{an almost spring day}

It felt a little more than a little bit like Spring today, which is both exciting and unbelievable. It is, in fact, still January after all! I had the entire day off from work and after this hectic weekend of traveling it was a much needed day of rest and was mostly spent playing catch-up. I made gluten/dairy free apple crisps {yumm!} and walked to the park for a round of frisbee with my fella. We played until the sun had dipped down just enough to remind us that it isn't quite t-shirt weather just yet. I hope your Monday was just as wonderful and you're looking forward to spring as much as I am! 

xoxo, eliza

{a space and place of my own}

This weekend we went home to visit and celebrate my little sister's twelfth birthday! We crashed on my older sister's sofa, and I woke up this morning having had the greatest nights sleep. I also had a really, really, really exciting dream! {But I woke up thinking that it was true, which was not so great.} In said dream, I had a studio. A place all my own where I would write, paint, and craft. It was brilliant, perfect, and beautiful. It was spacious but not too big and decorated with fresh flowers, big windows, bright colors, and wooden floors. Quite obviously this idea has grown from a dream to a plan. I've been thinking all day about what I would do in this studio, how I would spend my time and how I will decorate. It's probably definitely going to be a few years before this studio dream becomes a reality, but I think I could start small and convert at least part of one room into a mini-studio for now! 

{via}

If you had your very own studio what would you do with it? How would you decorate? 

Would it be no boys allowed?

xoxo, eliza

{Friday's Fancies #18 :: Blog Swap!}

Hi! Happy Friday :) Here's what happened on the blog this week ::

Beauty + Beast + Margaritas

Our big, fluffy, girly bed

Link up with YPL + New hair

Be Inspired! 

And now on to Friday's Fancies, brought to you by the adorable {and always classy} Grace. To see the look I created this week, head on over to Smile Couture! ::

Hey, everyone! It’s Grace from Smile Couture and I’m so glad to be swapping blogs with Eliza for Friday’s Fancies this week! We decided to create looks inspired by each other’s blogs, so here’s the look I created going off of Eliza’s blog:

The jade hue of her background immediately inspired me to go for a black watch plaid, which looked just phenomenal with a terracotta bell skirt, the same hue of the mug in her header. The oxford ankle boots added just the right touch of sass and smartness. Lastly, I added some coordinating specs like Eliza’s and a Kate Spade mug (filled with Blueberry tea!). Be sure to head over to Smile Couture to see how she interpreted my blog!

xoxo Grace

See more blog-swap looks at Long Distance Loving!
Have a great weekend, I'll see you back here on Monday!

xoxo, eliza

{Be Inspired}

 {all via}

Four ideas that are making my day just a bit happier!...I hope they do the same for yours :)

xoxo, eliza

{sometimes and curls}

{Sometimes...}

It's hard for me to leave my warm, fluffy bed and warm, snuggly husband to go to work at 5AM. Who am I kidding, this is hard every time!

I'm reminded of how much I love packing up Christmas ornaments because it gives me time to think about where we might celebrate our holidays next year.

I feel self-conscious when I'm out and about with baby M {not mine, I'm a nanny}. People really stare at you when you're holding a cute baby. Is this what motherhood feels like?

I am mildly dishonest when I tell myself that I will definitely eat that entire bunch of bananas. Week after week, I buy a few too many. 

I can't imagine a world without baby smiles. Lots and lots of baby smiles.

I'm surprised that I still sorta-kinda wish I was working on my undergrad.

I get a little too easily wrapped up in anything I'm reading or watching on TV. Scary {by my standards, this includes basically everything, including Once Upon A Time} things are not to be taken-in before bedtime. Or once it's dark outside.

I indulge in guilty pleasures like The Bachelor. How ridiculous is this show?? Can't get enough.

I wish all things in life were as wonderful as waking up to snow. 

I saw this cute link up on YPL and had to join in. 

...and a quick side note, I got my hair done yesterday! ::

{my face is very pink in this picture. also, the lighting in our apartment is awful. note-to-self.}

Happy Wednesday :)

xoxo, eliza

{the day our bed got a little bit girly}

This past weekend we did a little sprucing-up around the apartment! I've been dying to re-do our bed for a few weeks now and the Christmas decorations really needed to get put away. ;) Our bed went from looking like this :: 

to looking like this ::

and has since prompted many cozy reading parties ::

Our dining room went from Christmas to spring in a snap! It's wonderful because that's where we spend the most time in the morning and I need happy colors to kick my day off on the right foot.

