We spent most of the afternoon outside on two different Minneapolis patios on a sunny, cool afternoon. We exchanged letters, partly because the traditional first anniversary gift is paper and partly because we loved including letters to each other in our wedding day a year ago. We also visited the historic mansion where we celebrated at our reception, and my sister kindly met us there for what might become a little anniversary tradition: a photo on the front steps, set up like one of my favorite wedding photos from that day. We had to scramble to take this year's photo quickly because guests were just starting to arrive for another wedding!
Showing posts with label love. Show all posts
Showing posts with label love. Show all posts
Sunday, September 14, 2014
One year ago
This weekend, Josh and I celebrated our first anniversary!
We spent most of the afternoon outside on two different Minneapolis patios on a sunny, cool afternoon. We exchanged letters, partly because the traditional first anniversary gift is paper and partly because we loved including letters to each other in our wedding day a year ago. We also visited the historic mansion where we celebrated at our reception, and my sister kindly met us there for what might become a little anniversary tradition: a photo on the front steps, set up like one of my favorite wedding photos from that day. We had to scramble to take this year's photo quickly because guests were just starting to arrive for another wedding!
I loved our first anniversary celebration - and I am beyond grateful for my wonderful husband.
We spent most of the afternoon outside on two different Minneapolis patios on a sunny, cool afternoon. We exchanged letters, partly because the traditional first anniversary gift is paper and partly because we loved including letters to each other in our wedding day a year ago. We also visited the historic mansion where we celebrated at our reception, and my sister kindly met us there for what might become a little anniversary tradition: a photo on the front steps, set up like one of my favorite wedding photos from that day. We had to scramble to take this year's photo quickly because guests were just starting to arrive for another wedding!
Thursday, January 9, 2014
A birthday
Today is Josh's birthday!
We celebrated with dinner tonight. On the menu:
1) Carnitas: started this morning when I seared the pork, cooked all day in the slow cooker, and finished by broiling on a cookie sheet for a few minutes to make them crispy.
2) Birthday cake, of course! For the third year in a row: Alton Brown's carrot cake.
The main party mishap occurred when I tried to put Wish's birthday hat on (remember last year?) and Wish shook it off his ears before tearing into the hallway to see Josh. (But he was wearing it upside down, like a feed bag, which was kind of funny in itself.)
I can't believe we started celebrating birthdays together a decade ago, and I can't wait to see what my dear, wonderful husband does in 2014 and beyond.
We celebrated with dinner tonight. On the menu:
1) Carnitas: started this morning when I seared the pork, cooked all day in the slow cooker, and finished by broiling on a cookie sheet for a few minutes to make them crispy.
2) Birthday cake, of course! For the third year in a row: Alton Brown's carrot cake.
The main party mishap occurred when I tried to put Wish's birthday hat on (remember last year?) and Wish shook it off his ears before tearing into the hallway to see Josh. (But he was wearing it upside down, like a feed bag, which was kind of funny in itself.)
I can't believe we started celebrating birthdays together a decade ago, and I can't wait to see what my dear, wonderful husband does in 2014 and beyond.
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
One year ago
A year ago today, I had no idea what was in store for us over the next 12 months!
Josh and I flew to Atlanta, drove up to Tennessee and stayed for a week at a cabin (booked via Airbnb!) bordering Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We saw our first Tennessee game at Neyland Stadium, drove around the national park, went hiking, and spent a lot of time sitting with books and cups of coffee on our cabin's magnificent porch:
I don't know that yet another view from that porch is pertinent, but I'll share one for good measure because it's one of my favorite things ever:
On the second to last day of our trip, on the porch at sunrise, Josh asked me to marry him!
Here we are later in the day, en route to Clingman's Dome, the highest point in the national park. I will help you interpret my facial expression: "EEEEEEEEE!"
We were very excited to celebrate with our family and friends, and we didn't want a very long engagement, so we got to work as soon as we got back to Minnesota. Exactly a month later (Dec. 13), we booked our reception venue - and then exactly nine months after that, we got married.
Right off the bat, I wished the engagement was a little shorter, but we chose September because 1) we both love fall in Minnesota and 2) we hoped to reduce the chances of a heat wave. (We were deciding between Sept. 6 and Sept. 13, and Josh lobbied for the 13th because it was later and thus likely cooler. I teased him a little, but sure enough, the temperature approached 90 on Sept. 6 and had settled back into the mid-60s for Sept. 13.)
But truly, I'm happy now that we had 10 months, because it was a really marvelous window of time. When I think back on the last year, so many things happened that I'm grateful we didn't crunch: how our relationship evolved, the special times with our families, our marriage preparation classes, the wedding planning conversation threads with my mom via a sprawling Pinterest board, and very sweet and fun celebrations with family and friends who supported us as we started the new adventure.
I'm not sure if we'll keep marking this date in the years to come, but today I'm thinking of the porch in Tennessee!
Josh and I flew to Atlanta, drove up to Tennessee and stayed for a week at a cabin (booked via Airbnb!) bordering Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We saw our first Tennessee game at Neyland Stadium, drove around the national park, went hiking, and spent a lot of time sitting with books and cups of coffee on our cabin's magnificent porch:
I don't know that yet another view from that porch is pertinent, but I'll share one for good measure because it's one of my favorite things ever:
On the second to last day of our trip, on the porch at sunrise, Josh asked me to marry him!
Here we are later in the day, en route to Clingman's Dome, the highest point in the national park. I will help you interpret my facial expression: "EEEEEEEEE!"
We were very excited to celebrate with our family and friends, and we didn't want a very long engagement, so we got to work as soon as we got back to Minnesota. Exactly a month later (Dec. 13), we booked our reception venue - and then exactly nine months after that, we got married.
Right off the bat, I wished the engagement was a little shorter, but we chose September because 1) we both love fall in Minnesota and 2) we hoped to reduce the chances of a heat wave. (We were deciding between Sept. 6 and Sept. 13, and Josh lobbied for the 13th because it was later and thus likely cooler. I teased him a little, but sure enough, the temperature approached 90 on Sept. 6 and had settled back into the mid-60s for Sept. 13.)
But truly, I'm happy now that we had 10 months, because it was a really marvelous window of time. When I think back on the last year, so many things happened that I'm grateful we didn't crunch: how our relationship evolved, the special times with our families, our marriage preparation classes, the wedding planning conversation threads with my mom via a sprawling Pinterest board, and very sweet and fun celebrations with family and friends who supported us as we started the new adventure.
I'm not sure if we'll keep marking this date in the years to come, but today I'm thinking of the porch in Tennessee!
Monday, November 11, 2013
Marvelous Monday: Week 45
I had a great weekend that included some bowling, a birthday celebration with old friends, and some much-needed couch time on Sunday evening with a very tired dog after yesterday's outdoor festivities. I have never seen Wish so utterly tuckered out. He's not usually one to snuggle with me too much, but last night on the couch, he wedged his head next to my collarbone and fell into a deep sleep with my arm around him.
