4/20 YEAH!!!! April 20th was one of the best days of the year! We started out with a wild record store day which transitioned into Happenin’ Fest around 5pm. We probably hit the sack around 3am…but it was well worth the long day! Hopefully this partnership with RSD and HF will continue because it was a great success! Andy and I (with the help of Travis and Bood) had to man the store until around 9pm when we were able to close our doors and catch some of the show. Super stoked to have caught 4 of my favorites: Useless Eaters, Sugar Stems, ST, and Mean Jeans (which were UH-MAZING)!
The eve before RSD!
the day’s essentials, Sparks!, midday mimosas, sunset at Happenin’ Fest
Here’s an awesome video of the initial rush of Record Store Day!
Useless Eaters, Sugar Stems, ST, Mean Jeans!
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After returning from San Francisco, Andy and I really got into high gear with getting our house completed. We decided to scrap trying to force a bathroom to be in that upstairs area. It was added when the house was turned into a duplex, and it was never really done “right”. We thought it was best to take the house back to it’s original footprint…and if one day down the line we have a kid or decide we REALLY need a bathroom upstairs, then we’ll address it then. After having SEVEN different plumbers come look at the job, it just wasn’t working out in our favor. Which is fine! We actually had the idea to x-nay the bathroom as soon as we walked into our neighbor’s (twin) house and saw what the original floor plan was like upstairs.
So! With the help of Randall, his dad, our electrician, and ourselves…our plan now is as followed:
rip out the old plumbing
fill in the holes in the siding
rip out rotted flooring (water leaks from the shower ruined a lot of our original hardwoods)
patch in “new” wood (a friend just gave us a few hundred square feet of 100 year old heart pine floor – just like ours! WIN!)
remove old bathroom window
replace original window upstairs (it was removed when the previous owners added the bathroom upstairs in the 50’s)
re-enforce, prime, and paint tongue and groove ceilings
insulate
drywall
refinish hardwoods
Written out like that it doesn’t look like much at all (lol)! As a type this, Randall and his dad are upstairs laying the “new” floor…so really things are moving along! I’m hoping we’ll have a complete house by the holiday season! Randall actually said it would only take a couple of months for the work they have to do, but I’m not one to get my hopes high so having a “deadline” of Nov/Dec seems more realistic.
I’m just SO excited something is starting to happen! We sat on this project for about 9 months trying to decide what to do with the bathroom. Now that we aren’t going that route, everything seems to be falling in place! It’s kinda weird starting to think about what colors we want to paint the rooms upstairs! Eeep! Here are some photos of the upstairs of the house in it’s current state (with commentary).
This is such a boring shot right now. Eventually, there will be a doorway at the top of the stairs and a more open foyer since the chunk of wall on the right will be removed. It was added to serve as the second unit’s front door. The original floor plan has the stairwell open to a large landing with the doors into each bedroom. Here’s a shot of how it will eventually look!
This room will eventually be our office! In the second view, the doorway will actually be moved over to the right!
YAY! NESTING DEBRIS! What every home owner loves to discover! /sarcasm
This is the view of the room that once had the bathroom (notice the small window) and will eventually be our “music room”. The spot where the original window was is obvious by the change in the siding. We will be replacing the original window and removing the small bathroom one. Hopefully the siding will hold up to be moved from one hole to the other! Also, the doorway between the future office and future music room will be closed up. I’m ambitious (hah) and bought a BEAUTIFUL shelving unit form the 60s at an estate sale that, come to find out, will only fit on ONE WALL in our house…once we close up that doorway. It’s going to be beautiful and Don Draper will be so jealous!
This shot is standing inside the future music room. There’s also a doorway from the old bedroom that will be closed up (to the left of the chimney). Pretty musch all of the flooring in front of the chimney and around the small window has to come up because of rot.
Since the future music room needs the most work, it’s getting the most “before” attention! Eventually there will be two gorgeous windows letting in the sunlight! This is what it should look like once the window is restored!
All of the rotted/makeshift floor that needs to be removed!
This is standing in the future guest/child/kitty bedroom. The doorway to the right of the fireplace will be filled in. The wood pictured in fornt of the fireplace will be used to patch in where needed in the future music room!
Another shot of the “before” bedroom! Anyone wanna stay the night?! lol
The first shot is standing in the doorway looking in to what will be the future music room. I like this as a “before” shot since it shows where the window will be replaced. In the second image you can see the small window we’ll be removing along with the area where the original window was.
Is that wood in your house or are you just happy to see me?! Some of what is pictured will be used to patch any rough spots in the floors.
