May is typically one of my favorite months and this year was no different. I had the opportunity to take a Prius for a spin and explore Madison like a tourist, we had a fun “house crawl” outing with our awesome neighborhood friends who we met less than a year ago, I turned 35, and we visited Austin to celebrate.

Mini Moments (top to bottom, left to right):

• Went for a birthday dip in the pool to cool off from the sweltering Austin heat, and purchased a pair of pink sunglasses to celebrate.
• Spent the afternoon meandering around Madison, which typically includes a stop at the record shop.
• Visited the Texas State Capitol. I know it’s supposed to be an impressive one, but we get spoiled in Madison with our own.
• Stood in line for way too long to get Torchy’s Tacos on Memorial Day, but the queso and the ahi tuna taco more than made up for it.
• Celebrate the start to year 35!
• Found the “Greetings from Austin” mural, even though it was too sunny to take decent photos of ourselves in front of it.
• Picked up flowers from the farmers’ market in Madison.
• Frequented Easy Tiger in Austin. We went every day on our trip, either for coffee and pastries in the morning or for beer and snacks in the evening.
• Sipped on one of my favorite cocktails: the Aviation.

Upcoming Plans:

• Paint two more doors, remove the paint from their hardware, and hang.
• Paint the upstairs hallway.
• Order hardware for the upstairs built-in. I’m going to go with these.
• Purchase the remaining three sconces for our living room when we visit Portland at the end of the month.

More Mini Moments: January, February, March, April

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It’s officially my birthday month! And, I’m happy to report that a couple of retailers share my enthusiasm for a month-long celebration. Yesterday, I came home to birthday discounts from Tory Burch and West Elm. I’m kind of disenchanted with West Elm after the light fixture fiasco,* but I’m very excited about the Tory Burch gift. Apparently I’ve spent enough over the years to receive a $50 coupon for my birthday month. I’ve had my eye on this scarf and it seems like a good opportunity to add it to my collection.

I feel like a broken record lately, but this month is going to be all about house projects. We purchased some deck furniture last weekend: this bench with these cushions (no one wants to burn their thighs on metal in the summer) and these chairs. They look fantastic, but definitely make the unpainted deck look rough around the edges! I’d like to paint the railings this month and stain the floor. We’re also looking into a few yard projects, along with a few interior to-dos that have fallen off the radar in the winter (painting doors, continuing to replace light fixtures, etc.). May won’t be all about work, however! We have a trip to Austin scheduled at the end of the month to celebrate my 35th birthday. (Where has the time gone?!) Let me know if there’s anything I need to add to my must-visit list!

Lest you think things are just sunshine and rainbows over here, they’re not. Haha. I had an ear infection last week and now I have an unexplained rash on my legs (my doctor said to just take an antihistamine and see if that works — great), and both our washer and dryer broke in the middle of washing our only set of king sheets Sunday night. But, there’s no sense in dwelling on the lame stuff. Here are my favorite mini moments from April.

Mini Moments (top to bottom, left to right):

• When we moved in last year, we took the blades off of the 1980s ceiling fans so that we could paint around them. We didn’t bother putting the blades back on because they were awful, so we’ve been rocking our signature home aesthetic: the bladeless fan light fixture. I’m insanely picky about the light fixtures we purchase (even though just about anything is better than what we had) and I finally replaced the one in our office with this mid-century modern fixture. The globe is a bear to get on and off, but I only paid $29 and the LED bulb inside should last years.
• I’m never going to be the person who takes obnoxious selfies with the palace guards, but I will take a pic of them on their own. (I’m sure they hate it.)
• If you didn’t ‘gram your flight, did it really happen?
• My favorite part about London was the number of flowers at every turn! There were floral arrangements like this one at Covent Garden, blossoms on trees, and gardens filled with tulips and daffodils.
• I was so proud of myself for packing lightly for our trip. I even had extra space in my suitcase for the return flight despite buying a merino wool throw blanket that took up a substantial amount of room. You can see a list of everything I wore here.
• Notting Hill was every bit as charming as you’d expect.
• I just love these wallet-friendly slides from Old Navy. Now if it would just be warm enough for sandals!
• Spotting signs of spring in London near St. Paul’s Cathedral.
• Post-work cocktails with one of my coworkers.

More Mini Moments: January, February, March

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* Short version: I bought a light fixture, it arrived in two boxes, it was damaged, and it took weeks for the company to send a second return label for the second box despite calling and emailing numerous times. The replacement fixture was also damaged.

