Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Around Town: Gailey's





There are few places in Springfield that have my heart like Gailey's. Not only have some of my favorite conversations with friends happened over breakfast here, but it played a big role in my first date with Tyler. He picked me up and we went to Gailey's at 8:00.....in the morning. (Hey, we were excited to finally be together! And we're dorks.)  I could barely eat because I was smiling like an idiot the whole time. That was a big hint that I was pretty smitten, because I can put away some serious Gailey's goodness. I mean look at it:



Yeah, those are sweet potato hashbrowns. SWEET POTATO HASHBROWNS. WITH BROWN SUGAR! Love love love.

I adore the whole feel of the place, too-- almost as much as the food. The building Gailey's is housed in used to be a hotel and pharmacy, and my favorite place to sit and eat is the old pharmacy counter that's still there. I snapped a picture of some old advertising while I was sitting there during a brother-sister breakfast date. Isn't it amazing? I'm such a sucker for history.


Oh yeah, and the coffee isn't bad either. :)


If you ever visit Springfield, MO and want to stop by Gailey's (or if you're a local and haven't been--for shame!), you can head downtown to 220 E. Walnut from 7am-1pm weekdays and 7am-2pm weekends. Oh, and get the sweet potato hashbrowns. You won't regret it. 

Monday, April 29, 2013

Music Monday: LDR

I'm addicted to Lana Del Rey's music. It's like a real addiction--I can't stop listening, I have no idea why I do it, and I really don't have any desire to stop. Is it her voice or her lyrics or her arrangements or her production? Yes. Yes it is.

So guess who has a new single out? *Happy little happy dance*  I present to you--from the soundtrack of the upcoming movie "The Great Gatsby"--"Young and Beautiful." Happy Monday.




Mobile link: here

Friday, April 26, 2013

Flashback Friday: Blue Like Jazz premiere

Alright, you guys, this is the last Portland Flashback Friday. I know you're devastated. This Friday features some snapshots of the entire reason for our trip to Portland (not that I ever need a "reason", just an excuse)--the premiere of Blue Like Jazz, the movie. I was one of about 2000 associate producers, so Sarah and I got to walk the red carpet for the big night. It was one of the most fun evenings ever--and something so totally crazy that I know I'll never get the chance to do anything like it again (unless Don makes another movie, that is....)!

Photo by Brandon Williams, Inspired Media LLC

Photo by Brandon Williams, Inspired Media LLC




10-year-old me is freaking out right here. 


Catching up with friends is always the best part! 


Thanks for indulging my Oregon obsession, ya'll. I promise I'll calm it down now. :)

Thursday, April 25, 2013

I'm praying that I don't murder more plants.

I'm the world's worst gardener, probably. I have managed to kill succulents. SUCCULENTS. They're basically cacti, and I have killed them. I have one succulent left from our wedding, and I'm currently nurturing that thing like it's a child. I'm terrible. I just.....forget they exist. So that's a problem. But I'm trying to get better, and I love having plants around. They seem to make our apartment a little brighter and more welcoming. I've managed to keep an aloe plant alive for about a month now, so I'm getting ambitious. (Just you watch, I'm going to end up being the crazy cat lady of plants. Ferns in every corner!)

So Tyler and I took a little trip to a local nursery a little over a week ago. Succulents EVERYWHERE!


Wednesday, April 24, 2013

This week in instagrams


Instagram is awesome. Even apart from the social media aspect, it forces me to take time to capture the small moments during my day, and having those to look back on later is priceless. (You can follow me here or here if you're so inclined.)  Here are a few from my week. 






1) This is what our living room floor looked like after my day off Sunday. Oops.

2) Last week was rough. Journaled it out. 

3) I started the morning on Sunday by making this little terrarium/planter. I wish I had a green thumb, because I would have plants everywhere. Hopefully I can keep from murdering these succulents. *Fingers crossed*

4) We had dinner with Tyler's mom and niece on Saturday. This little lady kept us laughing until after 9:00. 

5) I watched some cartoons on Sunday. Yes, I AM 27-years-old. Sorry not sorry.

6) Bob Goff spoke at our church this weekend. This guy is joy incarnate, seriously. Honored to meet him and hear some of his amazing stories. 

7) Tyler usually spends one of his two days off a week running errands with me. Sometimes I have to bribe reward him with Starbucks. 

