Sarah Elizabeth

Sleeping Bag Coat

2012-02-13T10:51:00.000-05:00

Friends, I wouldn't really consider myself a southerner, but this weekend's weather calls for a uniquely southern phrase. "Mercy, y'all". I woke up on Saturday morning to a temperature reading of 3 degrees. Yeah, you read that right. There's no 0 missing on the end. But don't worry, towards the afternoon we warmed up to a shorts-ready 16 degrees.

I've always loved the long puffy coats, and pined after one long before I knew we were moving to Colorado. It wasn't practical to have a coat like that in Nashville, since our super cold snaps are short lived. However, once I found out we were making the move, I knew the coat had to be mine.

Mr. SE laughs at me and says it looks like I'm wearing a sleeping bag. But guess what? There's no way in heck I'm feeling the cold. In fact, walking around on Saturday the only part of me that was chilly was my knees. They're the only open part between my boots and coat. Our realtor said she was impressed with my "Denver look" after only being here for a month. Mission accomplished!

What do you think of the long puffer? Silly? I know there's some long puffer girls out there who have my back!

L'Occitane Hand Creme

2012-02-10T11:08:00.000-05:00

If you suffer from dry hands in the winter, this cream will change your life. I picked up the regular shea butter scent for Mr. SE, and the lavender scent for myself. At only $10 for a 1oz tube, it's a bargain. Do you have any winter beauty product that you swear by? You know I'm looking for tips!

Buy it here

3 Free Bagels- Today Only

2012-02-09T12:04:00.002-05:00

Print this coupon and head to your nearest Bruegger's for 3 free bagels!

*please note- this doesn't include cream cheese*

House Hunting

2012-02-08T19:16:00.001-05:00

Mr. SE and I are gearing up for another round of house hunting. Fingers crossed that our Nashville house sells sooner than later (send me an email if you know anyone who's looking). Denver has some great older houses with lots of charm, something that our first house just didn't have since it was built in 2005. Don't get me wrong, we loved living in new construction, but this time around we're looking for something a little different. Here's a preview of some of the cuties we'll be looking at:

Does anybody watch that show Property Brothers on HGTV? I'm addicted, and it even makes me wish (like 35%) that I lived in Toronto and could be on the show. I have dreams of buying a nasty (and cheap) old house in a great neighborhood and fixing it up. The only problem would be that I'm not a contractor, nor do I have experience in construction. However, I watch a TON of HGTV and my dad owns a construction business. Girl's gotta dream, right?

Le Sigh- making an old house have an open floorplan

Oh, just soaking in my antique claw foot tub

Packages Delivered

2012-02-07T00:09:00.002-05:00

Good news, the Sorel boots and ThunderShirts arrived in the mail today. Stay posted for reviews on both!

My Favorite Super Bowl Commercial

2012-02-06T11:36:00.001-05:00

USA via here

There were a lot of dogs, babies, and almost naked women in yesterday's gaggle of Super Bowl commercials. But my favorite to date was the "Halftime in America" commercial by Chrysler. It made my eyes tear up, which happened several times last night. It had a great message, and was a good "pump up" for the good ole USA. What did you think? Here's the transcript if you missed it...

It’s halftime. Both teams are in their locker room discussing what they can do to win this game in the second half.

It’s halftime in America, too. People are out of work and they’re hurting. And they’re all wondering what they’re going to do to make a comeback. And we’re all scared, because this isn’t a game.

The people of Detroit know a little something about this. They almost lost everything. But we all pulled together, now Motor City is fighting again.

I’ve seen a lot of tough eras, a lot of downturns in my life. And, times when we didn’t understand each other. It seems like we’ve lost our heart at times. When the fog of division, discord, and blame made it hard to see what lies ahead.

But after those trials, we all rallied around what was right, and acted as one. Because that’s what we do. We find a way through tough times, and if we can’t find a way, then we’ll make one.

All that matters now is what’s ahead. How do we come from behind? How do we come together? And, how do we win?

Detroit’s showing us it can be done. And, what’s true about them is true about all of us.