March was fun, but I have to admit that I’m excited for it to be over so we can finally head into spring! Granted, I’ve already been pretending the weather is warmer than it actually is with bare legs and sleeveless tops (this machine-washable merino shell is perfect for work).

In addition to this month’s mini moments below, we’ve been gearing up for our London trip. It’s wheels up next Friday and I can’t wait! Dave splurged to upgrade our seats to United’s Economy Plus, so I’m sure I’ll feel extra fancy next week. (He went with the subscription option for Economy Plus where you and another passenger can be upgraded on every flight for a year. We’re going to Austin at the end of May and we’d like to book something else for later in the year to make sure we get our money’s worth. We’ve been daydreaming about Europe for Christmas markets this December if we somehow find ourselves with extra cash, but that seems unlikely with our house projects!)

Mini Moments (top to bottom, left to right):

• A new brewery opened in Madison. The couple of beers we tried were really good and well balanced, and they have a rotating menu from one of the best chefs in town. We’ll likely be frequenting the place this spring and summer since it’s right off the bike path. Part of the reason we moved to the neighborhood we did was for the walkability and bikeability to bars and restaurants, and we’ve certainly been taking advantage of it! A couple of weeks ago, we ventured off for a Sunday Funday with a few of our neighborhood friends and had a blast visiting dive bars and playing shuffleboard.
• I finally hung up artwork in our bedroom! I’ve had that print (c/o Minted) for a couple of years now and it’s never actually been on a wall. I’ve only had it propped up against the wall in our apartment because I couldn’t find just the right spot for it despite adoring it as much as I do. The colors work so well with our accent wall and that new Target throw blanket. (It does look a little small in that photo, but it should be okay once we get curtains installed.)
• Admittedly, I’m not always the best at breaking down cardboard boxes and recycling them right away. I finally got around to it and, of course, Bacon picks the Gucci box to play in. What a fancy cat!
• We stopped by a local greenhouse last weekend to purchase a snake plant for this planter. Thanks to the perfect rows of spring plants, I left inspired to work on our deck and yard when we get back from our trip. We’ve even picked out our deck paint already!
• We’re starting to replace our light fixtures around the house. Some will be replacing ceiling fans, so we’ve opted to buy medallions to cover up any damage from the brackets rather than patching it. I love the added architectural detail to our 1920s home. The polka dot trim on this ceiling medallion makes it my favorite one yet.
• I’m just going to go ahead and pack this entire outfit for London.
• A bathroom renovation is a long way off, but I can’t help daydreaming about the tile we’ll eventually get! I love this floor, and I’ve had this tile and this one bookmarked, but a vintage-inspired hexagon pattern is just as tempting.
• Last Sunday was a pretty perfect spring day in Madison, so we went for a long walk up and around the Capitol.
• This gorgeous alabaster lamp (c/o Cottage & Bungalow) was all the motivation I needed to restyle our bar cabinet. I love the mid-century modern shape and the natural element the stone brings to the space. I’ll have more photos and a discount code for you next week!

More Mini Moments: January, February

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Last month, I mentioned that I wanted to bring back a roundup of “Mini Moments” from the month prior and share some of my goals for the month ahead. I dropped the ball on getting this up closer to the first of the month, but hey, there were still a few things worth reminiscing about and sharing with you! I’ll have this week’s “Weekend Links” post up tomorrow.

Mini Moments (top to bottom, left to right):

• I finally bought the Gucci bag I’ve been saving for! It’s ridiculously indulgent, but goodness, I’m so happy with it! (If it’s on your wish list, you can see what fits inside here.)
• Dave and I went out for date night drinks at Robin Room in Madison. Their cocktails are amazing and you know I’m smitten with the pineapple neon sign in the window.
• I finally got around to painting the door frame of my closet. I’m sure it comes as no surprise that I was anxious to cover up that tan color with crisp white paint! Also, I can’t stand it when hardware is painted over. (Apparently you can boil the hardware in water to loosen the paint. Latex paint should peel right off and lead-based paint should crumble off. That’ll be a project for an upcoming weekend.) A quick tip for removing stubborn screws that have been painted over: position your screwdriver in the groove and hit the base with a hammer. The extra force should shake some of that paint loose. I also used a razor to remove the paint at the edges of the screws.
• I participated as a judge for the Madison Reading Project’s READ(y) to Wear fashion show. It was basically a Project Runway unconventional challenge with paper.
• An outtake from this post cracks me up.
• I played hooky last Tuesday when the temperature crept close to 60 degrees. I treated myself to sushi for lunch, picked up tulips, and wandered around our neighborhood on a 2.5 mile walk. (You can snag the trench coat here and similar loafers here.)
• I’m all kind of obsessed with this gingham cutie for $28.
• I had been using dollar store salt and pepper shakers for the last 10 years. We finally upgraded to these marble and brass beauties.
• We checked out Forequarter for their happy hour menu of sliders and tacos. It was delicious, but the cocktails were too expensive for what they were (as far as Madison pricing goes). I’d rather stop here again for happy hour snacks and get drinks somewhere else.

