listen.

Check out these tracks and have a lovely weekend!

new things & a day-date with myself.

As I've mentioned before, my work schedule allows for a mini vacation every week & I couldn't be more grateful.  The four-day weekends are incredible.  The three-day weekends never seem to be enough (but I'll take 'em.)  Don't get me wrong... I typically do nothing productive with the majority of my free-time.  However, I did manage to finish laundry, clean my disastrous room (it's already unorganized again,) and make a couple of necklaces. 

I believe both necklaces have been claimed... but I DO have the supplies to make at least one more of each.  :)  If interested, feel free to shoot me (Kylie) an email or a Facebook message. (Click on my name button on the right of this page for my contact details.)  

This afternoon, I ventured out for a little day-date with myself to peruse a few stores and shops (while enjoying this perfect weather.)  I spotted this gorgeous buffet (in excellent condition) at Salvation Army.  Seriously- will someone go purchase this pretty lady?

Salvation Army Thrift Store @ 2551 Dodge St 

I finally ventured into Midwest Pickers.  I hurriedly made my way through but didn't find much that sparked my interest.  I think their merchandise is likely hit-or-miss, so maybe I'll find some treasures next time! 

I also stopped in the Old Market and made my rounds to the usual spots: Joe's Collectibles, Second Chance Antiques, Fairmount Antiques, and reServe.  While walking around, I made my way into Jackson Street Booksellers.  I could spend hours, days, and weeks in that place.  The majority of the book groups are labeled, so that's extremely helpful if you're looking for something specific.

Did you know that some geniuses were evidently unaware that Titanic was a TRUE STORY?!

The Daily What

Have you lost all faith in humanity yet?  Are you, too, contemplating a direct message to each of those Twitter users and questioning whether they graduated from the 5th grade?  I... I just... I just can't believe the stupidity. 

Are you friends with your parents on Facebook?  I was reluctant to approve the friendship request, but I figured I really don't have that much to hide from my mom (anymore.)  Over the weekend, she added some fairly embarrassing Easter photos from the past.  I'm only going to show the semi-acceptable one.  The other should be burned (short hair, dorky glasses, weird stance/facial expression, AND knee-high socks.  What? Why?)  

Yep... that's me... looking kind of "special" while my mullet-haired brother holds me up in his karate pajamas.  At least I grew into that head... (that's a lie.  It's still huge.)  

And here is a photo of Douglas... I know most of you are probably wanting to see the precious gal.

We know... she's the cutest.  Look at those paws!  

Well, I'm hungry so it's time to burn dinner.... again.

i heart...

Stunningly unique portrait series by Charlotte Caron.

Just this dress that I need from 80s Purple.

Tyler Knott Gregson's series of typewriter poems.

Strawberry Mojitos! Recipe here.

This.

Enjoy the weekend!

who doesn't Google how to use a charcoal grill?

Having the chance to utilize a backyard for grilling, yard games, and hanging out was one of the main reasons Kelly & I chose to rent a house.  Despite the yard work that tags along, having a patio/backyard is a 100% improvement over having nothing at our old place.  

One downfall: we had to build our own patio area.  As much as many of  you view myself & Kelly as home-improvement masters & DIY goddesses, laying thirty 40-pound cement pavers on the ground isn't as easy as it seems. 

Problem 1.) I somehow envisioned us transporting all thirty stones in my car: a 2006 Nissan Altima.  No dice, genius.  

Problem 2.) My mom and Shawn had to save our asses with their brand new Harley Davidson themed truck.  This probably wasn't how they wanted to use their new investment. 

Problem 3.) I can hardly lift a 5-pound hand weight in each arm every time I work out. (6 days a week, in case you were wondering......) 

Problem 4.) My hands hurt after the ceremonious landing of the first stone on the sand/dirt and I wanted to give up right away. 

Problem 5.) We didn't exactly follow my mother's instructions that guided us to "make sure the ground is even."  It's not.  You can even tell how uneven via photo below: 

nice, right? 

Despite the instability of the patio, we will probably neglect to fix it & set our patio furniture down anyway.  

Also, we picked up a grill.  It's the cheapest/smallest one we could find.  It's charcoal.  .....Do you know how to use a charcoal grill?  Who knew the coals don't stay visually ignited in flames the entire time?  Kelly risked her life by using half a can of lighter-fluid until Google search results informed us that the coals just needed time to heat.  WHO KNEW?  