{See those awesome Scrabble coasters? They were a wedding gift from our friend Kayla and we're in love.} I think that's about all the change I care to handle this week. We're already so busy with classes and working...Time to start the countdown for Spring Break!

xoxo, eliza

{Psst - Are we Twitter friends yet? Let's be!}

Monday, Monday!

Happy Monday! This was an incredible weekend and I really hope yours was too. I absolutely can not believe that we're entering the last week of January, where does all the time go? Speaking of time flying by, yesterday Thomas and I celebrated our 3 month anniversary! It feels like we were just putting the finishing touches on our wedding and now we're approaching the end of January. Here's what this weekend looked like for us :: 

Friday night we went out to celebrate 3 months with Beauty and the Beast 3D and great big margaritas!

{A photo-tour of our date. Isn't he so cute? I'm the luckiest.}

Saturday T had studying to do so I left him to focus and spent the morning brunching with the girls and learning to play Speed Scrabble. Have you ever played? It's really quite fun, especially if you're a Scrabble nerd, like me. ;) It was rainy all weekend so our hiking plans were unfortunately post-poned. We made the best of it by pushing the sofas together for ultimate comfort and curled up with movies! "We" {Thomas is reading the Hunger Games, so anything done together also involves his Kindle} watched I Don't Know How She Does It {so true!}, Inception {for the millionth time...we love this movie!}, and The Adjustment Bureau {very fun}. We picked up some delicious Pad Thai from our local spot and called it an early night. Thank you Red Box for making our weekend possible. Sunday was equally relaxing but slightly more productive! It started with our weekly family brunch and moved to cleaning, blog-reading, and homemade tacos. What did you do this weekend? Here's to another great week!

xoxo, eliza

{Friday's Fancies #17 :: Outfit Inspiration}

Happy Friday! In case you missed it, here's what happened over here this week.

I shared :: 

our menu plans

my thoughts on blogging

some nautical inspiration

post #101

Do you have any exciting or relaxing plans for this weekend? My weekend holds date-night, an early breakfast with the girls, a hike or two, church, brunch with T's family, and plans to finally pack up Christmas decorations. I can't wait! Tonight can't get here soon enough. Switching gears. Wouldn't it be marvelous if we could transfer outfits to our closet just by adding it to our Pinterest boards? I would be dressed to the nines every single day! This week for Friday's Fancies we're creating an outfit inspired by a look we're loving on Pinterest. I had the toughest time picking a look - I want them all! 

Can't wait to see your looks and hear about your weekend plans!
{Linking up with Long Distance Loving.}

xoxo, eliza

{101}

Guess what? Today is post number one-hundred-one! Thank you all so much for being such fantastic and interactive readers. I know I say this a lot, but I want you to know that reading your sweet, thoughtful comments truly makes my day!! This blog has grown a lot in the past 5 months to 306 comments and 51 followers. That's way beyond what I thought this little blog would grow into! I'm excited to see what comes in the next 5 months :) I'm starting a new Thursday post series -- one that focus on just one thought, or one picture, or one idea. I've already broken my own rules by mentioning the whole 101st post thing...but you'll never find me leaving out a reason to celebrate ;)

Today I would love to be curled up on my soft and fuzzy flannel sheets reading. Don't pick on me for my Nicholas Sparks book! I have to balance my serious reading {Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close} with something a little lighter, otherwise I'm up all night trying to figure out what happens next...

Please keep reading, keep the comments coming, and I'll keep writing!

{What are you reading? Do you use Goodreads?}

xoxo, eliza

{Today I'm Loving :: the nautical edition}

Without Pinterest I may have never realized that I am completely and absolutely in love with any and all things nautical. Completely and totally in love. How could you not be?? {I've already told Thomas that it's time to start planning where our own nautical-inspired cottage will be built.} My favorite elements, you ask? The bold colors alone would be enough to sustain a lifetime crush for me so once the dark woods and chunky knits are mixed in I really don't stand a chance! Dreams of spending my time reading on the front porch of a lake-side cottage, going sailing, and decking my closet out in stripes and knits is definitely going to keep me motivated {and smiling} these next few chilly months! 