This country can’t be knocked out with one punch. We get right back up again and when we do the world is going to hear the roar of our engines. Yeah, it’s halftime America. And, our second half is about to begin.

bridesmaid dresses for the bride

2012-02-06T11:07:00.000-05:00

Bridesmaid dresses have come a long way! From crinkly taffeta in horrible colors, to sleek, modern designs that your friends will be glad to wear after your big day. Another good use for bridesmaid dresses is for the bride herself! There are so many colors and styles to choose from, and a bridesmaid dress could be easily worn for an engagement party, luncheon, rehearsal dinner, or bridal shower. It'd be fun to sport your wedding colors in an event leading up to the wedding. That being said, if going with the same line as your bridesmaids, I'd keep away from wearing the same dress to maintain the suspense of their big wedding day look. Here's one of my favorites right now.

It's advertised solely as a bridesmaids dress, but I could totally see a bride wearing the blue to her rehearsal dinner, or the white to a bridal luncheon. What do you think about wearing a bridesmaids dress as the bride?

Super Bowl Sunday

2012-02-05T17:09:00.001-05:00

While Mr. SE and I are neither Patriots or Giants fans, we're excited for the Super Bowl nonetheless. The commercials, the half time show, the delicious snacks are enough to get me going. Not to mention, I'm super excited about the premier of Smash (anybody else?)! It looks like Center Stage meets Glee meets Chicago-- and that sounds good to me!

Here's what I'm making for the big game--- Stuffed Pepper Soup from Skinny Taste. Lots of you already frequent Gina's site, but if you haven't before, definitely head over! Her recipes are healthy, but also incredibly delicious. You won't be disappointed!

What are your plans for the big game? Any go-to recipes that you're dying to share? Let us know!

**Update-- I just realized Smash isn't on until tomorrow. Bummer**

Pup Control

2012-02-03T11:30:00.000-05:00

Our new condo building is super nice and new, and we love it here-- but there's one small problem. It seems like our new neighbors don't quite love our dogs. Since I've got some new followers, I'll recap our dog situation from the start.

I got my Westie, Duffie, in 2007 and raised her from when she was a puppy. Our Schnauzer, Lucy, was rescued by Ryan and I in 2010 when she was 5. I was able to really train Duffie well because I had her since infancy, but Lucy is a different story. She had somewhat of an interesting "childhood", peppered with neglect, abuse, and abandonment. Ryan and I were happy to give her a forever home at the age of 5, since most dogs normally aren't adopted at that age. It was perfect, since Duffie is only 6 months younger than her. She's the sweetest lovey girl and just wants to cuddle, but she's got one issue...she barks. A lot.

When we got Duffie in 2007

Mr. SE loves kisses from Duffie

From some reading that I've done, this seems to be common for Schnauzers, but I've got no idea how to fix it. Duffie is the first dog that I've owned, so I don't have much, if any, experience in training a dog. It seems like fixing an older dog's behavior is a lot harder than just teaching a puppy how to behave. She barks at other dogs, barks at people, barks at the door, etc. It wasn't as much of a problem when we had our own house because they dogs would play in the backyard together, and she'd only bark when someone rang the doorbell.

Snow pups last winter in Nashville

Fast forward to life now, and the door of our condo is right across from the parking garage door. Yep, you guessed it. The door opens and slams ALL DAY--which results in Lucy and Duffie (who loves to follow suit from her sister) barking all day. My dogs are my sweet babies, so on top of it annoying other residents (which I care about), I hate thinking about how anxious they are all day.

When we got Lucy

I've tried contacting our local Schnauzer in Denver to recommend a local trainer, but didn't receive a response. We've received several complaints from our management company and we're at our wits end. We've tried spray bottles, leaving them in our bedroom, crating Lucy, etc.

Yes, our lease is only 6 months, but we'd like to avoid getting evicted by then. Last night I decided to try something new and order them two Thundershirts. Does anybody have experience with these? I read a lot of reviews online and it looks like they could actually help. Any other tips?

February Photo Challenge

2012-02-02T17:14:00.003-05:00

I'm one day late on this photo train, but I'm going to jump on anyways-- how fun!

Day 1.

It's the only photo I took yesterday, sorry it's random! (post to come about this casserole)

Our First Winter Storm in Denver

2012-02-02T10:59:00.004-05:00

Oh boy, friends! While everyone else is excited about the possibility of an early spring and Pinning sundresses & sandals (although not according to Punxsutawney Phil), we're bracing for our first snowstorm of the season. So I guess the 6-8 incher during our move didn't count? This link was on my Yahoo homepage, so I guess it's national news now. Here's where I need your help, northern girls! Can you recommend some snow boots? What do all the cool snow bunnies wear?

Tofino by Sorel

These are my favorites so far, but it's solely based on looks. I'd love any recommendations!

