Friday's Fancies

Happy Friday friends!

What are you all up to this weekend? My brother is bringing my little sister up tomorrow, so my weekend is going to be filled with food and family and maybe a movie or two. 

Today's Friday's Fancies outfit is for just hanging out and having a good time. 

{1, 2, 3, 4, 5}

Be sure to stop by Long Distance Loving so you can link up your own Friday's Fancies post!

Oh, and don't forget to enter my awesome August Must Haves giveaway. It ends Sunday!

xoxo, 

There Are No Rules

I was reading a favorite fashion blogger of mine today. 

I'm always very impressed with her sense of style and her unbiased fashion commentary. 

Today, however, I was taken slightly aback. Make that very aback. 

I won't  name names here, and I won't give a direct quote, but the fashion faux she pointed out today didn't really sit well with me.

"Don't wear pearls and a modern dress."

I'm sorry. 

Whaaaaaaaaa?

Apparently she didn't get the memo. Because there are obviously no rules when it comes to wearing pearls. 

{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}

I got my first {and only} set of pearls for my high school graduation. I've been known to wear them just as often with a pair of jeans and a tank top, as I do with a little black dress, or *gasp* even a modern dress {and with lingerie, but that is neither here, nor there}. 

Do you own pearls? If so, do you follow any "rules"?

Didn't think so.

Best. Meal. Ever.

Need a easy-peasy {and delicious} summer meal? You’ve come to the right place.

Pork shoulder roast (I used four pounds for four people with some leftover)
Bottle of root beer
Salt and pepper
Bottle of BBQ sauce

Put pork roast in the crock pot and pour root beer into the bottom, up to about halfway up the roast. Season with salt and pepper on top. Cook on low for eight hours (I cooked mine for twelve, but it was done after eight hours). Shred pork with two forks and coat with BBQ sauce to taste. Serve with homemade hamburger buns.

2 large, sweet yellow onions
2 cups buttermilk
2 cups flour
Cayenne pepper
Salt and black pepper
Frying oil (canola oil)

Cut the onions into quarter inch rings and dredge in buttermilk. Combine flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne, and dip in onions. Fry in hot oil (350 degrees) until brown and crispy.

You’re welcome.

My Last Anniversary Post

Until next July. I promise. 

I just wanted to show you all a few pictures from our weekend. 

 

 

 

 

 

  

  

 

xoxo,

August Must Haves

I have a surprise for you...

So you remember that little giveaway series that we do here on this little blog? Well, it's back for another month. And I'm very excited about this month.

Going wine tasting is somewhat of a tradition now for Robert and I, on our anniversary. Last year we went to Solvang for our honeymoon and bought a nice bottle of wine, which we had on Saturday with In-N-Out for dinner {we love In-N-Out so much that we had it at our wedding, that's where that little tradition came from}. So this year, for our one year anniversary, we went to Los Olivos, where we ate, drank, and played a little bocce ball. We found another delicious bottle of wine, which we will be opening on our anniversary next July. 

I just happened to find one of my new favorite wines yesterday. We even joined their wine club, it was so good. The tasting room attendants were actually the husband and wife that own the winery and produce the wine, and they were so friendly and informative. Their wines were absolutely delicious, and not very expensive. 

So, for the month of August, I am giving away to one lucky reader, my favorite wine of the day.

There are a few ways that you can enter this little giveaway here:

1. Follow Where We Love is Home and leave comment telling me what wine is your favorite {and telling me that you're 21, please}.
2. Follow me on Twitter. 
3. Tweet about this giveaway.. 
4. Follow Where We Love is Home on Facebook. 
5. Blog about this giveaway.

Be sure to leave a comment for each entry. The giveaway will close on July 31st at midnight.

{Please note that I will be purchasing the wine and having it shipped directly to you from the winery itself. They do require that someone over the age of 21 signs for the package.}

Good luck!

xoxo,

Oh, Hello There....

Today we are saying....

{via}

We are celebrating our anniversary with a picnic, some cupcakes, a nice dinner, a little shopping, and of course...

{via}

And tomorrow, I have a surprise for all of you. Be sure to come back!

xoxo, 

July 23, 2010

I promised to encourage your compassion, because it’s what drives your need to serve others, and it’s what inspires me to live more compassionately too.

I promised to cherish all of your unique eccentricities, because they are what make sure that I smile every day.

