my cousin's wedding

Isn't she beautiful!

memorial day sales!

We found this cute little table and chairs for under $100! I now feel like we can appropriately entertain...only now it's well above 90 degrees. At the very least breakfast outside.

You can see our evolving little garden in the back corner. It still needs a little love, but it's a start.

baby kicks

By the way; it's been a few weeks, but it seems little Ace is moving around like a champ. We find out the gender next week!

remembering good times

my new favorite place to "shop"

The great thing about this website is the quality of each piece and the way you can search by era. Give it a whir. It won't let you down...unless you are hoping to find something in your price range. It's suggested only for client shopping or maybe a very special item! A friend of mine recommended searching eBay for the item you like on this website. Just a thought!

chai mishap

Another pregnancy story to share (it's great to have people tell you pregnancy makes you clumsy or forgetful. . .because surely I would never have done this if I were not pregnant. . .then again, I probably would). Lately my chai intake has been limited due to its high sugar content and caffeine. Today, I decided I deserved a splurge. All was well and good; the chai was hot, seemed to have the perfect proportion of milk to chai. . .but then I took a sip. What in the world! It tasted so odd. My first instinct was to blame the coffee shop. This was, after all, my first time trying the chai tea at the local cafe; maybe they were still working out the recipe.

Since my ever changing taste buds seem to play tricks on me (yes, they do change daily for this preggy mama). I decided to instead blame the pregnancy. I then proceeded to enjoy the slightly odd tasting chai latte and go about my business.

By the time I reached the end. . .the typically extra sweet finish, my chai delight had turned into something more like sweaty hands. What had that barista been thinking! Did I give him a dirty look?

No.

No, no. It was no one's fault but my own. Because I remembered trying to add a little kick to my beverage. I considered nutmeg, cinnamon or chocolate. . . Hm, what about vanilla? Big mistake. What I thought was vanilla, turned out to be SALT. Now I have learned my lesson - trust the barista. The local shop definitely deserves another try. . .Sans salt.

beautiful things

Keeping an eye out for unique and beautiful things can sometimes feel like a job...or else it can be your job. The above is some eye candy from a day's work.

The top image is only considered art work; a one-of-a-kind. Below, the mass-produced version. Not nearly as delicate, but still very pretty:

moms think of everything

So, it's weird. While I am not yet officially a mom, somehow thinking like other moms has already begun...or maybe I should say other pregnant women. For example, sleeping becomes a big job for someone who used to demand a little less space in the bed...Adding a full sized pillow to our queen sized bed has been like adding a third person.
Lately I have been making use of the extra moments I spend awake - designing a more efficient pillow to take the place of our newest unwanted guest. Lo and behold, someone else designed the EXACT same pillow. Who else in the world would come up with a pillow shaped like this! Just think, I could be making a profit of this silly thing had I thought of it first! Would I have also named it a 'Snoogle'?

umlauf lecture

Our office is busy preparing lecture materials for our bosses to give at a local sculpture park. I was out most of the day taking photos with a fancy-schmancy camera and wide angle lens.

alive and...kicking?

Well, no kicks have been felt by this mama yet...at 15 weeks it is now a possibility. I can't express how much of a relief it is to hear your own child's heartbeat. At a brisk 150 beats a minute, I would have to say our baby is probably going to have the energy of his dad over his mom. So far, all is well!

Next month: PICTURES and the GENDER!! Whoo hoo! Any bets?? Doug and I both call girl. (But of course we'll be excited either way!)

1964

More on Doug's blog. Here's a photo from our recent date night, complete with a "free" dinner (compliments of my office, a gift certificate to a local restaurant for my birthday) and a "free" show (thanks to one of Doug's friends). It's good to have good friends. Now we have some favors to repay! :)

It's a little blurry, but you get the idea!

license

Today, more than ever, I am tempted to get my interior design license.

www.ncidq.org

seriously?

Is this baby for real? I can't wait to see OUR baby! :)

construction update

Hopefully once the vertical ipe wood and, eventually, the landscaping is complete it will be more acceptable to the neighbors. We're pretty excited about it though.

*Props to my new Canon Elph (yes, I may have gone against some of the more sound advice out there and went for the Elph. So far my only regret is not splurging for the stabilizing feature. Maybe next time...) I'm loving the hinted depth of field in the next one. My goal is to really make the most of this feature.

look how GREEN!

even though the green-ness of spring is the culprit for my allergies, i still love it. i just can't breathe while i enjoy it...

next project

**New** My boss just suggested this website as an alternative. I must say the options and pricing seem to be better on this site than the initial post: www.blurb.com


From time to time I experience an office lull. Seems like a fun little project: the mini-portfolio...

frightening

People ask if we are hoping for a boy or a girl. I usually say, "We just want a healthy baby!" But I might have to add a special disclaimer after seeing this ad:


Is anyone else scared of this?

fun times

A project from our office recently won Best Kitchen of the Year (Runner Up - humph!) for AMH. We were super excited as it has been a while since we have won anything (we think we're so great, don't we?). I also just pushed out the door, this afternoon, another award submission for the local AIA Design Awards. Keep your fingers crossed. With a no-advertising policy, we rely on awards, publications and the annual AIA Homes Tour to bring us some pretty business. Hopefully one of our houses will be shown this year!

oatmeal wheat germ (coconut) chocolate chip cookies

What more could a pregnant girl about to turn 26 ask for??

