Sweets.

I used to buy Betty Crocker brownie mix and feel extreme satisfaction when pulling them out of the oven and realizing they weren't over-baked, stuck to the baking dish, and they actually tasted pretty good. Shamefully, I thought I was an awesome baker then and decided since my baking mix skills were so advanced, I needed to start doing bigger and better things in the kitchen. 

I started baking cupcakes about a 8 months ago. I baked cupcakes almost three times a week. At one point we had so many cupcakes in our house that (I hate to admit this) I had to throw some of them out because clearly, we were overdosing on sugar and allowed ourselves to have dessert....after every meal. It was disastrous for me and my hips, not kidding. Anyway, baking was like the equivalent of reading a book to me. I delve into my own little "baking" world, no matter what is going on around me, and try to create something new every time. 

When I first started I couldn't frost a cupcake for the life of me but now my favorite part of baking is decorating the cupcakes in different ways. I have so much fun baking and making cupcakes that I started to make them for family and friends. With all of the great feedback and with my own goals in mind; after some consideration and planning, I decided to start my own small cupcake business. YAY : )

Cupcakes by Vickie, is my new baby! Cupcake trays for parties, special orders, and more. I am creating a diverse selection of flavors and designs. So please spread the word and follow! I'm really excited for this new venture and hopefully it will be successful and fun. Yay : )

twitter: @vickiescupcakes

email: cupcakesbyvickie@gmail.com

There will be a blog soon, I promise!

: )

lookin' for a home.

What's going on, what's going on....

David and I have been on the search for a suitable living space for the past couple weeks. The "Find a cozy place to call home" mission is in full force right now. We want to find a space that is comfortable, some what roomy, so that all three of us have enough room to get away from each other when need be (hehe), I am kidding (somewhat). Anyway, both of us are picky, and I am embarrassed to say that we totally did the park, look around, and drive away without even getting out of the car to a couple of the places we had decided to visit. So the search continues.


We all want different things in a home. Like some people want a good size kitchen because they love to cook, some want a roomy living room to put their trusty/cozy recliner to relax and watch their football games, but me....I want a closet.

Not just any closet, but a closet that is roomy and perfectly designed to display my shoes/accessories in plain sight so I don't forget about them when planning my outfits. It may sound a little crazed and obsessive, but planning out my outfits for the week is an extremely therapeutic process for me every week and having everything organized, in view...makes the process that much sweeter. So, yes, I've been literally walking into the places we have gone to see...and right into the bedroom to check out the closet (which I graciously make known will be ALL mine). I guess my expectations could be worse right? A closet isn't so bad.

David wants....well....his expectations are like this...."I need a bed, a couch, a tv, and Romey has to be comfy too," basically. He's a guy. He wants a home for him and his dog...and me, obviously. 

Our quest will be ongoing until we both are happy. Until I have my closet, David has his comfy living space for him and Rome, within reasonable distance from work for us, and lots of things to do. Who knew this could be so difficult?

let's go.

hmm, where should I go? 

a little something for a special lady.

I am dedicating this post to a very special lady today that passed away several days ago but who was extremely special in my favorite person's life (David), and someone I grew to know and adore over the past four years.

I met Nanny four years ago on Christmas Eve at David's mother's home. It was my first holiday/Christmas Eve spent with his family. At the time, I had only met his mom and stepdad; so this was a big deal for the both of us. We both love the holidays and we especially love spending them with our families (one of the reasons I love David so much). Anyway, (back to my story) that night I met his relatives and I say this with so much love, his nanny. That Christmas eve, his nanny greeted me with a warm hug and from there the wise cracks, laughter, jokes, and smiles would continue and never end for the next four years. 

If there was a person that could crack you up, make you blush, and make you feel at home all in one shot, nanny was that person. A vibrant, fun-loving, and at times hilariously inappropriate woman; she was my favorite person to sit next to at the dinner table. Between bites of food, it would be safe to say, I would hear about child birth, my future "big, Greek wedding", hilarious stories, and how dearly she loved her David. Nanny was full of surprises. You never knew what would come out of her mouth next except that it would have you laughing and covering your mouth so you wouldn't spit out your soda. 

