Summer Dreaming!

I feel like each winter it happens. I get a few days of warmth and spring-y goodness that gets my hopes up, and then bam.. cold again. And I am left to dream of the spring and summer. Except in my dreams there are no mosquitos and the humidity never gets about 70%. Each year there is a dress that is central to this dream. Presenting this year pick:

(wow, i really can't get this picture to show up here. sorry.)

Last year I was all about the shorty short dress to show off the running legs, but this year I've been doing a lot more yoga and such and time to give the arms a little time to shine. And I think the length will let me lounge about on the Weaver St. lawn listening to bluegrass bands on warm summer nights just fine.

Summer hurry up!

Updates

1) We had a lovely Valentine's weekend, mellow and productive. Pobre Trent had to get a cavity filled on Friday so we hunkered down with mac and cheese and "Love Actually" which is still so so so cute. That octopus costume for the kid? Ridiculous.

2) We are making progress on the brick path. But it is tending to be 2 feet forward, 1 foot back as we deal with the uneven terrain on the front yard. It will look awesome (and super level!) when we are done.

3) Trent got me awesome prints from my new favorite store "Toots and Magoo" that reminds me of our neighborhood in SF. Need to get these framed asap.

4) We did a huge shopping/errands run. We are stocked up!

5) Wedding details have been sorted out, a bit. We've decided not to try for the 4th, but to keep the Hacienda in the front running after an excellent scouting adventure by Lesley and her mom. We will be coming home soon to check out our top few candidates and then pick a date, hopefully this September or October. My mom sent her dress and THE family dress, and I think I have to wear THE dress, as it is so so pretty and fits me perfectly right now. And I have a few fun "second dresses" in mind. We are very excited for this event.

6) I made valentines that involved embroidering pretty heavy card stock. They were super cute but a bit painful. I need a thimble! And I didn't even use glitter, after all that hype. Lame, I know.

7) I am writing like a fiend, trying to get my thesis proposal moving along. And had some good fortune in the science experiment department recently, so pretty content with work.

8) Stephen and Amanda are renovating their new house like crazy in the two weeks before they move in. Lots of painting and tiling. It brings back lots of memories of our crazy first months. I still can't believe we did half the stuff we did, but I think it was an awesome experience we will always cherish and it strengthened our relationship. You know you can trust someone after they believe enough in your soldering skills to turn on the water...

That's whats been going on in our neck of the woods. I need to post pictures of the path and all its glory. And hopefully lots of wedding updates. Happy Tuesday!

Beer Mile!

So, I mentioned the night before the wedding in Florida, we did a beer mile. In costume. Here are a couple pictures and the details.


The beer mile consisted of dressing awesome 80's costumes (Trent and I found a Walmart in Georgia that facilitated this) after the rehearsal dinner and running laps around Stephen and Amanda's bed and breakfast. At the end of each .3 mile lap, you were supposed to chug a beer, three laps total. We were all good runners.. and terrible drinkers. It was pretty terrible, mostly because of the carbonation, but all five of us completed. Stephen and Trent took first and second, the rest of us hobbled in later. I just liked dressing up in costumes!


There are more pics of the during, but trust me, the before ones are much happier!

Wed on the 4th of July

Aside from being reeeeeeally soon and requiring all sorts of "get with it-ness," what do we think about getting married on the 4th of July? Hacienda del Flores is still available that day, and then not again until the end of October. Not making any final decisions, just curious what people think.

Fireworks could be a fun (and cheap for us!) grand finale, but are we worried about lots of drunk folks on the road and other holiday weekend concerns? It would make anniversaries easy, engaged on Christmas Day and married on the 4th!

Does it work with our "mexican chic" theme?

Discuss, and let me know!

Dresses

The sun is shining and I am a much happier camper than last week. Back to planning this wedding! Well, we've narrowed the venue down and are still waiting on some input from friends and family but will probably plan a trip home soon to actually decide. So I've been having fun looking at other details. I found these pretty cute and reasonably affordable dresses at Bloomingdales. What do you think?

First Find: Like the "Grecian" feel, my favorite prom dress was one shoulder, kind of fun?

Second Find: Classic, I can pull off strapless dresses, kind of like the black bow?

I know it will depend on the venue, but nice to know there are other sources than JCrew and crazy wedding dress stores to look at!

Loving: Martha Stewart Glitter

I am SO excited about making Valentine's day cards this weekend. I have no framework other than the size of the envelopes I found and my newest obsession, my Martha Stewart Glitter collection, that Emily got me at Micheal's. This things is awesome. About 30 little bottles of sparkly delight, all named after precious gems. It took me forever to take it out of the package, they looked so lovely all lined up, neat and shiny. But I am thinking they are going to contribute to some fabulous love notes!