Five more marvelous tidbits:
1) After too many days away from the yoga studio this summer and fall, I thought it would be prudent to stop my membership. It was the right decision for now - I'm running a little more and have gym access through work - but I recently decided to sign up for a weekly Monday night yoga class, also through work. That means tonight was my first yoga class since midsummer, and I was so happy. It's power yoga, like I was doing at the studio, and it's so, so good for my mind and body - even though I expect some sore arms tomorrow. At this time, a weekly class works much better for me than a monthly studio membership, and I'm very excited to get back into it.
2) Today's temperatures were cold, but the sun was out, and that makes a huge difference.
3) A year ago this week on a porch in Tennessee, Josh asked me to marry him!
4) I've got a new recipe for butternut squash and sage lasagna that I'm excited to try out this week. (Although tonight was not the weeknight to roast the squash, cook the noodles, assemble the layers and then wait another 45 minutes until it's ready to eat. Nachos for dinner!!!)
5) My Road ID mysteriously went on the lam for a long time - I velcro the tag to my shoes, so I truly have no idea what happened to it. Whatever happened, its absence is bad because I take very seriously the habit of carrying ID with me when I run. (I've been grabbing my license, but I love the Road ID because it's attached to my shoe at all times and thus impossible to forget - unless, of course, it goes on the lam.) I finally ordered a replacement Road ID, complete with my new information, and I think it should arrive tomorrow.
Finally, it's Veterans Day, and among other vets, I've been thinking of both of my grandpas: two dear men who served in World War II.
I hope your week is starting out well, Reader.
Five more marvelous tidbits:
1) After too many days away from the yoga studio this summer and fall, I thought it would be prudent to stop my membership. It was the right decision for now - I'm running a little more and have gym access through work - but I recently decided to sign up for a weekly Monday night yoga class, also through work. That means tonight was my first yoga class since midsummer, and I was so happy. It's power yoga, like I was doing at the studio, and it's so, so good for my mind and body - even though I expect some sore arms tomorrow. At this time, a weekly class works much better for me than a monthly studio membership, and I'm very excited to get back into it.
2) Today's temperatures were cold, but the sun was out, and that makes a huge difference.
3) A year ago this week on a porch in Tennessee, Josh asked me to marry him!
4) I've got a new recipe for butternut squash and sage lasagna that I'm excited to try out this week. (Although tonight was not the weeknight to roast the squash, cook the noodles, assemble the layers and then wait another 45 minutes until it's ready to eat. Nachos for dinner!!!)
5) My Road ID mysteriously went on the lam for a long time - I velcro the tag to my shoes, so I truly have no idea what happened to it. Whatever happened, its absence is bad because I take very seriously the habit of carrying ID with me when I run. (I've been grabbing my license, but I love the Road ID because it's attached to my shoe at all times and thus impossible to forget - unless, of course, it goes on the lam.) I finally ordered a replacement Road ID, complete with my new information, and I think it should arrive tomorrow.
Finally, it's Veterans Day, and among other vets, I've been thinking of both of my grandpas: two dear men who served in World War II.
I hope your week is starting out well, Reader.
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Ten wedding details
Right away when Josh and I got engaged, exactly 10 months before our wedding day, we knew we wanted to keep the planning process simple and relaxed. We were so excited and grateful about making this commitment to each other in front of our family and friends, and we wanted to keep the focus on that, without getting too tied up in the details.
Like many people before me, though, I felt a little overwhelmed early on by All Of The Options for every part of a ceremony and reception, for things I didn't even know we were supposed to think about. The choices got easier, more fun and more meaningful to me when I looked at the details as a chance to connect to a memory, story or person whenever possible.
This word count is gonna get crazy. Here are three quick takeaways:
1) The flowers: I grin when I think of our flowers. My mom, who has a florist's eye, spearheaded the project, with help from two of my aunts and my friend Sara. This group assembled everything the day before the wedding: an arrangement for each dinner table plus the five bridesmaids' bouquets and my bouquet. (Mom also made all of the boutonnieres and corsages, but that happened ahead of time. I am telling you - she's amazing.)
I stopped by my aunt's house the day before the wedding and marveled at the whole process unfolding in her backyard. Here is Mom with one of my aunts at one of the work stations:
.jpg)
Mom is well-versed in flower language and I am not, so we had looked at bouquets on Pinterest to help identify what I liked and didn't like. Beyond that, all I knew was that I loved bright, bold colors, especially that poppy-orange shade that showed up in lots of places at our wedding.
When I saw a draft of my bouquet, I couldn't believe how spot-on it was. I love, loved it - and didn't want to let it go.
Everything is real - and in some cases, home-grown by my family - except for the poppies. I love poppies, but they're too fragile to count on, so my mom tucked artificial poppies into my bouquet. Also, earlier in the summer, I smelled dill and it reminded me of the dill from our gardens when I was growing up. We ended up using dill weed flower in the wedding bouquets, and I loved that, too.
2) Our ring dish: "I think we should get a ring dish," I told my perplexed groom about a month before our wedding. (We didn't have any plans for a ring pillow or anything, so the plan at the time was for the best man, Josh's brother, to carry them in his pocket.) I saw some pretty options on Etsy and chose an ivory clay dish about four inches in diameter with a lace stamp over part of it. It's engraved with a few words ("i carry your heart") from one of our readings, the E.E. Cummings poem with the same name. I loved this little ring dish. It's on our dresser and I like seeing it.
3) The calligraphy: This spring, I signed up for a calligraphy class (with Sara!) with the idea that if I liked it, I might be able to address our invitations in calligraphy (and if it didn't work out, it would be a fun class to take with my friend). I was far (far, far, far) from an expert in the subject, but after six weeks of class, I felt comfortable enough to give it a try.
I had pictured a couple of weekend afternoons devoted to the project, but it worked better to spend half an hour or so at a time. (My letters got worse if I worked much longer!) Even though it took more time than I expected, I was very happy I did this. It helped me with names and gave me an uncanny memory for peoples' addresses (a weird consequence worth noting), and I loved spending a few minutes as I worked on those envelopes to think about every guest.
4) My headpiece: Once I chose my wedding dress back in January, I pieced together the rest of my accessories. I decided not to wear a veil - in fact, I wasn't going to wear anything in my hair. Then my mom suggested something called a "headpiece," which sounded to me a lot like a nice hat but actually includes a wide range of accessories. I was kind of overwhelmed by the options, but my mom really helped out here, too. She asked what I thought of using one of my grandma's brooches in the headpiece, which I loved, and also suggested using the lace that was cut out of my wedding dress during the hemming. (I'm 5'4" and needed a lot of hem.)
She sent me a mock-up of what she was imagining, and that was it. My headpiece was all set:
This was maybe four inches long, and you'll see how it fit into my hair soon.
