8.11.2010

.girls trip to hawaii.

may was a busy month! i hopped on a plane, leaving my cowboy and two monkeys at home, and joined my friends to spend a week at the hilton resort in hawaii. the night before we left, lissa and i {my best friend since grade school, *the pretty girl on the far right of the above picture*}, got a pedi and a spray tan. when i was younger, i was such a tanner. now that i'm a mom, and old enough to know better, i stay out of the sun, and slather on the high spf sunscreen. the spray tan was a new experience for me. we had it done by the same spray tan artist that does the tans for the "real housewives of the o.c., and the laker girls, etc. at first, i looked SO dark, and the color was even and gorgeous. we were advised not to shower till the morning, so we didn't, but in the morning, my color was a bit splotchy. not bad, but not as pretty as it looked the night before. on the plus side, it lasted me a little over a week. enough time to get a good base tan {since i slathered spf 70 all over myself}. in the end, i would do the spray tan again for an event or something. anyway~ we spent the week exploring the island, and i FINALLY got to see the green sand beach! i've been the the big island twice already, and had yet to see it. sooo, i convinced the girls to take the hike to it with me. i'm pretty sure i'm the only one who thought it was gorgeous and well worth it, but it was amazing. not only that, but it's not everyday that those of us who are land-locked can go on a beautiful, ocean-view hike in hawaii. forget the "touristy" places, where you can buy t-shirts and key chains, give me a chance to get to know the "real" hawaii. and spending the better part of the day hiking along the coast, well, it was one of the highlights of my trip.
the next day, we spent at the resort. there was a coral reef there, home to the endangered green sea turtles. we spent the day swimming with them, and by swimming with them, i mean, they swam right up to us, letting us pet them all over. they were as curious about us, as we were about them. we had a group of about 30-40 of them, and spent a good chunk of the afternoon being entertained. the little guy below was so fun. we fed him peanuts right out of our hands, and he happily gobbled them up, and followed us to get more. i don't know if peanuts were good for him, but he seemed to like 'em.
we went to kona joes coffee. so cool. who wouldn't want to own a coffee plantation right on the coast of hawaii? if it were mine, i'd never leave. well, i'm sure i've gone on about it long enough for now. i'll post more tomorrow, since it's so long.

8.10.2010

.my next MAJOR decor purchase.


the minute i saw this {in an online "movie set" blog}, i knew i needed it. it's quite the chunk of change though, at nearly $3000.00. but it would look so good on this one wall in our new home. not sure if the company ever puts anything on sale, or if this would be one they would ever put in that category, but i want it. scratch that. i NEED it.

8.07.2010

M.I.A. once again... but with good reason!





I've neglected my little blog for so long. I'm so appreciative for those of you that have stuck with me! This year has been a whirlwind for our family. Six months ago, we started construction on our dream home! We are now getting ready to move in! I've started a blog of our home building process, {i know, i know, i started another blog, when i've been neglecting this one... it doesn't make any sense}... but, the craziness is just about over, and then i'll be back to blogging as usual. i'm thinking i'm going to keep both blogs, this one for my everyday finds and loves, photography and cuteness, and the other for all my home decor decisions, ideas, and inspirations. I love, love, love, decor, and both cowboy and i enjoy trying to live as green as possible, so i'll be discussing our green choices, both in building and decorating, as well. I'd love for you to follow both blogs, so if you would like, here's the link: casadebeam.blogspot.com

*sigh* a huge *THANKS* for sticking around! i love blogging, and i love the friends i've made here in blog land!

3.15.2010

for those of you devestated when domino shut down...

i was sooo upset when domino decided to close shop. i looked forward to the monthly inspiration for decorating my home.no other decor mag came even close to matching my style like domino did. then i found this little beaut. lonnymag.com

unfortunately, it's only online, i don't know if they plan on printing it in the future, but i hope so. even still, it's ideas, layout and inspiration are so similar to dominos, that i can't help but pour through it time and time again. take a looksee when you can! i promise you won't be disappointed!



3.09.2010

YAY!!! milla jane snaps FINALLY has an official website!!! when you get the time, go take a looksee at millajane.com and check it out! it's not completely done yet, but at least it's up! i'm so excited by this, and so ready for it!

get ready~ liberty of london is coming to target!!!

is anyone else excited about liberty of london coming to target??? there is a particular sundress i'm wanting to get for my trip to hawaii, and there are a LOT of things i'm wanting for our new house...i have a feeling my wallet is getting ready to go into shock...




http://www.newyorkcondoloft.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/liberty-london-target-4_rect540.jpg


[target+liberty+dresses.jpg]

3.07.2010

my favorite things this winter~

3.05.2010

winter olympics!

if you're like me, you've been watching the olympics non-stop. HERE is a really great site to go to for FaNtAsTiC images, like the ones below, of the last two weeks.





and, my favorite athlete of this olympics... lindsey vonn! gotta love her! :)



3.03.2010

ipad...i want, i want, i need, i need!

http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gamelife/2010/01/ipad.jpg

so i've decided that i NEED one of these before my trip to hawaii... i mean, it has ibooks... and internet...*sigh* i'm so in love. i can't wait to have one of these little beauties in my hands!!! they're supposed to be available sometime in march. i'm already on the list, and i'm counting down the days!

3.01.2010

bobbi browns spring/summer cabana collection!

out of all the cosmetics companies in all the world, bobbi brown is my absolute favorite. hands down. have a looksee at her new cabana collection... it's just gorgeous! you can see more of her pretties here.


2.27.2010

a few etsy favorites~



i've been collecting these for a year now. stepanka is an incredible artist, and her work is amazing.
pink cloud- small  porcelain wall pillow

porcelain pillows by stepanka

only you know -  porcelain wall pillow


this is the look i'm going for... needless to say, i'm still adding to my collection...
only you know -  porcelain wall pillow


here's a tiny woodland terrarium toadstool ring from woodlandbelle.
Tiny Woodland Terrarium Toadstool Mushroom and Butterfly Ring



i am a bookworm print from vol25
i am a bookworm- new for august



you are my sunshine print from thewheatfield
13 x 19 You Are My Sunshine


come float in my pond necklace by blockpartypress
Come Float in My Pond Necklace


my block necklace, by blockpartypress
My Block Necklace







2.25.2010

the blind side...DVD

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B002VECM72.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

i can not WAIT for this to come out on dvd. cowboy took me to see it when it first came out, and spent the entire movie nudging me and making comments about how my personality is similar to leigh anne touhy... which i of course took as a compliment, thank you very much. :) {and i know that he likes me fiesty and wouldn't have it any other way...it's keeps him guessing and on his toes. god forbid we have a dull moment.} ;) so, on march 21st, i will be making a special trip to the store to get a copy of my very own. :)

summer dreamin'


2.23.2010

vintage hawaii



i love hawaii. and when i say "love," i TRULY mean L.O.V.E., *LOVE*! and i'll be going back to this place in which my soul calls "home" in may, and i couldn't be more excited about it. this will be my third trip, and i doubt any of the "magic" of the island will disappoint. i'm going with 3 friends while cowboy holds down the fort {and the kids} at home... what a GrEaT, WoNdErFuL, guy i have!