(photo by e.hunt)
Saturday, January 19, 2019
From Five or Six or Seven Seas
One of my favorite parts of working at Starbucks is that occasionally I get to chalk the a-frame sign. National Coffee Day, special drink promotions, holidays, a new season, or if I just feel a gust of chalk-marker-induced creativity all make great reasons to grab the marker box. This time I got to do a rendition of the famous Starbucks siren: the face of our current specialty coffee, Anniversary Blend.
Monday, January 14, 2019
The Big Snow
Friday afternoon I met up with Mom for a late lunch at a Bread Co. located about eight miles away from my apartment. We caught up on life and recent happenings over soup and coffee drinks, and watched the light snow that had begun falling. When we left it had only been snowing for about an hour and a half, but the roads were already getting treacherous.
What would normally be a fifteen to twenty minute drive home took over an hour and a half! That was nothing though compared to people that were stuck on certain roads for six hours or more. Mom and I left at the perfect time because it could've taken me a lot longer, and luckily neither of us got into an accident. I saw a few sliding mishaps on my journey, but nothing too scary.
Upon arriving home I immediately put on a pair of cozy pajamas and settled in to an evening of catching up on blogs and Pinterest board suggestion emails while watching the pretty snow fall. That, and watching/taking snow update videos for our family group text.
I went out for the last update at 10pm and measured seven inches of snow! There were a couple guys out shoveling all the sidewalks at my apartment throughout the night so I went for a little walk up to the road. It had been plowed several times but you wouldn't know it from the picture.
On Saturday I woke up to a snowy marshmallow world and that lovely muffled quiet that only comes from a blanket of snow. My boss made it to work to open the store but called and said I didn't have to come in unless I wanted to so, snow day for me! I did go out to the parking lot around lunchtime to brush a layer off my car, and then later to shovel out the berm pushed up in front of it by the snowplow. Seeing as how I had a broom instead of a shovel, it was quite a process.
I ended up driving to Mom and Dad's for some homemade soup. At this point it was still snowing (and predicted to continue through midday Sunday), but the roads were okay, and worth it for delicious soupa! I don't think we've gotten this much snow in a really long time, and it has been so fun to watch and experience. I love how snow looks and bundling up all warm to go outside in the freezing cold is a cozy feeling. I hope none of you had any travel problems and are also enjoying the beautiful winter white on everything!
What would normally be a fifteen to twenty minute drive home took over an hour and a half! That was nothing though compared to people that were stuck on certain roads for six hours or more. Mom and I left at the perfect time because it could've taken me a lot longer, and luckily neither of us got into an accident. I saw a few sliding mishaps on my journey, but nothing too scary.
Upon arriving home I immediately put on a pair of cozy pajamas and settled in to an evening of catching up on blogs and Pinterest board suggestion emails while watching the pretty snow fall. That, and watching/taking snow update videos for our family group text.
I went out for the last update at 10pm and measured seven inches of snow! There were a couple guys out shoveling all the sidewalks at my apartment throughout the night so I went for a little walk up to the road. It had been plowed several times but you wouldn't know it from the picture.
On Saturday I woke up to a snowy marshmallow world and that lovely muffled quiet that only comes from a blanket of snow. My boss made it to work to open the store but called and said I didn't have to come in unless I wanted to so, snow day for me! I did go out to the parking lot around lunchtime to brush a layer off my car, and then later to shovel out the berm pushed up in front of it by the snowplow. Seeing as how I had a broom instead of a shovel, it was quite a process.
I ended up driving to Mom and Dad's for some homemade soup. At this point it was still snowing (and predicted to continue through midday Sunday), but the roads were okay, and worth it for delicious soupa! I don't think we've gotten this much snow in a really long time, and it has been so fun to watch and experience. I love how snow looks and bundling up all warm to go outside in the freezing cold is a cozy feeling. I hope none of you had any travel problems and are also enjoying the beautiful winter white on everything!
(photos by e.hunt)
Saturday, January 12, 2019
Welcome to Gazebo North
We had some exciting end-of-year family news: Taylor found an apartment! It's a lovely two bedroom with hardwood floors, lots of windows, and in the area of town he wanted. Last weekend was moving weekend, starting with a load of books.
I was still infirmed from the nasty stomach flu, and weak from not eating much and lying around recovering for the previous few days, but I was able to carry a few light loads, and provide the much-needed service of holding open the doors.
I was still infirmed from the nasty stomach flu, and weak from not eating much and lying around recovering for the previous few days, but I was able to carry a few light loads, and provide the much-needed service of holding open the doors.