5) My bracelet: I wanted to keep the rest of my jewelry pretty simple. I got a necklace with a single pearl on it from Etsy, and then found earrings (also on Etsy) that coincidentally matched the brooch in my headpiece almost exactly. My bracelet, though, tied with the headpiece for my favorite piece of jewelry. My sweet aunt restrung one of my grandma's pearl necklaces into a two-strand bracelet. I loved how it fit and I loved that I could look down at my wrist and have a reminder of my grandmother so close.
6) The ties: The only part of the wedding planning process that was more difficult than I expected was our darn colors. As previously mentioned, I love vibrant colors, and with a green light from Josh, I chose to incorporate a poppy-orange and a deep bluish-purple around the wedding. (Orange ties in to some of our favorite teams and schools!) I definitely did not understand that these would be very weird and hard colors to find together. (A bright red ended up finding its way into the mix by the time we got married.) We found purple dresses for the bridesmaids and chose black suits for the groomsmen, and we thought it'd be nice to find a tie that pulled together the orange and purple colors. This turned out to be really hard to find.
Thank goodness for South Carolina's Clemson University, which happens to have nearly the right orange and purple as its colors. We found orange- and purple-checked ties via a Clemson vendor and almost got them, but they had a few tiger pawprints (the mascot) on the ties and we weren't wild about that. Then I found Handmade by Gigi, an Etsy store run by a person who makes bow ties in a wide range of Southern schools' colors (and lots of other colors). I saw this one and loved the fabric, but Josh and I wanted neckties, not bowties. I contacted the seller and asked if she could do a special order for neckties, and she did! She was one of the fabulous vendors with which we were lucky to work.
7) Our papel picado: Josh and I love papel picado, which is perforated tissue paper banners that you can find at Mexican markets. (We have some hanging in our kitchen.)
Some of our wedding elements were inspired by this art, in our invitations and in ivory papel picado hanging at our reception that wove in our names and wedding date. (Thank you to AyMujer on Etsy!) Our candleholders used papel picado more directly. I bought plain vases and several packs of the paper banners, and on a chilly spring Sunday afternoon, my mom and sister and I used spray adhesive to glue papel picado onto the vases, which we used as candleholders at each table.
I have three of those pieces now - red, yellow, and blue - and I've used the red one as a vase, but I need to see them in action as candleholders. (Thanks to Mom and my sister for their help with this!)
8) My hair: Early this summer, Mom and I talked about my hair and decided that, if a couple of trial runs went smoothly, she would do my hair and makeup for my wedding. (She does hair professionally, so I was in very good hands, but we both wanted to make sure this wouldn't add too much to her plate that morning.) I was so grateful she was open to doing this, and I loved having time alone with my mom that morning as we got ready for the day. Also, I was really happy with what she did to my hair, seven thousand bobby pins and all. (See the headpiece now?)
9) Our dessert: When Josh and I started talking with caterers, we thought a lot about the dessert and weren't quite sure what to do. (Dessert is important to us!) We thought about a traditional cake, and one friend told me about pies at her wedding, which sounded great. Then, one day, I was thinking about getting some ice cream and it hit me. We love ice cream. Why not ice cream? Two of our friends had ice cream sundaes at their wedding in Washington, and we thought it was about the best thing ever.
Once we decided on ice cream sundaes, the pieces came together quickly. There are a few really good ice cream shops in St. Paul, but our favorite is Grand Ole Creamery. We set up a catering order and chose two kinds (birthday cake and sweet cream), and the shop sent two people to scoop the ice cream, and then our guests chose their own toppings. My sister grabbed a sundae for me right before we started the dances, and after the first few songs, I went back to our table all by myself and had a few bites, and it was so good. We were so happy to be able to serve our favorite ice cream, from one of our favorite shops in our city, to our guests.
10) Our guestbook: I must have read about alternative guest book ideas early in the wedding planning process, because right away, I wanted to do a thumbprint tree guestbook. There are lots of options on Etsy and other sources, so we chose a design with our names and wedding date printed under a bare tree, plus a few thumbprint-shaped ink pads in red, orange and yellow. (Y'all know how I love my colorful leaves.) Then we printed it at Kinko's on a mounted poster board, and set up a little station at the reception with the ink pads, the poster and some wet wipes to remove the ink.
As we made our plans for the wedding, we often wondered what it would be like to see so many friends and family members from different parts of our lives in one place. Picturing it felt so special to us, and we loved the idea of a visual reminder of that in our home. We weren't sure if people would be into making thumbprints with ink, but we thought it'd be worth a try.
Josh and I arrived at the cocktail hour maybe 10-15 minutes after the rest of our guests, and one of the first things I vividly remember seeing when I walked into our venue was the guestbook poster, already nearly full of thumbprints. I am pretty positive that I squealed.
It's hanging on our wall and I see it lots of times every day, and I love it.
Friends, I could go on and on and on. It was a wonderful day, and we can't say this enough: we are so, so grateful for the friends and family who helped with the details that made it even more special for us - and for everyone who helped celebrate, with us and from afar.
Like many people before me, though, I felt a little overwhelmed early on by All Of The Options for every part of a ceremony and reception, for things I didn't even know we were supposed to think about. The choices got easier, more fun and more meaningful to me when I looked at the details as a chance to connect to a memory, story or person whenever possible.
This word count is gonna get crazy. Here are three quick takeaways:
- My mom was an incredible source of ideas and knowledge and enthusiasm and energy, and so much of our wedding details happened because of her.
- The Etsy online marketplace was a wonderful resource for me.
- Most of these details don't actually include my new husband. To clarify: He was a huge part of the planning (I think he actually coordinated more components of the wedding than I did) and we had so much fun working on our plans together. But: these kinds of details, as he would say, are not his jurisdiction. (I am planning another post that gives the broader view of the whole day.)
1) The flowers: I grin when I think of our flowers. My mom, who has a florist's eye, spearheaded the project, with help from two of my aunts and my friend Sara. This group assembled everything the day before the wedding: an arrangement for each dinner table plus the five bridesmaids' bouquets and my bouquet. (Mom also made all of the boutonnieres and corsages, but that happened ahead of time. I am telling you - she's amazing.)
I stopped by my aunt's house the day before the wedding and marveled at the whole process unfolding in her backyard. Here is Mom with one of my aunts at one of the work stations:
.jpg)
Mom is well-versed in flower language and I am not, so we had looked at bouquets on Pinterest to help identify what I liked and didn't like. Beyond that, all I knew was that I loved bright, bold colors, especially that poppy-orange shade that showed up in lots of places at our wedding.
When I saw a draft of my bouquet, I couldn't believe how spot-on it was. I love, loved it - and didn't want to let it go.
