Clement Nursery

Andrew and I have been wanting to get a few plants for our house. Of course a fiddle fig was at the top of our list, but we hadn't purchased one yet. Then a few weeks ago we went to see our friends new house, and they had so many plants. It really makes the space feel complete and more lived in or cozy. So we decided right then, it was time to bring some life into our house and buy some plants!

We were finally home this past weekend so we decided to head down to the Clement Nursery our friends suggested. It was such a fun and eclectic place. They had a wide variety of plants and the sales people were very helpful. As you know, I'm working on giving our entryway a little makeover, and had wanted to get a snake plant for that space. But of course, I know nothing about plants and how to care for them so I was a bit worried. I didn't want to spend money on a plant only to have it die a few weeks later. Lucky for me, they told me snake plants are nicknamed "mother-in-law's tongue" because you can't get rid of them. (For the record my mother in law is amazing)! They can live in bright sun, low light and need hardly any water. In fact, they told me not to water it more than once a month for the size we purchased. Perfect for my inexperienced ways. I was sold! Another interesting fact they told us was that it's one of the only plants that produce oxygen at night, so it's beneficial to keep in the bedroom to purify air while you're sleeping.

Although we looked at a few other plants, we only came home with one for now. We figured we should wait to be sure of what we want, and where we want to keep it, before we buy another.

Do you have houseplants? The only other plant we have is a type of cactus or succulent my colleague gave me, which I love. It can go months without water and has grown about a foot in the past two years. Hopefully our new little snake plant thrives as well.

Do you have any suggestions for houseplants that can be in direct sunlight? I want something for the living room but it gets a lot of afternoon sunlight so I want to make sure that I find one that will do well in that environment.

Chicago Girls Trip - Part II

If you missed Part I of our Chicago trip, you can find it here. Now on to my favorite day of our trip, Friday! One thing I really wanted to do while in Chicago was go to a Cubs game and see Wrigleyfield. And as luck would have it, they were playing at home when we were there, so we bought tickets. Kenzie took the day off work so we could go Friday and make a day of it. As luck would have it, it was the warmest day of our trip. We got up and headed towards Wrigleyville on the "L" which was fun, I felt like it was a necessary experience for a trip to Chicago. One of my friends favorite spots is a place called Lucky's. I had heard so much about their amazing (and huge) sandwiches, so I was excited to try them for myself. They were just as massive and delicious as the girls made them out to be. They also had Shandy's with fresh squeezed lemonade which was the perfect treat before the game.

After our lunch, we went to a rooftop bar for another drink before the game. It was such a beautiful and warm day in the sun, we had the best time lounging in the sunshine and chatting. We made it into the stadium just in time for the start of the game. I immediately loved the stadium, it was just as I imagined it would be. Full of charm and so much history from America's favorite pastime. Wrigley Field just got a new jumbotron and I loved that they kept the old school style of green with classic writing, without the pictures you wouldn't even realize it was digital. We had a great time at the game and befriended the people sitting in front of us. The Cubs won and we got to hear the victory song, "Go Cubs, Go!" It was so awesome, I wish the Giants had a tradition like that! After the game we went to the Cubby Bear bar for a drink because my friends love it and wanted to show me. It was packed, definitely the place to be after a game. After a drink (and a little dancing) we decided to head back towards Kenzie's house for dinner.

We went to Lou Malnati's for Chicago deep dish pizza and it did not disappoint! After dinner, we came outside to find the beautiful day was no longer, it was pouring rain. We were only a few blocks from Kenzie's neighborhood so we decided to make a run for it and tucked into her local pub for a few drinks.

Saturday morning we woke up and went to brunch at a cute little spot called Chicago Q right near Kenzie's place. It was so good! They serve homemade chips and pickles at the table, delicious! And Erica and I made amazing bloody mary's at their bloody mary bar! We all had a great brunch, but I especially loved my biscuits and gravy with poached eggs. Afterwards we had to work off our feast so we walked to the lake. It was so crazy to me to see it in person, it really felt like we were on the coast. Hard to believe it's just a lake. I can only imagine how fun it is to go to the beach during the summer. Next on the agenda was a bacon and beer tasting! Kenzie wanted to tour a few local breweries for her birthday, so this was the perfect way to kick off the day! Our other friend Codee and her fiance EJ met up with us, and it was so fun to see her and meet her fiance! And our friend Troy from high school who also lives outside Chicago met us as well. It was so fun to see everyone and catch up! We went to a few really fun spots in Lincoln Park, but I was too busy having fun to remember to take pictures. At least you can get a glimpse of how awesome the bacon and beer tasting was!

