Taking Stock of 2013

2013 was a fantastic year. For me, it was a year of taking risks and challenging myself. I'm really proud of what I accomplished this year, and hopefully I can push myself to do even more in 2014. Here are some of the highlights of my year:

New York, New York
A recap of the trip that my mom and I took to New York. It's our favorite place in the world and makes for the perfect girls trip. We're hoping to go back this year!

Diego Turns One
In this post, there are some of the cutest pictures I've ever taken of the babies. Our sweet little Diego is about to turn 2 on January 6!

No Sew Window Seat Cushion
One of my most popular posts- an easy DIY tutorial for a window seat cushion!

The 3 Best Friends That Anyone Could Have
The sweetest pictures of my babies. The cats don't leave Maisy's side after she has surgery.

Dog Beach
Maisy's first trip to the Dog Beach. I don't think she's ever been happier!

Lily
We lost our sweet Lily girl. Her cross-eyed little face is so missed!

Calories, Running, and Weight Loss...Oh My!
One of my big accomplishments this year- I lost 15 pounds (and have kept it off!) I've always been a terrible dieter/exerciser so to stick with it for 6 months was a huge deal.

My First 5k & Mom and Dad Come to Town
Another accomplishment- I completed Couch 2 5k and ran my first (AND LAST! ;) 5k! I was glad to accomplishment my goal, and then I was glad to be finished running. It's just not for me :)

Surf's Up!
Doug took a surfing class and got up! And I was greatly entertained by the whole thing :)

Bark in the Park
We took Maisy to the Dodger's Bark in the Park and she had a blast. I love spoiling this girl.

Our Week in Paradise
Doug and I went back to where we honeymooned for our 3rd anniversary. We met some awesome people and had one of the best weeks of our lives.

Office Makeover
One of my favorite room makeovers to date- my parents' office. I love this room!

A Big, Exciting, Scary Announcement!
My biggest accomplishment of the year- I started my own business. I was seriously afraid of failing, but somehow I found the courage to do it, and I couldn't be happier. I love what I do, I love working with wonderful clients, and I love helping people simplify their lives. I still pinch myself that this is actually happening- that I'm a small business owner (NEVER thought I'd say those words!) and that I actually have clients and stay busy. I'm so thankful that I get to do what I love (and be my own boss! :) Here's my new logo!

The City by the Bay
Doug and I took a trip up to San Francisco- even though it was a short trip, we had a wonderful time!

Life Lately
One of my favorite moments of 2013- going to the Season 11 Premiere of Ellen! She gave us all TVs!!

Den Makeover
Another favorite room makeover- my parents' den. Just switching out some accessories can give you a whole new room!

Hiking the Hollywood Hills
This is another favorite memory of 2013- I loved being on top of a mountain with my cutie pie husband and precious pup!

If you want to join me and Katie and do a recap of your own, you can link up with us all week! Feel free to use this button on your post!

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Merry Christmas from the Mintons!

Merry Christmas! Here's this year's Christmas card- the only time we've taken a picture of all 5 of us! Thanks Mom for being a great photographer (and knowing how to get Maisy's attention!)

And here's the card in our Christmas Card Scrapbook! I'm loving this year's page!

In other exciting news, Katie and I are hosting a year-in-review link up, called Taking Stock 2013! More details to come soon, but I think the link up will be January 1st or 2nd. 

I hope y'all have a wonderful Christmas with the ones you love most! 

Hiking the Hollywood Hills

Last weekend was one of my favorites ever. The entire weekend was just perfect, and it was also the first time since I started my business that I had the whole weekend off. It was lovely :)

We spent Friday night walking around IKEA while I drooled over their kitchens and entertainment centers. I dream of the day that we own a house!

On Saturday, we planned to do the Hollywood Sign Hike but right after we left our house, we passed a dog running across the 6 lane road (55 MPH speed limit!), so of course, we made all kinds of u-turns chasing him down. I finally jumped out of the car and started sprinting and told Doug to follow me with the car (seriously, I've never run that fast in my life...and probably never will again!) So there I was, sprinting across busy roads with doggy bones in my hands yelling "PUPPY!" for 20 minutes. I finally caught him in a neighborhood, and the poor dog's ear tips were all black and rotted. Thankfully someone in the neighborhood offered to take him and get him checked out. So hopefully this pup will have a happy ending.

After the rescue, we stopped at Lazy Dog Cafe for some lunch. Maisy got the chicken and rice :) (Yes, they have a Dog Menu!)

Then, the hike. Going into it, we thought it was 4 miles roundtrip. Turns out that it's 4 miles each way. I'm glad I didn't know this beforehand because I may have psyched myself out. It was an incredible hike with the most beautiful views, and we couldn't have had a better time. 

Half way up the mountain

Above the Hollywood Sign!