I promised to not only support your dreams, but to help you reach them too, because your ambition is what motivates me to dream big too.

And lastly, I promised to love the person that you are, fully and unconditionally, because without you, I wouldn’t be the person that I am, and the person that you love.

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Exactly one year ago today, I promised all of these things to you. I still do. 

I love you Robert Duff. Thank you for loving me back.

xoxo,

Friday's Fancies

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaack...

Did you miss me? I missed you. Tremendously. I couldn't even let myself wait until Saturday, I had to come back from my break today. 

I'm participating in the fabulous {av}'s Friday's Fancies this fine Friday. And what a coincidence, since this week's theme is the Little White Dress. 

Coincidence, you ask? Why, yes a coincidence. Because a year ago tomorrow I was wearing a Big White Dress.

Dress

Clutch

Shoes

Necklace

Nail Polish

{P.S....Do you like my new design? I feel rejuvenated, and I wanted my little blog to feel fresh too.}

Happy Friday Friends. I hope you all have lovely weekends. I can't wait to get back into the swing of things. I have so many fun posts planned for all of you! But you'll just have to wait a little bit longer.

Love you,

Guest Post: Jenni at Story of my Life

I have a super special surprise for you this beautiful Wednesday! Friends, I would like to introduce to all of you one of my blog idols, one my favorite bloggers from one of my favorites blogs ever: Jenni from Story of My Life. If you haven't met Jenni yet, you best be getting your butt over to her blog because I just know that you'll love it!

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Hello new friends!

Pleased to make your acquaintance, and pleased to be here at Joelle's sweet blog today!

Speaking of this sweet blog, I love the title of it: Where We Love Is Home.  And it's actually my inspiration for this post today! 

You see, I've had 9 different homes in my 24 years thus far.  I'm guessing that's above average for my age, though I don't know that for a fact!  My dad was in the military, so growing up, we moved around a lot.  I have no idea what it's like to put down roots somewhere and grow up with all the same kids and know everything about your hometown.  I've never really had a hometown--only a town where I happen to currently live!

So that little saying, "where we love is home," really rings true to me.

I've lived in everything from a mobile home to an apartment to a small house to a large house. But growing up, I never knew anything but love in my home, mostly thanks to my wonderful mother. And always and to this day, home represents love and comfort.

Now, as I've began to create my own home, I strive to keep this in mind. Home really IS where your heart is--much less so where you show off your status in life or your STUFF.

It should always be forefront in our minds to build the LOVE inside our homes above all else. To fix love where it's broken. To build love up. To accumulate it and perfect it like our most prized possessions.

STUFF can be lost in an instant.  We can't always carry it with us.  But love?  Love we can.



Come visit me at Story of My Life anytime! 

And thanks for having me over, Joelle! :)

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Thanks so much Jenni for guest posting on this little blog here! And I hope you all have a fabulous Wednesday!

xoxo,  

Guest Post: Love, Julie

I hope you all had as good of a weekend as I had! And to keep you entertained this beautiful monday morning, I have Julie from Love, Julie here to talk about some of her favorite things in California. Enjoy!

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Hi Love is Home readers, I am Julie from Love, Julie, here to fill in for Joelle while she masters the art of being an adorable housewife. I just got back from a fabulous trip to Turkey and Greece and while I loved every minute and can't wait to go back some day, the three weeks away from home also made me realize how much I loved my home in California! I am so excited to be guest posting on Joelle's amazing blog and since we both live in this amazing state, I thought I would share a few of the many things that make it the best state ever.

Weather

It is always nice here. No matter what the season or time of day, we almost always have weather here the rest of the country only experiences during the best weeks of summer.

 

In n' Out

 

If you have had it, I don't need to explain - if you haven't, its well worth a trip to California to give it a try.

 

The Beach

I know other states have beaches too but for me there is nothing better than watching the surfers in the freezing cold waters of Santa Cruz or the tanning in the warm San Diego sun on the beach in Mission Bay.

 

Wineries

 

Napa is known for its fantastic grapes but there are wineries all over California. I don't know anything about wine but I still love a day of wine tasting as much as the next girl, what could be better than drinking wine in the sunshine at a beautiful place like the one above?

 

Farmers Markets

 

Here in California we have a farmers market in just about every town and neighborhood and fresh, local produce and flowers are available all year round! Sundays my fiance and I like to walk around the Campbell farmer's market tasting samples and buying flowers while we wait for a table at our favorite breakfast restaurant.

