from the desk: June 2012

Because It's Saturday and We Have Cats

Posted on: Saturday, June 30, 2012

{above} Hux {below} Darwin

Yes that's a Settlers of Catan bumper sticker on our fridge.

Happy Weekend!

S.

Photo Preview

Posted on: Friday, June 29, 2012

Yesterday our wonderful photographer Jana posted a preview of our wedding photos! I didn't get much accomplished for several hours after that. I can't wait to see the rest! I've been thinking of how I should go about blogging about the wedding. I've seen some people take an alphabetical approach- A, talk about accessories, B talk about bridesmaids, etc. Whether I do it like that or not, I wrote out an alphabetical list of possible topics to cover (which was helpful for organizing and not forgetting things to write about), and if I do it that way, some posts would certainly be busier than others. For example, under B I have: bagpipes, beer, bridesmaids, bustle (aka the "buzzle" from hell), babies (there was A LOT of talk of babies considering there were none present or in the works. our future babies are in high demand), C: caricature, ceremony, cake, cocktail hour, colors, and for O all I came up with so far is open bar. :)

Have a great weekend! I'm excited to have my husband back after a hectic Army week. And my friends Nathalie and Claire, my exchange friends from Germany and Aussieland respectively, will be staying with us from the 1st through the 4th; our first house guests! And they'll be here for Canada Day and Independence Day!

Thursday Thoughts (11)

Posted on: Thursday, June 28, 2012

{one} Kitties have caught a bit of a cold. Darwin started sneezing last weekend and she is pretty much better, but Hux started sneezing a day or two ago so he's got the bug now. Kyle had to convince me that it was probably just a cold and that they didn't need to go to the vet, and I figured as they were eating and drinking and OK otherwise, that he was probably right. They've been spending the large part of the day napping; the heat and cold has made them a little understandably sluggish. They are also cats. I'm keeping an eye on them, though.

{two} I finally found out I got my internship that I interviewed for almost a month ago! I will be at the Cedar Crest Hospital and Residential Treatment Center for my whole first year of grad school. I'm really excited! It is a mental and behavioral health center, and it is about 10-15 minutes away as opposed to the 30-40 minute drive to Waco, so it will be nice to have a shorter drive a couple days a week!

{three} My sister got us a slow cooker, and I love it! I've made two meals with it so far, and both have been really good. Both have been chicken dishes, and the chicken cooks so nicely in there! I think the cooker will be very handy once school starts for me.

chicken, corn, black beans, salsa, hot sauce served on rice with green onion (and sour cream for husband)

honey sesame chicken (minus sesame as we couldn't find any)

{four} Kyle is having a leather (motorcycle) jacket custom made for me from Mexico, and they sent us pictures of the vinyl mock-up a couple weeks ago! Here's what they made from what Kyle told them; it will be a brown leather, and we're adding/changing a couple things, but it's looking pretty good!

{five} New planner on the way! Without the strangers' names on it though. I love me some organizing and a good planner for the upcoming school year!

{six} So, I was baking cookies, and while taking them out of the oven I got real close to the open oven door, and burned my arm. Ouch. What a weird place for a weird two-part burn. Maybe I should buy a second oven mitt. And be less of a spazz in the kitchen.

{seven} Ohhh this makes me laugh every time I see it. We love Liam Neeson in this house. Call Me Maybe? Not so much.

{eight} Sar is hosting a 15 Day Challenge, and Lin has a Summertime Swap coming up! Check them out!

{nine} There may have been other thoughts, but then a preview of our wedding photos was posted, and all other thoughts were lost. :)

Reception Table Numbers

Posted on: Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Back when Kyle and I actually got married, Christy, talented artist, Pitt friend and future bridesmaid, made for us this amazing wood burned sign, Mr. and Mrs. ~~Moose~~ McPherson (top right). I love it so much; it is up on a little wall outside our bedroom. When it came to figuring out table numbers, I came up with the idea of doing something similar with wood burning. I figured each table could, instead of just having the number wood burned, also have a personal image of something to do with Kyle and I. These would definitely be something we would keep afterwards, and my idea is to possibly have them up in our future nursery (because of the numbers...teaching to count or something)! Christy was awesome and agreed to make them, and they may just be my favorite part of the decor. They are amazing! She did an incredible job, and they really added a lot to each table. I meant to bring ours from home to have at our sweetheart table, but forgot to take it off the wall so in Texas it stayed; no big deal. Thank you, Christy, for your beautiful work! You should open an Etsy shop or something... I took pictures of each one the other day, and I can tell you a little bit about why I picked each image! I came up with maybe twenty ideas to begin with, and then narrowed it down once we knew how many tables the guest count required.

