Photo Lovin'

There are a lot of things that inspire me and one of them is photography. Pictures capture 1000 words? Yup! I recently had the joy of picking up a new toy that I absolutely l.o.v.e. My canon dslr might just be considered by first child (sorry misto). Not only do I love capturing the world around me but it helps me explore. I am completely a novice when it comes to my overall knowledge but who cares?!? I am learning and hopeful to be more efficient in my photos here soon. The photo above is taken right outside my new apartment. I'm excited to learn more. Stay tuned...

ABC's

ABC's of me. Hoozah!
Age: 27. Ahh!
Bedsize: Full
Chores that you hate: Dishes
Dogs: Misto: a mix of chihuahua and miniature Italian greyhound. He is 3 years old
Essential start to your day: Coffee!!
Favorite color: Green...a lemony/olive green is my all time fave
Gold or Silver: Silver, although I have come to enjoy gold too!
Height: 5 feet 6 inches
Instruments you play: Cello, piano, and I tinker on the mandolin
Job title: Property Manager
Kids: Do my shoes count?
Live: Sacramento, CA
Mother's Name: Pauline...although I call her Madre or ModgePodge (don't ask)
Nicknames: Yoyo, Kirbimp-ee-lie-els (again, don't ask)
Overnight hospital stays: Once.
Pet peeves: Smacking food when chewing
Quote from a movie or tv show: "We have established the fact that the lodge is ideal."
Right or Lefty: Righty
Siblings: I have three older sisters
Time you wake up: As late as I can
Underwear: Yes?
Vegetable you hate: Olives
What makes you run late: Waking up too late
X-Rays You've Had: From the dentist
Yummy food you make: Grandmother's icecream pie. So easy yet so good
Zoo Animal: Giraffe

Pinterest...the new Facebook

I recently deleted my Facebook account...only to be quickly addicted to another internet site.

PINTEREST.

Oh how I love thee. What a great place to be inspired. Fashion, home decor, food, etc...are all easily categorized for my drooling pleasure.

Goodbye Facebook, hello Pinterest! I think that if I am to spend time online (as I'm doing right now) that I should be as creatively inspired as possible. Thank you Pinterest for capturing my interest (or should I say pinterest?!?).

Follow all my boards if you'd like. It's so fun...and I hope you get inspired as well!

http://pinterest.com/ksoderholm

One example of how my life has been changed for the better is this. Oh candle mixing, why didn't I think of this myself?!

Stripe Obession

It's official. I love stripes. I love pinterest. I love getting ideas off of pinterest. Since I have quite a lot of clothes, I get inspired to change things up. Here's my latest clothes crush.

They remind me of Sweden, are a great twist on a neutral that you can pair with colors, and create a bold statement.
I love this pairing and the belt to boot.

I also love this idea for packing with stripes. Soo fab.Check out where I pinned it here.

New Year

Today I completely cleaned my apartment...like a bleach and water, scrub the baseboards kind of clean. Cleaning for the new year? Check. I also got fun little toy as well and this weekend I got to use my new Rebel XTI. I love it so much!!

Tower Bridge in Sacramento


Guy West Bridge on the American River Trail


A snapshot of my life: sparkle sunglasses, coffee, more sparkle, iPhone, and Home Depot

I'm excited to learn about how to use all of the bells and whistles and become more familiar with how to test lighting! It's been fun so far and can't wait to go on more photo safaris.

1 Year

Today, August 10th, marks my one year anniversary of moving to Sacramento. It's hard to believe that it's only been a year while still hard to think a year has already gone by. Where has the time gone? I had a great time or reflection and am so glad to have pursued this adventure. This year has been a quiet year for me. One that has involved a lot of self reflection. I am more self aware and confident in who I am...and grateful to have had the space to do so.

How did I celebrate? I new pair of scandals and salted caramel pinkberry. Yum.







This little guy has been my companion this year, and I'm glad he's around.

A Fun Flight

I tend to be a nervous flyer. I like the idea of flying...getting somewhere fairly quickly, not a lot of additional days have to be taken off for actually getting to your destination.



BUT

I seem to be a magnet for weird flights and/or seat neighbors. My last flight to Colorado proved to be no different. I was lucky enough to get a window seat. That always seems to help with the queasy feeling that pops up it's ugly head during turbulence. Long story short, I had an older gentleman sit next to me that proceeded to eat funions (sp??) during the entire trip. I've personally never tried them, but by the smell, I never want to. He also leaned over my seat numerous times to take photos out of the window.



Stranger+funion breath+invading my already limited space=nauseous Kim

But it was all worth it because I got to see some very dear friends of mine and witness my sister's graduation. So dispite the anti-fun(ion) plane ride,it was...true to form...a quick flight and was over quickly.

