Christmas Eve.

I can barely contain my excitement for tomorrow morning's festivities.  It will be our 3rd Christmas with Winslow, but this is the first year she's started to take it all in and that changes EVERYTHING. Forever.  It's all about the smile that the holiday season brings to this girls face...

…while trying to teach her the real meaning for this season.  

6am tomorrow: I'll be sitting by her door like an excited puppy dog, waiting for a peep and my cue to burst in and drag her half opened eyes to the tree to start unwrapping.  And she'll look at me and say, "Get a grip, Mom."

Merry Christmas Eve :)

Merry, Merry!

Just a quick (and sadly, random) note to say MERRY CHRISTMAS from the de Windt household to yours!  I hope your holiday season is filled with loads of love and laughter with loved ones. 

Let us all be thankful for the massive amount of blessings in our lives!

Sending our love to Bangkok, Leitchfield, Melbourne, Maui, Amsterdam, Simpsonville, Boston, Christiansburg, Rochester, San Diego and everywhere else, while we're cozied up in our home this year :)

Add a shade.

When we bought our home last Fall, we fell in love with the vintage finishes and fixtures.  Not all of it was our style exactly, but we knew it just needed a modern twist.  Definitely easier said than done!

I gave this chandelier, that hangs in our sun/piano room, a full year to grow on me...

I really wanted to like it... but... no shot.  It reminded me of something you'd find in a bad Chinese restaurant.  I considered painting it white, because that usually does the trick, but decided it had to go. Before I had the chance to pick something out, my girlfriend Beth of Armijo Design Group, saw it and suggested throwing a drum shade over it.  Genius.  

Voila!  We happened to have an extra shade sitting in storage that was the perfect fit.  I went from cringe to obsessed.  I love the crystals peaking out the bottom and the shadows reflected on the ceiling and shade.  Love, love, love.  I'll be posting more DIY home improvements Beth has talked me into.  Think, bright orange spray paint...

Photo Journal | Our girl is 2!

My sissy's birthday was today and she inspired Winslow's Pony Party, so this post is sort of perfect :)

Our sweet little lady turned 2 (still can't believe it!) and we celebrated this past Saturday with ponies, donkeys, spiked cider and donuts.  Winslow woke up to ponies waiting for her in the front yard and her friends joined her shortly after.  Her reaction was just priceless!

We took it easy on ourselves this year.  None of the up till midnight prepping food the night before.  We brewed up some cider, picked up donuts and called it a day.  The only decorations were a couple dozen pink and orange balloons and fresh flowers.  Done and done.  It was so nice to be able to enjoy the day instead of run around like a crazy person!  And of course, having all of our dear friends join us made it absolutely perfect :)

If you're in the Denver area, I would highly recommend Pony Rides USA for all of your pony riding needs :)  

Andrew Belle.

Think... Coldplay meets Bon Iver.  That's a pretty bold comparison, but Andrew Belle was that good.

I can't remember exactly how I stumbled upon his music, but I started listening to it in/to/from the office and around the house.  When I looked up his tour dates, he just so happened to be playing at The Walnut Room, a teeny tiny venue in Denver, just a couple weeks away.  So I snagged a couple tickets as an anniversary gift for hubs and then dragged along some other friends (you're welcome Zinks!) out to see him play last night.  I felt like I was watching a younger Chris Martin hopping from guitar to piano, belting out well written lyrics, in his cool tone.  Such a great show.

My playlists go from Eric Church to Justin Beiber to Cali Swag District, so I can't always be trusted, but I assure you, Andrew Belle is worth a download.

Favorite song...

Pieces

You and me
Got ourselves a problem
I can see this
Better than I solve em

I believed
I found a way around it
I will leave
This better than I found it

There's too much smoke to see it
There's too much broke to feel this
Well I love you, I love you
And all of your pieces


There's too much smoke to see it
There's too much broke to feel this
Well I love you, I love you
And all of your pieces

 

History's a letter made of scarlet

Victories look better when you've called it

Misery's the moment when I lost you

It's pleasure in a costume

It's more than what it cost you

There's too much smoke to see it
There's too much broke to feel this
Well I love you, I love you
And all of your pieces

There's too much smoke to see it
There's too much broke to feel this
Well I love you, I love you
And all of your pieces

And all of your pieces

There's too much smoke to see it
There's too much broke to feel this
Well I love you, I love you
And all of your pieces

There's too much smoke to see it
There's too much broke to feel this
Well I love you, I love you
And all of your pieces

{ Photo Credit: andrewbelle.com }

Easy Does It.

I love that there's an affordable version of the d'Orsay by Jenni Kayne, that I had been eyeing forever.  I love them so much, that I may or may not have them in three colors :)  The Chinese Laundry "Easy Does It" flats are a steal at $59 over the $450 splurge.  Other styles here. How great are the metallic gold?!  It's a problem.

I live in these perfect little flats.  A great transition from Summer to Fall. Add them to your wardrobe ASAP!

Our girl is 2!

I can't believe she's 2.

