Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts

14 February 2013

Happy Valentine's Day!


I've always secretly loved Valentine's Day, but it seems like it's uncool to admit that.  Like you're supposed to rant about what a made-up holiday it is, a commercial conspiracy theory between the card and candy companies out to get men to open their wallets.  And while there is definitely that side to the holiday {I'm not interested in the cheesy stuffed animals and cheap chocolates and leopard underwear staring me down at CVS}, I love the girlish bliss of it all.  An excuse to wear pink and eat sweets and buy pretty paper.

I think what I like most about it is how low-pressure it is and how it really can be whatever you make of it.  On Christmas and birthdays I always feel the need to go all out with gifts and decorating, but Valentine's Day, for us anyways, is low-budget and low-key.  Just making a little extra effort to show you care.

My two favorite Valentine's memories are actually from my single days.  My last year of college, my bestie and I organized a potluck dinner for all of our single girlfriends.  We ate like queens {goat cheese stuffed chicken, mac and cheese, cupcakes, chocolate-covered strawberries...mmmmmm}, drank Champagne, watched 'First Wives Club', and just enjoyed each other's company.  Then there was my first Valentine's Day all alone in my first apartment.  I splurged on a nice bottle of red wine and a feast from KFC {don't hate} and watched chick flicks on my teeny tiny sofa. 

If you've been in the closet about your feelings for Valentine's Day, today's the day to come out into the light.  Wear pink. Eat chocolates. Send cute cards. 

Happy Valentine's Day, sweet readers!

09 February 2013

Happy Birthday!


Wishing my wonderful, cheesecake-loving husband a very happy birthday today!  I can't wait to celebrate with a decadent homemade dinner and a weekend spent at home together.  M, I am so lucky to have you as my husband and my best friend.  Thanks for being you.

05 February 2013

Valentine's Cards




 
1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6

I love any excuse to order gorgeous paper products.  Here's a round-up of my favorite Valentine's Day cards on Etsy.  M will be receiving one of these.  Which one is your favorite?

As a bonus, Allison from Fuzzy Grapefruit {the artist behind the adorable Food Loves series in pictures 4 + 5} is offering free shipping to Belle on Heels readers through the end of February with code 'BELLESHIPPING'!


16 January 2013

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day 2Hard to believe that Valentine's Day is less than a month away!  We don't make Valentine's a big to-do in our house.  I make a nice dinner at home {no prix-fixe menus for us, thanks} and we normally just get each other a small little something.  It doesn't help that I'm not a huge fan of cut flower arrangements, especially at Valentine's Day.  I'd much rather have a potted bloom to enjoy for months!  Here are a few things I wouldn't mind receiving...

14 November 2012

L'Auberge Provencale

A few weeks ago, M and I had a quick getaway to L'Auberge Provencale to celebrate our one-year anniversary.  We had the most wonderful time and we're already making plans to go back this summer. I thought I'd share a little bit of our mini-vacay with you:
These photos are all from our suite.  We stayed in suite #14, named La Chambre Ensoleillée, the Sunsplashed Bedroom.  We chose to stay at the Villa La Campagnette, which is actually 3 miles from the main inn.  The main inn faces a very busy road, and from reading reviews, we gathered that those rooms could be pretty noisy.  Our favorite part was the aromatherapy steam shower {pictured above}.  It was like a little trip to the spa. Heaven!

We were the only ones staying at the Villa and the other suites were unlocked, so I poked my head in to  sneak a peek.  How great is that clawfoot?!?

This is the cozy downstairs sitting area of the Villa.  The marble sign above the fireplace came from the actual Villa la Campagnette, which was owned by the chef and proprietor's grandfather.

The lovely patio and stables behind the Villa.  That pool is the reason we want to go back this summer! There was also a huge grill and a cooler filled with Mexican Coke in glass bottles {the very best}.  Perfect for a lazy day relaxing in the sun.

Our insane breakfast spread.  The chef and proprietor came to the Villa and made breakfast for just the two of us.  It was so nice and private and a little surreal to have Alain Borel making breakfast for us personally.

We have a strict no-cell phone policy when we go out to dinner, so I didn't get any pictures of our outrageously decadent meal.  I'll leave it at this:  we both consider ourselves foodies and have had some pretty amazing meals.  This, for us, was in the top 3.  It was even better than Volt.  And we loved Volt.  

L'Auberege Provencale is only about an hour from DC and two hours from Baltimore, so all you DC/NoVA/MD readers, add this to your weekend getaway list!

05 November 2012

Happy Anniversary

One week ago today, we celebrated our first wedding anniversary.  Well, perhaps "marked" is a more appropriate term than "celebrated" since I was in a hotel in downtown DC for a work conference, watching Hurricane Sandy blow through town.  Because of those circumstances, I wasn't able to do a proper anniversary post.  I'm still working on organizing all of my thoughts on our first year of marriage, so today I'm just recycling my wedding pictures post.  Happy anniversary, M!


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Menu Monday is getting ditched today in exchange for something much more fun {in my opinion}: our wedding!

Our wedding was featured on Snippet and Ink last Thursday, but I thought I'd share more pictures from our wonderful day.  Prepare yourself for photo overload!



























It was truly our dream wedding!

*all photography by Cramer Photo and Lemon and Lavender