Life Lately (In the Last 6 Months) Part II

Here's what we've been up to from May through July! See Part I and Part I cont.  here!

May - In May, we celebrated our 1 year anniversary. It's crazy how fast the year went by. Actually, it's crazy to think that Dean and I have been together for 9 years total! For our first anniversary, I knew I wanted to go away and I've been meaning to get to Santa Barbara for a long time. I'll do a separate post on this since there will be lots of photos and I want to be able to give details on where we stayed, ate and the places we visited!

For now, here's a sneak peek.

Another major thing we did in May was go to Maui! I'm saving that for another full blog post as well because there's about a week's worth of details I'll need to fit in. 

It was ridiculously hot in May and all we could think of was wanting a swimming pool. Since this is not our forever home, we really don't want to invest in one. Luckily, my cousins live in a community that has a community pool. Actually, it's better than a community pool...it's like a resort!

June - In June, I got the itch to redecorate. I had been wanting to move a few things around at home but just never had the energy or the time to do it. One Saturday, I finally did and convinced Dean to help me. 

I don't have a before picture of the room, but I snapped this photo when we were taking down the bookcases that lived in the front room.

And here's the after!

xx, Shiela

Life Lately but Part I - Continued

While I was putting together Part I, Dean came home from running errands and grocery shopping and I got all distracted with all of the goodies he came home with. We recently replaced our cookware set and he needed to exchange one piece...more on that on a later post.

Anyway, I completely spaced and didn't include so many more things we did in April. So, this post is a continuation of my updates for April.

My sister-in-law is pregnant and they threw together a gender reveal party. They already have one boy and girl and this next baby is going to be their tie-breaker. She asked me to make a salad and although I appreciated being tasked which a very easy task, I still had to make it pretty!

I also attended my cousin's bridal shower. They had it in the foothills near where we live. Great views and lots of narrow roads = super charming.

My Free People dress.

Then, family from the Philippines came to visit so we had some family over and had a BBQ at the house. The chocolate cake you see there is from the Nugget Market. I think it's called their triple chocolate cake. Anyway, it's crazy good. It's definitely a crowd pleaser.

I think that's everything! April was so busy!

xx, Shiela

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Life Lately (In the last 6 Months) Part I

I've been meaning to get back to blogging. Not regularly of course, because I was never regularly blogging ;) I've been thinking about this blog a lot and trying to figure out what I really want out of it. My mind is always full of ideas...mental list of what I want to blog about, things I want to change around the house, places I want to visit, things I want to research and changes I want to make.

When I look at that list, I honestly think that would make for lots and lots and lots of very interesting blog posts. I just still haven't figured out how to fit this all in, how to make the blog "pretty" and how to develop original content. 

I also struggle with both putting too much information out there and would anyone care and too little information and why would it matter? But then again maybe that's the best part about blogs...is that there aren't any rules. It can be about anything, as often or not often at all, as much or very little and it would be more about me than my readers. Is there anyone out there reading this anyway? I guess I should tell people that I actually have a blog :)

Well, enough of that and let's get to some updates. I know it's been since January since I last posted so I'll try to go month by month to share what we've done!

February - Can I even remember this far back? Wasn't the Super Bowl in February? If it was, then we had a Super Bowl party and I made my first ever banana cream pie! I used store bought dough and this recipe.

We also took a day trip to Napa with a couple of our favorite friends, Ravi and Priya. We visited one of our go to's in Napa Elizabeth Spencer Wines and finished the day off at R+D Kitchen in Yountville. 

March - We celebrated a couple birthdays in March. This one is a combined birthday celebration for a couple of cousins. 

And then, of course, Easter! Our first as a married couple and it was special because we attended mass at the church where we got married. Every time we're there, it is just a nice reminder of the big day. 

April - One of our favorite things to do is go to the movies. Dean wanted to see Batman v. Superman and we love going to the Studio Movie Grill!

And then, since it was starting to warm up real fast in northern California, I was itching to to redecorate a bit and change out some of my neutral pillows for some color! I picked up this and this Shibori throw pillow covers from one of my favorite places, Pottery Barn!

I also discovered this Peanut Butter Bread recipe on Pinterest and oh. my. goodness! Try it, just try it. 

Lastly, yet another day trip to Napa with our favorite people! If your haven't noticed yet, we're always in Napa! It is only a couple hours away from us and we love it there! This trip, we have brunch at Archetype, a MUST!

Donut holes and dipping sauce with our coffees!

And I had their lemon ricotta pancakes with blueberry sauce. Yum. 

Stay tuned for updates from May through July!

xx, Shiela

2015 Holiday Season Recap II

We flew in and out of Seattle from California because it was way cheaper than taking a direct flight into Canada. Even though it was a 2 hour drive and a short wait at the Canadian border, the drive wasn't too bad and it gave us the opportunity to stop and have a Seattle day!

Pike Place Market

We got home a couple days before New Year's Eve. I have this strange rule that we at least have to spend one holiday at home during the season. I think it's because in my mind, being home for the holidays is exactly what the holidays are all about. So, since we spent Christmas away, we threw a small NYE game night pajama party with a handful of friends. 

We started off with a nice dinner with friends at Paul Martin's - a nice little neighborhood restaurant.

Then, we got back to the house, prepped some appetizers and desserts and had more drinks, played Taboo and rang in the 2016 with a handful of good friends. 

The next day after breakfast, we were supposed to head to Napa for a leisurely day wine tasting and a nice lunch. However, we underestimated how tired and slow we would be the next day and decided to check out a local winery instead. To our surprise, we had the best time, chatted with the owner and got to have some fantastic tasting wine!