We left Sunday evening but had a little time to explore before heading to the airport. We started with brunch at Publican and it was one of the best brunches I've ever had! And I've gone to many a brunch in my day! I ordered the spoon bread, which came with asparagus that had some type of whole grain mustard dressing on it, and an egg on top. It was incredible. We also shared an old fashioned doughnut and hash browns. We all loved our meals, I would highly recommend making reservations if you're heading to Chicago anytime soon. After brunch we walked around and Kenzie showed us different neighborhoods and we walked along the river for a little while, but it was so cold and windy we didn't last long.

We had such a great trip. I am so sad the Kenzie and Codee moved, but at least they chose an awesome city that we can come visit! We fit a lot in to just a few days, but I feel like there is still so much to see and do. Andrew and I are looking forward to planning a trip in the summer when we can enjoy more of what the city has to offer!

Clearly we pretty much just ate and drank our way through the city :)

Wedding Wednesday: Choosing A Venue

I think if I had to chose one thing from our wedding as my favorite (besides marrying Andrew in the presence of our family and friends, obviously) it would be our wedding venue. I am in LOVE with it. But, it did take a little convincing for me. Andrew knew right away, the venue had so many awesome perks, but there was another venue I really loved as well. I am SO glad I saw the light and we decided on Gold Hill Gardens. It was the best decision we ever could have made.

Since Andrew and I decided pretty quickly we wanted to get married in the fall, we knew we needed to start searching for a venue right away. We didn't have a specific date in mind, which was helpful for us with a shorter engagement. We also knew we would most likely get married in the foothills near where I grew up. I looked at a few venues in the Bay Area, but they are all quite expensive. We also knew that getting married near Auburn, where my family is connected within the community, we would have opportunities to work with vendors we knew and trusted. So once we had officially decided on the general location for our wedding, we could start scouting venues.

After talking about things and looking at Pinterest, it was clear we both wanted an outdoor wedding with only one location. Meaning, we didn't want our guests to drive somewhere different for the reception after the ceremony.

I had always dreamt about getting married at a place called the Empire Mine where I had gone many times growing up. Andrew and I had even gone for a hike on the grounds once, so I knew he liked it too. But when I contacted them I found out they were totally booked for 2015, and 2016 would be based on a lottery. Since it wasn't even a sure thing we'd get that venue the following year, we decided not to wait and continued our search. (You can see photos of the venue here / here/ here).

The first venue we toured was called the Monte Verde Inn in Foresthill. It was great because Andrew's Mom was visiting, so we could have both our Mom's with us on our first venue tour. It was a really cute place that had a lot of the charm and aesthetic we were looking for, but it was just too small for our guest list. (You can see photos of the venue here / here).

Next, we stopped to look at Newcastle Wedding Gardens. The grounds here were beautiful, but I just didn't get a good feeling about working with the owner. She had very specific taste that didn't align with mine. Plus, it was an all-inclusive type venue so I had a feeling, everything she had to include wouldn't be what I wanted. And it had more of a cowboy/country feel which doesn't fit our personality. As it turns out, a friend of mine ended up getting married there last fall, and it was beautiful, but she did say the owner was hard to work with at times. So I was really happy I went with my instinct on that. (You can see photos of the venue here / here).

We briefly looked at a winery outside of Auburn called Dono dal Cielo, but quickly realized it wasn't the place for us. They weren't set up for weddings so we would have to bring everything ourselves and the rental costs would have been quite high. But when we were there, the woman who showed us around mentioned a place right around the corner that she said we had to see. In fact, she was getting married there the following weekend! Luckily, we already had an appointment there for the very next day.

After the excellent review the day before, I was really looking forward to our tour of Gold Hill Gardens in Newcastle. It was a beautiful setting and close to Auburn, making it easier for our guests. As soon as we arrived I knew it was a big contender for our venue. The grounds were beautiful and it was obvious the owners are passionate about their property. There is a beautiful house they run as a Bed & Breakfast that would be available for the night of the wedding. There were two beautiful ceremony locations as well as a gorgeous pad for the reception and a bar and pool area for cocktail hour. It felt like a secret garden, we loved the property. Andrew especially loved the games, pool area, ceremony site and idea of hosting our rehearsal dinner there. I knew from our tour, that was absolutely Andrew's first choice.

Our next venue tour that day would be very different. I had gone back and forth about wanting a barn wedding, with rustic and vintage touches (looking back this is so weird to me, I just can't imagine anything besides our wedding venue). And as it turned out, my cousin and brother in law keep their cattle on the property of a place with a gorgeous barn that does weddings from time to time. When I saw the first picture of the barn, I became obsessed. And when we were finally able to go out and tour the property, it was even better in person. But there were a few red flags and the price was a little more than what we wanted to spend. (You can see photos of the venue here / here / here).

