living room project part 1

ok, so here is a picture of my living room..it was taken from my iphone so please excuse the quality. this room and the dining room are by far the closest to being completed [besides seasonal changes..ect.] so i'm starting here

we purchased our murray sofa because of the clean linear lines that simplify the design and resemble characteristics of classic mid-century design [which you will come to realize i favor for my own spaces..mixed with a little hollywood regency so it doesn't start looking to brady bunch].

the design scheme is built on layers of monochromatic hues (whites, tans, creams). safe for a designer who likes to flirt with trends, but loyal to the classics. this allows me the option to exchange small scale items that might be 'trendy' without breaking the bank [pillows, frames, accessories] and keep larger pieces as investment item and staples of the space.

so here is my scale issue..which irritates me
this wall is pretty large.and painted my favorite warm neutral [wicker white]. the space is not a double volume, but close to 14'.  the areas in orange represent spatial pieces that need to be incorporated to balance this room. also. to give lil hud something interesting to look at during the day.

 i have this in my head to solve this problem

the to do list :: living room wall

1.  purchase and hang mirror [april when mirror arrives in stock]
2.  hang artwork [it is purchased but wont go up until mirror arrives]
3.  purchase end tables..ok find end tables
4.  miraculously come across two of those perfect brass etageres [yesterday's post] or find someone to make
     them? yikes

-K

lovely sick monday

i knew this day would come. i dreaded it. i was just hoping it would be a little longer, but nope GERMS have invaded! i hate them [but who really loves them anyway?]. my little guy had his first cold, this past weekend....we are still recovering from all the loss of sleep, but it is just horrible seeing a baby sick. he is on the mends, but has ever so kindly decided to share it with his momma. so as we recover we are taking it easy today..napping, cuddling, and unfortunately enjoying this beautiful weather from the comforts of our sofa.

maybe tomorrow we can venture out for a walk..64 degree is expected! is it really almost february?!? kentucky, if you keep this up i just might make you my favorite.

on a completely different topic..our house is a constant project [whose isn't?].  i am going to share some of my progress/inspiration with y'all from time to time.  see we have lived in this house for about a year and a half now, and i think we have done a lot in that time especially since i pretty much didn't touch anything for 10 months while i was pregnant. it is bothering me that i don't have one single space that is completed [probably pretty normal for a designer...i tend to change things frequently.] now that hudson is here, and my energy is back..i am itching to get some of the 100 projects in my head/already started completed. keeping in mind we are on a budget [student loans repayment hurts..yea], and i tend to never want to pay full price or high prices for pieces..i much prefer finding items with 1. story 2. great structure and lines that represent their time 3. that i can put my own twist on...i tend to believe you can find amazing..sometimes very valuable..pieces that people have discarded because of multiple reasons. this process lends itself to an eclectic style [not matchy matchy] which i prefer because it makes a space interesting. unfortunately, the timing of such pieces can be random and hard to plan..due to the searching. so i am playing a bit of an exchange game in my house...example. i found an amazing mid century dresser and pair of nightstands. the idea is that their final home will be in the guest room. only problem is we desperately needed a dresser for the master [yes we lived over 4 years without a dresser as a married couple..yay for big closets]  so currently the dresser is in the master and the nightstands are being used as side tables in the living room.  i am planning on using this blog as a way to document my progress [okay really keep me on task] so for starters..i am going to show you my living room tomorrow...but wanted to first show you this piece which i am IN LOVE with. it is antique. pretty sure it was a custom piece. and ill have to have it made. but maybe not...can anyone help out there? have you seen any brass etageres floating around out there like this lovely piece. do you know any metal artisans? my living room needs it..actually it needs two of them. source unknown...been in my inspiration file for years.

chat soon
-K

drinks and superhero

good afternoon!
going to deviate away from what i thought today's post would be.

last night we met a few other couples for mexican and margaritas..was a great time, and only the second margarita i had in over a year..yum

see here is kelly. she eats fries at a mexican restaurant?! and just smells other peoples margaritas [this one belonging to larissa]..weird huh? well that's what those previously mentioned hormones do to normal ladies..yes kelly is expecting!! we all get to find out if it is a girl/boy in a week! we are very excited. she is so cute!

this morning we slept in..hudson had a little to much milk from the local diary bar..tmi to bad my blog [save that for another post] lucky huh? well we did also wake up at 4am and then 6am..but then slept till 9:30

hudson sleeps in his crib until his late morning feeding so ~ 10:30pm-5:00am then he snuggles with us in bed till we get up..don't worry i use bumpers to create his own sleep space. this is most likely a bad habit that i am creating but he will only be little for a short time..so i am soaking it up. i will probably have it the hardest when it comes time to break it. we started lil hud off sleeping in his crib from day one by putting a portable bassinet in it, and i am so glad because the transition to actually just sleeping in his crib was a breeze. we used this one

 summer infant rest assured sleeper

it worked great for us when we traveled, used it on our sofa, or in the crib, but we were less impressed with how it preformed in our bed [errr that sounded weird] see we have a pillow top and the legs of the bassinet made it near impossible to lay it evenly. also when he gained some weight..i felt like it needed to be sturdier so next baby im going to have some 1/4 inch mdf board cut down to size for some support. if we use something in bed again at that stage it will probably be something like this that lays directly on the mattress.