I am so happy to have had a chance to meet everyone over here at Love is Home and I hope you all come stop by Love, Julie sometime soon and introduce yourselves!

 

Images:

1. ruche

2. In n Out

3. valerie chiang

4. travelhyper

5. from me-to you

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If you have read my blog for any amount of time whatsoever, I'm sure it won't be difficult to figure out why I love Julie and her blog so much. We just have too much in common!

So thanks Julie, for guest posting for me. You are too sweet!

xoxo, 

Friday's are extra special days on this little blog here, because while we usually host Happy Hour, I also participate in a little thing called Friday's Fancies...maybe you've heard of it? Anyway, {av} herself has graciously accepted my request to do a Friday's Fancies guest post for me, and I absolutely love it!



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Happy Friday, Love is Home readers! My name is {av} and most days, you can find me blogging at {long distance loving}. Every Friday, I host a link-up called Friday's Fancies--for which Joelle has been a faithful poster! I'm so thrilled she asked me to fill in for her during her much-deserved blog sabbatical. I pulled this outfit together to celebrate her journey to be a domestic goddess--I hope you like it!



1) I love the spin on this Ray-Ban Modern Wayfarer Sunglasses. They've got a little more spunk than the Wayfarers I own and, in my opinion, would definitely lend to the pulled-together, domestic chic look.
2) Is there a better dress to wear for a day of errand running than this Splendid Rugby Stripe Dress!? I think not. It's cottony goodness and belted waistline make it a perfect choice!
3) Friday's Fancies is all about dreaming big...and even though this outfit is a bit on the relaxed side, I can't help but find a big and beautiful Leather Tote, like this one from Newbark, to hold all the goodies from the stops around town.
4) Adding to the preppy yet relaxed vibe, I spied this ASOS Leather Plaited Bracelet and thought it would be a great way to tie this outfit together. It is effortless--which is exactly how domestic chic should be.
5) I couldn't help but throw a little color in this get-up through these TOMS Coral Linen Classics. With all the moving and shaking required to get the job done, sandals just wouldn't cut it. And besides, who doesn't love coral?

I hope you enjoyed this round-up for a domestic goddess--thanks again to Joelle for having me on her beautiful blog! Be sure to stop by and see the other Fancies today...or even create your own! 

The sky's the limit :) Enjoy the weekend! xoxo {av}

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Thanks so much {av} for this amazing outfit you put together for me! You are the best!

xoxo, 

Today's guest post comes from none other than Jillian at Cornflake Dreams! Jillians is pretty much one of my favorite bloggers out there, and she always has such fantastic ideas and gorgeous inspiration on her blog. You should really check her out. Like, really. You'll love her too. Promise.



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hi there! it's jillian from cornflake dreams and i am thrilled to be guest posting for miss joelle while she is on her blog sabbatical. as joelle knows blogging takes up a lot of time - so when i am not working on cornflake dreams, or other graphic design work i try to spend my free time away from the computer.

i live in chicago and like everyone else in the midwest we take our summer months seriously. after what seemed like a never-ending winter and a blizzard i appreciate the sunshine and warm weather of the summer months. this year i have been spending a lot of time outdoors riding around on my new bike and crossing things off my summer bucket list. i've also noticed in my activities in my free time depend on who i am spending that time with-- my fiance, friends or myself. here's a quick list of my favorite ways to relax::

bike, netflix, popcorn, record, brunch, nail polish, nap

a huge thank you to joelle for inviting me to guest post! feel free to stop by cornflake dreams anytime for daily fashion, travel and design inspiration!

what do you like to do in your free time?!

xo,

jillian

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Hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday!

xoxo, 

Guest Post: Alisha

Happy Monday friends! I am taking a little blog break, but I didn't want to leave you all high and dry for the next two weeks, so I asked some of my favorite bloggers to guest post for me. The first of these fabulous girls is Alisha from Alisha and Brandon. She is absolutely the sweetest girl I've ever "met" {yes, I do believe that we know each other in real life} and I can't wait for you all to meet her! 

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Well, hello readers of Love is Home!  It's a privilege to be able to chat with you today, and seeing as how you're stuck with me for the day we should probably get to know each other a little. Want to? I’ll start.