2) Our ring dish: "I think we should get a ring dish," I told my perplexed groom about a month before our wedding. (We didn't have any plans for a ring pillow or anything, so the plan at the time was for the best man, Josh's brother, to carry them in his pocket.) I saw some pretty options on Etsy and chose an ivory clay dish about four inches in diameter with a lace stamp over part of it. It's engraved with a few words ("i carry your heart") from one of our readings, the E.E. Cummings poem with the same name. I loved this little ring dish. It's on our dresser and I like seeing it.
3) The calligraphy: This spring, I signed up for a calligraphy class (with Sara!) with the idea that if I liked it, I might be able to address our invitations in calligraphy (and if it didn't work out, it would be a fun class to take with my friend). I was far (far, far, far) from an expert in the subject, but after six weeks of class, I felt comfortable enough to give it a try.
I had pictured a couple of weekend afternoons devoted to the project, but it worked better to spend half an hour or so at a time. (My letters got worse if I worked much longer!) Even though it took more time than I expected, I was very happy I did this. It helped me with names and gave me an uncanny memory for peoples' addresses (a weird consequence worth noting), and I loved spending a few minutes as I worked on those envelopes to think about every guest.
4) My headpiece: Once I chose my wedding dress back in January, I pieced together the rest of my accessories. I decided not to wear a veil - in fact, I wasn't going to wear anything in my hair. Then my mom suggested something called a "headpiece," which sounded to me a lot like a nice hat but actually includes a wide range of accessories. I was kind of overwhelmed by the options, but my mom really helped out here, too. She asked what I thought of using one of my grandma's brooches in the headpiece, which I loved, and also suggested using the lace that was cut out of my wedding dress during the hemming. (I'm 5'4" and needed a lot of hem.)
She sent me a mock-up of what she was imagining, and that was it. My headpiece was all set:
This was maybe four inches long, and you'll see how it fit into my hair soon.
5) My bracelet: I wanted to keep the rest of my jewelry pretty simple. I got a necklace with a single pearl on it from Etsy, and then found earrings (also on Etsy) that coincidentally matched the brooch in my headpiece almost exactly. My bracelet, though, tied with the headpiece for my favorite piece of jewelry. My sweet aunt restrung one of my grandma's pearl necklaces into a two-strand bracelet. I loved how it fit and I loved that I could look down at my wrist and have a reminder of my grandmother so close.
6) The ties: The only part of the wedding planning process that was more difficult than I expected was our darn colors. As previously mentioned, I love vibrant colors, and with a green light from Josh, I chose to incorporate a poppy-orange and a deep bluish-purple around the wedding. (Orange ties in to some of our favorite teams and schools!) I definitely did not understand that these would be very weird and hard colors to find together. (A bright red ended up finding its way into the mix by the time we got married.) We found purple dresses for the bridesmaids and chose black suits for the groomsmen, and we thought it'd be nice to find a tie that pulled together the orange and purple colors. This turned out to be really hard to find.
Thank goodness for South Carolina's Clemson University, which happens to have nearly the right orange and purple as its colors. We found orange- and purple-checked ties via a Clemson vendor and almost got them, but they had a few tiger pawprints (the mascot) on the ties and we weren't wild about that. Then I found Handmade by Gigi, an Etsy store run by a person who makes bow ties in a wide range of Southern schools' colors (and lots of other colors). I saw this one and loved the fabric, but Josh and I wanted neckties, not bowties. I contacted the seller and asked if she could do a special order for neckties, and she did! She was one of the fabulous vendors with which we were lucky to work.
7) Our papel picado: Josh and I love papel picado, which is perforated tissue paper banners that you can find at Mexican markets. (We have some hanging in our kitchen.)
Some of our wedding elements were inspired by this art, in our invitations and in ivory papel picado hanging at our reception that wove in our names and wedding date. (Thank you to AyMujer on Etsy!) Our candleholders used papel picado more directly. I bought plain vases and several packs of the paper banners, and on a chilly spring Sunday afternoon, my mom and sister and I used spray adhesive to glue papel picado onto the vases, which we used as candleholders at each table.
8) My hair: Early this summer, Mom and I talked about my hair and decided that, if a couple of trial runs went smoothly, she would do my hair and makeup for my wedding. (She does hair professionally, so I was in very good hands, but we both wanted to make sure this wouldn't add too much to her plate that morning.) I was so grateful she was open to doing this, and I loved having time alone with my mom that morning as we got ready for the day. Also, I was really happy with what she did to my hair, seven thousand bobby pins and all. (See the headpiece now?)
9) Our dessert: When Josh and I started talking with caterers, we thought a lot about the dessert and weren't quite sure what to do. (Dessert is important to us!) We thought about a traditional cake, and one friend told me about pies at her wedding, which sounded great. Then, one day, I was thinking about getting some ice cream and it hit me. We love ice cream. Why not ice cream? Two of our friends had ice cream sundaes at their wedding in Washington, and we thought it was about the best thing ever.
Once we decided on ice cream sundaes, the pieces came together quickly. There are a few really good ice cream shops in St. Paul, but our favorite is Grand Ole Creamery. We set up a catering order and chose two kinds (birthday cake and sweet cream), and the shop sent two people to scoop the ice cream, and then our guests chose their own toppings. My sister grabbed a sundae for me right before we started the dances, and after the first few songs, I went back to our table all by myself and had a few bites, and it was so good. We were so happy to be able to serve our favorite ice cream, from one of our favorite shops in our city, to our guests.
10) Our guestbook: I must have read about alternative guest book ideas early in the wedding planning process, because right away, I wanted to do a thumbprint tree guestbook. There are lots of options on Etsy and other sources, so we chose a design with our names and wedding date printed under a bare tree, plus a few thumbprint-shaped ink pads in red, orange and yellow. (Y'all know how I love my colorful leaves.) Then we printed it at Kinko's on a mounted poster board, and set up a little station at the reception with the ink pads, the poster and some wet wipes to remove the ink.
As we made our plans for the wedding, we often wondered what it would be like to see so many friends and family members from different parts of our lives in one place. Picturing it felt so special to us, and we loved the idea of a visual reminder of that in our home. We weren't sure if people would be into making thumbprints with ink, but we thought it'd be worth a try.
Josh and I arrived at the cocktail hour maybe 10-15 minutes after the rest of our guests, and one of the first things I vividly remember seeing when I walked into our venue was the guestbook poster, already nearly full of thumbprints. I am pretty positive that I squealed.
It's hanging on our wall and I see it lots of times every day, and I love it.
Friends, I could go on and on and on. It was a wonderful day, and we can't say this enough: we are so, so grateful for the friends and family who helped with the details that made it even more special for us - and for everyone who helped celebrate, with us and from afar.
Saturday, October 19, 2013
Yahoo!
Today included:
- being part of a wonderful, fun celebration with lots of family at my cousin's wedding
- watching (and later, listening to) a huge, huge, incredible University of Tennessee football win
- coming home to find (besides a happy dog) a surprise package from our photographers containing a bunch of prints that we hadn't seen yet from our own wedding
I can't believe it's only Saturday. What a great day.
