breather

I seem to be taking a bit of a vacation from blogging, friends.  There's too much sunshine outside and a few too many things on my to-do list...

Enjoy your weekend and do check back.  We're headed to a much-anticipated family wedding, and I'm sure I'll have something fun to share...

slacking

No real post today, dear readers.  Thanks for understanding.  Have a beautiful weekend!

slacking

No real post tonight, folks.  I'm going to spend the evening eating these pancakes, finishing this book, and trying incredibly hard to avoid eating all the Halloween candy I bought for those sweet little trick-or-treaters.

Thank you for your patience with my laziness.  It's been a very long day.  I'll be back on Friday, of course, with a to-do list for the weekend and maybe a little gossip about my partner-in-crime's birthday...

apologies

No real post today, friends.  The good news is, I've just started an exciting new job.  The not-as-good news is that I'm feeling pretty beat.  I'll be back in this space at the end of the week with some food talk and a to-do list to get us all through the weekend...

kale

My man made pesto yesterday.  This, in itself, isn't a big deal.  In an average summer, we're probably making some kind of pesto every other week or so.  Yesterday, though, was the mother lode, pounds of basil and a nice pile of homegrown garlic magically transformed by the food processor into about a dozen jars of goodness that will get tucked into the freezer.  We'll dole them out carefully over the course of the winter, each jar a reminder of the basil-y goodness of summer.

We have other ways of bottling the season.  I'll probably be making a batch of refrigerator pickles this weekend, with the giant pile of cucumbers that have taken over the bottom drawer of our fridge.

I'm a champion of pickling, curing, freezing, canning, and doing whatever is necessary to preserve the bounty of the summer and autumn, in order to eat well the rest of the year.  On the other hand, I'm also a proponent of cooking up whatever's in season.  And right now, one of those things is kale.

I'm making kale chips tonight.  They're tasty and easy and the end result feels--snacky.  Decadent.  Kind of like junk food.  Which they are, I suppose, but at least a snack food that started its life as an easy-to-grow, good-for-you green.

You can find kale chips recipes all over the place, and honestly, you might not even need one.  

Just preheat the oven to 350 F.  Wash a bunch of kale, and then pat it all dry with a clean dish towel.  Cut out the thickest of the kale stems.  Drizzle some olive oil over things, add some salt and pepper, and toss it around.  Lay the kale leaves in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until things are crispy, about ten or fifteen minutes.

I have a busy weekend planned, but with the chilly almost-fall weather and a bit of cold, I'd really rather just curl up at home.  Here's a to do list for a weekend of not-doing-much-at-all...

Make your own notebook.

Tour a tiny house.

Cozy up to your teacup.

Look at books.

Be really bad for no good reason.

Stay in bed and cuddle.

Happy weekend, everyone!

more slacking

No real post today, friends.  I'm headed out for dinner and fun with a friend.  I'm hoping there will be alcohol.  And maybe some giggling.  Mostly, I just want to hang out.

Things around here are about to getting pretty interesting, though.  Remember that circus of a wedding we had a month or so ago?  We'd also planned to have a Washington state reception, too, for the friends and family that didn't feel like traveling two thousand miles to party with us.  Thing is, we've been a little distracted by the fun and fireworks of married life, and we haven't done much planning for the follow-up event, which is less than two weeks away now.

We have some work to do and I have all intentions of dragging the rest of you along with me.  Here's some  festivity and celebration, just to get you in the mood...

See you on Friday!

stretching

It seems that life has gotten a lot busier in the last week or so.  While I find my balance with a new job, wrapping up the old job, the peak of garden season, and oh, yes, that whole marriage thing, I hope you'll find it in your hearts to be patient with me.

For today, I'll just beg your forgiveness.  I have a desperate need, after an eleven hour work day, to just sit. In the meantime, I'd like to invite you to have a peek at this.  Or this.  Or this and that...

See you on Wednesday!

a little break

No real post today.  I'm getting a few things in order before tomorrow, when I--gulp--get a few teeth yanked out of my mouth.  I'll be taking Friday off, too, and posting again on Monday.  (And yes, there will finally be some wedding photos.)

In the meantime, if you're bored, might I suggest you visit this sweet little blog?

after

Two days after the wedding, and my bouquet is doing just fine.  The marriage seems to be going pretty well, too, although that could just be because my man and I have been too tired to do anything but smirk at each other, fiddle with our wedding rings, and giggle every time someone says "husband" or "wife."

