It's All in the Details

As most of you know, Daniel and I moved almost two weeks ago. Since we're busy, tired (and sometimes lazy) people who no longer feel like unpacking, we are still partially living out of boxes. I don't have to tell you how annoying that is, because if you've ever moved you already know. So instead of getting grumpy about all of the loose ends we have to tie up, and all of the things we have to do in order to actually be "finished" with our move in, I decided to take the camera around the new place and just take a couple of snapshots of things that I love about our new place, and the things that fill it and make it our own. 

If you're in the moving process, or hell, even if you're not-I would encourage you to do the same! Obviously these are all detail shots because there is stuff everywhere, but it's a good reminder that beauty and enjoyment can be found in small things. AH well. Anyway, I hope you enjoy them, and who knows...maybe once all of the dust settles and we're actually fully moved in I'll take the time to do a full apartment tour. 

Until then: what do you all do to keep sane when you're in the middle of a move or a big life change?

xo, grace

P.S.-It's August! And Friday! #TD4W

P.S.S.- The fourth picture from the bottom is a closeup of the pallet headboard that Schmoo just made for me. It's amazing, and didn't cost us a dime. Probably my new favorite thing in the apartment. He gets maddd husband points for that one.

Shades of San Diego

^"They're not all mine. I train them." I felt like this was my Humans of New York moment. There were sixteen of them, in case you're wondering.

“Soon it got dusk, a grapey dusk, a purple dusk over tangerine groves and long melon fields; the sun the color of pressed grapes, slashed with burgundy red, the fields the color of love and Spanish mysteries.” - Jack Kerouac, On the Road

This past week everything in life felt too complicated and overwhelming, so Daniel and I decided to just get in the car and drive. Sometimes when the world feels like it's closing in it's about the only thing you can do. Up until this year, I've always lived on the coast, so we decided to head to the closest beach to us, San Diego. Something about being at the beach again was cleansing. It felt so good to smell the salt and feel the moisture in the air. I can't wait until we get to live close to the ocean again; something about the vastness of it all makes your problems dissolve in an instant. It's glorious.

These are just a couple of snapshots from the brief 24 hours that we spent there, but they make me so happy. I can't wait to go back soon. Does anyone have any "can't miss" suggestions on places to go next time? I'd love to try them out on our next trip...Happy Monday guys! Here's to a great week.

xo,

grace

Three Cheers for Mom!

Just a quick post today to say Happy Mother's Day to my mama, and all of the mothers out there! This weekend Daniel and I were able to help some friends out by watching their four kids overnight while they were gone, and let me just say...being a mama ain't for the faint of heart (these were great kids too...can't imagine being a mother to little monster children)!

Moms, you are special. Even when you're tired, and you feel underappreciated, know that you are loved.
^I stumbled across these pictures from our wedding while looking for a pic of me and my mom, and I love them so much. They're like the most genuine, silly, and happy pictures I possess of the two of us together. Happy happy.

On another note, Happy Mother's day to me, for being the best mom that Cous could ever ask for! Haha. I couldn't resist posting this picture. It's just so ridiculous...and Daniel's face is priceless. He clearly hates his life in that moment. I wonder if I'll smoosh my future kids the way I smoosh this dog. Only time will tell...a very, very, very long time from now, that is.

Make sure you hug your mom today!

xo,

grace

P.S.-If you're broke as a joke, or a procrastinator like me, I found some awesome printable Mother's Day cards by howaboutorange blog here! They are simple and lovely, and won't cost you a dime! No excuse to not get your mom at least a card now!

Instagram Lately

1.) Pretty springtime flowers.

2.) Grand Canyon (more on that later....!) silhouette for Weekend Hashtag project.

3.) Phoenix Public Market Cafe for Weekend Hashtag project.

4.) Cute baby plants.

5.) Me and Cous having a poolside day.

6.) Just an old picture of my sisters and I being freaks, as per usual!

7.) Inspired by my favorite quote: 

"Allow me to propose a few suggestions about how to handle the natural resistances that your circumstances might offer. Do not assume that you have to have some prescribed conditions to do your best work. Do not wait. Do not wait for enough time or money to accomplish what you think you have in mind. Work with that you have right now. Work with the people around you right now. Work with the architecture you see around you right now. Do not wait for what you assume is the appropriate, stress free environment in which to generate expression. Do not wait for maturity or insight or wisdom. Do not wait till you are sure that you know what you are doing. Do not wait until you have enough technique. What you do now, what you make of your present circumstances will determine the quality and scope of your future endeavors. And at the same time, be patient." (stupid PicLab watermark)

8.) Tulips I bought for Daniel! He was quite sad after he bought me some flowers (that were literally determined to die no matter what), so I bought these on a whim and MAN did they grow. About twice as tall in less than a week. I suggest getting tulips for anyone who is challenged in the gardening department. :)

9.) Submission for a different Weekend Hashtag Project. I call it my Avatar/Lorde hand.

