#bucketlist

SPRING BREAK 2013: Europe!
March 20 - April 1, 2013

You can catch me visiting these fine cities:

London

PARIS

AMSTERDAM

BARCELONA 

Details to come! 

If I win the Powerball...

A little daydreaming never hurt anyone.

- pay off my mortgage and my each mortgage of my parents/siblings
- buy a gorgeous home on Greenview, just off of Southport (the Vmoon dream)
- pay off every stinking bill we have (same for parents/siblings)
- get a second car
- buy a vacation home for my family and friends to enjoy
- get a massage (every month for the rest of my life)
- travel to at least 10 different countries
- endow several scholarships
- donate to charities
- hire the BEST financial advisor and attorney to cover my ass (people like to sue!)


I love my job, but I would leave it and go work at a bakery part time.

What would you do?

Oh, my students

Today I came across an interesting Facebook post where one of my students uncovered my lovely, little blog and announced it to the world of Facebook. Apparently, some of my students aspire to be a 'kernel of the blog'.


Well, I hope Ryan and Joe like this little gif: When students ask me for advice. When students ask me for advice

 

Family Fun

This past Saturday, my whole family got together to carve pumpkins, eat chili and watch Hocus Pocus (my fav Halloween flick). It's nearly impossible to get all 13 of us together, so it's nice when it actually happens.

{ My pumpkin! }

{ the whole family }

 Did you do anything to celebrate Halloween this past weekend?

VIP

Last week, my co-worker got invited to a VIP group leader appreciation event at Wrigley Field. It turns out, all of the tickets we buy for work makes us VIP. = )

We had no idea what to expect, so we were ecstatic when we found out the event allowed us (what seemed like) free roaming access of the entire ballpark! Hubster and I have been on the field at Wrigley before (for a screening of Ferris Bueller), but we weren't allowed to tun the bases...until last Thursday! It was glorious.

Some snapshots...

{ Carrie and I }

{ Hubster and I standing on the pitchers mound }

{ That's right. I got to take batting practice under the bleachers! }

{ wouldn't trade our life for anything }

{ IVY! }

After all of the fun, we went to the party deck in the bleachers and enjoyed some ballpark food and adult libations. The staff was incredibly friendly and I'm already looking forward to going back next year!

Project Update #3

I somehow managed to makes some more progress on my homeowner project list today. The items in purple are today's accomplishments.

1. WD-40 the bathroom drawer (one day I woke up and it seemed to be fixed. yay!) 
2. Clean the vent above our AC closet
3. Finally fix the bathroom sink (it doesn't drain to my liking) --Update: Decided to hire a plumber
4. Make a cleaning calendar so I don't spend an entire weekend cleaning a 600 sf condo
5. Fix the bottom flap/gutter/whatever its called of the freezer 
6. Clean the windows on our fire escape door and put a privacy film up 
7. Put an ad on Craigslist for someone to clean all of our blinds (I've done it twice and it's not worth my misery known as allergies) 
8. Buy a fire-proof safe for our docs (I can't believe we don't have one yet) 
9. Figure a way for hubster to store all of his officiating gear so it won't drive me crazy all season 
10. Find the most amazing glass shower door cleaner and buy it in bulk (not really, but really) 
11. Buy 2 more pretty plastic containers for my silverware (future post so you know what I'm talking about) 
12. Take a gander for paint color (just an accent wall) -- Update: Found a color and decided to paint the entire living room/entry way with Behr Basketry. Now I just have to find time to paint. 

I also finished a DIY project that I started about 6 months ago. A while back, I covered a bulletin board with fabric and turned it into a jewelry board for my necklaces. Today, I finally hung the board  so it no longer leans against the wall on top of the dresser. Success! 

Home Projects Update

It's been too long, so I figured I would check-in with how I'm doing on my homeownership projects.

1. WD-40 the bathroom drawer (one day I woke up and it seemed to be fixed. yay!) 
2. Clean the vent above our AC closet
3. Finally fix the bathroom sink (it doesn't drain to my liking) 
4. Make a cleaning calendar so I don't spend an entire weekend cleaning a 600 sf condo
5. Fix the bottom flap/gutter/whatever its called of the freezer 
6. Clean the windows on our fire escape door and put a privacy film up 
7. Put an ad on Craigslist for someone to clean all of our blinds (I've done it twice and it's not worth my misery known as allergies) 
8. Buy a fire-proof safe for our docs (I can't believe we don't have one yet) 
9. Figure a way for hubster to store all of his officiating gear so it won't drive me crazy all season 
10. Find the most amazing glass shower door cleaner and buy it in bulk (not really, but really) 
11. Buy 2 more pretty plastic containers for my silverware (future post so you know what I'm talking about) 
12. Take a gander for paint color (just an accent wall) 

I'm not nearly as far along with the projects as I would like to be. Do I get bonus points for at least thinking about them in my head? 

I haven't been at home the last few weeks, so it's been hard to get anything done around the house. This weekend I am going to work on #3, #5, #9 and #10. Call me ambitious. 

You can see that I completed #11 - make a useable silverware drawer. In the 3 years I've lived in my condo, my silverware has had 3 different homes. The guy who did the gut rehab of our unit put in some very odd sized drawers. As such, I have never been able to find a silverware holder to fit any of the drawers. I finally found a solution at The Container Store. I couldn't find the exact tubs online, but they were $4.99 each. I can't tell you how nice it is to finally have an organized silverware drawer! 

Homeownership Projects

Forget spring cleaning; I'm doing an autumn cleaning! I think we can all agree that Labor Day officially marks the end of summer. I spent this entire week helping college freshmen settle into college life and the school year starts up on Wednesday. Once this happens, my free time goes out the window. So...

