Life and Styles of Tamara Nicole

~Us Lately~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 16:58:00 +0000

Hey everyone, and happy Monday!

Life over here has been crazy busy, but AMAZING!

Business is picking up like crazy and I am all about weddings right now:) Between the wedding planning and my day job I really am pulling like 75 hours a week of work. I know, CRAZY right?! But I am putting in the hard work, building up the business and hoping it will all be worth it later (sooner than later please!?)

I have been praying and soul searching a lot lately, I just feel blessed like crazy in every aspect of my life. Life is good! I do feel like there is something big, a big change, etc just around the corner. Stay tuned!

For now, a few pics from our recent free time (ha ha yeah right, or lack of huh?!)

Gardening and cocktails

Lazy pup

Luly Yang Fashion Show . . . AMAZING!!!

Happy Hours with the hubby (yes I still make time for him!)

How have you guys been?!

~Tamara Nicole~

Psssst check out my wedding blog Simply by Tamara Nicole here

~Quotes and Kids~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 04:22:00 +0000

Source: Uploaded by user via Tamara on Pinterest

Hello strangers! Hope everyone is doing well:)

I just wanted to share a quick thought, I LOVED this quote above right when I saw it.

Andy and I have been discussing the c word . . . children!

We have been married now for 3 and a half years
(the best years of my life by far! Love this man)
We have traveled across the world.
We have had many adventures
Tried SO many different new things
Loved like crazy.

At some point it will be that time, time to "settle down" even more and have kiddos.
Kind of a scary thought.
Will I be a great mom?
How will I protect my children from the scary things in the world while teaching them how to deal with it all?

I do need to start thinking about the future, and how I live now and how it will affect my future children. Time to grow up (what?! At 28 years old lol)
and get mentally ready.

Do you have children?
What would you recommend doing to prepare for such a HUGE step in life?

xoxo
Tamara Nicole

~Champagne Anyone?!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 05:29:00 +0000

Source: visual.ly via Tamara on Pinterest

Cheers to the freakin weekend!!!

Sippin on some bubbly right now . . . wish I had one of the above though.

Would you try any of these?

Enjoy your weekend, whatever your poison may be

(P.S. I can't wait to finally see the Hunger Games . . . speaking of poison! He he)

~Heels!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 02:48:00 +0000

First off I have to share a few recent shoe lusts . . . cause you know me and my shoes!

Source: shop.nordstrom.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Enzo Angiolini 'Savoye' Pump $109.95

Source: christianlouboutinpeep.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Source: classy-in-the-city.tumblr.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Pretty amazing right?!

Anywho . . . I also wanted to tell you guys why I have been MIA . . .
Weddings!!!

I have been planning weddings for well over a year now, and this year has been nuts busy (a good thing!) . . .
I have 16+ weddings booked for 2012.
AND am working a full time job,
so yes things have been nuts and I am working on balance and figuring out how to do everything:)

BUT if you want to see how weddings are going, do check out my wedding blog here.

How are you guys?!
Thanks for hanging in there and remaining patient with me
will be back on a reg basis soon:)

Tamara Nicole

~Valentine's Week Part I~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 18:30:00 +0000

Hey loveies,

Happy (almost) Valentine's Day!

Soooo around here we kind of like to draw out celebrations . . .

I get birthday month,

we celebrate Christmas all of Dec . . .

we just love to celebrate life!

So for Valentine's Day so far . . .

Friday:

Hubby sent me a VERY unexpected delivery at work of

three dozen red roses.

Awww what a sweetie!

Love my man!

Saturday:

Dinner out at Elliot's Oyster House,

YUM!

I had 2 fab margaritas, we had calamari, ceasar salad, and I had pine nut crusted halibut cheeks. AMAZING food and even better company. We laughed, and talked all silly like new couples in love. Gotta love date nights!

Sunday:

I made a tasty dinner for the in-laws of Wiener Schnitzel, German hot potato salad, and sauerkraut. Followed by dessert of white choc mochas and angel food cake with homemade whipped cream and strawberries.

I even decorated! Lol

The in-laws are so sweet and bought me some flowers too, spoiled!

What are you guys doing to celebrate??

~No laziness over here!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:29:00 +0000

Source: motivationintohabit.tumblr.com via Ocean Dreams on Pinterest

Nope no lazy, maybe a little too crazy busy. More need for balance and yoga! :-)

How are you doing with your fitness/health goals???

Me: working out about 2-3x a week

Eating pretty healthy overall, but too much sugar! (gah my weakness!!!)

Drinking more water

Taking my vitamins

Need more:

Yoga

Regular exercise and outdoor activities

~Valentine's on the mind~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 22:51:00 +0000

Oh yes we have 11 days until Valentine's!

