resolutions...

So I'm not one for resolutions… always seems to feel like I'm setting myself up for failure somehow.  I just rather prefer to surprise myself with new & unexpected ventures, or something of the sort.  But when I stumbled upon this about midway through last year… well, it was just too much fun!

and I've been waiting to see if she would put out a 2012 version,
and well… she did!!  It's time to do somthing different.  And what better way to come up with some suggestions for your TwentyTwelve Resolutions?

here's a few I love…

 four posts in the last four days… I'm thinking, good start.

and snap a few photos of course…

yes please!!  still so many places I need to go
before we have to leave this beautiful country.

 okay, this takes me back & is actually a funny story… you see, my sister & I used to sneak all the ingredients up to our bedroom during the middle of the night (including the kitchenaid mixer) just so we could eat all the cookie dough!

which could be interesting… you see alot of people spell my name "Nilou."

so in my mad search look what I discovered… this facebook page and this website.

such a novelty for me, 

because you don't just run into Nelous every day, you know… 

 so many of us just go through the motions… with all the technology these days, things get lost in translation, or we don't fully commit our attention to a conversation.  time for a change.  eye contact, people.

 pretty sure my hubby will LOVE this one.

ummm yes please!  loved doing this as a kid…


 so. very. important.

So what are your New Year Resolutions?
to make your own or to get some ideas, you can visit here.

and best wishes to you all in the new year.

52 reasons I love you...

So the hubby & I just passed up our ten year anniversary… I decided that even though we have never given the traditional gifts, I wanted to do something different this year.  That being said, year ten = aluminum/tin.  So me being my somewhat clever self, decided I would get him an iPad, since he is always traveling.  I asked the sales clerk what material it was made of, to which he answered aluminum… perfect!!  I even topped it off by using tin foil to wrap the gift.  I pretty much outdid myself, but I wanted something a bit more personal to add to the mix, and that's when I remembered seeing a fun little project on pinterest, or you can see it here.

Now enter the crafty Nelou.

First up, find the playing cards… Not that we don't have 50 million packs of them already, but none of them seemed to fit the bill.  My next trip to the flea market… paydirt, vintage playing cards.  I combined the best of 2 packs, and got to work.  First off, I set up an off-limits room where I could spread out the supplies I needed:

{self healing mat, exacto, triangle, sharpie, double-stick tape, cardstock, number stamps & stamp pad, hole punch, circle rings, & the playing cards of course}

I used heavy-weight craft gift tags, and was able to cut 2 from each tag.  

Once I had them all cut, I hand-wrote my 52 love notes.  

 Next, using a joker as a guide, I hole-punched the cards 

& secured them together with the rings.

 After I had them in the order I wanted, I got busy stamping.  And I must say 

I loved the imperfections when a small smudge would occur, or I would 

happen to press a little too hard, leaving a little corner of ink from the stamp.

 Lastly, I used the double-stick tape to attach them to each card.

 and voila!  52 reasons I love you… 

Sadly, this took me a little longer than expected, so the hubby didn't quite get it on our anniversary… it became a Christmas present instead.  So if you are starting to think towards Valentine's Day, and think this is a fun idea… start now!!  

Not only will it make your loved one melt… but you'll remember 

all those important little reasons you fell in love in the first place.  

is it over already?

Wow, I can't believe how fast Christmas came and went… 

I was however a little more ready for it this year than last.

Which means… pretty presents under the tree, yippee!!

week twenty-two :: christmas

me :: Laura

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmastime with your loved ones.

Now to ring in the New Year!!  

which means lots of fireworks in our household… 

Stay warm & safe, and best wishes, wherever in the world you may be.

holiday cheer!

a whole lot of things come to mind,

here's a few from my list…

week twenty-one :: holiday cheer

me :: Laura

what brings you cheer during the holiday season?

on a crisp sunny morning...

I had the pleasure of meeting up with this lovely family
to shoot their photos, just in time for christmas.

here's a few of the memories made on that beautiful day…

baby it's cold outside...

