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Okay I have so much stuffed in my little head about garden configuration, decoration and color scheme that I need to offload it all before I forget it. Haven't I told you? I have really, really bad memory. And I'm not just saying that. So what better way to offload than a mood board. :) 1. Target Birdhouse 2. Overstock Dial Thermometer 3. Target String Light 4. Ikea Block Candle 5. World Market Ribbed Candle Holder 6. Overstock Outdoor Pillows 7. Overstock Outdoor Pillows 8. Target Patio Set 9. Overstock Fountain 10. Ikea Bistro Set 11. Ikea Side Table 12. Our Brick Floors 13. Overstock Tiered Plant Stand Of course this is just a mood board and things will change. But I like the neutral base with pops of yellow and green. And I love all that wood! It feels comfortable and soothing to me. :)
Tonight was a very good dinner night. You know how some nights you just struggle with dinner? You stare into your fridge and nothing seems to come together? And you end up doing the same thing? Well tonight we did go grocery shopping with no particular recipe in mind (at least not for me) but we managed to have gotten good enough of ingredients to make an easy and tasty dinner. :) We had a really hefty salad composing of redleaf lettuce, red bell pepper, crumbled egg, onion sprouts, purple onion and sunflower seeds. I made a very simple and light salad dressing which is basically lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper and a squeeze of deli mustard. We got a loaf of fresh french bread which we made into garlic bread. Simply mince one garlic clove per slice of bread and heat in some butter with some garlic salt. Mix and spread on the bread and pop it in the oven for a few minutes. I also put a little bit of parmesan cheese on these and finished with parsley garnish. David seared these jumbo scallops and they are the star of tonight's dinner. It's so good. So, so good. I ate all 3 of them because my poor husband is allergic to seafood. :( Can you believe dinner only costed us $8.50 total? The three scallops were a splurge and they were $6 alone. But totally worth it in my opinion when paired well with less expensive items. This makes me so happy because one plate of chicken strips + fries at Ikea costs $5.99+tax! And this was healthy, easy to make and delicious.
Another stop I made during my little excursion on Sunday was Target. I can go to target 3 times a week. :D The first thing I saw was this cute milk bottle. I knew that it came in white but now it also comes in blue and red. I think I still like the white one better though. :) And wow, Target has some beautiful beverage dispensers at very reasonable prices. I like the middle one the best. And my favorite Thomas O'brien towels are on clearance! I would've gotten them but only the blue+brown ones were on clearance and they didn't fit in our color scheme. :( And how pretty are these pillows? They seriously look like something that can come from Pottery Barn except they would be at least twice the price. Love the geometric pattern in this one. Would've been nicer in a different color though. And here's the birdhouse I'm swooning over. It's so pretty. The wood is smooth and so beautiful. *sigh. It's definitely taking self control to prevent me for just buying it. Pedestal planters on sale! Also took a lot of self control to not buy these. *Sigh. Can't wait until I can buy things again (currently saving up for the patio set, which is going to cost a fortune--at least compared to my furnishings budget).
So as told, yesterday I was feeling antsy and wanted to walk around so I went window shopping. I usually don't like going shopping on Sundays because I don't like circling for parking and being bumped into by kids (yes, it happened yesterday). The first stop I made was World Market. It's like 3 minutes away from the house so it's always a favorite when I'm in the walking mood. I was happy that I remembered to bring my camera for a change. :) Here's a terrarium that I pinned a while ago and is now 50% off. Why didn't I buy it? Well, the workmanship isn't that great and you can see the hot glue spots everywhere. So that was a disappointment. But at $20 it's really a steal for a terrarium this size. I love this dining table. Industirial legs + rustic wood top. Would be a great table for an office as well! I've been on a watch for outdoor decor and these ribbed candle jars are so pretty. They can also be used to hold flowers and untencils as well! Jars are very versatile. I took this picture for the stool. The drafting table is pretty but way too impractical for me. But I love that stool. I want a reason to buy it but I really don't have one. It's heavy, does not wobble (unlike many other industrial stools out there) and the wood is just beautiful. Another outdoor decor item. These are actually plastic tumblers but I think flowers would look absolutely stunning in these. I love anything pestal-legged. :) And I have to give a shout-out to World Market for having so many small-storage solutions! These can be spice jars, organizers for toothpicks, hold bath salts, you name it. And that's it! It was fun window shopping even though I didn't buy anything.
