los caballo/7 iron affair

I'm drooling...

2010-03-23T18:58:00.000-06:00

...over this recipe from The Pioneer Woman. We'd have this for dinner, if not for no potatoes.

Headed home

2010-03-04T19:27:00.002-07:00

I've put in a 12-hour day at the office. I'm excited to watch Grey's Anatomy tonight and to see my sister. I'm more excited to go to sleep tonight and wake up, knowing that it's Friday. I'm not quite into the swing of things with the "blog every day" thing, but I do like the challenge.

Hey, here's something cool to check out: Mamalode. I know the gal who started this magazine, and I think it's great, even though I'm not yet a mom!

2010-03-02T20:48:00.001-07:00

Golly...busy day. Not quite into this "every day" routine. I'll get better, I promise!

Commitment. Go.

2010-03-01T15:52:00.002-07:00

In an effort to do a little something fun every day, I'm going to commit to writing something on my blog every day, even if it's tiny. I love this blog, and I see what others are sharing with their blogs, and I want to do the same.

Something fun I've found recently: Silver Pencils, authored by my favorite Bee, Mrs. Espresso! I loved reading about her wedding and I'm loving her blog. Her pins and hair flowers are pretty darn cute, too!

So, I hope you stay tuned, whoever you are, because I'm committing to you a little bit more. :)

What a day...

2010-01-28T14:03:00.002-07:00

...and I don't mean this in the exhausted, I'd-like-to-complain-about-my-job way (like some people I know) but in the "wow, I changed how I do a few things, and what a difference it made!"

My new position is recruiting. That means I have to talk to a lot of people. I have to motivate people who are my "centers of influence" to talk to a lot of people. Which means, in turn, that it's important for me to talk on the phone and schedule appointments. My consultant (who is a total rockstar, by the way) and I talked yesterday, and she said, "Every day, from 8-10 AM, close your door, put a note that says, 'On the phone, out at 10' and get on the phone. Schedule it. Don't do anything else." Guess what? I did that today and I made 20 calls and about 10 appointments. (I left a few messages.) I had an unbelievable time of focus. It totally rocked.

This year is going to be great for me and the Mr., I just know it! I'm loving the new year and my new position, and I'm loving the challenge. It keeps me busy and excited and happy. Sure, it's stressful, but it's fun.

How are you feeling?

Art. Love it.

2010-01-11T15:54:00.001-07:00

What a great concept. I'm definitely keeping this on my radar.

I think I oughtta bake

2010-01-07T15:26:00.003-07:00

This week has been a crush of reality; we've spent the last two weeks preparing for Christmas and my sister's wedding, spending very little time in the real world of work and phone calls and saying the right thing and playing the numbers game. So this week, we are both tired. Last night was the first night this week that I didn't dream about work. Nice.

Tonight, I know the Mr. is planning on watching some big football game; I'm thinking I'd like to read and maybe bake some banana bread. I'm sorta in the mood to experiment. I really like the looks of this recipe from Orangette. I love how Molly writes about food and life, and I love her book. You should read it, really. It makes me want to cook.

I'm thinking, though, for this recipe, that I'd like to try a little experiment. What do you think would happen if, instead of honey, one used molasses? How might that turn out? I might try it, and let you know what happens.

Happy New Year...

2010-01-06T08:03:00.003-07:00

The holiday season seemed like such a whirlwind. We've been doing a ton of traveling between the ranch and Missoula for the past month with the holidays and my sister's wedding on January 2. Everything was beautiful and went off without a hitch, and my sister and her husband had a wonderful wedding; it truly was a fabulous party. This week, my Mr. and I are recovering from weeks of parties and traveling; we're both moving slow this week and are looking forward to a weekend with no plans, just wherever the wind blows us.

I don't do New Year's resolutions; mostly because I find I never keep them and I always feel like a loser if, when I wake up February 1, I realize that I've totally failed. But, my mom sent me a lovely "Handbook 2010" email with several great ideas for the new year. A couple of them I already do, like drink plenty of water and most of the time, I get enough sleep. However, with the start of my new job, I find myself (in my seven hours of sleep) dreaming about my job and things I have to do. I've got to try to find a way to make that go away, because really, I need my sleep. I want to dream about things like horses, time at the ranch, summer, and fun. So, that's a resolution, I suppose, for me: to get restful sleep. Any ideas?

Hope you all had a fabulous new year and a wonderful Christmas.

Experiment: red wine risotto

2009-12-29T15:58:00.001-07:00

I have been craving some risotto lately. I know, right off the top of my head, that I am missing about 50 percent of the ingredients for any of my previous risotto recipes. However, I had a thought: maybe I'll just experiment. What's the worst that could happen? We'd eat the left over mac and cheese from Sunday. It's edible.

I'll keep you posted.

On our first Christmas

2009-12-24T09:17:00.002-07:00

Technically, this isn't our "first" Christmas. The Mr. and I have been together for three Christmases now, but this Christmas is the first we will spend together as a family. Tonight, we'll be with his parents and brother, then attend our church's midnight service. Tomorrow morning, we'll get up early and head to the ranch for Christmas morning. It feels different that I'm not with my family today, tonight, and first thing in the morning, but I understand the compromise that comes with being a new family. We've done a lot to make Christmas seem more like "home as usual:" we have a little Christmas tree in our little apartment, we have wrapped gifts under the tree, we'll be going to Christmas Eve service together, and we'll wake up to each other on Christmas morning. I'll make coffee, we'll drink it by the Christmas lights. We'll try to get to the ranch in time for my mom's breakfast casserole.

Today, we're at the office for a few hours; then we'll do a bit of last minute shopping. I need to bake some Christmas goodies and finish laundry, and get us packed for the weekend.

In other news, I'm behind on the 52 books in one year challenge. I finished my third and fourth books and am almost finished with my fifth. With any luck, I'll get back on track over the next couple of weeks.

Merry Christmas, everyone! May your season be blessed.

Reading material...if you're looking

2009-12-18T05:52:00.002-07:00

This was a fun article, pointed out by Cup of Jo.

The magic of Christmas

2009-12-18T05:29:00.004-07:00

If you've been missing me, I'm sorry! The last couple of weeks have been busy with training a new person at the office, moving office furniture, and waiting for a new laptop to show up. I've been transitioning into a new role at my office, which is wonderful; I'm looking forward to the challenge. And as of yesterday, we got all of the furniture moved so I have a real office now. Things are coming together.

Last night, the Mr. and I and my sister (who's getting married in 15 days!) drove around town, looking at Christmas lights. The night was lovely; we went to dinner at Outback Steakhouse, then drove around in the heavy fog of Missoula, looking at the the lights.

The first place we stopped is a house where the Mr.'s family stops every Christmas eve. This couple fills their yard, deck, trees, garage, windows with Christmas decorations. You can walk around their driveway and check it out up close (including the Porky Pig who sings "Blue Christmas," stutter and all.) The photos above are from this first stop.

My sister is a little kid when it comes to Christmas. Last night was almost like driving around with a small child in the car; I don't mean this in a bad way at all! It just means that when we're talking Christmas, my sister still sees the magic of Christmas with the heart of a child. She loves Christmas lights. She oohs and ahhs over the most fantastic of displays and does nearly the same thing when someone has a single string of lights on a single tree on the single decorated house on a street. She eats it up.

My sister finished finals week for her first semester of Physical Therapy school yesterday. She was ready for some fun. Also, I don't think she's been able to really think about her wedding because she's been so busy with school. I'm glad that she has the next two weeks to really soak up the magic that is the last 15 days before a wedding. I'm so happy for her and her guy. I can't wait for their wedding, and I'm happy that she is so happy. Their wedding will be amazing: a day filled with laughter, love, and fun times.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

(With any luck, I'll write again before Christmas.)

I can't help myself.

2009-12-07T12:26:00.002-07:00

Today is that one day a month when I feel really crummy. I make myself better when I feel this way by eating whatever I feel like.

Whatever. I. Feel. Like.

So, for instance, I eat lots of macaroni and cheese, pasta in general, candy, you name it. I allow myself this because I never do this otherwise, and I've been working out.

Additionally, I don't do anything I don't want to do for this day. I think my emphatic nature toward this is evident if someone says, "Hey, can you do this?" And my response, in general, is "Nope." No further explanation necessary.

Gotta go. I need a candy bar.

Majorly absent

2009-12-03T10:33:00.002-07:00

Well, I just realized that I haven't written anything since last Tuesday.

Bad, bad, bad.

It's just that I've been so busy...

...which is such a poor excuse. We're all busy. We're all tired. I've been feeling a lot of that, and rather than be one of those people who complains incessantly about it, I just don't write.

I'm so happy, happy, happy that the holidays are here. We have a wonderful little tree in our tiny apartment, and even though half of the lights stopped working, we still love it. It still brings a bit of Christmas into our house. I have a few pine boughs out on the deck, and I'm trying to think of something to do with them that is festive and fun.

Tonight, I think I'm going to take some time to catch up on some housework, read, and do laundry.

Anyway, I haven't disappeared (and, my lovely few readers probably know that, since I talk to you daily anyway...).

Merry Christmas!

Excellent holiday idea

2009-11-24T12:12:00.003-07:00

Sometime this weekend, I think I'll whip up some of this lovely cookie dough.

Heart of Light posted this recipe (and photo) and I agree: what a great way to have desserts on hand, or to whip up something quick for a fast Christmas gift?

Monday smile #2: she likes the calendar!

2009-11-23T19:05:00.002-07:00

Grey Moggie liked my calendar! I'm so happy.

Monday smile #1: cute baskets.

2009-11-23T09:49:00.003-07:00

I think baskets are adorable and a really fabulous way to contain stuff. Check out this post from Small Place Style. I especially like the hanging one in the closet for mittens and hats.

A case of the Mondays. Blech.

2009-11-23T08:39:00.002-07:00

Hmmm. After a wonderful weekend at the ranch, I'm back to the office, and honestly, I'm feeling a little under the weather. I have this goofy kink in my neck and my body feels really tired and achy. I hope I'm not coming down with some bug.

I'm currently avoiding the piles of paperwork on my desk by looking at a couple of my favorite blogs, thinking about the holidays, and chatting with Babs. I am thinking of how to motivate myself to tackle the projects. What's funny is over the last couple of weeks, when I was interviewing candidates to replace me (oh, I didn't tell you I'm moving to a new position in our office!) I asked: "Tell me about a time where you had a lot on your plate, everything seemed important. How do you tackle that situation?"

My answer is: I just pick stuff up and do it, and get it away from me. When my desk is covered, like it is today, I don't waste time even sorting through it. I figure everything is important, it must get done today, so I just do it. Today, I'm going to try to accomplish five tasks, then take a short break. That helps me keep plugging along, and on days like today, that's what I need. On those breaks, I'm going to find lovely stuffs to share with you all. I don't know about you, but when I'm struggling to get through a Monday, it helps to have little, fun, inspiring distractions.

Five things: go!

Two down, 50 to go

2009-11-21T16:48:00.002-07:00

Second on my reading list for 52 books in one year was Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie. Our book club chose it for our December meeting; it is a book I probably would not have read on my own, which is one of the reasons I love my book club.

The story is set in China during Mao's Cultural Revolution. Two teenage boys are sent to a re-education camp where they discover a suitcase full of forbidden books in Chinese translation. They devour the stories and share them with the Little Chinese Seamstress, who, even more so than the boys, becomes transformed by the stories in the books. That end, unsurprisingly for a short book, comes abruptly: almost so much that you don't even notice the heartache and sadness that surrounds it. Honestly, the book needed to have more character and story development; it was pretty simple, somewhat vague, and not seductive or overly captivating.

That said, I would recommend it, if only for the glimpse (albeit blurry and obscure) into the Cultural Revolution in China. And, of course, it's short, which means you could read it in a day. (It took me six days, mainly because I didn't read much this week.)

I'm at the ranch this weekend. I've been reading, watching movies, going on walks with my mom, riding my horse, and enjoying being out of the "city" for a while. Last night, we watched "The Last King of Scotland." One word: intense. I knew basically nothing about Uganda in the 1970s, so the movie was a real eye-opener to that time in world history. I'd recommend watching it, but not while you're eating dinner.