Denver Tips: What I've Learned So Far

2012-02-01T10:46:00.001-05:00

Well, we've been Denver residents for a little over three weeks now. The initial days and weeks were a sharp learning curve from life in Nashville, and I've compiled some tips to help you get along, should you vacation (or move) somewhere similar in the future.

Ultrasonic Digital Humidifier

I even bought this portable humidifier for my desk.
It has a regular outlet plug and a USB plug for use at work. Excellent!

Get a humidifier. Do it now. I researched this topic a lot, and Air-O-Swiss seems to be the brand of choice. They're a little pricey, but use a 20% coupon at Bed Bath & Beyond to take the edge off.

Bag Balm- use on lips, hands, face, dog noses

Jack Black Cool Moisture lotion for Mr. SE

First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream. Use it on my face 2x daily

Stock up on lotion. Mr. SE and I joke that we have an "I just moved to Colorado" section of our bathroom counter-- it's covered in lotions and balms.

Dryer sheets-- they're great for static! I used them in Nashville, but now I've stashed them every place imaginable here in Denver. Keep one in your coat pocket to combat static from going between indoors and outdoors. Also of note, these are great for getting rid of the stink in your hockey bag.

Ride your bike! Denver is such an active, healthy city. Once it heats up a little, Mr. SE and I are both getting new bikes. We live 2.2 miles from work and have the option to drive, take the bus, or bike. We haven't taken the bus yet, but just might when we get our next snowstorm.

look at us, we're so healthy and fit!
*these are models*

Drink water. It's dry here, like really dry. I'm not much of a water drinker, I'm actually quite bad at it. But since we've been here I've made an effort to drink more and it's definitely paying off. There's a weird correlation between hunger and thirst, and my appetite definitely decreases when I'm hydrated.

And my last, for now, tip....have a four wheel drive. If you absolutely must drive in the inclement weather, make sure you're using an all wheel drive or four wheel drive. Yes, my car is a 4 wheel drive, and take a look at what happened on our first week here-- lesson learned. For good measure, I've added photos of my dream SUVs.

Do you have any tips for moving to a climate like Colorado? Maybe you're holed up in Nebraska or Montana and have some tips for this east coast girl? Please share!

New Fabrics: Check!

2012-01-31T14:43:00.002-05:00

While looking for pillows, of course I made the usual rounds on Etsy. I respect people's craft, and the fact that they're trying to make a living. That being said, if you can sew yourself (or have a family member who can) it's much more cost effective to make them yourselves. I used Etsy and some design blogs for fabric inspiration, and came up with these three. What do you think?

Premier Prints- Chipper Twill
this will go vertical instead of horizontal

Premier Prints- Zoom Zoom River Rock

Premier Prints- Gotcha Twill

At $7.50/yd they were a great deal. Fabric.com is my #1 stop for purchasing fabric online. Definitely check out their selection if you're in the market for some fabrics.

First post on this topic

This is Your Life- Storage Unit

2012-01-30T16:34:00.000-05:00

This is what our life looks like right now. Remember how we moved from a "grown-up house" to a 1 bedroom condo? This weekend, Mr. SE and I finished sorting through all of our boxes, and rounded up the stragglers that needed to be taken to storage. Now our condo is much less cluttered, and the things we don't need are out of site.

Items in the storage unit (way in the back) that we wish weren't--
A) Mr. SE's Playstation (used as our BluRay player)
B) My summer clothes and bathing suits (didn't think about how we'd be in the apt until Jun 30th)

Looks like next weekend we'll be purchasing a new BluRay player and a bathing suit for me so I can use the building's hot tub. But Sarah, that's lazy-- why don't you just get it out of the storage unit? Oh, have you ever put your whole house in a storage unit? Yeah. None of these items are coming out from the back, unless they're all coming out. Please note the picture with Mr. SE in front for scale---

moving is better when you've got this eye candy

psst-- the unit is 15ft deep!

Lighting for Your Wedding

2012-01-27T14:53:00.003-05:00

Right now I'm working on a lighting proposal for my April bride, and I couldn't be more excited. Nothing spruces up a reception like the perfect lighting. A blue tone can take your reception to a nightclub feel, whereas an amber glow will feel like you're at a candlelit affair.

It's no surprise that complex lighting can rack up quite a hefty bill, but there's some shortcuts you can take to still create an impact but not break the bank. For starters, Nashville Event Lighting has a package where you can rent 10 uplights for $100. This is a great deal for a 100-150 size wedding where the venue isn't too large (any larger and you might need to grab another set). NEL gives you a pack of gels so you can pick the color that you want. Here's a picture from their reception-- you can see the uplighting in the back of the dinner area.

