With temperatures so low you can count the total degrees on a single hand it's easy to start feeling a little blah about, well, everything. So how do you beat the winter blues? Pretend it's spring! 

You could

...buy fresh flowers for your home.

give yourself an at home spa day...

...wear a springy color.

make a fresh scented room spray...

...put a fresh set of sheets on your bed.

host an indoor picnic with your number one...

This list is as much a reminder to me, as it is a tool for you. I've been feeling a little blue lately and employing just a few of these springy tricks is making a world of difference. What are your favorite spring traditions, and can you move them indoors? - b.

Working in the wedding industry means that my life is pretty much turned upside down from January-March. A whole new wave of brides get engaged around the holidays creating a rush on all things wedding related starting New Years Day. It's one of the most exhilarating (and exhausting) periods of my work life yet. Every day there's new products to pin and post, new trunk shows to advertise, travel plans to make, and store openings to share. All of it culminating in a lot of wonderfully romantic weddings in the next 4-12 months that hopefully BHLDN will be a part of.

It can be overwhelming to think that my work might directly influence the biggest day in someone's life. I try to think about my own wedding planning and the frustrations I faced, the DIYs I attempted, and the dream weddings I was inspired by every time I tweet, pin, and post to Facebook. Boiling it all down into different bridal types, all the while staying true to our brand's voice. Are you as tired as I am just thinking about it?

I'm not complaining though- I love every single minute of my job, even the ones I grumble about sometimes, because in the end I'm doing something I'm really passionate about, and r-e-a-l-l-y love. I mean how many people can say that about their job? I feel so incredibly lucky to be where I'm at so you'll have to excuse me if my posts seem a little erratic for the next month or so, or if my voice seems a little more serious and less playful than it does during normal times. There's just so much work to be done and only one me. - b.

Growing up my great grandad was this untouchable figure-head, who appeared almost god like in my young eyes. He was a depression-era farmer who raised 8 children in a two bedroom house with little more than a firm hand and mischievous smile. He was Grant Wood's American Gothic come to life.

To his grandchildren and great-grandchildren he was a scruffy-faced, candy-loving gruff who teased, and tickled, and loved unconditionally. Despite the threadbareness of his pockets his generosity only seemed to grow as he aged, and it was always bestowed unexpectedly. On one such occasion he gave my mom a little money to spend on my siblings and I at Christmas.

My mom carefully picked out a small gift for each of us, wrapped it, and placed it under the tree with a tag that said "From: great grandad." I opened my soft package to reveal the prettiest red slipper socks with white snowflakes on the feet. My 8 year-old heart squealed with delight as I slipped them on and pranced around the living room. It was the perfect gift, and an instant treasure. One I still hold on to 20 years later.

The slippers are stretched a little thin, and the snowflakes have begun to fade, but every time I look at them I think of an idol of mine and just how much he meant to my family and to me. He may not have picked the gift out, but he is still the gift's source and for that reason they'll always be grandad's slipper socks. A gift that only get's better with age. -b.

(You can see a little bekuh tucked in next to the man himself, in the old photograph above.)