Wednesday Wishlist: A Porch, Please

These are the days in Arizona when it starts to get hot.  And by hot, I don't mean warm.  Oh, no.  I mean upwards of 110;  I mean no less than 95 degrees in the middle of the night.  Yeah -- like I said, hot.

While some people really love this heat that is coming straight for us, I have never loved it, never liked it, never been excited for summer.  Even when I was a little girl, while the rest of my friends would be out playing in the hotter-than-heck heat, I would be in my room playing with my dolls, or spending time indoors with my mom, or making my brother play school with me in the living room (he's awesome -- he always played along).  But these days, as the summer is finally here and the temperatures have reached the one-hundreds, I am happy.  Maybe it is the Vitamin D, maybe it is the fact that I am still reveling in my newlyweddedness (that should totally be a real word) and the reality that my husband is a total babe.  Ahem.  Anyway, regardless, I have consciously decided to make a true effort this summer to see and feel the beauty in the season, and enjoy these months rather than waste them away wishing for winter.  I have found that the majority of my former years have been spent pining away for December.  Imagine my disappointment when December is over...

When January came upon us and I was left in a decidedly blue state, I thought -- enough!  I promised myself that I would not waste another spring complaining about allergies and spend another summer mad at the weather while pouting indoors.  Allergies -- no problem!  They mean that things are blooming and there is growth and renewal all around us!  The heat -- whatever!  If I want to spend the day indoors, I'll spend it crafting, or reading, or connecting with all of you!  The point is, my goal is to enjoy each moment I get to live this life.  And so far, this goal has proven to be life-changing.  :-)

Now, all that being said, I do have a major design crush on porches, and I want to take a look today at some really beautiful examples.  If it were cooler out, and if I had a glass of lemonade in one hand and a fabulous beach read in the other, I think a day spent out on the porch would be just what the doctor ordered.  ;-)

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What's your favorite (or least favorite) thing about the beginning of summertime?

love, maria

Feet Freaks Welcome

Okay, let me just preface this by saying that if feet freak you out, this post is not for you.

Ahem.

;-)

Pedicures.  We all need 'em.  Some of us get 'em.  Others of us give them to ourselves.  Many of us do both!  :-)  I definitely am not creative with my toesies.  The wildest thing I do is get those (a-freaking-mazing) Sally Hansen nail stickies and put those on my nails.  It looks very cute, and I would recommend them to anyone, but how awesome is it when people make their toes into art?!

Pretty fab.

Here are some fun inspiration pictures to get your wheels turnin' -- it is summertime after all.  I sure hope you have all been able to break out the sandals!  ;-)

Polka-Dot Fun

Swishy Designs

The Puppy Pedicure

Patriotic Pretties

Bedazzled!

Metallic Beauty

Monogrammed Pedi

Ladybuggish

Twinsy Pedicure

Intricate Beauty

What's your go-to nail polish color for your toesies in the summertime?

love, maria

Pinkalicious!

Hey, there!  :-)

How was your weekend?  I hope all of you who celebrated Mother's Day had a wonderful one!

How many of you love pink rooms?  Or pink accessories and decor?  Or just pink in general?  I, for one, *love it*.  But imagine this -- my dear husband does not share my same affinity for pink!  *Gasp*.  Raise your hand if you're shocked.

;-)

I'm needing some pink-infusion in my life today.  Bring on the pink rooms, baby -- we're gettin' pinkalicious!

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What color are you loving lately?

love, maria

Day Planners to Love

One thing that my handbag is seriously lacking is a day planner.  While I am constantly putting my appointments into my iPhone, I find myself missing the days of high school when every day my homework was written down in one of those spiffy planners that were handed out to us on the first day of the school year.  Things just felt more official.  ;-)  The reality is, I don't need a day planner, but it doesn't hurt to go hunting for some serious planner eye candy...does it?

We'll go with no.

;-)

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love, maria

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Dreaming Of: Flowers and No Allergies

Hi, there!

How was your weekend?  Mine was really nice -- on Saturday, we celebrated my grandparents' 60th wedding anniversary at a really beautiful steakhouse; it was so much fun.  I love my family, and it was great to catch up with everyone and spend time with the people we love.  Here's a shot of Grey and I at the table...

And here is a picture of two of my cousins and I posing with our grandpa -- we all wore red to the occasion and didn't even plan on it!

:-)

One thing that my husband and I dealt with a lot this weekend was allergies.  It seemed like we never stopped sneezing, coughing, itching...  No fun.  So today, I'm dreaming about beautiful flower arrangements -- without the runny nose!  ;-)

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Happy Monday!

love, maria

My Amazing May Sponsors!

Hey there, everyone!  :-)


It's almost Friday!  I am so looking forward to the weekend.  Today I have a special post for you -- I am introducing my May sponsors for All Things Luxurious!  I love these ladies so much and I am so honored to have their support for ATL!


