christmas in july.

This past weekend Diane and I hosted our ridiculously early Christmas party. Normally we have one in October or November when it starts to get a little cold. This year, we just couldn't wait.

We decorated cookies, played some sort of beer pong, took family portraits, and watched Elf. It was amazing to celebrate Christmas with so many people. Our friends are fun :)

summer dinner.

We had some friends over last night for dinner and had lots if fun! We don't have anywhere to sit when friends come over. Since it's summer time, I figured that outside was the best option. I wasn't sure if our little table was going to fit four of us, but I definitely knew it wouldn't fit our serving dishes. I set up a few make shift side tables and we all fit just fine. Problem solved.

In all fairness, he didn't call seat check.

I'm not sure why, but Kaitie and I like to dress up our kitties. It started out with Tyler's sunglasses and just escalated from there. Soon we had a very grumpy and angry kitten who didn't want anyone to hold her. Can you really blame her?

puppy play date.

Today Patrick and I met up with my old roommate and her sweet pup, Bella. Brittany and I needed time to catch up and our babies have never met, so we thought the beach would be a good place to hang out. We met at the beach in Del Mar where the pups had so much fun chasing each other and wrestling. Of course, I snapped a few pictures.

This one is Brittany having a heart to heart with Bella. "I am your master. You will listen to me."

After a lot of wrestling, the dogs started playing tug-of-war with the leashes. At one point, Patrick had Bella's and Bella had Patrick's.

After the beach, we headed over to Pannikin's for lunch. Bella may be bigger than Patrick, but she's still a baby and she loves her momma. It was the best morning and I'm so grateful for days with friends. So far, it's a good week.

sweet gifts.

Today Beca and I got to hang out for the first time. She brought me some goodies including these beautiful and delicious macaroons! Lemon and blackberry- yum!!! I had to share pictures, aren't they pretty?! I assure you, they are as tasty as they look ;) I'm looking forward to future hang outs with her including puppy play dates. She has the cutest pups and I can't wait for Patrick to meet them.

Hope you enjoyed your holiday weekend! Here's what ours mostly looked like:

Food, babies, pool, relaxing, and family: It doesn't really get much better than that.

PS: A special thanks to my mom for always having her camera phone out :)

a sweet birthday.

Sunday was a celebration day for someone special. This little peach was turning 1! It just so happened to be her golden birthday, which was the theme of the party. Everything was so adorable!

Aren't they such a cute family? Georgia's mama and I grew up together and now we get to watch this little one as she's getting bigger.

Happy birthday, Georgia!

xo Chelsea and Philip

Anthropologie ♥

My friend Natasha came down to San Diego last weekend. She brought her lovely friend, Katrina, who I quickly learned is awesome just like she is :) One little problem though: Tash had never been to Anthro! We fixed that immediately!

I am usually in Anthropologie AT LEAST once a week. I could stand in there forever! Yes, I love everything they sell, of course. But their displays- TO DIE FOR! I am insanely inspired as soon as I walk in. My usual routine: I walk around the store very slowly looking at every display and touching everything. After I've soaked it all in, I sit on their little wooden chair they have outside their door and scribble down a TON of ideas! It's such a wonderful place.

I found THE PERFECT COUCH! I love this baby! I just thought the shape was so cute. It reminded me of Alyce in Wonderland. I knew it was outrageously expensive, but I was just curious. I asked the sales girl how much it was. "I'm not sure off the top of my head. I know it's more than $1,000". In my head, I heard: "a LITTLE over $1,000" which sounded pretty reasonable. Definitely got my hopes up for a few seconds because she quickly asked her supervisor who told me it was $3,999! NOT REASONABLE! It's ok, it was a fun spot for pictures.

I wasn't too surprised about the couch, I mean, come on- it's Anthro. I usually can't afford anything bigger than a mug. So I never go in expecting to buy something to buy unless I have a gift card. (In which case, the entire time the gift card is on me and I'm not inside an Anthropologie, I'm thinking of what I'll spend it on.)

I am always in love with their kitchen stuff, but never want/ think it's possible to buy a whole set of something, so I don't get too excited. But that night, I found this dining set on this gorgeously decorated table...

We didn't register for a dining set for our wedding. I was SUPER picky about all of them and never found one I liked at either of our registry stores. We actually ended up finding a super cute set at Marshall's that I love. The only problem: they're made very cheaply and the paint isn't holding up very well. You can always tell by how light those dishes are. They just aren't made well. A little over a year later, it's already time for a new set.

You can't tell in these pictures, but in the middle of the ink designs on the plates and bowls there's a mirror like finish. It's hard to explain but it makes it look so rustic and amazing! You can sort of see it in the bowl in the picture above.

I really really want this set! Seriously. I'm buying it. I decided that I'll buy it piece by piece when I have extra money from my sales or tips at work. Also, Christmas is coming up, so that works out pretty nicely. Doesn't it? :)

I had so much fun visiting and shopping with those girls! I was so happy that they decided to take their spontaneous road trip. Maybe I'll get to visit them soon so we can play in the Redwoods in Santa Cruz :)