{all image sources may be found via pinterest}

 {What do you think of this style? How do you avoid the winter-blues?}

xoxo, eliza

{happy blogging and back to school}

{This is where I blog, plan, and spend too much time on Pinterest -- Pictures are of me and Ian, me and Mackenzie when we were super little, and my baby-sister Zelie.}

Ever feel like the blogs you read only portray the happy side of things? And I don't just mean the real happy, I mean the "I never wear the same outfit twice & my husband looks like George Clooney" type. I've been thinking about this a lot lately, especially since yesterday when I read this post. 

That being said, I do believe in sharing your best-self. That's because I believe in being your best self. 

I think you should always bring positive energy to others and that there's no reason to complain. Except for those times when you really just need to complain. All of this to say, I hope I don't end up sharing the super wonderful side of our life in such a way that makes it seem fake! {If I do, feel free to call me out.} 

Most days, our life is super wonderful. But that's just real life, if you choose to find the silver lining. All of this thinking made me realize that I don't post all that much about our day-to-day life. I'm going to focus on changing that, so keep an eye out for upcoming posts that shed a little more light on what we are all about.

For example, yesterday I laid in bed until 11:30 because I had so many nightmares the night before I had only slept about three hours total. Oh yeah! That happened the night before that as well. That's not so glamorous. We take walks, watch Grey's Anatomy, and talk about how much we aren't ready for the semester to start. Instead of getting off the couch and doing things to get ready for the semester to start. Maybe tonight we'll get real crazy and pack up the Christmas decorations. We have a very normal life, but it's our normal, so it's special. And we try to celebrate it as often as possible. :)

Today is the first day of T's last undergrad semester! I couldn't be less ready to see him go each day but I know it's going to be a great semester. Plus he has so many cool things lined up it's going to be over before we know it. Here's to a wonderful, successful, and somewhat-normal-life semester! Thanks so much for reading :) Your sweet comments truly make my day! 

{Anything you want to know about our life?}

{I've just downloaded Picasa...do you use it/like it? What do you use for your pictures?}

xoxo, eliza

{Monday in the Kitchen}

Happy Monday, lovelies :) Thankfully with my new schedule I'm only working three days each week which means that Monday on the calendar is not my actual Monday. I know this won't be the case forever so I'm doing my best to soak it up while I can! Today is a special Monday because T doesn't go back to school until tomorrow which makes today our last day of winter break. Our time off has been wonderful, though we're both looking forward to getting back into the routine that comes with classes and jobs. Today I'm linking up with my super-wonderful-domestic-goddess-sister for her weekly kitchen post. Our kitchen is tiny, which makes cooking a bit of a challenge, but we manage to overcome the space issue and cook up some pretty great recipes each week! We have a pretty consistent system and each week we make something new. Here's what it looks like :: Monday - Breakfast for Dinner, Tuesday -  Sandwiches, Wednesday - Soup, Thursday - Pasta, Friday - Date Night, Saturday - Pizza, Sunday - T's choice. {Just to clarify, Sunday night T cooks, which is why he picks. He cooks most other nights as well, but that's my guaranteed night to not have to cook. Just like Monday is his guaranteed night off, because we both know I make better pancakes.}

Here's what we have on the menu this week! 

:: Monday ::

pancakes with bacon, eggs, and fruit

:: Tuesday ::

sweet potato black bean burgers with avocado

:: Wednesday ::

loaded baked faux-tato soup

:: Thursday ::

 

tacos {not pasta, but we already have ingredients for tacos! variety is important! so is saving $ on groceries.}

:: Friday ::

the night we get all dolled up and go out for dinner & festivities. {I love date night.}

:: Saturday ::

BBQ Chicken Pizza

:: Sunday ::

teriyaki chicken and shrimp

{via}

Keeping our recipes gluten free/dairy free can be quite the challenge, but it's also fun when we have the time to cook together and play with recipes. I'll be sure to let you know how we do this week! What are you cooking up this week?

xoxo, eliza

Friday's Fancies #16

Whoo! It's Friday :) Congratulations on making it through your week! This week our Fancies collections are all about COLOR. I love bright, colorful get-ups and had so much fun putting together a look for this week. I'm excited to see what you all come up with! I had a hard time steering away from my favorite color combos {Yellow & Navy/Gray}, but I'm glad I did because it gave me a chance to play with my newest obsession {Turquoise & Raspberry/Plum}. I hope you have fabulous plans for this upcoming weekend - we'll be soaking up the last few hours of winter break before T heads back to school {for his last semester!} and I dive head-first into work. {We're crossing our fingers for snow!}

Go look at Long Distance Loving :) You won't regret it!
See you Monday!
xoxo, eliza
{P.S. It would mean the world to me if you would read THIS :)}

{Brighten Up}

Sometimes all you need to brighten a rainy day is to look at lots and lots of colorful pictures. I know it's only January, but I'm starting to think about spring. Am I the only one who's thinking about sun-dresses and picnics? Yea, that's what I thought. Now you're thinking about spring time too. {And those polka dots? Wow!}

{via pinterest}

Here's hoping you have a bright, colorful, cheerful day!

