gonna party like it's your birthday

On Monday I turned a whopping 24 years old. What's going on?! It seems like only yesterday I turned 16! Another year has flown by! 23 was good to me. I graduated, went to NYC, started this blog, hubby and I have had the best year ever, and God has provided for me in too many ways to count! Yes, I'll remember 23 fondly.

 My wonderful husband didn't have to work and got to spend almost my whole birthday with me! We took a long walk through Discovery Park, did some shopping, went out to Thai Food, and finished the night with cheesecake, the Bachelor, and a rum and coke.

Life is good. 

over the weekend

 

 I'm noticing a theme in my instagram. Lots of pops of red. Total accident, but I like it.

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Pesto Pepperoni and Goat Cheese Pizza Recipe

I'm sharing my favorite pizza recipe over at Texas Love Birds today! Click here to check it out!

Pass it Forward: Be the Change

I am so excited to be sharing this with you today! I am partnering with Ashley from The Shine Project to help her spread the word about an awesome new project she has been working on to help further her passion of spreading love and kindness to others. I have been following Ashley's blog for awhile now and I can honestly say that she has a genuine heart for people. It's contagious. 

So, without further ado, I present Pass it Forward:

Pass it Forward card example

Pass it Forward was designed to get people to do little things, everyday, that makes an impact on the community around them. Pass it Forward is designed around a card (see image above). Each card is given a unique ID number. Lets say we're at McDonalds, and I decide to pay for the person behind me in the drive through. I'd give the cashier the card, and tell them to pass it along to the next car when the give them the food that has been paid for. I then go home and log into the website that was on the card, and find my unique ID number. I log into it, and add my information... My first name, city, and a description of what I did....

Let's say the person behind me was you, you would pass it forward to someone else, and then would go home and do the same thing. From the very beginning, you will be able to track where your card goes, and how many people you affect just by doing one simple act of kindness.
(www.spreadtheshine.com)
 

So cool, right?! One simple act multiplying into so many more! The idea is simply brilliant. I can't wait to get started with my own card and I'll be sharing what I do with it next Friday!

Ready to find out more about how you can be involved and get your own Pass it Forward card? Click here to head on over and read Ashley's post for all the details!

Sista sista

My little sister Courtney (blogger at Courtney Lane!) and I went on a small adventure yesterday. We went to this cafe, frolicked through a park, basked in the sunlight, took in breathtaking views of the space needle, and yelled at little boys on bikes. It was GRAND. In typical Kylee fashion, I was dressed for the entirely wrong weather, due to the fact that it was raining and freezing when I woke up. Stupid weather thinks it's funny to change every hour.

And, being the good bloggers we are, we took far too many pictures, resulting in many stares from peeps and a sly comment or two from our waiter. You do what you gotta do, right?! Even though our pictures were abundant, they were mostly all awkward. Welcome to our life. Here are just a few of them in all their glory. Don't judge us.

To visit in Seattle: Serendipity Cafe

I visited this sweet little cafe this afternoon with my sister. It's super swanky and yet still family friendly. Pretty rare combo. Kids play area in the back? Yessir, if I was a mom I'd be all over that.

What other reasons may you want to visit this dreamy little venue? Glad you asked!

breakfast? check

lunch? check

pastries? check

amazing coffee? check

wine? check

beer? check

gelato? check

dine in? check

take out? check

more? check

For real. And no, they didn't ask me to blog about them. It was just a lovely place to have lunch and therefore blog-worthy.

weekend in pictures

Farewell weekend, you treated me well.

Obsession: Eclectic Gallery Walls

Lonny

I don't write a lot about home decor on this blog, partly because my mom and sister have that pretty well covered and partly because it's not playing a major role in my life at the moment. I do, however, adore interior design and spend plenty of time lusting over magazine photos and pinning away onto my "home inspiration" pinterest board!

I have a slight obsession with gallery walls. Always have. Always will. It's one of those things that I think are unlikely to ever "go out of style". Unless, of course, art becomes obsolete (so, yeah, never.). 

I love all different styles of gallery walls, but am particularly drawn to the more eclectic, mismatched, rustic, haphazard ones. Something about them just screams personality and tend to be rich with history or often tell a dramatic story. 

I recently helped work on a gallery wall for a bathroom at my mom's house (pictured below). It's a bit quirky, but what I love about it is the meaning it has to us. We've always been thoroughly amused by funny or ridiculous animals. Some of the art we chose because we simply found it hilarious, some were sentimental pictures or quotes from childhood books, and others were of family pets. The story that wall tells every time we see it is what makes it extra special. 

The Inspired Room 

Obviously a more eclectic look isn't for everyone, but it just gets me every time. I once threw a bunch of framed art and other random things onto my own wall (pictured in my blog header). I haven't been absolutely thrilled with the results (still a little too uniform for my taste and just not quite "right" yet) and so I am planning on tweaking it until it suits me better. But, hey, it's a start! And the best part about this style is that there's no particular formula to creating "the perfect gallery wall". It's really a matter of personal preference. 

Here's a roundup of some of my favorites that I could literally stare at/swoon over all day:

Lonny

Remodelista

Mille Notti

Emily Henderson

House & Home

Peacock Pavilions via Parlour

Tori Mellott's Apartment from Sept '08 issue of Domino Magazine.

valentine's day

Other than exchanging cards and little gifts, we didn't end up going out for Valentine's until today since I was still recovering from my illness on Tuesday. Thanks for so much all the sweet, sweet well-wishes, by the way! You're all amazing! (Right after I posted on Sunday claiming to not have gotten as sick as Lance, I came down with it pretty bad! Blah. Guess that will teach me to speak too soon!)