I've been accumulating a cleaning/fixing to-do list for our sweet little condo. It's a lovely 1-bedroom in the heart of LP (that's Lincoln Park for you non-city folks) and we've called it home since October 2009.

I'm tired of putting the to-do list off to the side, so here it is:

1. WD-40 the bathroom drawer
2. Clean the vent above our AC closet
3. Finally fix the bathroom sink (it doesn't drain to my liking) 
4. Make a cleaning calendar so I don't spend an entire weekend cleaning a 600 sf condo
5. Fix the bottom flap/gutter/whatever its called of the freezer 
6. Clean the windows on our fire escape door and put a privacy film up 
7. Put an ad on Craigslist for someone to clean all of our blinds (I've done it twice and it's not worth my misery known as allergies) 
8. Buy a fire-proof safe for our docs (I can't believe we don't have one yet) 
9. Figure a way for hubster to store all of his officiating gear so it won't drive me crazy all season 
10. Find the most amazing glass shower door cleaner and buy it in bulk (not really, but really) 
11. Buy 2 more pretty plastic containers for my silverware (future post so you know what I'm talking about) 
12. Take a gander for paint color (just an accent wall) 

Wow. Being a home owner is serious business. = ) 

How are you spending your holiday weekend? 

Gentlemen of the Road

On Friday, K and I packed up our bags and headed to Dixon, IL for the Gentlemen of the Road Tour.

A few highlights of the trip:

The town of Dixon greeted GOTR with open arms. 

via

via

We camped in a small closet, tent.

We enjoyed the sweet music of some pretty amazing bands. 

Gogol Bordello

Gogol Bordello

via

via

 AND, we snagged free wristbands to an after-show. I guess that's what happens when you are nice to the producer of the show. = )

 A few personal pics...

The people of Dixon were so friendly and the concert attendees were happy to see a small town get a boost of tourism for a weekend. Good feelings all around. 

What a great weekend!
 

Summer wrap-up {part 1}

It's here...the Gentlemen of the Road Tour.

Camping, Food, Beer, Friends, Music - does it get any better?

Hitting the open road and sharing a tent (with lows in the 40s) with this lady all weekend:

What are your weekend plans?

Weekend Recap

This weekend was quite a whirlwind of being busy. I took off Friday so I could relax and prep some dishes for a baby shower I was co-hosting on Saturday morning. The shower was for my sister-in-law who is due to have a baby girl at the end of October.

Hand-made banner by moi

Yummy desserts { fruit pizzas, blueberry coffee cake and thumbprint cookies }

Drink bar { iced tea, make your own mimosa, and pretty girl punch }

On Sunday, the hubster and I went to see one of his favorite bands play at Ravinia. If you live near the North Shore, you need to check out this crown jewel. What's better than having a picnic with BYOB as you listen to your fav bands perform live? Though we bought tickets to see Train, I was pumped to find out that Andy Grammer AND Mat Kearney were the openers. 3 amazing bands for only $33 per ticket? Yes, please.

Finding ways to pass the time waiting for the bands...Uno, anyone? 

 

My love and I

How did you spend your weekend?

Styles I'm Loving

With the start of a new school year comes a breath of fresh air in terms of wardrobe. I can't even put into words how much I love autumn (trust me, a post is coming). Thanks to Pinterest, I've been able to curate an ideal work wardrobe that a 27 year old woman should own. I can't believe I still wear some clothes from college. What a crime. 

I present, the lovelies...

via

via

via

via

What is your go-to work style for fall/winter? 

Reunited and it feels so good!

I think it happens to every blogger. There comes a time when the ideas stop flowing, you get tired of writing and you lose motivation. This happened to me. Twice. I'm so done with the blogger block.

Over the past few months, I discovered some new and exciting blogs. They're the kind of blogs that I sink into my office chair with a cup of coffee in hand,  excited to see what's in store. It's a new kind of love. 

Because I'm not one to torture, here is a list of the oh-so-lovely blogs I speak of: 

The EveryGirl - A total must read. Bonus points for being a Chicago startup. Also, I get giddy when I know we frequent the same places. Julius Meinl, anyone? 

It's tough to say I love The EveryGirl, without saying I absolutely adore the co-founder's blogs, Breakfast at Toast and Live Creating Yourself. The three blogs are seriously a trifecta of fabulous. 

Kendi Everyday - One word: fashion. She's inspired me to rethink how I curate my wardrobe. Yes, curate. Fancy word (see: talk so pretty). I even bought a tunic from her Texas boutique, Bloom. 

Things That Sparkle - A perfect blend of design and personal blogging at its finest. Adore. 

The Small Things Blog - Come on. Everyone (and I do mean everyone) has seen her 'bouncy curled under bob. Look no further for hair tutorials! 

These are just a few of my favorite blogs. I'm back and it feels so, so good. 

Back!

Well, it's been a while but I'm back at Midwest Sass. Since March is the start of so many wonderful things (mostly spring-like weather), I'm going to participate in the March Photo-a-Day Challenge that spotted I on elefanitas alegres.

Day 1: Up

My view walking into Chicago Union Station last night for the free Sara Bareilles and Maroon 5 Concert thanks to #plotyourescape.

...and because I simply cannot resist, here are photos from the concert last night!

The co-hosts for the evening...G&B Rancic. Love, love, love them. They are the cutest couple on the earth and are quite affectionate with each other in real life.

Slightly blurry, but Maroon 5 front runner himself...Adam Levine.

One more...

 

I've never been to a Maroon 5 concert before, but I plan to go to another one after last night's performance. Song after song, they didn't quit. Plus, Adam has some pretty good dance moves. = )