Seems eerily relevant right now...

via Ph.D. comics.. which is really funny and true, and then sad because it is really true.

Smell Like A Tar Heel!

Went to the bookstore yesterday to pick up some envelopes for my Valentine's I will be making this weekend. I get that UNC is a brand as well as a University, and am well acquainted with our "Southern Charm" that includes UNC sport coats and Sperry Topsiders, but this...


seems a little much. I didn't get to smell it, but I am intrigued. Old Well? Tyler Hansborough? The options are limitless!

Thanks!

Thanks for all the kind words and encouragement. I've made it my mission to get out of this funk, including:

1) Lots of "discussions" with Deirdre about how ridiculous certain lab situations are and dreaming of the day (not too far away) when they will be all graduated and gone and we will rule the lab.

2) Listening to a new Black Star album. Hip hop rhymes by Talib Kwali and Mos Def made me feel too tough to let other people get me down.

3) Planning the Valentine's Day cards I want to make this weekend with my fabulous Martha glitter (thanks Em!)

4) Getting lots of science done. I love checking off lists.

5) Inviting the friends I am so fortunate to have here to a Brett Dennen concert tonight. I remember when I was in high school and dealing with selling my beloved horse. I was SO down one night at dinner with my parents, and I told them there was a concert I was interested in seeing, a band called the Pathetics. They encouraged me to go and call a boy from the sporting goods store I was working at to take me, and it was the best pick me up. My parents are awesome.

6) Enjoying more pictures from the wedding last weekend. There are some great ones of the serenade and the dancing.

7) Wearing my amazing coat to get a coconut latte. Of course.

Thanks for helping me turn my day around!

I am grumbly today. It is bitterly cold, people in my lab are ridiculous at times, I am mad at myself for being indecisive about the wedding and not helping my sister as much as she is helping me, and I haven't been to morning swimming in months.

On the positive side, I have been doing lots of yoga and watching Hulu while riding the trainer, which are excellent cold weather workouts. My science is going well and I am feeling ready for my orals and fortunate to have Deirdre in the same boat and who will be my editing buddy. And thank goodness for good tunes on the iPod to help me avoid listening to mean people.

Perhaps today is a coconut latte day. I think Haley would agree.

Budgeting

Like everyone, we are trying to pitch our pennies more than usual in this crunch time. We decided a few months ago to allot one relatively frivolous purchase per month. Welcome Miss February!!

I have always wanted a JCrew coat and this is as lovely as I had imagined. Thinsulate lined, extra 30% off, in my size, it just had to happen. I like our budgeting system, it makes you really think about every purchase and ignore quick impulse shopping that never seems to pan out as well. But, it is just the first week of February, so I will let you know how I am holding up in a few weeks!

A few wedding pics

I am terrible at taking pictures at important events. I get too busy being a part of the moment, and then I regret it. Luckily Facebook is awesome, and other people are way better at it. I am sure there will be more soon, but here are a few goodies from her dear friend Erin.

Getting the bride ready.

The bride and her mom having a sweet moment.

The wedding arbor that Stephen built. Trent and I helped adorn it with vines from the backyard.

The tent and the "launching pad."

Another view of the tent. It looked really big and fit everyone, but managed to fit in their yard just fine. I was impressed!

The couple during their pre-wedding photo session. They hired a photography student from UF who did a great job.

Sweet flowers.

The screened in porch/dance floor. Trent and Stephen hung the lanterns that had little LED lights in them. It looked terrific at night.

Adorable baby Jack thought the dance party was just the best thing ever. So fun to have kids at weddings. Trent and I are in the background of this picture. I found my shoes (teal patent leather wedges) at Payless and loved them. Just fyi.

More pictures to come soon, I will be on the lookout!

Weekend Recap

This weekend was amazing. Here is a recap list. Warning, quite long.

1. We rented a fancy car, dropped mine off in the shop, introduced our pup to her roommate for the weekend, our neighbor from the cottages, and hit the road Thursday night.

2. We only got about 1/3rd of the way there before getting sleeeeeepy and stopped in the crazy town of Santee, SC to stay at a ridiculous little roadside lodge. Enjoyed a breakfast there while reading the local paper all about gator hunting. Cultural experience.

3. Got to Gainesville with the assistance of my sister and the internet, and a friend I lived with in DC who lives there. Next time.. more maps.

