After being stuck at home and mostly in bed for the past two days, I am really excited to get out and go back to work today! Once I was starting to feel better, I also started feeling a little stir crazy, so I took a short walk around a few of my favorite corners to give you a peek into some spots you might not have seen. I pretty much only take photos in the kitchen, so I included some shots from the sun room  dining area, and living room.

As you might know, I've been living at my parents' house for about eight months. A lot of people ask me why I'd move back in with my parents or ask me when I'm going to get my own place, and even though it's absolutely none of their business, I always tell them exactly what I'm about to tell you: I really love it.

It's been such a nice experience to be back home and see my parents and my dog every day; sometimes I look back on my time living downtown in Roanoke when they were just twenty minutes away and wonder what I was thinking! I know that having my own place was a good life experience and now I know that I hate living alone. So for now, this is working out just perfectly. I couldn't ask for better roommates, and when my brother comes home for the weekend or for the holidays, I get to hang out with him the whole time, too!

Take a look around! I hope you love it as much as I do.

 The photo wall above the piano in our sun room.

 I'm extremely unorganized--a book I haven't started and my blush, just hanging out on a coffee table.

 One of my favorite lamps and a palm from some Palm Sunday mass. They're tucked away everywhere.

 Rooster salt and pepper shakers on one of the shelves of the wine rack.

 This is where we keep the fancy glasses!

 More from the winerack: love this green candle, its coaster, and the Waterford bowl next to it.

 Such a sweet photo of my grandpa Albino and grandma Angelica on a side table in the living room.

Some essentials in the kitchen: pepper grinder, ramekin of kosher salt, mate, tea kettle.  

The fireplace and our big red coffee table in the living room.

What does your home look like?

Good morning everyone! I'm unfortunately feeling (more than) a little under the weather (it looks like that Vitamin C I took didn't really protect me enough from whatever terrible bug Rob had this weekend). So unfortunately I'm at home, feeling pretty pitiful, but I am really excited to be posting this giveaway for you!

Hannah is such a sweetheart and a totally talented designer--and she's going to give one lucky reader a free, complete redesign package for your blog. That includes working with Hannah to develop a design concept, custom header, background, navigation, welcome photo and introduction, custom widgets, and so much more--it's a $200 value!

Enter below, and good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

   

This weekend Rob and I spent a lot of time with our friend Chad, who is my old friend Patrick's fiance. Patrick is a PICU nurse and works nights a lot of the time, so he woke up around 5:00 PM on Saturday as we were all getting ready to go out to dinner together. Rob hadn't been feeling that great, and Chad and I were really tired, but we went to Mas Tapas, where we met my friend Emma for dinner. Later on, Rob and Chad and I headed to Bang! to meet our other friend Andrew and have some of their amazing martinis (I had the Espresso Tini and it was delicious).

Patrick got home from work around 8:00 AM, so he went to sleep and the rest of us, who were sort of up, just kind of napped the morning away. I finally got up a few hours later and took myself out for some breakfast. We had totally planned to go to all go to lunch together around 2:00, but poor Rob was feeling even worse and Patrick was still so tired, so Chad and I took a walk to get something for all of us and bring it back. It was such a lazy day, but I think we all needed it.

Rob was feeling feverish and not well enough to drive, so he planned to stay one more night and wait it out. I think having a sick significant other is one of the worst parts of being in a long distance relationship, and I hated leaving him like that; but it's so nice to have great friends like Patrick and Chad to watch over him for me when I had to head back.

Even with the flu, spending time with friends who seem more like family is pretty great. 

But I'm going to take some Vitamin C, just in case.

How was your weekend?