When I hosted my sister's baby shower a few months ago, I moved the couch from the position it had been from day one (which was in the middle of the room) to the corner, simply to make space for the guests. Well that little move has led to a host of changes! For the better, I believe. We quickly fell in love with how open the space had become, and most of all, how we could sit on our couch and look at the river through the window. First, here is a picture from a few months ago that will give you a rough idea of how it was:

I love the furniture arrangement, but aesthetically I feel like we had everything piled in one corner and a huuuuge blank wall. I've been feeling a bit under the weather this weekend and have pretty much been camped out on that couch. Needless to say, I've been staring at this blank wall debating what to do. I've gone back and forth between keeping it the way it is (besides the art behind the TV, that obviously will move) and moving all the art around. This is where you, my lovely readers, come in. :) I need your opinions! Or ideas! Or whatever you can give me to help me make a decision! Here are some thoughts:

Move the art collage? And perhaps add a picture or two to take up more space? (more details on the gallery wall here)
Move my little frame behind the TV to the wall where the art collage is now?
How should I hide cables? A nice big basket for blankets? Plant? Magic??
... oh, and the TV stand will most definitely get replaced, as much as I love the Ikea Expedit.... I have some ideas a brewin'. 

So... What do you think? 

Before I end, I want to mention a few new additions to this room. First is that lovely striped rug. It sure is taking it's sweet time to flatten out (hence the wrinkles), but it is exactly what I was looking for. When the couch was no longer taking up the majority of the room, it looked super empty. I knew a big area rug would fix the problem. But dang, that search was hard. I didn't want just a plain rug, but I couldn't have anything too busy since you can see the wallpaper from the same view, and of course, it needed to not be a million dollars. Good ol' Crate and Barrel pulled through. It is the 8x10 Olin Grey Rug, and I fell in love with it and it's price. If we had wood floors (someday... someday...) I would probably need to get a pad as it is not super duper thick, but since it is on carpet it does the job perfectly.

And then we've got my new little side table/foot stand. What a deal this was! Overstock.com is based here in Salt Lake City, so one day they were having a parking lot sale. We had some family activities to attend that day, so we couldn't make it to the sale till later in the afternoon. Just as I expected, it was pretty picked over by the time we showed up, but I did find this little guy. I've been wanting something fun and decorative, yet functional. I've seen these all over Pinterest, and even thought about buying a similiar one from West Elm, but couldn't quite fork out the mula. There wasn't a price tag on this one, so when we asked the lady she looked like she was totally guessing and quoted me at $100, 70% off. Pretty good! Even though I hate negotiating prices with a passion, I threw out "how about $20?" What's the worst she's going to say? No? I bet you can guess at this point she accepted my low-ball offer and off I went! Score!

So there you have it. Questions, changes, and additions. All in one blog post. :)

Goodbye Brother

I feel like if I have actual camera pictures (gasp!), I should take advantage of them and post a mini update on our lives. When I went searching on the camera, I had 3. They were from a goodbye barbecue for my "little" brother who is spending the summer in Uganda. Crazy, right? He is working with a group down there that helps build towns by teaching business concepts (such as micro-finance) as well as good ol' fashioned physical labor. Apparently he poops in a hole and showers with a bucket. Yuuuuu-uuummy. :) 

Jace definitely has that enthusiastic view of life that is so often seen in college students. I am going to save the world! I am going to spend my summer in remote countries doing this and that! I love it. I wish I still had it, because I most definitely did. I feel like I got my full "college experience" with study abroads, internships, traveling to remote countries to help build them up, taking spontaneous weekend trips here and there, etc. And then somehow I grew up and go to work. I want that enthusiasm back. I want to do things! Go places!

Like New York City. I went when I was a younger girl with my family, but I don't remember anything really. So NYC, I'm going to make it happen. Sometime soon. Yes, yes, I know. It is not a remote country that needs any sort of "building" on my part, but it is somewhere I always say "I would love to go there" but never, ever do. So I'm going to make it happen. Oh, and Russ, you are more than welcome to join. :)

Coconut Banana Bread w/Lemon Glaze

I made this bread last week and posted it on my Instagram with the above picture. Unfortunately it was pretty much gone by the time I had thought about taking a decent picture with a real camera. But I think all you need to know is that this bread is amazing. The coconut is such a welcome addition to the traditional banana bread. There is just enough coconut where you can taste it, but it is not overwhelming. And I must add that the lemon glaze is the perfect addition. It's amazing that these 3 flavors work so well together. The bread is delicious hot out of the oven, but we also liked toasting it the next day. Toasted coconut? Yes please.