10.) What it looks like when Daniel takes pictures for my blog. Coussie is Confucius.

11.) The best day staying home from work. Two new Nylon mags at once, and cookies and milk. #perfect

12.) Me squishing Cous. Aka, everyday life. 

So there you have it! Just a couple of my little snapshots on Instagram as of late. Sometimes it can be easy to stress over the content of your blog and taking the perfect picture, so Instagram can be a nice breath of fresh air sometimes when you just want to take some quick pics of life around you (unless you're a putz who only takes pictures of macarons...not real life?). My account is far from perfectly coutured, but if you'd like to follow along in my adventures you can find me at graceinrealtime. I'd be honored!

In other news, It's Friday ya'll. Hallelujah. Anyone have any special plans for the weekend? Have a favorite picture from the assortment above? Just wanna tell me that I'm a putz for NOT taking pictures of macarons? Drop me a line below...I'd love to hear from you guys! :)

xo,

grace

Impromptu Easter Portraits

^Goons.^

^Okay, let's just talk about that stupidly cute little baby-toothed smile. I can't. Even. Handle it.^

Jack Skellington got a little handsy...

Her: dress/BHLDN (similar here & here), shoes/Vince Camuto, bag/Kate Spade (little darker color)

Him: sweater/Merona, jeans/UO (similar), tie/Penguin (similar), shoes/Cole Haan

This past Easter Sunday, Daniel and I decided to head out in our Sunday best and take a couple of "family portraits" after church. After all, isn't that what normal people do? We got kind of lax this year in making any holiday plans, so we just took the day kind of slow and had fun with it. I'm kind of glad we just had a quiet day though...that has kind of been a theme throughout our holidays since moving so far away from everyone, but I think that it's been strengthening for us as (somewhat) newlyweds in our new little family structure. After all, quiet is what everyone seems to crave once they get older and start having kids, so we might as well appreciate it now.

Anyway, I thought that they turned out kind of silly and cute, and it's nice to just have some simple pictures of us looking a little bit dapper. I've always appreciated when people dress up for church on Sunday; I think it tends to be somewhat of an undervalued tradition nowadays. Maybe that's just the way I grew up, though...after all, my sisters and I managed to swindle my parents into buying us all some fancy Easter dress every year that we'd never wear again, so I guess we've always been all about the clothes. ;) I just think it's fun to dress up...plus, it makes you feel good!

On another note, I recently tackled the ridiculous process of cleaning out my closet (more on that later!), which better allowed me to see the clothes that I actually have and want to wear, this dress being one of them. It was actually the dress that I bought for our engagement portraits, and I hadn't worn it since! To see how I styled it then, check out some of our pictures here.

So how about the rest of you? Did anyone have big Easter plans...maybe overdose on one too many chocolate covered Peeps (one can only hope)? Did you get a special Easter outfit this year? I'd love to hear!

xo,

grace

Girly Twirly

Hi friends! Last week, ModCloth held a contest for who could submit the best/most creative picture of them caught in a twirl. The rules were pretty straightforward, and you didn't even have to be wearing anything from ModCloth in order to enter! 

Unfortunately, I wasn't one of the two winners (shucks, could've used that sweeeeet gift card), but my consolation prize is that it gave Daniel and I an interesting photography challenge and also provided me with some fun pictures to share with you all! Here are some of my favorites that we captured. :)

^Coussie looks absolutely terrified in this picture..it makes me laugh every time! Poor thing.^

So the reason that I chose this as the backdrop for my twirling pictures is because one of the rules was to try to take your pictures either a.) near a local landmark or  b.) at a favorite hangout to let them know where you are in the world. Since Phoenix doesn't exactly have any well known local landmarks (at least not that I know of, and I wasn't about to drive 4 hours to the Grand Canyon), I decided that the next best thing would be their amazing art scene. Daniel and I live downtown, and while it isn't the best city I've lived in, they certainly rank as far as incredible murals go! Almost every building has one.

These bottom four pictures ended up being my absolute faves because they were completely candid. I actually ended up using one of them for my entry in the contest, because I thought they were so hilarious! Clearly I was having so much fun that Coussie decided he wanted to get in on it too. That's right...I was officially photobombed by my dog. What a little attention hog! Just look at that smirk...he's clearly pleased with himself.

So there you have it! Some of my nerdy twirling pictures...I'm seriously geeking out over the last four. I'm genuinely so entertained by them (I hope you are too...)! 

Did anyone else enter this fun contest? Or did you have any favorites that you saw (you can look up #modtwirl on Instagram and see the entries)? I'd love to hear! Oh, and if you have any pet photobombing stories, I want to hear those too...

xoxo,

grace

P.s. - If you like the flower crown I'm sporting in some of these pics, keep your eye out for a tutorial soon!

dress/F21(similar), bloomers/American Apparel (on mega sale!!), shoes/UO (similar)