A Harry Potter Inspired Mantle with Trees n Trends

Recently, I partnered with Trees n Trends, a fabulous regional home decor chain based in Paducah. With stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Kentucky, and Tennessee, Trees n Trends is the place to go for everything from outdoor furniture to holiday decor. (P.S. They have online ordering!)

After I joined the team, I mentioned to one of the designers that we were having a big Harry Potter year at the Holland household between our upcoming trip to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and dressing up as Harry Potter characters for Halloween. He suggested coming to my house and designing a custom Harry Potter mantle. 

I was all ... hmmmm, I don't know.

Oh, I'm sorry what I actually said was YES YES YES PLEASE YES!!!! CAN WE GO NOW!?!?!

So, after a trip to Trees n Trends, Kevin came to my house and designed the most awesome mantle of all time. Don't believe me?

Check out Trees n Trends blog for the full mantle AND video of all the fun we had creating it! (There's also video of Griffin's reaction to the mantle which is NOT to be missed!)

Due Date

It's odd carrying around two due dates in your head. One filled with sadness. One filled with hope.

The baby we lost in April was due today, September 2nd.

Due to particularly bad planning on my part, I'm also almost 16 weeks in this pregnancy, which is when the baby passed away.

In other words, I'm an emotional wreck.

Two due dates. Two pregnancies. Two babies. As hard as I try to keep them separate in my mind, I'm constantly comparing the two. Trying to find differences big and small between the two pregnancies to assure myself that this pregnancy will be different. I'm forever tallying symptoms and side effects in my mind trying to reach the conclusion that this baby will arrive safely in February.

But no symptom is going to erase one simple reality.

My baby died and I am still very very sad about that and I am terrified that something will happen to the baby I am currently carrying.

I know each pregnancy is as different as each child. I know that the chances of something going wrong again are slim. I know all these in my head.

But my heart is another story. In my heart I loved the baby I lost and I am still mourning. I still want to know why my baby died. I still relive that awful moment when the nurse told me my baby didn't have a heartbeat.

And in my heart I am falling deeper and deeper in love with the little one currently inside of me. My heart still so raw from before is being asked to expand again, to be vulnerable again, to love again.

It's. So. Hard.

I knew it would be hard but I had no idea how hard.  

10 Books That Have Stuck With Me

I was recently tagged in a Facebook post to share the 10 books that have stuck with me. I'm supposed to "not take more than a few minutes" and "not think too hard."

So, here it goes. 

1. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire I adore the whole series and have read every book twice (starting on round 3 now with Griffin) but this is the one that turned a series I loved into a series I was obsessed with. I finished this book in broad daylight and was scared. out. of. my. mind.
2. The Casual Vacancy Speaking of J.K. Rowling... her first post-Harry Potter book has stuck with me mainly because of one quote, which I would guess I quote once every two weeks. "How awful it was, thought Tessa, remembering Fats the toddler, the way tiny ghosts of your living children haunted your heart; they could never know, and would hate it if they did, how their growing was a constant bereavement.”
3. The Happiness Project Changed the way I thought about life and self-improvement. It also made me a lifelong fan of Gretchen Rubin and her secrets of adulthood.
4. The Omnivore's Dilemma Michael Pollan's ode to eating convinced me to abandon vegetarianism after 5 years. 
5. To Kill A Mockingbird The first book that ever made me feel something. 
6. Team of Rivals Abraham Lincoln's life offers not only the most profound lessons on how to be a good politician but also on how to be a good human being. 
7. Good in Bed I've never forgotten how fun this book was to read.
8. The Happiest Toddler on the Block My favorite parenting book of all time, Dr. Harvey Karp helped me see kids just want to be heard.
9. How to be a Woman My love for this book is well-documented. 
10. A People's History of the United States I'd say Howard Zinn is responsible for approximately 65% of my liberalism. This book forever changed the way I viewed the relationship between the powerful and the powerless.

What about you? What books have stuck with you?

Best and Worst Dressed at the 2014 Emmys

From left, Christina Hendricks in Marchesa; Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting in Monique Lhuillier; January Jones in Prabal Gurung; and Claire Danes in Givenchy couture.

 From left: Jordan Strauss/Invision, via Associate dPress; Frazer Harrison/Getty Images; Jason Merritt/Getty Images; Frazer Harrison/ Getty Images

So. Much. Red. It got to be a little overwhelming by the end. 

At least it was exciting. Sometimes everyone plays it so safe watching the red carpet can be a little boring but you can't say last night's fashion at the Emmy Awards wasn't interesting.

(Say a word about Lena Dunham and I'll cut you. She can do no wrong.)

I found myself drawn to the more understated pieces however. I loved Lucy Lui's beautiful draping and Michelle Dockery was flawless as ever. She did however sport the dominant middle part that I found wildly unflattering on most of the stars. (I'm looking at you Christina Hendricks).

Lucy Lui in Zac Posen. Image via Just Jared. 

Michelle Dockery in Rosie Assoulin. Image via Tom + Lorenzo.

I also really loved Anna Gunn in Jenny Packham. 

Now, who got it wrong? A couple who also went for understated and fell flat. I did NOT like Kate Mara's dress which looked like a Project Runway experiment in draping gone wrong. I also thought Katherine Heigl (who unlike most of America I do not hate) looked WAY too mature in her satin dressing coat. 

Katherine Heigl. Image via GossipReporter.com

Kate Mara. Image via Daily Herald..

What did y'all think? Who was your best and worst dressed?