hiatus? check!

After a long hiatus, I am back and ready to blog. It is now almost July, and I have been married for just over a month.

You know what's better than getting married? Being married.

thank God I am no longer planning a wedding

I no longer have to think about seating charts. About linen colors (except for our apartment!). About playlists. About aisle decorations.

That is, unless one of my unmarried friends get engaged sometime soon -- then, I am more than excited to think about it!

This summer, I am working a measly 35 hours a week (where, 20 of those hours are spent at a pretty cushy job), and on my (many!) off hours, I am enjoying the sunshine and being married.

I am soaking it all in until the craziness of this fall sets in.

One of disciplines I am trying to make a habit of is making a weekly menu. On Monday, I look at the Kroger sales online, and from there, I make my grocery list.

Last night, James and I had black and bleu burgers topped with homemade guacamole.

Or, as Jenna calls it, the only guacamole recipe you'll ever need

It's so true.

from Eat Live Run

It's easy-peasy. Just chop 1 jalapeno pepper, 1/2 an onion (or red onion) and 4 avocadoes. Put it all in a bowl, smoosh it all together, and mix in salt and the juice of 4 limes. Ta-da, you're done! And it's mmm-mmm good, and spicy!

paint chips and dream decorating

I could barely sleep last night -- why, you ask? Because James and I may have found the cutest, most affordable place to live when we get married (and it's not a drafty cabin!).

Seriously, all night long, I tossed and turned, thinking of paint colors for the walls, and ways to dress up old furniture and make it look chic.

Right now, I'm really loving grey walls. Powder blue, grey, white, and either a blush or a soft violet.

Grey, white, and lavender from paloma81

This powder turquoise blue is also nice from paloma81

Ah! All I need to remember is, if you think the paint chip is too light, take it one shade lighter still. I've made my mistake with blue -- deep blue. And I will not make that mistake again.

Maybe we need to make some poster-board paint chip mock ups? Maybe we need to sign that lease? :)

a pop of color

I think on cold, spring days, sometimes you just need a bit of color:

A less-messy, confetti alternative.

A little "surprise" of color

Both from Say Yes! to Hoboken

A rainbow of a bridal party

From Cori Cook

fly away home

My spring break was essentially the week of all things wedding.

And because each day was all wedding, all the time, I feel like I am thinking about the big day more than ever.

But, alas, I have twenty, thirty, fifty page papers and portfolios to write. C'mon April. Let's just get through you as quickly and painlessly as possible.

Right now, I am loving all the different ways you can use bird cages as decorations (you may or may not see one utilized at our wedding).

A birdcage covered in green and white blooms (see at http://www.urbancomfort.typepad.com/)

a birdcage with a functional use (see at http://www.ruffledblog.com/)

How else would you like to use birdcages?

to Ireland, with love

Although I'm not that big of a St. Patty's day celebrant, I do have a special place in my heart for Ireland.

During my senior year of high school, I had the opportunity to visit the Republic for about a week.

Let me reminisce for a moment ...

Dublin flats

Ballybunion Beach at sunset

I capture the Cliffs of Moher's castle

A little cozy corner I found while on a walk

Street flowers

A crowded Dublin

The Ring of Kerry

I've always been fascinated with Ireland -- with the Troubles, the religious and political divide, the authors (raise your hand if you love James Joyce! and Oscar Wilde), the people, the coffee, the chocolate (Butler's Irish Creme Liquer, anyone?), the music (I could listen to Bill Whelan's Riverdance for days).

Happy St. Patrick's Day, all!

I leave you with the Pogues (a Christmas song -- but still, one of my favorite Irish songs):

just another pretty wedding

Today, I don't have much to blog about (unless you want to hear about our apartment's current mouse situation, my looming linguistics paper, or my day packed full of Writing Center appointments).

Yeah, I wouldn't want to hear about those either.

So, I'm just going to be super-girly for a few minutes this morning and share a DIY Florida wedding that I have fallen in love with.

I love woodwork and flowers

"Our Forevers Go Together"

Aren't these centerpieces lovely?

There's a special place in my heart for umbrelllas.

There's also a special place for that one-shouldered wedding dress (I really love one-shouldered dresses)

Just ... beautiful.

See more of this gorgeous wedding at Ruffled

tea and scones and everything stereotypically British

If you know me, you know that I love tea and scones.

Especially, tea and scones at four in the afternoon.

Or four in the morning -- anytime, really.

