Wish list...

This camera looks like SO much fun!!  A little modern, and a little retro. It takes mini instant film (think Polaroid), so you receive instant credit card size pictures at a click of a button.  Ahh, definitely something that I would put on my wish list. 

These are a few of my favorite things...

When it comes to new and innovative products, I always get this great desire to try them all out (Mascara is especially tempting to me - it seems like they're *always* coming out with something new!). Trying out new products for me is like opening up a great unknown present. Even if I'm still using a similar product, I will break open the newer product and try it out a couple of times before going back to my old one and using it up. Silly, I know. To my husband's great delight, I don't succumb to this desire very often (for which he's grateful), but when I do, there's usually great rejoicing on my part. ;)

I recently purchased Loreal's "Go 360° Clean" at Ulta (love that store!) and I can't say enough good things about it. I love the cleanser and the design of the bottle, but what I love the most is the little scrubby (Scrublet) thing that stores in the bottle...such a smart design! Between the cleanser and the scrublet, all traces of makeup are completely removed (a good way to test and see if all makeup is removed, it to put a little facial toner on a cotton ball and swipe it across your face - it's amazing how dirty ones face can be even without makeup on!). The scrublet might be small, but it's a powerful small! I have to say, it's probably the best $6.00 that I've spent in a long time. So yes, I'm a happy girl and finally content with a facial wash that actually does what it says. :) Yay!

So what's your new favorite beauty item?

A silly question answered.

You know those silly questions that you get asked every now and then...the ones that start like this: If you had an unlimited supply of money what would you do with it? Well, today I know exactly what I would *selfishly* do with it. I would use it to redecorate my home.

Every Spring I get like this. The decorating bug bites hard and I find it difficult not to drool over decorating websites, magazines and shows...and don't even get me started on how hard it is to steer my butt over to the diaper aisle rather then the home decor area at the store.

I love everything about decorating. I love decorating my face (makeup) and nails, my body (clothes and shoes), my home, even my food (garnishing, etc.). It's something that I can start and finish and see the final result. I've always been like that. One of my favorite channels to watch on TV growing up was HGTV - I loved watching people start with an ugly room and watch it transform into a gorgeously decorated piece of art. Fashion and human makeover shows came in at close second. ;)

I seriously can't wait to own a house where I can paint the walls and hopefully have more space to make it our very own. I'm looking forward to making Simon's room special and fun and making our room romantic and comfy. I just wish it didn't cost so darn much. I guess I'll just have to get creative with my spending; go garage saleing/thrift store shopping and make friends with criagslist. But oh it would be so much easier and way more fun to go on

www.anthropologie.com

www.modernnursery.com

www.crateandbarrel.com

www.potterybarn.com (www.potterybarnkids.com)

www.landofnod.com

and click add to cart...checkout.

Saturday Volleyball

I like to blog on Saturdays. When I do get the chance to sit down and write on the weekend, it usually means that it's a laid back kind of day, where nothing much is going on...it also hints at the fact that Simon is napping and the apartment it quiet.

I'm really looking forward to this afternoon's activities. Ben&Bethany are throwing a post wedding party at their new place and we're pretty excited about going over and fellowshipping with friends and family...and seeing their place. Oh, and did I mention that there's going to be volleyball? VOLLYBALL!! :) Anyone who really knows me knows that I love, love, loooove, that game. I used to play all.the.time and grew to love the sport in a deep way (I even watch it on TV when it's on - lame, I know). So yes, I have to say that I'm looking forward to playing today in this extra gorgeous weather.

Whenever I think of volleyball, I think of Flint and I think of my brother, Nate who is quite good and still plays a few times a week in local church gyms. I love playing v-ball with him and always am in awe at his skills on the court. He really puts his all into the game and will not think twice at sacrificing his body for the sport. lol, we have been known to compare bruises and back in the day, rug burns (yes, we used to play on carpet...lol). These pictures were taken a year ago this month when I went to visit my family. I can't believe it's been that long since I last played!

Okay, so this post turned out to be all about volleyball. That wasn't intentional, I really didn't have a topic in mind when I sat down at the keyboard to write. Oh well, I guess it had to be about something. ;) I hope you all have a wonderful weekend doing something that you love. I know I will. :)

tomorrow...tonight...today.

Tomorrow, we shall do something that we've never done before - put in an offer to a house that we hope to own as our own. It's been a roller-coaster ride for this house, but we both feel confidant enough about it to make an offer. I'm excited.

Tonight my friend Rosanna and I will get together with our little ones as our husbands are away celebrating Man Fest 2010. I think this is the third Man Fest since we've all been friends. Us girls usually do something while the boys are away celebrating their manliness. Johanna wasn't able to make it, so it's just Ro and myself tonight (we'll miss you JO!!). We're planning on eating yummy Indian food, and watching a chick flick...and somewhere in-between putting our boys to bed.

Today, we had our first batch of April Showers. It thundered and rained pretty hard. As I gaze out our balcony window I'm amazed at how green the grass looks! YESSS!! I'm not a huge fan of rain, but every now and then it's okay - especially when I get to stay indoors and enjoy it safe and warm. ;)

((As I type, the sun is shining right into our apartment. I love the sun...and I love that it's still around at 7:00pm. :D))

P.S.
Joshua Radin is officially my new music crush. ;)

Adios March...it's been a fun adventure.