I can’t wait to continue with progress posts! Feels great to get moving in the direction of a finished home and sounds like music to my ears to hear work getting done upstairs!
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Simply put, March was rad! Wedding season kicked off, loads of birthdays, great shows, Spring teased us with some gorgeous days, and Andy and I traveled to San Francisco! Here’s a day-to-day photo break down!
L is for…lonely plane, I made this (tea), key (…ingredients to crepes), lucky (Tiny didn’t attack me)
under (the influence of alcohol), chair, fear (of death), favorite (Mexican restaurant for my birthday!)
faceless self portrait (I know this photo doesn’t really work for this, but whatevs), I want…Fletcher C. Johnson to play our record store!, important (1909 marriage license of my g-great grandmother), in the distance
sound, tasty, explore, 9 o’clock (Counter Clockwise at Coppertop)
green, shoes, a sign, clean
working, about me (I’m a wedding photographer!), what I do for fun, up
in my drawer, something I did (sat in Dolores Park in San Fran!), pair, in the (rearview) mirror
good night (saw Useless Eaters and Nightmare Boyzzz in San Fran), relax, stuff
And here is the month of January and February!
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A couple of weeks ago my husband and I went with four of our friends on a trip to San Francisco! It was my first time in California and I am head over heels in love with the West coast! Well, I’ll be honest – it was an incredible place to visit, but not somewhere I’d like to call home. Something about the South will always keep me here, but San Fran definitely had it’s perks! We spent a week exploring the city and surrounding areas! From record shops, to delicious food, to gorgeous scenery, the Bay Area had a lot to see and do (and eat)! I’m so excited to recap this wonderful adventure with you all!
We arrived around 9:30pm and our first stop was the place we were staying, dubbed Castro Castle. Located between the Castro and Mission district, we were smack in the middle of a vibrant neighborhood! While we waited for the rest of our party to arrive, we did a bit of exploring around the area…but after traveling all day, called it an early night.
Day One
We woke up to a beautiful day! I started with photos of our place in the daylight…quite the contrast from the black light paint that greeted us every night. A delicious brunch at Kitchen Story fueled us for the start of our first adventure! Opting to spend the beginning of the day exploring the area around us, we walked miles and miles between parks, shops, and other attractions. After picking up a car rental, we drove along Highway 1 to Palo Alto (GORGEOUS scenery!). We spent a bit of time exploring a friend’s house, nestled in a woodland setting – it was incredible! Two of our pals, Justin and Sujay, used to have a radio show, and were invited to have a reunion of sorts. We all had a fun time taking over the airwaves with our “Alabama Nights” silliness. You can actually listen to the recording here! The radio show lasted until midnight, and with an hour and a half drive back into “the city” we were all pretty much tuckered out.
Day Two
Adjusting to the different time zone wasn’t too difficult for me so I felt rested and ready to go each day. On the second day we opted to do some of the touristy sight seeing down at the Fisherman’s Wharf. We all took a Bay Area cruise, which provided to be a wonderful way to view the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz! We continued to roam around the city, and decided to grab a quick lunch in Chinatown (I had the best eggroll ever) before making our way to the Museum of Modern Art. After perusing three floors of inspiring pieces (I saw a lot of my favorites – Rauschenberg, Pollock, Basquait, Hirst, Picasso, Warhol, and others) we headed to the Hemlock to catch our friends’ band (Nightmare Boyzzz) that were on tour all the way from Sweet Home Alabama.
Day Three
For the trip I rented the Fujifilm x100 camera to test out (I like to do this before investing in new gear). However, there is a weird glitch that happens with the memory card and I’d basically have to reformat the card…which wasn’t an option because I didn’t have a computer to upload the shots I had already taken. Therefore, I had to use my phone for most of our visit to Berkeley until I could buy a new card. Anyway, we spent the day exploring Berkeley (more shops, record stores, parks, and good eats)! We spent a quick hour in Oakland before having to catch the last BART back to “the city”.
Day Four
We all got an early start to the day and took the bus to the Haight neighborhood! The first stop was a delicious Thai restaurant in a converted house – it was SUPER cute and the food was fabulous! Between the Golden Gate park, numerous record stores, and various vintage shops, there was a lot to see!
Day Five
Traveling with six people means leaving a lot of wiggle room in the plans so everyone can stay happy…thankfully there were no problems and everyone got to see and do what they wanted. One of the biggest items on my check list was seeing one of the only camera obscuras left standing! It was a stunning, scenic hike to the Cliff House along Ocean Beach…and my first time standing in front of the Pacific.
