wish list-pendant light

I love this hand-carved porcelain pendant light from West Elm. I wish they had sold them when I was looking for new lights for my dining room to replace the one that broke! I never have been 100% satisfied with the ones I bought because they don't put out as much light as the old ones.

Road Trip to Southern Utah-Part V

{ Lake Powell }

Not being a native of Utah, I've noticed how many Utahns take this amazing lake for granted. But having a dad who loves to boat and water ski, I've learned having a lake as large and warm as this within driving distance is a benefit to appreciate.

The enormity of this lake is overwhelming. Of course, we only saw one small fraction of it on our visit (outlined in pink.) I'm told Powell has more shoreline than the entire United States coast line because of all the arms and crags.

The pink star (by Big Water) is where Tom's trailer has spent the winter while he frequents the job he has been working on there.


This map is a closeup of where we spent our time. (This is for my parent's benefit since we are working on them to come down here). Lone Rock Road leads to a public beach, shown below.

This is a vast sandy beach. I was impressed by the fact that people could pull in and park wherever they want, put their boats in the water wherever they want, and set up camp. There were a lot of people there, but it didn't seem crowded. A little further down was Wahweap Marina which had campgrounds with full facilities and boat ramps.

This picture shows Lone Rock in the background. It sticks up right out of the middle of the water. We tubed with the girls a little bit here, and the water was already warmer than most Montana lakes get all year. The weather turned a bit stormy after that, so we headed out to explore the lake (or a tiny portion of it, as you can see from the map).

You know you have $$dough$$ when your helicopters drop you and your family off on top of your double-decker houseboat that is parked on a remote beach and ready for you to enjoy for the week.

But, on our more limited budget, we still enjoyed the speedboat we rented for the day.

See the big smiles across their faces? Grandpa? Wouldn't you love to see those smiles brighten up your boat for a weekend?

Road Trip to Southern Utah-Part IV

And as promised, here is the view at the top of the hill.

Drum roll please......

There is so much beauty to behold in the desert. It was in bloom.





Tomorrow, I bring you the finale of our trip.

Road Trip to Southern Utah-Part III

The hills behind the place the trailer is parked has a web of trails weaving through them. After breakfast on Friday we packed up and headed out to explore on the four-wheelers.


An outcropping of rocks not far from the trailer. Nope, we didn't see any rattlesnakes.



Some of the trails were smooth and sandy. In the hills, the trails looked like this; rocky and rough. Can you believe Sarah actually fell asleep during our long morning ride, going over these rocky trails?

Cactus Cuties


Tomorrow I will show you the magnificent views that greeted us at the end of our ride!

Road Trip to Southern Utah-Part II

{ Coral Pink Sand Dunes }

We made a little detour on our way to Page to the Coral Pink Sand Dunes. As you can see from the picture above, it was quite windy while we were there. We didn't stay too long to endure the sand blasting.

We stayed just long enough to get a few fun photos.




This could be a fun place to play in nicer weather. Even in the wind it was a worthwhile detour to see one of many geological fascinations Southern Utah has to offer. They say the sand all blew in to that area and got stuck there.

Road Trip to Southern Utah-Part I

(an excerpt from Abby's journal)

On our way we stopped to witness the beautiful scenery of Bryce Canyon.

While we were there we visited a great little museum.

They had an amazing exhibit of butterflies from all over the world.

And lots of wildlife like this...

and this...

and this! (Even better than Cabellas.)

Candy necklaces help the miles go by faster.

And finally, we arrived in Page, where we got to camp in our trailer for the very first time.

More to come.

dining chairs

I am a big fan of bentwood chairs, and I would love to have a set of 6 or 8 for my dining room someday. I fell in love because of these chairs from Pottery Barn, which I sadly discovered are no longer available. I would have loved to mix the 2 styles shown here (in mahogany color).


I've searched online for a good (affordable) alternative, and the best I've found is this chair from a restaurant supplier, kpeterson. I like them pretty well, but I don't want to buy something too flimsy, either. It's hard to buy blind from a place like this. The price is right...


I have also searched the classifieds and ebay, but it would be a miracle to find a full set in good condition. I'm surprised there aren't more good replicas out there, considering the popularity of this style. (I see them all over interior design blogs.) So... please think of me if you ever come across a set of these in good condition. You would be my BFF!

I also like this set from West Elm. They are a bit of an investment, like the Pottery Barn chairs, so most likely I'll put off buying anything until they are discontinued, like the Pottery Barn set. But what do you think of these?

My hangup on these is they are a little more modern looking. I love modern, but with a vintage/traditional twist. Also, I should mention I have a great little set of 5 antique bentwood chairs that came with a table we inherited from Tom's grandmother. They are a bit more rough looking than I'd like to use for my primary dining room chairs, but they would be great to add in when I need extras.

My ideal dining chair is smaller than most chairs you see in traditional furniture stores. I don't like how bulky many of them are. It is nice to be able to fit more chairs around/under your table.

Do tell me what you think of my choices!

a day in the life of the girls

Brynn (our awesome babysitter) shared these pictures she took of the girls while I was at work. Yesterday she took the kids to the tulip gardens at Thanksgiving Point. They look so beautiful!

May flowers

This weekend I declared war on these:

via

On their side, a very large army. On our side:

Our neighbor's Weed Hound. A great warrior. Worked like a gem. Also on our side: beautiful weather.

After a war comes peace and prosperity. Time to plant. Here are a few things I planted this weekend:

Cowhorn and Mexibell peppers; lemon basil, cilantro, and oregano; Early Girl, Grape, and Patio tomatoes; Spaghetti squash

Annuals: Snapdragons, Viola, Petunias, and Sweet Alyssum

This beautiful rose bush . . .

. . . which produces the most beautiful lavender roses. We had lavender roses at our wedding. Aaawww.

A few tulips standing tall among the daffodils:


Sarah planted a little Chia pet at her babysitters a few weeks ago. He reminds us of Grandpa Rog 'cause he's a little bald on top. Except for the spiky hair.