I was expecting to feel not quite rested after this weekend. Sabbath was a very busy one for me. We cooked during morning service, I played piano for a sister who was out of town in the afternoon, then taught RE and finally led choir for the choir director who was out of town. And since David and I were scheduled to lead today's rehab service, I wouldn't say I had a carefree and restful evening either. I think my faith must be so weak right now because even though I wasn't tired this morning when the alarm rang at 8:10 AM, I refused to get out of bed. We would have to leave the house at 8:50 to make it to morning prayer on time. Of course we were late and didn't get there until 9:55 or so, just before prayer. When we walked in, almost everyone in the chapel turned their heads to see who just came in. Oops. Maybe we should've sat in the nursery and not have disrupted everyone. I was just in a generally restless mood all morning. I really didn't feel like talking to anyone, much less lead the rehab service. But what can I do? We were scheduled and it was my turn to give the message so at the end I just did it. Honestly, I just wanted to go home. Actually, it was more like I didn't want to leave the house from the beginning. Anyway, right after rehab was over I asked David if we could just go home and not linger and end up eating lunch with people. Am I anti-social and weird or what. We got home around 1pm or so. The day was actually beautiful. It rained a little but by the afternoon the sun came out and it was just beautiful. I felt like walking off my antsy-ness so I went to a few stores for a few hours. I came home feeling much better. And this evening David made some red velvet cupcakes. :) Amazing right? It was his first time making and piping the icing. I was very impressed. It's so strange but sabbath and rehab feels so long ago now. Like they were days ago. I think I actually do feel rested after all.
To motivate ourselves to cook more, we've decided to pick one recipe each week to make. I decided on the Cook's Illustrated version of the chicken noodle soup, with a few tweaks of course. I've made this soup before and it starts with a whole chicken. So the broth is deep, flavorful and so good. Trader Joe's has a great price for organic whole chicken. Wish the weather were drearier today though! The sun is out and it's fantastic outside, which doesn't make for great chicken soup weather. Oh well. :)
So one of my ongoing goals is organizing the office/guest room/craft & sewing room. It's not a big room so organizing it so that it can be as multi-functional as possible is a must. A while ago I pinned this image on Pinterest (via IHeart Organizing). There are many things to love about this image, but I immediately knew that I can easily copy one thing. Remember these Asker containers that lined the pews for our wedding? Yea, we have like 20 of these things laying around! We've used some as pots last year but have plenty to spare. So yesterday, I went to get the BYGEL rail and hooks. Call me determined or call me crazy for going to Ikea on a Sunday. :) I was really happy about this project in general because we used to store our collection of sharpies and colored pencils in the office closet (which feels like the magician's hat because things disappear and reappear there regularly). It's always a pain finding where they are because there just isn't a good place for them. Well, not anymore! Here's the before... and here's the after! (I've since moved the speaker behind the computer because that was bugging me.) The best part about this is that I only spent $3 since the most expensive item is the Asker containers. Makes me very happy when we can turn seemingly useless objects into something super functional and pretty. :)
Wow, I took an unexpected blog break it seems. :) This past week I went on a business trip with a coworker to audit a critical supplier. They're located in a small town in GA called Trenton. After which we were supposed to go to Austin to meet up with our sales rep there so we can watch a procedure at a site that was participating in our clinical trial. I haven't been on a business trip for a year. Last year I went on a crazy 36-hour trip to Corona, CA and it was probably the worst business trip I've ever taken. I'm thoroughly spoiled by J&J business trips where we fly business class, stay at posh hotels and have seemingly unlimited food budgets (how does one spend $65 on a meal, I ask you). Well, things are different with a smaller company and that's just life. So I'm traveling as if I'm paying for it out of pocket, trying to save whenever possible. When I was booking hotels, I realized how much I don't love traveling now. Before anything was better than the apt I was renting. Staying at hotels was a luxury. Now, nothing seems to be better than our house and staying at hotels became a downgrade. Oh, but I'm definitely thankful that I get to stay at our comfortable home 95% of the time and concede once in a while to hotels. Much better this way than the other way around. Actually the hardest part of this trip is not comfort, it was the schedule. We were supposed to be in a different city everyday. And since these were small cities, we had to make connections since there were no direct flights. And the weather in the east was pretty bad so we missed a connecting flight from Charlotte to Austin and had to stay there overnight and take an insane 6am flight the next morning. Which meant we had to get a taxi at 4:15 am, which meant we had to wake up at 3:50 am EST (which is 12:50 am PST!). Crazy, crazy. I felt like I woke up before I fell asleep. When my flight home landed in San Jose at 8:30 pm on Friday, it was pouring rain. I was so thankful that our flight was not delayed at all. When I finally got home at 9pm-ish on Friday night I was exhausted. I laid on the floor (because I was so dirty) and almost fell asleep. David finally came home from church at around 10pm and I was so happy to see him. I just felt like I took a deep breath and relaxed when he