My calendar swap mate ROCKS!

2009-11-19T09:06:00.002-07:00

Check out what the fabulous gal from Grey Moggie sent me:

a pretty calendar!

I love it. When we got home late last night, I shot to the mailbox to get the mail. Mostly, I was thinking that the latest Netflix movie would be there; I didn't think I'd have my calendar so fast. But there, in our little mail slot, was a lovely package. She sealed the envelope with this totally rad packing tape, and even sent me a couple of her handmade holiday gift tags. What a sweetheart!

And, February on the calendar was made by Grey Moggie. I love it!

Thanks, "new blog friend!"

Friday: decorating, rehearsing, eating, drinking

2009-11-18T06:31:00.000-07:00

Back to the wedding weekend recaps...

On Friday, we started our day with muffins. A family friend brought about six dozen muffins for all of the people staying at, stopping by, or swinging through, the ranch. Our house was full of people, which was something I really, truly loved about our wedding weekend. My Mr. showed up on Friday morning with his brother and best man, Eric, in tow. I was so thrilled to see him and so excited that everything was falling in to place.

Around 10, we headed to the reception site to start decorating. Our reception was held in a building that had windows on all four sides; it's your standard small-town Montana all-purpose building. We set up two wall tents on two sides of the building to accommodate all of our guests. Luckily, we had about 40 helpers on Friday, so setting up the tents was a breeze. All of the Mr.'s New Zealand family who'd come over for the wedding were there to pitch in. The Kiwis were a huge help. The dude Kiwis set out to helping my dad and his friends to set up the tents, pick up tables and chairs, and do the "man" stuff. All of the gals, plus bridesmaids, family, and my mom's pals helped us decorate inside.

Here's a tip: it's a good idea to have a decorating meeting/pow-wow before you get started. Otherwise, there's a lot of people wanting jobs and you have to explain things over and over. We were blessed with a lot of help, but it would have been less stressful for my mom and I if we'd have done that. Give everyone the vision and put them to work. Once we got all coordinated, things flowed pretty smoothly.

Here you can see what the table decorations looked like. I had a vision of using the fabulous blue Mason jars for decorations, filled with wheat, dried grasses, pheasant feathers, and cattails. We'd put them together weeks in advance, so all we had to do was set them out on tables, and voila, we were decorated!

Yeah, it was almost that simple. At this point, I was mostly in the "decorate, set-up, execute" mode. I wasn't really thinking about the wedding yet. I was just thinking, "S$%t! We have only two hours left until the rehearsal starts! I need to shower! I need a nap!"

While the crew decorated the reception site, my sister and her crew worked on the flowers. We ordered our roses from 2G Roses, and, since my sister worked in a floral shop, she created the corsages, bouts for the guys, and the bouquets. They turned out perfectly. It was a wonderful way to save money in our budget, but more than that, it was a personal touch, and that's what our wedding was about.

Here's my sister and part of her crew: our friend, Karen, from Kansas, Babs, and "Corn Dog" (as I call my sis):

See, I told you the flowers were gorgeous! The photographers emailed and said one of their favorite details of the wedding was the chips of turquoise in the corsages and bouts.

Back at the pavilion, we wrapped up the decorating by mid-afternoon. I had gotten tired and knew that I needed some rest before the evening's activities. One of the greatest blessings of the weekend was that I was surrounded by people who were willing to go above and beyond to do what the Mr. and I wanted; I fully realize that this was the one and only time this may EVER happen in my life!

And apparently, everyone else was ready for a siesta...Here's a few of the Kiwis, plus the Mr.'s dad in the parking lot:

Shortly after this photo was snapped, we realized we needed a few steel posts to hang signs for the wedding to direct the highway traffic. We found two...already driven in the ground. The boys (silly boys) didn't think I could pull the post on my own. (I think they doubted my ranch girl prowess.)

Here I am, giving my best "who do you think you're dealing with?" look. I was proud that even as a bride, I got it done.

It was one of the funnest parts of the day.

Here's Hannah and Sarah, my good friends and bridesmaids, during the decorating. These girls, and their whole family, have been like a second family to me. Sarah and I were college roommates and rodeo travel buddies.

Here's the gals, minus my sis, with one of the wedding signs. We were done decorating at this point, for the most part, and we were all ready to get to the rehearsal. Shortly after I left, driving by myself back to the ranch to get dressed, a million emotions hit me. Suddenly, I realized that I was getting married the next day, that all of my dreams of finding the perfect guy, having a wonderful love, and building a future with my best friend, had come true. The tears started to flow. I realized, as I had many times before, but with much more emotion, how happy and in love I was. Immediately, I called Gina, who turned out to be a great rock for me that weekend. I said, "Gina...ummm...I'm getting married tomorrow. And I'm getting a bit emotional about it...can I stop by the hotel for a minute?" So, I stopped at the hotel, just to get a hug. It made me feel much better. Then, I felt ready to go.

Prepped, faces on, hair done, and smiles ready, Manda, Babs, and I posed with our little Kansas pal. The gals and I loaded up and drove to the ceremony site, where I presented them with their bridesmaids' gifts, which were purses I'd made over the summer. I think it's safe to say they were a huge hit. I loved sewing them, and I loved giving my gals something that I'd made on my own.

When we arrived at the ceremony site, I really started to feel over-the-moon for the wedding. I suddenly realized that we were "at that part" where we'd practice for the following day. I did some quick coordination with our pastor, Christian, and then we got off to a rolling start. My dad put up two wall tents at the ceremony site: one for the pianist, and one for the wedding party, if it was cold. He even got heaters, which was awesome!

On our first trip down the practice aisle, my dad and I just strolled down. I think we were both a little hesitant to do the real thing the day before, so we stayed pretty chill. The times spent with my dad the weekend of the wedding were pretty special and pretty emotional; I knew I wanted to take it all in.

Here's the Mr. and me and our pastor, as he was lining out what he'd be saying during the ceremony.

Here's all the gals, plus all of the guys, lined up. Doesn't everyone look fabulous?! I thought, as I always do, that my girls looked so stylish. As you can tell, the sun was a bit bright that afternoon. This was the first part of the weekend that I saw most of the groomsmen; they arrived Friday afternoon. It was great to see them, introduce them to my parents, the ranch, and the gals, and see them interact with everyone.

After we wrapped up the rehearsal, we headed to LaHood's for the rehearsal dinner. LaHood's is a local bar and steakhouse, located about a mile from the reception site. Hands down, it's the best food in our little town, and one of my favorite restaurants anywhere. The guy who owns it, Steve, took great care of us at the rehearsal dinner.

When we finally arrived, the bar was filled with our crew, slinging back the cocktails. It was wonderful to see everyone mix and mingle and enjoy the moment. I've always thought that the wedding rehearsal dinner is one of the most fun parts of a wedding's festivities. We got to hang out with our dear friends and family, the people who got us to the point of saying, "I Do." For me, it was a chance to party with my gals and remember old times.

Here's Manda, Gina, and Gina's husband, Matt.

My mom and the Mr...

The Mr.'s uncle, Paul, groomsman Foxy, uncle Alistair, and aunt Mary (family from NZ.)

My dad and me (I should note, photo taken by our pastor/groomsman's three-year old son, Asher.)

Here's our famous "photog," otherwise entertained...

My lovely sister and maid of honor, Corn Dog, and her fiance, "The Fuzz." They are getting married in January; I'm so excited!

Here I am, with the Mr. and some of his boys.

After the cocktail hour, we headed into the back room of the restaurant for the dinner. The tables were decorated with bits of Montana and bits of New Zealand. There were little Grizzly bears (for Montana) and little Koala (I think) bears (for New Zealand.) The decorations were simple and perfect and a great way to mingle our families' heritages. We had about 40 people at the dinner, which was fantastic. After we were seated and had ordered our food (steaks, baby!), the toasting began.

I should note, the Mr. was on a roll with the toasting that night. We joke that he almost toasted to toasting! Because there were so many people who didn't know each other, we all went around and introduced ourselves, which turned into a lot of "toasts." It was wonderful to have everyone together and to hear the gracious and beautiful things our loved ones said about us. My Mr.'s parents threw a wonderful party.

After we wrapped up the dinner, we all headed back into town to the local hang-out: the Two Bit Saloon. We'd invited everyone who was in town for the wedding to join us for drinks and an informal get-together. I was having a blast; I didn't want to leave! There were so many people and I knew that it was a great chance to really get to chat with, and mingle with, some of our favorite people. In the end, my sister and Josh had to drag me out of the bar (totally wise on Corn Dog's part; she knew I needed rest!) It was a great night. I said "goodbye" to my Mr. for the night, and we headed back to the ranch.

Wisely, I drank almost an entire Nalgene of water, popped two ibuprofen, and put on my cold gel eye mask for a few minutes before I went to bed. I was tired from the day's activities, and excited for the wedding the next day. I said a quick prayer for good weather, and hit the pillow, fast asleep.

Next up: we get hitched!

One down, 51 to go

2009-11-15T20:09:00.003-07:00

I finished A Prayer for Owen Meany this morning with my Sunday coffee, cuddled up in bed, flipping the pages. This morning, when I cracked it open, I had 100+ pages left. Toward the end, though, the book read quickly. The ending is slowly revealed in the last 200 pages, bit by bit, in a most beautiful method. I partly expected to cry at it's ending. The story is a wonderful tale of friendship and dedication. I loved it. I'd recommend it to anyone.

On another very sad and tragic note, a friend's daughter was killed in a car accident early Friday morning. I didn't know her daughter very well, but I have been feeling incredibly sad for my friend and her family since I heard the news. It is so heartbreaking and it is such a helpless feeling to know that there's nothing significant that I can do in comfort. It all leaves me wondering why these tragedies happen, why young people, full of life and promise, endure pain and suffering. It's hard to see what God is doing in this situation, why this happened, why we are allowed to hurt like this.

For now, I'm trying to come up with the words to send a note to my friend and her family, to let her know I'm praying for her and thinking of them.

The 52 Project

2009-11-13T06:23:00.003-07:00

I've decided on a little project for the next year. I'm going to read 52 books. I officially started last Saturday when, after owning this book for the past three years, I started A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving. I remember the day I bought the book at our local Barnes and Noble. I was with my friend, Babs, who loves to read and who has introduced me to many lovely books. We both had a stack of reads when she plucked Owen Meany off the shelf and said, "You have to read this."

I promptly bought it. I promptly shelved it. And I didn't think of reading it until last week. I suggested it for our book club, but it's very long, and we're into very short books right now. I read reviews saying that Owen Meany is the one book to recommend to anyone. So, naturally, I became more intrigued.

Reading is a wonderful project. I love to read. Sometimes, I'm tired and only read a few pages, and sometimes, like last Saturday, I read over a hundred pages in a sitting. I hope to finish this one over the weekend. It's important I do, because 52 books means an average of one book per week. My other stipulation is that I read through the books on my shelf that I've bought but never read. Thirdly, I'm going to make a book that reviews the books that I read, so when someone asks me, "What have you read lately?" I can give them a whole, comprehensive list.

Thoughts on Friday...sighing relief

2009-11-06T15:53:00.003-07:00

Well, it's Friday. I made it through.

We haven't made any weekend plans yet, which is actually pretty nice. Tonight, my sister and her fiance (who I would just like to refer to as my "brother" [I have two now!]) are coming over for dinner. I put a chuck roast in the crock pot with potatoes and carrots. I just went home to check on it, and the apartment is filled with the lovely coziness of the smell of roast. Tasty! We just signed up for Netflix this week, and we've got a brand-new movie awaiting us for sometime this weekend.

My calendar swap-mate, Grey Moggie, posted about this cool idea, which I think I might implement for myself as a little project: reading 52 books in one year, or a book a week, and then posting about those books, in a little review fashion. How fun! How many books!