Looking forward to more family time, friendships and fun in 2016!!!

xx, Shiela

2015 Holiday Season Recap - Part I

And just like that, December is over! It went by incredibly fast. In addition to being so busy at work, we decided to throw a Christmas party, visit out of town family for Christmas, host a brunch with my brother-in-law, sister-in-law and their kids and throw a NYE party! It was tiring, crazy but a whole lot of fun!

A quick photo before our Christmas party. Thanks goodness my cousin snapped this photo because it's the only one I got of both of us. 

D and I after the party. We were exhausted!

We flew into Canada a couple days before Christmas and celebrated with our family. My cousin and I love to bake so we tried this new crepe cake with Nutella ganache recipe. Truth be told, it was ok. I think we need a little practice to perfect it. 

Canada's version of the States' Black Friday is called Boxing Day and usually occurs the day after Christmas. My cousin and I had a great time shopping for Christmas decorations and clothes! We stopped at Tim Horton's for a french vanilla cappuccino and Canadian maple custard-filled donuts. YUM!!!

After Christmas, we went to see the canyon lights at the Capilano Suspension bridge. It was freezing outside and the bridge was so scary, but before it got dark the views were amazing! We made it across safely and toured the treehouse course. 

D and I also walked across the glass bottom bridge. Luckily for me, it was too dark to see how far up we were. Heights make me a little uneasy so not seeing what was down there made it manageable for me to walk across. 

Day 4, we did a Vancouver day! First stop, Luckys Doughnuts. They were delicious and definitely not your average doughnuts. Top Row/Left to Right: Peanut Butter and Jelly | Champagne | Salted Caramel | Chestnut |Old Fashioned |Apple Fritter

We also stopped at Beta 5 for some cream puffs. 

Clockwise: Apple Pie | Salted Caramel | Smoked Almond | Douglas Fir

Here's the Douglas Fir up close because it was just so stunning!

Our last day in Canada we decided to sightsee at Canada Place in Vancouver. We ate at Bow Down in Gas Town and walked off all those calories with the cousins. 

Stay tuned for Part II!

xx, Shiela

Christmas Cards Display

Again, I love this time of year. I know, you all are probably tired of hearing that. But, I can't help myself! Another tradition I love is sending and receiving Christmas cards. I get so excited to see the different ones that come in the mail.

I usually just prop them up on a bookshelf in the living room or some other haphazard display. This year, I decided to display them in the shape of a wreath on a large mirror in our dining room area. So simple, and I love how it turned out!

xx, Shiela

Christmas Time!!!

I love this time of year! The chilly weather, sights and smells of Christmas time is just the best.

Ok, so we're friends right?! Right. So, confession time. We started decorating  in early November, which, I'm usually super against decorating before Thanksgiving. I'm a one holiday at a time celebrator. It's a thing people. Anyway, this year, I could not wait! I justified the early decorating situation because we had a Christmas party scheduled for the second week of December (this past Saturday, actually). So, decorate we did.

First up, our front room tree and my absolute fave! We decided on a flocked tree because well, it's stunning!

My favorite ornament. I can't help but smile. We gave this version of our Christmas card to family. We figure, they won't mind our faces on Christmas tree ornaments. 

My second favorite. This one we picked up from our Disneyland trip in early November. See this post for the recap of that trip.

Up next, our family room tree. I'm a sucker for traditional tartan decor so of course I had to incorporate some of that in our Christmas decor this year. At first, I wasn't sure if not keeping in with the same neutral decor throughout the house was going to clash. Our house is an open concept but still definitely has defined spaces. Ultimately, I decided that it's ok to break rules in decorating. More about that in another post. 

And lastly, our other Christmas card. This version we sent to friends. I figure it's better than our faces on an ornament. Ha! I just loooooove. 

xx, Shiela

Backyard Transformation

Our new home is a new build which meant the backyard was not going to be landscaped. When we moved in, it was all dirt. The good news is that our back yard is way, WAY bigger than our last and starting with a dirt backyard meant we could create whatever layout we wanted.

When thinking about landscaping, we knew we'd have to do it in phases. If you've ever tackled a landscaping project, then you'll know it's a huge investment. But, I think it's a worthwhile investment because you are extending your living space.

A few things we knew we wanted:
1) Large concrete patio - D and I love to entertain and in our last home, we had a small courtyard which we found was difficult to furnish because it felt really crowded.

2) Grass/sod- I love the look of grass and the way it feels during the summer. We would have loved to put in a pool, but since this isn't our forever home, we thought that wouldn't be a worthwhile investment for us right now.

3) Manicured tropical landscaping - ok, so this is the part that D and I don't agree on. I love a clean, manicured look with lots of green boxwoods, light, airy olive trees and large, textured magnolia trees. D, on the other hand, wants large towering palm trees and a more tropical feel.

4) Clearly defined spaces - like I said above, a good backyard allows you to expand your living space. We definitely wanted to have enough room for a dining area, lounge area, fire pit and bbq.

Here's a reminder of what our old courtyard looked like. This was the set up for the 60th birthday party I planned for my mom. 

Our dirt backyard. Yay for more space!

Phase I - large concrete patio.

Phase II - sod! Loved seeing this being dropped off in front of our house that morning!

For now, we had the contractor lay dark bark on the perimeter until we decide on what we want to plant there. 

Ready for outdoor furniture!

Looking for patio furniture inspiration.

Lounge chairs and fire pit.

Dining table and chairs.

And lastly, our first BBQ with some friends.

xx, Shiela