Lisha and Kyle -- One House One Couple






Hey everyone! We are Kyle and Lisha from One House, One Couple. We bought, fixed, and sold our house for a profit during the recession, and we're finally documenting all our hard work on our blog (mixed with some personal posts about life). Come on over and stay awhile. We love getting new visitors and we hope you get all the DIY inspiration you need! See you soon! ~ Kyle & Lisha - Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest


Kate - Discover, Create, Live







Hi guys, I'm Kate over at Discover. Create. Live. I'm happily married to my high school sweetheart Wes, and we have a beautiful little girl Hayden. We love to blog about our family, gluten free cooking, and lots of different projects we do to help beautify our home. In addition, each week I post different printable "graphics" as well as things that inspire me. I love finding new people to interact with, so feel free to check out our blog, and leave a comment so we can check out yours too!


Rachel - Get Neat






Hi everyone! My name is Rachel and I am the owner of Get Neat. Get Neat is a professional organizing company based in the Washington DC metro area (including VA and MD) designed to help people create a balanced life by finding an organizational system that is simple and functional. We would love it if you stopped by and visited our site and blog! Check out our services and blog at http://www.get-neat.com; follow us on Twitter @Get_Neat; like us on our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Get-Neat/379877282026884; or follow us on Pinterest at http://pinterest.com/getneat33/. Hope to see you soon! :-) 


Lori - Bleak 2 Unique









Hi, my name is Lori and I blog over at Bleak 2 Unique where I love to share ideas about life, craft projects, and all things DIY. We just built a new home, and I can hardly wait to begin the transformation of making it ours...sharing each step with y'all. Stop by anytime!


Shannon - Bungalow 960

Hello! I'm Shannon and I blog over at Bungalow960. I started Bungalow960 as a place to document the happenings in renovations and improvements in the 1924 American Bungalow that I share with my boyfriend and our two cats, but it has morphed into a place where I share snippets of my life. I hope you'll stop by for a visit!  

Ashley - Attempts at Domestication

Hey there! My name's Ashley and I'm a newlywed housewife from Richmond, VA. My husband and I met as kids and dated all through college before getting married in April 2011. We love traveling, watching movies, hanging out with our friends, cooking and Star Wars. My blog started as a way to keep my college friends, who are scattered all over the country, up to date on my life, but I've really gotten into the whole DIY blog thing. It keeps me motivated to try new things and to actually make the things I pin on Pinterest. I do posts about my attempts at DIY, crafts, throw in a lot of random stuff about my life and share recipes from time to time too. My husband and I just bought our first home so we are in the process of shifting focus to mainly home decor and DIY. I'd love for you to come check us out and follow me on <a href=""https://www.facebook.com/pages/Attempts-At-Domestication/162104420568560">Facebook</a>, <a href=""https://twitter.com/#!/aadomestication">Twitter</a> or <a href=""http://pinterest.com/akrowlands/">Pinterest</a>!

Picture of me  https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/383938_10151060359785144_646465143_21736586_414498809_n.jpg

Heather - DiSabella Design

Hello friends!  I'm Heather, the owner of DiSabella Design a little interior design business here in our nation's capitol, Washington DC.  My blog, Design Create Love, is the where I document the design of my own house as well as my clients.  I love tackling DIY projects and exploring new design trends.  I hope you'll pop on by and take a peak sometime! 

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest


Kym - Free Spirit Eater

Hi my name is Kym, a freelance food culture writer & photographer and

the author of Free Spirit Eater. I take what I learned from culinary

school and working as a line cook to create flavorful guilt free

recipes. Here you can find fitness tips and photos, my food articles

around the web, suggest recipes or ask a question. Nothing is off

limits for this free spirited eater. If you've recently embarked on a

weight loss journey or are looking for original healthy recipes and

fitness advice (straight from my personal trainer), you've come to the

right place.

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Check out these awesome blogs and leave them some love!!  :-)

love, maria

It's Been Quite the Week...

Hi there, friends.

Well, I have disappeared again.  This has been a rough week.  My grandmother is in the hospital, so my brain has been sort of shut off for the majority of the week so far.  I am just keeping her in my prayers, and my mom, too -- it's her mother who is in the hospital.  I can't help but think of my mom and how much I love her -- how I would do anything to keep her healthy and living forever.  I can't imagine living without my mommy, and I know that what she is going through as her mommy gets older is probably one of the toughest things imaginable.

I have been so blessed to have so many strong women in my life as role models.  My mom, both of my grandmothers -- they have taught me so much about being a loving, compassionate, sensitive, and strong human being.  I love all three of them more than I could ever say, and I really don't know what else to write tonight -- I am just feeling so much, so deep.  It's both painful and humbling, but I am so close to God right now and I feel His love for me surrounding me with all of these amazing people who are so dear to me.

Anyway, as you can see, I have a lot on my mind, and it has definitely taken its toll on me so far this week.  But, I feel like I have dwelled on it enough, and the truth is that everything is in the Jesus' hands.  So my goal is to begin tomorrow with a fresh outlook and to not be afraid -- just trust.  :-)  I have my amazing sponsors to share with you all tomorrow afternoon!  If you want to check them out a day early, visit their pages, which are linked up on my sidebar.

Thanks for letting me vent, and I loved all of your sweet comments on my cork magnet post.  Each one made me smile!  Help me make this a great and blessed rest of the week!

love, maria