What to do?

I totally want to:

1) Surprise the hubby

2) Make cute packaged treats for co-workers/friends/fam

3) Host a girl's V-day brunch

Source: sprinklebakes.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Source: glorioustreats.blogspot.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Source: justcallmemarthaa.blogspot.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Source: google.nl via Tamara on Pinterest

Source: justcallmemarthaa.blogspot.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Source: bhg.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Source: thetomkatstudio.com via Tamara on Pinterest

What are your plans?

Are you making any fun gifts/treats for anyone, do share!!!

~passion~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 04:31:00 +0000

Life is pretty good!

Source: sueswink.tumblr.com via Tamara on Pinterest

No settling ok?!

~Tamara Nicole~

~Coffee Overload!!!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 05:21:00 +0000

So many meeting lately . . over coffee. Feel like I have too much coffee pumping through my veins! Lol at least 2 coffee meetings a day from Sat---> Mondays lately.

Source: keeninspirations.blogspot.com via Ally on Pinterest

Source: pinkwallpaper.blogspot.com via Vanessa on Pinterest

Source: iwastesomuchtime.com via Molly on Pinterest

Source: images.search.yahoo.com via Farrah on Pinterest

Source: pop-ology.com via Adriana on Pinterest

yipppeeeeeee no sleep tonight lol.

How are you and coffee . . . a little too much once in a while like me?? :-)

~Tamara Nicole~
(aka coffee addict!)

~Snow Adventures~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:44:00 +0000

Snow day today?!

Yes please!

Both the hubby and I had work off (ok I did and he worked from home)

Whenever we have snow days here (not too often) the hubby and I take off on an adventure . . .

on a long walk to somewhere to eat and explore.

and that we did today . . . on a 4 mile adventure in the snow to downtown Bellevue.

Holy heck my thighs are sore.

There's just something harder about trekking up hill and down hill through the snow.

Our street

It doesn't look bad, BUT we have little sports cars and it actually is a big hill (deceptive pic!)

SO funny this business made a snowman that had a sign saying "eat bagels". FUNNY!

We had originally set out to go eat Pho (yummmm!) BUT it was closed, bummer! So we walked around to find another destination . . .

and found an open Red Robin! Lol

Awww man Royal Cupcakes is closed too?!

Well we had a super fun day chill at home, our dogs LOVED running around the road.

I made some yum homemade soup tonight.

Chillin in with some vino and cuddles.

Happy Day!

~Yippeeee! Snow in Seattle!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 17:44:00 +0000

Woooo hoooo!

We haven't had snow allll winter, first snow of the season and we are loving it!

Even the 3 lil pups love running around in it.

Too bad it's melting already . . .

BUT they do say it may snow more tonight or tomorrow, bring it on!!!

Source: bellafayegarden.tumblr.com via Emily on Pinterest

Source: seasonal-love.tumblr.com via Karen on Pinterest

Source: weheartit.com via Heather on Pinterest

Source: classy-in-the-city.tumblr.com via Anna on Pinterest

Sitting here with my hubby sippin on my latte and catching up on blogging.

Going to clean around the house,

go eat pho with the hubby,

take the dogs to the park in the snow,

and

A few meetings later with new brides!!!

How is the weather where you are?

Are you a snow fan?

~Guest Post~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 05:15:00 +0000

Over at Avant-Garde Living.

(HERE)

Me on my new business and a whole bunch of wedding pics.

Stop by and show some blog love like you always do:-)

~Home Decor LOVE: nail heads~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 04:56:00 +0000

Oh yes you read that right,

nail heads as home decor.

Found this image on Pinterest:

Source: decorhacks.com via lily on Pinterest

LOVE that look.

So inspired to do some DIY-ness of my own soon. I mean check these out:

(via Cottage and Bungalow)

(Via Cottage and Bungalow)

(Via This Next)

(Via Better Decorating Bible)

AND my fave (gold and white!)

Photo: Chiasso

What do you think . . . would you try this DIY project?

Do you like the look of nail heads on furniture?

I LOVE IT!

Hope you are having a great week lovies!

~Wedding Show Weekend!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 20:13:00 +0000

Source: simplypix.tumblr.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Whew!

I just spent the entire weekend on my feet in heels speaking with like hundreds or thousands of brides at The Seattle Wedding Show.

CAN'T WAIT to show you pics of my peach and gold ruffle and glam booth!

Kind of pooped though so using today to chill and catch up on blog reading, book consultations, etc.

How was your weekend?!

pssst . . . today I am grateful for no plans, I can just sit and relax, which I never ever do:-) And I will enjoy every second of it!