2 C flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 C sugar
1/4 C (4 Tbs) real butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 C mashed ripe bananas (about 3-4 large bananas)
1/4 C plain yogurt
3 Tbs milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 C coconut

Topping : 2 Tbs additional coconut
Glaze: 1 C powdered sugar whisked with 2 Tbs fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt together and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until blended.  Add eggs and beat to combine.  Add banana, yogurt, milk, and vanilla.  Beat until blended. Add flour mixture and beat at a low speed until just combined.  Stir in 1/2 C coconut.

Pour batter into a 9×5″ loaf pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.  Sprinkle additional 2 Tbs coconut on top. Bake in the oven for about 1 hour or until a knife or skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Note: Check bread after about 40 minutes.  If the top has browned and the coconut pieces are looking toasty, cover top of bread lightly with a piece of foil.  Continue baking until done.

When done, remove pan from oven.  Let cool on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes and then carefully remove from pan.  Whisk powdered sugar and lime juice together for the glaze and then drizzle over top.    Cool for another 15 minutes before slicing.

*Slightly adapted from Our Best Bites

Beggar In the Morning

I discovered a song that I cannot get out of my head, and I must share it with you!. After listening to the song on repeat at work for a full day, I purchased and listened to the whole album. The Barr Brothers are amazing. Their melodies and lyrics are so beautiful, and I find myself singing them all day long. This album has been so comforting to me lately. The song in the video below - "Beggar In the Morning" - is my absolute favorite right now. Give it a listen if you'd like.

Since it's been a while since I've done a music post, I'm going to go right ahead and list a few of my other favorite tunes as of late. Isn't good music the best? You can find a song to fit every emotion. Without further ado...

The National - About Today
A Band of Bees - I Really Need Love
Wilco - One Sunday Morning
The Lumineers - Ho Hey
Youth Lagoon - 17
Whitely - Lost In Time
Jon Foreman - The Cure for Pain
Jonsi - Tornado
Blind Pilot - Keep you Right
The Apache Relay - Lost Kid
Radical Face - Welcome Home
Capital Cities - Safe and Sound (for a catchy upbeat one :)

Rock on my friends!

Board and Batten Bathroom Renovation

We just finished sprucing up our half bathroom on the main floor, and boy do I love it! Before I continue, let me show you the "before":

From the day we moved in (which is almost a year ago! wow!), this bathroom has stumped me decorating-wise. It was a small, boring white box with a cramped sink and a big blank wall next to the toilet. After a while, I finally figured out board and batten was the look I wanted! We used a few tutorials to help figure out what to do (here, here, and my friend Sada's were the most helpful). I feel like this project is *relatively* self-explanatory, and everyone's board and batten project is different because of the varying dimensions of each house. It's totally one of those "figure out as you go" projects. 

We didn't feel like we needed to replace our baseboards since they were the same width as the board under the shelf. We used pine for the boards, batten and molding under the shelf and painted them with Sherwin Williams Swiss Coffee (the same white as the white walls). For the most part, we painted before we hung them up (using Liquid Nails and a nail gun), but obviously we had to do some touch-ups to cover the nail holes. The charcoaly grey is Seal Grey by Glidden. It's the perfect amount of contrast from the white. We placed our shelf at a height that was consistent with the paneling on our doors. I love how the doors make it look like this board and batten has always belonged in this house (see photo below).

I'm keeping my eye out for more art and/or decorations, but for now I am loving the few things I have found. Mint and coral are two of my favorite colors at the moment. I found the "Every little thing is gonna be alright" print at a local craft fair. The frame is from Wal-Mart ($7!) that I spray-painted gold. The bird print is by Etsy seller TheaterClouds. It is one of my new favorite things in the whole house. It's so peaceful and serene. Russ even mentioned how it reminds him of the birds we see flying over the river behind our house. I totally agree. The ampersand is a gift from my dear friend Sada. The little "flower carton" is from decorsteals.com. And the flowers were taken from the table-settings at my cousin's wedding (with permission, of course). :)

The mirror may actually have been one of the most time-consuming aspects of this project. About a year ago my sister was cleaning out her house and gave me this flower-painted mirror. I loved the shape and it is quite substantial, so I've been keeping it for a future project. This baby needed some serious sanding! The flowers were actually raised off the black from so much paint. I sanded for EVER, primed it a few times, and did a million coats of the mint paint (no exaggeration ;) with sanding in between each coat to try and get it nice and smooth. (The green is Supreme Green by Sherwin Williams).

....aaaaaand it worked. I love, love, love the mirror. It is a perfect contrast to the coral hand towel (from Anthropologie). The rug is from Crate and Barrel.

If you are still reading you deserve a medal. 