Yesterday afternoon, I finished The History of Love by Nicole Krauss. It became one of my top five favorite books of all time.
Krauss' writing is amazing. Breathtaking. Sad, but lovely. The story is one that makes your heart ache, then laugh, and finally, rejoice. It is a wonderful book. I really like the teenage girl, Alma. Really, you must read it.

So, this weekend, I'm going to start a new book. I've got a couple on my radar, so we'll see what I end up with. Additionally, one of my gal pals, Gina, and I might start up our little "book club" again. We met in a British novel class while at the University of Wyoming, and ever since we trudged through Ulysses together (and I promise, I read the WHOLE THING), we've enjoyed reading together. We're both super busy now, but we also want to read, together. I'll keep you posted.

Have a lovely weekend.

Calendar swap buddy

2009-11-04T17:05:00.002-07:00

You've heard me rave in excitement for the Calendar Swap 2010, and it's here! Check out my swap-mate, Grey Moggie.

Now for fun calendars...

Pioneer Woman's Baked Lemon Pasta

2009-11-03T19:25:00.006-07:00

The Pioneer Woman has wonderful recipes. And she is funny. So, basically, I love her. I baked this recipe: baked lemon pasta. It was easy, different, and pretty darn tasty. I'd highly recommend it.

And, because I'm really trying to become a good blogger, I even took photos while I cooked it.

So, without further ado...

You first melt some butter and olive oil together in a pan. If I were to do this step over again, I'd use a bigger pan; I had troubles when I started stirring together the sauce.

While the pasta is cooking (I used some spaghetti noodles and some colored, cheese-stuffed pasta), I grated an entire lemon. This step, in my opinion, is really important, mainly because I'm really loving lemon zest now, especially because I have a micro-grater that is handy for just that purpose. Additionally, after I tried to squeeze the lemon juice into the pan with the butter and oil, without dropping a seed in the pan, I said to myself, "Duh, girlfriend, you have a juicer!" It's true. I have kitchen tools I forgot about. It goes without saying that the juicer made this part, and lemon juice of the future, much easier.

Here's what the sauce looks like, once you add the lemon zest, lemon juice, and (for me) plain yogurt. (That's a little trick I've found and liked: substituting plain yogurt for sour cream. It's more multi-purpose, multi-tasking that way). This is the part where a bigger pan would have been helpful. But, I made it work and I didn't spill a drop.

After you mix it all together, you throw it in a pan and bake it for 15 minutes, covered with foil, and then an additional 7 minutes, uncovered.

And, post-oven, you have this yummy dish. I grated some wonderful cow's milk cheese over the top (of which, I forget the name because I threw away the wrapper...) that, according to the little sign in the Good Food Store, is a wonderful (and cheaper) substitute for that fancy Parmesan cheese.

All in all, it was a nice dinner. There's a bunch left for lunches, which is wonderful. I think it will be even better today, slightly warmed up.

Thanks, Pioneer Woman!

Happy one month anniversary!

2009-11-03T06:06:00.005-07:00

To my Mr. and me!

One month ago today, we got married underneath the gaze of a big Montana sun with the Tabacco Root Mountains and 300 (or so) of our family and friends looking on. It was an amazing weekend. I've been really, really, really lax about posting recaps. So, one month post-wedding, I'm going to do just that.

I've written a bit about the Thursday before the wedding. I woke up at the ranch, full of anticipation, excitement, and general over-the-moon-ness. I'd went to bed the night before, feeling like the luckiest girl in the world; my wonderful parents had left a beautiful note for me about how happy they are for the Mr. and I, and how wonderful it is to marry your best friend.

On Thursday, the roses were set to arrive. We didn't know the time, so someone had to stick around the ranch to meet the FedEx truck. My mom had some last minute errands in town, so I chilled at the ranch. Honestly, I can't remember if I did any projects on that last day, except for sewing together a little bronze-colored clutch for me to carry my...lip gloss. Really, I couldn't think of anything else I needed to bring with me, but I knew I needed lip gloss.

On Thursday, I was also anxiously awaiting the arrival of my pal, Babs, from Helena. She arrived that day around 1 pm. I started to feel like the wedding was getting real when my friends started showing up. Babs and I ventured off to Bozeman around 3 that afternoon to grocery shop for the out-of-this-world buttercream frosting she made for our cakes and to pick up my friend Manda, who flew in from Laramie/Denver. I was so happy that Babs and Manda got to hang out together; they are perfect friends for each other. Actually, all my gals are perfect friends for each other; I was so thrilled that they finally all got to meet each other.

(See how perfect they are for each other?!)

Thursday night, when we got back to the ranch, our friends from Kansas had shown up, and the party was beginning. My mom baked lasagna and garlic bread, and we all sat around the kitchen table, laughing, joking, and drinking Mexican tonics. (Very tasty side note: mix a regular gin and tonic, minus a little bit of tonic. Top it off with a splash of margarita mix, and you have a Mexican tonic.)

This is Babs and me, after a couple tonics. Later that night, my Laramie pal, Gina, showed up, fresh off the road and into town, ready for a cocktail. Gina has an eight-month-old baby, and after two days in the car, she had a "bee in her bonnet" and was ready for a beer. My sister/maid of honor was there, too. She did an AMAZING job on our flowers (which did arrive, by the way!). It was wonderful to be surrounded by my girls and our friends.

We even went to bed early that night (I promise!). Manda and Babs were sleeping on air mattresses in the TV room of the basement, and I curled up in my bedroom...for a few minutes. Then, I could hear them talking, so I threw open my door, marched in the room and said, "Hey, are you guys having a slumber party?! I wanna be invited!" So, the three of us laid around in the dark and talked wedding and life. It was fabulous.

Next up: Friday! Decorating, a bit of stress (but not much!), a bunch of Kiwis, and a practice run.

Internet window shopping...and a P.S.: if you need Christmas ideas...

2009-10-30T11:52:00.004-06:00

From J.Crew:

Totally selfish, I know.

J.Crew makes me smile. And I don't own ANY J.Crew! Sometimes, even though I know I won't purchase anything because we're trying to save, I like to browse clothes online. Just for fun and just because I like to dream. I've become particular about what style of clothes I wear, so when I do buy something, I know it's something I really love.

Holiday book idea

2009-10-30T09:07:00.002-06:00

I'm waiting anxiously for our professional wedding photos to get through the post-processing process. As I do, I'm thinking of ways to display all of those photos. We received a couple of albums as wedding gifts: one that we can just insert snapshots, and one that is 12x12, with a bit more room for creativity.

Additionally, I'd like to make a "first holiday" book. After Halloween, I always feel like the holiday season has truly started. Once we get past the sugar highs of Halloween, we can look seriously and excitedly toward Thanksgiving and Christmas. I'd like to chronicle our first married holiday season in a book.

This one, from Elise Blaha, got me thinking. I bought a ton of paper last weekend, and I've been saving pieces of fun wrapping papers and tissue papers for embellishments. We have envelopes left from the wedding invitations, and really, all I need is the office paper cutter and some rings.

Shall we have this for a weekend treat?

2009-10-29T12:26:00.003-06:00

This, from Eating is Art, looks rather tasty.

This makes me want to curl up with a book (a new one, since I finished The Da Vinci Code), a glass of wine, a blanket, and some Norah Jones.

Somebody (me) woke up on the wrong side of the bed

2009-10-29T09:04:00.002-06:00

I'm just keeping it real today; I'm feeling grumpy. I think it's mostly because I'm tired, which really is no excuse, but it's true. I don't like when I'm grumpy, because it makes the day seem long, and I get grumpier and grumpier when I think about how much I want to go home and watch movies all day.

I'm trying to work through this bad mood by giving myself a sprinkling of fun blog reads and pretty things. I'm trying to smile, even though I don't feel like it. (Come on, you know those days. I don't have anything to really be cranky about, but I just am.)

On a happier, lighter, and non "snaggle-toothed (word that rhymes with "witch") note, yesterday was my Mr.'s birthday. I made breakfast of waffles, eggs, and bacon, and last night, I made a yummy cake, New York strip steaks, and roasted potatoes and squash. We had a bottle of one of our favorite wines, and then we went downtown to play BINGO with some friends. It was a fun birthday, I think.

That's all I've got for now. Maybe I'll tune in later today, in a better, happier mood, and share with you what I've found to cheer me up.

A note on containment

2009-10-27T13:00:00.003-06:00

I've been thinking a lot about "containment." In our little apartment, we need to contain our stuff: our clothes, our dishes, our cookware, our shoes, our games, our movies, our magazines, our books, my craft stuff, my fabric...

Really, here, the list could go on and on.

I'm trying to find creative ways to contain things and to organize our place, so I don't feel like I'm constantly moving "stuff" to clean. I want and need everything to have its place. I was particularly inspired by this adorable Paris apartment, featured on Decor8:

I love how everything is arranged so that you don't realize the small-ness of the apartment. I like how everything "goes" somewhere. Right now, I feel like our apartment is a huge job, because I'm thinking of everything I want to accomplish. But, for now, I'm going to start on a drawer or a shelf a day, and work from there.

A dress for my sister's wedding

2009-10-27T11:20:00.002-06:00

So, I've found the dress I'm wearing for my sister's wedding in January! I really love it and am thrilled to get to wear this, from White House, Black Market:

Monday afternoon coffee

2009-10-26T15:11:00.002-06:00

I just left the office for a few minutes, mainly to clear my head, and also to get a latte. The work day was starting to wear on me, and I needed a break. I needed fresh air and a reminder that the world is still spinning outside. When I stepped out of the coffee shop, I took ten deep breaths, to clear my head. Really, it made me feel a lot better.

We're going on our fourth week of being married, and our third week of being back to work and back to reality. It's finally settling in that we're Mr. and Mrs., and we're working on our married life together. This Wednesday is the Mr.'s birthday, and I'm planning to cook dinner for him (I promise, promise, promise, that I'll post the menu and let you know how it goes.)

For now, though, I'm going to get through this afternoon. I'm planning to run a few errands after I leave the office and then go home and go for a walk with my guy. Then, read. (I'm very in to The Da Vinci Code, by the way...)

I'm so tickled for this: CALENDAR SWAP!

2009-10-23T15:11:00.006-06:00

I stumbled across this the other day, and after mulling it over for a few days (not sure why; it's not that big of a decision!), I signed up:

So, you can read the dirty details on the site, but basically, you email your name, address, and blog address to them, they match you up with a partner, and then you swap calendars!

The Decor8 blog has some calendars featured that are pretty neat; and there are some more here. I'm going to really start scouting around for some fun options. Basically, I think you have a week or so to find a calendar that would be appropriate for your swap-mate, and then send it off.

How fun, 'eh?!

My good pal, Babs, sent me the links to the calendars above, and then I started checking out a few. This site, Linda & Harriett, is super cool. Check out the 2010 calendar (I'm drooling!):

And, also really rad:And, I'd love to write our wedding thank yous on something this glamorous:

Happy Friday, by the way!

I want cake, Sex and the City, my sweats, and a cell phone that's "off"

2009-10-22T12:32:00.002-06:00

My day is rapidly moving toward one of those where I need all of these: a big piece of cake, a DVD player full of Sex and the City episodes, my sweatpants, and my phone in the "off" position.

Luckily, my husband just brought me some Chinese food, and luckily, it's almost 1 pm, which means I'm inching more toward 5 pm.

Things I want to cook, then eat

2009-10-21T13:37:00.004-06:00

From Heart of Light: does this savory apple-caramelized onion tart look amazing, or what? We may be having this for dinner tonight. I think I'll add ground deer sausage.

And, for tomorrow night, if my sister comes over for Grey's...My sister absolutely loves squash. Seriously, you basically have to arm-wrestle her for it. This, from my new favorite, The Pioneer Woman, looks delicious.

I'm liking that I'm easily finding recipes that involve ingredients I already own. How lucky! I think this means I'm actually growing up, stocking a pantry!

Trying to read

2009-10-21T06:35:00.000-06:00

I have an idea about this reading thing: what if I make a stack of all of the books on our shelves that I haven't read, and start there?

Hmmm, might do that.