Oh Boy...

Today is the day to:

-Clean my Apt.
-Take Misto for a walk
-Buy flowers
-Charge my cell phone
-Go grocery shopping
-Finish my taxes
-Bake a birthday cake

...all those are fun and all, but the thing I'm most looking forward on my "to do" list is:

-PICKING UP MY SISTER AT THE AIRPORT!!!

Happy Birthday Quizzle, I la' you long time!

{This photo is of the two of us a loooong time ago. My favorite part of the pic is Karley's natural highlights...and the fact that I look like a boy}

Clean House

...Is just nice!

I'll admit I'm not the tidiest of people. I'm not really messy but I'm definitely not OCD nor a clean freak. It it nice, sometimes, to do a deep clean. I did that today in my apartment.

Magic Eraser is my new B.F.F. and does the trick for cleaning base boards (who knew?).

I decided to deep clean in preparation for my sister, Karley, to come visit. Yay! And, she's coming out for her birthday. Double yay! We will be heading to San Fran and to Napa. Other than wishing it not to be frigid, I hope that we just have a relaxing and fun time together.

Growing up, we always wished we were twins and would wear the same outfits. Do you think it would be too much to get her a matching outfit?!?! That might be a little much but gives an accurate tempature reading on my excitement level.

Here's to cleaning and looking forward to having my sis (with too many nicknames to count) come and visit soon!!

Love this!

Civil Wars...LOVE! Thanks to my good friend Becca for introducing me!

Poison and Wine

The weekend project

This weekend I found a steal. I'm all about good deals on things and I think I may have just taken the cake...if I do say so myself.

I met my friend Julie and her new fiance in Vacaville for a quick cup of coffee and a bite to eat. After we parted ways, I noticed that a Home Goods store was in the same complex that our Panera had been. While in the area, I couldn't resist. I traipsed through the store and happened upon the clearance section of the furniture. I happened upon a great beauty of a nightstand. It had a marble top that was broken and the tag read "As Is $15." Mind you, the original price was $199.

HOLY GOOD DEAL!

I tried to see if this marble top was removable...and it was! So, I took that marble piece off and thought I could find something to put in it's place or just spray paint the whole thing.

I went to Michael's and got some slate grey paint, taped up the hardware, and went to town. I think I need to get some sand paper to make the edges look more worn.It has a little bit of a worn look, which is uber fab.

I got my oil changed during this whole trip and my steal of a deal was in the back seat. A couple of the technicians asked how I got such a good deal and I got to tell my little story. So fun!

Lessons on Living (Pt. 2)

So, I've noticed a few things since moving here to Sacramento...here's another one.

Fog and Rain and Moss.

I've only lived in Southern California and in during the Winter months, Southern California doesn't have a lot of weather change. It remains mostly the same.

But...

since moving to Sacramento I've experience my first Northern California winter. It's nothing like Colorado, but I have noticed a few things. Like IT'S COLD! It's rainy! It's foggy!

When I mean cold, I mean it's really cold. I got rid of a lot of jackets and coats because I didn't think I needed them. But I was way wrong. It's wet and always damp. The sidewalks are even turning green from the moss and moisture.

Word to the wise. If you come visit me in the near future, make sure to bring a rain coat, umbrella, and scarf and you'll be glad you did!

{Photo Credit}

Lessons on Living

Since moving here I have learned a few things. I decided to devote some of my next blogging posts to these new lessons. I hope you enjoy.


Yesterday marks my 5 month anniversary to moving to California. Thus the idea. Dang, time has flown by. Speaking of flown, I have flown more on an airplane since moving to Sacramento than in my total years living in Denver. That either shows I have no friends or am becoming more adventurous.

You can take your pick.

Anyhoo.

Lesson 1. CRV tax.

Wtf? Why do I have to pay $1-$1.20 extra for a case of D.C. D.C.=Diet Coke. Here I think I'm getting a good deal at Safeway for the "buy 2 get 1 free" deal. It's NOT a deal when I have to pay this tax...per case. Grrrr. Maybe it's a subtle way of hinting that I shouldn't be drinking D.C. But sometimes a girl just needs one, you know?

{Photo is the Soderholm clan, minus Karin, on Christmas Eve 2010}

Christmas is upon us!

It's here...Christmas!
And Christmas is my favorite time of year. It's a little bit different this Christmas as I'm living by myself in a new city, but all in all I'm having a great time. As I'm typing this, I have a peppermint mocha in a red cup. Fab!My theme this year was metallic. Mostly I chose that theme because I got 100 ornaments at SAMS and could fully decorate with the vast array of bulbs and designs they gave me.
I also threw in a little sample of what my Christmas wrapping theme is for this year. I love how it matches my tree and has a twinge of metallic on the paper too!