~God's got this!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 07:23:00 +0000

Today I am truly thankful for God and for answered prayers.

Although I am not going through any huge change/issue/etc, I still know that he answers prayers and knows what I TRULY need.

I am never alone, no matter what the obstacle or hurdle.

He's by my side.

God's got this!

Source: spiritualinspiration.tumblr.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Source: diosmudanzas.tumblr.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Source: Uploaded by user via Tamara on Pinterest

gratitude#4 coffeeee

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 07:36:00 +0000

Today I am forever grateful for a nice latte or two to get me through an 12 hour work day on little sleep:) Delocious and much needed, enough said! Lol. My drink of choice today, a white chocolate raspberry mocha nonfat with 1/2 of the flavor. What i'm from Seattle where our coffee order is a paragraph :) What's your drink of choice? Tamara Nicole

~Gratitude: #3 . . . DREAMS~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 06:21:00 +0000

Source: etsy.com via Tamra on Pinterest

Tonight as I am sewing my fabulous ombre ruffle table cloth (gold, peach, blush and cream!) . . .

I am so grateful for dreams.

Not just little ones.

The BIG ONES that do scare you (such a true quote!)

I have invested a lot of moolah and SO much time prepping for my booth at the Seattle Wedding Show this Saturday.

One of the biggest ones in the nation.

I have been crafting it up crazy-style, and my booth is def. going to make a statement.

I just hope it makes the WOW factor vs. the o.m.g what was she thinking factor.

Gotta live loud right?!
(for a quick summary of my 1st year wedding planning chk out here)

For sure will post pics here AND on my wedding planning blog.

DREAM BIG my lovelies!

Nighty night!

What are you grateful for today???

~Gratitude #2: My crazy hubby (and some NYE pics)~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 05:25:00 +0000

Day #2 of my gratitude journey . . .

And of course it's about my hubby!

(Should be #1 but hey . . .)

My love,

you believe in me when I need it the most (ok and all the time!)

you lift me up when I am down.

Where I am weak you are strong.

You are a great father to our 3 pups and I know you will be an amazing father to our future children.

You make the BEST travel companion.

We have so much fun together, no matter what we are doing.

I can't imagine life without you.

I could go on forever . . .

I LOVE YOU!

(You are pretty freakin hot too, just sayin!)

He he my fave pic:

For New Years Eve this year we kept it chill, just the hubby and me out for a nice dinner at the Metropolitan Grill in Seattle. Dinner was at 10:15 p.m. lol. We had such a fun time! They gave us hats, horns and glasses of champagne (ok!)

AND they blocked 2 lanes of downtown Seattle traffic so we could be outside and watch the countdown and fireworks from the Space Needle. It was PERFECT!

New tradition!!!

How was your NYE?

~A Year for Gratitude~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 04:28:00 +0000

Happy 2012!!!

I've been seeing all over the place that people know this will be a good year, I'm feeling the same optimistic way!

I want to truly appreciate my life, each and every moment. Every sweet word. Every day of my health and happiness.

What better way than to post one thing each and every day here on my blog.

May just be a quick post with a few sentences, or tied into a post, or as a pssst after a post.

But I am going to do it, and you guys can hold me accountable.

THANKS in advance!

Today:

Source: flipandstyle.com via Ashley on Pinterest

***I am super grateful for the clear mind that a clean house gives me. I am grateful that I can de-clutter my house AND help others at the same time (by donating 2 huge garbage bags of my clothing/shoes as well as my hubby's to a local charity). I am grateful to have a fun time while cleaning up with the hubby listening to music and working together.***

What are you grateful for today, January 1st 2012?

HAPPY NEW YEAR my beloved bloggers!

~NEW YEAR!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 19:43:00 +0000

Source: luxefinds.com via LuxeFinds.com on Pinterest

{Photos: Name Flags: Simply Bloom Photography via Style Me Pretty, Cake: WedLuxe, Flags: The Glitter Guide, Outdoors: The Glitter Guide, Hearts & Cupcakes: Forget Me Knot Weddings, Garland: Martha Stewart Weddings}

Happy New year to all of my lovely blogging buddies.

You have been so good to me this year!

Serious I think 2011 was a breakthrough year for me, and I've never felt more inspired, passionate and positive.

(For my 2011 year in review in my Christmas letter chk it out here)

(2011 review in photography on Simply by Tamara Nicole Weddings here)

What are you doing to ring in 2012?

We have reservations at The Metropolitan Grill downtown Seattle for some good steak and vino, and will step outside for a view of the fireworks from the Space Needle, and home to cuddle with our 3 little fur babies.

