sometimes you need a day

this weekend was back to hecticness. i am finally feeling back to normal and with my sickness gone i wasted no time having a jam packed weekend schedule. saturday i was up at the crack of dawn prepping and helping my mom with a MASSIVE garage sale. It was very successful but had to cut my time short at the sale to head back to corvallis and meet up with my lovely bride. We got to talk wedding decor and design and picked out some AMAZING linens. They pretty much brought the wedding to a whole new level :) 

Sunday rolled around and I decided to take a day for me. anyone ever do that? where you just want to do what you want to do and not have to take anyone else's opinion into consideration. sounds kind of selfish but honestly it was perfection. I needed to head to Portland to purchase a few ton of vases so I just made a day out of it. Heres what it looked like..

wore my new casual fun cute sweatshirt. you can by comfy and cute. :)
however, i did discover my shoes are cute but not that comfy :( 

of course stopped at jamba to start my day off

purchased 66 vases from ikea. starting prep for two different events next weekend. totaling over 75 flower arrangements . ha...im crazy..i know..

made a stop to visit my dad. the moment i got to his spot the clouds cleared and sun came out.
a beautiful day.

attempted to do a little shopping but ended up making it to only like 2 stores.
but did get these super cute nikes

the cool thing about a me day, you don't have to please anyone but yourself. i had grand plans of doing more shopping, because honestly i do my best shopping alone. but i was tired and thankfully didn't have to drag myself anywhere but back to the car to drive home. successful me day for sure.

hope everyone had a simply great weekend! 

BirchBox

A couple months ago I was introduced to Birchbox. Birchbox is an online beauty store with a twist. There are all sorts of amazing products that you can buy. However, Birchbox is known for the brillant concept of selling sample boxes for a low monthly rate of 10 bucks! Let me explain. $10 = 4 to 5 high end make-up or beauty samples each month. I mean who really wants to buy a product online without trying it first. Well this allows you to do just that. When i heard about the concept i jumped at the opportunity to sign up. I had to wait about a month for my invite but I got one and received my first box last weekend. I was so excited. The packaging of course was adorable! And I loved my first months samples! Here is what I got!

1. BENTA BERRY G-1 exfoliating facial cleanser 

2. Kahina Giving Beauity Argan Oil

3. Kahina Giving Beauty Facial Lotion

4. Yes to Blueberries Brightening Facial Towelettes

5. Wonderstruck Taylor Swift

6. Pur Minerals 4-in-1 Mineral Tinted Moisturizer 

Not bad for my first box! Not going to lie I was a little sad I didn't get a nail polish. Just because I love nail polish but maybe next month! And I LOVE the cleansing towelettes! Would totally buy them again. And the best part is that if I do want to purchase any of these products it will ship for free! a nice little bonus. Birchbox also has a reward system. The money you spend on boxes or in the store equals points that you can later use in the store as credit! Basically its a pretty fun little box totally worth the 10 bucks. You should join. Click here to join under me so you will get an invite faster! 

Hope everyone has a simply wonderful Thursday! 

im alive....kinda...

looking out at the pretty sun from my spot on the couch

apparently my body has decided to give up on my non-stop busy schedule that its been enduring. Because for the last 7 days i have been on my butt. and when i say on my butt i mean on the couch or in bed sleeping, napping, and watching movies and not doing ANYTHING. i have never felt anything like whatever i have going on. I am constantly exhausted regardless of how much sleep im getting. Its exhausting being exhausted. Apparently this is my body's way of making up for sleep and rest...honestly..its probably making up for the last 3 years....And on top of that Oregon decided to finally have a sunny AND warm weekend. And of course it would happen when I am unable to enjoy any of the amazing benefits. knowing me I would have had made some calls and had the first bbq of the season. But that is okay. I am going to continue to take it easy. I do not want any sort of relaps of this thing. Today is the first day in a week that a i sense any sort of progress. Hopefully taking it easy for another week will do the trick. I have a busy May ahead of me and can't risk any sort of sickness. Anyways I hope everyone got to enjoy the sun for me! Looks like its decided to hang around for a couple more days! 

Have a simply wonderful monday. 

cinta turns 2!

