Hooper Wedding (aka Party in Miami)

About 10 days ago I had the honor of traveling to Miami to celebrate the marriage of two of my very favorite vacationing buddies, Andy and Emily Hooper.

You might remember the Hoopers from such vacations as: The US Virgin Islands, the annual Miami get-a-way, or Grape Stomp, Baby! They've been cast in supporting roles in nearly every vacation I go on, but THIS time, they were the main act.

Now normally I would never say something as cheesy as "celebrate a wedding," but in this case, it's quite literally true as the Hoopers actually got married the weekend after Thanksgiving with only Emily's Grandfather officiating and her Grandmother serving as witness. Why would they do that? Well, as it turned out Andy was getting transferred to Toronto in February and the couple already had a May wedding scheduled and didn't want to spend the time apart. Thus, this first weekend in May, we literally celebrated their wedding - and actually - it was dang cool.

Ever the faithful hosts, the Hoopers packed the weekend full of fun events for our socializing pleasure. From cosmic bowling, girls/boys night out, and Irish pub night on Friday to a black and white beach wedding on Saturday to a brunch send-off on Sunday. Yeah, it was pretty much one of the funnest things I've done.

I'd have to say the highlight (besides lounging in the sun all day prior to each evening o' awesomeness) was the post-ceremony "par-tay" (as Emily strictly informed me the reception was being so called). Not only was the guest party restricted to wearing only black and white (which nicely set off the bride and groom in crimson and gray), but paired with a warm evening on the beach with hot appetizers being brought repeatedly to you straight from the kitchen, a kickin' DJ, and an open bar....it just doesn't get much better than this.

So thanks Hoopers for including me in your kick-ass celebration of marriage!!

Mama Quilt Installment #3 (kind of)

(I know, I know - a blog about my cat's poop? Things really have sunk to a new low. I'll try and work on it....)

So in the mean time, this isn't exactly a Mama Quilt posting, but it is a quilt for a mama I know, so I figured it still warrents its very own post. My very dear college friend Cory has been having babies at a rate much faster than I can keep up with (in terms of quilts mostly...although in terms of babies too, now that I think about it), so even though she's due with baby #4 this September, the following quilt is actually for Baby #3 (who, believe it or not, has a name: Ally Capri.)

I intended to make this quilt way back when Ally was still in utero, but alas, that was when I had a full-time job, a social life, and precious little free time (quite unlike now). So even though Ally is already over a year old, I'm just now delivering the quilt - oh well. Life happens, right?

In any case, the inspiration for this quilt was not derived from the mama or my relationship with her (thus NOT a mama quilt), but rather from a snazzy color scheme Cory had mentioned she really liked. It never would have occured to me to put hot pink with a kind of sage-y green, but it so intruiged me I thought: Why not? So I gave it a shot and I think the final product is actually quite eye-catching.


The pattern for the quilt is called a Log Cabin and I've arranged the blocks so that the final result yields diagonal stripes. Given the contrast in colors, it seemed apropos. (Each block actually consists of half pink logs and half green logs. Then, depending on how you arrange the blocks, you get one of SEVERAL different designs. It's an old, old pattern, but a great one in my opinion.) I didn't think to take a picture of the back, but it's completely hot pink and made out of a snuggly flannel.

So while perhaps my color and design choices weren't quite as meaningful this time around - I really had a lot of fun making this one. It was funky and bold and it came together really fast. I'm sure it's no less appreciated and I hope it gets well used in it's new home. (And Cory, thanks for the inspiration!!)

What Are the Odds??

From time to time when my cat is discontent with the state of the litter box, she chooses to "do her business" right outside the box instead of in it. Honestly, if this is her most disobedient behavior - I don't mind (or really blame her - litter boxes can get nasty in a hurry.)

Anyway, the other day she exercised her right to poo outside the box and this is what I saw:


Seriously, what are the odds of a poo landing perfectly straight up like that!? I could hardly believe it. I laughed my head off.

So, if you think your pet can do tricks - I'd like to see you beat that!