4. Met up with Stephen and Amanda at the bed and breakfast they were staying at. It was so lovely and southern charm-y. Plus Tom Petty used to party there.

5. T and I take a walk around the University of Florida to stretch our legs and get some sun. We are both horrified/amazed by the fact that there are actually alligators on campus. Apparently this is normal.

6. Met up with everyone at Amanda's house, where the wedding was taking place. Great house they built in the '70's near an amazing tree. They had a big tent on their back lawn where the ceremony and reception took place. We practiced, T and I got to be Stephen's parents, awesome.

7. All practiced up, we headed to a historical house where Stephen's parents made an awesome rehersal dinner feast. She cooked tons of Trinidad-ian food, and it was all delicious. Met a lot of family and friends and boogied to the steel drum player they hired to entertain.

8. A bunch of us "kids" headed out to downtown for the pre-wedding beer mile (an entirely different post will describe this terrible/awesome idea) and heading to a fun bar to chat and dance. Lots of nice folks, I had a blast meeting everyone and seeing folks we've met before.

9. We were staying with Amanda's brother and family and snuck in around 2am. Not a baby was woken! Go us!

10. So hard to get up on Saturday, but we headed to the wedding house and played frisbee and basketball while Amanda got her hair done. I sat with other wives/girlfriends/babies and watched our boys play. Crew boys are not so good at basketball, it was kinda cute.

11. Trent and the boys headed to the B&B to get ready, a few girls and I convinced Amanda that mayyyybe it was time to get dressed about 20 minutes before the photographer showed up. She was an awesome, mellow, bride. Fun doing makeup like we learned at Sephora and getting her into her mom's dress.

12. Everyone was back to the house around 3 for lots of pictures and last minute details. Her two nieces were the flowergirls and I helped them pass out the programs. Trent took polaroid pictures of folks by the gorgeous tree as they arrived. The timing was really flexible, once everyone was there, they started.

13. The service was so beautiful. They put a lot of thought and effort into their ceremony, which was done by their brothers. His sister and her sister in law did readings and it was emotional and lovely. They have wonderful families and a long and crazy relationship that is just perfect for them.

14. Cocktail hour on their patio while the caterers re-arranged the chairs and tables under the tent. Impromtu receiving line was kind of awesome. No appetizers and no one was any worse for it. Fun music and conversation. I am taking lots of notes.

15. They start serving dinner, a buffet of salad, steak, stuffed mushrooms and zuchinni, all delicious. Amanda changed into a second dress with a sparkly sweater and we sat with them and some family and friends, including adorable baby Jack.

16. Dessert kind of starts on the patio and everything is very flexible and mellow. Beautiful speeches from the brothers and fathers, and Amanda and Stephen give great ones as well.

17. Off to the screened in porch for dancing. It was colder than they'd hoped, but after shaking and boogy-ing, we all warmed up. Great music, great that we all knew each other well from the rehearsal and evening out at the bars so it wasn't awkward at all.

18. Highlight: Trent, Trevor (a friend from DC who we hung out with at the OBX marathon), and Mike (rowed with Stephen on the National team) back up Stephen in a choreographed dance and serendate to "My Girl" to Amanda, complete with matching sunglasses. It was one of the cutest things I've ever seen.

19. More dancing and folks sitting inside the house staying warm by the fire. Nice combination of both. Folks left as they pleased and we ended up with about 10 of us sitting in the living room being silly and chatting around midnight. We headed back to the brother's house.

20. Up early to help his brother and wife set up for the brunch they hosted. Lot of delicous fruit and pasteries, bagels and quiches. Everyone came over and relaxed and chatted. Nice to not worry about saying goodbye to everyone the night before. I hate saying goodbye to people so this might have to happen at my shindig. We take off around 11, to head to St. Augustine.

21. I manage to get us totally lost, even though we had great directions from my cousin, to get there. Arrive late, and run around the city like crazy trying to meet up with him. Get clues from folks at various museums and theaters, but missed them by the time we find the restaurant they were at. So sad! We walk around the city (which is adorable) and startle lots of people as we think we've found them but haven't. We have to get going and leave around 3:30 to start the drive back. But very intrigued and want to get the tour from Walker next time!

22. Hit the road, boring but easy. No traffic thanks to the game and lots of stops to snack and stretch. Lots of conversations to catch up with friends and we get to Chapel Hill around 10pm. Not bad at all!

Great to be home, great weekend. Lots of good ideas we are going to steal for our event and so fun to be a part of such a lovely festivity. Made lots of great new friends and hope we can all keep in touch. I will post pictures and more details soon!