Nashville Wedding Photographers-- Jen & Chris Creed

Here are some couples that took advantage of great lighting opportunity--- what do you think?

Michael Howard

This couple used pink and peach lighting to create a warm, romantic atmosphere at their Oxford Hotel wedding in Denver.

Photos by Jared Wilson Photography

Five Star Holiday Decor

Add caption

Cool Wash-- Project Wedding

Rose & Yellow Gold Bands

2012-01-25T13:02:00.002-05:00

our rings

Now ladies, before you get your panties in a twist...I am perfectly happy with my ring and band. It's only been (almost) 1.5 years since our wedding and I'm not thinking about adding another band to the mix. But if I was, I can't get past these gorgeous mixes of white/gold and white/rose. What do you think? My band and engagement ring are already mixed in textures, so I think it'd be fun to bring a color into the mix.

huge stone- but you get the idea

A steal at only $30

from Pinterest

Love this set! Would like it more if the engagement ring was white gold

Only $150, sapphire

Perfection!

and if I could get a right hand ring, this would be it

Do you like matchy matchy bands with rings, or are you game for a little mixup?

Pillows For Our New Place

2012-01-23T18:35:00.001-05:00

Although we'll only be in this condo for 6 months, I still want to make it feel like home. It's important not to break the bank, since there's no telling what the style of our next place will be like. Our home in Nashville was pretty traditional, I used a lot of red/blue/and white to accent our open living and dining area. We mixed up our furniture a little bit, by using our bonus room furniture as the main pieces in our living room. The brown sectional is modern and fits the space nicely, and we're also using our leaning bookshelves.

our sectional-- picture from Rooms 2 Go website

our shelves-- but we use them separate on both sides of the TV

In the essence of saving money, I've attempted to use our more modern accessories and decorative accents. I loved the pillows that we had in our bonus room, but the colors are too deep and saturated for our current living space. I've decided to make some on my own (and recover the bar stools which are nearby). We have white walls with dark cabinets and dark hardwood floors, so I'm going to try and stick with a modern, neutral palette-- maybe even adding some pops of metallic. Here's some of my inspiration fabric-- what do you think?

all product links can be found at http://pinterest.com/missse06/denver-condo/

Moving Day...And Some

2012-01-12T10:41:00.002-05:00

So yesterday, on top of moving into our new apartment (which btw has no cell service. working on that), something else happened.... Denver got a little more snow than they were expecting (by about 6in), and as a result none of the streets were salted the night before. Here's a little picture story for you:

Yes, I crashed my car into a fire hydrant. Then I proceeded to pull onto a side street and cry uncontrollably because A) I just hit a fire hydrant and B) I had no idea where I was. Towards my winter driving credibility, I grew up driving in the snow in DC and upstate New York.

Here's a news article about the crazy morning http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_19724432

So...We Found A Place To Live

2012-01-08T22:31:00.000-05:00

Hello friends! Thank you for continuing to follow--even though I've been lame and not posting as of late. Good news, Mr. SE and I successfully made the move to Denver. We had a wonderful night in Kansas City, and were able to spend time with my cousin and their 3 sweet kids. Now we're in Denver and staying with Mr. SE's aunt and uncle. Dever is a blast, and what fun we've had over the past couple days. We've already had 4 inches of snow!

And more importantly, we found a place to live! Mr. SE's uncle was so hospitable and took us on a tour of the city on Saturday morning. He covered all of the neighborhoods that we'd e interested in living in, and we got a good glimpse of the vibe for each area. Once back at home we hit Craigslist, Padmapper, HotPads, and the usual places looking for somewhere that was available for move-in asap. In out drive we passed by this gorgeous condo building, right next to City Park, that totally caught our eye. Although we're not in the market to purchase another home (at least until ours sells in Nashville), I thought I'd call and ask if they were available to rent any of their units. Luckily they said yes, and we were on the road for a site visit within minutes.

There were several units available for lease, two 2-bedrooms and one 1-bedroom. The 2 bedrooms were nice but a little out of our budget. This building had amenities and trimmings beyond our wildest belief! I never imagined that we could live somewhere like this! So we took the less expensive unit, and were able to work the into a 6 month lease, without increasing the per-month price. Excellent! The good news is that we're able to move in Wednesday, which is the exact day our moving truck arrives!