High School Musical

So I just went back to my old high school to watch their rendition of Disney's High School Musical and now I kind of wish I was 16 again and brave enough to try out for drama.

Being 27 is just so lame. ;)

Breaking News re: The Mariners & Myself

It's official: The Seattle Mariners are NOT hiring until 2010.

Hmph. Boo! Arg.

That certainly puts a wrinkle in my plans. But no worries! I shall simply move on to Plan B.

(Now, if only I knew what Plan B was...)

Happy Felix Day!!

It's the M's opening day: they're playing small baseball, Griffey went yard, Felix was a force with which to be reckoned, and Batista managed not to suck.

It just doesn't get any better than this.

(I'm so happy!)

A Mama Quilt for Kristi

As I mentioned previously, there are soon to be several new babies in my future. This weekend I again traveled north to shower my good friend Kristi with gifts for the anticipated bundle o' joy.

As with Diana, I endeavored to make a mama quilt for the occasion. This time though, I didn't need to employ the sneaky spy skills of my friends to discover Kristi's tastes as she had already told me she was gung-ho for pink and brown. Seeing as that color combination is very "in" at the moment, it was more than enough to go on for me. In no time I had chosen my fabrics and stumbled upon the perfect pattern. Like Kristi it was organized and well put together (but not at all boring), and when combined with the feminine, bright, and trendy fabrics, the overall result felt perfectly representative of Kristi to me.

I finished it with a bit of extra hand-quilting (I just couldn't resist all those big, blank spaces) and was quite happy with the final result. When I was finally able to give the quilt to Kristi this weekend (I've had it done forever) I was touched to see she was a little emotional. I guess I must've gotten it right!

Click to enlarge the image and check out the hand-quilting!

Birthday Weekend Extravaganza

A while ago a few of the girls got this fabulous idea: instead of individually celebrating each other's birthdays throughout the year, why don't we stock pile the moo-lah we'd spend on gifts and blow it all on one weekend of girly indulgence instead and call THAT our present to each other? I know - it's genius, right?

So that's exactly what we did.

Now, the original line of thinking had been "go big or go home." Thus visions of Hawaii and Palm Springs were quickly born. However many of the girls took this motto to heart and soon became so big they couldn't go far from home (read: pregnant). So while this changed the scope of our plan, it in no way dampered our spirits.

Thus we made our way out to my family's condo at Sandy Point for girl time, good food, even better desserts (thanks to Andi Vann and Pure Bliss Desserts) and relaxation. While Friday and Sunday were filled with laughing and chatting as only girls can do, Saturday we had a date with the Chrysalis (a super-nice spa in Bellingham). We got steamed, massaged, painted, waxed & exfoliated. It was a day of bliss - I highly recommend it for your next birthday!

Crisis Averted

I didn't get the job.

Looks like God's thoughts and my thoughts lined up on this one. (I love it when that happens!)

I Love Craig and his List

I've had two extremely successful purchases on Craigslist lately and both of them have resulted in getting my family members on a bike.

The first purchase was a kiddie trailer so we can tow little Gracen along with us when we go on bike rides. The idea being that since Monica, my mom and I are all around during the day - why not exercise together? We have yet to take the inaugural ride (largely due to the rain) - but rest assured, I'll post about it in all it's adorable glory as soon as we do.

The second purchase was a bike for my mom. Now that she's finally made it out of the woods with her stent surgery, she's on to the world of rehab. I thought biking would be a great way to spice up those otherwise monotonous routines a bit, so this bike has been a fun challenge. Or at least, I think so. At the moment, my mom has a hate/tolerate relationship with it, but it's growing on her. Right now working out it hard and we all know that translates as no fun. But as she gets stronger, my hope is that so will her love for the bike.

I was able to find her a comfort ride hybrid. The idea being that it sits a little more upright and would therefore be easier on her back and more comfortable. This does not, however stop her from complaining about her bum. Frankly, I have no sympathy for her on that end (heh). It's just part of the ride. In any case, with her extremely erect posture, I can't help but mutter the little ditty from the Wizard of Oz when I see her pedaling by....doot do-doot duh-do-doot!