1. the Pittsburgh Penguins logo! We are both fans, pretty simple.
2. I guess people probably assumed these were wedding bells, but I actually meant a bell to represent Bell County, where Kyle and I actually got married down in Texas (Bell County courthouse). The groomsmen were at this table and probably disappointed they got something lame.

3. Maple leaf- for Canada obviously! A table completely full of Canadians (my family) sat here, so that worked out well.
4. Steelers logo- Kyle is a big fan and I usually enjoy watching with him. Football isn't my favorite, but he's gotten me into in a little, and taught me about the game and players.

5. A motorcycle! Because Kyle has one and is very into them and wants me to get one too so we can ride all over together.
6. Moose is my favorite animal; I saw one in the wild in Finland.

7. The kitties! I just told Christy to have something with cats, but she actually replicated a photograph of Darwin and Huxley. So sweet.

8. A beer bottle for Kyle and a wine glass for me! Cheers!

9. Kyle is in the Army.
10. After we got married on a Monday morning, we were really hungry and went to IHOP for brunch. So now it is kind of our place and an anniversary tradition. It is not that good a restaurant, unfortunately, but it's our thing now. :)

11. The Pitt panther, since we both went to school there and it is a special place for us. Amazing detail. I didn't plan out all the table images to coordinate with who was sitting at the table, so most folks at this table were Penn State people; my bad!

Here's a few photos guests took of their respective tables! More info on the rest of the table top decor to come!

{above} by Kendall

{above} by Jilli {below} by Tracy

- Mrs. M

Birthday List

Posted on: Tuesday, June 26, 2012

I decided to take an interest in my birthday this year (turning the big 24 on July 22), in hopes that I won't forget how old I am again. Because that happened, and I could not remember if I was 22 or 23, and had to do a little simple math to figure it out. Not again thank you! Here are a few things on my wishlist, because we all want something.

1. Elf handmade leather Muse ballet flats. I found these via bleubird and I am in love.

2. Kelly Moore Libby bag. Purses come and purses go, but I want one that is here to stay for awhile. This is actually a camera bag company, but I've had my heart set on this bag for grad school, as it would fit everything, and has some movable organization for the inside. Kyle thinks it is too huge, but he is a boy and they fit everything they need in their huge pockets, so what does he know. It is perfect. I want. In this color. And I'd order soon before it goes out of stock again. hinthinthusband.

3. Bonlook Griffin glasses! With my current glasses I can see the nose bridge/pads reflecting in the glass, which is not cool; it's like there is always a smudge I can't get out. I like these simple, large, black frames. They are sort of like my first pair of glasses from 10th grade that I quite liked, but with larger lenses; the better to see you with my dear (and I have a big head).

Some pretty flowers would also be nice, though I never know about having any plant life in the house due to the cats and the fact that Huxley likes to eat and/or knock over anything. But really, I am just glad Kyle is around this year! Last year he was in Iraq and I asked for a letter for my birthday, which he sent, but never made its way to me, sadly. We may go to Austin for kayaking and dinner. May drink something fruity. May get a tattoo...? Fun Fact: Kyle's birthday is just three weeks after mine; both born in the hot hot summer of '88.

After the Wedding

Posted on: Monday, June 25, 2012

It feels a little bit like when we first moved here together, when Kyle got back from deployment. There are boxes and new things all about, so that might have something to do with recreating that just-moved-in feeling. The cats certainly missed us and their territory. I like that a lot of our wedding decorations can be put on display or used as decor in our home, on a smaller scale of course. I don't like having too much stuff all over, but it's nice to have some personal touches that are more for decoration rather than practical purposes. I will certainly be sharing these with you in the future! I'm not sure the point of this post; I think I just wanted to say a quick hello and that life is pretty swell. Hot, but swell.