She was one of a kind. 

My favorite memory and time with her was about a month ago. While sitting with her all afternoon at a baby shower. I was there without David because he was on a trip for work but I brought my friend Kelli to the baby shower. Nanny, Kelli, and I spent a lot of time together that afternoon; eating, laughing, talking about David, our potential wedding in the future, how beautiful our babies would be, jewelry, and so many other things. Kelli had never met Nanny before but leaving that party, simply said "Nanny may be one of my top 10 favorite people." Between the constant laughing, funny remarks, and her trying to take my jewelry off my finger because it matched her necklace; it was one of those afternoons that you think about from time to time, and just smile. 

I don't think there was a person on this planet that she could talk to for more than 10 minutes and not have them laughing/smiling. 

And like I said previously, she loved her David. David, if you are reading this...and wondering if she was proud of you (although I've told you not to be doing that), there is absolutely no question that she wasn't proud of the generous, kind, hard-working man you have become. The certainty in her voice when she would speak of you was unlike any kind of love you can imagine. She was proud and would strongly say how much of a hard-working, kind-hearted man you had grown up to be. She would proudly talk about how her grandson loved his mother and how protective he was over the ones he loved. Oh, and of course how solemn and manly he was (as she laughed and expressed sympathy for me and his lack of PDA, hehe). Your nanny knew you and saw you for who you really are (that amazing grown man that I see and love) more than you can possibly imagine. There was only pride in her eyes and heart for you and the rest of her family. 

Like I said, she was one of a kind. 

I will never forget her beaming smile, mischievous laugh, heartwarming and hilarious sense of humor, and her innate ability to make you feel loved and completely comfortable in her company. I am so grateful and happy I was able to meet and know the woman who helped shape my guy into who he is, and who also made me feel like I was just as loved. 

I hope she is somewhere beautiful and peaceful, sharing that beautiful sense of humor and spreading her warmth where ever she steps foot. Most of all, I hope she is looking down on all of those she loves and smiling, knowing that she has touched their lives in ways unimaginable. 

To a beautiful and one of a kind woman, love and miss you Nanny. 

xo

beachin' all week..

This past week, I spent at the good ole Jersey Shore with my entire family and friends. A lot of people crammed into one house on the beach. It sounds hectic, which it is, but we all wait for this simple vacation all year. Tradition, even though it is the same thing every year, there is still is that excitement and anticipation to just be around everyone for an entire week with no schedules, no work, and the beach right at our feet, literally. Who wouldn't want to wake up to this every morning for a week? 

This week involves a lot of eating (obviously with a greek family; we didn't get these bods from not eating), a lot of sun, dance parties on the deck, and the comfort of being around each other and saying what ever we want without hurting one another's feelings (well most of the time). When I tell people we are going to the Jersey shore for vacation, the immediate reaction (if you did not grow up going there) is a wrinkled nose and an expression as to why we would want to go to that dot on the map that is now infamous thanks to MTV and the extra tan, poofy haired, party-ers. Look, I am not going to lie, I totally have watched more than my share of Jersey shore episodes but that is definitely not the Jersey shore I grew up going to and kinda sorta loving. 

The Jersey shore I know is the OC boardwalk where I have eaten one too many dinners consisting of Manco's pizza and Kohr Brothers ice cream. It is where you can lie on the beach all day, walk back to the house, and enjoy a barbecue with the fam at night, while sitting around a table, cracking up until the early morning hours. It is where we boogie board and surf all day, bury each other in the sand, and complain about sun burn (well some of us).

