weekend recap {iphone style}

We had a lovely weekend and hope you did too!  Lance and I are so fortunate to have both sides of our family close by.  We wouldn’t know what we would do without them!  This weekend was filled with my nephews baseball games, parks, and lots of kisses for little man.  The first picture on the top left melts my heart… Crew loves his Grandpa!  I don’t know about you, but the weekends fly by too fast.

style.

Who’s excited for the weekend?  My hand is definitely raised!  The weather is lovely, which means I can sport my spring attire!  I’m thrilled to see so many colorful skirts this season.  Pair it with a simple top and you are good to go.  I suggest investing in some good neutral shoes as it can go with pretty much any outfit.
{skirt is from H&M, from a couple of seasons ago}
{tank from H&M, it’s the perfect white tank}
{necklace, Forever 21}
{shoes, Jimmy Choo}

Isn’t this tablet case so cute…it’s from Target!  One of my fab finds.
{Had to squeeze in a pic of my little gem}

arugula salad.

Since it’s really just my hubs and I, it’s not often we cook big meals.  And when we do, we’ll have leftovers for days.  I’ve been thinking of ways to make  our meals healthier, cater to our busy schedules, and attract our different tastes.  Lance is a meat and potatoes kind of guy and I’m more organic and have been cutting back on my meat intake.  Since we are both on the go during the day I wanted to create something light, tasty, and will hold up well if not eaten right away.

Arugula with Israeli Couscous salad:

Ingredients (makes 2-4 servings):

• 1 cup Couscous:  follow cooking instructions on package
• 1 small bag of pre-washed Arugula:
• 2 small mini bell peppers, diced ( I used 1 yellow and 1 red)
• 1 avocado, diced
• Handful of grape tomatoes, sliced
• 1 lemon
• Salt
• Pepper
• Dash of Balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon of honey
• About 3 tablespoons of good olive oil

{I followed directions on the Couscous package and tossed it with the arugula, diced bell peppers, diced avocado, and grape tomatoes.  I juiced 1 lemon and whisked in the olive oil, also adding in salt and pepper to taste.  I added a splash of balsamic vinegar and a dash of honey to the dressing.  I tossed the salad and vinaigrette together and voila!  Yummy goodness!  I love this simple dressing, gives just enough flavor and coats the arugula well.  I went with arugula as it doesn’t wilt quickly and it has a lemon/peppery taste}
This is perfect to pack for lunch or for a light dinner.  You could also have the option to add some protein.  Either some kidney beans to give it a buttery taste or  sliced grilled chicken.

master bath remodel {part one}.

First of all, I should start off with a disclaimer….we are NOT professionals!  Ha!  My husband and I always sit around and think up big ideas…and I mean BIG!  One evening, we thought of a master plan for our master bath and of course while thinking- we’re rubbing our hands together thinking we are GENIUSES (had to give you a visual).  This is the biggest project either of us has ever taken on and actually we were both renovation virgins.  I honestly think we would have been perfect for that show “Renovation Realities”.  Hey, ya gotta start somewhere right?  I scoured through pinterest, magazines, internet, and even had help with an interior designer at one point to help me figure out what direction I wanted the master bath to go in.  Well, I’m not gonna lie this renovation was a lot bigger than we thought and well…it’s taken us awhile.  But I’m staying positive and always refer to the fact that once it’s finished, it will be mind blowing AMAZING.  Until then…we are still working away!
We actually started the renovation back when I was pregnant with Crew so I apologize I really don’t have any thorough before pictures.  Hopefully you get the idea with the picture above, I stated where the bath tub was and where the shower was.  As you can see that space where the shower was is teeny tiny.  I’m not a very big person and I even felt like a giant in there, so you can only imagine how my husband was!  Even though I love my baths, my husband and I both agreed that there just wasn’t enough space to have a full tub.  And honestly, we both take more showers than we ever did baths.  Hubs also pointed out that we have our spare bathroom so if I ever wanted to get pruney hands, I could take a bath in there.  One big concern was of course, resale of our home…would new owners think it’s funny there’s no tub in the master bath?  We decided to take the risk to have no tub but upgrade to spa like amenities and have a steam shower.  We hope future buyers will agree with us and will think it’s awesome like we do.
{handy hubby and I…I think I was about 8 months pregnant here}
My hubby really wanted the steam shower so I let him run with that.  Everything else, he left to me.  He has been amazing helping my vision come to life and has been so easy going with the choices I’ve made.  And lucky for me, he’s loved everything I’ve thrown at him.  I have to say we’ve collaborated really well so far.  I love the look of marble, I think it comes across so classy and clean.  I picked out tile that had grey undertones rather than brown and he painstakeingly hand cut every tile to make this herringbone pattern I’m absolutely obsessed with!  We had some help with the tiling as we were at crunch time (baby boy was going to make his appearance any day).  We at least wanted the shower portion of the renovation done.  I was actually running out to pick up more tile, when I went into labor!  But that’s another story in itself.
So while I was in labor and experienced the best day of my life…the shower took shape.  Can you see the gloriousness…My hubs was with me at the hospital but got to check in quick at home to see the progress.
After we got home and settled with the baby…we got to work on the shower.  And the shower portion finally got done!  Whoopee!
We installed a rain shower head (Kohler- similar one here).  It’s seriously my favorite part, feels like you’re under a waterfall!
I wanted to keep the herringbone pattern on the bottom of the shower…I didn’t want too much going on but I thought this smaller tile complimented the shower as a whole perfectly.
And part one…DONE!  Hope you like our shower- we are in love with it!  Now on to part two.  Remember where the old shower was…that teeny tiny space?  That my friends, is going to become my vanity.  Part two coming soon!

links i love.

1.  Such great hair ideas for on the go. (thebeautydepartment.com)
2.  As a new blogger, I’m always learning new things.  I’m thinking about signing up for a web class to further my blog. (nicolesclasses.com)
3.  This site has so many items for crafting. (mjtrim.com)
4.  I love bargains and this site brings all the cute things you adore in one place.  They hold deals daily! (brickyard buffalo.com)
5.  I would love to turn this modern shed to a my future office space in my backyard.  How cool is this?  (kangaroomsystems.com)
6.  Trying to eat heathier gets so boring sometimes.  So any recipes to revamp a salad gets a thumbs up by me.  (cupcakesandcashmere.com)
7.  I love all things pretty.  And I am definitely eye’ing this gorgeous necklace.  Obsessed with all their jewelry.  (www.etsy.com/shop/LoveObsessed)