This is a classy koozie (Kelly's.)  And that is our precious little grill, cooking some chicken to perfection.  Also, you may notice we don't have our patio furniture at the moment so we upcycled some plastic bins for footrests.

First night of grilling = a success.  Who wants to bring some steaks and kabobs over so we can grill a friendly feast?  

This past weekend, Kelly & I attended a baby shower for our friend, Alycia.  I have never seen a more adorable mother-to-be, seriously.  She is the cutest.  She and David recently purchased a home in the Benson area of Omaha & it was the first visit for both Kelly & myself.  I know I keep saying "cute," but seriously.... CUTEST house.  It has the perfect balance of modern updates and vintage/retro charm.  I'm jealous.  If they ever move out, I think I'll be first in line to take residency.  :) 

Great food, laughs, mimosas, and fun in the sun were all inclusive at the event.  It was the perfect Sunday afternoon and it was great to see all of our girls.  (Can we do that more often, please?!)  

Kelly & I put a little bucket of baby goodies together.  We also made a shadow box for the new baby boy's room.  

Emily and Corrie found some adorable iron-on appliques.  We also attempted to use fabric markers... Mine ("Owl Always Love You") looks like the work of a 2nd grader.  My bad, Baby Cooper.

If you had ever walked through our house, you may have noticed the awkward positioning of our living room  furniture.  We decided to rearrange this week & I feel like it's a whole new world.  

Dougie looks like she was photo-shopped in there.  We have so much room for activities! 

I finally got to showcase this beaut.  It belonged to my mom's fiance/eternal manfriend's aunt who passed away.  Isn't it awesome?  

How many of our readers had Xanga blogs back in the day?  If you did, try to find that old online shame-blog.  Prepare to feel humiliated.  Kelly & I read through ours last night and I felt so embarrassed for Kylie circa 2005-2006.  Did firehotquotes.com narrate my entire life?  Why did I listen to Lindsay Lohan and Ashlee Simpson?  Why did I find it necessary to post the lyrics to SIX Carrie Underwood songs in one entry?  I'm so ashamed.  

I'm going to keep that available so I can go back to ensure my life HAS improved whenever I'm in doubt.  

Henderson out! 

 (this was my Xanga tagline, like Ryan Seacrest.  .... I was a mess.) 

look, a nook.

I finally got around to refinishing the nightstand I bought off of Craigslist for $5 (from a guy who was presumably living in his storage shed) and then ruined with glossy yellow paint. It looks so much better now. I love the floral detailing on it. That's the thing about antique pieces, the craftsmanship and attention to detail are worlds better than modern furniture.

Stack of vintage Holiday mags picked up for $6 at Imaginarium in Benson. 

Last night I was racking my brain for ideas to finish off the empty corner by my nightstand. I called up my momma and asked her to bring me this lovely vintage wicker chair that's been collecting dust in my parents' basement for a few years since their remodel. I wrapped the leftover fabric from our housewarming party photo backdrop (which I also used on the insides of my vanity drawers) around the dated green plaid cushions and added a polaroid wall of my Instagram prints, and voila, behold... my new reading nook. IT'S SO COZY.

Friends with sewing machines and skillz - please volunteer to recover these cushions for me. Right now, the fabric is just wrapped around the cushions and, as you can see, it looks kind of blah. Thanks.

It looks better in person, but here are the prints up close. I got them from Prinstagram a while back for super cheap. I've just been waiting for a place to put them.

A few other new additions:

Coffee beans for my makeup brush jar. Makes my room smell heavenly.

Douglas got this for me.

Homemade canvas artwork by yours truly. Idea from A Beautiful Mess.

I'm finally happy with how my room looks. I'm learning that less is more. Next step: a white comforter!

Ciao, bella.

It's the freakin' weekend, baby. I'm about to have me some pun.

Hey, followers.  All... six of you.  (When should we expect our invitations to all of those cool blogger conferences?!)  

This is Kylie... I feel like I should put that out there.  I imagine some of you are under the impression that Kelly & I are actually the same person.  Rest assured, we are separate people & I'm definitely the funnier of the duo.  

If you're clueless about that title, please refer to this video (40 seconds in) -->

It's probably PG-13, so beware... After all, it is R. Kelly circa 2003; right around that urinating-on-an-underage-girl incident. I'm also not entirely sure of the language/innuendos because I was a flawless, straight-edge teenager when this song first launched........