{And that you consider participating in my care package plan!}

xoxo, eliza

{operation care package}

I have a really great idea! And since it's a great idea, I need great people to help me make it happen. {YOU are that great person. Please read this through!} Here's the idea :: Meet Meagan! {She's super pretty and super wonderful.}

Meagan is my cousin and my best friend. {We were born just a few weeks apart.} Last month, I wrote a post about my Aunt Maureen who had just passed away. Meagan is Maureen's daughter. Meagan {and her older brother, Ryan} lost their Mom in early December for reasons that the doctors are still trying to figure out. In the past month, she has dealt with the holiday season without her Mom. Next week, she'll return to school to finish her senior year of college and will be graduating in May. No one should have to do this without their Momma! While no one can {or will ever} replace the love and guidance that a great Mom shares, I think we can do our best to help make this time in Meg's life a little more comfortable. Enter :: Operation Care Package. I need for each person who reads this post to take a few minutes and mail in one item. If that happens, we could easily send Meg a care package every month during her last semester of school!! Doesn't that sound like fun? Blogging has been good for me in so many ways, and I'm looking forward to seeing what such a fantastic network of women can do.

Here's how it will work :: YOU pick up an item that you think would Meg would love receiving. If you need ideas, let me know! {Think along the lines of yummy snacks, candles, bath salts, books, etc.} Once you've chosen your item(s), you'll drop them in a box and mail them to me. Please include a note for Meg so she knows who these gifts are coming from! I'll combine the goodies into well balanced piles {so she doesn't get 6 candles in one box} and mail her a package on the first of each month. Of course, I'll be sure to post a picture of all the goodies that come in so you can see what your generosity ends up being a part of! You can email me {yellowtrains@gmail.com}, send me a message on facebook {Eliza StClair}, or message me on twitter {@TieDyeTequila} and I'll give you my address.
In order for this idea to truly work, we're going to need as many contributors as possible. Please share this post in any way that you can {Twitter, Facebook, or a mention on your blog would be amazing}!
I'm sincerely hopeful that everyone will take a few minutes to help me with my project, it would mean so much to me, and I know Meagan will be beyond thankful. Please let me know if you have any questions! If you would be interested in helping make these care packages it would honestly mean the world to me. :)
xoxo, eliza

{a pretty picture and a song for today}

{via pinterest}

Don't you just love Adele? I can't get enough of her music. Especially this song - it may be my favorite {though when it comes to Adele, my favorite changes daily}. Take a few minutes and crank it up!

What's inspiring you today?
xoxo, eliza

{It's nice to meet you.}

Hey there! I'm Eliza. This is Thomas. {He's my wonderful husband.} I thought today we'd do introductions!

I grew up in Virginia as one of 8 kids in a family of 10. My oldest brother is 7 years older than me and my youngest sister is 16 years younger than me. We were homeschooled, we played outside, and we all turned out {relatively} normally. And we really, truly loved it! Homeschooling gets a bad rap. I started taking classes at a community college the summer I turned 17. I had a million friends, was President of the Student Government Association, and rocked all my classes {except for history...that class was awful}. In spring of 2008 my Mom, younger sisters, and I took a trip around the United States. It was incredible! Thanks to that trip, and the trip we took to Maine the following spring, I've been to 46 states. I still need to see Alaska, North Dakota, Louisiana, and Hawaii. I graduated with an Associates of Arts & Science in the spring of 2009 with a take-on-the-world attitude and best-friends. I transferred to Radford University where I worked hard, played hard, and quickly fell for Thomas. We met, went on two dates, said the L-word, and moved in. He proposed to me on the Blue Ridge Parkway after only 7 short months. When you know, you know! {Or as my Mom says, "When you know what you want the rest of your life to be, you want it to start right now." Moms are always right.} In May of 2011 I graduated again with a Bachelors of Science in Psychology. Over the summer I worked as a counselor for high risk adolescents with psychological disorders and substance abuse dependencies. I also started a graduate program in Educational Psychology at Virginia Tech. For the record, there is no better way to find out you're on the wrong path than attending a graduate program that's completely wrong for you. After a lot of thinking {and let's not forget the weekly meltdowns and thousands of conversations with my future self/Mom}, I quit my job, left the program, and decided to become a Midwife. On October 22nd we got married, exactly one year after he proposed! Somewhere in there, I started this blog. I've got big plans to open my own practice one day and even bigger plans to build a house and have lots of chubby cheeked babies with Thomas. But for now, we're taking it day by day.