first years close secure sleeper

not really sure why they call it first years...hud would definitely not make it past 7 weeks in it (about when he started flaring his arms)

ok this post is way..way off track...all that to say i anxiously awaited him to wake up so we could continue practicing sticking out our tongue at each other and blowing raspberries. success! he cracks up when he does it..or i laugh at him...but this new trick has caused him to become a water fountain i tell ya..so he now wears a bib cape...which i totally can see him thinking this. found here imgfave

so here he is [well earlier..now he is fighting a nap and letting me know it is time to come rock him]...wearing his cape

he fell asleep! hooray! we are working on him self soothing to take a nap
hope everyone has a great weekend..chat monday

-K

just relax..pillow under the butt

Deciding to have a baby was easy.getting pregnant was hard..and from what i hear i didn't even have it bad. First let me start off with a reminder that these opinions and stories are based solely off my experience..not to be taken as any form of professional advice, ect. 

i had visions of this in my head..so did mr. b

when we decided to have a baby mr. b and i were so excited [enter naive]. turns out trying to get pregnant in our experience was harder than training for a marathon [not that i know what that is like because i don't run, but it is a common phrase so..whatev] we started out fast, careless, and full of adrenaline then exhaustion, and doubt crept in..then finally fear, and sadness...why wasn't it working? i hate pee sticks! is something wrong with us? we tried it all...it had only been 4 months we were panicked and stressed which is exactly what they tell you you can't be for it to work..great..but there is no way to avoid it. so fast forward 7 months and lots of test/medication failed attempts..even a call from the doctor saying he thought we were pregnant! which was false.. i finally gave up. yes i gave up. prayed to god. and then got pregnant..errrr they were right it happens when your not stressed and not thinking about it

now i know other women have much much much tougher roads getting there, and i feel for them because it is rough no matter what. and they are warriors. 

my doctor. dr. h told me at the beginning of my pregnancy..to relax. see he knows my husband mr. b who is one of the most easy going relaxed persons i know..everyone knows this about him. he said if i would remain relaxed and calm like mr. b it would be good for our baby, and our baby would be relaxed/calm..i do believe this is a wives tale. but my dr. said so [haha upperhand joke] so i listened. and it paid off. lil hud is amazingly relaxed laid baby baby which mean we will probably really get it come the terrible twos.

here is the lil guy with my mimi...and he was a very good sport by wearing the crown his cousin sophie put on him

introducing sophie [my niece and my world]

the only real issues i had while i was with child were.EXHAUSTION if you have never been pregnant before there is no real way to make someone understand how exhausted you feel. it isn't just the lack of sleep that does it..no it is those horrible things called hormones. they will get you. i just kept reminding myself that they were doing it to me..which was hard. i am rambling aren't i? most days starting from week 8 i could barely make it to the fridge to feed myself..let alone bathe, workout, shop, teach, ect. it was a battle war. but i luckily didn't have to deal with other serious stuff like morning sickness, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, ect. pregnancy is war. women are heroes [i now believe this with all my heart]. thank your mom now

this guy and i became great friends. i heart my murray sofa

so..i gotta run margarita time..don't judge i know it is 3:30

tomorrow..if i am lucky & you come back ill show my pregnancy photos +  some funny stories.

i promise to wrap all this preggo junk up within a week [which is good for a process that took up to 10 months! yes 10 months...they lie about the whole 9 month thing]

-K

between bath and breakfast..hello

wello! - err yes i did just type that

must be my nervousness or maybe mommy brain or both, but i'm here and i assume if you are reading this you are here too [hi mom, sandy, mr. b, and a few friends! thanks for reading]

so hello and i am glad you are here..please stay awhile.please

i have been trying wanting to start a blog for awhile now, but was not sure about what to write about. Design? [see i have two degrees in it], Life? [am i actually interesting enough], or Baby? [come on who really wants to hear about babies all day..well me but ill spare y'all] so i finally decided..why do i have to have a plan? why not just jump in?! easier said then done. so i decided if i could come up with 10 blog posts i would start...1, 2, 3, 4 then i would lose count life and lil hud would distract me..so 1, 2, 3, 4 again and i realized that i narrate a blog post almost everyday in my head leading to random thoughts spoken out loud [confusing for mr. b] and outburst of laughter which is embarrassing at times. i am much funnier in my mind than when i put it down on paper or cyberspace..this process will hopefully help.

so here i am. day one. with the opportunity to let you in my thoughts [scary]. 

who knows if anyone besides mentioned people above will read this. that's ok. it will be a great way to document our new life and hudson's growth..sort of like a scrapbook..because i am not a scrapbook kind of girl. lil hud will have fun be tortured probably when he is older looking back on this. i'm a great mom.

who am i? my name is kristen..my hs friends call me cecil [random and no real story of why], my parents call me KC [short for kristen caroline], and mr. b [husband of 4+ years!! who is nothing short of amazing..seriously] calls me HB short for hummingbird. that is a lot of nicknames to respond too! i tell ya. just three months ago i received another name..this one i am still adjusting to and it is the one i am most proud of. yes last october i became mommy to lil hud. 

tomorrows the next post will be about my experience of trying to have a baby, and the whole pregnancy experience..because i feel like a few things are left out of those pregnancy books, and my best friend is expecting to use this blog as her pregnancy guide. pressure!

my lil hud..he is a rock star

- Kristen

ps. occasionally, i will not be adhering to the rules of grammar, capitalization, punctuation, sentence structure, spelling, ect. it is not because my english teachers did a poor job because they were great or that i live in western ky because i am a transplant..really it just might happen because i might only have minutes to post something or be running on minimal sleep. who knows. just putting it out there.