it's nearly that time

My half birthday is in a week.

What does this mean? It's simple, friends!

It means that I pine away for things that I won't buy myself and imagine that I will wake up to a room full of balloons that will never ever deflate or pop. The day will be approximately 85 degrees and I can walk around in a pouffy skirt that resembles a tutu. I can do this without fear that I will blind anyone because my legs will have a delightful bronze tone and I will have gotten it without having to expose myself to any dangerous rays. Glitter will make the ground shimmer and shine. Magazines that I love, yet never subscribed to, will magically appear in my mailbox.

Oh what a lovely day!

What will really happen on my half birthday is I will go to work, hear some hilarious kids saying amusing things, sit for an hour watching them take the Science NECAP {yikes} test and I will peruse ebay, etsy, and J.Crew's website to ooh and aah over cute things. What kind of cute things? Let me regale you with my wants & yearnings right now.

Peter Pan collar

Michael Kors Buckle Bangle

Tory Burch ballet flats

Ann Taylor's Ombre Pleated Skirt

Anthropologie Viscid watch

birdcage umbrella

Mini Storage Rack

girl scouts

This is the first year in at least 10 years that I haven't bought any girl scout cookies. It might be because they cost $3.50 a box and I wolf them down in two minutes {oh samoas, you sexy things you} or that I found recipes to make my own cookies that are just as tasty. Whatever the reason, I'm going to share some girl scout cookie-inspired recipes that I found in my time spent on bed rest.

samoa fudge via somethingswanky

chocolate coconut bars via Martha Stewart

samoas brownies via Six Sisters' Stuff

tagalong peanut butter parfaits via My Baking Addiction

homemade tagalongs via Bakers Royale

Tagalong dip via Something Swanky

thin mint magic cookie bars via SomethingSwanky

thin mint pie via cookie madness

Those are my 3 favorite types of cookies, obviously. I do love a good Do-si-do, too. Are you going to try any of these recipes?

babies r us

Babies are everywhere. 2 of my three sisters are pregnant right now, 2 of my favorite coworkers just found out they're having babies, my friend Kassy is due in October. Phew. So many tiny feet that I'm going to be seeing at the same time! I already have 2 nieces and a nephew { you met them here and here} and I love them tremendously. One might think that with all this baby fever my clock is starting to tick but instead my desire to dress & photograph these little biddies is explosive. Today I'm going to be working on art projects for my sisters for their respective shower & sprinkle {Terri had a shower for Adriana, so she gets a sprinkle} so there won't be a long update today. Instead, enjoy these pictures of various cuties that I found {source: pinterest}:

This would be a nice way for my sister to let everyone know whether she's having a boy or a girl... just saying...

 These aren't really meant for more than to amuse you and they should definitely amuse you because they're ridiculous.

inspire me

You might be getting sick of hearing me rave about pinterest, so if you are you might want to leave now.

Before there was pinterest, there were magazines all over my floor, scissors grazing glossy pages, and glue sticks gliding across the pages of one of many sketchbooks. I haven't given up on keeping my inspiration pages; in fact, I've only gotten more adept at keeping track of the pretty pages that I love.

Collecting inspiration has become a lifelong job. Over the years I've clipped pictures of New Kids on the Block {Joey was my flavor}, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, cute tops from the Delias catalog, abercrombie models, and tips from Cosmopolitan. This led to me clipping outfits from catalogs, flyers, and magazines.

I mentioned in this post that I was going to tell you about my inspiration books and, my friends, this is the day I unearth the beast.

These are some examples of the little gems that I've found. Sorry about the terrible quality, but the lighting in my living room is TERRIBLE.

When I've finally got enough of whatever I want to paste, I organize them in one of my books. I have another book like this and a few smaller ones, too.

Until I'm ready to put everything into my books, I store them in file folders & envelopes. Organizing is a complete obsession for me. It helps that I have summers off.

I organize it just like I do my pinterest- 

crafts, fashion & style, pretty words & images, bridal stuff, beauty & hair, recipes, decor, and education. Did I mention a folder for miscellaneous things? 

Here's the funny thing- in all the time I've been saving these clippings, I haven't once finished an inspiration book. Partway through I come up with a new way to organize or I decide to write something witty to go along with each picture and then I get distracted. Part of my 101 goals is to finish one of my books. It's going to happen!

get inspired

I just can't get enough of pinterest! I blogged about it before here, here, and here. I've been looking up some DIY ideas and what I really want to focus on are painted canvases. Being that I'm not much of an artist, I've been sticking with simple things {ampersands, patterns, chevron} and most recently quotes & phrases. I absolutely adore the little phrases that accompany the price tag at Kate Spade. Here are some of my favorites along the way. Most of these were found on pinterest:

chasing waterfalls

If you've ever seen my pinterest account, it's no surprise to you that I am a lover of all things braid {and glitter, but I digress}. One elusive braid has had my eye for quite some time and I like to call it the "thingy jigger braidy doo." Turns out it has a less fancy and much more technical name. The waterfall braid. Doh.

(images from weheartit)

http://glitter-inthegutter.tumblr.com/

luuux (I guess...I found it on google)

I have big plans {sometimes delusions} for when I have long hair & I can attempt this little beauty. Oh the flowers I will add.

Where do you go for other hair information & romance?


P.S. I've been thinking of changing things up just a little and switching this blog over to a new name. I need opinions. Wise or silly? Should I do it? I've already opened up the account {gotta get the name I want, you know} and I just don't know if I should transfer this blog & its entries over there or start fresh. What say you? Yes? No? Peut-etre?