autumn, i'm so FALLing for you

finally, it's cooled down. time to enjoy the weather!

Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting and autumn a mosaic of them all. ~Stanley Horowitz

family, fall photos.

being able to enjoy the nice weather with the nice nephew and neice.

gammie with her grandkids smiling for the camera.

No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace
As I have seen in one autumnal face.
~John Donne

hiking with my friend stephanie.

taking the scenic route on the river place nature trail

Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn. ~Elizabeth Lawrence

enjoying the view. mozart's on the lake...thank you, fall!

a girls' getaway before the big day!

christina will soon be a mrs., so it was time to get the girls together and celebrate!

we (chris, me and some of the other bridesmaids) stayed the weekend in this oh-so-chic looking lake house with a million dollar view!
this oh-so-chic house just happens to be where my bridesmaids hosted my girls' weekend before my wedding. i was so glad to be back.

and let me just tell ya, the inside is just as tasteful as the outside.

we started the weekend with a delish meal prepared by leighann! thanks, leighann!! she was also the "event planner" of the weekend and all i can say is wow, you did a great job, leighann!

shawna and i. the weekend included but was not limited to the following activities: boating, movie time, and manis/pedis.

the gals pre-dinner.

dinner at the iquana grill. oh, and let me set the mood...dinner at sunset. =)

no matter the age, girls just want to have fun.

MercyMe - Bring The Rain

ah, i finally figured out how to put videos on here! decided to put an uplifting song on here by mercy me. whether you are going through something difficult right now or not, it's still a great song to hear.

where in the world...were the unnasches?

adam planned a surprise day for me today! here we are at one of our surprise locations.
is this france?

maybe italy?

any guesses yet? drumroll please...

it's driftwood, texas. the duchman/mandola winery and restaurant.

um, yeah, i felt like i had a little european getaway in less than an hour drive. how can you beat that? dreamy. it was complete with italian music playing on the patio.

listen, i don't even really drink, but who can resist this view and ambience?

i hadn't heard much about it but apparently other people have. it was quite the hotspot.

rewind to lunch. adam had lunch planned, too. we had a picnic here on lake travis less than 5 miles from our house.

i think i found a keeper!

FaMiLy FeStIvItIeS

the nephews were in from houston and it was summer's 2nd birthday! here are some pics of the week.

sweet cousins.
what a man, what a man, what a mighty good man. adam with summer at pump it up.

adam and caden boston and rylan bowling.

all but one! only logen's missing. he was probably sleeping when this pic was taken. heh.

a staycation with sara!

oscar wilde was said, "laughter is not at all a bad beginning for friendship." sara and i met my freshman year of college, and literally were histerically laughing with each other the minute we met. still, to this day, i can always count on lots of fun and laughs with her. what a beautiful gift!

sara came to the ATX for a few days and had a blast hitting up the hotspots of austin. here we are at gloria's, a salvadoran/tex-mex restaurant.
i got a plate filled with salvadoran food...pupusa, yucca, and plantain. i give the meal 2 thumbs up!

"walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light." helen keller

mani and pedi time!

coffee @ sandra's bullock's walton's fancy and staple on west 6th. total class.

the blue dahlia on east 11th. uh, if you haven't been here before, you are TOTALLY missing out. to-die-for food. it's now one of my ultimate new austin favs.

"it isn't so much as what's on the table that matters as what's on the chairs." w.s. gilbert

from FAB to DRAB...living room identity crisis

i finally decided to buy some fabric to make a scarf valance for the living room. my poor living room has been in desperation for some color and my husband won't let me paint the walls!

drum roll please...hah! here's the fabric which was used to make matching pillows.

but first, a walk through time. 1 year ago. ah, all red. i was desperately trying to use the red valance that came with the house because i didn't even think to get one made out of fabric. bor-ring!

6 months ago. i tried to buy different colored valances but the only ones i could find were all solids and no other color looked good with the white shutters and light-colored walls. so, instead, i tried to add some color by switching out a few pillows. still blah.
my aunt had the brilliant idea to just buy some fabric and make a valance or as she calls it a "swag" or "jabot." genius! why didn't i think of that a year ago? here's the end result.

the colors are fun and add some much needed color to the room!

1 year ago. a scrapbook through time...aw, the memories. =)

and now. not the best lighting but it works!
oh yeah, and i had to copy my friend ashley who has a vase like these with limes in it on her mantel! i just loved it so much i couldn't resist buying them for my mantel!