Sandberg Ramblings

Although Des Moines isn't a hot destination spot, I thought it would be fun to put together a little travel guide for my favorite places to shop, dine, and play here. So if you ever do come to Des Moines you'll know exactly what to do! SHOP Domestica East Village - fun art, prints, jewelry, and all things handmade in Des Moines - Eden East Village - lotion, candles, perfume, all things scented & the same brands carried by Anthropologie - Found Things East Village - probably the best little antique shop I've found in Des Moines, it's where I found this little chair - Ephemera East Village - cards, stationary, and all things paper, they do amazing wedding invitations -  Kangaroo Boo Valley Junction - darling children's toy store - Hinge  Valley Junction  - fun little shop with clothing, accessories, and home decor both old & new -  Fossil Jordan Creek Mall - not just any Fossil store, they...

Just a few little random things to share with you... 1) I now know how people can have a legitimate fear of birds.  Landon has been checking up on a friend's house while they were away for the winter. Over the weekend we went to clean up their yard before they got home. Well, 2 birds had made nests on their porch this Spring and started attacking me when I went to sweep off the front porch. Let's just say I ran for my life and now have a fear of birds.  2) Ready For Love is mine and Landon's guilty pleasure on TV.  I also discovered Call The Midwife . I think I love it so much because I'm in baby mode, but it's on the same station as Downton Abbey and sort of has the same vibe. There are some fun characters in it as well.  You can watch the first season on Netflix and the second season is on right now on Sunday nights. I will say it's definitely a woman's show. 3) I tried this pasta salad recipe yesterday and it is AMAZING! Definitely try ...

1// Adorable Little Girl Blouse 2// DIY Floral Lined Envelopes    (Just a tip if you plan on making these, buy a botanical book and make color copies of the pages, then you can use it over and over) 3// Henry The Fox 4// Wise Words 5// Eclectic Bathroom 6// Bold Quilt 7// Pomegranate Print 8// Gorgeous Bag - the color is even better in person 9// Fun Pillows - would be cute to use one or the other in a nursery 

A while back I did this post on some of my favorite Etsy artists. Well I'm back today with a few more I've happened upon recently.  It can be so hard to find unique and affordable art. It's easy to buy the cheap canvas art at Taipan Trading or the prints at Ikea, but many of them seem like a dime a dozen.  Buying prints and even some original art pieces on Etsy and putting them in your own frames, if they need it, gives you affordable and unique art that your neighbor down the street probably won't have.  So here's my most recent top picks... Donna Walker Laura Amiss So Very Happy Art Yao Cheng Design Creative Thursday (She also has a darling fabric line that I bought a little of to make a baby quilt out of) Brittany Bass

My wonderful mom was in town in this past week and we had lots of fun planting flowers, antique hunting, and road tripping to Minneapolis.  (Thor waiting for Grammie @ the airport. He loves her!)  We had lots of crazy weather while she was here including our first tornado warning since living in Iowa. A little freaky, but it seemed like a dinky little rainstorm after seeing the devastation in Oklahoma. I can't even imagine! Praying for those poor people.  We went crazy and planted tons of flowers and a tomato plant out on the deck. It makes it so cheery, I just want to sit out there all day. My mom has quite the green thumb as I've mentioned before, so I had to take advantage while she was here :)  Our adventures also included trips to Omaha and the Twin Cities (Minneapolis & St. Paul). We hit all 3 (yes 3!) Anthropologies that are within 10 miles of each other. Talk about dangerous. There is also a temple just outside of St. Paul, so...

Kirsten Krason of 6th Street Design School is doing a 2 week blog series called Good Design With Kids in Mind . She has put a ton of work into it and has some great resources, tips, and advice on how to have a beautiful home AND children. I know many people who sacrifice a beautiful home because they say it isn't possible to have the best of both worlds. Yes, I don't have kids yet, but I do know many people who do have kids and also have a put together home.  This doesn't mean it's always clean and tidy. It means that because you've put thought into the design of your home, it still looks great even when there's some mess and clutter. I've seen this phenomenon in action!  Definitely go check out Kirsten's series and you'll see what I mean.  Also, with a kiddo of my own on the way, I've been pinning lots of fun children's spaces. You can find these and more fun rooms on my Pinterest Board . ...

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Ok I am DYING for a trip to Utah. 1) Because I really need some Cafe Rio and  2) Because I really want to check out this new shop at The Gateway, Called To Surf . I've been reading about it and seeing the cutest things from here on many different blogs/Instagram feeds lately.  Have any of you who are in Utah been? Is it as amazing as I've dreamed it up in my head? 

Go check out some more bargain hunting finds and tips I've shared on Dream Till Green today!

I hope all of you women out there had a great Mother's Day weekend. Although I'm not "technically" a mother yet, Landon still made me a delicious homemade breakfast. We also went for a little bike ride that evening and tried out the bike basket Landon got me for our anniversary. It was supposed to be so Thor could go along on our rides, but we'll have to see if he gets used to it. He didn't seem to like it so much, and almost killed himself trying to jump out of it.  I also wanted to share two Instagram posts from Mother's Day that I really loved... And finally, here is my wonderful mother! So excited for her to come visit tomorrow!  (can you believe she made the dress and jacket she wore at my wedding!)

Here's some of my latest Target finds for the home! Nate Berkus does it again! In love with this duvet . Fun beach towels and organic throw blankets Shells & coral are always a fun element to add to your home for summer! (and these are much cheaper than the ones you'll find at Pottery Barn) I have been lusting after these vases for a while now, they are even better in person. What are your latest and greatest Target finds?

Yesterday Landon and I celebrated our 4 year anniversary. So crazy to think it's been that long.  To celebrate we decided to make the big announcement that we are expecting our first baby in November!  It was so hard to wait so long to tell everyone, especially with so many other people announcing babies at 7 and 8 weeks, but after our first experience last November with a miscarriage, we decided to wait until after the 1st trimester to announce. It's such a relief to make it past that hump and we couldn't be more excited! We definitely have a busy few months ahead, with the baby being due November 16th, Landon's graduation in mid-December, and then a move back to Utah shorty after, but you do what you have to do when you want a baby. Although I'm usually a worrier, I'm not to concerned about all the craziness ahead, we'll just take it as it comes.  Luckily I haven't been horribly sick and this week I'm feeling pretty good. The fir...