North Carolina...

Andrew and I just went on a little trip to Raleigh, North Carolina. Andrew received a good job offer there last week, and we had very little time to jump on a plane to check it out. I was not thrilled about it. The thought of moving away from my beloved little beach town (aka. Balboa Island) was saddening. Then thinking about leaving friends and family made it even worse.  But I had to be open minded, right?!

Raleigh, North Carolina is a cute area. Lots of trees, wildlife, nice people, 3 universities , farms, dog parks for the little pup, and lots of stripes and monograms. Did you hear that? STRIPES!  It still isn’t half as great as the beach, but I’m a biased beach lover. 

Although they were not near the beach, the homes were really cute...  

... All shapes, sizes, and colors! Spring is a nice time to visit. Nice gardens and nice weather. Plus, no bugs! Those mosquitos LOVE me.

The farmers market was slightly bigger than my Corona Del Mar market... and by slightly, I mean vastly!  

Talk about farm to table... the dude kills the pig and brings it here. I might become more of a vegetarian if I hear much more about the little piggy process. 

I found a quaint little coffee shop. 

 They kindly remind you how special you are upon entry. 

And the other thing, I'm already a hit with the dog community! :) Meet Luna, the 2 month retired racing greyhound. She had some thighs of steel and an owner who wanted coffee. Of course I volunteered to watch her {more like eye gaze with her} for a little. 

Well, that pretty much sums it up. I flew there on many delayed flights on Monday and flew home on Wednesday at noon. So my stay was brief and stressful.

And hey, they have a theme song!

Oh, and I missed the little pup of course. 

- Nicola & the Little Pup (reunited :)

A Striped Vase... yes, please.

Can you think of anything better than a striped vase? I can’t.

I made this little vase for a friend’s birthday. And it couldn’t have been easier (or cuter).

All you need is Washi tape and a vase. And tape away! 

- Nicola & the little pup

party time. excellent.

A Little Graduation Party!

Graduation season is coming. Ok, maybe this is a little premature, but I was looking through my pictures and found some cute pictures of Andrew’s graduation party that I threw  last year with Andrew's mom. I have to say, I think it was the graduation party of the century (bold, I know). It was simple, fun, and the weather was perfect.

The theme was “cute things"...Well it was actually red and gold (for USC of course) along with some school supply flair.  

The Decor!:

Chalk board signs

A banner of his childhood school photos (from preschool to grad school). Some great haircuts stole the show that day.

Pennants of the school's he attended/worked at.

A lovely sign to celebrate his PhD. Notice the metal school clips (and striped ribbon for extra cute factor).

Simple tables and chairs.

Subtle flowers and candy (of course). 

The Food!:

 A build your own burger bar...

 With all the toppings.

And some delicious salads. 

 Cupcakes (with home made graduation toppers)

Drink options. With chalk board signs. And a chalk board menu.

All in all, it turned out great. I thought I would share some ideas for your future graduation parties in the months to come. 

- Nicola & the little pup