came home. I then mustered the energy to shower, wash my hair (I just felt sooo dirty), dry my hair and brush my teeth. We climbed into bed at around 10:40 or so and I think I fell asleep in a flash. Yesterday I woke up late and we made it to church just in time for hymn singing. Thankfully, I had no duties at all. Really thank God for that. After church we went to San Jose for Hosanna dress rehearsal and we came home at around 8pm or so and I went to bed at around 10:30 and got up at 10 am this morning. Oh, I'm just so thankful to have this Sunday. I really, really needed a do-nothing day. The weather is so strange so far though. We woke up to clear blue skies. Then all of a sudden, a gray cloud comes by an it starts to pour rain. Then half an hour later it would be clear blue skies again. That's been repeating for the past 2 hours or so. I do love the rain, though. Especially if I get to stay at home. I went downstairs to look at the garden since I was planning to plant the lettuce seeds I got the other day. Well, it'll have to wait another day. Oh! The outdoor coffee table came in and I assembled it last week. Even though it's a really nice and sturdy table, I am changing my mind about what I want in general. I think what I really want is a wood conversation set. It seems like it'll fit in better with nature and feel more relaxing. So even though this is a great table at a great price, I'm going to return it. And this is where I'm currently sitting in. :) I love our bed. It's the reason for many unproductive and lazy Sunday morning hours but I just love it. Especially after a few nights at a hotel bed, this one is divine. And guess what? It's clear blue skies again. :)
I have a confession to make: I haven't been in the garden for months. I think when the tomatoes went to sleep and the temperature just got colder and colder, I sort of just stopped gardening. Hence the disappearance of the monthly garden updates. And for some reason, I also stopped going into the garden at all. Not to sit on the bench. Not to admire the lemons which blossomed and fruited in cold weather. It's as if the sliding glass doors to the garden became a wall and the portal disappeared. I went into my own hibernation. Well this past Sunday David was outside moving the plants back (the HOA was painting all the exterior walls, trim and balconies and everything was moved so they're at least 2 feet away from the walls). Since he was taking a while, I went outside, too. I think it was the first time this year. The garden was in complete disarray. Leaves, branches, debris and dirt soiled the beautiful brick patio. And I just had the urge to sweep. What ensued was a thorough sweeping of the brick. It felt so good to be working in the garden again. The air just smells fresher. I then mustered the courage to inspect the plants. I think part of the reason why I haven't been outside is feeling guilt for not tending to our plants. So I was bracing for the worst. The mint from last year was leggy and in generally bad condition. I pruned everything away except a few healthy sprigs. I was relieved the maidenhair fern survived the winter. David must've watered it often because it would've dried completely (like it did last year) without constant watering. I only removed any browning or shriveled parts. I left the tomato skeletons as is. Clearing out pots will be left for another day. And note to self: it's time to buy tomato seeds/plants. This year I want to try growing beefsteaks in addition to sungold. The hydrangea amazed and motivated me. Look at the beautiful green, healthy leaves! Remember last year it was battling some disease that caused the leaves to brown and curl? Well, we pruned off all the diseased branches before winter set in and it was basically pared down to a stub. That was the last I saw of it. So to see this life bursting forth was amazing and inspiring. It makes me want to garden again. The other thing I started to think about is how to configure and use this space. We currently have a bench and 2 chairs. And that's it. After taking these pictures I realized we actually have quite a sizable patio. It has so much potential to be a beautiful and relaxing retreat don't you think? Of course we'll have to figure out a way to display the plants beautifully without compromising their sun needs. So my way of moving forward on this goal is buying a $55 outdoor coffee table (I paid $55 because of a $5 off $50 coupon, Redcard savings and free shipping). I think it'll really start to anchor the space. I'll show you guys when it arrives. :) I'm also thinking some string lights and accessories (like a lantern or something) would be lovely as well. Any suggestions? I'm currently swooning over this birdhouse. We have a hummingbird that frequents our garden and I would be honored if it would nest at our house. Do you think there's a chance it would live in that house? Another lovely spot we have is this covered/shaded part. I love the gray they used for the exterior paint. Reminds me very much of the gray in our bedroom. So serene and clean. What would go in this corner? We've actually been looking on and off for a fountain but none of them have caught our eye yet. I don't feel like I'm super picky either but why are there so many ugly fountains? Another option is a potting table. Or an etagere. Who knows what will end up there. :) Another idea I'm floating in my mind is a bistro set like this one from Ikea. This is the view from the master bedroom balcony. Bird's eye views always gets my mind ticking about configuration. I'm already mentally moving those pots around. :) So glad I stepped into the garden this weekend. It really rekindled something in me. I'm really looking forward to many a happy spring and summer afternoons in the garden. :)
I hope to improve this space this year and make it a nice place to relax and maybe even entertain! Seriously if you have any ideas, please let me know! Somehow outdoor decor is so much harder than indoor for me. |
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