And the Winner Is....

By the powers of random.org, the winner of the 100 Uprinting postcards is....

MARIE!

Congrats!  Just make sure I get one of those lovely announcements! ;)

P.S.  You should be receiving directions on how to claim your postcards in the next 30 days... I suggest designing them now before the reason for the announcements is around to keep you busy! =)

*QUICK* Postcard Giveaway!!

Who wants some free postcards? 'Cause I have 100 of them to give away! =)

Long time readers may remember my love for the online printing company Uprinting and how they contributed so much awesomeness to my DIY wedding planning.  Well, it's been awhile, but I have been asked to host another of their fantastic giveaways!  Details are below.

To enter, please leave your name and e-mail address (unless I already have it) as a comment to this post telling me what cool thing you'll use them for (baby announcements?  Wedding thank yous?  Get a jump on this year's Christmas cards?  Check out Uprinting for some more postcard designs and ideas).  For additional entries, you can blog about it, tweet it, or FB it and leave me a link as a separate comment.

The timeline on this is quick, you have until 7 AM PST on June 30th! 

Details

100 Postcards for One (1) Winner

5" x 7"

14pt Cardstock Gloss

No Folding

Front and Back Printing

2 Business Days Print Turnaround Time

Restriction: Limited to US residents 18 years old and above only.  Additionally, if you have won the same giveaway within the last six months, you are not eligible to win it again.  Sorry!

 

 

 

 

** This giveaway is sponsored by UPrinting, an online printing company, no monetary compensation was given and I will receive postcards for hosting. See more information about postcards and available postcard designs on UPrinting.com.

One for the Record Books

This has been the best weekend that I've had in quite a long time... why?  Because I didn't do ANYTHIING!

Well, that's not exactly true.  I did get all dressed up on Friday night and went out dancing with the girls (that was pretty amazing and was a long time coming), but Jacob and I didn't have anything planned for yesterday or today.

A little pre-party self-photo shoot. =)

On the dance floor with my girls!

 
Our weekends have been booked for months now it seems, with either household projects, trips out of town, and, for the last couple of months, Sunday afternoon softball games (we joined a league for the spring).  These activities are, in themselves, greatly enjoyable, but they add up.  And after months of not getting a weekend to simply relax and "reboot", I can really start to feel the effects.

This weekend I sat outside and read a book, I went browsing at a craft store, I watched a movie and did a little laundry, I worked on art projects and organizational projects that I've been putting off doing... but, most importantly, I didn't have a to-do list, or something on my calendar, and it felt great!  Right now I'm sitting outside in my new lounger (bought yesterday when I realized I didn't have anything to sit in when I had time to relax and read a book outside! lol) looking out at my backyard, feeling the nice summer breeze (finally!) and listening to the birds chirp.  This is bliss.

Next weekend Jacob and I headed to the coast to go camping with a few friends.  I'm thankful for both the fact that it's a long weekend, and that I will be forced to not do anything for a few days as I sit around a campsite, read a book, walk on the beach and watch the fireworks.  It will also be the anniversary of Jacob's proposal... and soon our wedding anniversary will be here.  I have some great plans in celebration of that, but that's for another day. =)

Weekend, Are You Here Yet?

The weekend can not come soon enough this week.  I don't know what it is, but I just feel in a rut.  I'm tired and cranky... I just want to sleep.  I am SUPER excited that we don't have ANYTHING planned this weekend.  it has been far too long since our calendar has been clear for a whole two days (we just finished our spring softball league, which had us booked for the last two months of Sundays).  I'm excited to sleep in--even though, in my old age, that only means until about 8:30 or so!

I'm also looking forward to NEXT weekend... our annual fourth of July camping trip at the coast and a four day weekend!  Very, very excited to be forced to "relax" for a little while!

Sometimes I Wish I'd Married a Woman

How does this look?

Should I wear the purple scarf or the green one?

Which shoes go better with this outfit?

I'm not sure about these earrings, what do you think?

 These are common questions that come out of my mouth... aimed at Jacob. 

Jacob is not fashion conscious (self admitted).  But I don't have any other options for advice when I'm getting ready in the morning!  I did, after all, choose to marry a guy! =)  He tries though.  He gives me an opinion, i.e. the green scarf, and, alas 90% of the time I go with the purple one.

He called me out on it a while back.  I asked him a question similar to those above, and, instead of answering, he said, "you're just going to end up choosing the other one, aren't you?" 