I can't help but think of one of my favorite songs when I hear this phrase… 

and who does it better than the fabulous Zooey Deschanel??
ummm, I'm thinking no one.

week twenty :: baby it's cold outside

Laura :: me

can't believe tomorrow's Christmas Eve!!  everyone get their shopping finished, 

or do we have any of those last minute shoppers out there?  

kickstart your morning...

week nineteen :: morning

me :: Laura

so what get's you going in the morning, bowl of cereal or a cup of joe?

thankful...

With the week of Thanksgiving (and yes, we're posting a tad late, 

but everyone deserves a break, and it was a holiday after all…)  

Well, we decided what could be better than the theme "thankful?"  

and I am thankful for so many things…

Grace seems to be doing much better, although she's been a bit mopey the last few days, which I'm hoping is due to the fact that her dad has been gone for a bit now.  And even though he does seem to be away from us more so since we've moved here… he was able to be here for the Thanksgiving holiday.  Some families may not have been so lucky.  Being away from family is especially hard during the holidays.  So to all the men & women out there away from home…
I'm incredibly thankful to you for serving our country & protecting our freedoms.
Thinking of you, may you all return home safely.

week eighteen :: thankful

Laura :: me

guilty pleasures

Eames said it best…
and I particularly love this print,
which Laura actually surprised me with last Christmas!

then my hubby brought me home my very own beauty…
can you say happy dance!?  definitely my guilty pleasure.

week seventeen :: guilty pleasures

Laura :: me

so… looks like we're back on track & this week's theme
in honor of Thanksgiving… is "thankful"
which we'll be posting later this week… yay for being caught up!
and a very Happy Turkey Day from my family to yours.

alone...

As you may have noticed, we are a bit behind, but with reason… 

Last weekend we headed to one of my favorite spots in Germany.

While there I had planned to take my "alone" pic, because I had the perfect idea, 

and Garmisch was the perfect spot to find what I wanted to do…  

Then the unexpected happened.  My sweet Gracie girl fell ill in the middle of our first night there.  Her symptoms were none I'd ever experienced before… she was shaking & lethargic, and unsteady on her feet.  She wasn't responding to anything that would usually perk her up.  We immediately began to assume it was the altitude… The next several hours were moments I'd rather not relive… you see, we couldn't even take the gondola back down to our car to leave, as it wasn't morning and open yet.  When we were finally able to leave, we still faced a five hour drive home.  Thank goodness for emergency vets!!  She was put on an IV, and the first round of blood work pointed to liver damage.  We then realized she had a large lump in her throat, which was growing very rapidly.  The next day more tests… to check her thyroid for one.  It ended up coming back normal (yippee!) and the rest of the blood work pointed to some sort of mystery infection.  She stopped eating and was sick all day.  More IV fluids were given, but she seemed to be going downhill fast… that night was horrible for us.  All we could do was try and soothe her and keep her comfortable.  The following day she started out slow, however she managed to eat and keep down a few small meals.  So back to the vet we go, as the lump is still growing… an ultrasound showed a fluid-filled, encapsulated area, and once again the vet thought all signs pointed to some sort of thyroid tumor.  They aspirated the lump, and sent off for more testing.  We started her on antibiotics, and waited for results.  Grace continued to regain her strength, appetite, and was returning to her normal self little by little.  When the call came in it was good news…  no tumor cells!!  We are currently continuing antibiotics, and are hoping her recovery keeps heading in the a positive direction…  So many of you have reached out to express your concern and give us your well wishes, and we are so incredibly grateful for that.  We know that there will eventually be a time, but we're so glad that time is not now, because we just aren't ready yet.  So for all of you that love your four-legged babies as much as we do, hug them tight tonight!  I can't imagine if this had gone the other direction  And the strangest part is that we are still clueless… everything happened so fast, and we have no idea what caused the symptoms or if they were even related.  So here's to hoping that's all past us now…

I ended up getting a similar shot to the one I wanted, just a little closer to home.    

and here it is

week sixteen :: alone   

me :: Laura

as for playing catch up… here's our upcoming topics

(last week) week seventeen :: guilty pleasure

(this week) week eighteen :: thankful

see you all again soon!

handcrafted pretties...

