The new couch

We've been waiting for a couple years for a new couch, and finally took the plunge. Here's where we found it. I read that JC Penney has good Pottery Barn knockoffs. We have been loving it so far.

Valentine's Day

We went out to dinner for Valentine's Day a day early since John had to leave on the actual day for a trip. Here's my hunky Valentine.

I just have to add that I got this dress for $7 at Target.
Flowers from my man.
The red velvet cupcakes we made together.
The card I got. He busted out a never used line in the card this year. It was pretty cute. I am thankful for the blessing of my husband!

Thrifty finds

When I went to Palm Springs, we went to some thrift stores and yard sales, and got some fun deals. I normally don't like to pay a lot at thrift stores because I can get clothes cheaper at yard sales, but I thought this stuff was worth it.

H&M jeans (Goodwill) $8
Shirt (Goodwill) $5
Clutch (yard sale) $1
Shirt (Goodwill) $5
I found this for $3 (Goodwill), and it is really similar to one I have in my guest bathroom from Home Goods (see below). It just needs some cleaning.
Belt (thrift store)...can't remember the price. I've already worn it a lot.
Basket (yard sale) $1
Clock (yard sale) $1
Sandals (Gap outlet) $6

Butter Chicken

Found this Butter Chicken recipe from The Pioneer Woman. I thought it tasted pretty similar to Butter Chicken at restaurants I've tried. It could have been a little bit spicier, though.

The laptop is back

John was gone for a week, and he always takes the laptop with him. We also have a desktop computer, but it'd been so long since I uploaded pictures there, it wouldn't recognize my camera. So I wanted to blog a few things, but couldn't. I always feel like I am way behind, and then I catch up with a bunch of posts!

I was also in a bit of a funk last week because a) John was gone, b) It rained all week, c) we had ants for the third time, d) This place doesn't feel quite like home, e) I was completely unmotivated to get any projects done, f)I'm not working...thus, I was really lazy which doesn't help my mindset. I did babysit for a girl in Bible study on Valentine's Day (doesn't it always help take the focus off of us when we serve other people?) and hung out with my friend from Bible study a couple times, which helped. There was an Air Force spouse social in which six people attended and we basically talked about food and recipes the whole time because we were hungry. Side note...I always meal plan for the week, but I finally started getting the Sunday paper with the ads, so I have been able to clip some coupons and cut our grocery bill quite a bit. It is so fun to get a good deal or something for free.

I like to put pictures on each post, just to add some visual interest, so here are some random pictures of my first cake. I usually make the boxed mixes, and like them, but I found a chocolate cake recipe that was good. I made this before my Palm Springs trip, which I still need to post about. Maybe this will be motivation for you to go make a cake! Although, I will say that John likes cupcakes more, so that's what I will do next time I get the cake bug.

Hike

A few weeks ago, when John still had time off, we went on a mini hike to Mt. Diablo. It was about 45 minutes away from us. It wasn't really a hike like we thought it would be (we drove forever to the summit to see this view and then there wasn't much of a hike). But here are the pictures...it was a memory.

Portlandia: Put A Bird On It

Last weekend, while I was with friends, I found out about these funny Portlandia clips. Then I was looking at a blog today, and saw this video. I thought it was funny since birds for decorating is so in right now! Check out other Portlandia videos - so funny!

My bathroom project

We are renting this house, and John wants to try to buy a house when our lease in up. Not sure if it'll happen, but since we don't know how long we'll be in this house, I don't want to do any painting or much investing. I saw this post and wanted to try a similar, smaller project. Mine's pretty basic, but for some reason I really like it. The rest of the bathroom is boring, so it seems to add a lot.


So happy to have my husband home (and not just so he can hang pictures for me!). : )

A little help

I posted this picture a couple weeks ago, and since I probably won't be getting those apothecaries anytime soon, I added a little detail to it to help it a bit.

Hanging some things up

John helped me a ton this past weekend, hanging up more in our house to make it feel more like home. As you can see, Fenway likes to help, too.

Fenway on Fenway!
I was going to get shelves for the office (for these pictures), but we are trying not to spend money right now, so for now, I'll wait.
My new W I got for Christmas.
The burlap wreath I made (and another W I got for Christmas), and I hung a wedding picture.

A day in Petaluma

Last week we drove an hour to Petaluma, CA, after seeing the town featured in an article my mom sent me. It was a fun outing on one of John's days off. We've had some of the best two weeks we've had. It's amazing what some time off can do to recharge someone (John). He is a like a different person, and understandably so, after working so hard on his deployment without much down time. Yes, traveling in Europe was great, but he didn't get actual rest. So he has been sleeping in, eating some fun, homemade foods, being lazy and productive at the same time, being super sweet and helpful, and loving life. It's been so awesome. He went back to work today. Praying the day goes well for him in his new job.

A fun find

My mom found this shirt for me at H&M for $5. Looking forward to wearing it this spring.