In the meantime, however, I've been nagged by a voice inside my head to read The Da Vinci Code. So, this morning, I swiped it off the shelf in the kitchen, and started reading. I know the book is controversial, and I know it's long, but I'm going to read it. I have to do something to get back to reading.

Stay tuned.

What to read, what to read?

2009-10-20T11:34:00.002-06:00

I love to read. It seems I go through reading "spurts." Spurts where, for a few weeks on end, I'm found in every spare minute, with a great book in hand. This happened with The Thirteenth Tale and also, more recently, with The Time Traveler's Wife. I loved both of those books.

Recently, however, I haven't been reading much. I can't seem to get into any book I pick up. So, I've been watching TV, cleaning, reading magazines, but definitely, NOT READING books.

Here's a post about book suggestions, from A Cup of Jo.

Crafty gift ideas

2009-10-20T11:13:00.003-06:00

Because I'm short on time, I'm just posting the links:

1) DIY body oils and bath salts, from Martha.

2) DIY spa ideas, also from Martha.

I'd like to make some fun gifts. These are great ideas.

Well, aren't these just adorable?!

2009-10-20T09:54:00.003-06:00

Heart of Light inspires me again.

Cute hair pins, for sprucing up a low bun, and cute belts, for sprucing up a lovely dress.

Monday night blog cruise...and wedding recap #1

2009-10-19T19:56:00.006-06:00

Finally, finally, finally, I'm uploading our 340+ photos from the wedding/honeymoon week(s). If you're lucky, I'll do recaps before Christmas. Honestly, I'm very reminiscent about the wedding. Sometimes, I get rather emotional about it. But, more on that later, when I write the memoirs.

Tonight, after I spent a couple of hours cleaning and organizing the apartment (we got a shelf! and a trunk!) I snuggled down with the laptop and cruised some blogs. First, I checked out a new blog I found: Heart of Light. She posted this great idea for making your own notebook. I totally need this, because, really, it is hard to find a notebook that is exactly what you want.
I might make something like this. (Seriously, one of these days, I'm going to come through on all of the projects I've been promising.)

While sitting in a waiting room today, I picked up an issue of Vanity Fair. Turns out, the issue I was reading was from 2007. I started an article about the late racehorse, Barb aro, who broke his leg in the Preakness in 2006 and developed laminitis, a bone condition that proves fatal for many horses, and was coincidentally the same condition that my horse, Roy, developed two years ago. I haven't read the entire article, so I can't give a full review yet, but I wanted to bookmark it to finish later.
The photo above, featured in the article's slideshow, is from Eliot J. Schechter, and was taken at the 2006 Kentucky Derby.

And, now because I can't help it, I'm going to post the first part of the wedding weekend recap.

I arrived at the ranch on Wednesday afternoon before the wedding. It was so wonderful to have an afternoon at the ranch, alone with my parents and my thoughts, before the weekend commenced. At this point of the weekend, we were still really concerned about the weather. A cold front was supposedly moving in, and was expected to arrive on Saturday, the wedding day. My mom and I were both really nervous; eventually, we had to outlaw weather reports via radio, TV, or otherwise at the ranch. Once, my mom asked, "What will be the tipping point? What will make us decide we need to have the wedding inside?"

I freaked out. I cried a little, I'm sure my heart started racing because, hey, I didn't know how cold I would expect our guests to get, how much weather I would expect them to endure. I'd wanted to get married at the ranch for a really long time; I knew I would be devastated if we had to move the wedding to the reception location. I prayed a ton that week, and our prayers were answered, in the end. The weather was fabulous, by the way.

On Thursday morning, I walked down to the wedding site. My dad had already set up the in-case-of-cold-and-wet-weather tents for the wedding party and the piano. There was fresh snow on the mountains in the background. The air was crisp that morning as I walked down to the calving pasture. My horse, Roanie, was in the pasture; he was nervous because he was by himself, but he also seemed happy to see me, like he knew what the weekend was about. (Really, it's quite funny how intuitive horses are.) I was looking forward to the arrival of my friend, Babs, and for our trip to Bozeman to pick up 'M.

The day, and the weekend, were holding so much promise. It was wedding weekend.

The Pioneer Woman rocks, really!

2009-10-19T11:50:00.001-06:00

Doesn't this look yummy?! The Pioneer Woman is hilarious. I love her writing and her recipes. I'm totally making it this week.

Post-wedding thoughts, musings, and memories

2009-10-16T08:39:00.002-06:00

I've seen a fair number of photos from the wedding over the past week or so. Every time I look at the photos, I feel almost exactly as I did the moment the photo was taken. Which means, for some of them, there's a lot of emotion. I want to do a great wedding recap post, with photos from the days before, the day of, and the days (honeymoon!) after the wedding.

But I want to do it right, when I'm not distracted or sitting in my office. It'd be a great project for tomorrow morning, with coffee, in my jammies, while my husband is off to referee a high school football game.

What I can say is this: our wedding was amazing. Every time I think about it, I realize how incredibly blessed we were on that day, and how wonderfully blessed we are today. I'll post one teaser pic, taken my my cousin, CGM.

Being married makes me so happy.

I love me a good Thursday

2009-10-15T11:14:00.004-06:00

Thursdays are my favorite day of the work week. Why, you might ask, not Fridays? Well, on Fridays, people have an it's-Friday-so-don't-screw-with-me attitude, like: "I'm not going to go above and beyond, because hey, it's Friday." Thursday, however, is close enough to Friday that you feel the promise of the weekend; I get a little spring in my step on Thursdays, to be perfectly honest.

This Thursday, I am in a pretty swell mood. I'm assuredly tackling the projects on my desk, I've got some new problem-solving ideas on the horizon, and I'm making risotto for dinner tonight. Oh, and I have a check coming my way that I wasn't expecting (which is nice for two people who didn't work for two weeks, due to a wedding!).

Since I discovered Apartment Therapy and loving.living.small yesterday, I have been thinking a lot about out little space. (P.S., dinner last night went very well. Except that I dropped a jar of caramel sauce and chipped the edge of my pottery bread plate. Yay (!) for super glue, though.) Our apartment is small, but last night, as I was sitting at the table, I looked up at the top of the cabinets where I have oh-so-carefully stored extra baking sheets, pots, pans, a blender, a waffle iron, and some random canned goods, and I thought to myself, "Dang girl, you put a good effort of organizing into this place. Suddenly, I knew that I've done a pretty good job of making our little kitchen work for us. I'm constantly coming up with new ideas for storing things. For instance, I think I'll move all of the baking sheets and pans up to the top of the cabinet. I don't need them every day, and it would be nice to fit another basket of food underneath the cabinet and on top of the fridge, where those pans currently sit. I'd still like to get a book shelf for the kitchen for extra stuff, and for books, so that I can consolidate the book collection to shelves and not stacks on every bit of open space on desktops and coffee tables. I'm thinking of making a little curtain that we could hang over one or two of the shelves to hide the clutter of the makeshift pantry. Basically, one project I really want to tackle over the next month or so is to make our space really great. Tonight, when I get home, I'll take some photos for a "before" shot and then chronicle my progress. (Do I hear "project" ?!)

Secondly, I'm really going to work to do Christmas gifts before Christmas, this year. Most years, I say this. I say I'm going to put a lot of homemade effort into Christmas, only to find myself four days before Christmas, anxiously shopping amidst the other late-night shoppers. I don't want to do that. I want to give gifts with meaning this year; gifts that are really super, that make me feel over-the-moon to give them and make my loved ones feel over-the-moon to receive them. I just discovered Blurb today, and I may try that as a way to make photo books. Because goodness knows, we have a lot of wedding photos coming up! I'd like to make a really good story book of our wedding. I'll chronicle that process too, both the gift-making and the crafting of Christmas presents.

Thirdly, it's risotto and Grey's night at our house. Can't wait!

Risotto rules. Period.

2009-10-14T16:44:00.003-06:00

I love risotto. The first time I ever ate it was when my friend, Babs, made it for me. I love it. Her risotto is the best. (We ARE having a little blog love fest, as she posted yesterday. I got a blog shout-out! My first one!)

Anyway, back to the risotto: it's yummy. I think no matter what, when my sister comes over to watch Grey's tomorrow night, we're going to cook risotto. (Speaking of Grey's, I need to catch up on the past two episodes that I missed. Pronto!) Babs and I used to make risotto for our Grey's nights, so it will be fun to continue the tradition. This recipe, from Coconut & Lime, sounds really great: green bean risotto.
On a rainy day like today, this picture of creamy delicious-ness makes me want to run home, put on my sweats, have a glass of wine, and stir risotto. Ahhhh....I'm relaxed just thinking about it.

Tonight is in-law dinner night (which, in my opinion, "in-law" is a weird term.) So, my husband's parents are coming to dinner. They'll be at our place in a little over an hour, and we still need to buy groceries. I'm making a peppered London broil with roasted butternut squash and mushrooms. I hope it's good. I'm a little nervous, because the apartment isn't as organized as I'd like for it to be, we're going to be rushed, and we have a bunch of boxes on the patio that really should be in the storage unit. I hope it all works out.

I better grab a bottle of wine at the grocery, too.

I love "loving.living.small!"

2009-10-14T13:26:00.001-06:00

Check out "Live Small with Style - Loving. Living. Small." It's great. It's fun. It's just what we need!

Making our tiny space into a big home

2009-10-14T11:03:00.004-06:00

Since we returned to town on Sunday, much of my free time has been spent trying to organize our apartment, figure out where all of the new gadgets and gizmos belong, and store the rest in such a way that we can get to it when we need it.

It is a huge project. I've made a lot of headway, and we got a lot accomplished last night; all of the new dishes that we can use and have space for are washed and in the cupboard, and I've clearly marked all of the boxes for storage. (The storage boxes are stacked on the patio. Hey, Rome wasn't built in a day. Or two. Or three or four, apparently.) I discovered that we can have a few more water glasses in the cupboard and that we are in dire need of a shelving unit in the kitchen area to store kitchen goodies and food that we can't fit in the cupboards. I need a space for the Kitchenaid mixer and for the beautiful pitcher that refuses to fit on the shelf above the cupboards.

I came across this fun little blog: Apartment Therapy, and "The Fall Cure." While I don't/can't spend a ton of time trying to revamp our little space, I do know that we might be there for awhile longer, and I want it to be a space we enjoy and are thankful for, not one that we are cussing because it is small. A few things I've thought of so far are: 1) a bookshelf in the kitchen area.This would help us store more in our space and hopefully help us feel less cluttered. 2) There's a matching file cabinet (and we need a bigger one!) that I'm thinking could be a multi-tasker: it could file stuff, plus act as an end table next to one of the recliners in the living room.
3) I think one of those storage ottomans would be a good idea. Something that can serve a purpose, like seating in our bedroom, but also can be a place for bath towels and bed linens and extra blankets. 4) We need a shelving system in our storage unit, so that we can easily access boxes of things we love but can't have inside.

The Apartment Therapy article is awesome. (It's linked above.) I like the cleaning tips, like setting a timer for a certain project or for a set-time of cleaning, so you aren't overwhelmed. I definitely need to start a list of what we want to accomplish in our space. I'll keep you posted.

I wanna have this for breakfast!

2009-10-13T16:42:00.002-06:00

From Smitten Kitchen:I think I have all of the ingredients, without having to tackle the grocery today. I don't have yogurt to eat it with for breakfast, but I think it'd be yummy warmed with milk.

A wedding/honeymoon book...some ideas

2009-10-13T14:37:00.006-06:00

Today as I was cleaning out my wallet, I came across the baggage tag from our honeymoon flight to Vegas. Normally, in my state of throw-away-crap-I-don't realistically-need (probably from trying to fit an enormous, we-were-spoiled amount of wedding gifts in our TIIIIIIIINY apartment), I would have thrown it away. But, then I remembered that I wanted to do some cool post-wedding wedding crafts, and that the baggage ticket might be a nice memento for that project.