2 sticks butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon salt (Can cut to 3/4 tsp.)
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups Quick Cooking Oats
2 cups semi-sweet Chocolate Chips
1 cup chopped or ground walnuts (opt.)
1/4 cup coconut (opt. but highly recommended)
1 tablespoon coconut milk (opt. but also, highly recommended)

Directions
Cream butter & sugar & brown sugar in large mixing bowl. Add eggs and mix well. Add Flour, wheat germ, salt & baking soda. Mix well. Stir in oats, then stir in chocolate chips and nuts. Shape into 1" balls. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes. (10-12 min. Makes 66-70 cookies.)

Probably the best cookie you will ever eat.

closest thing to a real concert:

quotable

“…C. S. Lewis rightly understood that the purpose of the church was to draw people to Christ and make them like Christ. He said that the church exists for no other purpose. ‘If the Church is not doing this, then all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible, are a waste of time.’”

-Alan Hirsch, The Forgotten Ways

“In point of fact, I think the Christian religion is the one religion that most clearly deserves to be honored and respected whether or not its claim to be a divine revelation is true. There is nothing like the combination of a charismatic figure like Jesus and a first-class intellectual like St. Paul. Virtually all the argument about the content of the religion was produced by St. Paul, who had a brilliant philosophical mind, and could both speak and write in all the relevant languages. If you’re wanting Omnipotence to set up a religion, this is the one to beat.”

–Dr. Antony Flew, further commenting on his move from atheism to theism

green thumb

It's a rainy day in Austin. But as you can see, the storms bring new life. I love seeing the little buds of growth on the trees. Seeing green grass in the yard is also a plus...to some. To others it can mean more work. Hopefully by the end of next weekend my garden will be ready to go. I only wish I could have put some of the bulbs in the ground before this wonderful rain came.

it's a baby...

The next images we'll get to see of Baby Ace will have arms and legs! Can you believe it! They grow up so fast...

Oh and any time I think about the baby these days it's always a little girl. Don't worry, I will be equally happy either way, so it's not like I'm getting set on it going one way or the other. But I will say that Doug has a way of knowing things he's not supposed to know - he has strong intuition for these kinds of things - and he even thinks it will be a girl. We'll just have to wait a few more weeks to find out if he's right!

human tetris

Quite possibly one of the funniest things I have ever seen.

idle parenting

Now is as good a time as any to break the news...We will be parents sooner than you think. Come November (or sooner) we will have a little one in the house. Ah, it's a relief to use the internet in a way that it was never intended. Spreading good news just got a little easier!

So, I stole this (click on the photo for the link) off a friend's blog because it's a good reminder for how to parent well. While neither Doug nor I will ever have a pony in our backyard (I suppose that's the point, right, the kids imagine it) at least one of us (Doug) will always be reading. More likely I will be cleaning. I will not always be able to leave my kids alone for four hours straight, but maybe I'll realize that some of the time they will be able to entertain themselves. Learned creativity. Give them the right toys or the simple ones and they will create a world of their own. I love it. It's simple. Those Brits must really know what they are doing.

keep watching

the couch

We have made our decision...Doug's request for a comfy couch must be respected. I've decided to go with the Troy. Now I realize many will disagree with this choice, but I've been lucky enough to win quite a few battles when it comes to the house and now Doug is rightfully pushing back. It will be nice to have a plush couch to sink into...

spring is here

Spring in February? Yes. And we love it. We had tons of rain this weekend which is already making a difference in our lawn...on both sides of the fence. This guy couldn't seem to get enough. If I were as good a shot as I am sneaky, I could have an 8-point on my wall. Luckily, I am a horrible shot, we do not own a shot gun and I would never shoot a deer (buck or otherwise).

Enjoy!

the new couch!

We're finally ready to 'pull the trigger' on a new couch. We already have one from Craigslist (before the boycott) it was a never-been-used lucky find Rochelle in a chocolate brown. My boss also gave us these great orange rocking chairs (see the black and white photo from Christmas). So the next addition seems as though it should be a neutral to allow for all the other fun stuff to stand out.

My biggest dilemma has to do with the fabrics. I'm thrilled we can purchase something from Crate and Barrel (with the very generous gift cards from our wedding) because I love the designs; but the fabrics are causing some strife. Doug loves the microfiber Herringbone of the Prado - but microfiber reminds me of footed pajamas from when I was a kid. I do love the fabric on the Hennessy, but the couch is not super cushy. Since our original brown couch is very square, I thought the new couch should be more comfy. Anyway...These are the options to choose from - let me know which one you like:

HENNESSY
PRADO

TROY

'under construction'

You would not believe how long it has taken to get this simple renovation started. Demo should begin next week and hopefully the construction will move quickly. It's funny that some clients think the process can move forward without them...It might be easier at times for all involved if that were only true. This project I have pretty much done all on my own, so it will be a true testament to where I'm at in my skill set.

It has been fun despite all the odd delays. Hopefully at the en of the project I'll be able to say the contractor is still the sweetest man I have ever talked to on the phone. We have never met face to face, as the project is in Atlanta. Which also means, I may never see this project in person!

what a beauty

We're currently working on a three story home with views of downtown Austin - a stunning panorama of the entire downtown. The ground floor is black leuders limestone covered by the second floor ipe wood screen. The third floor is entirely glazed on the view side. The master bathroom will be using this (or a similar) slab of Calcutta Gold directly from the source. It's sure to be a stunner.

recent work

We're hoping Dwell picks this one up!

my love.