Right Now - June 2013

I missed May (sorry about that) it was a little crazy around here with health stuff, work stuff and family gatherings. Not good excuses, but that's where we've been. So before June is over, here's what's going on.

loving my new smile. I fell in late April and my teeth took the brunt of the fall. My front two teeth were severely chipped (it took 3 hours for my teeth to be back to something normal). Some things I learned? If you can afford to, whiten your teeth with custom trays (I was able to get a light shade of bonding), save the trays, and save the impressions. I didn't do #3, so it was a little tougher for the dentist to get a perfect match for my old teeth. But, I'm really glad I was able to keep the teeth (we are thinking double root canal is in the future, though).

finding lots of stuff I didn't even know we had. We've been purging stuff and deciding what we really need to keep. We're appreciating what we have more and sending other things off to people who might enjoy them.

incredibly grateful for my family and friends who rushed to pray when I really needed it.

Saying goodbye  to these guys.

Seriously, we monopolized their time the last week they were here and the actual goodbye moment was so freaking hard. Like, these two have made our lives more spontaneous, fun, thoughtful and exciting. It will be hard not seeing them often, but we are looking forward to a new travel spot and future vacations together.

happy to have our air conditioning installed. We had a few beastly hot days and it was nice not sweating.

spraying down the kitchen with the yummiest cleaners around. I know, tomato vine and radish scented cleaners sound icky, but trust me, they smell divine. Go buy them. Now. I have stocked up on the Method cleaner because it's limited edition and I will need a nice supply. Both are crisp, fresh, and perfect for summer.

filling vases with fresh flowers. I've been keeping fresh flowers in the apartment since my birthday and it really has brought spring into our place. My favorite florist is Trader Joe's. No joke. For 4 bucks, the long lasting blooms brighten the kitchen.

planning less. I am taking breaks from many committments. I don't like to say no to anyone for any reason, but I need to hit the pause button and be less involved. I'm over-committed and need to take a break.

taking many more photos this spring than last year. This was a goal for 2013 and I'm liking the results. I'm trying to be on Instagram more and more too.

celebrating moms and dads with their special days. We headed out to the vineyards for a wine tour with my parents this weekend for some relaxing time together.

 

still deciding if we need a new couch. Ours is comfortable enough...until we visit anyone else, sit on their couch and realize how much ours is shot. And questioning if we should just wait a couple of years until we can hopefully own a home and furnish it with some new pieces.

 thrilled about starting Beth Moore's Deuteronomy study. I haven't done a Bible study since last spring and it's definitely time to get back into that habit. 

saying I'm sorry. I hurt someone's feelings recently and had to apologize. I think the anticipation of the whole confrontation may have been more stressful than the actual offense (which fortunately ended up being more of a misunderstanding). It was humbling to say the least.

watching the Office finale. We have watched this show for all nine seasons and celebrated with a simple dinner and hot pretzels.

also watching Mad Men's season finale - with a dropped jaw. That was some good freaking TV.

wearing dresses and skirts without stockings.

Linking up

Winter Recap - Hello Christmas!

I never did post about Christmas, did I? Guess it's time to do that simply. 

Hello celebrating the reason for the season. Our church decorations were stunning and it felt like Christmas inside (and out). It was even 'snowing' during services! One of our favorite traditions is decorating the church on Thanksgiving Eve. It was lots of work this year (I really don't know how they will top this next year) but it truly felt magical inside.

Hello gorgeous table - my mother in law has a great eye for design. And she graciously hosted my parents as well - our normal gathering of 5 people was 11 this year! So much love.

Hello sister in law! Lauren studied in Italy this semester and returned to NY just in time for Christmas. She was so missed.

 Hello friends - new and old. We went to a perfectly festive Christmas coctail party. It was such a blast!

Hello argyle wreath - my only craft project this Christmas.

Hello ugly sweaters!

 Hello PJs! We always change into comfy clothes for present opening. Freddy's shirt is from a local pizza place...but he's scrum too.

Hello sweet treats. My brother created yummy desserts for us.

Hello little Nutcracker angels! This performance really made it feel like Christmas.

 Hello bro - I just adore that my brother and I dressed up this year for Christmas like we were in a wedding party together. He was originally in a 3-piece suit and I dressed up to sing at church. When we were little ones, we were the most dressed up on any holiday, so I guess we tried to bring that back this year.

 Hello Magi clan! Maybe we should have snapped this before we had our coats on, but at least we had a great shot together.

Hello Merry Little Christmas.

Hope you all enjoyed yours.

