Wordless Wednesday

Tags

AKA4, contest, photography, winner

Super excited that this photograph of my 4-year-old beauty won a contest!
• Wordless Wednesday •

iPhone camera + Instagram app.
❤

Motherhood: True Story

Tags

moms, my day, true story

My Home Office Inspiration :: Dwell Studio & hp

Tags

Decor, Design, Dwell Studio, Home, hp, Inspiration, Office, style

Dwell Studio, a sweet jewel box nestled in the heart of SoHo, is where I found fashionably elegant decor and great inspiration for my future home office — thanks to Dwell Studio Owner, Christiane Lemieux and hp.

At this event, an elite group of bloggers, including my sister Kristin and myself encircled the loveliest coffee table and lounged on a collection of chic furniture while the delightful Christiane gave us need-based home office style suggestions. Goal: “Make it personal. Functional. Your own. Organized.” ~Christiane

Each blogger shared their home office dilemmas and were eager to browse the Dwell Stuio showroom & the web for lush wallpapers, brilliant fabrics, quality trinkets and the latest furniture to create an inspiration board.

{Above: Dagmar sharing her pre-DwellStudio-visit home office.}

Thanks to hp, we were able to scour the Dwell Studio website {quickly} by tapping and swiping the touch-screen monitor of the hp ENVY 20 TouchSmart all-in-one Desktop PC… Wow! We used another super user-friendly hp product too, and it’s WIRELESS! The hp Photosmart 6520 e-all-in-one Printer allowed us to upload from our smart devices, print and use lab-quality photos on our boards. This printer is ideal and a MUST for every home office! Totally inspiring!

In no time, my inspiration board was filled with a myriad of architectural charm, whimsy and a splash of glam.

This photo was taken just outside the Dwell Studio door! I absolutely love the lion head, Corinthian scrolls & dab of color.

& this one, of my CarseatDancers, taken just prior to leaving CA on my NYC trip. My family inspires me daily.

My sister and I shared our creations with the group; it was fantastic to see such an eclectic mix.

We voted for our most favorite design and the winner won a home office makeover courtesy of hp & Dwell Studio! Amazing job Candace!

{Above: Candace, Ghada, Suzanne, Christiane, Debbie, Sarah, Kristin, Dagmar & me.}

One of my grandest experiences. I love being a mommy blogger. Thanks to Dwell Studio and hp for a phenomenal time! Now, to get organized!

Happy Decorating!
xoox
❤
Jen

P.S. Right now, via Pinterest, you can be part of @DwellStudio ‘s sweepstakes … need. want. love. Join me!

{All statements and opinions are mine. For participating, I received a parting gift that included the awesome hp printer mentioned above.}

Dollhouse vs. LEGO Duplo

Tags

girls, play, Lego, Duplo, dollhouse

Mommy Moment

Tags

Chapstick, kids, moms

Dealing With the Dark {Toddlers}

Tags

Dark, Energizer, kids, nightlight, Target

Out of nowhere, the girls {Addison: 4 & Delaney: 3} started having nightly issues with… The Dark.
Sleepless nights and sporadic yelps in the night got my wheels turning.

My way of solving OUR sleep issue… A nightlight!

At this point, the girls adore their new nightlight & are treating it like a baby.

It’s the @Energizer character nightlight, on sale for $3.88 @Target!

Money well $pent! Let’s hope it works.
Nighty night.
❤💤
xoox,
Jen

Wordless Wednesday :: Sisterly Love ❤

Tags

@CarseatDancers, girls, kids, photo, WordlessWednesday

Skydiving Grandma … “Just ‘Mema’ to my Carseat Dancers”

Tags

bucket list, ca, Clipboard of Happiness, Fieldtrip, free falling, grandma, planes, Review, Skydive San Diego, Skydiving

My mom, “Mema” to my daughters, is no ordinary grandma.

Here’s her story:

I enjoy challenging my fears and doing things others find crazy. For many years, I have wanted to free-fall from a plane. Thirty-three years ago, I made two static-line parachute jumps from 3,000 ft. My sister-in-law wanted to check skydiving off her bucket list, and I planned to go and watch. That morning, I decided I had to join them.

So, last Saturday, I went skydiving with my brothers, Fred and Bill, and my sister-in-law Carolyne at Sky Dive San Diego, just north of the border with Mexico.

As the plane climbed, my jump master pointed out when we were at 3,000 feet and that looked pretty high. But we had 10,000 more feet to go; the tandem jump was from 13,000 feet! As we readied for the jump, I had to sit on the jump master’s lap in order to hook together. When the large door opened, we waddled to the door, heart pounding, and tumbled out! We spun and rolled until we were facing down. Off in the distance was the horizon and downtown San Diego. It was amazing and adrenaline pumping as we were free-falling at 120 MPH! Wind raced past my ears as I stretched out my arms pretending I was flying. We turned in circles, getting amazing views of the land in all directions. As our parachute opened, I was able to get a sense of how fast we were moving when the photographer continued free-falling, dropping away from us at an incredible speed.

The drop then became quiet and peaceful as we floated for five to ten more minutes, enjoying the sights so few people will ever see without a window. We gently landed, smiles all around, pulse still racing. I checked free falling off my ‘Clipboard of Happiness’ as my sister-in-law Melissa would say!

Happy Easter

Tags

easter, eggs, Family, girls

:: Happy Easter :: Traditions ::

Every Easter, since I was a tot, the tradition has been to scour the house in the wee morning hours in search of your Easter basket. A basket hidden by the Easter Bunny as everyone slept.

The tradition continued this morning. Only thing was that Addison4 hadn’t been reminded of the unwritten “rules.”

{Just search. Don’t touch. Don’t tell.}

My hubby and I were startled awake as she squealed at our bedside, schlepping Mommy & Daddy’s basket, Delaney3′s basket & her own upstairs. Grinning ear to ear and wearing the Hello Kitty swim goggles that she found in her basket. Innocence is bliss.

Later… The Egg Hunt!

& Just before Easter dinner, our family photo session. {Another tradition.} Notice the frown on our adorable yet stubborn Delaney’s face; she really wanted THE golden egg.
37 pictures later…

& one with Mema & Papa too!

Happy Easter!
❤Jen

Who’da Thought Interior Design Could Come From…

Tags

basspro shops, Decor, dwell studios, interior design, style

It’s Spring Break. So, my hubby & I decide to take the girls on a field-trip, to BassPro Shops. Now, lets get this clear before you start to ponder my happenstance, I’m a California girl through & through but the hubs has ties to Minnesota. {Side note: He even went “hunting” last season. Wilderness 1 : Brian 0.} Anyway…

We walked in & I was awestruck! The decor, minus the taxidermy and camouflage, was to die for. No pun intended. The mix of masculine stone & smooth wood finishes was just perfect. Who’d a thought interior design could come from a place such as this?

While walking through I started to picture a home filled with some of the treasures here. Then wondered what you’d call a design style combined with BassPro, a splash of Dwell Studio {having just laid eyes on this ‘Chic & Polished’ jewel box last week} and a sprinkle of Tuscany?

Any suggestions on the name of my design style?

Hey, a girl can dream… Right? Someday.

All in all, we had a successful experience. We only spent $60!

Happy shopping!
❤Jen
@CarseatDancers