I recently had the pleasure of highjacking my unsuspecting 

(not to mention gorgeous…) house guest, 

to model a few handcrafted products I am completely in love with… 

so first up, mrs. Z's designs.

I'm pretty sure I have one of her cowls in every size, shape, and color.  

Now to just acquire a few more, hehe.  Sarah has a wonderful talent, 

and seems to be able to make anything you can dream up!  

From these beauties, to fingerless mittens, to baby booties, and hats… 

just to name a few!  and just you wait til you see the ones she made for Grace!!   

and now for another very talented lady… 

I met Anneka some time ago through our hubbies.  

She mailed me a few goodies… 

along with a head & ear cozy… total surprise. & super cute.

the flower is removable and can be worn separately… 

that's right, can you say bonus?  

for more of her beautiful treasures, you can visit Knot Moxie.

Can't wait to share the rest of their pretties with you all!  

So what are you waiting for?  Go check them out.

oh and be sure to mention I sent you… 

to take advantage of an exclusive savings on your first purchase!!

happy hump day!

Love me some vintage scrabble tiles if I do say so myself, and you'd think with all my visits to the flea market, I'd have been able to find some… but no.  So I finally ended up finding these on eBay some time ago.  I love putting fun words around my house that make me smile every time I see them!  Now this is funny… I've been waiting for the day that our images might have similarities, suppose this week is the one!  And what's even funnier is that mine would have had the "happy" had I enough Ps… which of course means I will be buying more previously loved scrabble tiles to add to my collection!!

week fifteen :: wednesday

Laura :: me

stay tuned, because next up is "alone"

{hues}day :: green + grey

1. oh so beautiful paper

2. fabricworm

3. great home interior

4. simple as that

5. veranda

6. decor pad

I'm totally a sucker for any shade of green,
and I must say I'm digging this color combo!
The invites are so crisp & fresh, love the untraditional mix of font sizes,
and you must see the chevron-lined envelopes… to die for.
Renting in Germany means my walls are all white,
but eventually we'll be back in the states and have a house all our own again…
It will be so exciting to be able to paint those suckers with some gorgeous shades…
Oh and by the way, the christmas poster is available in four beautiful hues,
AND you can download it here along with some other pretty printable freebies!

and I almost forgot… the winner of the lovely poppy giveaway is Meg!!
please contact me to claim your prize!

raining umbrellas

Looking for some fresh ideas?  Lacking inspiration?

Here's an online e-course chalked full of creativity… 

The next session starts November 14th, 

and if you sign up with a friend, you both save big time!!

It'a a great way to make new connections, not to mention share resources…

so what are you waiting for?  sign up today!

the lovely poppy

little green bird and the lovely poppy are pairing up for double the fun…

so what does that mean for you?  your chance to enter two giveaways!!
are you a photographer, photo enthusiast, or happen to know someone who is?
you could be the lucky winner of a custom,
handcrafted slipcover for your camera strap!
check these out… super cute.

winner will be selected November 7th at random.
all you have to do to be considered…
is be a fan of the lovely poppy facebook page, and be a follower of her blog.
then make sure you are a follower of both my facebook page and blog as well.
& don't forget to post back here that you've done so.
easy peasy lemon squeezy.

as for the other giveaway, head on over to the lovely poppy blog where
I'll be giving away an 8x10" print or a desk calendar, you choose!!
ready. set. go.  and don't forget to tell everyone you know…

see the light...

there's light everywhere… all you have to do is see it.

week fourteen :: light

me :: Laura

next week's theme… "wednesday"

change is in the air...

 So I've been waiting and waiting, and then waiting some more… 

for those pretty fall colors to come out and play!!

 There's just something so perfect about that crisp clean fall air…

I recently had the pleasure of taking advantage of this gorgeous scenery
with a lovely family of four, soon to be expecting a new little one into their lives.
here's a teensy sneak peek from our time together… 

a sweet quiet moment sharing rocks and leaves and just a little dirt

love it that the joy is just beaming from their faces

she is seriously the sweetest… & her giggles will melt you

and this guy… he could tell stories with his eyes, and his lashes go on for days! 

like I said… m.e.l.t.

Have I mentioned that fall is my favorite??