On Birthdays & WarLock Weddings

My, what a busy few weeks I've had. In addition to a successful dress fitting (it zipped!), a cake tasting, a Basque barbecue, a friend's beautiful wedding, and time in Spokane and Seattle with people who are so very dear to me.... I also went back to Gonzaga and got my MRS!

I've been calling myself an October bride, and that's still true- but when the Jesuit priest who'd advised us (and tolerated our antics) through our college years wasn't available for the Autumn wedding, we knew we'd have to make a special arrangement. So, on July 23rd, Adam and I had a sweet and simple ceremony at St. Michael's chapel at Gonzaga. We said our I-Dos with our immediate families there to support us, made a nostalgic visit to the Honors house, and had a marvelous dinner at the restaurant where we worked together. It was, in every way, personal and significant and absolutely beautiful.

We're thinking of this ceremony as one part of a larger event, so although we're square with the Church & State, I don't think we'll feel married until we've exchanged rings in front of friends and family on October 29th. We're not even making it "facebook official" yet! But, regardless of how married I feel, I know I've got the sweetest husband in the world. Today is my birthday, and he's given me a gift that I'll always keep near my heart.

I am, truly, the luckiest girl.

PS: These, and many more pictures are posted on facebook... enjoy!

Girl About Town: Rockwood Bakery

With three projects on the table and a flurry of Summer events approaching, now is not a good time for a lapse in inspiration- but I'm feeling drained and dull nevertheless. I need a change of scenery. I need a slice of pie and a cappuccino from Rockwood Bakery. I wish I was back in Spokane!

The warm raspberry walls and sunlight filtering through ivy-covered windows, the pleasant ambiance of kitchen sounds and hushed chatter, the aromas of espresso and baked goods... it is my perfect place.

Do you have a favorite retreat?

Dare to Dream: Rugs

Carpet may be the most common renter's woe. Carpet worn bare over years of use, carpet harboring the former tenant's pet's fleas, carpet wearing stains that you hope had nothing to do with the former tenant's pet. Adam and I have faced all of the above in our current apartment alone. Someday when we live in our own home with herringbone wood floors we're going to reminisce about the carpet angst of our youth. Like the reasonably attractive but obviously defective remnants in our Seattle apartment. Not only did the unbound edges continually unravel, the carpet coughed up enormous poofs of synthetic fluff, even after six months of weekly vacuuming (and even more so after it choked and killed my vacuum). We'll think wayyyy back to the very, very green wall-to-wall carpet of our last Spokane apartment and have a good chuckle. Oh, how green it was.

My current complaint is perhaps the most common of all. Our carpet, even now that it's passably clean, is just hideous. The bedroom is swathed in matted orangey-brown plush (gag), and the living room sports dingy loops of gray, mauve, and blue. A posh tiger rug can only help the situation so much.

So, here's a dare-to-dream that I think all of you renters out there can relate to. I dream of covering up this hot mess with a much prettier area rug (that I could roll up and take with me when I ditch this joint). Something with a practical, show-no-dirt pattern that compliments my neutral palette...

Clockwise from top left, Dash & Albert Diamond Indoor/Outdoor Rug in Charcoal/Taupe, Modern Damask Wool Tufted Rug in Silver from World Market, Hooked Quatrefoil Rug in Mocha/Charcoal from Shades of Light, Dash & Albert Diamond Indoor/Outdoor Rug in Khaki/White.

Of course, rolling in at about half a month's rent, all of these practical investments are sadly out of this girl's price range. Ah, dare to dream.