This got me thinking a bit.  I don't want to make him feel like his opinions don't matter (even in silly situations like this), and I also don't want to set him up for failure (i.e. ask him for an opinion on something I've already made a decision about... consciously or not).  So, I'm trying to do better.  Several times now I have gone with his suggestion (even when, I probably would have chosen the other way) and I'm trying to limit the times I ask his opinions to those times that I really, truly want it.

I want us to be able to talk about, and make decisions together when it comes to the big things, and, I feel like in order to do this we need to start small. I do value his opinions... I just need to make sure that he knows it, which means wearing the earrings he picks out from time to time. =)

Is this a common situation in anyone else's house?  Are you lucky enough to have a guy who craves giving fashion advice?  I KNOW there are several male fashionistas out there! =)

Being Green

I subscribe to several of those "daily deal" websites (you know the ones.. Groupon, Living Social, and now Google Deals (we live in the beta-city, woo!), and I often find a lot of stuff that looks fantastic but that I know I can't afford to spend money on... even at a discounted price-- things like restaurant discounts (I already have a bunch from restaurants.com that I haven't used yet) and wine tastings (I would love them, but Jacob doesn't drink) but, from time to time, Jacob or I find something that is just too good to turn down** (like the massage that Jacob bought for me that I utilized today!), or really is something that, in the long run, will save us money.

The specific one that I have in mind right now is my sandwich bags that I purchased from ReUsies.  Sure, sure, if I knew what I was doing and wanted to put the time and energy into it I could have made these myself, but I don't, and I didn't, and I bought them. =)

I bought two 2-packs, one for myself and one for Jacob.  We both pack lunches most days for work and I WAS feeling slightly bad about all the plastic bags we were using (but not bad enough to bring them home and wash them like my mom used to).  These are great.  They are cute and work really well!  if you have a juicy sandwich, though, I will warn that it may slightly leak through the lining (i.e. I got a couple of little spots on the exterior fabric when I packed a sandwich with tomatoes), but it's not bad enough to deter me from using them.  Plus, I feel a little bit better about myself and my status as an Oregonian. ;)

I have also been stocking up on these deals for our first anniversary in a couple of months.  I'm not going to tell you what we're going to do, but I will tell you that thanks to Groupon and Living Social we're going to have a fantastic weekend for about half the cost!  More to come in August, I'm sure!

** Discounted passes to this place?  Too good to turn down. ;)

Slowing Down

Things have been slowing down for me lately.  No longer am I going to school/writing a thesis/planning a wedding/buying a house/decorating/furnishing... and I realized something.  I crave projects.  My brother is getting married in a few months and I find myself wanting to plan a wedding.  Jacob's cousin just graduated from high school and suddenly I'm thinking about the job search process.  Not that I WANT another wedding, or a different job, but just that I have a strong urge for a project.  I need something to plan.  Something to look forward to, something to work on in the evenings after I get home from work (there is only so much facebook-stalking a person can do!)

I started a new mini-project this weekend that I hope to unveil in a couple days time... so, I have that.  Our one year wedding anniversary is coming up in a couple of months... but I had that planned three months ago.  Jacob's 30th birthday (I'm throwing him a "surprise" party--he knows that something is happening, just doesn't know what) is coming up in September, but I already know, basically, what that's going to consist of.  I want to go on a road trip or a vacation of some sort.  But we can't really afford it right now.  I want to plan!

Do you all ever feel like this as well?  It's a weird combination between cabin fever and boredom.  I've always been doing so many things at once... it's hard to get used to not having any deadlines in my personal life.

What is THAT Thing?

What is that round yellow thing?  Is that... could it possibly be?  SUNSHINE?

After a long, wet spring-ter (the season after Christmas that is never really one or the other) we may FINALLY be seeing a little summer foreshadowing in the Pacific Northwest!  I am SOOO happy!  Today I came home from work and thinned my garden, planted flowers, weeded and watered... all in an hour!  I never have that sort of energy!  I'm actually sitting here thinking about what else I can do this weekend in the yard. =)

I used to hate yard work.  I was not an "outdoor" kid.  I would have rather stayed inside reading a book than hang out in the garden helping my dad plant tomatoes, but I have recently discovered that something changes when it's YOUR yard.  Suddenly, I'm concerned about how tall the grass is, and how many weeds are in the garden.  I am thinking about all the things I'd like to do with the landscaping and what kind of vegetables I want to plant in my garden.  I am no longer satisfied spending time inside reading a book.  I want to be outside with my gardening gloves on DOING something.

When did I become a grown up?

One of our gifts from our housewarming/Memorial Day BBQ last weekend

Our front door

Another floral housewarming gift

I LOVE Color!!

Look at my garden grow!

My lettuce is starting to look like lettuce!  Soo excited!