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
The first decade
Ten years ago tonight, I went on a first date with the person who would turn out to be my husband!
We went out to dinner at La Cucaracha, then to a movie ("Out of Time" featuring Denzel Washington, in case you were curious), and then for a walk to the river.
Here we are a couple of months later, when we took our first photo together at our alma mater's sort-of-formal winter dance:
And now here we are, married for almost a month!
He is wonderful, and I can't wait for all of the adventures still to come.
We went out to dinner at La Cucaracha, then to a movie ("Out of Time" featuring Denzel Washington, in case you were curious), and then for a walk to the river.
Here we are a couple of months later, when we took our first photo together at our alma mater's sort-of-formal winter dance:
And now here we are, married for almost a month!
He is wonderful, and I can't wait for all of the adventures still to come.
Monday, September 16, 2013
We're married!
Oh, what a wonderful weekend! We're married!
Yesterday, after the rest of our friends and family were on their way back home, Josh and I got the first look at our "guestbook": a tree with our guests' thumbprints as the leaves!
The guestbook was one of the first things I saw when I arrived at the reception, a few minutes after most of our guests, and I was thrilled to see it already all marked up! I can't wait to hang it up in our home.
Yesterday I got a little chill seeing all of the thumbprints again and thinking of all of the people who celebrated with us, supported us, traveled to be with us, and helped make the weekend happen. Words can't express how grateful we are.
I will tell you lots, lots more (promise!) later this week.
Yesterday, after the rest of our friends and family were on their way back home, Josh and I got the first look at our "guestbook": a tree with our guests' thumbprints as the leaves!
The guestbook was one of the first things I saw when I arrived at the reception, a few minutes after most of our guests, and I was thrilled to see it already all marked up! I can't wait to hang it up in our home.
Yesterday I got a little chill seeing all of the thumbprints again and thinking of all of the people who celebrated with us, supported us, traveled to be with us, and helped make the weekend happen. Words can't express how grateful we are.
I will tell you lots, lots more (promise!) later this week.
Friday, September 13, 2013
Let it be a wonder
I carry a little yellow Semikolon notebook with me in my purse and jot down notes as I see fit. (I try to limit it to thoughts and quotes from what I read, but sometimes notes from work meetings sneak in when I've forgotten the right notebook.)
I filled up a bunch of pages this spring, when I read Tiny Beautiful Things, a compilation from Cheryl Strayed's exquisitely written "Dear Sugar" advice column. This passage, excerpted from the end of this column, was one of several that landed in my notebook:
I filled up a bunch of pages this spring, when I read Tiny Beautiful Things, a compilation from Cheryl Strayed's exquisitely written "Dear Sugar" advice column. This passage, excerpted from the end of this column, was one of several that landed in my notebook:
Let your wedding be a wonder. Let it be one hell of a good time. Let it be what you can't imagine and wouldn't orchestrate even if you could. You're getting married! There's a day ahead that's a shimmering slice of your mysterious destiny. All you've got to do is show up.And here we go!
Monday, September 9, 2013
Marvelous Monday: Week 36
Hey, it's wedding week!!! We can hardly believe it but are so excited!
1) It's hot here (but supposed to cool down by the weekend!) and I slogged through almost 10 miles on Saturday morning, my longest run in a long time. (That last part is the marvelous part.)
2) This morning's run was another slog, but there were two very beautiful parts: a rose sky just before daybreak, and then seeing one of the St. Paul bridges lined with glowing streetlights on a foggy, cloudy morning.
3) This is totally not romantic or light-hearted wedding week reading, but I started reading Truman Capote's In Cold Blood last week and am captivated. Along similar lines, Josh and I finally - finally! - started watching "The Wire" over the last couple of weeks and are captivated by that, too.
4) Tennessee's second game of the season (and the first one on accessible-to-us TV) happened over the weekend, and Josh and I camped out on the couch on Saturday afternoon to watch the Volunteers march to a good win.
5) I went to a lovely baby shower yesterday honoring a lovely mama-to-be and was so happy to be able to celebrate with her.
And there are so many marvelous things ahead this week, with marvelous people, and my heart is so full.
1) It's hot here (but supposed to cool down by the weekend!) and I slogged through almost 10 miles on Saturday morning, my longest run in a long time. (That last part is the marvelous part.)
2) This morning's run was another slog, but there were two very beautiful parts: a rose sky just before daybreak, and then seeing one of the St. Paul bridges lined with glowing streetlights on a foggy, cloudy morning.
3) This is totally not romantic or light-hearted wedding week reading, but I started reading Truman Capote's In Cold Blood last week and am captivated. Along similar lines, Josh and I finally - finally! - started watching "The Wire" over the last couple of weeks and are captivated by that, too.
4) Tennessee's second game of the season (and the first one on accessible-to-us TV) happened over the weekend, and Josh and I camped out on the couch on Saturday afternoon to watch the Volunteers march to a good win.
5) I went to a lovely baby shower yesterday honoring a lovely mama-to-be and was so happy to be able to celebrate with her.
And there are so many marvelous things ahead this week, with marvelous people, and my heart is so full.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Marvelous Monday: Week 10
Goodbye, 28! Hello, 29! It's my birthday!
Much love today (and every day) to my mom and dad.
28 was a year with a lot of learning and stretching. I started the 101 in 1,001 project (well, technically that happened for the last three months of 27), met Wish, ran a bunch of races and did more yoga than I've ever done in the rest of my years combined, and got engaged. I feel happy in my heart that 28 was one of my favorite years so far.
1) My breakfast included a birthday grapefruit!
2) We celebrated with my family last night and it was so nice. My mom cooked chicken parmigiana and my traditional sunny lemon birthday cake.
(Mom was very excited when I showed up wearing yellow! And, yes, my sister is holding Wish.)
3) Menu update: yesterday I made a batch of tomato-chickpea-pesto soup to have in between servings of leftover cake and chicken parmigiana. We made this a ton of times earlier in the fall and had to take a break from it, but it's time to revisit this recipe because it is tasty and very fast.
4) I guess I was too preoccupied with the chicken parmigiana last night to notice, but tonight I am determined to enjoy the marvelous extra daylight.
5) A bridesmaid dress shopping extravaganza commences later this week!
I'm excited for 29!
Much love today (and every day) to my mom and dad.
28 was a year with a lot of learning and stretching. I started the 101 in 1,001 project (well, technically that happened for the last three months of 27), met Wish, ran a bunch of races and did more yoga than I've ever done in the rest of my years combined, and got engaged. I feel happy in my heart that 28 was one of my favorite years so far.
1) My breakfast included a birthday grapefruit!
2) We celebrated with my family last night and it was so nice. My mom cooked chicken parmigiana and my traditional sunny lemon birthday cake.
(Mom was very excited when I showed up wearing yellow! And, yes, my sister is holding Wish.)