So, this afternoon during my lunch break, as I was drinking a cup of Earl Grey, to my delight I saw Joy the Baker's yummy post on Grapefruit Honey Yogurt Scones.

Don't mind if I do.

la biblioteca

Sometimes, you can judge a book by its cover. Or books by their colors.

Such beautiful colors ...

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What's your favorite way to show off the facade of your book collection? 

on a rainy day (again!)

It feels like my Thursdays have been rainy for quite a few weeks now.

This is the perfect workout for a rainy day (thanks, Maggie! I'm definitely going to feel this tomorrow)

This is the perfect meal for a rainy day (or, atleast, part of a perfect meal)

Here's how I made mine (and I'll tell ya later how it turned out): I threw 1 bag of split peas, 1 bag of chopped carrots, 4 cups of vegetable broth, 1 cup of water, 1 package of turkey bacon, and dashes of salt and pepper into the crockpot. I'm cooking it on high, and I'm hoping to enjoy it in the next 6 or so hours. 

And, if I weren't reading "Yes, A T-Shirt" (an essay on visual rhetoric), my perfect rainy day reading would be a little bit of Flannery O'Connor (there's something about spring that makes me crave some O'Connor)

Everything That Rises Must Converge -- a book of short stories. Read it. You won't regret it. Maybe you could even skip straight to "The Lame Shall Enter First" -- a personal favorite.

Alrighty -- stay dry. Stay warm. Pray for sunshine. 

dragon tails: dress up for boys

Okay, so I don't have kids. And honestly, I hope that continues to be true for quite. some. time.

However, here in the next couple of months, I will have two (count 'em!) nephews. Maybe once the wedding crafts subside (or, erm, once the wedding is over), I can attempt to make these too-cute dragon tails as seen on Tatertots and Jello.

Aren't kid-crafts just too much fun?

la vie boheme: fantasy wedding

Can someone please invite me to a wedding that is this fantastical, this whimsical, this fun?

Everything (I mean, everything, at this wedding was handmade).

And everything looks like so much fun.

Check out those bridesmaids' dresses! Check out that handmade wedding gown!

Couches in the middle of the woods? Don't mind if I do.

Who needs wine and beer when you have lemonade moonshine infused with vodka?

Nothing says forever like a man breathing fire.

And, under the umbrella, they lived happily ever after

See more of this amazing wedding at 100 Layer Cake

diy favor boxes

Today is a big day.

Today is my dad's fifty-something'th birthday.

So, happy birthday, Dad!

Wanna see how crafty my dad can be?

Check out these favor boxes that he folded and pressed:

We're torn between the butterflies and the R's. What do you think?

taking the plunge

I'm about to take the plunge.

The twenty-first century plunge.

The technology plunge.

The, i-probably-won't-be-destroyed-by-fire, i-will-probably-be-destroyed-by-something-you-cannot-fully-comprehend plunge.

In the last two days, I have gotten to briefly see, touch, hold, smell (just kidding, you can't really smell them) two of my friends' kindles.

And I'm going to re-iterate what every other book lover who was on the verge of buying a Kindle has already said a million times: at first, I didn't like the idea of an e-reader.

Because, heck, I like to smell my books. And you sure can't smell an e-reader (or if you could, why would you want to?)

I am horribly behind on the times. Smart phone -- what's that? Cable television -- haven't had that for the past year. Netflix -- I haven't seen a good movie since they shut down the local Blockbuster.

Basically, I'm stuck in the 90s, and I'm not too keen on crawling out of it ...

... that was, until yesterday.

As a grad student, although my professors assign textbooks for us to purchase, the bulk of my reading comes in the form of PDF articles -- 15-20 page articles. Articles that glare at you if read on a computer screen. Articles that need to be printed.

I'm probably reading close to 10 articles a week.

That's close to 200 pages of printing.

Those of you that consider yourselves green can start chuckling nervously right about now.

Apparently, though, amazon's Kindle allows you to upload PDF articles. Those articles, then, can be viewed on their easy-to-read screen. Those articles, then, can be underlined and otherwise defamed by my personal thoughts and opinions. Those articles, then, can be transported to class.

All of a sudden, the 21st century is lookin' real pretty.

all things pretty and bright

Who understands all things bright and pretty better than Kate Spade?

I am completely entranced by the new book Things We Love. More eye candy, please, please!

Lookie here:

I'm especially lovin' that striped room (says the girl who decorates in all colors muted and neutral)