I remember October 7, 2011 like it was yesterday.  I was strolling Whole Foods, chatting with family who had just arrived in Denver, not expecting to meet our little one for a couple more weeks.  Baby's due date was the next day but I was feeling great and hadn't had any signs of an arrival, until that moment.  Oh yeah, right in the cereal aisle, babe sent a teeny tiny message.  I called my doctor and she advised us to pack our bags and come in.  It probably wasn't my water that broke but it was best to be ready just in case.  We went in fully planning on it being a false alarm and would continue on to our dinner reservations shortly after.  Not so much.  We hung around, ate dinner, watched TV, talked about what was about to happen to our lives.  Then there was 6 hours on Petosin and watching the computers show the spikes in my contractions, but never actually feeling them.  Then out of no where, they came and they were gnarly.  Zero to 100.  Can you believe I fought it for two hours before finally giving in to the epidural?!  For two hours there, I thought I was tough enough to get 'er done naturally.  What a joke.   Then all the sudden a blanket of calmness fell over me, all of us.  We slept for a couple hours and that morning our baby girl arrived.  Convinced we were having a boy, our little Winslow surprised us. And she continues to every single moment of every day.

Winslow is the most beautiful, sweet, strong willed, hilarious, sassy, smart, amazing thing we've ever met.  And between the moments of exhaustion and wanting to rip out our hair, there's an incredible overwhelming feeling of love.  Something I could never properly verbalize.  It's there when the bowl of oatmeal is being thrown across the room or when you watch her climb into the fountain in her 3rd outfit of the day.

How you go from this...  Our first moments with Winslow!

To this, in just 24 months...

Watching her grow into the little person she is and learn about the world, is such a blessing.  I don't know where the past 2 years have gone but I've absolutely loved being her momma.  Winslow Mae, mommy and daddy love you SO much.  Happy 2nd Birthday Lovey!!!

Aw, hey there Missi :)

Cape Me.

Does anything say Fall better than an amazing cape...

1. Checked Studio Cape | Zara | $269
2. Combination Cape | Zara | $189
3. Mango Wool Cape Coat | ASOS | $169
4. Solid Reversible Silk Cape | Nordstrom | $158
5. Hand-Made Wool Cape | Zara | $179

It's dropping from a perfect sunny 75 yesterday to a snowy day today.  Sign me up for any of the above! Ugh, I'm old. I talk about the weather :)

{ Photo Credit: zara.com, nordstrom.com, asos.com }

Heart Broken.

We woke up this morning heart broken.

Yesterday was the day we dropped our 6 year old beloved pooch, Missi, off at her new family's home.  There was a lot of sadness leading up to this day but we left feeling both sad and happy for her.

I adopted Missi as a puppy from a shelter in San Diego, about 6 years ago.  That's what happens when  you get ditched by your boyfriend to pursue a job in a different city :)  Luckily that city was in Lake Tahoe, so the distance was short lived and Missi and I packed up and shipped out to the most beautiful place on earth.  Missi grew up hiking, mountain biking and back country skiing on an almost daily basis.  Totally spoiled.  All of us were.

But somewhere around 2 years old, she started to develop some aggressive tendencies towards other dogs which limited our dog park time.  After talks with trainers and moves to San Francisco and then Denver, she never bounced back.  She became highly protective of us and our home.  And when Winslow arrived almost 2 years ago, the chances to take her out to hike or even go on longer runs diminished.  Her barking and patrolling of the front gate kept her cooped up inside more than any of us wanted.

While she was 99% total sweetheart, the other 1% was too much to handle with a new baby in the house.  I was completely on edge with Missi around our daughter at all times.  And after a "warning" from Missi to Winslow, that was far too aggressive, we threw out the idea of finding her a new home.  I couldn't believe the thought actually crossed our minds and made excuses for her behavior.  But after one serious incident (which took us to court) and two others, we knew we had to figure something out.

We started to reach out to friends to get the word out but knew it would be a long process since a random shelter wasn't an option.  Everyone loved Missi but were too nervous for the same reasons.  When I asked Missi's regular dog sitter if she would put the word out as well, she asked if she could adopt Missi.  Perfect.  Prayers answered.  It was done.  So as of last night, Missi now lives in a home with two Great Danes, a Siamese cat (which was totally meant to be since Missi is part Thai!) and a large fenced in yard to run around in all day.  Our prayers were definitely answered.  I missed her the second I walked out the door and we will probably miss her every single day.  I've never been good with goodbyes but it makes it easier knowing she'll be happier than we could make her.

It's amazing that  sixth sense that dogs have.  She was a little more spunky this week on our walks, smiled extra sweet for the camera and on our last night, she took turns sleeping on the floor on each side of our bed, when she normally sleeps in her dog bed in the corner through the night.  The house is already too quiet without her barking and tags clanking as she walked around.  But we have the best memories with her.  She was there when we started our lives together and then when we became a family.  Love this dog so much.

This post is long and includes a lot of pictures because it's one that I will look at often...