3) Menu update: yesterday I made a batch of tomato-chickpea-pesto soup to have in between servings of leftover cake and chicken parmigiana. We made this a ton of times earlier in the fall and had to take a break from it, but it's time to revisit this recipe because it is tasty and very fast.
4) I guess I was too preoccupied with the chicken parmigiana last night to notice, but tonight I am determined to enjoy the marvelous extra daylight.
5) A bridesmaid dress shopping extravaganza commences later this week!
I'm excited for 29!
Thursday, February 14, 2013
A pizza-related first
I promise I will connect the title to this post in a second. Just wait.
A couple of inches of fresh snow fell overnight, and this morning's drive to work was so outrageously beautiful I could hardly stand it. I mean, I truly could not stand it. I pulled over and snapped a few photos mid-commute.
And - ready - later in the day, I got to have heart-shaped pizza for the first time in my life! Monumental!
Josh has practice tonight, so we had a lunch date instead to celebrate Valentine's Day. I've heard all about these fabulous heart-shaped pizza specials that restaurants run on Feb. 14 but have never partaken in one.
The pizza was way good, as I feel about most pizzas, and I learned that it's kind of impossible not to grin every time you look down at this funny little pie. My other favorite part was the receipt:
Add a pretty snowy city to a day with a heart-shaped pizza, and I am a happy camper.
A couple of inches of fresh snow fell overnight, and this morning's drive to work was so outrageously beautiful I could hardly stand it. I mean, I truly could not stand it. I pulled over and snapped a few photos mid-commute.
And - ready - later in the day, I got to have heart-shaped pizza for the first time in my life! Monumental!
Josh has practice tonight, so we had a lunch date instead to celebrate Valentine's Day. I've heard all about these fabulous heart-shaped pizza specials that restaurants run on Feb. 14 but have never partaken in one.
The pizza was way good, as I feel about most pizzas, and I learned that it's kind of impossible not to grin every time you look down at this funny little pie. My other favorite part was the receipt:
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Sweets
Sweet: my mom's Valentine's Day cookies: thin sugar cookies with a seriously delightful icing in festive colors. We each got little gift bags full of them, and I noticed mine said "R+J" on it, and I wondered why they were specific to each household. Later, in the mix of the pink swirly cookies, I saw an "R+J" personalized cookie. Oops! A little chunk seems to have broken away.
Sweet: the rose from my dad, an annual Valentine's Day tradition that goes way back. When I got to the restaurant, he had three vases lined up on the table, one each for my brother, sister, and me.
And sweet: the little creeper who snuck into the photo, undoubtedly wondering why he can't be part of the cookie party, too.
I love it all.
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Thursday, January 3, 2013
2012 in review
Oh, Reader, I told you I really goofed on my timing. I know I'm supposed to be looking ahead to 2013. It's just that I had all these ideas in mind for year-end posts - and then saw other ideas from friends' blogs - and I just want to get to those, too!
The inspiration from this one came straight from Nat's blog. If I ever want to remember 2012's key points without reading through all 341 posts from last year, this will be the source.
January
I painted the main room in our apartment!
I read Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and then went to see the play with Sara at the Guthrie. We celebrated Josh's birthday and I made my first carrot cake. It was an unseasonably warm winter. I started my 101 in 1,001 list!
February
I began practicing yoga at CorePower. I started planning my Arizona trip. We had my fam over for dinner to celebrate my sister's birthday. My family had our traditional White Elephant birthday party. I tried to see hot air balloons at a festival, to no avail. I saw some absolutely wonderful hoarfrost!
March
I celebrated my 28th birthday with bowling!
My mom taught me how to make a scrapbook. I went to Arizona, where I learned about hummingbirds with Natty, rode a horse, went to the fantastic Desert Museum and ran in Sabino Canyon.
April
I kept up my attendance streak at Opening Day baseball games. I ran a 25K trail race and a happy 10K at Get in Gear. I planted window boxes and a little herb garden. Right before my mom's birthday, my family and I went to Mill City Museum, one of my favorite family activities all year.
May
Well, I spoke too soon: there were a bunch of family highlights this year, including my sister's college graduation and a weekend trip up north. We celebrated my dad's birthday. Last but not least, we also brought home a little dog in May!!!
June
June was very Wish-centric - his first bath, obedience class, and pool party - with the exception of an exciting visit from Josh's family! This month really flew by.
July
The Fourth of July was roasting hot in Minnesota, and we spent the holiday at my parent's air-conditioned house.
Josh's dad came to Minnesota for a visit! Molly and I finished our second 25K trail race of 2012 together. We took Wish on his first picnic. Also, Nat and her husband stayed with us for a couple of days, and Wish made his first dog friend thanks to their patient pup.
August
August's big highlight was my unforgettable trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area with Sara and a bunch of other women.
That fell over my brother's birthday, but we celebrated before.
Josh and I took my grandma to our third annual Twins game together.
September
I raced and ran a bunch in preparation for the Mankato Marathon in October. We kicked off our second season as Tennessee fans. Josh and I bought our first piece of art together: My Old Dog!
October
In October, I got to travel to Montreal for a work conference. I also ran my eighth marathon and also ran a 5K with a troupe of superheroes.
November
November's undeniable highlight was our trip to Tennessee, where we stayed in a cabin near the Great Smoky Mountains and went to a Tennessee football game.
We also, you know, got engaged there! Later in the month, I spent Thanksgiving with my family and ran a Turkey Trot before flying to Colorado for the rest of Thanksgiving weekend.
December
Josh and I went into wedding planning mode and picked our venue, one of our first major decisions in the process. We enjoyed holiday traditions like the cookie exchange and decorating the Christmas tree. It also snowed a foot one weekend, and Wish could hardly contain himself.
We spent Christmas in Colorado before flying back to MSP to spend a few days at my parents' house. I got to help make tamales for the first time!
I already got sentimental in Monday's post, so I'll keep that in check this time. 2012 was a full and very fun year.
The inspiration from this one came straight from Nat's blog. If I ever want to remember 2012's key points without reading through all 341 posts from last year, this will be the source.
January
I painted the main room in our apartment!
I read Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and then went to see the play with Sara at the Guthrie. We celebrated Josh's birthday and I made my first carrot cake. It was an unseasonably warm winter. I started my 101 in 1,001 list!
 |
| Josh's cake |
I began practicing yoga at CorePower. I started planning my Arizona trip. We had my fam over for dinner to celebrate my sister's birthday. My family had our traditional White Elephant birthday party. I tried to see hot air balloons at a festival, to no avail. I saw some absolutely wonderful hoarfrost!
March
I celebrated my 28th birthday with bowling!
My mom taught me how to make a scrapbook. I went to Arizona, where I learned about hummingbirds with Natty, rode a horse, went to the fantastic Desert Museum and ran in Sabino Canyon.