Elise Blaha always has really cool paper projects. I really like this one: it's a love letter to her fiance, but made in a book, with photos:

Elise also took on this great project: 24 things to do before her 24th birthday. I think that's really neat. It adds structure to a project that is fun, and it gives you something to meaningfully work toward. I think that's why I loved the book/movie "Julie and Julia."
Julie Powell set out to cook all of the recipes in Julia Child's cookbook and to finish that project in one year. Along the way, she blogged about it. In the end, she wrote a book and got a movie deal. The point is not really about the far-out chance of fame from writing a blog (I'm not famous yet!) but that Julie set out to "do" something, to finish a project, to reach a goal and document the journey to that goal. I would argue that many of us don't do that enough. I know I certainly don't set goals often enough. Julie Powell, in the book, chronicles her struggle with her job, with feeling like she was just going through the motions, and decides that she's going to do something for herself, something to make her appreciate her abilities and her talents. Often, when I was reading the book, and when I watched the movie with my mom, I felt the same way: that I, too, wanted a project, wanted to work on something that meant a lot, that gave me an escape from what I do. Every. Single. Day.

I'm still trying to figure out what that project is, exactly. I know that we'll be focusing a lot on our new marriage and on being a married couple and building our relationship. I know that will be amazing. I also know that I want to do work on something of my own, set a goal, work toward it, and document it.

In the meantime, check out Elise's "adventure book" project. I like what she wrote about it.

Thoughts on Tuesday...and dinner tomorrow night

2009-10-13T11:48:00.006-06:00

I'm fighting a migraine (or what's left of it) today. It started last night, right after I got home from a wonderful evening with my dear friend, Babs. (More on that in a minute.) I thought, "Hey, I'm not surprised I got this headache; I've been busy, there's been a lot going on, and usually, when I unwind from all of that, there's a chance I'll get a migraine." So, I thought I'd sleep it off. But the headache is still here this morning. It's not as bad (thank God) and it only hurts when I move my head. So if I just stay in one place, things will be fine. (I'd prefer the one place be my bed, but a girl can't have it all, I suppose.)

I wanted to give a glimpse of where I'm at today, because until I come up with the new project, you're going to have to bear with me through the ramblings of my brain.

Last night, my friend and bridesmaid, Babs, was in town for a meeting of a board on which we both serve. Afterward, we went to dinner at my favorite local pizza place, Biga Pizza.
Biga's pizza is so very tasty. We had one with Flathead cherries, and another with butternut squash and big dollops of ricotta cheese. Besides the great pizza and a glass of wine, it was so great to re-hash the wedding weekend with Babs. She is one of my very best friends (that's why she was a bridesmaid!) and I value her friendship so much. We've been through a lot together and have really held each others hands through some really rough times. Babs wrote about this much more eloquently, so I've linked her post.

Tomorrow night, I'm making dinner for my husband's parents. I'm excited to cook for them and to use our new dishes! I've got to figure out what to make, and it has to be something quick and easy because I'm really pressed for time tomorrow night. I've thought about throwing something in the Crock-Pot, or making butternut squash risotto, from Martha:
Now that my meeting for tomorrow night has been rescheduled, I'll have time to make something a little more extravagant (I think!). There was also a great recipe for roasted veggies with a steak, so I might venture for that instead.

More to come, later...

A fun little list...from babsbabble

2009-10-12T12:09:00.003-06:00

My good, dear friend, Babs, had this on her blog over the weekend, and I thought I'd play along... (a.k.a., I'm easing into work slowly!)

What books are on your favorite shelf?

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy
Julie/Julia by Julie Powell

And, like Babs, I say a "million others!" I love books.

What DVDs are on your favorite shelf?

Sex and the City, Old School, Lonesome Dove, Caddyshack.

What are your two favorite cookbooks?

I like "A Homemade Life" and I think I'll really like our new "Bride and Groom" book.

Select one to three recipies you cook for special guests:

I like cooking pasta for guests. I also like cooking desserts, like cake!

Five random facts about you:

1. I can't figure out how to make my new honey dipper work. (Seriously. I wind up the honey, and then I can't get it to fall in the coffee cup. I'm googling it!)

2. I love magazines.

3. I have a lot of respect for Elizabeth Edwards.

4. I hate pigeons.

5. If I had my way, I'd be a housewife. But a glamorous one; you know, one that has wine for lunch.

You don't think I stopped adoring Mrs. Espresso, do you?!

2009-10-12T10:14:00.003-06:00

Ah, this so, so, so reminds me of our wedding day.

First week of married life...back to the grind

2009-10-12T09:48:00.002-06:00

That post title sounds a bit ominous, but I don't mean it that way, really! I'm back in the office this morning, as a Mrs. It's not too bad being back; of course, I'd love to be curled up at home, organizing and storing, and cleaning, but alas, this Mrs. needs a paycheck!

Our wedding was fabulous. Glorious. Wonderful. Our prayers were answered and the weather was amazingly beautiful. The sun was shining, the mountains were capped with snow, the thermometer was warm. Our families and friends sat snuggled together on hay bales in our calving pasture, listening to lovely piano tunes by our dear family friend, Mary. My dad and I rode in a horse-drawn buggy to the wedding site, and it was a wonderful, touching, and heart-swelling moment with my dad. I loved it. I loved seeing my Mr. for the first time that day, and I loved walking down the aisle to meet him. I think I'll post some photos when I have more time, and give better recaps. But for now, I'll just say that I'm so over-the-moon to be married.

Now, it's on to the project of my sister's wedding. I've been given the task of finding dress options for the bridesmaids. I'm so happy to still have a bit of wedding.

We have the project of unpacking the unreal amount of wedding gifts and fitting them into our life together. That's a big project. We're two people, playing house, but even better, because it's so real.

And, I'm thinking about a new project for me. While I'm basking in the honeymoon/newlywed glow, I also know that I'll need some "me" time; a project that excites me, that makes me happy. I don't know what that is yet; I'll keep you posted.

The Mr. and I, in the meantime, are going to have a weekly date night. We're committed to not spending a ton of money, so we'll be spending a lot of evenings at home; I think we're going to get Netflix. I'm happy to commit to a weekly time for just us.

Basically, my plan is to continue to blog. I don't know who all reads this, but hopefully more will in the coming months, as I'm not worried about spoiling wedding plans to guests.

We're back! We're in love! We're happy!

Also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my wonderful Mom! She worked so hard on our wedding, and I'm so lucky to have her in my life. (And, you too, Dad!)

2009-10-10T16:00:00.001-06:00

We're back from Vegas. We're married!

Three days...hitting the road!

2009-09-30T07:16:00.002-06:00

No, I'm not backing out...but today, I leave for the wedding. I've got all of my laundry done, and I'm just trying to slurp down enough coffee to be able to get packed. I'm making mental notes of everything I need to pack and bring and remember. I'm excited to rest and relax a bit at the ranch this afternoon, to get my bearings before everyone starts arriving tomorrow.

Most of all, I am thrilled that this week is finally here. It's been a whirlwind. There's been BBQs and last-minute preparations, flurried emails and quick phone calls. There's times I feel like laughing and times I feel a bit like crying.

In the end, though, I am loving this week. We are trying to enjoy it to the fullest extent and revel in all of the wonderful things happening in our honor. I'm excited to see my family and friends, and for our families to meet. It's going to be wonderful.

I'm all fluttery!

2009-09-28T16:19:00.004-06:00

Five days! Five days! Five days!

I am so very excited. I have been waiting for this week for so long and I'm so excited that it's finally here. I'm over-the-moon, dancing, smiling, gushing...I am thrilled that I'm marrying my best friend this week.

Check out Mrs. Espresso (I know, I'm slightly obsessed!)
They are such a cute couple. We share a wedding weekend with them (even though I don't know them). I love this shot of them. I can't wait to feel like she feels, strolling with her Mr.

Smiles.

I gave up program perfection

2009-09-25T15:13:00.002-06:00

Well, after two days of struggling to line up the programs to be perfectly centered, I gave up and just printed them. They'll bug the hell out of me, but quite frankly, it's eight days before the wedding, they need to be done, and I'm sick of it. So I let it go, pushed print, and went on my way. People will throw them away, people will fold them, and most likely, no one will even notice that they aren't exactly centered.

Tonight, after work, I'm going to get myself organized for the weekend and for the week. I need to haul some things home this weekend, pick up some things to bring back (honeymoon bags!!!) and prepare myself for the coming week. I'm so darn over-the-moon, tickled, ants-in-my-pants excited for next week.

I'll leave you with a photo of my favorite Bee, Mrs. Espresso!

I've been slacking

2009-09-24T15:41:00.002-06:00

Okay, confession: I've been slacking on the wedding front. I've been chillin', not doin', and I need to get cracking. Here's a list:

1) I need to get a music list to the DJ. Mr. 7 Iron needs to pick a song to dance to with his mom. We need to finalize the order of announcements/special events at the reception.

2) Speaking of events, I need to get a timeline established. Informal, but something to give to my fabulous helpers so they aren't confused.

3) I need to print the programs and stop obsessing about whether or not they are centered.

4) Food: I need to let M know what we're thinking for the bridesmaids' bruncheon. I need to throw together an idea for people who will be hanging out on Thursday night.

5) We need to book a wedding night hotel room.

6) I need to figure out parking at the airport and get the bags we'll take on the honeymoon.

7) I need to run some errands: the boys need socks, the guest book needs pens, I need hair spray.

8) We need to write our letters to each other for the anniversary box. I need to figure out a table for the front of the ceremony, for the wine box.

9) I need to confirm that we have a couple of tents for the music/sound equipment/guest book if we have rain.

10) OOOOH, to add to the shopping list: if I have an umbrella, and am prepared for rain, maybe it won't rain. (Seriously, when I know where my umbrella is, I never need it. When I don't, I'm caught in a rainstorm.)

11) I need to write thank you cards.

12) I need to finalize the guest list so we have a better number for our caterer.

13) I need to contact the photographers with lists of photos, last minute preparations, etc.

14) I need to make sure that the groomsmen know that we need their helping hauling chairs and tables and setting up tents on Friday.

15) I need to keep breathing.

Nine days! Nine days! Nine days!

Nine day pretty routine

2009-09-24T11:32:00.009-06:00

Nine days out from the wedding, I'm focusing on taking good care of myself. I've been trying to get a good amount of sleep, I'm drinking lots of water, and I'm trying to stay relaxed. Even when I had a monstrous zit this week (sorry, it's true) I promised not to pick it, and I didn't. Really. That's the rule for the next nine days, especially, and I'm going to make it a habit.

I started using a Burt's Bee's facial toner last week, and I'm not sure how well it's working, but it is refreshing, and it gets that extra makeup off my face. I think that's important!

I'm still using Cetaphil daily moisturizer with SPF. It's light, and I think it works well.

I need to stock up on face wash during my next trip to Target. I've been using an apricot scrub every once in a while to smooth out my skin and get a deep clean.

I love my Arbonne foundation (which I get at a super awesome discount) and I've been using their makeup primer as well. I seem to use less makeup, so it lasts longer, and I love my Arbonne gal, so I'm loyal on that front. I'm using some Arbonne eye shadows as well, and I really like the color scheme we came up with. I need some water-proof mascara, 'cause hey, there may be some waterworks...(You've been warned!)

My friend, S, (who hosted my Pampered Chef party) just dropped off some Mary Kay tanning lotion for me to try. Apparently, Mr. 7 Iron mentioned that I use tanning lotion to our friend, B, who is a Mary Kay gal and a member of his networking group. She mentioned it to S, and S texted last night and said, "I think you should try it." So, she was sweet, dropped it off, and we'll see! In this economy, I like supporting people who are in a business for themselves, so rather than $10 at Target, I'll spend a bit more with a friend on certain products.

I'm really going to try for some "ME" time today, between the office and Grey's. I need a few minutes to relax and rest. Of course, I've talked about my bubble bath that I am loving (!). I've got some great candles over the past year. I couldn't help but browse at this cute little shop called "terrain." I'm relaxed, just looking at their yummy goodies:

I love the "document-wrapped" soap. When I make my own soap, I'm going to wrap it in documents. I think that's really cool.

Thursday thoughts

2009-09-24T08:49:00.005-06:00

Okay. Here we are! Single digits.