Just me and my hubby and pups, how it should be.

Pssst go check out my guest post over at A Northwood Wedding here and say hi!

~Destination Thursdays . . . Venice!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 19:29:00 +0000

I am so missing my Venice right now . . .

a few pics from our trip to Venice a little while ago . . .

(okay tooo long ago!)

Venice I hope I get to see you again soon!

Psssst I am so crazy busy right now prepping for my booth at the Seattle Wedding Show (Jan 7th 8th), kind of a perfectionist and a lot to do, sorry for kinda being MIA!

~Sequin Skirt: need!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 06:44:00 +0000

Source: freepeople.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Pretty much amazing. Free People you are genius.

~Merry Christmas to you all!!!~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 04:08:00 +0000

I hope you all are surrounded by your loved ones.

Are celebrating the REAL reason for Christmas.

Are enjoying the giving more than the receiving.

Merry Christmas to all of my blog buddies!!!

***Make it memorable!***

~2011 Christmas Letter~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:38:00 +0000

Yup this will be a long one, so if you have time,

enjoy what we've been up to this year.

If you are in a hurry, chk out the pics!

. . .

Merry Christmas!

We hope this letter (blog post) finds you all fabulously happy!

2011 was a year full of travels, weddings, working and some relaxing.

No complaints over here:-)

As you all must know by now, our little kiddos (westies) are a huge part of our life. Toby (7), Capri (5), and Lulu (unknown . . . maybe 8?) keep us healthy (they sure love their walks!) happy and warm (they love to snuggle). We now have had our little rescue dog Lulu (Oregon Dog Rescue found her at a high kill shelter in CA after she was a breeder mom in a puppy mill) for over a year and she has sure grown into her own skin! Her fur and skin looks way better, and she loves her food so much she has put on some needed weight. Where she was timid and shy before she is happy, running around chasing the other two and barks for food when hungry. She is the sweetest dog ever and we are so very glad she found her way into our lives and hearts last year. The other two little ones are happy and love their ice cream and dog park trips as always. The continue to chase squirrels and bark at the "enemy" dog next door with a vengeance. Our little trio gets along perfectly and we are so blessed!

This year marks 11 years for BOTH Andy and myself at our jobs. I still can't believe we both began our current jobs way back in June of 2000! Crazy coincidence huh?! Andy continues to catch those bad guys (fraudsters) and works very hard as a billing manager, but you know he loves his job! I've been the lead Orthodontic Assistant at Kirby's for a while now and try to straighten teeth one patient at a time. We both LOVE our jobs and the people we work with.

Along with working, this year Andy has helped me realize my calling in this crazy world: Wedding Planning! I have been helping my friends and family plan and DIY their weddings for a while now. Anytime anyone was prego, getting married, etc. I would jump (or plead) to plan the parties, showers and shindigs. I just love it all! In February I started my wedding planning business Simply by Tamara Nicole and it has been a whirlwind of perfection! For my first year I have helped plan and coordinate over 7 weddings, and am booking my 2012 as we speak. This year I also met an amazing and fun photographer, Mariah. We hit it off instantly and are both very passionate about weddings and helping brides save money. I shared with her my dream of producing our own wedding show, and together we did it! We began NW Budget Brides this summer and put together our first NW Budget Brides Wedding Expo, including 35+ other wedding vendors from Seattle and had a super fun Fashion Show! I also planned and styled a wedding inspiration shoot that has been featured on several wedding blogs. I absolutely LOVE this job, have so much passion and excitement for this and my brides and can't wait to see where it goes from here!

It seems like each year Handy Andy and Designer Tammy take on a new project in our home. This year we tackled the bathroom. So. Much. Work. Also so much fun! We tore down the walls, put up dry wall, installed new lighting fixtures and bath tub, tiled the floors and shower (Italian street style!) and painted a nice bright red color. Our inspiration was Pompei and Rome in Italy (Andy's favorite place in the world). Although it is still missing Tammy's sewn curtains, it looks like our own little Italy.