Thanks for stopping by :) Drop me a note and introduce yourself!

xoxo, eliza

{Blog Makeover}

Happy Sunday! Did you notice that Crème de la Crème got a major do-over? I had so much fun, especially when I was learning how to make the header! {thank you T for your unfailing patience. and for your incredibly smart brain...you're so kind and useful.} If you look up at the new header, we got that mug as a gift for our wedding and my sister made the cozy {or as my dad would say, Mug Pants} that's sitting around it. Thomas makes me tea {with extra honey} in that mug whenever I'm stressed or sick or tired or worried or scared. I love that mug, I love daisies, and I love blogging. So to me it makes sense that they all go together! There are still a few changes that I want to make and they will happen slowly over the next few weeks. What do you think of the new look? 

xoxo, eliza

Friday's Fancies #15 :: Best Foot Forward

Hi! And happy Friday! Today really feels like a Friday to me because I started a new job this week {more to come on the new job stuff next week, I promise}. With the new year in mind, how are you doing on your resolutions? I've narrowed down a pattern for T's scarf {my first knitting project} and created a Good Reads account. {Wanna be my friend?} Baby steps, people. Baby steps. So here's to those resolutions, and to getting the year off on the right foot. Cheers!

1. 2. 3. 4. 

I'm currently madly in love with every single pair of these shoes. I rarely wear heels, but it's something I'm making a point to do more often. I think these wider heels would provide a lot of comfort. Maybe that's reason enough to splurge on that pair from Fossil? ;) Which pair is your favorite? 

Be sure to skip over to Long Distance Loving for more Friday's Fancies.

xoxo, eliza

While I was Out

Hello! Sorry to be MIA. It was the first day of my new job and it took a little extra time than I had originally planned on. While away...

I've been crafting fantastic ideas for blog posts and hammering out details for giveaways.  

{I can't wait to share them all with you!}

I've designed a new header for my blog, and am planning a total bloggie makeover for this weekend!!

I've been working on a personal routine/schedule. It seems that without some type of order to my day I don't accomplish half of what I set out to. Does this happen to anyone else?

T and I made Chicken Pad Thai. Twice. That's how great this stuff is. Not just twice, but two nights in a row. 

I'm telling you what.

Favorite meal in the world. 
Last night we tried wider noodles and a cabbage/carrot mix. Even better! 

What have you been up to this week?

Thanks for sticking with me through this week of spazzy blog posts.

Can you believe it's almost Friday?

xoxo, eliza

p.s. Do you have a Goodreads account? Want to be my reading buddy? Join me!

a day of resting

Today has been a quiet day. Which is good, because we are sick. 

Thank goodness husband doesn't have to go to school, I don't have to go to work, and all I really have to do today is edit pictures from Christmas break {thus the random picture accompanying today's post} and continually fill the tea kettle. 

Oh yeah, and watch TV. Today is a good day to be sick. On a random note, {who am i kidding? this entire post is random.} did anyone watch Oprah's interview with Steven Tyler last night? It was different than I expected it to be. 

I loved it. You should watch it, if you too are home sick today.

xoxo, eliza

p.s. :: Thank you for your book recommendations! I've already started reading. If you didn't leave me a suggestion already, please let me know what you've been reading {and loving/not loving} lately! 

Happy New Year!

:: major highlights of 2011 ::

{starting this blog}

graduating from college {!!}

marrying my best friend

finally figuring out what it is i want to be doing. {more to come on this soon!}

:: This year, there will be more ::

{reading}

{knitting}

{old movies}

{friendship}

{sparkles}

and much, much more blogging. thank you so much for reading!

and since I know you have twenty seconds to help me out, what is your favorite book? favorite old movie? 

I need suggestions to get me started :)

Happy 2012 to you! 

xoxo, eliza