Wow!

Update: the weather is still making me nervous, but I guess I'm taking comfort in a couple of things: 1) God will handle this. 2) Montana weather forecasters aren't usually spot-on unless they're post-casting the weather. Furthermore, the weather websites are all conflicting: one looks really ominous, and the other looks promising. Not liking the unknown, I want to have an idea of what the weather will be like, but also not liking a sinking feeling in my stomach, I don't want to look.

So, I'm thinking of some ideas: first, my Gmail account won't load today, so I can't email my mom like I was thinking. But my thought is: what about a wall tent to house all of the sound/music equipment if there are showers?

Second...

Well, I guess that's all I've got. That and a lot of prayers.

On another note, and thought: I think it would be fun to make paper.

This might be something I try after the wedding. I think it would be relaxing and fun to make a project like this. How fun: to send a note on paper you made yourself.

Another thing I'm looking forward to today: the season premier of Grey's Anatomy.

Honestly, I think it's going to be a shocker and not at all what we expect. My sister is coming over and we're going to have dinner and watch it together. I can't wait. That's what I've been doing all of this week: focusing on small, fun things to get me through the next nine days of exuberance.

That's all I've got for now. I'm taking deep breaths. I'm saying little prayers. I'm trying to relax. I'm enjoying the moments. I'm anticipating the big moments.

I'm not worrying about the weather.

I know I shouldn't...but...

2009-09-23T14:11:00.002-06:00

I have been sitting here for a full fifteen minutes, begging myself not to write this; I think writing will make it real, and announce to my audience, that indeed, I am a bit worried about the weather on our wedding day.

There, I said it. I know I shouldn't worry, for several reasons: 1) I can't do a damn thing about the weather. Never been able to, never will be able to, 2) I need to be better at trusting God to handle my life, and 3) there's still ten days, the forecast people could be wrong, (as they often can be), and it might not be cloudy with a chance of rain.

That's what I'm holding out for. At this point, I think it's bad for me to worry about the weather. My mom already told me she's not going to worry about it. I guess I just wanted some sympathy. An office is not a good place to get it, and I would never even try to, but five minutes ago, when Mr. 7 Iron came upstairs, I said, "I'm worried it's going to rain." His response? "That would really suck."

Comforting.

I need to feel a bit of relief about this, and that's probably why, in the end, I decided to write. I always feel better when I write things down. It gets whatever I'm thinking about out of my head and away from my control-freak brain.

Deep breath.

I will not worry about the weather. I will put my energy in other things. I will not let my time be consumed with thoughts of 'what if.'

This chick's over the moon, too!

2009-09-23T12:21:00.002-06:00

How cute is this?! From The Full Bouquet, a girl who is so over the moon about her wedding that she did a flip.

Disclaimer: my friends who've seen me try a flip will vouch: you won't see something this glorious from me on my wedding day. I can't even cartwheel. Sad, I know.

Over the moon (a.k.a.: we're really excited)

2009-09-22T15:51:00.002-06:00

Eleven days.

Last night, I was talking with bridesmaid and English lit buddy, G. I told her that I felt like a broken record with my response to questions of: "Are you nervous?". You see, my answer has been, for months now, "We're really excited."

I'm excited for a lot of things. I'm excited about a new job role at my office. I'm excited about a coffeemaker with a program button. I'm excited for my favorite pizza tonight. I'm excited that the Colts won the football game last night.

But I am OVER THE MOON (her suggestion, and of course, really appropriate!) about marrying Mr. 7 Iron. Seriously, I am so looking forward to being married and spending the rest of my life with this man who is my match. I'm over-the-moon happy to build a family and start our own married traditions, and to become a Mrs. I'm over the moon about the countdown to our big day. I'm over-the-moon tickled to see our family and friends in a few short days. (Actually, one of his uncles will be here tomorrow.)

It is going to be an amazing day.

It is going to be an over-the-moon kind of day.

Packing for the honeymoon...

2009-09-21T15:43:00.008-06:00

So, we're going to VEGAS (!) for our honeymoon, and we are really excited. (Me, especially, because I've never been to Vegas.)

We're staying at the Excalibur. They have a pool, they have fun bars, they have beer pong, and hey, it's a castle!

Our trip to Vegas will be an adventure in packing efficiency. We're taking one checked bag between the Mister and I, and we'll each take a carry-on. I need to figure out what to pack, and how to pack, so as to maximize outfit usage. So, I've been doing some research. I found this great article, at Simple magazine, on how to have a well-balanced wardrobe.

I have a lot of wardrobe staples, and at this point, I can't spend much cash updating my wardrobe. I may update with a few shirts, and hey, we're going to be in Vegas, so I can dress a bit wild! I thought maybe I'd find some fun new jewelry that's inexpensive, like these, from Forever 21:

I like the feathers on this necklace. I agree with their description of it; it would look great with a basic tee!

The earrings are also really great. They're big, they're bold, and they're pretty.

It might not be a bad idea to have a new black bikini top, from J. Crew:

Or a pair of pants:

Or a long-sleeve v-neck:

That will be a project for this week. Tonight, while watching Monday Night Football, I am going to print the programs. Seriously.

Ta ta for now! Twelve days!

Pretty "day of" goodies

2009-09-18T14:33:00.006-06:00

The Wedding Chicks have some really yummy stuff. Here's some of my faves:

The "Bride Custom Vintage Key Tee..."

The "Bride Custom Vintage Tee..."

and my absolute favorite (because hey, I'm not going to try to get a t-shirt over my head after I fix my hair)...the "Monogram Vintage Custom Wedding Tote."

I'd put a big "T" on it, and I'd do the monogram in "chocolate" and the overall color in "light grey."

Because I love bags, and because tote bags are so versatile, this would be so perfect for carrying around all of my wedding stuff during the wedding week, and it would be perfect for after the wedding too.

Cute. That's all.

2009-09-18T14:04:00.003-06:00

How adorable is this invite?

Yay for 15-days-away-Fridays!

2009-09-18T12:50:00.004-06:00

Well, my favorite person in the office (beside the Mister) just said good-bye for two weeks and said, "The next time I'll see you is at your wedding!" Yay! Yes, that's how close it is: we can talk about "the next time..." with people and that "next time" is post-wedding! Woo-hoo.

Today is Friday, and that's real nice because boy-oh-boy has it been a whirlwind. I had another episode of "telling people what I want, right now, while trying to be diplomatic, yet hey-dude-don't-screw-with-me," and so far, fingers crossed, it's been productive. But it was one of those projects we all dislike: a lot of work that I've done a lot of times, with NO lots of results. Sigh.

Anyway, I'm sitting here at my office, starving, and luckily the Mister is bringing me a sandwich. Any minute. I'm checking out the lovely Mrs. Dumpling on Weddingbee because, at this point, I can't do any real work on this empty stomach.

[Pause. I just totally DEMOLISHED one of the best turkey sammies I've ever had.]

See how pretty Mrs. Dumpling is? I'm really loving shots of girls walking down the aisles with their dads. (P.S., I guarantee you, already, that I'm going to cry. Sometimes I get teary thinking about it. I am right now, FYI. I was a blubbering mess at bridesmaid S's wedding, and there'll be waterworks at mine. There. Disclaimer.)

In the meantime, this weekend I'm going to try to print the programs, print "reserved" signs for the ceremony and the reception, and write thank you notes.

Plus, we're going to the football game. But mostly, you can be I'll be sleeping in tomorrow.

15 days, 15 days, 15 days!

A bunch (I mean tons!) of pretty things

2009-09-17T10:17:00.005-06:00

So, I found a lovely new blog this morning called "little white book." It's quite pretty, really. Check out some of these photos.

Pretty things #2: slideshow

2009-09-16T14:56:00.001-06:00

From Dace, check out the slideshow of the designs. What a fabulous backdrop: horses.

My favorite Weddingbee couple

2009-09-16T09:49:00.003-06:00

Every time Mrs. Espresso posts on Weddingbee, I get chills. Her wedding was so beautiful (same weekend as us, except in 2008) and it was similar, I think, to what ours will be. You should totally catch up on her posts. She's great!

Pretty thing #1: Cookbook

2009-09-16T09:33:00.002-06:00

I added this cookbook to our registry because: 1) it's so elegantly described, and 2) the cover is just so darn pretty (don't you love those spoons?!)

I love cookbooks.

(As much or more than magazines.)

A post about magazines

2009-09-16T09:27:00.002-06:00

I absolutely love magazines. I love wedding magazines (though I haven't bought one in months). I love fashion magazines and news magazines and cooking magazines.

Decor 8 has a great post about magazines today.

Read it.

Then, go read a magazine.

Yummy bubble bath...and non-nervous musings

2009-09-16T08:54:00.005-06:00

So, people are still asking me if I'm nervous. That's making me nervous! (Ha ha!) The lady at Starbucks on Sunday told me she thought I was crazy to get married (it was her 40th birthday and I think she was a bit down in the mouth about it).

Really, in all reality, I'm not nervous. Most of the time, I'm rolling on with my daily life, just thinking happily about the wedding. Then, sometimes, I really start thinking about it, and I say, "HOLY SMOKES. In 17 days, I'm getting married. It's OUR big day! All of this eight months of planning for this specific event will come to a peak!" Then, I almost have to stop in my tracks, because, hey, that's pretty big stuff.

Last week, after the tire incident, I did something really fun. Rather than sinking into a cheap red wine-induced hole, I bought me some yummy bubble bath. It smells so lovely. Sometimes, I open the bottle in the shower just to steal a whiff. It's so great. It really does lift my mood when I've had a long day at the office or when I'm just plain stressed. I highly recommend it.

One thing that wedding planning has taught me is that you can work toward an end goal, an event, that may be the beginning of something else even greater (in this case marriage.) It's made me realize that focusing on a big project really does create results, really does open you up to new possibilities, really makes you realize that you can find a way to do anything. I think it's made me realize that working hard will really produce results. After the wedding, when I'm not obsessing over what jewelry to wear with a dress I'll wear once or contemplating for days over who should attend the guest book at the wedding, I'll take a break from all of that and really spend time focusing on our relationship and the man who will be my husband (in 17 days!)

What our next big project will be, I'm not sure: there's a couple up for grabs. We'd like to start moving toward buying a place of our own. We'd like to move forward with our careers and with our business together and find a balance that makes both of us happy. Another thing I've discovered throughout all of this planning and DIY-ing is that I love to craft. I love to make things. I've always known that I like to cook, and now that I've got my own kitchen and now that our arsenal of kitchen-related wedding gifts are growing, I can make a lot of things I once didn't have the tools for. But I've also found that I like to make things. I'd love to try to make soap (how fun would it be to make something this pretty?!) or candles, so maybe I'll try that. Book-making would be fun as well. I like making things that come from my heart and it makes me happy to give those kind of things as well.

Another big project will be my sister's wedding in January. I'm so excited for her and for her Mister. Throughout this wedding stuff, both mine and hers, I've been excited to get two brothers (!) my Mister's bro and my sister's Mister. I don't have brothers (didn't 'til now) and I'm pretty tickled to have them around. The wedding in January will be beautiful. Once we're married, it will be great to still get to wedding plan-and-do for someone else. Their wedding will be so elegant.

That's all for now. I'm scouting out beautiful things today, so expect some more lovelies from me today (!).

We're in the teens...

2009-09-15T06:36:00.004-06:00

Well, today marks 18 days until the wedding. Two weeks from today will be my last day at the office before the wedding. We've got a lot of things done; there are a few projects that need to be finished. We need to print the programs, finish the card box (Mom's in charge!) and finish the box for the wine ceremony (I'm waiting for it to be shipped.) We need to book our honeymoon (what's new?!) and find a tie for the Mister.

In the meantime, I've been slacking on the blog front. With so much done and so much planned, I haven't been cruising around the blog world as much. But, this morning, with my cup of coffee, I found this cute little blog called Kiss the Groom. You can have them send you a kissing tree to your email. How fun, right?!