At the top of the mountain

My sweet girl did so good!

I love this one :)

We also saw a celebrity, which you know made my day even better :) Michael McMillian- I know him from What I Like About You but apparently he's also in True Blood. He walked right up to us so his dog could play with Maisy, and he was super nice. 

Afterwards, we took Maisy to the Grove for the first time, where everyone adored her new peacoat :) I didn't take a picture of it that night, but here's a cute one of her in her new snazzy outfit!

We finished off the night with milkshakes and a dip in the hot tub to soothe our aching muscles (I was sore for days!) And to round out the perfect weekend, on Sunday we watched football at Chili's then saw About Time. I loooooved this movie- it was so sweet and so good. And that was our perfect weekend! 

Life Lately

Hiiiiii y'all! Gosh, it has been a long time since I've been on this little blog of mine. Life has been very busy, which is a wonderful thing. My business, Simply Beautiful, is really starting to take off and it's the most exciting thing! There are some days where I really can't believe how lucky I am to be able to do what I love. I've been working with lots of awesome new clients, and I'm just so thankful! My company has a LivingSocial deal out for the next 2 weeks, so if you're in the Orange County area and need some organization help, click here!

About 2 months ago, I got a voicemail that literally had me jumping up and down screaming. It was the Ellen show offering me Season 11 Premiere tickets! I returned the call (and thanked her over and over again) and asked why they called me (usually you request tickets on her website and they're really hard to get), and they told me that for the premiere, they were calling people who were already in the database (I have been twice before).

I brought Katie and Lindy with me, and thank goodness we took my car because Ellen gave us all TVs!!!! 

It was a VERY good day :) I love these girls, and in 2 weeks, we're going to see Chelsea Lately! I don't really watch her show, but I have an obsession with TV tapings so I'd go to just about any. And I'll be with these awesome girls, so it's guaranteed to be a good time!

Doug's birthday was just a few days ago- Happy happy happy birthday, my love!!!!

A few weeks ago, I watched the entire Breaking Bad series just in time to watch the finale. Yes, it absolutely lived up to the hype. I couldn't have loved the finale more. Dexter, however, was about the worst finale of all time. I'm still bitter.

My mom came out to visit last week, and we had a lovely time, as always! We took the TMZ Tour (my 2nd time) and laughed for 2 hours straight. I spotted Famke Janssen (the wife from Taken, and apparently also in X-Men) at Chateau Marmont, but she was lame and ran away from our cameraman. 

And as you may have noticed in the above picture, I chopped my hair off and added a ton of low-lights. I also decided to finally bite the bullet and try the Brazilian Blowout. I have been considering it for 2 years, and I am SO HAPPY that I got it. It basically takes all of the frizz out of your hair, leaving it smoother and shinier. To have straight hair, it used to take me around 30 minutes to dry and straighten it. Now, it takes 5. It is LIFE-CHANGING! My hair has never felt so soft. It feels like a new head of hair! I'm still getting used to the color- this is the darkest I've ever had it. I'll probably add more blonde next time, but it's fun to be a semi-brunette!

The City by the Bay

Doug and I spent Labor Day weekend in San Francisco, and we had a fabulous time! Doug grew up in the Bay Area, but it was my first time there so we made sure to see all of the typical tourist spots. Prepare yourselves- this post is picture heavy! :)

The view from our room. We stayed at Parc 55 and LOVED it! Such a great location. One huge tip we have in case you're planning a trip to SF- parking fees are insane in the city (our hotel's was almost $60/DAY!) so we parked at a BART station on the other side of the bay and took that into the city. Parking was free, and our tickets totaled to less than $25! 

Chinatown

My favorite part of the trip was seeing Alcatraz. I have a weird fascination with all things scandalous, so this includes anything jail-related. (Anyone else love the show Lockup? :) Our advice for this- take the earliest tour you can! We did the first one, and by the time we were leaving it was already getting so crowded. 

It was cloudy and ominous during our time on Alcatraz, which was very fitting. 

The one thing I didn't get to see was the Golden Gate Bridge...it was hiding in this fog all weekend :(

Next, we headed over to Pier 39. It was so much bigger than I had expected!

And then we walked around Fisherman's Wharf...

...where the Bushman just about scared me to death! (He has been doing this since 1980!)

After he scared me, we watched him scare everyone else. There was also this adorable seal patiently waiting to be fed.

Then, it was time for my beloved Ghirardelli. 

Lombard Street

It was a very short trip, but we managed to see everything except for Chinatown in one day. On our way back home, we took the semi-scenic route on the 101 to see Santa Barbara. 

We found the most adorable restaurant right on the beach. This is the view from our table.

And that was our trip! One last piece of advice- PREPARE YOURSELF if you plan to visit this beautiful city. My calves are still killing me from all of those hills! ;)