I hope you enjoyed seeing our little board and batten renovation! It's relatively cheap and easy, so if you have thought about doing it... go for it! I believe in you! :)

(ps. I apologize for the sub-par pictures... small bathrooms with no natural light are really hard to photograph, especially for an amateur like me :)

It's June! Summer is here!

My parents were in town this weekend! Hooray! I have had the fortune of seeing them practically once a month this year. Oh, the blessings of being closer to family. I sure do love it. They drove down for a cousin's wedding. It was great to see some extended family as well.  Here are 3 of my favorite guys in the whole wide world (brother, dad, husband from left to right :)) with my amazing grandparents. I really like this picture. 

We even had our first outdoor dinner party that included more than just Russ and I! We've loved our patio furniture and patio. It was such a warm and peaceful evening. I can't wait for the many barbecues and outdoor parties to come this summer. Summer is the best.

And then of course, we had delicious food which I feel I must document. Grilled tri-tip steak, summer fruit, green salad, and this amazing Lemony Cream Butter Cake that was uhhhh-mazing, if I do say so myself. It's the perfect summer dessert. We served it with strawberries and whip cream. Mmm Mmmm.

And because I'm usually the one behind the camera, here are a few instagram pictures of recent happenings where you get to see my smiling face. Lucky you! :)

Top left: Loving life at the Blind Pilot / Head and the Heart / Shins concert. Take me back, please?

Top right: Paint chips for a recent project! Details soon to come.

Bottom Right: Enjoying National Doughnut day with Marcella and kids at Kripsy Kreme. What a happy place.

Bottom Left: Documenting the last day teaching our adorable Primary class at church. We will sure miss these smiling faces.

Lately

+ I made this balsamic chicken, spinach, and tomato pasta salad. It was delicious. And easy. It will most definitely be going in the "Lewis rotation." We opted to cook the chicken on the grill outside rather than the stove. It's summer! Why not?

+ We have been dining outdoors on our new patio furniture. We love it. Bring on the barbecues!

+ I started Crossfit again! A gym opened RIGHT by my house, so I'm taking advantage of it. I did my first workout with them last night and, true to Crossfit form, can barely walk today.

+ Also made these muffins. THEY WERE A HIT. Make them. Please?

+ We have spent lots of time in the yard trying to get our garden and other areas finished. It's been slightly enjoyable, but mostly I can't wait till it's done. :)

+ My sister showed me a ridiculously funny video that cracks me up every time. I don't know if I will be able to listen to Bon Iver with a serious face for a long time. And that's too bad, because I love Bon Iver.

+ Am feeling really grateful for all of our loving friends and family. Thank you, thank you for all the kind words and thoughts that have been extended our way. I was overwhelmed with gratitude after this last post. Thank you again.

Mother's Day 2012

This may have been one of the hardest weekends I've had in a long time. Emotions have been close to the surface and it seems just about anything can make me start crying. Bet you're excited to keep reading, eh? :)

Let me explain.

My siblings and I drove home to Spokane, Washington to attend the funeral of our dear friend, Sheri. Perhaps it was the reality of being back in my hometown without Sheri walking through our front door the moment we arrived, or seeing her children without their mom, or being at the actual viewing and funeral. Either way it all hit me like a ton of bricks. I was a mess! It was such an honor to play the piano at her funeral, and I'm amazed I got through that experience without losing composure. Everything about the occasion paid such a beautiful tribute to an amazing mother and friend. And ironically enough, it just so happened to fall on Mother's Day weekend.

I will miss Sheri so, so, so much. Like I've mentioned before, we are all comforted in knowing that she is with her loving spouse, Keith, and that families are forever. Her five children will get to see her again, and even better, will be with her for eternity. What a beautiful promise. Until then, the Bird kids are unofficially adopted into our family. I can't wait for future holidays and family vacations with them. (Lindsay, Sheri's youngest daughter, one of my best friends/former roommates, and the strongest girl I know is on the far left).

And then there's more.

Not that I was trying to make the weekend about me in any way, in fact I hated that this happened on such an important weekend, but I was greeted with an unwanted friend {on the day of the funeral, no less} that was one more reminder that I would not be becoming a mother within the next 9 months or so (you catch my drift?). Motherhood is such a divine calling. It is honored and celebrated, as we all saw through pictures, breakfasts-in-beds, and flowers given to Mother's all over the country on this lovely weekend. Don't get me wrong, every. single. mother. deserves all the attention and love they received. Mother's are amazing. It's just that when you want it so bad and it doesn't happen for a while, part of you starts to feel a little... left behind. I've been told how Mother's Day is a hard day for those battling infertility, but this particular year I really felt it. I'm not in that league of divine Mother's yet. I can't wait till I am, but it's a frustrating reality that I do not know when that will be. (I've come across a few blog posts that reflect on some of these issues and provided comfort -- read here, here, and here, if you'd like).