 We hadn't made any huge Valentine's plans or reservations. Our only goal was to spend some quality time together, so it was no problemo postponing until today.

 This morning we went out for bagels and coffee and Lance surprised me with a mini shopping spree (I know, best husband ever, right?!). He despises shopping, so it was pretty much a major sacrifice for him to come along and therefore the best gift ever!

We spent our time trying on ridiculous outfits and ginormous glasses and playing "would you name our kid ____?". And no, no bun in the oven, just fun future talk in which I learn fascinating things about Lance's taste in baby names. Achilles?! Really? No thanks. 

 Being a particularly gray day in Seattle (shocking!), it was perfect for a casual day of togetherness. This evening I think we're gonna do dinner and a movie in. Yup, pretty much a Valentine's Day totally suited for our style: chill. relaxed.

Sponsors Feature Pt. 3

Happy day after Valentine's Day! Are you having chocolate withdrawals yet? Or do you still have plenty to keep you fueled? I hope all of your days were filled with love no matter who you spent it with! Even if you're not a fan of the commercialization of the holiday, it doesn't hurt to spread a little extra love, does it?

Today I am spreading some love to three more of my fabulous sponsors! I would love for you to visit them, say hello, and let them know I sent you! They really do have fantastic blogs and I'm so happy to be partnered with them!

 Find Carly--> blog :: pinterest :: twitter
instagram: carlyskinner

Find Sherry--> blog :: shop :: twitter

Find Lauren--> blog :: twitter

to my lover

Dear Lance,

This is our fourth Valentine's Day since we've been married and I still love you more than words can express. Thank you for caring for me after I too quickly assumed that I didn't get as sick as you. I regret claiming to have the stronger immune system. Thanks for not gloating, but instead going to buy me crackers and juice and coming every time I called for you. Thank you for always showing me you love me and making sure I hear it. I so appreciate how hard you work every day, both at your job and at our marriage. You are handsome, Godly, loving, affectionate, caring, smart, discerning, hard-working, and so much more! All those things are so important to me and so I am so glad that I picked you! You're the best hubby in the whole world!

xoxo,

Ky

{not} the most fun weekend of my life

This weekend was the weekend of awful sickness. Mostly for Lance and only slightly under the weather for me. I'm sure he was thanking his lucky stars that we included the phrase "in sickness and in health" in our wedding vows or who knows if I'd still be here right now! It was brutal. But, being the good wife I am, I lovingly took care of the sickest person ever. 

It was either food poisoning (he's convinced the delicious and lovingly prepared gyros I made on Thursday were the culprit) or a virus. I'm going with the virus since I had two of those bad boys without any stomach issues. We're still throwing away the leftovers, just in case. On the plus side, it gave me an excuse to go nuts disinfecting the apartment so now everything is sparkly clean and germ free! 

{After lots of ginger ale and chicken soup, Lance is feeling much better today! Glad he didn't die even though he was pretty sure he was going to at one point.}

Fashionably Red

1/2/3/4/5/6

Leave it to Valentine's Day to get me in the mood for all things red and pink. I have been loving red in fashion lately, and not just because Valentine's Day is approaching! Adding bits of red to my wardrobe has been a relatively recent development. I tend to wear a lot of neutrals and have discovered that a pop of color can add a bit of pizazz to an otherwise boring look. Even something as simple as a red bag or lip can turn you from blah to fashionista!

I love how all of the lovely women above have utilized red to complete their look. I've included Kendi twice (4&5) because honestly, I think she's the queen of color (and pretty much fashion in general!). 

I bet even my big gray rat suit would look amazing with a red scarf or pair of red pumps....

....or not. :-/

What about you? Have you jumped on the red bandwagon?

Lately {via Instagram}

1. Last week for date night, Lance and I went to The Counter. For those of you who don't have one, it's this awesome burger place where you build your own burger by checking off the ingredients you want on an order sheet (lots of fun options!). It's not expensive and super filling (aka: our kind of place).

2. Starbucks and I spent a lot of time together last week.

3. A little Martinelli's while watching the Bachelor. Let's not get me started again on Courtney. Or Ben for that matter. I'm seriously questioning his judgement. Haha, okay, updating the post to add this gem:

4. I tried this crispy breaded tofu recipe the other night. And it was surprisingly good great!

5. Spent some quality time with my parent's dog Jack this weekend. He's such a little troublemaker. Don't be fooled by that innocent face.

6. Took a ferry ride on Saturday. It was lovely. McDreamy would be jealous.

7. Hung out with some adorable kiddos at church on Sunday morning.

8. Took the kids I nanny up to this ginormous water tower to play in the surrounding grass.

9. More coffee. Note the Valentine's jammies and nails. 

10. Some gorgeous chocolate that I gazed at longingly. But for $44, I decided it wasn't worth it ;).

11. However, this chocolate gift (thanks dad!), I am happily devouring as we speak.

12. I had a little incident involving exploding protein powder. Note to self: do not pick up container by the lid next time.

                                                                               

Last Friday...

...we spent the morning at Pike Place Market. It was such a gorgeous day. We wandered around the market, hung out at the original Starbucks, and then had lunch while watching them make cheese at Beecher's. Not too shabby of a day if I do say so myself!