Rock me, mama

Just a new fav song of mine here. I can't stop listening to it. 

Shape up, baby.

Since my discovery of Pinterest, yeah I'm now a junkie, I found someone's "inspiration" board. There is photos of fit women and quotes that give motivation and encouragement.

And I'd like to lose 5 pounds.

With my freshly-found motivation still in my brain, I found myself in WalMart. With a list a mile long (from weeks of putting it off - I dread WalMart trips). Yogurt was an item to get and when I got there I found a multi pack with "Lose 5 Pounds In 2 Weeks!" on the box. Although skeptical of the ad, I thought... PERECT!

The directions said to replace breakfast and lunch with a light yogurt, a grain (like Cheerios) and a fruit. So I went to find grains and fruit. With a diet rich in lean protein and nonfat dairy, have a sensible dinner, beverages and snacks. And walk 30-40 minutes a day. Doable.

What I'll be eating:

My loot of yogurt. 

My grains. I love Cracklin' Oat Bran. 

Fuit before.

Fuit after. 

I'm actually really excited about this! I love yogurt. I've always wanted to get into granola (maybe I'll learn to make my own next) and I love, love, LOVE fruit! This gives me a great excuse to buy it even though its more expensive than the yummy bag o' chips. Maybe I can shape up and lose some pounds and get into a walking routine with Tag. We'll see how it goes!

DIY=Love

From Design Sponge

If you know me at all, you know I love vintage. 

I love thrift stores and vintage shops and garage sales. Nothing is better. My admiration without a doubt comes from my mama, Shelly Anderson, who never let us girls buy a cute shirt of pair of jeans for full price. Sales, sales, sales! We would wake up at 6 a.m. to get an early start rummaging on weekends we'd spend in Fargo, N.D., or Park Rapids, Minn. Oh, and the auction sales! Mom has gotten some of the best deals and coolest vintage things from estate sales. 

Scott doesn't like this about my sense of style (along with my choices of paint color). He calls it *gasp* junk. So my new challenge is to make this so called "junk" into something a little more presentable. So I'm learning to repurpose and redo. 

My goals in the coming years are to: 

• learn to use a sewing machine
• learn to reupholster
• get a little more familiar with Scott's toolbox to...
• get better at home repairs

But first, these two projects are going to the top of my list. Oh, I recently discovered Pinterest. I'm addicted, to say the least. It's this site that lets you catalog your favorite things. It's like a big bookmark page, but it lets you capture a picture on a site you're looking at and "pin it" to your board. It's a big community of people sharing fashion, design, recipes... everything they like. I just joined, I only have a few things on my board but they are ideas worth looking at! 

Project 1: Vintage Suitcase Coffee Table

Ashley's vintage suitcase coffee table from Design Sponge. Click here for the full instructions.

Why I love this: I love old suitcases. And I already have in mind the thrift stores and vintage shops that have a wide variety of them. And I love coffee. And I would love rest my lovely coffee cup on my very own vintage suitcase coffee table.

Project 2: Wood and Fabric Message Board

Hannah's salvaged wood inspiration board from Design Sponge. Click for instructions.

Why I love this: I love the simplicity of this message board. The string is hemp and the photos and "inspirations" are held on by little baby clothes pins. It's quirky and fun and modern with a great vintage twist. My office at the Leader-News in Washburn, N.D., needs something just like this once the 70s brown paneling gets painted.

My sister, Lindsay, is coming to our house this weekend (Scott is off at work). Lewis and Clark Riverboat Days is this weekend, so we plan to soak in the festivities (and I plan to get some useful work out of that girl) as we hit up the thrift stores and get our hands dirty creating these fun DIYs! Updates will follow. 

Quite a lovely couple.

My handsome husband and I.

Scott and I were able to be guests at JoLynn and Ryan Schumaker's wedding on June 11, 2011.

It was a beautiful wedding, JoLynn was radiating happiness from finally marrying the man she knew she'd marry since 9th grade.

It's so nice to have Scott home and able to come with me to these events. I like showing off my man.
XoXo, -e

To see more photos from their amazing photographer, Megan Wold, go to her blog at Megan Wold Photography. 

JoLynn & Ryan Schumaker.
Photo by Megan Wold.

Do You Want To Play?

-Jewel

Met her on a friday afternoon

In a neon dayglo pink

Chiffon satin room

She never looks back

She always looked good

Dressed in black

And she says oh

Do you want to play?

She lived beneath the

Disco discount store

With pictures of Randy Newman

Scattered all across the floor

I said "This place

Looks sort of desolate"

She said

"Are you only half alive?

Or have you always

Been this inarticulate?"

Oh

Do you want to play?

Don't think too hard

Don't think too fast

Don't ever give away

What you can't take back

Don't try to understand

What you can't comprehend

Underneath the disco neon

Daylight chandeleir

Disco diety of the chivalry

I said "Take it back

Take it back

Take it back"

Oh

Do you want to play?

This is the song that taught me what "inarticulate" meant. I fell in love with the word and its meaning. 

inarticulate

--unable to speak distinctly or express oneself clearly : he was inarticulate with abashment and regret.

--not clearly expressed or pronounced : inarticulate complaints of inadequate remuneration.

--having no distinct meaning; unintelligible : lurching up and down uttering inarticulate cries.

--not expressed; unspoken : mention of her mother filled her with inarticulate irritation.

And that's what this is all about - trying to find a way to write the inarticulate.