Happy Birthday to me lovelies!

Today is my birthday lovely and with only 5 short weeks to our wedding, I plan to spend my day relaxing. Honey and I are planning on having some brunch (in our San Francisco neighborhood) with friends and then taking a drive to Stinson Beach.

Have you ever been? The drive along the coast is so pretty and serene with trees lining the sides of the streets.




Is there anyway to have just one birthday cupcake? No of course not...thanx sweetie!

And I salute you as well!

I'd love to make a wish on this fairy card. How girlie am I?

Roses of all colors are always welcomed!

Hoping this post makes you smile and you have a wonderful day and I'm off to play in the San Francisco sunshine on April 25th. Thank you lovely for coming with me on my blog ride!

Wedding planning: 3 months to go

Recently my guy friend asked me if I was blogging about how the wedding planning was going. Why do I get surprised when my guy friends show their wedding interest? Like last week I went to our friend’s birthday dinner and was surrounded by guys and they wanted to hear the details and find out how they can help. With only more 3 months to go, I feel my internal clock counting down to the big day. And it seems we have a skeleton of plans and now its time to finalize them. This bride is ready to get the show on the road!

*Picture taken by Wedding Style Guide

Some of the advice that’s been given to me is to enjoy the planning as everything goes by fast and so does the big day. Except our planning process has changed to be doubly busy with plans so we can arrange two ceremonies.

What will I do with my free time when the weddings are over? Ah Honeymoon here we come!

And recently I thought our Rabbi had stood us up. Let me explain:

Finding a Rabbi hasn’t been an easy task. After months of searching I found a Rabbi that I felt a connection to and so I arranged a meeting for Honey and I to go and meet her.

On a Thursday night, it was starting to rain outside and the lights were out at her office building. In fact, there wasn’t a soul in sight. 6:30 came and went and there was no answer at the door or from her phone. 10 minutes went by and then 20. I turned to Honey and asked him, “Did we just get stood up by a Rabbi?”

I just knew something had happened. Rabbi's can't stand people up, can they?

The next morning my phone rang and it was the Rabbi sounding very groggy and loopy. She let me know that she had broken her leg. She also told me she felt horrible that someone hadn’t gotten in touch with us to cancel the appointment.

Oh no! I let her know we were just happy she was OK.

So there seems to be some ups and downs with our wedding planning. And then the exciting call came yesterday that my bridal dress was in the store and I can come in for a fitting. And so the craziness and wonderful things begin. What wedding planning stories and advice do you have for me?

Gift ideas and guest post from Birthday Girl

Hi everybody! Birthday Girl here. Thanks Laura for inviting me to post today! I’m very excited to share some unique gift ideas with you. With so many friends getting married, having babies and celebrating birthdays these days, I’m always on the lookout for that special something… a gift that speaks to someone’s personality and gives them a sense of surprise and delight. When possible, I like to support independent business owners too, which is what brought me to the Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco last weekend. Here are a few favorites of the many fabulous items I discovered…

For your next wedding or bridal shower, consider Whitney Smith’s beautiful pottery. Her bird cake plates and lotus nesting bowls have captured my heart. What better way to highlight your prettiest meals than by serving them up with a work of art?

Dee & Lala are a perennial favorite of mine for their darling letterpress cards. What I didn’t know is that they also make prints. For a mom to be, a set of 4 framed woodland critters would make a sweet addition to the nursery. Or, how about a ‘peaclock’ for that stylish girlfriend? A fresh and modern addition to her home office.

For the crafty DiY’er, turn to My Imaginary Boyfriend. This tree stump pin cushion actually makes me want to learn to sew, and the make your own birch log kit is hilariously irreverent. It also makes a great gift for your earth friendly pals, as does the pretty purple tote bag if you want to dress up her next trip to the farmers market.

For a milestone birthday, how about a journal to record the year from Jill Bliss? She carries a solid line of feminine notebooks, stationary and prints with sketches of native flowers in warm, modern colors. The fabric covered notebook is extra handy for crafters with storage to hold your pencils and scissors. Also, I just love her latest addition of dainty floral fabric necklaces.