Day Six
Wanting to get an ariel view of the city, Andy, Dustin (the White Rabbit Studios videographer extraordinaire), and I hiked all the way to the Coit Tower! After climbing over 300 steps and taking an elevator to the top of the 210 foot monument, we were greeted with the breathtaking scenery of San Francisco. It was incredible – hills upon hills with little boxes. After that adventure we got caught in a downpour, so we hopped on a bus to take us to the deYoung Museum – a nice activity for the rest of the rainy day. The evening brought clear, cool skies and was a nice night to visit Southern Pacific, and old warehouse space turned into a brewery. It was rad!
Day Seven
Bittersweet: ready to get home, but sad to say goodbye to vacation. It was our last day so we had a bit of time crunch to get the last of our sightseeing done before our red-eye flight back to the sweet South. Thankfully, our friend Jessica came to the rescue and guided us through the Muir Woods to see the mighty Redwoods. In order to meet her on the “other side”, Andy, Dustin, and I walked across the Golden Gate Bridge in the morning. This was one of the most exhilarating and surreal experiences I’ve ever had. While this was actually never a thought in my mind, I’m so glad we did (we were going to take a cab across). Jessica also showed us the Marin Headlands, which provided remarkable views of the bridge and city! After soaking in the imagery we had the most amazing lunch at Sol Food. Andy and I split a plantain-fried prawn po-boy…holy moly it was the best! Just as we made our walk back across the bridge, the afternoon fog rolled in ever so perfectly. As if a fog machine sat on the neighboring mountains, it poured into the Bay as we watched a movie-like setting come to life. Hands down the best part of the trip as it was pure magic.
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Honestly, I’m not usually one to really “celebrate” this holiday (ie I don’t normally feel the need to drink all day – definitely no offense against the Irish). HOWEVER, since it fell on one of the prettiest Sundays we’ve had all year none of us could resist the temptation of “celebrating” St. Paddy’s Day. We started out with breakfast at 3 Skillets, a bloody mary at The Furniture Factory, then a day of lawn games and relaxing! It was so much fun!
*The cute group shot snagged from Martin’s instagram!
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March is a pretty big birthday month for my group of friends! Aside from myself, there’s at least 4 others we celebrate with every year! Usually starting with Ben and ending with our darling friend Ellis, the whole month is pretty much spent in a drunken stupor (ok ok not really, but you know).
A small group of us celebrated with Ben at Outback before we all went into a food coma.
I started my birthday out with a beer at Bandito…and ended the night with whip cream in my face thanks to our favorite local Mexican restaurant (they are great at pranks)! I had a big wedding in Birmingham the next day, so I had to take it easy.
*last two images curtesy of Ashley Martin
Nichole’s birthday has taken the cake thus far (pun intended)! A group of us went bowling last night and had an absolute blast! We got in about three games before they turned off the lanes. It had been SO long since I’ve been bowling and my stats proved that. I was definitely LVP (least valuable player). Which is totally ok with me since we weren’t playing for anything other than high fives and “fuck yeah”s. I can bet that just about everyone that was there woke up with a hangover of some sort…but hey, that’s how you know it was a good night, right?
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So far this year each month has brought us sadness. In January we lost Andy’s granny, in February it was our new friend Ben, and just the other night we said goodbye to my grandma. These negative times just show us how bright the happy moments are and we’ve been embracing every second. Thankfully February gave us a thrilling adventure to New Orleans and Nottoway Plantation for us to build some great memories!
Here’s the month of Feb:
fork, pattern, something beginning with ‘e’ (eerie), hope
something I smelled (Andy cooked a tofu clay pot meal – delish!), soft, my (band’s) name, orange
guilty pleasure, 3 o’clock, entrance, lunch
walking, love, fridge, perfect
in my hand, something I don’t like (loved the decor, but not a fan of live gators or anything), I am…, where I stood
full (had a huge lunch with my grandma before we made it to AL), makes me smile, word, cloud
bedside table (actually, the bedroom mantle!), quiet, playing, upside down
And here is the month of January!
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Goodnight my sweet grandmother of 92 years. You lived a life of mystery, intrigue, gusto, and made every minute your own. You had sass and attitude, and always had the perfect shade of red lipstick. You taught me to write cursive and made me read a book everyday. You always had the prettiest garden, with beautiful blooms all year round. You were well traveled and well versed and could cuss like a sailor. You were the best mother to my father and we will all miss you with every passing day.
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