Upcoming Goals:

• Start painting the upstairs hallway.
• Replace the light fixture in my closet. This was actually on my goal list last month, but the fixture I ordered from West Elm arrived damaged with a scuff in the brass base and two chips in the globe. (It also arrived in two boxes and after three weeks of continuously asking for a second mailing label with a different tracking number, they finally had to send someone from UPS to pick up both boxes. It was such a frustrating mess. I’m not exactly pleased with West Elm’s customer service when a problem crops up as we’ve had a few additional annoyances, but that’s a story for another day.) The new one just shipped out, and I hope it’s actually a new one and not just the old one coming back to me because I do really like the shape of it.
• Finalize my packing list, shopping, and itinerary for London! I’m doing my best to not over-pack this time and bring extra pieces just for outfit photos. I’ll likely do an outfit roundup when I get back to show you how I remixed pieces during the 10-day trip. I hope it comes off as inspiring rather than boring!
• Get a quote on laying additional concrete by our garage for a parking pad. We have a long driveway between our house and our neighbor’s house and a one-car garage. I can park to the side of the garage door to let Dave in and out, but it’s easier for me to turn around before driving out rather than backing out the length of the driveway. I was able to do so on our lawn with the ground frozen, but that’s not going to be doable much longer!
• Have someone come in to discuss replacing the window shades in our dining room (they’re a dingy beige color) and adding them to our upstairs bedrooms. We’re going to add roller shades now and look at drapes later.

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If you’ve been following my blog for awhile, you may remember that I used to post monthly recaps with a few of my favorite snapshots and mini moments from the previous four weeks. I’m not quite sure why I stopped, but I found myself missing it when I reflected back on the year in December. So I figured it was time to bring it back and share some of the little things I loved recently and talk about some of my goals for the month ahead.

Mini Moments (top to bottom, left to right):

• I spent the day working off-site to help at a photo shoot. The afternoon views of Lake Mendota were stunning.
• I love the shape of Monstera plants and have been considering one for our house, although I’m not sure I want to dedicate that kind of space to one plant!
• Dave and I warmed up over lattes during our recent weekend in Milwaukee.
• A peek into our current living room situation. Replacing the sconces is next up next on the to-do list. I’m going to buy these in brass to pair with these shades. I’ve been putting it off since that’ll come to just over $700.
• I can’t help myself around a fabulous sunburst mirror.
• While we’re on the topic of light fixtures, I’d like to replace the one in my closet this month. It’s just a bare bulb right now. I saw this mini Sputnik fixture at West Elm last weekend and thought it was fun, but I worry that a pendant light will get in the way of the shelf. Alternatively, this shape of this one is fun, this is fairly basic and wouldn’t compete with other decor, this one has a prettier shape than either of those two (but pricier), and this is neat even if it’ll require a decorative bulb. I don’t want to spend a lot since this will be in my closet where no one other than me will appreciate it.
• I gave Dave tickets for Christmas to see his favorite performer, Destroyer. The concert was mid-January and a lot of fun, even if the late night made me wonder how I ever managed to stay out past midnight in my 20s!
• I gave my Paravel backpack a test drive and now I’m even more excited to bring it with me to London. It fits more than I need during the day, making it perfect for toting around treasures we pick up on vacation. This has only intensified my desire for the crossbody capsule bag.
• Target does it again with its latest home collection. The quality of this vase makes it seem more expensive than just $13.

Upcoming Goals:

• Filing my taxes is always at the top of my must-do list for February, and I already got them squared away on Sunday. I had made extra money for a freelance project at the beginning of 2017, so my return was paltry, but hey, it’ll pay for one of those sconce and shade combinations!
• Paint the door trim in my closet. I tackled the door frame for the office and bedroom, and then took a few weeks off. I need to get back into the home-improvement groove.
• Repair any cracks and gouges in the upstairs hallway so we can paint that next month.
• Install a light fixture in my closet.
• Exercise two times a week. I’ve been counting my calories and have already lost four pounds, but I need to add movement into my routine.
• Finally drop off the piles of donations we have bagged up and ready to go.

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