Anyway, I tweeted "It's the freakin' weekend, baby. I'm about to have me some pun" as I was about to leave work on Saturday.  A random comedian chose to "Favorite" the tweet so I felt famous for a second.  The weekend is clearly over... even mine.  Four glorious days, people.  FOUR DAYS.  I'm already depressed about the short three-day weekend coming up.  Those of you who work five days a week need to reevaluate that decision.

I feel like this is where I reword Jay-Z by shouting, "If you work five days a week, I feel bad for you son.  I got 99 problems but my schedule ain't one." 

....I don't know where that came from.  I was up early today.  Blame it on the narcolepsy. 

So... back to the purpose of thee blog-  here are some things that happened over the weekend -->  

Kelly & I planted flowers in window boxes attached to the front of our house.  Let's keep our fingers crossed that they stay alive for more than a few weeks.  We are 0 for 1 on horticulture after murdering a gorgeous plant at our previous apartment.  We basically water-boarded the poor thing and then left it to dry/die in the desert sun.

We did some thrifting on Monday- I scored some t-shirts from Flying Worm, vintage (I think? I assume. I can't find them online) Nine West wedges from The Imaginarium in Benson, and books from Goodwill on 78th & Dodge

Side note:  While at Goodwill, Kelly found a book titled "The ABCs of Choosing a Good Husband."  Of course, we contemplated the purchase for a few minutes.  While I was trying to gather some advice off the back cover, a middle-aged black man approached me and said, "I don't see a ring on your finger.  How about we spend some time together and I'll read that to you?"  I blushed.... Who knew it could be that easy?  Wedding details soon. <3 

I draw "Mariah" every chance I get.  I think I'm improving. I wouldn't be surprised if she contacts me directly for a hand-drawn family portrait.  Also, Nick Cannon has an abnormally long arm and it's not my fault.

Guys... I love this cabinet.  It's at Imaginarium in Benson and I will give my first-born child to whoever gifts & delivers to me.

realized that Douglas is now a demon, so.... FREE CAT. 

We expanded our coffee cup selection.  

I attempted to reorganize my jewelry-making accessories and then realized I just need to MAKE more jewelry to cut down on hoarded items.

Who knew the plumbing department at Lowe's could have such pretty charms? 

Clearly, these are very simple necklaces and it took no skill but... I think they may now actually be my three favorite pieces.

I almost tried free-handing the letters on this.  I am now 110% certain I was not put on this Earth to make art.  This derives from one of my favorite lines in a favorite song- "This warship is sinking and I still believe in anchors."  

If you're curious about the song, it's called "Wooden Heart" by Listener (video below.)  It is a top-5-forever-favorite & has helped to pull me through some tough times. (Sorry for getting serious for about five seconds.  Just watch, listen, and proceed.)  :)

I picked up this baby at Goodwill last week for $3.  It had a plain, shiny varnish so I sanded that down & chose a bright red.  I accidentally picked up glossy instead of matte, but it worked out just fine!  I glued some fabric into the drawers to spice it up a little.  It's like sexy, lace panties for jewelry storage.

And here she is, with a bunch of crap piled on top.  I hope I never need to retrieve anything from that cedar chest.  I have already forgotten what is stored inside and I'm far too lazy to remove everything in order to open and reveal its contents.  I figured it will just be like Christmas when I move.

Why is it 12:15 am?  Why am I not asleep?  Why is tomorrow Thursday?  

So much confusion.  I'm out for the night.  Maybe this novel of a post will make up for my blog-neglect lately?! 

playing farm.

I'm helping my cousin house sit at my uncle's farm that's miles away from what city people would call "civilization." This is where I grew up. Although I was never technically a "farm girl," the countryside is home to me. It's been kind of nice to get away from the city and surround myself with nature, limited cell service, and people who genuinely care when they ask how you're doing.

This is the first time I've opened my computer today and it feels liberating to have gone an entire day without it. Turns out there is life beyond the internet. I need to do this more often.

Today has been filled with farm choring, family hanging, dog chasing, dog bathing, more dog chasing, trampoline jumping, Gator riding, and sunset watching by a perfectly still pond.

Plus, there are like twenty cats here. Maybe being a country girl ain't that bad. (Minus the chores... and the dog.)

Now... time for the wine drinking portion of the night.