21 Dates of Summer: Dance Lessons + Front Porch Coffee

June 27, 2012

Dancing is one of my passions. It runs in my blood. When my sisters and I get together, there is always a dance party involved. Lucky for me, Gabe loves to dance too. I knew Gabe was planning a birthday surprise, but when he told me it was Rhumba dance lessons, I almost cried I was so excited. We have talked about taking dance lessons together since we got married! When I dance, I just move with the beat. Following formal instructions is a whole different experience…

(Blurry dance action;)

After the lesson you get to go do the “dance party” afterwards and dance the night away with good music and other couples, who I am pretty convinced must live there to be so good at dancing;)

Gabe played the trump card with this one. It will be one of my favorite birthday memories for years.

(someone crashed our date!)

This date happens often in the summer, and doesn’t require a babysitter. We just get up early, head out to our front porch, have iced coffees and talk about life. Probably one of my favorite dates to do.

So blessed to have this guy as my spouse in this life.

He makes this world pretty wonderful.

Keep sending us date ideas. We are taking notes! x

Art Print or Ad space Giveaway with Casey Wiegand

June 26, 2012

You may or may not know of this beautiful mama of soon to be three.

If you are familiar, she most likely is one of your favorite daily reads.

If you don’t know her, its time you met! Inspiration comes out of the seams of this girl’s blog.

What I love most about Casey Wiegand is that she passionately shares what she loves in a successful and beautiful way. For instance, have you seen her art shop??

I am so thrilled to host this giveaway today for you IHOD readers.

Casey is giving away any art piece of choice to the lucky winner OR a large ad space on her blog.

We can’t wait to pick a winner. Easy entries for all through rafflecopter below! Best of luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

True Beauty Files: Stripes + Gingham

June 25, 2012

{Stripes: Banana Republic, Gingham: Banana Republic (similar), Denim: Gap, Shoes: Target, Necklace: Ebay, Watch Aldo, Bracelets: Loren Hope, Etsy}

These are the type of prints I love to wear in the summer. A little gingham here…a little stripes there…and always a good dose of yellow. I will be re-mixing these numbers often!
What are your summer frequents?

Had quite a fun-tastic birthday thanks to Gabe. He never ceases to amaze me. (Will share more on Wednesday:)

P.S. Now you know something new about me. I have to wear glasses when I drive, watch movies, or work behind the computer!

The True Beauty Files:

A lookbook for the modern modeste.

“The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman is seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It’s the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows & the beauty of a woman only grows with passing years.”

~ Audrey Hepburn

Shop Feature: Parc Boutique + Noble House for Bauble Bar

June 22, 2012

You know I love to let you all in on new boutiques on the block…

I just discovered Parc Boutique. An online boutique with store located in Minneapolis.

Check out their amazing pieces here.

1 / 2 / 3 / 4

Bauble Bar is one of my top shops for statement necklaces. They recently launched a pop-up shop feat. Noble House Designs, which I kind of died over. Noble House has been a long time favorite etsy shop, so this collaboration is hot news folks!

Hope you all have a beautiful June weekend!

P.S. You can follow some of the weekends birthday surprises on instagram🙂

June 21, 2012

This is such a fun series, and I am thankful to Ashley for asking me to be a part of it! My name is Anna, and I blog over at IHOD. When I think of prep, I think of pink. One of my favorite ways to style pink is with navy. Its a classic with a little edge. I hope you enjoy these Room to Wear pairings!

(via Spearmint Baby & Kendi Everyday)

(via Katie Armour & Ruche Boutique )

What is your favorite preppy color combo?

Take 3 DIY’s: Gold Tube Bracelets, Ombre Vase, Tubing Table

June 21, 2012

1). DIY Gold Tubing Bracelets – Honestly WTF

2) DIY Ombre Jug Vase – Creme de La Creme

3) DIY Copper Tubing Table – Design*Sponge

Hi friends, I have loads of work to catch up on and wasn’t able to get my DIY together for this week, which means I get to share some of my favorites from around the blogosphere!

Hope you enjoy these! So much talent to be inspired from:)

P.S. I just want to remind you all how much I appreciate your visits, comments, and emails. It really makes me love what I do. It may take me a while to get back to you, but know in the meantime how much I value you! I am much quicker at responding via facebook, twitter, or instagram if you have questions! Also, if you are an email subscriber, you may have noticed a few changes that needed to be updated! Hope you enjoy:)

21 Dates of Summer- Date 3: Book Hunting + Trader Joe’s

June 20, 2012

Before we were dating in college, a small group of us friends would plan study time at Barnes and Noble. It would always involve a lot of laughter and ruckus. I dared Gabe once to take a few books and pretend to trip and fall in front of the middle clerk desk. I cried laughing because he pulled it off quite successfully, and the clerk’s reaction was priceless. Gabe earned major points that day.

We still love to visit used book stores and Barnes and Noble – we both have an appreciation for a good hard copy book, and consider it treasure hunting…