HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

10.30.09

Check out these beautious pumpkins that are in the window display at Bop! I'm obsessed. I think I may go out tomorrow and buy the necessary materials to replicate that blingy one.

10.29.09

Snowflakes.

October 29th.

That is all.

10.28.09

Nancy and I are working on a little craft project, so we went to Archiver's to get some paper on Wednesday night. This place has so many options - texture, shimmer, shine, glitter, every color you can imagine - yet we had such a hard time finding exactly what we wanted! I think we got some good stuff though. Results of the project to come...

10.27.09

Have your money ready, already! Geez!

10.26.09

More cookies. we need to stop with the cookies probably. Especially because I bought about 4 boxes of Girl Scout cookies that are coming soon. Are Girl Scouts all over selling cookies now? or is that just in Madison? Either way, I can't wait to get my hands on some of those tasty Lemonades!

10.25.09

My girls, Dre and Diz. The stars aligned and we were all in town on the same day with nothing going on, so we got together and had brunch at Cafe Hollander on Sunday morning. Love that place! Such a great addition to the Tosa Village. Diz was so adorable with her tiny little baby belly too. I sort of can't believe she is having a baby. I still feel like we are 16 sometimes.

10.24.09

Are you dying right now over the cuteness of this baby?!? ugh! She is my friend Brenda's baby. She is about 5 months old and I finally got a chance to meet her last weekend. I mean seriously, she needs to stop with those chubby cheeks and huge blue eyes! I can't handle the cuteness.

10.23.09

Ok, so this is kind of a funny story. At least funny to me, my family and Gina's friend, Aly. Back in 2001, Survivor was super popular. We loved it as much as the rest of the country. It was in its second season and since we loved the first season so much, we decided to have a small viewing party at my parents' house on the night of its premiere. At the end of the show, we decided we would all pick a winner, put them in a box and reveal our picks on the season finale. But you see, I come from a family that would not feel right to just put the slips of paper in a shoe box and be done with it. No, no, no. We made a grade school craft out of it! We put strips of masking tape all over the box and painted it brown...and I believe Gina wrote "Survivor" on the front of the box...but the best part is really inside the box. Oh yes, after all these years we still have our picks inside the box! They were written on paper scrolled up and tied with raffia...you know, to add to the rugged-ness.

My mom loves it so much, she has kept it in the same place all these years later.

10.22.09

The leaves are falling at warp speed!

10.21.09

This is Shari. She turned 29, so we went to The Icon, which is apparently our cold weather bar of choice. It was just so great to get together with just the girls and talk and laugh. It is rare that all of our schedules allow us to be at the same place at the same time, but on Wednesday it happened. So yeah, that was all well and good, but let's get back to the real issue here. She turned 29!! You know what this means? 29 is right around the corner for me too. Make it stop!

10.20.09

I was attempting an Elvis lip, but it ended up looking like I am trying to be tough or something. Elvis would be so disappointed. And really, I sincerely apologize for my freakazoidness. When one is going on month 11 of this project, this is what you end up with some days.

10.19.09

I got a new Tervis Tumbler to add to my collection. Our local Bed, Bath and Beyond were selling these adorable Bucky Badger tumblers and I just couldn't resist. Haven't heard of a Tervis Tumbler? Well, they are great. Meghan got me my first one - that would be the adorable pineapple on the left - and I have been sold on them ever since. The way they are engineered reduces condensation (no rings on your tables!) and keeps hot drinks hot and cold drinks cold. Who doesn't want to keep their ice cold glass of water cold? There are a ton of different designs options and they are also guaranteed for life I think. So, go get yourself a TT already!

10.18.09

While the boys were at the Packer game on Sunday, Gina, Cooper and I went to Mulberry Farm. It was uber chilly and windy, but we still had fun. Cooper knows how to do one thing well these days - and that is to run in the opposite direction of anything that isn't where we would like him to be. And when I say run, I mean run. For such a little person, he is fast!

10.17.09

We were in Green Bay for the weekend. Coop busted out his game bibs for the Badger game. This kid knows how to show his Wisconsin pride in style! Jon and I got these for him before he was even born and they finally fit him - almost 2 years later. Jon secretly (actually probably not so secretly) wishes he had some of his own.