A couple days later we moved some bigger furniture items, specifically the bed and couch, which was a process. Being a fold-out couch, we had to take out the springy mattress and carry it like a taco that didn't really want to stay folded, and the couch itself was just so bulky and heavy. We got it though, and it looks great in it's new spot. Yay for apartment living!
(photos by e.hunt)
A Winter Wonderland Wedding
The last Friday in December was my old college friend, Megan's wedding. The wedding was scheduled to start at five but since it was a Friday and a pretty good drive away into Illinois, I started getting ready fairly early. First up was makeup. I wear skin and eye makeup everyday but for special occasions such as this I wanted to spice it up a bit with sparkly, smokey eyeshadow, illuminating highlighter on my cheekbones, and extra of all my usuals. The real feature though was going to be my hair.
To make my look a little more winter appropriate, I planned to braid a velvet sash into my hair for a little Katniss Everdeen-meets-Blair Waldorf vibe. Easier said than done; however, on the third try I got it right!
The wedding was lovely and Megan and Rion did this cool thing at the ceremony where after the procession out, they walked back up to the front and dismissed everybody by rows so they could briefly greet all of their guests, rather than having to go around doing just that at the reception.
After driving the thirty minutes to the reception hall, Hannah, Shelby, and I walked in to the lavish affair that was decked out with lights and winter greenery. The Drury party was seated at Table 3, so we had a pretty good view of everything, and probably were served pretty early on as well.
We headed straight to the open bar where Shelby got a Manhattan, I ordered a Tom Collins, which they didn't know how to make so it ended up being a vodka club soda with a twist, and Hannah got a soda (she's pregnant(!) so no drinks for her), and we sat back down to a variety of appetizers being served, followed by a three course meal, and then dessert!
Megan and Rion made a few remarks, toasts were made, and the cake was cut. Shortly after, the dancing began and we only left the dance floor once to go cool off outside for a bit.
It was great to see a lot of old friends and sorority sisters, many of whom I haven't seen in several years. Megan looked gorgeous and it was clear she was happy, in love, and enjoying her wedding. It was definitely a night to remember and hopefully it won't be years before I see these friends again.
To make my look a little more winter appropriate, I planned to braid a velvet sash into my hair for a little Katniss Everdeen-meets-Blair Waldorf vibe. Easier said than done; however, on the third try I got it right!
The wedding was lovely and Megan and Rion did this cool thing at the ceremony where after the procession out, they walked back up to the front and dismissed everybody by rows so they could briefly greet all of their guests, rather than having to go around doing just that at the reception.
After driving the thirty minutes to the reception hall, Hannah, Shelby, and I walked in to the lavish affair that was decked out with lights and winter greenery. The Drury party was seated at Table 3, so we had a pretty good view of everything, and probably were served pretty early on as well.
We headed straight to the open bar where Shelby got a Manhattan, I ordered a Tom Collins, which they didn't know how to make so it ended up being a vodka club soda with a twist, and Hannah got a soda (she's pregnant(!) so no drinks for her), and we sat back down to a variety of appetizers being served, followed by a three course meal, and then dessert!
Megan and Rion made a few remarks, toasts were made, and the cake was cut. Shortly after, the dancing began and we only left the dance floor once to go cool off outside for a bit.
It was great to see a lot of old friends and sorority sisters, many of whom I haven't seen in several years. Megan looked gorgeous and it was clear she was happy, in love, and enjoying her wedding. It was definitely a night to remember and hopefully it won't be years before I see these friends again.
(photos by e.hunt)
The Great Holiday Recap
I know it's a bit late, but I hope you all had a wonderfully merry Christmas! We spread out all our traditional holiday activities over the month of December, starting with picking out a Christmas tree!
We all met up at St. Peters to peruse the tree rows before settling on a good one. The volunteer guy running it didn't really know what he was doing so Dad had to recut the bottom when we got home before sliding it through the window into it's spot in the corner. A few days later after the branches had a chance to drop a bit, we strung on the lights. The same five Christmas cds have been loaded in the back room stereo for the last several years, as this is the only time of year we ever use it, but the shuffle option doesn't work very well so we end up listening to the same handful of songs over and over. Just adds to the scene.
The next event on the Christmastime To Do List was the outside lights. If you'll recall from last year, Dad and Taylor wrapped the backyard tree in perfectly even loops and this year they were determined to perfect this technique.