March is over and done with. I shall never forget March 2010. It was a crazy and fun and ever-so-busy month for us and our extended family. I've decided to sit myself down and try to sort this past month out. I can already tell this will be a long post so bear with me.
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WEEK ONE:

{friends}
The month started off with hanging out with friends. My friend Brandy moved to a different state and so we spent a lot of time hanging out and cherishing the last few days that we had together. We also had one last girls night out with all 5 of us. It was fun hanging out with my girls and enjoying the fellowship and funny conversations.



WEEK TWO:

{shower 3.10}
My dear sister (in-law) Bethany got married on the 12th. Ruth and I threw her a personal shower a couple days before her big day. We had fun decorating my apartment and making it all girly. The cake I made turned out really well too (whew). We shared many laughs that night as we showered Beth with fun and playful presents. Here are a couple pictures of the glorious food. :D




{wedding 3.12}
Friday was an exciting day for the Gulbranson (and Harzell) family. I arrived at the church around noon to help the girls get ready. I had my trusty makeup apron full of my brushes and my fun makeup kits too. I enjoyed helping Beth with her hair and makeup. She looked stunning. It was a rushed process with doing the bridesmaids makeup, but we survived and I think the girls looked wonderful. The wedding was gorgeous and perfect. Simon didn't make it all the way down the aisle as the ring bearer, but he did make an effort and I have to say looked pretty swell in his suit. I love my kid. The reception was kind of a blur as we were chasing after our little one the whole evening. I think next time we go to a family wedding, we'll hire a babysitter to come with us to watch our kid(s) so we don't miss everything. Whew, where we ever exhausted that night when we got home - who knew chasing after a 19 month old could be such a workout (especially in heals). ;)





**All of these wedding pictures are courtesy of Abigail Stranz (and her sister Sarah). They did a wonderful job - check out Abby's website: http://www.wix.com/Abbiegirl/BeautifulMoments

THIRD WEEK:

{family drama far, far away 3.17}
My little brother Josiah (12 yrs) broke his left clavicle while riding his bike. My dear mom has gone 26 years without any of her kids braking a bone. Leave it to Josiah to break that record (haha, no pun intended). ;) It's hard living so far away when stuff like this happens. You just want to give the kid a hug (side hug in his case) and pamper and make him feel better. Poor little guy...lol, I say little, but really he's almost as tall as I am. Gah!

{baby 3.19}
This week was also a fun week for the Gulbranson family. Peter's older brother, Matt and his wife Jackie had their first baby on the 19th (one week after the wedding). Jackie should get an award for not having the baby the week before (we were all holding our breath and crossing our fingers that she would wait until after the wedding so they wouldn't have to miss it). Penelope Danger Gulbranson was born on a Friday, with a beautiful head of hair and a beautiful spirit. We went to visit them at the hospital that next day. She's such a gorgeous little baby and I can't wait to watch her grow up...and I get to spoil her too, 'cause I'm an AUNT!! :D Peter and I are both excited to be Aunt and Uncle for the very first time.


{house hunting 3.20}
Peter and I met with our Realtor on Saturday to look at a few houses...6 to be exact. This was our first experience with the whole house-buying process (other then applying and getting approved for a loan). We came away from the experience a little dazed and depressed. It's tough being on a budget and feeling like you're settling for less then you want. But that's how it has to be sometimes. Someday... ;) We didn't really find any that we were comfortable with (they all had characteristics that we liked, but sadly the bad outweighed the good).

FORTH WEEK:

This week was full of random things that kept us busy. We babysat for friends, I finalized and sent out my music CDs (see emotional music post), worked out, had a date with my husband, got my hair cut - AHH!!, saw an additional 4 houses (more on that later) and had dinner with Matt and Jackie (Shane and Jess) and baby Penelope (among other things that would simply bore you to tears).

{house hunting take two - 3.27}
So like I stated above we saw an additional 4 houses on Saturday. We were only impressed with one of the houses. It started off quite awkward as the whole family was there when we stepped in to see the house, and to make matters worse they didn't speak English. Awkward! We did end up poking our heads into each room to get an idea as to what the layout was like and how big the rooms were, even though there were people napping (including a brand new baby). We pretty much liked everything about the house (layout, neighborhood, landscape, lawn, garage and shed). The only downside was that they were in the process of fixing the roof. There was some pretty serious damage done to it and even though they're fixing it, it's made us a little nervous about going forward with putting in an offer. It's also a short sale house, so it could take quite some time before we could close on it (between that and the roof problem). It's all in God's hands and I know that if this isn't the house for us, then He has a better one waiting for us. :)

FIFTH WEEK:

{miscellaneous stuff 3.29-31}
Monday, we went and looked at the house again (along with another possible house that we were thinking of - that house needed too much work though, and we decided that it wasn't worth it). Tuesday, I worked out and had Small Group at our place, and Wednesday, I called my little brother, Matthew who turned 22 that day to wish him a happy birthday. I'm blown away at how fast my younger siblings are growing up. Crazy!

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So yeah, that was March 2010. We went through the whole month without a single snow flake, which is crazy because March tends to be the snowiest month of all here in MN. Apparently we haven't gone without snow in March for 130 years - pretty impressive, right?! I'm looking forward to April where the weather will be gorgeous, the grass will be greener and the trees will start to bud at a faster rate. Adios March, Hola April.