five on friday: 'cupcakes and cashmere' style.

in honor of the lovely emily schuman {she was absolutely darling, by the way!}, i thought that it would be neat to create a list of five pieces from this week that were inspirational, or just plain exciting. if you follow cupcakes and cashmere, then you know that she puts together a blog post of her week highlights on friday.
i'm a fan of that idea, obviously. so here are a couple of my sweet moments from the last week in september.

what about you? anything that inspired you this week?

{getting to meet emily in beverly hills}

 {the pretty details on a new necklace}

 {falling in love with creamy peonies}

{calm and cool sunday afternoons}

{bruschetta with mozzerella+sundried tomatoes}

book signing.

this blog post is short because i am extremely excited. why, you ask? igettogotoabooksigning!!!!! okay, okay. a little slower now...i get to meet emily schuman of, "cupcakes and cashmere" and get my book signed. all with her signature gold pen, no less. and yes, i realize that the photo above makes me look like i'm five. especially since my messy room provides the perfect backdrop. i should stop watching "grey's anatomy" and actually clean it...

i'm going to fight traffic on the 405 at rush hour, and make sure my outfit is a bit more fashionable than skinny jeans and a t-shirt because this is kind of a big deal. i've seen my favorite novelist, so now it's time to meet the first blogger I have ever followed. i was reading a "glamour" magazine a couple of years ago, and she popped up as a blogger to watch. thus, i have followed her blog ever since. it's been so much fun/inspirational. she literally teaches me how to dress...and make pasta for summer. it's great.

what about you? who are your favorite bloggers?
is there anyone you would fight rush hour LA traffic for? ;)

wedding weekend.

if you've been following me for a bit, you may recognize a picture that's kind of similar to the one above...since I wore a maxi skirt/sunglasses/wedges in this post. it's one of the easiest outfits to throw together, especially if you want to look a bit more dressed up in the summer heat. this time around, i wasn't dressed up in a maxi skirt for the hollywood bowl, but for something much more special.

one of my sweet friends got married this weekend at this darling place, and i literally had a heart attack getting ready. have you ever seen one of those movies where the main character is so extremely late it's a bit ridiculous? well. that was me. my wedding look was pulled together in 20 minutes flat, complete with three {yes, three} outfit changes.

i shouldn't have worried. the wedding was a small, intimate affair that was absolutely beautiful. the couple is so in love with the Lord and each other...it was gorgeous. such a God-honoring wedding makes me want to get married, too! {okay not really. i'm good for a bit.} the couple said their vows under a beautiful oak tree hung with vintage window frames and walked down an aisle rimmed with cardboard hearts.

all of the details {as seen below} were truly stunning. i felt like i was transported to anthropologie, due to everything from the vintage books on the tables to the mason jars and vintage candy bar. this is truly one of the most memorable/lovely weddings i have ever had the precious chance to cry through. congratulations, my darling favorite photographer! i can't wait to see what God does with the two of you in your marriage :)

days gone by.

okay, okay. i'll admit it.
i love looking at old photos.

it's one of my favorite things to flip through little pieces of the past, and smile at all the hidden memories that come rushing back. since i'm a big sister, it's always so sweet to see my little sibling's features soften and curve back into those adorable baby faces i miss so much.

there's something that's just so fascinating about the past. it enables us to enjoy the beauty of the present, and be excited for the promise of the future. my siblings faces may not be teeny-tiny any more.  but one day, we'll have our own to squeal over.

am i getting ahead of myself? maybe.
but there's nothing wrong with a little tuesday morning dreaming :)

in honor of the beginning of autumn, here are some of my favorite memories from back home, complete with pumpkins+sunny california weather.

i can't take photos.

you probably think i'm kidding with my post title. well, rest assured. i'm not. i am not a trained photographer, or even slightly gifted in that area, so you're going to see quite a few amateur photos/posts. my best friend on the other hand? is pretty much a natural. ah, so frustrating! ;) as you know from this post, i was recently looking into a camera investment.

well. it has been done. 

i feel like a proud mom with my big, seemingly professional camera. it's name is canon rebel t3i and i'm oh so very in love. i bought it on a saturday {on sale!} and snapped dorky pictures of food/jewelry/painted nails for the rest of the night. the best friend and i headed out to a bridge by our apartment on a sunday afternoon {forgive the lighting} and snapped a couple of crystal clear photographs in the fading sunlight. we're a little goofy, but until i take my photography crash course in october? 

this sweet family addition is going to be busy being silly. 