Last but not least, Bird Mafia has a wonderful assortment of cute gifts for kids. The animal themed blocks, menders (I don’t know what they are but I like them) and accent pillows are all handmade and stitched. Unfortunately, their etsy store seems a little low on items today, but check back after the holidays because there were lots of clever kid and home goods in their booth at the fair.

Thanks for taking the time to let me share with you today. I hope you found something that fits the bill your next gift giving occasion! Also, if you live in the SF Bay Area, I highly recommend a visit to Renegade when they head back to town next summer. It’s free to browse and there’s definitely something for everyone. B.G.

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Thank you to B.G. for this wonderful guest post showcasing these unique gift idea in my very own backyard. Check out her blog Birthday Girl for more lovely posts.

Do we really have to fly? Can't we just drive?

As we speak I am facing one of my biggest fears... did I mention I am horrible at flying? Instead of the hassle of flying, I wish I could just blink my eyes and be at my destination. I love to travel and have new experiences, but during my flights 'I white knuckle it'. Don't get me started about trying to sleep on planes! But what if I could I fly like this...

First I would wear an outfit like this one. Check out those boots!
Then I would put on my eye mask to sleep. Would you still take me seriously?

I would fly on Virgin America planes. Maybe it's because I'm in love with the red color and creativity of their airline. Or maybe it's because I can catch up on my T.V.

I would use all of these luggage tags on my one piece of luggage. So it was harder for me to lose it on the baggage carousel.

Although I don't like to fly, today is still a wonderful day because it's my Honey's birthday. So this is really the best day ever. Comment below and tell me if you like to fly? Do you miss getting meals on the planes? (Here's one of my favorite I'm leaving on a Jet Plane posts)

The five things that I must do next in life

For my birthday, I was given the book The List: 100 Ways to Shake Up Your Life, written by Gail Belsky. I thought this was a wonderful and inspirational birthday gift. It didn’t hurt that the attached birthday card said, ‘to the woman who inspires us.’ This is the kind of book you can’t wait to take home and look through. As my friends all sat around my birthday picnic, I opened the book and read excerpts out loud. My friends kept saying if you’ve done 30 of the 100 things on the list, you’re in good shape. ‘Only 30,’ I thought. I must be able to check off more than 30. Between you and me, I was only able to check 25 items off of the list.

Some of the things that I checked off included:

1) Witnessing childbirth. (I witnessed my half brother and half sister brought into this world. I am forever changed by the experience) 
2) Switching careers/go back to school (Does going from child psychology to the world of advertising count?)
3) Riding in a fire truck (It was years ago. I was working with a class of children and I arranged a field trip to our local station. We all loved riding in the fire truck)
4) Lying about something… (I’d tell you, but then I’d have to… well you know)
5) Living with less (If you’re a follower of this blog, you know…)

After reading this book, things I want to do next include:

1) Visiting an Ashram…
2) Swimming with Sea Creatures… (Great Barrier Reef anyone?)
3) Having a child later in life… (I am looking forward to this one!)
4) Spending twenty-four hours in bed (Has anyone really done this?)
5) Writing a novel/build your own website (Ha Ha - look at me!)

The book ended by asking readers to create their own list. I’d love to know what the next five things on your list are? Go on, you can tell me… I won’t tell anyone (unless I’m fibbing)!

Guest Blogger Fifi of Fifi Flowers Design

Presenting today Ms. Fifi of Fifi Flowers Design to guest blog for us. I am thrilled to have this post from Fifi as I've enjoyed guest blogging for her over the past couple of months. Let's join Fifi as she takes us on a romantic getaway in my city, San Francisco...
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Thank You Laura for asking moi to guest blog on your site... I would like to share my trip to your part of the world with your readers... first... start the video and then scroll on... this is MY FAVORITE San Francisco song...

