26 Before Twenty-Six!

Today is my birthday! Wahooo!

I had a fantastic pre-birthday dinner last night with family and a wonderful friend, and today has been ideal. The weather has changed resulting in gorgeous trees (I inherited the tree obsession from my Mom. You should hear her scream when the leaves start changing). I took a long drive to deliver an order today and was in awe of all the beautiful colors. I've taken that drive many times before, but Fall finally hit me today and I loved it!

Anyone seen the tv show The Buried Life? Long story short, it's a group of 4 guys who got out of college and decided to make a collective Bucket List. I found the show once it was into it's second season, but the intro caught my attention.

"If you had one day left to live what would you do? Ride a bull? Throw a legendary party for everyone you love? Vegas? Now if you had your whole life to live, would you lose that drive, or would your list just keep getting longer?"

If you haven't heard of it, look it up. I think everyone but me has seen the movie The Bucket List, or at least understands the concept, but me being a bit behind everyone else, this MTV show is what got me thinking.

Instead of wasting time putting together a list of life altering experiences that will probably never happen, I've shortened the process. I'm making the next year a jam packed one full of fun ideas, new challenges, and of course a bunch of memory-making events. Here's my 26 Before Twenty-Six:

1. Take Dylan on a horse and carriage ride
2. Pay off all debt
3. Read all of Jane Austen’s books
4. Meet Bakerella
5. Go to a taping of the Martha Stewart Show
6. Take Andrew to see a Red Sox game at Fenway
7. Get my 'work' published on a baking blog/website

8. See the Trans-Siberian Orchestra again
9. Have new business branding launched by January 2011
10. Have quarterly Girl’s Weekend with Mom
11. Take professional family pictures
12. Successfully make Macarons

13. Move out of this apartment
14. Create and launch a website for the business
15. Make Hi-Hat Cupcakes
16. Feel calm and peaceful in my bedroom
17. Get into single digit jeans
18. Write every day in a journal starting in Jan 2011

19. Go on a new D.C. cupcake tour
20. Complete all painting projects
21. Make a family of snow angels with my dudes
22. Donate blood
23. Host a Surprise Party
24. Complete a sewing project from start to finish by myself
25. Decorate a cake Ribbon/Ruffle style

26. Go on a real honeymoon with my husband

The best part is that everything is 100% attainable. No insanely priced plane tickets or obvious chances of being arrested. I've got some in the works already(#8-Tickets already bought for Nov. 18th-Wahooo!), but most of them step outside of my daily routine. In an effort to make sure I do all of these, I'm planning to post each time I am able to cross a number off the list. It should be fun! Let me know if you have any questions! What things are on your short or long term Bucket List?

Another Cupcake Saturday!

A few weeks ago my Mom, sister and I headed out to crowded ol' D.C. for a Girl's weekend. We didn't want something super structured, and with all the times we got lost, it's a good thing we weren't on a strict time schedule! Time getting lost #1-on the way to the hotel near National Harbor. Once we finally got there, we snapped this picture before heading out. (Technically, I took 5 pictures, but this one was the best of them all, despite my finger covering the flash.)

At least it's something! We ended up taking one of those open top double decker bus tours through D.C. and ended up in Georgetown. Now, I wanted to be one of those crazy cupcake people who was willing to stand in line at Georgetown Cupcake, but after staying in this line for 10 minutes, I was done.

The reason I was so willing to get out of there was because of a bakery a few streets down that I heard was a 'you can't ditch this place' kind of place. Now I know that Georgetown Cupcake has a huge fan base, but with two bakeries closing at 9, I was happy to go to Baked & Wired instead. I've heard amazing things about this place, and I can honestly say there is no way some little rinky-dink fluffy cupcake with butter cream frosting could hold a candle to the dense, incredible and gigantic cupcakes that Baked & Wired has to offer. This is all that was left by the time my Mom was able to remember to grab the camera out of my bag and snap a quick picture.That's what was left of the Chocolate Cupcake of Doom(love the name!) I split that one with my sis, and then we each snagged a different kind to have later back at the hotel. She picked Red Velvet with Cream Cheese, and I went with my favorite kind of cake, Carrot!Without a doubt, my all time favorite Carrot Cake. No raisins, pecans(of which I'm not usually a fan), and delectable cream cheese frosting! I think I'm going to buy my own Carrot Cake birthday cake from them :o) After this stop, it was Time To Get Lost #2. Finding the nearest Metro stop was a nightmare. I think we ended up walking for almost an hour before we finally got to one. I was thrilled to lay down in a comfy bed after that. Nawnie was a bit wired after the second sugar rush.Next day, National Harbor! Along with the awesome view, they've got some really great shops. We stopped in a few, walked through a market where I grabbed a Sugar Cookie from the girls at Sweet Cheeks Bakery, and oooh'ed and ahhh'ed our way through an art gallery. For lunch we stopped at Potbelly's and then went to CakeLove. Now, I've seen the owner of this bakery team up with Duff from Charm City Cakes a.k.a. the Ace of Cakes team, so I figured it had to be good. They actually keep their cupcakes refrigerated which I think helps keep the cupcake thick. I'm over the fluffy air kind. We went with the Chocolate Fuzzy Wuzzy, and while the base was nice, I'm against the butter cream, so one bite and I was over it. I was happy to be distracted by our next stop, the Peeps Store!My Momma is too cute!