April
I kept up my attendance streak at Opening Day baseball games. I ran a 25K trail race and a happy 10K at Get in Gear. I planted window boxes and a little herb garden. Right before my mom's birthday, my family and I went to Mill City Museum, one of my favorite family activities all year.
Well, I spoke too soon: there were a bunch of family highlights this year, including my sister's college graduation and a weekend trip up north. We celebrated my dad's birthday. Last but not least, we also brought home a little dog in May!!!
June was very Wish-centric - his first bath, obedience class, and pool party - with the exception of an exciting visit from Josh's family! This month really flew by.
July
The Fourth of July was roasting hot in Minnesota, and we spent the holiday at my parent's air-conditioned house.
Josh's dad came to Minnesota for a visit! Molly and I finished our second 25K trail race of 2012 together. We took Wish on his first picnic. Also, Nat and her husband stayed with us for a couple of days, and Wish made his first dog friend thanks to their patient pup.
August
August's big highlight was my unforgettable trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area with Sara and a bunch of other women.
That fell over my brother's birthday, but we celebrated before.
Josh and I took my grandma to our third annual Twins game together.
I raced and ran a bunch in preparation for the Mankato Marathon in October. We kicked off our second season as Tennessee fans. Josh and I bought our first piece of art together: My Old Dog!
October
In October, I got to travel to Montreal for a work conference. I also ran my eighth marathon and also ran a 5K with a troupe of superheroes.
November
November's undeniable highlight was our trip to Tennessee, where we stayed in a cabin near the Great Smoky Mountains and went to a Tennessee football game.
We also, you know, got engaged there! Later in the month, I spent Thanksgiving with my family and ran a Turkey Trot before flying to Colorado for the rest of Thanksgiving weekend.
December
Josh and I went into wedding planning mode and picked our venue, one of our first major decisions in the process. We enjoyed holiday traditions like the cookie exchange and decorating the Christmas tree. It also snowed a foot one weekend, and Wish could hardly contain himself.
We spent Christmas in Colorado before flying back to MSP to spend a few days at my parents' house. I got to help make tamales for the first time!
I already got sentimental in Monday's post, so I'll keep that in check this time. 2012 was a full and very fun year.
Monday, December 31, 2012
The last Monday of 2012
Oh, jeepers, Reader. Get ready. I am feeling sentimental about 2012 (and life in general) today, and I think it will show in the Marvelous Monday notes.
1) I finished The End of Your Life Book Club over the weekend and loved it. Besides being a great story about the relationship between the author and his mom - and all of the books that they read together - it made me think a lot about gratitude, living mindfully, what kind of legacy I want to leave behind and what part I am playing right now in moving my community forward. I went in assuming it would be sad (his mother is terminally ill almost from the start of the book) and instead felt inspired by how his mother lived and the light she cast into the world. The book also made me scribble about five more books into my "to read" list.
Oh! I know one is supposed to do year-end recaps before the start of a new year, but I have a 2012 book report coming up with my favorites from the year.
2) Santa brought me fleece-lined leggings and they are a total game-changer.
3) My sister and her boyfriend cooked dinner for my family on Saturday night as their Christmas present to us! I hadn't seen her new(ish) apartment before Saturday, and it was beautiful (and the dinner was great, too).
My brother was crouching by her Christmas tree but then started standing up mid-picture, so he kind of looks like he springs around a room like a cat:
After most of dinner, the actual cat, Buffy, decided that we could be trusted and came out to play.
I thought I was a dog person, but I do love Buffy, too!
4) I love, love, love holiday cards. When Josh and I returned from 10 days away from our mailbox, the bulk of the season's cards were waiting in one pile, so we got to open them all at once. Each year, I put them up on a post in my kitchen and keep them there way, way past New Year's Day. I love seeing people we love up there.
I know people don't send out pictures of the days when they feel cranky - actually, if I weren't such a tireless advocate for optimism, I think it would be a really funny tradition to send those cards out, maybe in January! But these little cards remind me of how much our friends and family are celebrating this year: school and family and travel and projects and love and lives being well-lived. (I warned you I was feeling sentimental!)
5) On that note, I found out today that two of our friends are having a baby in 2013!
I will never forget 2012, for many reasons large and small, including a pair of pointy ears and a morning on a porch in Tennessee. I'm grateful for the year and excited about the years to come.
It's another good time to thank all of you: for reading M&L, for letting me post about Wish more than once per week without too much heckling, for your comments, recommendations and feedback. We'll cross M&L's two-year mark in the spring, and I have learned so much from writing almost daily and from connecting with you through it.
What are you looking forward to in 2013?
1) I finished The End of Your Life Book Club over the weekend and loved it. Besides being a great story about the relationship between the author and his mom - and all of the books that they read together - it made me think a lot about gratitude, living mindfully, what kind of legacy I want to leave behind and what part I am playing right now in moving my community forward. I went in assuming it would be sad (his mother is terminally ill almost from the start of the book) and instead felt inspired by how his mother lived and the light she cast into the world. The book also made me scribble about five more books into my "to read" list.
Oh! I know one is supposed to do year-end recaps before the start of a new year, but I have a 2012 book report coming up with my favorites from the year.
2) Santa brought me fleece-lined leggings and they are a total game-changer.
3) My sister and her boyfriend cooked dinner for my family on Saturday night as their Christmas present to us! I hadn't seen her new(ish) apartment before Saturday, and it was beautiful (and the dinner was great, too).
My brother was crouching by her Christmas tree but then started standing up mid-picture, so he kind of looks like he springs around a room like a cat:
After most of dinner, the actual cat, Buffy, decided that we could be trusted and came out to play.
I thought I was a dog person, but I do love Buffy, too!
4) I love, love, love holiday cards. When Josh and I returned from 10 days away from our mailbox, the bulk of the season's cards were waiting in one pile, so we got to open them all at once. Each year, I put them up on a post in my kitchen and keep them there way, way past New Year's Day. I love seeing people we love up there.
I know people don't send out pictures of the days when they feel cranky - actually, if I weren't such a tireless advocate for optimism, I think it would be a really funny tradition to send those cards out, maybe in January! But these little cards remind me of how much our friends and family are celebrating this year: school and family and travel and projects and love and lives being well-lived. (I warned you I was feeling sentimental!)
5) On that note, I found out today that two of our friends are having a baby in 2013!
I will never forget 2012, for many reasons large and small, including a pair of pointy ears and a morning on a porch in Tennessee. I'm grateful for the year and excited about the years to come.
It's another good time to thank all of you: for reading M&L, for letting me post about Wish more than once per week without too much heckling, for your comments, recommendations and feedback. We'll cross M&L's two-year mark in the spring, and I have learned so much from writing almost daily and from connecting with you through it.
What are you looking forward to in 2013?
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Yes!
So...
Has it seemed like Miles and Laurel was a little bit quiet lately? Yes?
Did you think that maybe I was omitting something from the Tennessee trip report? Yes?