8) We got a whole box of these for free at Target for buying a bunch of frozen pizzas. Not complaining one bit. 

9) I made this little lady over the weekend--well, started making her anyway. Then I ran out of embroidery floss. Hopefully she'll be finished soon; she's my first experiment using pieced fabrics, and I like her an awful lot. I think I'm going to name her Eleanor. 

10) These were some of the fruits of our errand-running on Friday. happy happy happy.

11) I'm in love with Wickman's here in town. We bought a ton of succulents for our wedding there (and their flower shop did our bouquets!), and I've been hooked ever since. 

12) Breakfast dates with that fellow are my absolute favorite. We love Gailey's--it's where we started our (day long) first date! 


Monday, April 22, 2013

A (super random) spring playlist

It's finally starting to feel like spring outside around here. This spring is such a weird mix for me, because I feel the typical newness and excitement, but I'm also swimming in nostalgia lately. When I sat down to make this playlist, that combination became super apparent--it's such a mix of new(ish) and (very) old favorites.

Also: I will never apologize for my love of John Denver. So there.




Mobile link: Spring 13 on Grooveshark

Friday, April 19, 2013

Flashback Friday: The Columbia River Gorge

Time for another Flashback Friday. (You guys have realized by now that this is how I deal with the fact that I wasn't blogging when I did all these cool things, right?) The Columbia River Gorge is my favorite place in all of the whole United States. Hands down. By far. It's miles and miles and miles of winding trails with waterfalls at nearly every turn. There are no words or even pictures to do justice to how breathtakingly beautiful it is. I could spend my whole life hiking there and never get tired of it. It's number one on my to-do list with every trip I take to Portland. Last year, when Sarah and I flew out, we rented a car just so we could spend a day taking in all the beauty. It was cold and rainy....and completely perfect. Here are a few snapshots from our journey.
























Thursday, April 18, 2013

this one time: in orlando

This one time, I caught a seal photo-bomb at Sea World. I'm pretty sure it gets funnier every time I look at it. 


Wednesday, April 17, 2013

I (finally) bought a turntable!

I've been in the market for a turntable for a while, but I'm a little bit of a commitment-phobe. I would decide on one, and then change my mind. I've spent hours researching on the internet, and bugging my friend Matthew (who's the closest thing to a vinyl expert I know) about what to look for and avoid. I had the basics figured out, and I knew I didn't want a Crosley (they're beautiful but can absolutely ruin your records! No thanks!), but I was just starting to look seriously into buying one. Then I ran across this beauty while thrifting with some friends a couple weekends ago:


I know, right? 1956 Magnavox. Mid-century, mustardy-gold goodness. Only a couple slight problems: I could find absolutely zero information on the quality of the turntable online, and that little red tag up there said that it needed a new belt. My brother tried to talk me into buying it, because he's really mechanically inclined, but I just wasn't sure. So I left it.

Then I kept thinking about it all week.

So last Friday, my brother and I went back to look at it again. I was even less decisive than I was the first time, even though I was in love with the console regardless of the turntable. So I left it again. But the more I thought about it, the more I was convinced that I wanted it--and so were quite a few of my friends on Instagram when I posted that picture! Haha. I figured, hey, even if the turntable isn't fixable or is just really crappy, I can always remove it and use the cabinet to keep a new turntable when I buy one. I really didn't think I'd be able to buy a little vintage end table for what I paid for this (it was a steal, you guys), much less one that I could store stuff in! So I grabbed my husband and made him go look at it with me.

This time it ended up in our living room. 



My brother came over the next day to use our internet, and he brought a little wax, polished it up, and started tinkering.




Neither of us is really sure what he did exactly, but it went from running slowly to running normally!






So we enjoyed a little Steve Miller.....John Denver......Simon & Garfunkel.......Genesis (I have a bit of a soft spot for Phil Collins)....and some old Mexican love songs from a record that came with the table. It's still not at 100% just yet, but with a few more tweaks, it will definitely do for awhile! I'll probably end up upgrading the turntable eventually, but for now I'm super stoked that I can actually listen to these records I have laying around.


Sunday, April 14, 2013

April Wishlist

It's that time again! Here are some of the treasures I've found on the interwebs over the past month. One of each, please!



