Thanksgiving

Indeed Thanksgiving has come and gone, we've all eaten copious amounts of food, expressed what we're thankful for, and gone back to work. But I didn't want the entire holiday to pass without a brief post.

We attended three Thanksgiving dinners - one with friends and two with families - that were all yummy in our tummies. As tweeted on Sunday, I believe I ate an entire pie (collectively) over the weekend. Pumpkin still reigns as my favorite, but blueberry was a nice addition to the table this year.

Ever since I was a young little thing, a family tradition has been to attend the Kansas City Plaza Lighting Ceremony. This year's guest was Modern Family's Eric Stonestreet, which is cool because a.) he's funny b.) he's from Missouri c.) it's usually a football player or someone I don't really care about. The tradition has dwindled from 20+ family members to just a handful of us this year, but it's always top of my list for Thanksgiving plans.  Thousands of Christmas lights mixed with loved ones, hot chocolate, and a big dash of nostalgia is not something I care to miss. 

Gracie loves her Bryant

The girls

We're missing a sister . . .

Me & Gracie

Me & Bryant (such a handsome thing he is)

Hope everyone's Thanksgiving was splendid.

Onto Christmas we go . . .

My Nephew's AB(C)s

I know we're all biased toward our own precious family members—it's only natural—but I think this video ought to make anyone smile, whether you know my nephew Karson or not. Oh, how I love that little boy.

Us, Lately

This pretty perfectly describes our life lately. We spent yesterday afternoon running errands, and a decent part of the time & money we spent was for the dog. Two new snazzy doggy sweaters, and he's ready for the holidays!

Hello November

Month #11 is already here, and I'm excited for all of its possibilities! Here are a few goals for the next thirty days. They will be completed.

1. Ruckus Run this Saturday. As of yesterday, I am all signed up! It's training crunch time, and I'm not sure how great it will go, but I am doing it nonetheless. Woo.

2. Sign up for a class. Any class. A painting class? A yoga class? A Spanish class? Any class.

3. Make slow cooker apple butter. YUM.

4. Waking up with 50 jumping jacks every weekday.

5. Finish reading Life of Pi.

6. New photos in all the frames.

7. Get my hair cut, I am way overdue. 

It's going to be a really great month. Happy 11-1-11!

Happy Halloween

I sort of love when Halloween falls on a weekday because then it feels like Halloween for a whole four days. We only dressed up once over the weekend, and it was a pretty last-minute costume, but it worked. It's fun sporting a brunette bob and wearing bright orange!


So can you tell who we are? We only had a few people guess correctly, which was expected, considering we had to do some Google searches to even put the outfits together. Anyone? 


Hint: He's a singer, and I'm an actress. Together, we're a song lyric.

It's Mary Tyler Moore & Buddy Holly!

See, I don't expect people to know it. Let's be honest, I barely knew who Mary Tyler Moore was either. But now can you hear Weezer singing, "Ooo ee oo, I look just like Buddy Holly...oh oh and you're Mary Tyler Moore..." We had a great time in our costumes, and I think my wig is inspiration to be Jackie O. next year. Also, how adorable is Buddy Holly? The blue jacket. The glasses. Ahh, he's swell.

Happy Halloween everyone!!

You can never be overdressed or overeducated. 

[Oscar Wilde]

Lukah & Dexter

These videos made me smile and then laugh. What sweeties.

Twins

Dexter + Roomba

Three Favorites for Fall

#1 on the list every year. It's that good.

Burberry Brit

_ _ _

 The perfect black boots exist after all. 

(And would probably last forever at that price.)

Frye Paige Tall Riding Boots

_ _ _

Does it get any easier than a slow cooker? Excited to try more recipes.

 Chicken Taco Soup

I am a tiger, hear me roar.

When I turned twenty-six in July, I declared that this would be my 'year of the tiger.' I will take action on what I want to change in my life, I will be less talk and more DO, and I will check things off my list of lifelong goals.  We're about three months in, and I love the mentality this focus has given me. 


The Big Things
1. Study Spanish (and/or volunteer) in South America.
2. Gain job-related insight and direction. (i.e. What do I really want to be/do?)
3. Travel to New York more. It's inspiring.


The Littler Things
1. Drink more water.
2. Practice yoga regularly (2+ times per week seems realistic).
3. Purchase BFF rings with BFF.
4. Send more snail mail to the ones I love.


Done/In Progress
1. Improved my skin care and loving it.
2. Keep my hair healthy and growing.
3. Be a better girlfriend/housemate.
4. Get rid of the awful clothes still creepin' in my closet.
5. Hosted a housewarming/birthday/summer soiree.


Roar.

In Honor of Gjetost

Because it's the best cheese ever.

I recommend sticking a candle in it to celebrate a birthday.

October Goals

More bike rides

More dog walks

More cooking

More tea times

More organization

More photography

More water

More yoga

More lunch dates

More blogging

"Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall."

—Jordan, The Great Gatsby

Currently...

in New York with two of my favorite girls in the world (and missing one).  Biking in Central Park was delightful;  Shopping in our work-out clothes for the rest of the day was maybe not-so-delightful to those who could smell our sweaty stench.  I love this city more every time I visit.