Hi. I’m Alisha.

“HIIIIII ALLISSHAAA”

I’m married to Brandon — for oh, about 7 months now. We live in Texas. He's a country boy, and I'm a city girl. Together we make a pretty darn good team.

We make it a point take pictures in front of random tractors. Even if we don't know who's tractor it may be. That's how we roll.

 

I'm obsessed with taking pictures. Literally of anything
{and I may or may not be included in them}.

I love food. I love to eat food. And I love to take pictures of food. I am addicted to coffee.

Hmmm, anything else you're dying to know? Didn't think so.

Moving on.

When I started blogging Joelle's blog was one of the first blogs I started to follow. To say she's kind of my idol is an understatement. She's smart, funny, beautiful, an incredible writer and she lives in California {I die a little inside every time I think of warm weather year round. yes, even at Christmas}. She has the sweetest husband alive who even coordinated a surprise for her birthday back in February to have a few blog friends send her birthday cards! And I was one of them. Too cute, I tell you.

What do you say? Can we be friends?

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Thanks Alisha for giving me such a fantastic guest post.

And thanks to all my lovely readers for being so welcoming and just plain fabulous. I love you all!

xoxo, 

My Campaign for Domestic Happiness

So, as you all know {probably because I talk about it way too much...}, I have a not-so-secret goal of becoming well-educated in the art of domesticity.

I’m taking a short blog hiatus in the next few weeks, and one of the reasons is so that I can start working on some of my domestic ambitions. Before I do so, however, I wanted to share with you my “plan” for working on this lofty goal.

{image via Pinterest, book by Isabella Beeton}

Follow my household cleaning schedule and amend it as necessary.

I created a household cleaning schedule, in which I dedicate each day of the week to a specific household task. I’ve read in many blogs and books that this is the easies, and most efficient way to ensure that your house {or, in my case, apartment} stays neat and clean, without the stress of having to dedicate one day a week {and many hours} to doing it all at once.

I’ve already created this schedule, but it’s important that I keep an open mind and realize that things may need to be added, amended, or rearranged. The goal is just to find a routine and stick to it. 
You can find my cleaning schedule here.
  Continue reading Home Comforts.
  This book is seriously the bible of homemaking and housekeeping. It’s pretty ridiculous at times, such as when it suggests that the only acceptable family dinner is one that includes at least three courses and a detailed tablescape. Obviously I don’t take everything to heart in this book, but it really does offer good information and advice. I’m reading it cover to cover, and I’m actually thoroughly enjoying it. And while there are plenty of sections that are not relevant to my home at this time, I know that it will be an invaluable resource and reference later in life. 
Focus on cooking.
  A few weeks ago, I shared my goal of cooking dinner at home five nights a week. I also aimed to make one vegetarian meal per week, and one meal with fish. So far, I’ve made really good progress on this goal, and I hope to really focus on it in the next few weeks. I’m sure that I will have plenty of recipes to share with you when I get back.
  Cooking truly is one of my passions in life and it’s very important to me that I focus on the places in my home that make me the happiest. So, obviously, cooking is a top priority in this plan. 
Other areas to work on: Sewing  We have a discount fabric store that I like to go to when we visit my family in Orange County. it has bolts of fabric for $2 to $8 a yard, and they always have such beautiful fabric. I went with my mom and aunt this past weekend and got way too much stuff, but now I have the motivation to start using my sewing machine more. 
Home Design and Decorating  We’ve lived in our little apartment for over a year now, so we are obviously pretty settled in. I don’t know that I’m the biggest fan of the decor in here, though it’s comfortable. I am going to try and figure out a few ways to redecorate using what we already have, by rearranging furniture and re-purposing used items. 
Organization
  I’ve actually been really good at organizing my home and life these days, but I want to work on it a little bit more. I created my home office a few weeks ago, and it’s still fairly organized, but I want to use that motivation and inspiration into the rest of our home. 

{all images via Pinterest}

And here are some resources that I've already found to help me along the way:

This isn't all I'm focusing on while on my blog vacay, but I will definitely be spending a good portion of my time baking cookies and scrubbing the sink. I promise a full recap once I'm done. 

But until then, if you have any good resources or advice, please send it my way. I would really appreciate it! And I hope you all enjoy the guest posts that are coming your way. 

{and I give up on the spacing of this post...why is blogger so wonky??}

Love you all!