I know some day it will work out. We are working really hard to make that happen (think doctor visits, needles, and prescriptions). Knowing what's ahead of me (mostly from watching my sister struggle), scares me half to death. But I know it will be worth it, and I will do anything to get there. I am learning a great deal of patience. I'm so grateful for the friends and family who offer never-ending support, and most of all, I am grateful I could be with my own mother on this Mother's day. Crying on her shoulder was exactly what I needed. I love you, Mom!

{Photo from my birthday in 2011}

Provo City 1/2 Marathon

About 6 weeks ago Russ's cousin emailed me about the Provo City Half Marathon, saying she wouldn't be able to use her registration and she wanted me to run under her name. I had been running a bit more than usual, but definitely not half marathon training amount. But being the optimist I am, I responded with an enthusiastic "YES!" Gulp.

I think all forces were against me with training when I first dislocated my knee while working in the yard and had to take a week off for that to heal. And then I got the blister of all blisters on the bottom of my foot (I'm talking multiple blisters on top of each other... ouch), and had to lay off the running for that to heal. And then I went on vacation. Ha! So let's just say I had about 3 weeks of "real" training. As I expressed in this post, I was hoping just to finish. 

Continuing the documentation of my crazy weekend, I finally wrapped everything up with the baby shower at about 10:30 on Friday night (after going all day on little to no sleep as it was). I knew I needed to get to bed right away because my alarm would be waking me up at 4:15 am. SICK. I couldn't get to sleep, and I think the last time I saw the clock was 2 or 2:30. When the alarm rang to get to my race I felt terrible. I drove myself down to Provo anyway, and waited in line in the dark for the shuttle to the top of Provo Canyon, which luckily is one of my favorite places to run. 

When the gun finally blew at 7:15 all I kept thinking was "here goes nothing!" And you know what? It went. I finished my fifth half marathon! Definitely no PR for me, but I was happy just to finish. It always feels like such an achievement. (And thanks to Russ for running the last 3 miles with me... I may not have been able to keep going without him :)

I wore my Pro Compression socks for the first time during a race. I've loved them for recovery after long runs, but I've seen people running in them so I thought I'd give it a try. I did feel like my legs were a lot less sore and recovery time was much faster. I am a believer.

And one of the biggest highlights of the day came when I finally ran into my running hero, Hungry Runner Girl, who also ran the race. She is 6 months pregnant and finished in 1:39... amazing right?!? She's also one of the nicest people I've ever met. I felt a little bit like a stalker as I know more about her than a stranger should (thanks to her blog), but luckily we have some mutual friends so I wasn't totally creepy. I was so excited when I even made it onto her race re-cap post! 

In the end I'm glad I ran the race, although I would not recommend doing it on such little sleep (or training!) to anyone. I think your body likes rest. Just guessing.

The Itty Bitty Baby Shower

Friday night Laura and I threw my sister, Brittney, an "Itty Bitty Baby Shower." Everything turned out fabulously! We had so much fun planning and throwing this shower. If Laura wasn't moving to the other side of the country soon I may try to convince her to quit our day jobs and start a party planning business. That sounds waaaay more fun than accounting. :)

Here are the invites, which were totally and completely Laura. She even made a sweet letterpress. She is one creative chica. 

We tried to keep with the "itty bitty" theme and served lots of "itty bitty" foods, including mini tomato basil soups/grilled cheeses, mini cheesecake bites, mini parmesan crisps topped with macaroni and cheese, mini soda cans, pears topped with bleu cheese, and mini waffle and fruit bowls. We also served homemade baked doughnuts and salad. All the food turned out, which is a huge relief. We all know that's the most important part! :)

The grilled cheese and tomato basil soup shots. Deliciousness.

The macaroni and cheese Parmesan bites.

Homemade waffle bowls filled with white chocolate pudding and fruit

 Mini cheesecake bites

 Pears and bleu cheese

Itty bitty sodas served with bowtie straws, of course

Laura putting the bowtie straw into action

The guest of honor (with her mother in law) serving themselves some yummy food.

Caitlin, Brittney's sister-in-law. She was our game planner. 

We had such a great turn out and a really fun night overall. Thank you to everyone who helped out, and most of all, came to support Brittney. We are so excited to meet this little guy!!! 

It's Friday! Hooray!