Me and my cute Peeps!

Just outside that place was an incredible iron/metal horse creation. Nawnie is a huge fan of horses, so I just had to grab a picture of her in front of it.Wow, huh?

Alexandria was next! I used to work there, so we headed to Old Town and ran right into another Cupcakery. I wasn't even looking for it, but I'm glad my Mom spotted it! It was a tiny little place, and before even trying a cupcake I fell in love with something else in their shop. Brown bakery boxes!Ok, so I knew before we headed into this weekend that I wanted to try a coconut cupcake at some point. Alexandria Cupcake uses butter cream frosting on all of their cupcakes, so I was a bit up in the air about what to try until I saw this.Coconut Baby! This was such a perfect cupcake. Moist, sweet, tasty, but way too small! I wish I'd bought a dozen. I'm definitely motivated to come up with a Coconut Bite now for my little biz! Next we hit a great little candy shop called Candi's Candies that specializes in lesser-known candies and especially water taffy! Barrels and barrels of it.

These are my personal favorite. I found this flavor in California in Old Sac and Candi's is the only place on this side of the country near me that has it too. It's yummy purple-y goodness!

We headed out of there, stopped by a bunch of other little shops, and then rounded out the day at another great place, Ikea! I picked up a few things that I'd seen in the catalog and managed to score a pink sofa cover for $20!!! I love it when they discontinue colors!

So, I had a fantastic weekend with the girls, can you tell? Here's my sum-up/lessons learned:

1. Ditch Georgetown Cupcake's stupid line and run as fast as you can to Baked&Wired!

2. Avoid D.C. on the day before or the day of a ralley, unless you actually want to fo to the ralley. Traffic sucks.

3. Really get to know D.C. ahead of time, or be prepared to get lost a few times. Any time my Mom and I are together in an unfamiliar area, we expect to have to ask for directions many times!

4. Support local small bakeries! The Sweet Cheeks girls were super fun, and I know what it's like to man a booth and hope and pray for people to buy my stuff.

5. Don't wear flip flops to D.C.-I'm such a dork.

6. Plan a tour of some kind where you live! I'm happy I had a chance to try other peoples' creations. It's got me moving forward with ideas for my little business!

Anyone up for Round 2 of the D.C. Cupcake Tour?

Have A Sweet Day!

Happy Mail!

Guess what wonderful little surprise was waiting for me a few days ago in our mailbox. The new Ikea Catalog!

I'm a sucker for Ikea. I used to drag Andrew hours away to San Francisco mostly because I knew on the way back we'd stop off at the awesome gigantic blue store. Thank goodness our closest one now is only 25 minutes away! Honestly, the best thing about the place is all the displays. I'd love to live in the local version of about the 200 square foot space! Their catalog is awesome because it's setup after setup. Here are some of my favorite things.

So simple, but I'm snagging up a few of these White Frames
I get my love of baskets from my Mom. I love that these ones are flexible.

Ok, I just had to throw this in here. The other half of the page had the 'Mom' washing dishes. I'm one of those o.c.d. Moms that couldn't leave my little dude with free reign over sprinkles and icing. That picture almost gave me a panic attack :o)
I'm all about the little details. I really hope Ikea sells that gigantic heart over the bed. If not, I think it should be a rule that they only use Ikea items in their catalog.
Cupcakes make any tray look better (even when the cupcakes aren't too fantastic looking)

I don't want anything on here, I just love that her hair is hot pink!
I LOVE these candlesticks. They seem totally out of the norm for Ikea, but I'm all for it!

So, who wants to come with me to Ikea?

Cupcake Time!

I received this awesome gift from my Mom last year for my birthday and fell in love with it right away.

Well almost completely. It seemed a bit dark for such a fun item, so I finally fixed it. My Mom is the great motivator, and a few days ago she came over to my place to get me going. Primed and painted, I think the Giant Cupcake fits in much better. What do you think?

Ahhh, shiny pinkness. Along with that I had to condense and reorganize all my business junk. I'd been using a small dresser for a bunch of supplies but after selling that I've slammed everything into the awesome cabinet. Tadaaa!

It may not seem like much, but short of the pans and ingredients, everything else I need is in here. It's fantastic! Cookie cutters, boxes, labels, chocolate, bags, icing colors and a couple of other things all managed to fit. Yea for being organized! Onto the next project. I'm making those stripes happen on the awkward wall this week!

Little Black Book~Part 2

One of my favorite constant projects is adding to my Little Black Book. It's full of all my favorite room inspirations and ideas and is more than 2/3 full. It's the best push when I need to clean/organize and I love how it's turned out so far. Here are some of the newest additions!

I've come to really appreciate white, can ya tell? In going through my Black Book, I've been able to see the main color scheme I'm in love with. White, brown, and pops of green, blue, pink and purple. It's made decorating our place much easier-no impulse buys just beacuse I think something is shiny. I think that's part of the fun with decorating a place. It's never finished!