Linking up with Lisa Leonard for Hello Monday

and Carissa for

Words on the Walls

This will sound funny, but I am not a fan of quotes on my walls. 

Actually, what I am not a fan of is inspirational quotes that I could never live up to.

For instance "Live fully, laugh often, love deeply". I love that quote. I really do. But most days I'm living like it's a glass half-empty world, scowling intensely, and not getting along with people.  (I'm not saying my attitude is right, either. I know that it needs work. Lots of work that I can't do alone).

But there were two quotes I have always wanted on my walls -

 the scriptures read at our wedding.

When the fabulous Denise opened her new Etsy shop Kiss the Sky (please read the shop's welcome, it's probably the most beautiful one found on the entire webernets) I knew that I needed to buy

Ruth 1:16 

 and Hebrews 13:2 for our home.

I actually think that these are two things that Freddy and I try to live up to. 

We 'do life' together. It's so very important for us.

And the hospitality thing? Well, we live in a one bedroom apartment, so we can't really host overnight gatherings, but something we treasure is being with those we love and trying to make them feel special when they are with us. It's something we value, to have people be a part of the every day moments and sharing them together.

I'm not at all saying that we have this life thing figured out, but these gentle reminders from the Lord keep me going. 

They keep me focused on what is important. 

And I know in His faithfulness, I will be what He desires. 

Maybe one day I will be living fully, laughing often, and loving deeply. That can be my new prayer.

Thank you, Denise for making these. My husband and I are still trying to pick the perfect spots for them to be enjoyed! 

Denise is celebrating the opening of her shop with a discount:

Receive 10% off in the Kiss the Sky shop this week.
{June 25- July1}
Use coupon code

grateful

Miscellany Monday 11/28/11

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

I'm linking up here to share some randomness about the week.

Our Thanksgiving was...boring. 

No cooking, no hosting, just relaxing.

And I was totally ok with that.

We started the day with a tradition we've loved for the past 20 years...Thanksgiving breakfast with faux-family. It's been a highlight of my life. My parents and their friends go to mass in the morning and then enjoy a meal together, parting ways in the afternoon to head to family gatherings. We always take a group photo and this may be one of the best we've ever captured.

Dinner was with my husband's family and was quiet and lovely.

 I'm not a big fan of Thanksgiving food (gasp, I didn't have more than a mouthful of turkey, no potatoes and no dessert), but I enjoyed being with family. After years of forcing my husband to take tons of photos on holidays, I've been putting the camera away and letting others take shots, so I'll have them once they get shared on the Facebook.

Our highlight of the week was decorating our church for Christmas.

Since we rent, we don't decorate big time or outside.

I've gotten very sad about this in the past.

This little decorating adventure lifted my spirits and filled that need to decorate a big space.

Somehow I got roped into decorating the

 'it belongs in a department store' tree.

Seriously. 

I've always wondered how those trees get so beautiful.

By shoving tons of glittering stuff into it.

Now you know too. 

 My job was handing the decorations to someone, so I had little to do with this gorgeous tree.

But it was totally awesome to be with new friends the night before Thanksgiving.

I hope we do this every year.

I've already said that I'm not looking forward to being part of the de-decorating committee!

This week I'll be writing out my Christmas cards and doing some shopping. We've decided to really downsize this year - one decent gift for each person. It's not so much a money thing (welp, it kinda is, but that wasn't the motivating factor) but a desire to appreciate time spent with others. We pretty much had a calm Christmas last year, so we'd like to keep that simplicity going.

Oh, and I may finally get to make these this week.

Source: bhg.com via Kathleen on Pinterest

Miscellany Monday 11/7/11

After months of not participating, I'm linking up to join in the fun of Miscellany Monday.

I noticed that I haven't posted anything personal or shared any life updates in a long time, so this is my chance to do just that.

I went to San Diego last week for a work conference.

And watched the sun rise before my eyes.

I haven't seen a sunrise in 6 years.

Although I didn't see much more of San Diego than this, it was glorious.

Perfect view, perfect weather, great food.

 My little knitting hobby is becoming the most wonderful hobby I've ever embraced.

my 'knitting bag' is from Watermelon Wishes

 It kept me semi-sane during the bumpy flights and it's stress-free.

I'm sad that scrapbooking, the hobby I loved and spent mucho bucks on for the past 8 years is being faded out of my life, but to be honest, I'm becoming ok with that.

Although knitting can be expensive (merino wool, cashmere, etc), it's very rewarding and people actually appreciate the creations. With scrapbooking, I've never felt that many people understand the time/money/attention to detail/taking over of space that occurs. It had its perks for sure - I take more photos now and have some supplies that I use for way more than intended, but it was taking over our apartment. 