2?! I honestly have no idea how Cinta Dinners has officially been happening for over 2 years now. Granted I have been doing dinner parties and planning for over 4 years now. But being an official tax paying business is something that I am proud of. This business is something I truly am proud of. This last year was off to a fantastic start. We were averaging at least 1 to 2 dinners a month. And that was a perfect amount considering I have a full time job and Jereme was still in school and working another job as well. When we approached summer we got the amazing news that my business partner Jereme would be off to Thailand to teach for the next year. I was so excited for her and such a fantastic opportunity. However, the way Cinta looked would not be the same without her. I stopped really pushing for dinners but was more then happy to do them when asked. With her decision to stay another year I am truly saddened but know that this is a once in a lifetime opportunity and Cinta will always be here when she returns.

Now that we are into the next year Cinta Dinners is now evolving into Cinta Events. A complete redesign of the website, business cards, and all materials is happening. I know I have been talking about this redesign for months now but I truly do not want to go public with things until I am absolutely in love with every aspect. I will still be doing dinner parties, but really want to shift my focus to event and wedding coordination. It is truly my passion and love. I am excited for what opportunities are to come in the next few years. I will still be working a full time job to pay the bills but I do have an ultimate goal of being my own sole boss someday. And someday that will happen. But for now I keep trucking along and gaining the experience and hands on work that comes with this industry. 

we did so much more then pictured here but it indeed was a fantastic year.

excited for what Cinta will do in 2012! 

Hope you have a simply lovely Tuesday

we did it!

this weekend was my grandma's 90th birthday celebration. and I am happy to report that it turned out beautifully! I am exhausted by the weekend but all the hours of work and lack of sleep was well worth it. My smartest decision this weekend was to take friday off from work to head to salem and begin prepping and decorating. There is just no way I would have been able to finish everything in one day. especially considering I had to take part in the birthday festivities. the dinner took place at our rental house that just happened to be empty right now. meaning we had to bring EVERYTHING in. tables, chairs, pots, pans, the whole nine yards. and to top it off everything had to be out by Sunday because the new renters move in today. 

Without a doubt I would not have been able to have such a successful evening if it wasn't for a few lifesaving people in the kitchen. I owe Jereme and Adonica a HUGE thanks for making a dinner for 20 happen! They pulled it off and everything was SO yummy! I also had an amazing photographer. Leah of Leah Banick Photography did an AMAZING job taking some great family pictures and pictures throughout the night. I am SO excited to see what she was able to capture. This evening would not have been possible at all without this amazing team behind me. So thank you ladies for all your hard work! 

because it was such a busy couple days I didn't have a ton of time to snap good pictures of stuff. Thats why I hired someone to take the pictures but I did manage to snap a few iphone and instagram pictures. I will share the amazing professional ones later but here is a sneak peak of the party.

accent wall, straw flags, place settings, and shelving decor 

pictures, flowers, grandma's wedding pictures, and myself heading home exhausted after clean up yesterday 

over all i am really happy with how everything turned out. my grandma loved it.

she had an amazing time, and it was great to see family. meaning it was all a complete success 

hope you have a simply wonderful monday. 

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1 year?!

Yesterday marked the 1 year mark for my little "just for fun" blog. It's a little crazy to think that it's been a year since I decided that I wanted to start a blog. And to be honest I seriously am surprised anyone at all even reads this thing. I openly admit that I am no writer, but it has been a great creative outlet for me to share the thoughts and ideas that pop into my head. A way to keep in touch with people and a way to put a little piece of myself out there into the world. So thank you, thank you for stopping by and looking around and reading. It has been a fun undertaking that I do plan to continue. 

Happy One Year Simply Pink! 

wedding wednesday: mason jar edition

mason jars. if anyone hasn't noticed mason jars are the new IT item in the world of weddings and events. who doesn't like that little touch of country chic in an event. there are so many great advantages to using these little guys. but my top two reasons:

1. cheap and inexpensive. lets be real. you probably have a few laying around the house from when grandma sent you home with some jam or canned fruit. And even when purchasing they are inexpensive, only about 8-10 bucks for a dozen.