We're on a plane back to Seattle tomorrow and maybe back to something like "normal" life.  Hopefully, I'll have some juicy photos to share with you all soon.  I definitely have some thinking to do about the future of the Sparrow in the next few weeks.  (Do let me know, dear readers, if you have any thoughts on that complicated subject.  I really would appreciate some advice on the subject.  Also, I just like to hear from you all...)

For now, though, I am going to just sit for a few hours and do nothing. Weddings make you tired, friends.  They are beautiful and brave and exciting, but man oh man, are they exhausting, too.

I'll be posting again on Wednesday.  After I've had a very, very long nap.

sick

You know, they warn you about this kind of thing.  There's an article in practically every wedding magazine about staying healthy while you wrap up last-minute planning.  They tell you to drink lots of water and watch the caffeine and eat right and get plenty of sleep and to keep the stress in check.

And I did all of that, I tell you.  I really did.  And what do I get for it?  Strep throat.

It's certainly not the end of the world.  Boy, am I glad it's happening now and not, say, twenty-three days from now.  And we've managed to keep most of the wedding prep on track, so it's not like there's a giant to-do list hanging over my head.  (Okay, there kind of is, but I refuse to be afraid of it, at this point.)

Mostly, I am just very bad at being sick.  I don't like lying around all helpless and gross.  I don't like not doing something.  It makes me--itchy.

For now, though, there's me, the antibiotics, a box of popsicles, and the entire second season of Grey's Anatomy.  Another day of two of wandering around the house probably won't kill me.  Maybe it's even a good thing.

getting wet

My heart is full.  Yesterday, my man's family threw us a "co-ed" wedding shower: a tasty barbeque on a gorgeous day with lots of laughing and lawn games and little kids running around.  It was pretty much perfect.  I can't do it justice here.

And it was probably good practice for us, what with the being the center of attention and all.  It's not something that either of us is incredibly comfortable with, even among people that we know so well.

In the middle of the day, though, I looked around at all the faces looking at us and realized how secure I felt in the idea that our marriage will exist in this context of support and family.  I've said it before, but as much as I think of myself as an individual, I really do like having the sense of being part of a greater whole.

I know what you're thinking.  Yes, I am kind of a sap.

But I am a lucky sap.

I am also--if this post isn't any indication--a somewhat sleep-deprived sap, which brings me to my next subject.  After several months of posting here five days a week, I'm going to scale things back just a little bit.  Please don't panic.  I'll still be posting every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  I just need some extra time for all those last-minute things that are cropping up.  And the things that I've known about all along that I just haven't dealt with yet.  The countdown stands at forty days, folks, and this bride-to-be has things to do...

Also, my man has pretty much made dinner ever single weeknight since I started posting here, and while he's been incredibly great about it, I'd like to be able to offer him a break that doesn't consist of handing him a take-out menu.

So with that in mind, I'll see you all on Wednesday.  I have dinner to cook.  And a lot of thank you notes to write...

the fifth of may

Happy Cinco de Mayo!  I'll be honest; it's not really a holiday I've ever celebrated, but for some reason, I've been thinking about margaritas and flip flops all day, and when I wandered over to Green Wedding Shoes this afternoon, I was thrilled to find this sweet Inspiration Board dedicated to the day.

Martha has some cute CdM crafts today, too.  Anything that involves tissue paper and scissors works for me...

Enjoy the holiday, everyone.  I'm off to find the Hornitos...

again

Soooooo tired...

Check back tomorrow for a look at our invites.  I promise.

P.S.--How has it taken me this long to stumble across A Practical Wedding?  Seriously?

slacking

Oh, friends.  I am extra sleepy tonight and feeling lazy.  That doesn't mean you shouldn't have some fun in wedding blog world, though.  There's always something happening somewhere.

First of all, Souris Mariage is celebrating Food Week.  There are plenty of decisions to be made about wedding food, and Mouse's posts about everything from the margaritas to the main courses have me drooling.  Mini-chimichangas dipped in chipotle sour cream?  Oh, yes, please.

And if you haven't already, take a look at the "Pretty Fall Wedding" on Once Wed.  All the bird details are enough for me to fall in love.  Oh, and then there are the cakes.  And the cupcakes.

If you're in the market for more than just inspiring eyecandy, Sarah over at Truly Smitten has a sweet little DIY project to share.  I'm already thinking of taking a stab at it.  Maybe you should, too?

I hope that's enough to tide you over.  If the universe is willing, I'll be back in full force tomorrow...