One of the best things about this beach house is the deck. Our entire vacation is surrounded by this deck. We wake up, have coffee/breakfast while sitting out there, we walk back from the beach and eat our lunch there, and at night we have our dinner there, bring the speakers outside...listen to music, have drinks out there, and break into our dance parties out there. The deck is where we sit and cheer on the kids playing baseball down below in the back yard/sand pit....and duck when flying wiffle balls are coming for your head. The deck is where I outrageously and violently flag down the water ice truck every time it passes by as I run in the house to get my change (like a little kid...i have no shame). The deck is the best part about this place because it brings us all together; laughing and making a ton of memories and of course, you can't beat this view.

Each year, I take my girlies out for a girl's night of shopping, ice cream, and monkey bread eating and a lot of picture taking. My little cousins are the little sisters that I never had to follow me around, borrow my clothes, and have spontaneous dance parties with. My little fashionistas in training, yep.

Oh yeah, did I mention that we eat a lot during this week. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a lot of snacks in between....a lot of snacks. 

all of us, enjoying one of our fat lunches during that week.....delicious fatty lunches. 

This year was filled with a couple rainy days which involved a lot of reading, more eating, shopping, and making fun of each other. 

All in all it was a fun week and I wish it could have lasted the entire summer.

i need these today.

Today was a little rough in so many ways. These types of days make you appreciate every single moment we have with those we love and cherish and also the beautiful life we are all given. It's almost like a breath can be taken and with that breath 5,6,10,20 years pass. It goes by so quickly but the way we choose to spend the passing time can be so incredible. We have so much around us and in us that it it would be a great shame to not take full advantage of it and live. a. beautiful. life.

That's what it comes down to.

Living. A. Beautiful. Life.

I love all of these photos, sayings, and so forth. I save them all for days like these and thought I'd share them with you all for some of your 'less than great' days to remind you that despite the times that test your ability to persevere, there is so much good to experience and spread.

Here is to strongly hoping this week gets better and that a lot of good people that I care about receive better news. 

xoxo

V

orange polkas.

dress: anthropologie

shoes: nordstrom

you know when you walk into a store, just to look around and kill some time before going to lunch. i was doing that one saturday and instead of just "browsing" and then leaving....i fell in love with this dress. it reminded me of a bunch of things: vintage 50s dress, summer-time, candy, and basically all things that make me happy. i had to have it. so here it is, and me twirling around in it, probably singing some oldies song in my head, pretending i lived in those times. who knows.

new things, life is good

i have missed this little place here that i can call my own, way too much. i shouldn't leave so much time in between sharing on here but i have been caught in such a whirlwind of things lately, that i seem to forget where up is and where down is (i'm getting back on my feet, super slowly, but surely!). my life lately has consisted of this new job, which i have grown to like in a lot of ways. i have met a group of fantastic people that i can call new friends but am a little consumed. when i say "consumed", i mean it in its entirety. i am just going through the motions right now, trying to get acclimated to this new schedule and.....i am writing these dots...dot....dot....dot...with much excitement....our new.....

addition to our little family!

here, i present to you, Romeo 'Romy', the new love of my life and the first addition to our little family of three!

this little guy is 4 months old and totally caught me by surprise while doing one of my favorite things ever (shopping). i happened to run into the mall one saturday afternoon to meet my mom for some much needed retail therapy with the money that i don't have and as i was walking by the shoe department at lord&taylor...instead of gawking at all of the new summer wedges, this bundle of beautiful-ness was lying on the floor as part of an animal rescue visit to the mall. 

i looked at him and all of the other puppies (but mostly him because he was just lying there so quietly), forgot about the extra tall pink strappy heels on sale, dropped to the floor, and decided we needed to love each other forever....as he crawled into my lap. 

at that moment, i caved....filled out an application....and promised i would change his name from "blacky" and make him ours.

i called david immediately after that. his exact response was, "please get him. don't break my heart." and so here we are.

we went to pick him up a few days afterward. and here he is sitting in the back seat with his momma.

he loves his daddy more than me, sadly...but they are buddies and i think it is the most adorable thing i have ever seen. 

so, between this new job and new pup, life has been extremely good the past few weeks. i am one happy girl.