wedding day: anticipation

I recently realized something about myself: I'm an all-about-the-anticipation kind of person. My favorite day of the week is Friday, since it's almost the weekend, but not quite, so you haven't even used any of it up yet. I love appetizers. I like Christmas eve better than Christmas. My favorite part of church is singing before the sermon. Really, I like anything that prepares you to enjoy something very very wonderful. It's no wonder that the "getting ready" part of my wedding day was probably my favorite part. I remember being completely relaxed as soon as my hair was done (hair had been a source of anxiety for me that week) and soaking in the morning sunshine as I drove back to my house with my mom and sister. A friend from high school came over to do our makeup and a family friend brought over the flowers. All the while, my best friends were there, listening to music, chatting, and getting dressed for my wedding. It was an amazing feeling.

I remember every part of those few hours, probably better than I do the ceremony or reception. But having Jamie, our photographer, there to document the time, was really great. She did such a good job, and I love having these photos to look back on.

Looking through these makes me so thankful that my sister was my maid of honor, and my biggest help in the days prior to the wedding. All day, she was in the right place at the right time, holding onto my lipstick, sunglasses, and even sacrificing her sash at the reception, since the garter was nowhere to be found (I didn't end up wearing it).

By the time the school bus showed up with the guys (a big yellow bus), I was ready. I had been dreaming of wearing my dress (made for me by kiko), hair clip (by lovely jen), shoe feathers, and veil (loaned graciously by jenny) for an entire year! I remember peeking out the window to see my friends decorating the school bus with huge white bows. It doesn't get much better than that. ;)

all photos by jamie hammond photography

10 on 10: august

A baby shower and a birthday

Last weekend I had the pleasure of joining a bunch of great women in hosting a baby shower for our friend, Tina. This was the first gathering we've hosted at our new house, and it was so fun! Maybe it's because I'm still relatively new to showers, but I just love them. I love celebrating big life moments with friends.

One thing I expected was a bit of confusion regarding the address/entrance to our house, and there were a couple guests that knocked on landlord Bill's door. But with a few balloons and Paige's chalk artwork, most made it there on the first try. ;)

Our shower "theme" was based on Tina's love of nature, with a touch of femininity (no hot pink and princesses for this mom-to-be). I love how the flowers came together: baby's breath, hydrangeas from Ginger and Paige's yards, wood rounds and mason jars.

We borrowed the idea of the "wishing tree," which also served as a guest book. For favors, everyone took home a cd in a recycled kraft paper sleeve. :)

One thing is for sure, the small group women can cook (I am learning from them). We had 3 different quiches, fruit, homemade granola and yogurt (Tina's own recipe), raspberry punch, and cupcakes.

After eating, Tina opened her gifts and we guessed "who's who" in the baby photo game. Paige AND Tessa both scored 100%! I got one photo right-- myself.

We are all so excited for Tina and Steve's little girl to come into the world! Just like her mom and dad, she is bound to be an amazing runner someday. Congratulations Tina!!

Oh, and did I mention that it was my dear husband's birthday on Saturday too? He really is the best for letting me have the shower at our house on his day. Good thing there were a few leftover cupcakes when he returned. :)

Happy happy birthday Steve. I love you so much!

One family, 30 years

I saw this on snippet and ink's blog, but it was originally from here. This is really amazing to me. I love it. Aren't families the best?

The Kitchen Table

Well, here it is. My first domestic* project: our kitchen nook table. Preparing it may have taken me a good part of the week, but it's finally ready to be used. I really had no idea what I was getting into, but this week I learned how to strip paint, clean, sand, stain and paint wood. Like I said, I didn't know what I was getting into. Here is what the table looked like before:
*in a recent convo with katie d, I was encouraged to blog about my first project as a married woman. I'm working on being domestic ;)

A few weeks ago, I saw a post for a "small vintage table" on Craigslist. The couple selling the table noted in their post that they had shared many special meals at it when they were first married. When I went out to Edmonds to pick it up, the husband was outside in the yard, and after a warm welcome, he helped me load the table into my car. While he was helping me, he continued to tell me how special the table was to him and his wife. They hadn't been able to part with it, even after 18 years of marriage. When I told him that I had been married only weeks ago, he beamed. He told me that this table would be a blessing to us ("a table?" I thought, but I guess only time will tell).

When I brought the table home, the size felt perfect, but the cream and blue colors didn't seem quite right. So I turned to the internet for inspiration, and found posts on Design Sponge that gave me the guts to strip the paint and start fresh.


What I didn't know: a) stripping paint is messy! b) stripping paint can be toxic and c) there were coats and coats of mustard yellow paint underneath the top layers. I'll skip all of the messy details, but removing the paint took days, and that yellow just would not go away.

I turned to sanding next, and finally got down to the wood. I probably could have saved hours by leaving the paint on the table's legs (I just painted over the chairs), but I painted the stripped legs with a pale blue-grey color. For the table top, I chose a walnut color stain. I've already started to wish that the paint was a darker, almost slate, grey. Maybe I'll paint over the legs and chairs. Or, then again, maybe not.


And there you have it. A fresh, new table. With a bright green vase and fresh flowers from the Phinney farmer's market, I think she cleans up pretty nice. :)

I'm excited to see if this table will become a special place for Steve and me. Who knows, maybe it'll be around for another 18 years. :)