjoy! Click here  to redirect to the Studio 5 website and read my article below.

With the need for organization in our lives and the overabundance of stylish accessories and beautiful trinkets to put on display, we must have a way to be organized and still fashionable, don’t we?  Trays offer a wonderful opportunity to corral all sorts of objects that make things seem pulled together.  Instantly things become both beautiful and purposeful!

Today designer Lauren Oviatt gives us four ways to create beautiful vignettes on trays and shows four different spaces in which to use them. 

Entry -- There must be a catch-all somewhere in the house, best to keep it looking pretty!

Ideas: tray for keys, bowl for coins, note pad or space for letters in/out, live plant or fresh flowers, photo frame.

Family Room – Add something unexpected or decorative to bring out the ‘interesting’ amongst all the ‘functional’.

Ideas: covered box for remotes, magazines, board game or deck of cards, chic drink coasters, candy dish, preserved greenery

Kitchen – Make everyday items eye-catching by grouping them for visual impact while keeping them close at hand. Consider using coordinating colors in display and varying object size and height for overall appeal.

Ideas:  salt & pepper, salt pig, timer, olive oil, flower in bud vase, fruit, casual cut flower arrangement, spoon rest, kitchen towel

Guest Room -   No better way to thoughtfully welcome a guest than to carefully curate a personalized ‘welcome’ in the form of a lovely bedside or guest bathroom tray.  It will transform your guest room into a stylish boutique hotel suite.

Ideas: water carafe, books, note card & pen, fresh plant or flowers, candle, hand cream, midnight snack

Girls Getaway : Las Vegas

 My friend Keri has some pretty good connections.  Back in January she put out the feelers for a girls trip to Vegas to escape the cold... I think I was the first to respond... where do I sign up?  We took off for two nights and stayed atop Planet Hollywood in a high-roller's suite.  It was incredible.  I felt like the ultimate free-loader but it was amazing!  Keri, Danielle, Kenzie and I shopped a bit, ate a bit (a lot), walked a bit, and talked a lot over the course of a few days. It was so relaxing and energizing at the same time. I remember walking around the shops at Caesar's and remarking with the girls, "Isn't it strange and wonderful that we are really on our OWN timeframe? We don't have to rush here and there to appease our kids, we don't have to stop to change diapers or have a quick bite.  We don't even have to worry about getting home before our husbands go crazy on baby duty"... (there was no coming home, sorry guys!)

 

 

 view from our room - it was even more stunning at night watching the Bellagio fountains

our suite below - it was awesome but also kinda sparse... we could've had a party w/ 50 people here!

 lunch at Max Brenner - yum! worth ALL the sampling we did

 

 we stayed up chatting pretty late both nights and Keri fell asleep mid-coversation... poor dear!

 lunch at Cabo Wabo Cantina - amazing people watching from there...

I had a blast getting away and also getting to know these girls better - Kenzie is moving just up the street and Keri and Danielle are already on the street. :)  I am lucky to have wonderful, fun and generous friends! Thanks Keri for a wonderful time.... can I pencil an encore trip in for next year??