People have been asking if I'm nervous. And, honestly, the answer is "no." We're surrounded by so many people who love us and support us and guide us. We've got great help and we're looking forward to being Mr. and Mrs. Maybe we've both learned to deal with being nervous, and it just doesn't make us jittery anymore; maybe we are used to a little bit of uncertainty, but maybe we're just learning to trust that God is taking care of us. Maybe we're growing up, and we're just ready to rock and roll on this whole wedding/marriage thing. Mostly, I think we're just looking forward to the third of October and everything that day and our lives beyond that day hold in store for us.

23 days

2009-09-10T18:57:00.002-06:00

Lately, especially this week, I've been having a hard time coming up with blog posts. I am really excited for our big day, and even though it's something I've been thinking about a lot for the past seven (or so) months, sometimes I think, "Whoa, our WEDDING DAY is within thirty days. I will be MARRYING the LOVE OF MY LIFE." I'm not feeling nervous at all, in fact, I'm feeling rather calm. We, collectively, are feeling pretty calm.

Tomorrow, some family friends are hosting a wedding shower in my hometown. I am so honored that they are hosting the shower, and so excited to see friends from my childhood. Then, on Saturday, it's gals' night (!). My sister and another friend are hosting the bachelorette party. I think it's going to be really fun.

Our goal is to book our honeymoon by the end of this week and we've settled on VEGAS! I've never been there, and am looking forward to four whole days of relaxation after the wedding.

We have a few other projects to finalize and I know some others will come up, but for the most part, we're feeling ready. Ready to open up this new chapter of our lives together. Ready to celebrate with our families and friends.

Made me want to draw...and be OK with not knowing

2009-09-09T16:24:00.007-06:00

When I was in college, bridesmaid S and I took a drawing class. Actually, we learned a ton. Our professor was really cool and taught us the two concepts of drawing that are the only ones he said you need to know: 1) Draw what you see, not what you know, and 2) Light is your only subject. (Above right is one of his paintings.) When I saw the photo at left, I thought, "Wouldn't that be fun to draw? All day?"

I saw this blog, and I liked her post for a couple of reasons: 1) she uses a great line from one of my favorite movies of all time "You've Got Mail," 2) because she talks about the beginning of a new school year, and 3) because she writes about how, as adults, we don't like "not knowing."

You see, I pulled into the grocery today to buy a box of tampons. Yep, glamorous, I know. And I hit the curb with my tire. Usually, not a big deal. But I knocked a chunk out of the sidewall of my tire. The tire guy says that's not safe. I believe him, 'cause, hey, there's a CHUNK out of the side of my tire. New tires, that match the ones I have = not cheap, especially one month before a wedding. I don't like not knowing if the tire guy will find me a cheap get-me-through-the-next-month tire, or if I'll be stuck buying the pricey ones now, or if we can figure out something until Monday, when a tire that better matches my current ones would arrive and would not require two new tires, because it's a near identical replacement. So, I'm waiting, not knowing.

When I don't know something, I'm incredibly impatient. I'm really super impatient. That's a huge flaw of mine. I'm trying to get better, but with age, I feel like it's getting worse. Impatience is a really crummy trait to have. In the past hour, I've tried to take a few more deep breaths. I'm trying not to freak out. I'm going to borrow "You've Got Mail," get a bottle of wine, and not worry.

And, hey, 24 days 'til wedding day. Things are looking up.

Marriage secrets

2009-09-09T16:16:00.002-06:00

I think all of these are really super cute. Check out the "Our Secret to a Happy Marriage" post on A Cup of Jo. (Click at the bottoms of each story. They have more!)

Flowers and my great-grandmother's hankie

2009-09-09T09:25:00.004-06:00

First things first: We got a bunch of stuff done this weekend. The mister mowed the wedding site, and he and my sister's fiance cleaned up a burn pile at the site and covered it with gravel. My dad and I hung up the shepherd's hooks for the flower pots on the fence, and we trimmed a couple of tree branches.

Mom and I also did a ton of baking. Mom tackled the monster cookies (I had some dough!) and I made enough chocolate cakes to make three layer cakes.

I made the cake flags, which totally exceeded my expectations. They look so very wonderful. We all love them! I also wrapped my gals' gifts and I made thank you cards for them. We made some decisions about a receiving line and the cake table. Overall, I just feel really organized. I'm much calmer this week.

My mom found a pair of gold stud earrings that I can borrow for the wedding, and she presented me with a linen and embroidered hankie of my great-grandmother's. We thought it might look nice on the stem of my bouquet, sort of like this, from 100 Layer Cake:

I like how it adds some vintage look to the bouquet. We'll see. I'll talk to the florist (aka, my sister) about this today.

In other news, I ordered a wooden wine box for our wine ceremony. I got the whole thing for $14.50, including shipping, so I'm happy to have it done. It's got writing on the lid, so I think I'll cover it with a piece of leather or fabric, or paint, if that's possible.

The Mister ordered ties for his groomsmen last night, and a project for this evening to go shopping for his tie.

Next up: we need to book the honeymoon. And, I think we're going to Vegas! More details soon.

If I had unlimited funds...part two...

2009-09-05T12:58:00.004-06:00

This is what one does while waiting for another to come home from the golf course...daydream.

From The King Ranch Saddle Shop:

Happy weekend

2009-09-05T12:03:00.002-06:00

Well, I've been rather productive this morning. I woke up early, had my coffee, threw on a pair of pants, a shirt, hat, and big earrings (no makeup) and went to the grocery. I loaded up on quick oats, more chocolate, dish soap (so I could take care of the sink and counter covered in dishes), and a cranberry muffin. Then, I came home and cleaned, sent out an email I'd been putting off for weeks/months, and organized the stack of papers on the floor. (They're now in a file box on the floor.)

The apartment is clean, our bags are packed, the baking supplies are in the trunk, and I'm ready to go. Just waiting on Mr. 7 Iron to get here from the morning round of golf, and we're out.

Can't wait for the wedding! I'm so excited, and I'm really looking forward to our big day. AHHHH! Goosebumps.

If I had unlimited funds...

2009-09-04T12:24:00.003-06:00

Do you ever, when you're just sitting around, thinking (daydreaming) what you would do if you could pick out whatever fabulous jewelry you wanted?

Sometimes I do. Just for a minute.

I'd pick these Frank Gehry earrings from Tiffany & Co. for me.

And I'd throw in these cufflinks (also from Tiffany) for my Mister.

Headin' to the ranch, and we're workin' on a weddin'...

2009-09-04T09:06:00.002-06:00

Okay, so first things first. It's FRIDAY.

Second, tomorrow morning, after Mr. 7 Iron plays a round of golf, we're headed to the ranch for the long weekend. And boy, oh boy, do we have a big list of things to do. I've heard that weed-eating and mowing are in the plans, as well as, I'm sure, electricity set-up for the ceremony site.

I'm going to try to bring a bunch of things home: namely, accessories that I don't want to forget during the wedding week (my hair flower and garter, plus the book for the guest book). I'm also going to take the bridesmaids' gifts so that I can wrap them, write thank yous, and stash them at my parents' place. I'm going to remind the Mister to order his groomsmen gifts, ties, today. Also, we're headed to get a marriage license this morning as well.

I'm bringing all of the craft stuff I've amassed over the past few months, and I'm going to work on cake flags for the dessert table. I want to make little photo frames for the guest book table and the dessert table. We need to figure out a card box for the gift table.

And, we'll be baking! I need to find quick oats, more butter, chocolate, and cupcake liners.

Overall, I'm excited for the weekend and for the opportunity to knock out some of these looming projects.

Happy Friday!

Runnin' late...on purpose

2009-09-03T07:01:00.003-06:00

Today is a test experiment. One that I will perfect, over time. The experiment is this: just how quickly can I go from shower to ready and out the door for work? How little time can I spend getting ready in the morning, while still looking nice, presentable, and ready to go, so as to take some slow, me-time in the morning.

Right now, I'm watching the Today show, enjoying my first cup of coffee. I read my book for a while (The Elegance of the Hedgehog, but Muriel Barbery), and now I'm cruising around the Internet. I've been trying to gather all of my craft supplies so that this weekend, I can pound away at the list of do-it-myself projects. There's a big brown grocery bag full of cardstock, ribbon, ink pads, embossing powder, and fabric. I'm going to wrap my bridesmaids' gifts, and work on making cards to thank them for taking part in our special day.

Anyway, here's something fun I found for the day, from the "Lovely Morning" blog:

And then, because I couldn't help myself, I clicked on the link to the Glen Oaks Big Sur website. (Can I move here?) It's maybe a bit "green" (as my dad would say) for my taste, but HOLY SMOKES, don't you just want to wake up here in October?!

Which brings me to this point: I really do love fall. I've always wanted to get married in the fall. I love the ranch in fall. I love that it's still warm, but that you can do anything you want outside at any time of the day and it's not unbearably hot. The leaves are beautiful, the grass is changing colors, the air is crisp, and clean, and fresh. The horses are just starting to hair up for the winter and you can always find fresh apple bars on the counter in the kitchen.

Yes, the summer has gone quickly, as usual. Yes, it was just YESTERDAY we were watching fireworks on an July 4 evening drive. Yes, we've not played enough golf, gone swimming enough, ever cleaned the BBQ or hooked up a propane tank. But, we are rapidly approaching our wedding day, and fall, and I am so happy.

Amazingly, and wonderfully, at this point, (7:32 AM), I am ready to get in the shower and get ready for my day. I think I can face it now. I know I can.

But, seriously, check out that Glen Oaks website. You'll love it. You'll drool. Ooooh, a first anniversary trip??!

A drawing of a dress

2009-09-02T16:16:00.002-06:00

Oh my gosh! I love this. How fun: a drawing of the dress.

I need a break, or "Five things I think are real pretty"

2009-09-02T14:43:00.001-06:00

This morning, things were smooth sailing. Really. My questions were answered with the answers I most desired, people were returning my phone calls, I was happy.

Then, let's just say, we had a run-in. Without too many details, I can tell you that we had a disagreement with our "counterparts" in an office far away. I so accurately, firmly, and (in my opinion) beautifully expressed my professional displeasure with the situation.

Then, I took a break. I just went to Caffe Dolce and treated myself to a split-shot (not too much caffeine) latte with honey. Now, I'm back in the office, and I'm sharing with you five things I think are really pretty: five things that really make me smile with all the warm fuzziness of "I'm getting married in 31 days!"

These gorgeous roses:

They are so soft and peony-like. Very pretty.

And, how about this tomato pie from Smitten Kitchen:

I really want to make this. It looks so yummy!

He and I will not see each other before the wedding, and I've been dreaming (for years, really) about the look on my love's face when he sees me for the first time, walking down the aisle toward him. When I read this, from my favorite Bee, Miss Espresso, I got chills. Look how happy her man looks:

I seriously am so, so, so looking forward to the look on the Mister's face when he first sees me. Seriously, I cannot wait! I have to remember to encourage the photographers to get a shot of it. Maybe corresponding shots!

I love books. And I love the idea of collecting vintage books. (Maybe I'll do that, post-wedding!) Aren't these little gems, shown on Ritzy Bee, adorable?

And, as a last photo idea, this is AMAZING from The Bride's Cafe:

Awww, I want a photo like this, of me, from our wedding. I love my dress (as you know) and I am so excited to wear it in 31 short days! Woo hoo!

I just wanna crash these weddings!

2009-09-02T09:58:00.001-06:00

Okay, you must, must, MUST check out Southern Weddings Magazine. These are gorgeous, over-the-top, beautiful, amazing wedding designs. I'd go, if only to drool.

It was as I expected...

2009-09-02T09:10:00.003-06:00

Ah yes, the list making task of yesterday was as I expected: 1) she got real looooooooong, and 2) I know I'm forgetting things. I just really want to get things tackled now, so I'm not a crazy mess the week before the wedding.

