A bit of Pizzazz

I have hated my bedroom lamp for quite some time. It is too small and looks like something from the 90’s.

At Target on a mission to get shampoo, lotion, and a few other small things I spotted a fun and colorful lampshade and realized it was the perfect solution for my bedroom. I love it!

It is finally the right scale and adds a much needed pop of color and glamour. Don’t you love Target and the ability to spend way more money than you ever set out to spend!

I think I need to work on styling my nightstand better - any fun ideas?

“Stolen” Flowers

I LOVE fresh flowers in my home, now I get them for free outside. Two of my neighbors (brothers) are renovating a home down the street, in the yard are several gorgeous huge peony bushes. I decided they obviously aren’t enjoying them so why not cut some for my inside enjoyment! I trudged home in the dark of the night with a bundle of stolen flowers and was able to make several arrangements here is a sampling of a few:



So gorgeous and such an impact on the room. Ok ok I didn’t really steal the flowers in the middle of the night (although I did contemplate this) – I asked permission first and was granted unlimited access to said flowers. Score for me! Especially as more are about to bloom. I love summer! My yard is starting to bloom which makes me insanely happy. Here are a few snippets.




Can’t wait till things really fill in over the next few months.

Council Bluffs Half Marathon 2010 Recap

Two words – Hot - Humid! It was a brutal race, we have had very cool temperatures here this spring and the warmest has probably been high 70’s. Turns out Sunday was high 80’s and extreme humidity even at 7am. Mix in a bit of partying Friday night and this does not equal a recipe for a successful race. My goal was 2.05, 2.10 worst case.

I came in at 2.15 (10.21 average pace) = upsetting. Everyone's times were slower due to the heat so I guess that is a minor consulation prize, and I should have not partied it up on Friday (but it was my brother’s birthdays!). Overall I was the 307th person (out of 634 total runners) to cross the finish line, I was 131/357 girls and was 28/65 in my age group for females. Pretty much middle of the pack which I am fine with – I have no grand illusions of becoming a rock star.

Sadly we didn’t take photos before the race and for some reason snapped photos the minute I finished so I look like a hot mess. But a finish is a finish (and I didnt walk at all)– now hoping to start training for another half soon and the CB Triathlon in August. I need a reason to stay motivated.

Pulled this off the website:
Number of Finishers: 634
Number of Females: 357
Number of Males: 277
Average Time: 2:20:44
Love that more females ran than men! I also just realized my tie was slightly above average so I am going to celebrate that and try to improve.

Happy Birthday to my Brothers!!

I love you two! You’re the best brothers a girl could ask for!

Oh yeah my sister-in-law is awfully fun and pretty great as well.

Our dresses were similar and we didn’t even plan it. Erik turned 29 yesterday.

Justin turns 27 on Memorial Day.

Wow time flies. So we had a joint celebration, as is the tradition, and started off at Glory Days with all their friends,




my friends,


and joint friends.




Had a birthday toast and cake.

Then headed off on the Party Bus for a bit more fun.








We had a full bus of friends in a wide range of ages. It was a wonderful night. Only downer was that my poor dad was stuck out of town for work and had to miss the festivities. Sorry dad :(

My Bike Needs Accessories

I have more or less mastered the clip in pedals/shoes on the road bike thanks to a patient and amazing coach. I rode a few nights ago which reminded me how much fun it is to get on a bike and just ride chatting the night away. A reminder that its not all about the race. Now that summer is quickly approaching there are so many great outdoor events that are within bike distance (as is my office) so I really want to start biking more – driving less. How perfect is this bike basket from Kate Spade:


I love it! I haven’t yet gotten my Easter basket form the Easter Bunny (aka Mom)… It reminds me of Denmark, Amsterdam, Germany - towns where everyone has a basket on their bike as they ride everywhere. My only concern is would the added weight tip me over? Remember I am new to the road bike….I am also unsure if you can even fit a basket on a road bike. Maybe I need this bike for “fun rides”.

And while we are on the topic, I also need a stylish helment for fun rides. This is my choice.

Sadly I don't think any place in the US sells them - looks like I need a trip abroad!! Even more sad is they are sold all over the place in Denmark and I had found this site last year but didn't take the time when visiting to actually find the store and purchase one.

Tie Dye Sneak Peek

We decided on tie dyed tank tops for the Half Marathon Sunday as I dropped the ball on getting custom shirts made. I purchased basic white singlet dri-fit tanks at Target, rubber bands, and two boxes of purple Rit Dye. Here is a sneak peak of the tanks that are sure to make us extra fast and full of energy:

Look how nice and dark purple they look:

Turns out dri-fit doesn’t seem to take dye very well? Once removed from the dye and rinsed, the tanks became a very pastel lavender instead of a dark purple. Has anyone had success with dri-fit and tie dye? Photos of the finished product to come after the Half – although truthfully they look a bit dull. I hate when projects don’t turn out perfect! Aeisha loved chasing the rubber bands around the house whenever she got a hold of one. It tired her out as you can tell from these photos.

Celebrate CB Parade

I am sure all of you that live in a small or semi-small town have a yearly parade. One you remember walking in as a child on behalf of your school, sport team, dance school, etc…I remember participating as a cheerleader and as a Westfair Queen contestant (I ended up with miss Citizenship?). As children if we weren’t in the parade we definitely went to watch the parade. In those days it was Pride Week Parade and held downtown Council Bluffs mostly on Broadway. This year I had the opportunity and good fortune to be in the parade again. Said parade is now called “Celebrate CB Parade”, but I still kept messing up and calling it Pride Week – old habits die hard. The parade is part of a weeks worth of festivities and cool events. It is still held downtown CB. I was amazed at how many people participated in the parade (over a 100 entries) and even better how many spectators there were.

Super fun to see members of the community from all walks of life come out to Celebrate in joys of living in Council Bluffs and support their friends and neighbors. I was crazy nervous to ride on behalf of the Mayor and City Council as you can see from my face here:

I also spent countless hours analyzing what to wear and after several trips to the store (two outfits were purchased) I finally found this dress that felt perfect for the parade.

I really enjoyed myself once we started moving and my nerves calmed – I would just look for friendly faces in the crowd and work my pageant wave.

Thanks a million to my mom, Aunt, and cousins that came out to watch and be the photogs.

Also thanks to my friend Scott for sticking around and entertaining me! (really he was waiting for his daughter on the YMCA float but I’ll pretend he was entertaining me).



Speaking of the YMCA float – my little brother Justin and a few of his friends built the entire float! Nice work boys!


Wish I had more photos of it. Great great parade due to all the hard work and dedication of the Celebrate CB committee. For more photos check out my City Council Blog.