10.16.09

Poor Jon. He has become a model against his own will.

10.15.09

lame picture. I only had 3 picture options from this day - and the other 2 were blurry and even more lame.

10.14.09

Now that it is getting darker earlier (waaaaaa!), it is getting more difficult to take pictures after work when I am at home with decent light. So, I decided I need to bring my camera to work and find some inspiration there. It actually comes at a great time too because I feel like I have exhausted my options at our apartment.

10.13.09

10.12.09

Jon's Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip cookies. This is an amazing combo and I don't understand why it isn't more mainstream.

10.11.09

The Memorial Union Terrace chairs.

At least I think that is the technical name? The locals simply call it "the Terrace". These sunburst chairs are famous and photographed often. I see them in engagement and wedding photos all the time...and actually there was a couple taking engagement pictures while I was there today!

On a nice day, the terrace is packed with people studying, drinking beer, sailing, sunbathing, etc. etc. It's awesome. A must stop on a visit to Madison.

In other Sunday/weekend news:

• We managed to make it through half of the 3rd season of Dexter. Dang, that show is so good! Michael C. Hall is so great and might officially be my favorite actor.
  
• Jon's friend Ben finished the Chicago marathon in 4 hours and 2 mins (unofficially). I really wish we could have been there to cheer him on! Great job, Ben!
• I spent my day grocery shopping, cleaning, swapping out summer for winter clothes and cooking. I am seriously so exhausted from all the activity. This is concerning. Won't I be even more busy than this when I have kids? Will I just be always tired? Probably.
  
• Jon made homemade peanut butter chocolate chip cookies and bread from scratch. The cookies are amazing - why don't people put chocolate chips in peanut butter cookies more often? It's kind of a no brainer...and I am here to tell you they are delicious. The bread didn't really turn out though - he is doing research as to why it didn't turn out. (I love it)
  

10.10.09

The Madison Farmer's Market on the square. (This is part of my "Madison Project")

This thing is SO Madison. As I found out today, it is kind of hard getting a good picture that shows how vast this thing is though! You know, a picture that clearly shows the awesomeness that it is.

I could have posted the pic I took of a booth with various peppers with the capitol in the background, but that doesn't really show the scope of this market. Or a close up of some of Stella's spicy cheese bread (oooh, that might have been a good idea actually), but I liked this one. It shows how many people flock to this thing, even in the cold temps we had this morning.

...and you get a blue ribbon if you can spot Jon in this pic.

10.9.09

Another autumnal image. Never mind that the quality of this picture is awful.

10.8.09

More trees at work - these, not as unique as the others.

10.7.09

The trees at work have ridiculously amazing colors going on right now.

But for the record, I'm still not digging the fall. Still mourning the loss of summer.

10.6.09

10.5.09

This was before the game when we were feeling optimistic about a Packers win.

It was an upsetting loss.

I made him wear this. It's my hat.

10.4.09

We celebrated Keegan's big 4th birthday last Sunday.

My father in law made his famous sesame potatoes. mmmmmmm mm!. I gladly took 2 helpings of them.

10.3.09

I realized last week that this city o' mine and its recognizable landmarks have not made their way in this little project. So I am making it my mission to get out on the weekends (because of the lack of light after work!) and take pics of those things we Madisonians love so much about our city. This may be difficult, seeing as though weekends at home have been few and far between as of late, but I'll try my best. I have a few of the obvious ones in mind already, but I welcome any suggestions!!

I decided that this flower display (display?) would be first to be photographed since I am sure the flowers won't be around much longer. It might not seem that interesting or unique, but I always like seeing it when I am driving downtown.

10.2.09

10.1.09

I made frames for the photo booth pics at our wedding, so when Eva asked if I would make some for her, I gladly agreed! I love this stuff! (obviously) She kind of had a stripe theme going on, so we agreed on the design pictured. I think they add a little something extra to the pics :)

*note: I kind of hate this pic - blurry, bad lighting. oh well.