Today, I'm having a hard time tearing myself away from wedding websites, blogs, and wedding dreams. In the last 31 days before the wedding, I keep finding myself dreaming of our big day, and all of our family and friends who will be there, and all of the wonderful memories we will make. I have read the entire blog story of Mrs. Espresso on Weddingbee. (She was married the same weekend as us, one year earlier!) I think her wedding was beautiful, her dress was gorgeous, her hair was amazing, and her story and her humor really reminded me of someone I'd be good friends with. Everywhere I go now, people are asking me about the wedding. They are asking where they should stay, what they should wear, if we're nervous yet. (Yet? You mean I should be nervous?!) At one point, I was worried about the lack of RSVPs, and now, as we inch closer to the deadline, people are starting to send us little messages. We got a note in the mail yesterday from someone who said, "I wouldn't miss it for the world!" Another friend said last night: "Hey, do you know anyone who's getting married soon?!"

So, I want to stay excited about all of this, not be overwhelmed. I'm trying to check off small things, day-by-day. This weekend, we're going to hammer out some projects. We're going to plan and delegate and do.

In the meantime, I'm doing a bit of work, and a lot of wedding dreaming. (Hey, I'm only a bride once, and I'm going to love it.)

Today, I'll make a big ol' honkin' list

2009-09-01T08:53:00.002-06:00

Oh my heavens. In four weeks, we'll be to the wedding week. Four weeks from today will most likely be my last day of work before the wedding. (For you who know me, you know this, in itself, is a big deal!) In four weeks, we have a lot to do, a lot of things to wrap up, a lot of things to finish, and create, and finalize. In four weeks, I have a lot of delegating to do. At this point, I'm more than willing to set projects in the hands of my capable family and friends and let them run with the projects.

Today, I'm going to make a list. It's going to be a checklist of wedding things. My plan is to start on Tuesday, four weeks from today, and go through the entire wedding week, making a list of everything that needs to get done.

Then, I'll probably have a mini-anxiety attack, because I suspect two things: 1) the list will be longer than I expected, and 2) there will be things I forget. Then, I'll email the list to all relevant parties (i.e., those to whom projects will be delegated) and let them fight it out while I sit back and have a cocktail.

Just kidding. I won't totally sit back, but I do plan to relax. Today, the first day of September, marks the end of my "getting projects done in August" goal. I must reassess, list, delegate, and do.

Whatever shall I do, post-wedding planning?!

2009-08-31T10:56:00.003-06:00

Sometimes, over the course of this wedding planning project and my subsequent discovery of my affinity for crafting, I think to myself: "What will I do when I'm NOT planning a wedding?"

Oh, of course, there is our relationship. And my job. And my sister's wedding. And cooking.

But, I think it will be good for me to have projects. Something I really love and really enjoy that makes me smile, and makes me feel like I've accomplished something.

Elise, over at her "enjoy it" blog, decided to make a list of 24 things to do in one year. Her list is at left.

This idea inspired me to think of doing something similar after we get married. Maybe a couple's list? Maybe things we do together, and things we do on our own? Maybe, as I'm brainstorming, this is something we'll mention at the "anniversary" wine ceremony at the wedding.

If there's one thing I've learned about life and about relationships, it's that you must be intentional: with yourself and with your partner. That's something that He and I are trying to work on: intentionally spending time with each other, making our relationship a priority.

I just think this list idea is a really good one. I like it a lot.

Party hair flower...check!

2009-08-27T22:44:00.002-06:00

This was such an easy project! I bought a silk flower, some button/carpet thread, and a package of pearl-like beads, in varying sizes. I took apart the flower, re-positioned the petals, pinned in place, and sewed together. After I'd put about ten stitches in, I started adding the beads. It's simple and fun, and I liked what it added to my simple hair-do.

Slow day...just cruisin'...

2009-08-27T12:41:00.008-06:00

Today is moving really super slowly. The stress of the beginning of the week has melted away, and with it, a lot of the projects. I guess you could say I'm hitting a work wall. I've got a few things to do, but mostly, I'm here, in a chair, because that's where I need to be.

So, what better thing to do (to kill a bit of time) than to cruise around and find fun ideas, stories, and photos to share?!

First, when I came to the office this morning, I picked up a copy of Fortune magazine. Now, if you want something sobering in the first fifteen minutes at the office, I suggest you read this article about Social Security. This is a problem, and a big one. I'm not counting on Social Security at all for my retirement, which really aggravates me when I start thinking about the fact that I pay the tax, but have a low likelihood of getting a benefit. And get this (as Sloan explains much more eloquently in the article): if Social Security runs short, the program asks the Treasury to redeem the amount short in Treasury securities. The Treasury gets the cash from selling said amount to investors, which, in turn, increases the national debt owed to investors. (You see where this is a problem?)

So, that's just one thing I've read today.

On a lighter note, Peep Toe's wedding is so cute. I love her smile, and her excitement, and her programs! She always looks like she is going to burst with excitement. I want to look like that on my wedding day. (Au naturale to me, of course!)

I really like this gal's look, from The Bride's Cafe. I'm not sure if I can make my hair this big or this beautiful for my day, but I'm fine with looking like me (with the help of 7+ helpers!) He always has a joke, when I'm furiously spraying and backcombing my hair, "Oh, you're making it flat in the back..." Yep, that's right.

Oooh, and picked this, from a gift card from a friend. I picked it in the aqua color, and I love the ruffles!

In celebration of sister J and her fiance J moving to town, I want to have them over for dinner. And for dessert, I think I'd make this cake from Sunday Suppers.

This is all becoming very real!

2009-08-27T09:37:00.002-06:00

Yesterday afternoon, I had my first dress fitting. Every time I put it on, I love her more and more! (Which is good, says DB at the bridal shop. Wink, wink.) She pinned it up at the hem, and I practiced walking and twirling and dancing. She made the bustle, and told me it would be really super easy to bustle up; you just match the ribbons and tie in a bow underneath. (Of course, I'll need help; that's why I have seven bridesmaids and a mom.)

My mom is working on my veil now; I think it's going to be beautiful. I tried on my jewelry with the dress, and I'm going to go with my mom's Norwegian necklace that is vintage gold and ivory. It is perfect. I need to find some simple gold ball posts to wear, because my dangle-y gold earrings are too much, I think. And then, DB asked me: "What are you doing with your hair?" And I said, "It will look a lot like this." (I fixed my hair in wedding style yesterday so as to get the almost-full effect at the shop.) It looks good.

But for the reception, I'd like to add something fun. Maybe a little flower or something. I want it to be easy, as in something I could hammer out this weekend. I found a simple tutorial, and while I'm waiting for the photos for the cake flags to get here, I could do this to occupy my time. (You see, I've become quite a little crafter in my wedding planning. I see stuff I like and say, "I CAN MAKE THAT!" And, surprise, surprise, I can!)

I also think I'm going to check out the frozen cake this weekend. If I like it, I think I should start baking more cakes. At this point, they'd only be frozen a month, and I think that will be fine. (Keep your fingers crossed.) I have a few to make, so I probably better stay on target!

I'm so excited for our day to finally be here. I'm feeling pretty relaxed and on an even-keel. I'm trying to savor this time and soak it all in, because it only happens once, you know?! We're less than 40 days now, which seems very real and very tangible.

Yay!

2009-08-26T16:27:00.001-06:00

Pssst...I'm at the bridal shop, twirling in my dress!

Pretty practice dresses

2009-08-26T14:15:00.007-06:00

I know I've posted on this before, but I honestly can't help but check out dresses for the rehearsal.

Presenting these, both from J.Crew (my gals are all wearing J. Crew, so I think I should get to have something J. Crew, right?! I honestly don't own anything!)

I think my favorite of the two is
the one with the ruffle around the collar. I like how the color is 'bride-y' without being absolutely white. It would look cute with my boots, and I could wear a little cardigan or something, and big dangle-y earrings. I don't think I want to own another strapless dress (He bought one for me for my birthday), because it would be nice to have something I could easily wear again.

So, for a little sweater... (also from J. Crew).

Online window-shopping is so fun! I don't think you're quite as tempted to buy, because there are so many steps, and you can always say to yourself, "Will it really look that good?" and therefore, convince yourself to not spend the money. Genius, isn't it?!

Ring-a-ding-ding!

2009-08-26T08:41:00.003-06:00

Last night, we ordered our rings. (This is getting more official by the minute!) It was without much fanfare, but we placed our order for matching gold bands: mine a size 8 and His a size 12. They should arrive next week. Since most of our office packages come via UPS, I will anxiously and excitedly await the FedEx lady!

Next step: we must, must, must get a marriage license! It seems like a pretty simple process, from what I can tell, on the city's website. Next week? Or tomorrow? Or a fun Friday project?

Today is much more laid-back and relaxed than yesterday. (Except that someone is now chattering to me on the intercom. Useless information. Seriously.) I'm going to have my first dress fitting this afternoon and I am so very anxious to get there this afternoon and try her on. This morning, I packed up all of my accessories and my boots. I'm ready for a test run.

Also, I finished a garter last night. It's nothing too fancy, but I made it (!) and it's going to get thrown anyway, so, why not? I really like it. I even pranced around with it on my leg, with my boots, of course, I like it. It works.

Also, what shall we put on our cake? I want to have a cake that will obviously look like our cake. I'm not much one for cake toppers, well, I suppose I could be, but at this point, it seems like a big expense for such little fanfare. So, what about a cake flag? I could make it, and I think it would be cool. It would have our names on it, and it would be accordion-folded and maybe in the shape of a pennant. I could finally use some of our gold embossing powder. Yeah, I think I'll do that.

I just found this:

I had been trying to think of ways to use some fun photos of us at the wedding, but wasn't sure about making one of those photo clotheslines (too much work!) But, what about some simple photo flags on the dessert table?

I see a Wednesday project coming up!

Stutter steps to the big day

2009-08-25T14:59:00.002-06:00

Well, we got another RSVP today, which means people are still coming. We hadn't gotten one for a while, so I was beginning to wonder. I'm really hoping people will RSVP so we don't have to make a bunch of phone calls in a few weeks.

A lot has been accomplished in the past few days, which is really encouraging. There's still details to be worked out: how to decorate/set up the cake/dessert table, what to do with cards/gifts, day-of time-line, rings, what to do after the ceremony (i.e., honeymoon) and ceremony programs. It's been a stressful couple of days at the office and I'm starting to stress about wedding details as well.

I'm trying to keep truckin' on, and to keep my eye on the big prize and the big goal. I wanted to get all projects done by the end of this month. Luckily, I've still got a few more days.

A pretty mailbox

2009-08-24T15:32:00.004-06:00

So, we need something for the cards at the wedding. One wouldn't think there would be a danger of card theft at a wedding (after all, if you stole cards from a wedding, are you really a friend of the couple?) But, alas, it gives me something fun to think about.

So, here's some thoughts:

A Stetson hat box.

I saw an idea: you attach bells to the top of the box, and if someone tries to cart off with the box, it rings!

Hmmm.

Keeping my mind on good things

2009-08-24T12:09:00.003-06:00

Today is incredibly stressful. I walked into mayhem in the office this morning, and it just won't go away. I'm sitting in my office with the door closed, so as to keep my stressed out, angry face out of view of everyone else. I'm trying to focus on nice things, on things that aren't going to stress me out and make me feel like a total screw-up.

First, I got to the office this morning, and there was a wedding present! It was this vase (and also a meat thermometer!). There was a note from the giver that said, "Congratulations! We can't wait to celebrate with you!" It was really sweet. I want to buy a couple of flowers and drink a glass of wine. Sooner, rather than later.

Second, I get to see The Time Traveler's Wife tonight! I finished the book on Saturday, and it made me cry. I'm so excited to see the movie.

Third, the sun is shining. It's a really beautiful day. In a few short hours, I'll be gone from the office, and this work day will be over. That's definitely something to look forward to.

Fourth, I got a bunch of projects done this weekend. My friend, BL, came over on Saturday and helped me finish up the barnwood signs and the bridesmaids' gifts. My mom and I worked on my veil. I met with the photographers.

Fifth, all in all, I'm really blessed and really fortunate. I am loved by a great man, great family, and great friends.

I will survive today.

Ridin' Fences

2009-08-22T19:54:00.000-06:00

From Chris Ledoux: one of my favorite songs.