Speaking of travels . . . we all know Andy and his travel bug. I swear he should be a travel agent (and a stock broker). He finds the best deals, so we are able to go on some amazing trips for seriously a fraction of the cost of a normal person's trip! I have always said that I would LOVE to go to Ireland before we have a family. Sooooo this past June Andy and I set out on a trip through England, Ireland, Scotland, France and Norway. We started out in London and traveled to Chester (SUCH a quaint cute place with an amazing cathedral and a lot of history!), Bath (Roman Baths), Warwick Castle, Oxford (Harry Potter!), Windsor Castle, Stratford on the Avon (toured Shakespear's childhood home and his grave), Stonehenge (uhh mazing). We then flew to Oslo, Norway to join our cruise. In Oslo we tried whale (don't judge!) and didn't realize the exchange rate was so bad. We went to McDonalds. Got 2 regular meals. Regular sizes. Ended up being $33 on our credit card! WHAT?! Yeah no more shopping here! We then traveled to Dublin, Ireland (toured a famous jail that was on The Green Mile along with other movies, toured and sampled the Jameson Whiskey Distillery); Edinburgh, Scotland (Our fave! Saw the castles and gardens, sampled haggus and more whiskey); Normandy and Omaha Beach (so serene to visit the cemetery from WWII!) and Mt. St. Michel, France (An old Abbey on the top of a mountain that is surrounded by water when the tide comes in). We had SUCH an amazing time and as always took way too many pics:-)

Next up, our summer: I had weddings on the weekends, we kayaked, and hiked. Andy got a little ambitious in planning these hikes and forgot to mention that they are categorized as "difficult" and were like 9 miles straight up. I just thought it would be a fun easy hike so we brought no food and no water. I started to wonder when everyone else had hiking boots, hiking sticks, backpacks and sleeping bags. Hmmmm . . . us city folk with our tennis shoes didn't quite fit in. Fellow hikers were concerned and told us if we didn't have water we shouldn't continue. But continue on we did and we proved them wrong! Ok and maybe almost passed out in doing so, That Gatorade we got on the way home was a godsend. We went on like 4 big hikes this summer and had a blast, and have learned to prepare a little better in the future:-)

September 21^st2011 Andy and I celebrated our 3^rdwedding anniversary. So crazy how time flies (didn't we just plan that wedding last year?) but I also feel like we have known each other forever. This was the cutest simple yet perfect anniversary. I came home from work to a cute tapas-style picnic on the floor in front of our fireplace with some candles. Good job Andy.

Remember how Andy has the travel bug?! Yup well in November we traveled on over to Italy for a crazy 10 day whirlwind of trains and walking, walking and more walking. Yes that's right, we sure did walk . . . 127 miles we walked in 9 days. Armed with our Garmin (GPS) and our huge appetites we walked and ate our way through Italy. We started in Rome and traveled to Villa de Este (gorgeous villa and gardens with over 500 fountains); Ostia Antica

(Pompeii style ruins, found in 7^thcentury BC)

San Gimignano (gorgeous hill top medieval town with huge tall towers from prominent families such as Medici family), Arezzo (Life is Beautiful was filmed here), Florence (museums, food, art), Verona (Juliet's balcony and the best gelato ever!), Milan (My fave cathedral in the world the Duomo), Sienna, Cortona (another hill top town as seen in Under the Tuscan Sun. Here we walked 2 miles up to the town, and RAN the 2 miles down with Tammy in low-heeled boots to catch the train. We made it in time but the locals were laughing at us!), Bologna (food!), Frascati (wine and villas). We had SO much fun, ate gelato several times a day, enjoyed wine, pizza and pasta. From all the walking and food we didn't gain a pound!

2011 was a whirlwind of fun mixed in with hard work, but what a great year we had!

We are excited to see what 2012 has to offer, and are excited to continue to spend time with our family and friends as they expand and grow.

We wish you a Merry Christmas full of love, and wish you a prosperous, happy and healthy 2012!

God bless!

The Anderson's

Andy, Tammy, Toby, Capri and Lulu

~Deck the Halls~

noreply@blogger.com (Tamara Anderson) — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 05:37:00 +0000

Are you guys tired of reading Christmas posts?!

Not me!!!

At work today we had our "Santa Hat" day, and one of my patients brought us the CUTEST reindeer cupcakes.

Ohhh emmm geee.

They were kind of like this:

Pretty darn cute huh?!

Found over at Hoosier Handmade

Then tonight the hubby took our 3 dogs for a car ride through the famous

"Candy Cane Lane" in Seattle, then on a nice stroll through a park that has ice skating.

Such a fun time of year, eeeek I am just like a little kid around Christmas!!!

Are you???
Tomorrow we are going over to my grandparents house with the whole fam and starting off the crazy holiday celebrations. THEN Sunday the hubby and I are making our famous jam to add to our holiday gifts.

Now for a few more holiday projects and then sit back and enjoy!

Soon my gift wrap and wreath tutorial will be featured on another blog here soon . . .

my version of this little gem:

Source: etsy.com via Tamara on Pinterest

and time to finish my other projects I am working on:

Source: mycrazylife-lauren.blogspot.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Source: womansday.com via Tamara on Pinterest

Enjoy it all!!!

What are you doing to celebrate the holidays this weekend???