My headboard project

Now that Rob and I actually have a fairly large master bedroom with vaulted ceilings, I decided that our bed looked a little unfinished, so I went on the hunt for a headboard. I was amazed at how expensive a piece of wood can be! All the decent headboards I found were upwards of $400 or more and the cheapest one I found was at Ikea and was nothing more than a rectangular piece of painted wood. Problem was it was still $100 and only came in a Queen.

After furnishing our kitchen, living room and front room I wasn't about to spend that kind of money on a hunk of wood, so I realized I needed to get creative. I was at RC Willey and happened upon the perfect find in their clearance section; shutters! At only $7 a piece, I could not pass them up! They came in a pretty haagard off white color so on my way home I purchased some Espresso spray paint and got to work. Approximately $50 and a few hours later, here is the finished product!


Sanding off the ugly paint

Painting


The finished product



I'm quite proud of myself with how they turned out and think I even like it more than any of the headboards I saw in the store!

I couldn't resist

After stumbling upon a really nice little park in Draper yesterday, I made an even cooler discovery, I found some old railroad tracks that have been completely overgrown with trees and shrubs. It's like a hidden railroad path leading through a tunnel of trees. It's gorgeous and as a photographer I can't help getting really excited when I stumbled across gems like this, especially one that is so close to my house!
Naturally, I couldn't help myself and had to take advantage of this awesome find. So today I dressed my husband in another one of his few nice sweaters, grabbed our dogs and went back to my new found haven to snap some more family photos. I'm gonna pitch the location to a client of mine that's looking for a dramatic and unique place to take her bridals. I think she'll love it!

Family Photos

After taking photos up the canyon last week with my mom, and then being abruptly hit by our first winter storm, I decided that Rob and I needed to take advantage of the fall colors before winter took over completely. Every year I like to get our dogs together and go somewhere pretty to take some family photos. Rob and I were blessed with a very rare gift this weekend, neither one of us worked! So we decided it would be the perfect time to take our annual family photos. I thought Sunday would be a good opportunity since we had a lot of yard work to do on Saturday as well as the priesthood conference session and then a wedding reception to attend. So the plan was to get ready and go in between conference sessions. I really wanted to go back up to Tanner's Flat in Little Cottonwood Canyon where my mom and I went, but this morning, after having a pretty nice Friday and Saturday, we awoke to hail, wind and rain. Hoping it would clear up, and being as determined as I am, Rob and I grabbed the dogs and my tripod and hopped in the car. The further east we got, the harder it started to rain, by the time we got to the mouth of the canyon, it was pouring. I really wanted the fall colors so needless to say, we turned around and headed home. Back at home the weather was much calmer and there was no rain, so we looked around and decided that not all was lost, and we headed up the Bonneville shoreline trail, which happens to be conveniently located in our neighbors backyard, to take photos in the scrub oak behind our house. For those of you that don't know, we just bought a home on the lower east bench of Draper city, we live on Steep Mountain drive, named after the rather steep mountain that is our backyard. It is speckled and spotted with oak trees and shrubberies that, in the fall, turn beautiful shades of orange and red. After all that trouble, the perfect spot ended up being right under our noses.

Here are some of the photos we took today.

It's not the FALL that kills you...

It's fall again already, I swear it was just yesterday that we were ringing in the new year and April showers were bringing May flowers. I hate how time goes by so quickly these days. Don't get me wrong, I love fall, it could possibly be my second favorite season if it's presence didn't mean winter was swiftly on it's way. For those of you that know me well, know that I am not a big fan of winter. I tend to get very depressed and a haunting lonely feeling sinks in with the first sign of cold in the air. But, I always try to make the best of it by enjoying what I love so much about fall. The beautiful colors, the smells in the air, the season of family and the holidays. After watching the news last night and getting wind of a very nasty storm that could possibly bring us our first snow fall tomorrow, my mom and I decided today was the perfect day to take in autumn. We drove up Little cottonwood canyon today and enjoyed a warm fall breeze and the gorgeous changing leaves. Here are some photos from our day up the canyon.




My mom tried her hand at portraiture.

My beautiful mother

The day I turned 26

So my 26th birthday was on the 16th and I was fortunate enough to spend the majority of the day with three of my best girl friends. The day started off with lunch with my friend Sani at California Pizza Kitchen, one of our favorite restaurants, and a little bit of shopping at the Gateway. Afterwards we met up with my sister at Four Season Nails and we all got pedicures. I went with a deep slightly sparkly red, Sani chose a dark brownish red, and Brianna of course, went with a near black purple. Then they patiently waited while I got my nails done as well :)


After killing several hours at the salon we met up with my friend Signe, whom I am proud to say is my oldest friend, we have known each other our entire lives. Although it is rare that her and I actually get to spend time with one another ON our actual birthdays, so it was definitely a treat! We all got together for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory where they decorated a slice of Peanut Butter Fudge cheesecake and the staff sang me happy birthday (in a completely non-embarassing way, I might add) so that was nice. After stuffing ourselves of some seriously fattening food, Sani went home to her husband and the three of us, Brianna, Signe and I all went to the Utah State Fair.


By the time we got there we only had about an hour or so to kill so we just walked around being silly and checking out all the odd and disgusting things they have at the fair. Like a miniature, and quite scary looking Harry and the Henderson's doll, fried alligator, all kinds of cheap knick knacks and odds and ends and deep fried twinkies, oreos, candybars and brownies. Blah!


then we decided to check out the animals at the fair and walked around looking at the sheep and goats. One goat kept trying to eat Signe's shirt, it was pretty funny. Then some random guy showed us how to feed goats peanuts with our mouths. It was kind of scary and a little gross, but still kind of funny so we all tried it. Signe and I look totally freaked out, while Brianna looks somewhat comfortable and at ease. Maybe she's done this before???


After the fair we were pretty much pooped out and decided to call it a night. The next evening, since I didn't even see my husband all day on my b-day, due to me being gone with the girls, Rob and I went out. After coming home and surprising me with 2 dozen long stem roses we then drove down to Sundance where we had dinner at the Foundry Grill. The atmosphere was great, the food was delicious and the service was perfect! I couldn't have asked for a better dinner.


I've decided I'm at the point where birthdays are not as exciting as they used to be because along with celebrating and cake, you also get a year older and I'm not sure I like that my early and mid 20's are now behind me. But I do love being able to spend time with my best friends, my wonderful husband and seeing my family, so I guess if it means I got get older too, then so be it.

Thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday and made my day special. I love you all!