Luck? Blessing, I think! Here's some pictures:

What do you think? We're super excited! And the 6 month lease gives us time to decide where we really want to buy property again.

House Hunting- Again?

2011-12-30T08:18:00.000-05:00

Oh my goodness, it sure has been awhile since I last posted. As you can imagine, things are pretty hectic in the SE household right now. We're wrapping up our jobs in Nashville, putting the house on the market, packing to move across the country, and preparing for our new jobs in Colorado. Yikes, mama!

Our schedule for next week is packing/loading with movers on Tuesday & Wednesday, and on Thursday & Friday we're making the two day drive to Denver. Lucky for us, my sweet cousins (parents to our adorable flower girl) live in Kansas City and are letting us crash with them for a night! Apologies in advance for our two crazy dogs. We were supposed to move this week, but Mr. SE needed to finish out FY'11 on his current team before heading to the new office. We're thankful for the move because it bought us another week to find a place.

So where are we living? Oh, we still don't know. Yep, that's right. We're heading to Denver and don't have a place to live. Lucy for us (again) Mr. SE's aunt and uncle live in Denver and are letting us stay with them for a couple of nights until we find a place. Also, dealing with the concept of downsizing is hard! Props to those of you who have gone through this before. We're going from a 3 bed/2 bath that we own to a 700-900 sq foot apartment. It's definitely going to be a change, but something that we're super excited about.

hopefully the apartment isn't this small!

Once our house in Nashville is sold we'll be able to look into purchasing another home in Denver. I'm looking forward to the chain of events, since we'll have time to learn which areas of the city fit our lifestyle the best. The rent prices are kind of freaking me out, but that's what happens when you move to a bigger city. We're a little spoiled with home prices in Nashville, but I guess it could be worse if I still lived in DC?

Winter Weather Fashion

2011-12-22T13:33:00.002-05:00

With our winter move to Denver, I've had to re-think my cold weather wardrobe. My light coat and lack of mittens/hats here in Nashville aren't going to cut it in the Mile High. Not like I've needed another reason to shop, but I've taken this notion and run with it. Here's some of my favorite winter looks---

Old Navy Zig-Zag Mittens

Hunter Regent Savoy

Cashmere Cardi Coat

Diamond Down Coat

Kenneth Cole Shearling

Belted Faux Vest

Hallowell Cowlneck

Geometric Zig-Zag Scarf

And speaking of warm...I never tire of the cat pictures!

Rocky Mountain High

2011-12-13T08:33:00.001-05:00

Good morning friends! I’m thrilled to share some exciting news with you today on the blog. Those of you who read regularly might have remembered that Mr. SE spent over a month in our company’s Denver office in October. He did a great job driving performance for the high profile team in trouble, and they were sad to see him go in November. So much so, that they offered us the opportunity to move from Nashville to Denver and have Mr. SE take over that position permanently! This is an amazing opportunity for him, since he’s been with the company for over 4 years and has been working towards this role the whole time. If you know me in real life, you’re no stranger to the long hours that he puts in—so you know how big of a deal this is.

I’m so proud of my husband, and incredibly excited about this journey ahead of us! We’re leaving for Denver the week after Christmas! As those of you who have moved long distances can attest, this is no small feat. Thoughts of encouragement and prayers as we make this move are greatly appreciated!

Spring 2012 Color Trends

2011-12-09T11:31:00.001-05:00

It seems like fashion and retail are always one step ahead! Once we start decorating our homes for Christmas, they're releasing Resort and Spring 2012 collections. I can't say I'm disappointed, as I'm a 4 seasons girl at heart. I'm not sure how I'd feel living somewhere without all seasons-- it's so refreshing to prepare for a new season every couple months! So while you're sipping cocoa and listening to your Michael Buble Christmas album, take a look at these color predictions for Spring 2012.

I picked out some goodies fashion and home decor in each of these spring shades. I think my favorite color is the Cockatoo and Starfish. What do you think of these selections?

Final Shot of DIY Light Upgrade

2011-12-03T16:33:00.001-05:00

Here's the final product---

Sequence

2011-11-30T08:55:00.000-05:00

Have you ever played Sequence? Our family started playing this while in Florida for Thanksgiving and I'm addicted! Basically, it's like strategic Connect Four with cards--such a blast. After telling my mother in law how much fun we had, she picked it up for Christmas at her house! Does your family play games during the holidays? What's your tradition?