9.30.09

Last week Wednesday, I met up with a few girlfriends at the Sundance 608 theater for a viewing of The September Issue. This is a documentary about Vogue's September issue, which I guess is always their biggest issue of the year. Anyway, it was filmed in 2007, which I am sure was an attempt to do some damage control on The Devil Wears Prada. Because as much as yes, Anna Wintour came across as decisive, a tad demanding and a little cold - she was also shown smiling, being supportive of her staff and even warm moments at home with her family. The breakout star of the movie though was the creative director, Grace Coddington. Now SHE is a character.

9.29.09

I'm not sure I can express the importance of great knives. They make life so much easier.

9.28.09

A few months ago, we got a new laptop. We went with one with a smaller surface area in exchange for more memory. Unfortch, smaller surface area = no 10-key. This was a tough trade for my husband. As a former bank teller, he is a self proclaimed 10-key expert.

Imagine my delight when in line at Marshall's, I found this detachable 10 key. I gave it to him for his bday. He loves it.

eva and duke

It was the middle of the reception, the dance floor was packed and Duke came up to me and said, "I expect to see this on the blog!" Ha! I didn't even know Duke read this little ole blog! So Duke, I would have done it anyway, but here it goes....

**********

I have known Eva forever. She is Meghan's cousin and despite being a few years younger than me, we went to the same grade school. It wasn't until recent years though that I would say we have become friends though. I think that tends to happen when you are in your twenties and age gaps become less obvious. Anyway, enough about me and Eva! This is about Duke and Eva. They met and started dating when they were 14! 14, people! Soon after they graduated from college, they took a trip to Door County where Duke asked Eva to marry him!

The wedding was on Saturday, September 26th at 4pm at the South Shore Pavilion in Bayview. Have you peeps been there? It is probably the cream of the crop in county park buildings. The building is really cool and the view is even better being right on the lake. There was threat of rain in the forecast all week, but thankfully it held out and it turned out to be a beautiful day.



We got to the outdoor ceremony, where good ole Tom was handing out programs.

The ceremony got underway and it was short and very sweet. They wrote their own vows, which were so nice and I doubt there was a dry eye in the place. I'll let the pics speak for themselves...

Meghan and her sister, Emily, were co-maids of honor.

Here comes the bride!

the vows (and tears)

the groomsmen having a laugh during the ceremony

the kiss :)

Mr. and Mrs. Duke and Eva J.

Since the wedding and reception were at the same place, we mingled outside for a bit and enjoyed the weather and scenery while everyone was taking pictures. Jon and I also took that time to take some fun candids

We eventually made our way inside and found a seat. I LOVED their centerpieces and loved them even more when I found out how economical they were. They clipped these hydrandeas when they bloomed a while back from a friend's bush (hello, free!)...then dried them so they would keep until the wedding. Then there is the sand which = cheap-o. Actually, if it were me, I would just go to the beach or something and take it. And those vases might as well be drinking glasses from the Dollar Store. So basically probably less than $30. They looked awesome!

And you know it ain't a party if Beyond the Booth isn't there, right? Oh yeah! Even though this isn't a new concept to me anymore, I still love it and I know everyone else at the wedding loved it too. I can't wait to see their guest book! Not quite sure why I look like I have a "Rachel" 'do in the upper right pic, but oh well.

For this one, we got creative with props. I love the lower left best. We did our best model poses: Tom with his male model glasses (which got a lot of laughs when he busted them out out of no where), me with my attempt at "Blue Steel", Emily and Vogue and Meg doing the haute couture pose that the models on PR always do.

For dinner, we sat down at long tables rather than circle - which I always see in magazines, but have never seen in person. (It looked really cool!)






During dinner, Meghan and Emily did their maid of honor speech, which was so cute and sweet! It was told like a fairy tale and incorporated all the milestones in their relationship perfectly...and to top it off, it was read off of a scrolled up piece of paper. KH and TN, Meg and Emily!

Soon after the speeches, the party got underway and we all danced until we literally were too tired to continue on. Things got a little crazy toward the end and I believe the face Eva is making in the second pic is proof of that.

and just as a side note, see that girl next to left of Meghan? I lllllooooovvved her dress.

It was a such a fun wedding and I couldn't be happier for Eva and Duke. They are truly a great couple and their love and support for one another is obvious. I am so happy for them! Congratulations!