We had easily narrowed it down to Gold Hill Gardens and the Barn venue, but after talking with Andrew and my parents, it was clear what our venue would be. As much as I loved that barn, there were too many factors that would add cost and stress with that venue. Looking back, I am so thankful I could recognize that. Because at the time, I was definitely a bit blinded by the amazing barn. Which is funny, because it doesn't seem like "me" at all in hindsight. After we had made our decision, we quickly put down our deposit for Gold Hill Gardens on September 12, 2015.

There are too many things I loved about our venue to count. But for me, one reason I knew it was the perfect place was that we could rent the Bed & Breakfast night before the wedding for a reasonable price, so that after the rehearsal I could stay there with my bridesmaids. They would make us breakfast and we could spend the morning getting ready together. Another huge perk was the ability to host our rehearsal dinner onsite. We were able to throw a pool party & BBQ for our rehearsal with our close friends and family. It was just perfect.

These are the photos I took on our walk through (it was set up for another wedding), as you can see it's an amazing place! We received countless compliments on the venue, and I am so glad we got married in such a special place.

Chicago Girls Trip - Part I

I spent this past weekend in Chicago on a little girls trip celebrating our friend Kenzie's 30th birthday. It was my first trip to Chicago, and I feel like we were able to pack a lot in for just a few short days! Since I was the only person who hadn't visited Chicago before, I knew I wouldn't do too many of the touristy things since the other girls had already experienced them. But my friends were so sweet and wanted to make sure I saw the highlights and had the best first experience in Chicago possible. And it was a success! I am already planning a trip back with Andrew during the summer months so we can go to the Art Institute, do an architectural river tour, and spend more time outdoors exploring the city. Although it was mid-may, the temperature was still pretty cold and even got down to the low-mid 40's while we were there! Thankfully, Friday was a beautiful day for the Cubs game! We were able to accomplish nearly everything on my Chicago wish list! 

Erica and I flew in on Thursday morning and got settled at our friends apartment, then hit the town to see a few of the sights until Kenzie got off work. We started at "The Bean" and took all of the obligatory photos. It was a nice day so we decided to walk from there up the Magnificent Mile towards the John Hancock Building where we planned to have a drink and enjoy the view. I was so happy it was nice enough to walk because I was able to see the river and appreciate some of the architecture. One of my favorite things about the city was the planters with tulips everywhere. It was so cheerful, you could tell the city comes alive in the spring and summer.

On our flight, I had mentioned to Erica a building my Dad told me about with pieces of other buildings and landmarks built right into the walls, but I didn't know what it was called. As we were walking, Erica realized we were standing right next to it while we waited to cross the street (turns out it's the Tribune Tower). It was so perfect that we stumbled upon it and both got to see it for the first time. After walking around to see the various fragments from famous buildings and landmarks, we continued on to the John Hancock Building for a cocktail. Our timing was perfect because we beat the rush and were able to get a seat right on the window. It was fun to visit and enjoy the view while we waiting for Kenzie to get off work. The view was great, as were our drinks. And surprisingly the best view was from the women's restroom on our way out!

After we left The Signature Room, we had a little time before our dinner reservation. So we stopped at a local bar on the way called Streeters. This is a spot they had both visited on their first trip to Chicago, so now it's become one of their favorite bars. I had heard plenty about it so I was excited we could stop in for a quick drink. Next on the agenda was RPM Italian for dinner! I was so excited to eat here and hoped we would see the Rancics (no luck)! Our dinner was amazing, we ordered a bunch of dishes to share and a bottle of wine. My favorite dishes were the Burrata appetizer and the Agnalloti with sweet peas and prosciutto. But everything we ordered was amazing, I hope they open one in San Francisco because I already want to go back. We had so much fun drinking wine and catching up. Then, after dinner were weren't quite ready to call it a night so we stopped at a bar nearby to watch the rest of the Sharks game, and we even met a few other Bay Area Sharks fans!

It was a great first day in Chicago. I felt like I really got a glimpse of why everyone loves the city so much. Everyone there is so nice and I loved the architecture and what I saw of Kenzie's neighborhood. It made me even more excited for the Cubs game and everything we had planned Friday!

Originally I was planning to do only one Chicago post, but as I started writing and sorting photos I realized it would be way too long, so I decided to break it into multiple posts. More of our trip to Chicago to come on Thursday...