And Taylor did a little scale model on one of the front trees as well. We also happened to be barbecuing that night so we started playing around with angles and the coal chimney to amazing effect. The pictures don't quite do it the same justice as the magical slow motion videos we took, but here they are.
The following week was Christmas! I took several days off work as a little gift to myself so I packed up and moved back to Mom and Dad's for a couple days.
On Christmas Eve we celebrated with Dad's side of the family, where we took part in the customary kid's table brown paper after dinner marker fest. Drawings range from holiday shapes and winter scenes, Christmas song lyrics and pretty lettering, to Taylor's alien face logo and my blind contour drawings of different family members.
The next morning we had a leisurely breakfast of croissants and coffee, followed by present opening and cleaning up for the big dinner party. Dad was making crab cakes and shrimp pasta with a whole host of delicious side dishes. Timing was key, as several items had to be completed early to make room for everything else; look how loaded up the fridge is!
Uncle Gary brought his famous eggnog, along with a few distant family members in from out of town, the food turned out really, really good, and we played our usual party games. All in all it was a great Christmas filled with joy and low-key family time, which is how it should be. Happy late Christmas, everyone!
We all met up at St. Peters to peruse the tree rows before settling on a good one. The volunteer guy running it didn't really know what he was doing so Dad had to recut the bottom when we got home before sliding it through the window into it's spot in the corner. A few days later after the branches had a chance to drop a bit, we strung on the lights. The same five Christmas cds have been loaded in the back room stereo for the last several years, as this is the only time of year we ever use it, but the shuffle option doesn't work very well so we end up listening to the same handful of songs over and over. Just adds to the scene.
The next event on the Christmastime To Do List was the outside lights. If you'll recall from last year, Dad and Taylor wrapped the backyard tree in perfectly even loops and this year they were determined to perfect this technique.
And Taylor did a little scale model on one of the front trees as well. We also happened to be barbecuing that night so we started playing around with angles and the coal chimney to amazing effect. The pictures don't quite do it the same justice as the magical slow motion videos we took, but here they are.
The following week was Christmas! I took several days off work as a little gift to myself so I packed up and moved back to Mom and Dad's for a couple days.
On Christmas Eve we celebrated with Dad's side of the family, where we took part in the customary kid's table brown paper after dinner marker fest. Drawings range from holiday shapes and winter scenes, Christmas song lyrics and pretty lettering, to Taylor's alien face logo and my blind contour drawings of different family members.
The next morning we had a leisurely breakfast of croissants and coffee, followed by present opening and cleaning up for the big dinner party. Dad was making crab cakes and shrimp pasta with a whole host of delicious side dishes. Timing was key, as several items had to be completed early to make room for everything else; look how loaded up the fridge is!
Uncle Gary brought his famous eggnog, along with a few distant family members in from out of town, the food turned out really, really good, and we played our usual party games. All in all it was a great Christmas filled with joy and low-key family time, which is how it should be. Happy late Christmas, everyone!
(photos by e.hunt)
Tuesday, January 1, 2019
I Have Spread My Dreams Under Your Feet
Happy 2019, everyone! Did you have a good New Year's Eve? I was asleep when the clock struck midnight, trying to rid myself of the nasty stomach flu that had taken over my last two days of the year. I'm still taking it easy today but I think it's mostly gone. I hope no one else I ran into over the weekend came down with it!
Did you all make any resolutions or goals for the new year? I usually stay away from the hard-hitting, my-whole-life-will-be-fixed-overnight variety of resolution, so I thought about something little I could do to make my life more positive, and settled on trying to read more. Ever since high school when we had to read and analyze novels within an inch of their paperback life, I've struggled to read books just for pleasure. There have been a few here and there that I read to the final page (Chocolat, the Harry Potters, One Hundred Years of Solitude, Brave New World, and a few others), but that seems a rather small list for how many years have passed. So, now my goal is out in the world and I must stick with it! Anyone want to do a book club with me?
Did you all make any resolutions or goals for the new year? I usually stay away from the hard-hitting, my-whole-life-will-be-fixed-overnight variety of resolution, so I thought about something little I could do to make my life more positive, and settled on trying to read more. Ever since high school when we had to read and analyze novels within an inch of their paperback life, I've struggled to read books just for pleasure. There have been a few here and there that I read to the final page (Chocolat, the Harry Potters, One Hundred Years of Solitude, Brave New World, and a few others), but that seems a rather small list for how many years have passed. So, now my goal is out in the world and I must stick with it! Anyone want to do a book club with me?
(photo by e.hunt)
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