Worker Bee Weekend.

thank heavens. it's friday. i hope you all have an amazing weekend, one full of cookies and milk and ice cream. or...something a little healthier. whatever floats your boat ;)

as for me, the best friend and i will be cleaning our apartment {pics are from a little housekeeping date for friends} and doing lots and lots of homework. oh, yeah. and just watching this amazing photographer get married. it's just going to be gorgeous, no big deal.

other than that? it's all quiet on the california front. i'm trying to talk the best friend into an afternoon in hollywood...wish me luck!

loving on the littles.

as you all know, my mom/dad/brothers/sister all moved out to tennessee this summer. it's been really difficult to get used to, especially with the time change and lack of little brother to change my car brakes ;)

even so, i have all my uncles, aunts, cousins and grandparents still in the state. granted, they're six hours away, but still. i'm happy to know they're around. it's nice to be able to take a trip up to san francisco or sacramento and know that i'll be with family.

last week, my uncle + aunt from the bay area came down to the happiest place on earth. after a couple days in disneyland, they stopped by my other aunt's house {big family, i know}. long story short? i got to cuddle up with their two cute little peanuts {lydia and baby georgie!} for such a nice long time. you simply can't beat holding a baby. you just can't.

ah, these pictures make me miss their baby fingers/toes!! i think it's time to plan a trip back to the bay...

the big payoff.

{the extent of my iphone photography skills...and editing skills, for that matter ;) }

well, my lovely dear followers {and all my amazing visitors!!}, i'm going to buy a camera.

um, yay!

i've only been blogging religiously for about...three weeks. even though i've had this little spot on the web since early january, my last semester in college/senior thesis kind of threw me for a loop. since then, i've peppered this little blog with bits and pieces of the summer. september brought a joy, and excitement for this story place. i realized there are oh so many gorgeous women/men blogging out there, and i wanted to be a part of the fun.

thus, the need for a camera.

i'm quite far from being a, 'photographer,' per say, but i do love taking pictures. they're nice and grainy/blurry thanks to my iphone camera, but hey! give me props for trying! ;)

that's why i've been shopping around for my own camera. i'll be traveling around africa for a month at the end of the year, and i'm sure it will come in amazingly handy. as of right now, i'm thinking of this one or this one. or maybe even this one.

any advice, my fellow bloggers? this itty-bitty amateur needs all the help she can get!

a must.

i don't usually post on the weekends. it just makes much more sense to enjoy the gorgeous LA sunshine, the cookies and milk in the fridge and a good book.

but then i tried a macaron and ran into jaime king.

first off, macarons are amazing {is it just me, or is this blog just becoming a food rant...?}. and jaime king is kind of gorgeous. the best friend and i decided to head down to the brentwood farmer's market, and the day was pretty much complete with lots of fruit/flowers/free samples.

ah, yes. the last farmer's market of the season. i'm going to miss them .

one of those days.

you see all this chocolate?
i want to eat it. all.

it's a rare cloudy day in los angeles, and i really just want to cuddle up in bed all day with a good book and never-ending amounts of peppermint hot chocolate and sourdough toast.

instead? i'll spend eight hours at work, meet with one of my favorite professor's about my writing, and then hoof it to school for night class. Wednesday's are not my favorite.

So, in lieu of a long and convoluted blog post, i thought i would focus on some of my favorite things today. it's always good to find bits and pieces to make you smile, especially when the day seems just much too long! :)

{little lydia's sweet baby face}

{comfort food at puckett's} 

{old doors and antique stores} 

{downtown nashville//where the past and present meld perfectly} 

{long talks with mama + cinnamon rolls} 

{long hair/no make-up/sunglasses days} 

{the bleeker pizza from this place!} 

{old locks} 

{water wheels} 

 {old family photos//notice the golden gate in the background??}

 {words}

 {sleeping baby face}

{goldfish in class}