Adding The Personal Touch

I've had some down time lately and with that I've been able to go through old boxes, sell off unused furniture, and make plans for happy changes to the way this place looks. Thanks to some of the wonderful blogs that I stalk, I have some new inspirations!

Jen at Made By Girl posted about an incredible site called Deco My Place, a site full of random peoples' home pictures. It's great because you can search based on room, style and a bunch of other things.

I love the layered look in this little nook.

I'm a sucker for an 'R'! Plus I just saw those tall white cups over at Ikea a few days ago, and I'm loving how they're used here.

This kitchen over at The Yvestown Blog has me wishing we were out of apartment living. I'm all about the butcher block counters and the huge farmhouse style sink!

I was a bit late to catch onto the Young House Love craze, but after a few articles in some of my favorite magazines, I'm a big fan of the incredible work Sherry and John have put into their first home. They recently celebrated a wedding anniversary and did a post about different kinds of momentos/reminders of their love that they have throughout their home. I've been wanting to personalize our place with things other than just pictures, so this post was perfect. I especially love the initials they have above their bed, with I Love You in sign language in the middle. Cute, thoughtful, and super easy to make! You'll have to check out their site and see their amazing home. It's gone through a great makeover.

I'm always on the lookout for fun treat ideas, and after seeing this one yesterday, I knew I had to share it. I love me some S'mores, even the homemade ones with the help of a microwave :o) I'm a firm believer that some things just taste better on a stick, and these babies back that up. These S'mores Pops were featured over at Gimme Some Oven! and are too easy to pass up. Gigantic marshmallows, melted chocolate, crunched graham crackers and a stick! Now go make some and tell me how fantastic they taste!

With a mellow weekend coming up, I'll be grabbing my Mom for some help. I've got a couple of painting projects lined up for this weekend, along with some fun rearranging. Here's hoping I'll have the fantastic results up soon. Have a sweet week!

It's Nice To Breathe Normally Again!

You can tell from the date of my last post that I haven't kept up with this blog very well. Lots of things have happened in the last few months and after exhausting myself completely I've decided to change a bunch of things in my life.

First, I'm trying to get healthy. I was sick of waking up with aches and then running all day to try to catch up with Dylan. Things in this area have been great and I'm still motivated to continue, which is a great sign!

Second, I'm trying to take more time with the little man. He's getting so big and I can't believe he'll be 3 in a few months. After almost a year of speech work, he hadn't really improved much until a few days ago. He's been mimicking sounds he hears on tv, a dinosaur's 'Roar' being one of them. Since that started, he's actually jabbering in the mornings. That has led to 'Momma', 'Yeah', 'Bowowow'(dog sounds) and a few others. It's been incredible to hear his voice all through the day now. Progress finally! Here's hoping it continues.

Also, after a few months 'practicing' how to stretch myself to the limits, I'm slowing down my little business. The lack of sleep most nights leads to a not-so-happy wife and mother, and so I'm working on making my own physical and mental needs a priority. I am very happy to say though that the biz is growing! Aside from the orders, it's officially taken over the dining room area in our home, and I can easily say that I spend more working time in the kitchen than Andrew. I'm sure he'd be thrilled with that if only I learned how to cook better!

Speaking of Andrew, he and I are doing well and planning for a fun bunch of events in the second part of the year. Birthdays, vacations and holidays will definitely have us running across the country, but I can't wait!

One other small thing I've been trying to fix is the amount of posts for Our Little Reed Family. We seem to have forgotten we had a camera in the last bunch of months, so pictures and stories have been kept to ourselves for too long. For more info about us as a fam, check it out here.

And now, since this blog is more about my own ramblings and found inspirations, I thought I'd share some I've found recently. I've been in the need for a change here at home, so I've been on the lookout for new fun ideas to get me moving.

I don't know why, but every time I think of inspiring images, this cutesy little cabinet comes to mind. Something about all the pale colors combined with the knowledge that those pillows just have to be super comfy keeps me looking at this over and over. I've been on the lookout for fun dishes, so that could be another factor. Love me some polka dots!

After a few years of rearranging furniture and painting walls, I've finally caught on that the warmth that comes from a home is more important. Something about this picture makes me think that the family is just outside the shot waiting with a game of monopoly and some popcorn. I want people to feel that kind of warmth as soon as they come to our home.

Now I know this is a baby's room and one way too girly to get away with for the little dude, but I'm all about the colors. Greens, pinks and a brown paper bag shade of paint just have me smiling. And it just so happens that I have a cabinet and dresser that are both in need of a fresh coat of paint!

You know me, I couldn't leave a picture of a fantastic kitchen out of this inspiration bunch. Plenty of light, great appliances, a flea market touch, and that kids school desk have me wishing this kitchen's owner was me! Or my Mom. She'd love that too.

Well here's hoping I can keep a better record of the fun things I find. I'm nixing *Cupcake Saturdays* in favor of the freedom to post fun treats, crafty ideas and home inspirations whenever I'd like to. Hopefully that will make the process more appealing. Have a fun week!