swim lessons

at three years of age, it is high time that camryn had swim lessons.  camryn has absolutely no fear of water .... or anything for that matter.  i knew she had to learn to swim asap.

i had researched several programs in the area and lots of friends had taken from one particular place - sweetman swimmers.  after reading a lot about the program and asking for opinions, i signed camryn up.  

in a nutshell, this program teaches the child to survive before learning to swim.  what do you do if you fall into the water?  how do you save your own life?

listening to the swim teacher

the first part of the lesson is learning to roll to your back and float.  or as they call it, be a sleeping fish.  camryn spent the first 2 1/2 days learning to roll and float on her back.  AND she spent a lot of time crying.   she cried because she was frustrated and couldn't figure out how to float on the first day.  she cried because they told her what to do {imagine that!}.  and she cried because they would toss her into the pool so she would roll over and float.  

let me also tell you, there were plenty of bribes this week --- her lovie bunny came to watch, i bribed with cookies and frozen yogurt and for the finale, a cinderella princess dress.  whatever it takes, right??

bunny attending lessons for moral support

each day was a struggle to get camryn to go to lessons.  she begged not to go back.  this was hard for me - this is the first time/event that camryn wanted to get out of.    but by friday, she was ready to rock.  i was so proud that she overcame her fear.

i really wish my iPhone videos from the week would download but i am having technical difficulties.  boo!

i leave you with a series of photos pre-lesson of friday. she was psyching herself up. these photos were just too funny to edit one out.  

color splash

if you follow me on instagram {@chvassar}, then you saw this photo back in january.

this year i vow to add some

color

to my life.

in my home decor, i'm pretty safe.  i usually stick with neutrals and solids. brown and beige.  i’m not as daring shelby eatenton in steel magnolias with her blush and bashful.  but slowly i have added some light blues to this house when we moved in back in 2008.  but overall, it's pretty neutral.

i got a bit brave when i added this chair to our family room in december of 2010.

it was almost unnerving for me.  a bold, geometric pattern.  AHHH!


but still neutral with brown and cream.

but this year, i wanted to add more color to our house. and slowly, i'm making good on that new year's resolution.  it may be mid-summer, but it's still 2012, right?

i'm sprinkling around little shots of color. i'm inspired by the colors of summer - blues, oranges, yellows and greens.  i think they will blend well with what we already have.

i found this orange tray at zgallerie and knew that it would instantly lighten up the dark console behind our sectional.

and the candle from anthropologie --- love the pattern and colors.

and from the half bath you’ve seen before, i splashed color all around that tiny room.

but my favorite little nook of color is near our front door.  i have an antique secretary from my mom and a gallery wall above.  here's an old photo.


blah. blah. blah.

and here it is now.  love, love, love all of the color.

camryn's three yr old photo is by the ever-talented laurie carpenter.  i opted for a gallery wrapped canvas this time instead of a traditional framed print.  it was laurie's suggestion and i couldn't be happier.  it was the perfect starting point for this wall.

 the lime & orange distressed frames are from the orange blossom shop on etsy.

i think i'd like to add a couple of more elements to the wall but overall i am SO happy.  

i’m learning to be braver & bolder in my decorating decisions.  i will still play it safe on our big expenses – paint carpet, large upholstered furniture.  but being surrounded by more vibrant colors and patterns makes our home feel more alive.

cheers to more color …. 

half bath {the details}

so, i’ve neglected the blog lately.  but, hey! it’s summer and we’ve been busy making memories.  i have worked on projects but i haven’t taken photos.  finally, i am here to catch up on one long-overdue post.

if you remember back in march, i posted about re-painting our half bath.  i really love how it turned out and i am happy that i took the boat loads of  time to tape off all of those stripes.  ugh – what a task!

well, in true-courtney fashion, i’ve been working on the accessories & final touches for a couple of months.  and, if I’m being honest here, i will probably change them next week.  i just can’t stop myself. i’ve been striving to add more color to our house {more on that later} but here is the current state of our half bath.

on the left of the pedestal sink,  i framed three nashville themed postcards.  each is local landmark and the colors are amazing.  they are the perfect pop of color. 

on the right of the sink, i purchased a bright yellow & white hand towel from world market.

and because we have no storage in this room, i opted for a metal basket from kirkland's for easy access to toilet paper.  

 it's hard to make toilet paper look good but it at least it works.


and lastly, i added a floating shelf from west elm.  the yellow hammer art is from old try.  if you need to know the meaning of the yellow hammer, you can read about it here.  and nothing beats a bunch of fresh flowers from the farmer's market.  

i haven't decided what will permanently grace the top of the floating shelf, or if i will keep the floating shelf.  so check back in a couple of weeks....things may have changed around here.

wordless wednesday

forgive me…it’s summer….these are the only posts i can muster up right now.

stay tuned….

happy independence day

hope you have a fun & safe day!  

god bless america!