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

There are so many things to love about this photo:

1.Arugula (my mom calls is "arue-goo-la"): A new addiction from Trader Joes. It's good on/with everything.

2.Cheese: Specifically this is an English Cheddar with caramelized onions. Oh My. Also from TJ's, this cheese is soo good!

3.Wintry Blend Coffee: It's surprisingly cold here in Sac Town, and what's better than a spicy blend coffee??!?

4.Cutting Board: My dad made me this cutting board for my birthday. I use it once a day, if not more.

5.Spatula: This spatula is a cake decorating spatula that my Farfar gave me. It's supposed to be used to frost cakes, but I've found so many other good uses for it! It also reminds me of him every time I use it.

6.Bread: Ummm, hello...it's just good.

So sometimes a picture isn't worth a thousand words, but maybe this is close?

XOXO,

Kim

Gleeful

I totally have gotten into Glee...yay for free internet!! Enjoy.

Adventuring Out There

I have now been living in Sacramento for three months. Wow.

I can't believe. how. much. time. flies.

I think this may be the 3rd weekend that I've fully been "home" since moving. Since I am now feeling more confident in my job and getting my apartment organized, I had a little chance to explore. I was looking for a fabric store to work on a project. As I drove on highway 50 towards Lake Tahoe, I took an exit and headed west.

Tah-da, I found Fair Oaks. It's just about in the foothills of Northern CA. Talk about cute! They are known for having chickens and roosters roam around town. Watch out if you ever drive there to look out for them!

I was pleasantly surprised at the cute little shops and antique boutiques that I visited. I wish I would have brought my camera to capture the fun-ness that I had. It was such a cute, quaint one street downtown. It even had an Italian eatery and French bakery. YUM! Too bad I already had Peets in hand. Bummer.

Oh well.

I figure this little adventure was so fun and about 20 miles away from where I live. Not. that. bad.

I enjoyed it mostly because it reminded me of Niwot...where everyone has a slightly slower pace and there are older women who just stand/sit around and chit chat. So awesome!

Currently Listening To: Lyle Lovett "If I had a Boat"

{Photo Credit}

09.09.10 Heaven Bound

Today marks a sad day. One that I'm not sure how to handle. A piece of my known existence has left. Almost all of my childhood memories involve him in some way.

My dear, sweet Farfar went to be with the Lord this morning; he was 98 years old. I'm not sad for him, because I know he was ready to go..but I'm sad to loose his physical presence.

One of his paintings hangs prominently in my bathroom. It is a painting of a small portion of the central coastline where he and my Grandma lived. He had wanted to toss it, but I have loved it ever since I set eyes on it so he gave it to me:)

I love,love,love this painting.

There are many plants in the foreground but the ominous oceans lies in the background. Three seagulls seem to be in a quandary about staying on land or venturing out to sea.

Farfar planted a lot of seeds here for our family. Seeds that helped us each grow individually and collectively. He planted seeds of wisdom, loved his family, and sought to be a student of life until the very end. He brought his family over to America and blazed a new trail in a foreign country. He explored all things art and ventured in new businesses as well.

My sister Karley said it best...His passing is just another new adventure that he's paving the trail for the rest of us to follow.

He is like the seagulls in his painting with a slight twist. He's not lingering over land and sea anymore but it flying onwards and upwards towards Heaven.

It's all happening...

...so fast!

This is it folks. I am packing up and moving to Sacramento, CA.

That's right, me the doggy are headed out west via I-25 and I-80.

I'm reminded of a post I wrote back in January. I felt as though I was at a cross-roads and wanted to take the different, less troden path. That is what I'm doing.

It might not be the preverbial unbeaten path, as it is Sacramento and loads of people live there. But, I'm doing something that is brand new for me. I don't know what to excpect, I don't know fully what I'll be doing, but I am ready for it.

To quote "UP"..."Adventuring out there!"



{photo credit}

A lovely Surprise

I was horrible about blogging whilst in Sweden. I was just having too good of a time, you know?

Honestly, I had preconceived notions about what this trip was going to be like. I thought that I would not be able to understand what was happening and that I would get lost. A lot.
This picture is of a long corridor that I had to walk through in the Frankfurt airport. Looong only begins to describe it. Notice how the photo was fuzzy? That's how I thought I would feel.


But to my pleasant surprise, it was not the case. I just followed the green walking signs and looked for colored signs and walking arrows. I was met with English (makes me feel bad for not knowing a second language) And I was met with smiling faces! I was also had my own cute little cup holder that held a myriad of beverages. Those German's are smart! HAHA!


Here are some extended family members...photo taken at probably 10:30 at night.


More to come on my experiences...but instead of feeling like an outsider in a foreign country, I was welcomed with open arms. It was a great experience!