Can I just give a big shout out to the fact that it is almost, very nearly the weekend!?! Holy moly is that a welcome phrase! As I mentioned in the previous post, we had a glorious time in Kauai last week. But I think the vacation gods were playing a cruel joke on us because we were greeted with the most "real life" welcome home. Monday morning started with a text from my mom that Sheri had passed away, but I couldn't dwell on that too long as we had to rush off to an 8:00 am doctor's appointment to start working with a fertility doctor. Yup. Super overwhelming/scary/frustrating doctor's appointment to have to attend. Sigh. Oh and then work, don't even get me started. I wish the work fairies would continue getting stuff done while I am away on vacation, but that does not happen. All week I have been playing catch up on top of an already crazy/hectic week in the office. Sigh number two. And then I have a race tomorrow morning -- a half marathon to be exact. Let's just say my goal is to cross the finish line, as this training did not really go as planned. Sigh number three. And one other thing that has taken my time this week -- but luckily has been a lot of fun -- is planning my sister's baby shower! Oh, have I looked forward to this day for years upon years (in case you do not know my amazing sister, she is pregnant with her first baby after 4 years of struggling with infertility. Happy day!). The shower is tonight and I am sooo excited for a happy party! We could all use one, that's for sure!

Sorry for the rant. I'm just really, really, REALLY happy it's Friday. :)

image via

Kauai // A week in Paradise

A few months ago my parents offered to let us use some of their timeshare points as our Christmas/birthday/everything gifts for the year. Let's think about that for a second... YES. So to Kauai we went. It really was paradise and the escape from real life we so desperately needed. We have both been to Oahu and Maui, but I think Kauai is by far my favorite island. It's a lot less touristy with endless amounts of adventures (ie hiking, kayaking, camping, etc.). Of course you still have the option to go lay on beautiful beaches (which we most definitely did). The island is breathtaking! I feel like every turn you make leads you to another amazing vista with rainbows, mountains, ocean and greenery everywhere. I apologize for the picture overload. It took all I had to narrow them down! So... without further ado...

One of our favorite things we did was kayak 2 miles down the Wailua river and hike one mile to "the Secret Falls." The below picture is one of my favorites of Russ taken on our way to the waterfall.

               The water fall was absolutely amazing! (and huge!! See little Russ in the right hand corner?)

We even got to swim under it!

Here's a shot of the Chacos getting a Hawaiian experience on the way back from the Secret Falls

... and I must include Russ's ultimate "tough/extreme guy" action shot.

On the second night there we actually backpacked and camped overnight down in Waimea Canyon, which is basically the grand canyon of Hawaii. This hike was KILLER! 2,300 feet elevation change in 2.5 miles! Ouch! We definitely earned our lazy beach time with this hike!

I think this picture is funny. We turned the corner to see an amazing view with the sun coming through the canyon... and then a tractor. Ummm... one of these things does not belong. Mostly we were confused how they got this tractor down here! It seriously must have been helicoptered in or something.

These guys were everywhere! We thought they were pretty fun, until they would wake us up at 5 in the morning. Yeah. Not cool rooster.

Kileaua Lighthouse! So lovely!

I loved all of the exotic flowers! 

Russ is the snorkel master! He is seriously the happiest person in the world when he is doing anything in the ocean. I am the opposite as I am actually quite terrified of the ocean. This picture was taken on Tunnels beach on the north shore. While Russ was way out there looking at fish, I was laying on the beach reading my book. I knew that Bethany Hamilton (aka Soul Surfer -- you know, the pro surfer who got her arm chomped off by a shark while surfing) was from Kauai, but I was curious where it happened. Well what do I find out? It was Tunnels beach. The beach my husband is swimming in right this second. Bah!

One day we took a boat to see the Nepali Coast (where movies such as Jurassic Park and Pirates of the Caribbean were filmed). There are no roads to see this coast, so it has to be seen from the water! We also got to snorkel off the coast. It was pretty magical (even for someone who doesn't like the ocean :).

The next day we did a hike called the Alakai Swamp trail that lets you see the Nepali coast from up top. It was a pretty long hike so we ended up running a lot of it to get it over with faster. After we hiked the 4 miles to the "lookout," we had to laugh when all we saw was one big giant cloud. Oh well, you win some, you lose some. At least we got this one view on the way!

One of our favorite sunsets was on the south side of the island at Poipu beach. I wish I could see this view every day of my life!

Standing in front of Wailea Falls, right before we headed to the airport (I guess you can't actually see the falls! oops!). We were feeling a bit sad about our adventure being over! You know how by the end of some vacations you are ready to come home? Yeah, this wasn't one of them. Oh well, it was good while it lasted. :) 

Thank you, Kauai, for being the perfect getaway! We hope to see you again!