2011: a year in pictures

hello lovely,

2011 was by far the best year of my life. 2 of my best friends got engaged, i finished my first network tv series, i married the love of my life at the best wedding of all time, bought my first home, became an associate producer, and changed my name. what a year. looking back on 2011 the thing i think of the most is how loved i've felt. never in my life have i been happier. i am surrounded by a loving family, true friends, and amazing coworkers. right now i am living my dreams. for 2012 i hope to be more creative and finish more projects. i am looking forward to my europe trip with bubbie, and seeing her off to her first year of college. big things ahead in 2012, but 2011 will be hard to beat for sure. 

here is my year in pictures.

happy new year!

alyssa renee 

this may technically be 2010, but the joy of this moment carried me into the new year

cabin nasty 2011

we camped in a mansion

bestest friends engaged at the same time :)

bridal showers

i miss this power

our first home

living through my first tv series and making great friends along the way

family trip to Cincinnati 

dressing up for HP one last time

one wild bachelorette party

marrying the love of my life

honeymooning 

our first christmas together with the love that let us share our name :)

all i want for christmas is...

hello lovely,
it is a little late to be shopping. believe me... the mall is crazy! this year i made an amazon wish list. it was awesome. they have this little button you can add to your browser that will add products from any website to your wish list! here are few things i've asked for this year.

xoxo,
alyssa renee

i love these cover story postcards. i'm hoping to frame a few around the house and send a few to my pen pals

these stamps are precious. i'm really into card making these days. i think these would be great for cards or for gift labels on brown paper packages

one of my friends recently got one of these travel cases and i want one so bad! adorable. 

as a newly wed i'm obsessed with my monogram. this monogram necklace is a lovely way to show it off

this has become my family motto. i love it. it must hang in our home. 

these dishes speak for themselves. WANT. 

i just discovered Lee Miller and i want to learn everything about her. this book should help 

all of Melissa's work is amazing. i am so impressed. this bee ring would help show her off!

hope you get everything you've ever wanted for christmas.

the best gift for me this year?

being married to the love of my life.

indie rock baby

hello lovely,
well thank goodness one of our friends is having a baby. i now have an excuse to look at all the hip kid blogs i look at. niles and i want to have kids eventually, but right now it is hard enough having a dog! this way i can get my baby fix without having to birth one just yet :) momma colleen has an awesome sense of style and together with papa corey they share a fantastic taste in music. so your every day babies-r-us stuff won't cut it for this hip kid.  i decided to gather a few awesome baby blogs for corey and colleen's future kiddo as well as a few must have baby products i love. i find looking at blogs to be a great way to learn about new products, and get style and design ideas. i hope this helps you plan for the cutest indie rock baby there ever was.
congrats guys!
xoxo,
alyssa renee

all indie rock babies need an awesome pair of vans. why not sport some vans socks?

yellow label kids has some adorable knit baby toys. too cute! 

modern kiddo is a great blog for kids and moms. this blog has tons of gift, design, momma fashion, and baby fashion ideas. they have a blog run called "widdle wednesdays" dedicated to baby kiddos :) 

Sophie the giraffe is a great teether for boy or girl. kids love this thing. and she is cute to boot!

no caption needed for this onesie. 

frecklewonder is a momma blog with a vintage twist. cute posts, ideas and giveaways 

colleen, a hip momma like you can't carry around a crappy diaper bag. love the funky pattern on this one

its a girl? how about an adorable teething necklace instead or Sophie? 

yo gabba gabba is a given for any indie rock kid.

these cloth diapers from bum genius are amazing. hope i'm able to do this when we have kids! 

this sling is so your style

and last but NOT LEAST...

bleubird is my most favorite blog EVER. miss james posts great products for the whole family, cute design and style ideas, and shares personal stories about her own parenting journey. when she was pregnant with her baby bird she did an awesome maternity series. she also shares cool products for momma and baby. 

one thing she did that was really interesting is share her birth story. you can read about it here. she did a water birth at home which i find to be incredibly brave and fascinating. 

i totally have a crush on her and you will love their hip family.

enjoy!

can't wait to hold and kiss the little one ♥

holiday what not

hello lovely,
last week was our company christmas party. it was a blast. thankfully i work for a place where holiday parties are done right. booze, food, music, rockband, dance central, dirty santa, and festive sweaters. a good time was had by all. i am so looking forward to christmas. this will be our first christmas in the new house. it will also be the first christmas i've ever spent with niles. while we were dating we always celebrated christmas together early, then did separate christmas celebrations with our family. though last year we did end up together in the end but we were in a motel on our way to florida with our families so... we don't count that. hope your holiday season is merry and bright! more holiday pics to come soon.
xoxo,
alyssa renee

not from the party, but i had to share how cute our gifts look under the tree

the travel bug

Muir Woods 2011

hello lovely,

as i sit on my couch watching my husband battle some sort of man with a dragon head... i can't help but wish i was on an adventure of my own. (but a real one) i've been lucky enough in my short years on this planet so far to see some pretty amazing places, eat some fantastic food, and meet some unique people. this summer my sister and i are planning to backpack europe as part of her graduation present. we are hoping to go to Austria, France, England, & Ireland. i can't wait. it has been a long time since i've traveled like that. just me, a map, my backpack, and a good friend. this will definitely be a bonding trip for bubbie and i. i mark this as our first adventure together as adults. just 2 bubbies and the world. in the meantime, i'll just remenice over these photos and remember past adventures. 

adventure is out there!

alyssa renee 

San Francisco 2011

New Orleans 2010

Sydney 2009

LA 2009

Please note I am taking a dump on Ryan Seacrest

Colonial Williamsburg 2009

yes, this was our spring break trip

Rome 2008

Pompeii 2008

Venice 2008

Florence 2008

Athens 2008

Athens again, but couldn't resist posting these delicious photos

Corfu 2008

one of the happiest days of my whole life

Paris 2007

this city wasn't too kind to me the 1st time... glad to be giving it a 2nd chance this summer

Normandy 2007

Barcelona 2007

Nice 2007