Okay, you got me. I have been keeping a secret forwhat seems like 20 million years two weeks.
Josh and I are getting married!!!
He asked me to marry him, on what was already my favorite porch in the whole world, at my favorite time of day: sunrise.
(It was Day 5 in my six days of Tennessee sunrises, which is by far the weirdest photo in that post. We had watched the sun rise, and he proposed with a ring that I loved right away, and I was so overcome that I forgot to take a sunrise photo until about 20 minutes after the sun came up. So much for that souvenir!)
The whole thing was perfect. (And yes, I said yes!)
Later in the day, we drove through the national park to Clingman's Dome, the highest point in Tennessee. We stopped at one little parking lot for a view of the hoarfrost at the top of the mountain - and for our first photo as an engaged couple, thanks to the timer on my camera!
Later that week, we took another one at my parents' house, with Wish looking totally deranged:
When Josh proposed, we had agreed to tell my immediate family and then try to keep the news as quiet as possible until he could tell his parents in person on Thanksgiving. This felt very reasonable at the time - and in all seriousness, I wouldn't have wanted it any other way - but by the time Thanksgiving rolled around 10 days later, I was ready to burst! I am so glad that it worked: to my knowledge, he got to surprise them with the news without advanced notice from anyone else (or Facebook). On Thanksgiving, with the news no longer under wraps, my grandma helped spread the word quickly by grabbing my wrist and pulling my hand toward every new family member that arrived, to show them my ring.
Now, because we want to get married in the Twin Cities in September or October, I've landed in the deep end of the wedding planning pool and am grabbing for a pair of floaties. No, I'm kidding - kind of. Reservations for the venues around town have been filling quickly, so we've been busy researching and visiting places. (Wish glares at my laptop, to scorn whatever I could possibly find more interesting than playing fetch with him.) Besides attending wonderful weddings in the past five years, I truly have not been mulling over wedding-related details for years or even months, so there is so much information to process and consider. My mom, who dove under her bed to unearth a stack of wedding magazines minutes after I told her the news, has been an unbelievable source of information (and enthusiasm!).
But while my mind has spun from time to time, my spirits are overwhelmingly full of joy. We are so grateful for the warmth we felt this week (and always) from our large families and from those who are like family. We can't wait to celebrate with those people! We are so excited for this new chapter and for the next year - and for all of the years beyond that.
Has it seemed like Miles and Laurel was a little bit quiet lately? Yes?
Did you think that maybe I was omitting something from the Tennessee trip report? Yes?
Okay, you got me. I have been keeping a secret for
Josh and I are getting married!!!
He asked me to marry him, on what was already my favorite porch in the whole world, at my favorite time of day: sunrise.
(It was Day 5 in my six days of Tennessee sunrises, which is by far the weirdest photo in that post. We had watched the sun rise, and he proposed with a ring that I loved right away, and I was so overcome that I forgot to take a sunrise photo until about 20 minutes after the sun came up. So much for that souvenir!)
The whole thing was perfect. (And yes, I said yes!)
Later in the day, we drove through the national park to Clingman's Dome, the highest point in Tennessee. We stopped at one little parking lot for a view of the hoarfrost at the top of the mountain - and for our first photo as an engaged couple, thanks to the timer on my camera!
Later that week, we took another one at my parents' house, with Wish looking totally deranged:
When Josh proposed, we had agreed to tell my immediate family and then try to keep the news as quiet as possible until he could tell his parents in person on Thanksgiving. This felt very reasonable at the time - and in all seriousness, I wouldn't have wanted it any other way - but by the time Thanksgiving rolled around 10 days later, I was ready to burst! I am so glad that it worked: to my knowledge, he got to surprise them with the news without advanced notice from anyone else (or Facebook). On Thanksgiving, with the news no longer under wraps, my grandma helped spread the word quickly by grabbing my wrist and pulling my hand toward every new family member that arrived, to show them my ring.
Now, because we want to get married in the Twin Cities in September or October, I've landed in the deep end of the wedding planning pool and am grabbing for a pair of floaties. No, I'm kidding - kind of. Reservations for the venues around town have been filling quickly, so we've been busy researching and visiting places. (Wish glares at my laptop, to scorn whatever I could possibly find more interesting than playing fetch with him.) Besides attending wonderful weddings in the past five years, I truly have not been mulling over wedding-related details for years or even months, so there is so much information to process and consider. My mom, who dove under her bed to unearth a stack of wedding magazines minutes after I told her the news, has been an unbelievable source of information (and enthusiasm!).
But while my mind has spun from time to time, my spirits are overwhelmingly full of joy. We are so grateful for the warmth we felt this week (and always) from our large families and from those who are like family. We can't wait to celebrate with those people! We are so excited for this new chapter and for the next year - and for all of the years beyond that.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Valentine's Day
Is it surprising to anyone out there that I love Valentine's Day? No?
Sure, it can be a little schmaltzy. Sure, it's alittle lot overcommercialized.
But I love love. (Speaking of schmaltz, I'm aware I may have permanently lost readers with that sentence.) The argument against Valentine's Day with which I align most closely is that love should be celebrated every day, not just on Feb. 14. I really do wish people celebrated it every day. And not just romantic love, either. This is a perfecto day to remind those dear to you how great you think they are. (And if I had a dog, I would not rule out giving it a Valentine, either.)
Go tell someone you love him or her, okay? I mean, maybe not a colleague, but friends and family tend to appreciate this sort of thing.
More love. More heart. That's it.
Wishing you lots of both, from Miles and Laurel.
Sure, it can be a little schmaltzy. Sure, it's a
But I love love. (Speaking of schmaltz, I'm aware I may have permanently lost readers with that sentence.) The argument against Valentine's Day with which I align most closely is that love should be celebrated every day, not just on Feb. 14. I really do wish people celebrated it every day. And not just romantic love, either. This is a perfecto day to remind those dear to you how great you think they are. (And if I had a dog, I would not rule out giving it a Valentine, either.)
Go tell someone you love him or her, okay? I mean, maybe not a colleague, but friends and family tend to appreciate this sort of thing.
Wishing you lots of both, from Miles and Laurel.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Ellie-Fence
Happy birthday to one of my dearest friends! I met Ellie, better known to many as Fence, at the very beginning of sophomore year in college, during cross-country preseason. Since then, my beloved Eleanor has lived in Boston and Austin (and India and New York, but they don't rhyme) all in the name of education. I don't see her one percentage as much as I'd like to see her, but sometimes it happens, usually in Cambridge but most recently for a weekend in Minnesota.
Whenever we are in the same zip code, though, we are happy as clams. I get to see her in less than a month, this time to celebrate another beloved's wedding!
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| Ellie is very smart but can be very silly, too. Here, she is pretending to fly. |
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| I think at least one reader might enjoy this impromptu haircut shot. |
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| We even graduated from college. |
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| And sometimes we dance on the streets of Cambridge. |
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