A little DeVotchKa love for bedtime...

My Weakest Month as a Blogger

One post for August?  Guess that's what happens in the summertime.  It's been busier than ever the last few months, with local events, visitors in town, road trips, pool days, new recipes, dog walks, job promotions, kickball games, days at the lake, yoga classes, and plenty of sunshine.  When I glance at the calendar it's hard to spot the days where there is nothing written.  I'm feeling very grateful as summer comes to a close and also excited to see what the next seasons have in store for us.  For one thing, I'll be back to blogging.  Starting now.

Dog

He's a sweetie.

pizza night

 

Those little grape tomatoes are my new favorite.

Wouldn't it be nice ...

If teleportation were real.
If bugs didn't eat the plants in our garden.
If people smiled more.
If people complained less.
If we could bottle our favorite moments in time and glance back at them later in life.
If ice-cream was good for us.
If I was at the pool right now.
If I wasn't at work right now.

This will be my weekend & it will be splendid.

My only real plan for the weekend is to sleep in late, start a new book, float around in the pool or lake, maybe catch a yoga class, and sip on icey drinks.  This is one of only a few weekends this summer (past or future) that we don't have any obligations.  I love that summer crams in as many fun activities as possible, but sometimes it's nice to just stop and hear yourself breathe.  And to turn that effing alarm clock off.  I hope your weekends are splendid as well.

happy bastille day

I hope by now you have seen this awesomeness, but just in case you haven't here are a couple of my favorite examples of Paris versus New York.

Let's go ahead and move taking a trip to Paris further up on my list of things to do.

Hurray for celebrating France today.  And New York everyday.  Au revoir!

  

P.S. I am making croque madame tonight.  It can't be that difficult, right?

popsicles & prosecco

These are going to happen in my life.  

 "Grown-Up Dessert" from Southern Living

birthday cake pops!

happy birthday to me.

(and thanks for the cake pops sissy!)

Lake time with BFF

I love the Fourth of July, but I especially loved this one because BFF was in town from New York.  We're still about as silly and giggly as we were in kindergarten.

“If a June night could talk, 

it would probably boast 

that it invented romance.”

 

Current Status

Almost (officially) Summer

Jazzoo

One should never be too old or too cool to ride a carousel.

Friendly Weekend

Some of B's old college buddies came in town for the weekend, staying with us.  It was also another friend's birthday, so our house got lots of action the last couple of days.  There were FIFA tournaments, foosball games, piano and guitars, some billiards, burgers, and even a night of karaoke.  Holland enjoyed all the attention, and it was a very fun-filled weekend for all.

I've already cursed my point-and-shoot camera several times for being so awful.  I think the auto focus may be going out?  Or possibly already busted.  Stupid thing.  Looks like I'm going to have to start taking the DSLR everywhere I go.

Happy Memorial Day weekend.

Circles

I wanted to show you how happy these sunglasses are making me today.  I bought them at least a year ago from somewhere I don't remember.  I didn't wear them much at first but found them last week while cleaning out my car and just lu-ove the big round circles.  (Talk about fighting sun damage around the eye area.)  So here they are, and that's me taking a picture of myself in my officle.  I should really figure out how to turn the sound off of my phone camera.

Happy sunny day.

Weeeee! It's the Weekend

Another week has flown right by us, and I'm especially happy for this weekend because B has been out of town for the last few days.  Today he is home sweet home and we have huge, major, extravagant plans to kick off a rainy weekend — we're watching Somewhere and ordering yet-to-be-determined crappy junk food.  Chinese?  Pizza?  Something fried?  I do not know, but if the world ends tomorrow at least we can say we lived on the edge just a little.

Tomorrow I intend to create a scrumptious breakfast.  I doubt I will ever tire of eggs benedict, so hopefully B agrees that that is always/still a good choice.  Maybe with some pancakes too.  And freshly-squeezed grapefruit juice before the poor grapefruits go rotten.

We are going to see Peer Gynt in the afternoon.  Ever heard of it?  Neither have I, but it should be a fun little outing.  Then off to a college graduation party and to wherever else the night leads us from there.

No plans Sunday.  I know a dog who will probably want to go to the park, and I would love to go see Bridesmaids.  It looks funny, eh?  That, and I need to get some pictures developed.  I am so bad about that.  They all just sit on my computer and wait for someone to love them and order them so that people can view them everyday and they can live in our home instead of in a computer.  I ought to make that a priority for Sunday.  Done.

To recap: I will be laughing, eating, watching movies, and ordering pictures this weekend.  Cheers to that.

The Maxi Dress

I am a fan.

un quote du jour

   
"Never look back unless you are planning to go that way."

—Henry David Thoreau

S is for

shoes

sisters

sunnies

smiles

silliness

& saturday

Target's shoe aisle is most fun when shared with sisters.

Such a Pretty

Not that I have been searching for engagement rings,
but I found mine at catbird. 

Isn't it sweet/pretty/perfect?