2. 100 different uses for them. You can use these jars for pretty much everything under the sun. They come in so many different sizes so the ideas are endless. You can use them to bake with, flower vases, drinking glasses, candle holders, storage containers and the list goes on. and bonus! they make each use adorable! 

here are some adorable uses

click here to check out my pinterest page for sources! 

hope everyone has a simply fabulous wednesday! 

what a weekend

this weekend a productive, fun filled weekend. for the first time in a few weeks i finally feel like i am back to normal. No more sickness, my darn injured hip issue seems to be going away and the sun even came out to play. Which made for a pretty much great weekend. Saturday was a busy day of errand running and a quick trip to Portland to pick up a great friend who is visiting for the week. I also was able to finally secure a venue for my mom's birthday party and even made a quick stop at good Powell's. Here are the instagram moments of the weekend! 

who doesn't like Powell's?

watched one of the most intense gymnastic regionals EVER! but thankfully the Beavers are off to Nationals! Phew! 

i also went through old pictures looking for some gems for the party. I came across my baby book and this
handsome pictures of my dad. he was a looker :)

did lots of work for my grandma's 90th coming up this next weekend!
picked up this great old screen pictured on the right. it was only 12 bucks at an antique store in Albany.
great find!

we also got to spend a lovely day celebrating easter. Went to a great easter service and spent the day
eating yummy food and lounging on the couch

over all a fantastic weekend. this week is going to be super busy with party prep and on top of that i have a lovely full house of visiting friends. going to be a great week! 

have a simply sunny monday! 

90 years of inspiration

Yesterday marked the 90th birthday of my lovely grandma. In celebration of 90 amazing years I will be throwing a dinner party in her honor next weekend. She has insisted it not be some huge ordeal but she can't have a granddaughter who owns a dinner party business and not at least have a dinner party. It will be a small intimate crowd but I have made it my mission to make this dinner absolute perfection. She has always been in love with flowers and gardening so I have run with the concept and added some country chic details and many fun DIY projects to make the decor perfect. I am excited to see everything come together. To top things off my fantastic cook/ business partner is back in the country and will be cooking, meaning this is going to be one fabulous night. I will for sure be posting pictures for you all to see but for now I leave you with the invitation that was sent out as well as a little inspiration board.

check out my pinterest for original sources! 

Hope everyone has a simply wonderful Friday! 

BrewBQ

everyone loves a little comfort food. especially in the form of bbq. thankfully good ole Corvallis has caught on and a few months ago opened BrewBQ. It has been on my list of restaurants to try and finally this last weekend we made it there. And I am happy to report that i was not disappointed. It actually was pretty much heaven. The menu had plenty to choose from and something for everyone even the vegetarian! The prices were pretty reasonable and portions huge. and i really wish i would have ordered my own side of Hushpuppies because dipped in honey they were pretty much to die for. And don't even get me started on the sauces. they had 6 options and pretty much i loved all of them but like 1. I also love that the whole place is full of adorable country bbq touches. from the chalk board menu, and pint glass chandeliers, and mason jar beer glasses. It is definitely a place you need to check out!

hope everyone has a simply fantastic tuesday! 

finally feeling better

this last week was no fun. i spent my week and part of my weekend sick as can be. i went through at least 3 or 4 boxes of Kleenex and a bottle of meds. I haven't been this sick and miserable in years! I was really hoping to hit a turning point by friday but dragging myself to dinner was as far as i was going to make it. It was back to the couch for me. However, Saturday I finally was feeling better and was able to get out of the house and do some errands. here are some instagram moments from my last week

this was the reality of my week. however, if you haven't tried kleenex cooling tissues yet you should! 

at least when you are sick and going through tissue like no ones business. 

 friday nights attempt to be normal. my cute clutch my bestie gave me definitely helped :) 

may have gotten a little carried away wine shopping at grocery outlet.  don't worry it is not all mine

fun new neon colors for the nail color collection 

great finds thrifting 

our new roomie moved in this weekend. and with his amazing self he also brought a 50" tv.
a HUGE upgrade from my ancient 32' massive dinosaur you had to hit to make work. 

loved my chocolate and door hanger from little miss Mia! 

over all my weekend ended up being just what i needed. more rest and productive. 

Hope everyone has a simply wonderful Monday