sometimes

November 22, 2010

jen gotch photo
sometimes i get sad. and frustrated. and impatient.
i don’t mean to, but i’m not perfect.
i have so much to be thankful for and i know need to spend more time counting my blessings…
i love my Heavenly Father and i know he loves me… and i trust him.

but right now, right this second, it’s just hard.

“verily, verily, i say unto you, ye are little children,
and ye have not as yet understood how great blessings the Father
hath in his own hands prepared for you;
and ye cannot bear all things now; nevertheless, be of good cheer,
for i will lead you along. the kingdom is yours and the blessings
there-of are yours, and the riches of eternity are yours.
and he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious;
and the things of this earth shall be added unto him,
even an hundred fold, yea, more.”

d&c 78:17-19
you can read the full chapter here.

brown’s a color right?

November 18, 2010


A few weeks ago my best 5 yr old friend, Camryn, said, “Vanessa why don’t you wear colors?” When I ask what she meant she said that I always wear black and brown.

Haha… busted!

I like black. It’s easy and I think it looks good. Coco Chanel loved black so it can’t be that bad.

And I’m a big fan of charcoal grey.

But brown… I have a deep love for brown. I swear my heart does a little pitter patter when I see a certain shade of brown. It sort of a bloomed chocolate kind of color. Like this Chloé bag I got awhile ago. If you don’t know what bloomed chocolate is then you clearly didn’t spend many of your younger years working at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory.

But Camryn is right. I’d been thinking it for awhile now. I. need. more. color.

My new favorite color (okay 2nd favorite, I still love brown) is yellow. That’s right, yellow. Well more of a mustard yellow. I know that’s a pretty big leap from all brown/black but I’m obsessed. And I’m not stopping there… red, blue, green, pink… !! And I might be throwing a print or two in the mix.

I don’t anticipate doing any outfit posts soon… while because it is a big deal to me, it’s kinda silly. And because I lack the courage. But I’ll tell you…

I snagged these Seychelles heels on sale at Nordstroms.

And this cardigan from Target.

A cute, girly top.

Green sunglasses! (baby steps here people)

A striped skirt… which I’m still working up the confidence to wear.

And a bright colored v neck or two.

Another pretty cardi.

A fun red coat … as soon as it goes on sale.

Not to mention a fun red lipstick

and all the colored tights you could want.

And here are some of my favorite bloggers who aren’t afraid to wear color (and look gorgeous doing it):

Erin of Design for Mankind

Naomi of the Rockstar Diaries

Stacey of Love & Photographs

Jessica of What I Wore

photo credit: Jen Gotch

new week’s resolutions

November 16, 2010


1. Get back to healthier eating habits. Four months after getting back from France I can no longer use the “I’m on vacation” excuse. Rats.

2. De-clutter my closet and keep stuff worth keeping. Stuff that I’ll actually wear. Stuff that fits. Stuff that didn’t once belong to a certain boy. I love Erin’s 30/30/30 project.

3. Remember to say my prayers in the morning. I don’t know why it’s so hard for me. Maybe because I’m allergic to 4 am?

4. Be patient with Harlow as she’s getting used to her pet carrier. We’re going to Utah baby!

5. Wear lipstick every day this week. It cheers me up. Is that weird?

6. Set aside some time to take some pictures. I haven’t in forever and ever.

7. Since my family is SO grumpy about holidays – I’ll put up my own decorations and I’ll put them up as early as I want. Like Wednesday! (yay!!)

Six resolutions seems good. Wait, that was seven. Whatever. Here’s to a wonderful week!

photo credit: Airfuly

sit, stay, but don’t be a heel

November 15, 2010

As much as I love Harlow she is far from perfect. I mean I don’t love it when she runs inside with muddy little paws and jumps on my bed. I don’t love it when she plays with her food until it’s scattered all over the kitchen floor. I don’t love it when she knocks over my laundry hamper and I catch her rolling around in my whites. I don’t love it when I she chews on things she knows she shouldn’t. I know it’s probably my fault. I should have trained her better. I should use more discipline. Well, that’s probably true but… I love her the way she is – even her not-so-cute habits. So thanks anyway.

She’s getting better every day but I’m not worried – I didn’t want a little robot dog anyway.

And I’m not perfect either.

I have bad days and grumpy days and days when I don’t feel like going for long walks… but she forgives me almost immediately.

She is ready to love everyone and gives affection freely. (sometimes too much… her nickname is “sneak attack open mouth kisser” for a reason)

She won’t trick herself out. Sometimes you ask for a high five you get one. Other times you’ll get a toss of her head and a loud sniff.

She knows that listening will win people’s hearts.

She sticks with the people she trusts.

She’s not easily intimitdated.

She lives in the moment.

I try not to go overboard when talking about Harlow so I don’t driver everyone crazy. Actually if you’re still reading this post I’m impressed. But I can’t help it. I really, really love her. Well a woman I work with called me on Saturday night in tears. I could barely understand what she was saying. Finally I heard “Boomer died” and my heart broke for her. Her and her husband never had kids so this dog was their family and they loved him so much. The saddest part is he was totally fine. We were talking about our dogs that day at work. Then that night he was just walking home from Woody’s, lay down and never got back up.

As you can imagine I spent most of Sunday with Harlow – extra long walks, visits to friends and puppy play dates, extra treats and lots of affection. I know it sounds lame but having a dog has been so good for me. I got her at a time when I really needed something happy in my life and she’s such a joy. We’ve agreed that she will live forever. I love my little pup!

I mean look at this face:

inspired by this post

i rely on you like yellow does on blue

November 15, 2010

I’ve been trying to get my Christmas shopping done but I’ve got a case of the “wants”…

These gold glittery Toms shoes.

Jen’s Polaroid calendar is stunning.

This leather pouch from Forest Bound. (I love everything in their shop!)

Colored tights heaven.

Nichole’s Paris poster calendar is going on my wall for sure.

You can’t have enough of Naomi’s pretty headbands.

This picture frame is beautiful.

Love this military tote.

Now that I have that out of my system I can get back to Christmas shopping.

photo: polaroid from my trip to Paris

little letters

November 3, 2010


Dear pumpkin chocolate chip cookies,
You are just too delicious.

Dear Grandma,
I love that you refer to Pretty Woman as “that hooker movie you like so much.”

Dear Netflix,
Thanks for putting The Office on instant view. I haven’t gotten anything done in several hours.

Dear crazy girl at work,
No. No you are not allowed to hit people with your bible.

Dear iPhone,
If you could stay charged for more than 20 minutes I will be your best friend.

Dear California,
It’s November. This 90 degree weather is interfering with my scarf wearing plans.

Dear Harlow,
Thanks for being my dog. And thanks for letting me dress you up like a piggy for Halloween.

Love, me

photo credit: Jaime Monfort