Here we are looking at the world famous San Francisco Bridge... this is the best view of it that we captured on our trip...We stayed here at the Shannon Court...Here is the view from our room...See this building top in the distance... this is the Top of the Mark... we ventured to the top for a cocktail one evening... I wish I had photos to share... unfortunately they did not come out... le sigh... if you visit San Francisco... I suggest you take a peek from the top... GORGEOUS!!!Our hotel was located in the theatre district... look at this FAB architecture of the Geary Theatre... and close to Union Square...We popped up to San Francisco to celebrate my birthday and Valentines Day... here is the French restaurant...where we dined on delicious food... look how BIG hubby's (bf at the time) glasses were... Of course we did all the tourist things... driving down Lombard Street...Ventured over to Haight Ashbury... Found a GREAT pair of silver hoops in one of the shops...
We also shopped around Union Square... had a beverage in the Histoical St Francis Hotel... see Fifi standing in front...
Of course we bought a couple tickets...and hopped on a cable car...to the Wharf for clam chowder and yummy sourdough bread! We visited the Palace of Fine Arts (painting available in My Etsy Store) among other wonderful sights in San Fran...Ooh la la... such FAB memories were made... I hope you enjoyed my little trip... and thank you AGAIN Laura for letting me share with all your readers... your San Francisco through Fifi's eyes!

Fifi of Fifi Flowers Design Decor
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Thank you so much for sharing your trip with us Fifi and I loved your guest post. Please do it again for us soon. I just loved the song playing while looking at your pictures.

Come with me to a trip to the Napa wine country

I wanted to share with you some lovely pictures that we took on my birthday trip up to Napa Valley, California. The wine country is one of my favorite places. There is so much to learn from the hard working people who run the vineyards that produce the wines we love. 

Honey surprised me with this trip to Napa after we saw and loved the movie Bottle Shock. Bottle Shock is the real-life story of how the California's wineries garnered world recognition, after they won 'Judgment of Paris,' a wine-blind-tasting (or is it blind-wine-tasting) against the French. 

The photos below were taken at Chimney Rock Winery, Chateau Montelena Winery (the winning vineyard in the white wine section in the "Judgement of Paris" wine competition), Castello di Amorosa (the vineyard is a castle), and finally at Sterling Vineyards.

We took the last picture, shown above, at the Cliff Lede winery. I loved the gardens, their art gallery and their huge tabby cat that slept the entire time. What are some of your favorite types of wine?

Happy Birthday to me and Guest Blogger Giveaway!

Today is my birthday! I am one of those people that get very excited about birthdays. Excited about my own birthday and everyone else’s. I feel like I get to be a celebrity for a day. And you too can feel like a celebrity by winning a guest blogging spot here on Under the Sheets-Shhh. Go on and enter. You know you want to. Plus it's so easy and creative....you can also check out these other contests.

As I’ve mentioned to you before I’ve moved around a lot in life. So on my birthday my cell phone rings a lot from calls from my family and friends from around the world. (I am so lucky!) So today is my birthday and I am very excited to be turning ‘26’ again.

I also think that since I had a very difficult childhood, birthdays have become a day for me to reflect, think of my loved ones and reflect on the past year. So I wanted to do a guest blogger giveaway to my blogger friends to say thank you for all of your support and care to me over this last year.

So here’s how you can win a guest post on Under the Sheets:

1) I would love for you to write a post about the below pictures. All I ask is that it’s creative and fun as it’s a birthday present to me ☺
2) Comment on this post what your title would be (just the title) and then I will choose two lucky winners to guest post.
3) If you are the winner then on your blog you will link back here to Under the Sheets-Shhh and tell your followers that your guest blogging and then I will link back to you on post day.
4) Doesn’t this sound like fun?

OK so here are the random photos that I would love to hear your ideas about a title. Email me if you interested in knowing what the pictures are of at shhh.under.the.sheets@gmail.com. 

And thank you for my blogging present. 

How did you know it's exactly what I wanted?!


* I think that this is the best laundry mats name. There are actual socks glued to the floor. Look closely and you can see me taking the picture in the window. And yes I do believe in sock heaven. Don't you?

* "When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie"... This couple at my local coffee shop was so into each other that I am pretty sure they didn't even notice me take the picture of them.

* Yes, this is a woman, dressed in a banana suit at a wonderful juice bar that I love. Should I drink the wheatgrass? No way it almost killed me :)

Now it's your turn. Turn on those creative juices and wow me. Haven't you been waiting for an opportunity like to this to fall into your lap? Guest blogging for everyone. Sorry birthday's get me very excited....