Oh, and if I had a project I became a psycho mean chick. Like my husband would need to calm me down because I became so overwhelmed.  

But knitting, oh it's just wonderful! 

I'm knitting when I fly, when we go on longer car trips, when I listen to my audio book, when I watch tv...really, it's such a fun thing to do. And I've always been tactical, so it satisfies that need to do something with my hands. And I don't bite my nails during tense episodes of Law and Order.

 I just knit faster.

 Realized recently that I've never shared my severe love for Vera Bradley over here. It's a problem. For  the past couple of seasons I passed on patterns and bags and then *wham* I fell in love with the recent pattern releases and with some coupons and gift cards have stocked up once again on some paisley, floral goodness.

Yeah, some people think they're frumpy and uncool. I love 'em because they're lightweight and well-organized. I still adore handmade items (like my knitting bag), but I just love me some Vera.

Miscellany Monday 6/6/11

I'm linking up with Carissa at Lowercase Letters for Miscellany Monday.

1. We enjoyed really stunning weather here this past week. If we could bottle this up and use it all year long that would be perfect.

This is a scene from the local East End vineyards we visited Saturday.

We spent the day relaxing with great friends.

2. Loved these bubbly chandeliers from Sparkling Pointe, a sparkling wine exclusive vineyard.

3. Roses are in full-bloom too.

I'm trying to remember to take more everyday photos. This was something I used to do all the time. Take shots of the little delightful things that made up a normal day. But the past two years I have stopped doing that and Miscellany Monday is suffering as a result. Here's to hoping that I can find more cool moments to embrace and share.

Miscellany Monday 5/23/11

This week was simple, low-key, and not filled with much stress. 

That alone could be a Miscellany Monday post topic.

You can join in the fun over at lowercase letters.

 But there were three celebrations (and a surprise fourth) for the week that caused lots of excitement.

My friend Crystal and her husband are moving to Minneapolis for Crystal to continue her studies in midwifery. She's brilliant, always has been independent and has a passion for women and children. We got together for a little farewell dinner where we reminded each other to talk and skype and most importantly to write. She and I used to write these awesome, handwritten letters to one another, but it's since been replaced by technology. We want to get back into that habit. 

We are wishing her so much luck during this exciting time.

Here's a shot of us at her wedding celebration.

My brother celebrated his 26th birthday. 

We enjoyed a night rocking out to Big Shot (an incredible Billy Joel cover band).

The weekend ended with a dinner celebration with the whole family.

My sister in law came home from college. Missed her so very much.

And the biggest news of all: 

Paige and her husband Michael welcomed Molly Eileen into the world.

(Photo courtesy of her sister, Ashley)

 I'm freaking out excited for these three. 

They just exude sheer joy.

Sending your new family lots and lots of wishes for constant blessings.

Miscellany Monday 5/16/11

I'm joining lots of other bloggers over at lowercase letters in Miscellany Monday. 

1. I went for my first wellness physical in 10 years. Yes, I realize that's stupid, considering I go for dentist appointments, eye doctor appointments and 'lady-doctor' appointments, but for some reason I've been afraid of going to the doctor. It ended up being totally fine.
Plus, no copay because it's a welness visit??? Extra bonus.
Just another reason why I should have been doing this annually for the past six years.
Now I know.

By the way, it's also not a good idea to take Benadryl and Zyrtec all year long to control allergies.

2. We washed my husband's bathrobe and now it is leaving little babies (it is shedding like crazzzzy) everywhere in our apartment.

3. I brought several scrapbooks home from my parents' to scan in the old photos. I seriously love thumbing through snapshots of my parents when they were little and from early in their marriage.

This photo is lovingly referred to as the Kennedy Shot because my dad looks like JFK (he's all the way in the back) and my uncle (striped shirt) looks like Bobby Kennedy. Love it!!

4. Clinique's revamped Chubby Sticks are so worth the $15.00. They glide on like a gloss but have saturated color like a lipstick. I remember these (a long time ago, maybe 8 years ago??)when you had to actually sharpen them and they were much too dry to wear without gloss. Now they are an absolute dream.

5. Been thinking lots about miss Paige. She and her husband are anxiously awaiting the birth of their first child and she has been one of the most graceful expectant moms I've met, just embracing the blessing in her life and going with the flow. If anyone can handle mommy-hood it will be her.

Our photographer snapped this shot of us together at our wedding.