Signs of Spring

 

{Photos taken April 2011 in San Francisco}

Favorites Lately

Homemade breakfast sandwiches 

(eggs, green onions, cheese, ham, tomato)

Pink Splash plants

Ann Taylor Loft (love their dresses!)

Kelly green for summer

Dressing up an outfit with pearls

The Duke and Duchess
Wedges
New surroundings at work

Happiness for Friday

I woke up a bit of a grumpdawg this morning, and based on conversations with friends and social media status updates, it seems that I'm not the only one.  My 'tude is getting better as the day goes by, and this picture from my sister certainly turned my frown upside down.

Happy Friday!

Music, So Good for the Soul

I got to see Arcade Fire with The National last night at a beautiful outdoor venue on a chilly Spring night.  I was excited about the show beforehand, but I had no idea what an amazing time it would be.  The National played my two very favorite songs of theirs, one being the one below.  I get chills.

The National - "England"

I suppose most of the hype was for Arcade Fire, and while I was a semi-fan before the show, I was blown away with their performance.  I didn't intend to stay the entire time, but sure enough, at the end of the encore I was still there, wanting more.  If I could have just a fraction of the energy that encompassed me at the show last night, all would be right in the world.

Arcade Fire - "Wake Up"

Obviously these videos are not from last night's show, but you get the idea.  If you have the opportunity to see them in your city, do it.  It's good for the soul.

Just Daydreaming

and wishing I was back in SF, 

roaming the streets and snapping pretty photos.

Hope you are all having lovely weeks, 

lovely like that tree up there.

Tahoe (Twit)pics

Last weekend B and I spent an amazing four days in Squaw Valley and San Francisco, where we visited my sweet sister.  You know those vacations where everything just fits perfectly together?  Well that was last weekend.  Aside from a pricey speeding ticket, a couple of flight delays, and a faulty sailboat motor, the trip was simply fabulous.  

We flew into SFO and drove straight to Tahoe, arriving at 4am early Friday morning.  Our late/early arrival in our beds didn't stop us from hitting the slopes a few hours later.  I thought some sort of exhaustion would hit, but it never really did.  I guess we were running on so much positive energy, and that lasted the entire weekend.

Of course I took loads of pictures (like, 400) but all I have for now are the ones I uploaded on Twitter.  As much as I loved Tahoe, I was just as excited about spending time with my sister.  We could have been in Idaho and still laughed our big heads off.  (No offense, Idaho.)

California has so many beautiful, breath-taking spots.  

Lake Tahoe is most definitely one of them.

I busted out some yoga snoga moves on the mountain.  

This is Warrior II.

We had two sunny/snowy/cloudy/rainy/sunny days on the mountain, and I was pleased that we didn't have to share it with too many other people.

Both ski days ended with beverages at the bottom of the mountain.

This wine was a really great treat, one of Napa's very own.

Just looking through these pictures has me excited to share the rest of them.  After Tahoe we spent a night in Berkeley, had the most delicious coffee Sunday morning, sailed the bay Sunday afternoon, and sipped red wine while people-watching from a lovely little table under a heat lamp in SF Sunday evening.  B and I explored the city on foot Monday, and ended with a lunch at Twitter before heading to the airport.  Did I mention it was an amazing time? 

And then it was Monday

I'm not usually one to whine and complain about Mondays, but I am feeling particularly lethargic this morning.  I blame it on the fact that we had such a lovely weekend, which made waking up and heading out the door that much more difficult this morning.


Friday night was a perfect start to the weekend with a trip to the local animal shelter, where we fell in love with at least two dogs.  We also saw this little thing, who requires sunscreen to go outside because she has no fur.  How 'bout that mustache?  Funny, eh?  Or is it just sad?

Saturday was sunny and we were up and at 'em early.  I always love when B agrees to go shopping with me and Saturday was one such day.  We had to cut the trip short though so I could join my mom and grandma for lunch, which ended up lasting three hours!  We just kept talking and talking and talking.  We talked so much that we ended up having to re-open our tab so that we could order some cheesecake and more coffee.  Now that is a good lunch date.


We went to a work event of mine and good friend's birthday party Saturday night, and both were big hits.  Who doesn't love a good mix of entertainment, conversation, new foods, fun friends, and dancing?  That was exactly how Saturday night was. 

Bryant's eyes don't always get along well with camera flashes.

Sunday was what Sundays should be.  We relaxed, we cooked out, we planted tomatoes, Bryant got a new bike, we went for a bike ride, and watched a movie with the windows open while it stormed like madness outside.  It went from being 90° during the day to a hail storm at night.  It was perfect movie-watching / popcorn-eating weather.


These are the weekends that I wish could last forever, but then I guess I wouldn't appreciate them so.  And guess what.  We leave for San Francisco Thursday, so I think I can survive today.  Skiing in Tahoe, sailing in the bay, and drinking wine with my sissy.  Just four more days...

"If we did all the things we are capable of doing, 

we would literally astound ourselves."  

Thomas Edison

Pretty Thought for Thursday

photo

I intend to replicate this photo once the weather cooperates.  

This is my new purpose in life.