Sources: 1//2//3//4//5//6//7//8

Friday, April 12, 2013

Flashback Friday: Exploring Portland

I'm just going to go ahead and name April "Portland Month." I'm gonna warn you guys: pretty much all my Flashback Fridays this month are going to be Portland related! A year ago, my friend Sarah and I took a trip to Portland. Oh, how I wish I was blogging then, because it was incredible! Portland is by far my favorite U.S. city--nowhere else even comes close. It was Sarah's first time there and I got to play tour guide, taking her to all the touristy spots and a few hidden gems too. Here are a few photos from our day exploring the city.

Down on the Willamette.

Can you go to Portland and not go to VooDoo Doughtnuts?

Oh, we did.

Lunch at Mother's! 

Love Mother's.

A stranger offered to take this picture for us.
Friendliest town ever!

We stayed in the cutest B&B!

We love it here! 

Thursday, April 11, 2013

quite a lovely weekend.

Last weekend was one of those weekends that left me completely worn out, with my heart so full I thought it might explode. My mom & stepdad came into town to celebrate my mom's birthday, and one of my best friends, Sarah, came down with her boyfriend to do the Color Run. I seriously had maybe ten minutes alone the entire weekend. Here are some snapshots, which don't even cover half of it!

Brunch at Aunt Martha's, of course! 

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Happy birthday momma!


I have the best mom in the world. That's not a subjective statement, either--it's a fact. I would be crazy lucky just to know someone as loving, supportive, and all-around incredible as she is, but having her as a mom is like hitting the life jackpot. She keeps me grounded, but tells me to go for my crazy dreams. She is the kind of mom who worked three jobs when I was a kid just so I could keep going to gymnastics lessons. She taught me the importance of compassion, empathy, and treating others the way I would want to be treated. She is amazing, you guys. For real. And today is her birthday!! So happy birthday mom! I love you!

Photo by Colby Moore

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Oh nothing, just a super whiny sick day post.


I woke up yesterday with a bit of a sore throat, sniffles, and feeling foggy and just off. It's allergy season, you know? Kind of expected. Pair that with a crazy-busy weekend with no alone time--which drains an introvert like me--and it's kind of a recipe for not feeling super awesome. But, as it turns out, neither allergies or introversion gives you a 100+ fever and chills. So today finds me curled up on the couch , in a 77-degree apartment, under a down comforter, wearing sweatpants. It finds me drinking all the hot tea. It finds me cuddling with a stuffed rabbit like a five-year-old. It finds me, thankfully, right in the middle of a Law and Order: SVU marathon that I really hope lasts until I drag myself into bed tonight.

If you guys need me, I'll just be over here whining and feeling sorry for myself.



Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Tonight.


Happy accidents.

Watching: "I [Almost] Got Away With It" on Netflix. This show is so super interesting, but I find myself getting all supportive of the criminals. What the heck? I have to constantly remind myself of the first 5 minutes of an episode. Uh, Jess? That guy hacked four people to death with a pickaxe. Probably should be in jail.

Thinking: about life so far this week, and how it has been full of horrible and wonderful moments, lacking in many ways, but so full of meaning. Also, I think I want to find some different shampoo. I'm simultaneously one of the deepest and shallowest people you'll ever meet.

Frustrated About: some conversations I've been having on Facebook regarding this post from Saturday. Man, people are vicious online. Being loving and compassionate is hard sometimes, especially when people attack you personally, and try to publicly assassinate your character.

Wishing: I had the guts to cut bangs in my hair, like now. I was all ready to do it (and by that, I mean, have a professional do it--I'm terrified to cut my own hair), but Tyler's sister, who's a hairstylist, gave me a big negative when I asked her opinion. Not sure if that's because of the way it would look on me or just because she's not a fan of bangs in general. Is this one giant first-world-white-girl problem or what?

Excited about: my mom and stepdad coming into town on Friday for my mom's birthday. A weekend of antique shopping? SIGN ME UP. Can't wait to see them--it's been since Christmas!

Obsessing over:  Getting another tattoo. Seriously. It's time.

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

another snow day outfit post

My husband is so tolerant--even when I drag him out into the snow three different times in two days to take pictures of my silly outfits. These are from our day off together a couple weeks ago. 











Details: Sweater: vintage, thrifted // cami, jeans, hat: Forever 21 // necklace: Urban Outfitters // Shoes: Charlotte Russe // glasses: Bonlook

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