He makes me breakfast in bed on work days. 'Nuff said.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
The stuff in between....
Forgot to include random tidbits from the week before we left for NC, so here they are...
My Moroccan dinner with the sales team for work,
followed by the Chinatown Bender with my clients...
and our Saturday night in Dolores Park watching The Breakfast Club with friends and a couple of bottles of wine.
If I were a belly dancer, my name would be Sheena.
Weekend--yes, I think we're caught up!
Being back in SF this past week has been good. It was good going back to NC, but good to be home, too.
Wednesday night, my friend Cyndi was in town, and Ian and I had dinner with her at the delicious Belden Taverna.
Thursday night, Ian's soccer game was cancelled and we ended up with a date night. It was my turn to plan, so impromptu I picked an Italian place over in Union Square--it was good. I actually don't totally remember the name, and am just lazy enough not to bother looking for it.
Then we headed over to Moma and to the Frida Kahlo exhibit. Would you believe my behavior? That I love art museums, and still had never been to Moma? Shame on me.
Thursdays is half-price night, and they stay open until 9:45. We had a good date night, if I do say so myself. Highly recommended.
Friday night we were super excited to go to Outside Lands Festival to see none other than headliner Radiohead.
Don't want to spend too much time on it. You can read about it here. Want to maybe point out that I think the reason it got so many stars was the line-up. Otherwise, transportation was screwed (Ian and I walked miles to get there), lines were unbelievable, you couldn't see a thing, the crowds were insane. Ian and I actually left the concert way early, and are happy we did. Although we got on a very crowded train, we heard that after the concert ended, people were jumping fences to get out, fights were breaking out, and lines for the trains were 2+ hours. We were just happy to get home.
Saturday...brunch at J's Pot of Soul in Hayes Valley. It was a new one for us. I read about it on Yelp, and the pumpkin pancakes were indeed delicious. A new good one, close to our house.
I think we might have fairly lazed about the rest of the day, and went to Little Star Pizza for dinner (so darn good). Then our buds Katie and Liz came over for famous Mitchell's ice cream and some Pop5.
Sunday...well, all I can say is we had the brunch of perfection at 2223. 
Then it was down Market to the event I've been waiting for: The Little Mermaid sing-a-long at the Castro theatre! OWIE YOWIE YOWSERS! It was the stuff dreams are made of.
I loved it. Just loved it.
Now I'm blogging (have been for seemingly hours...that's what we get for being slackers)...drinking a refreshing kir. Listening to some great music (didn't mention this before, but Ian's managed to wire speakers in just about every room of the house, linking back to itunes...). Ian is playing Call of Duty 4 with Paul on Xbox Live. We're debating Indian or Thai for dinner. We have more Mitchell's ice cream in the freezer, and life is good.
If I were an aloe plant, my name would be Portia.
News: Part 2 (the bad news)
Ok, friends, here's the bad news. My childhood home burned to the ground.
I think my Gran read it in the newspaper. Then my Mom drove by the house (or what was left of it. The pictures are incredibly sad.
The interesting part is that Jeff went by there, as well, on his trip home to meet Parker. The house had been sold, and the new owners had moved a few things in and were beginning renovations.
This takes me back to last year, when Ian, Jeff, and I went to the house and decided to knock on the door and ask to come in to check things out. That's when we realized how poorly the owners took care of the house, and how they had changed nothing.
We walked away that day with my 5th grade project of Stonehenge, a drawing on notebook paper my brother Brian did and was still hanging up (?), the Pizza Hut magnet, an old Garfield poster (yes, also still hanging up)...what we left behind were all the random things the people who lived there decided to keep--our welcome mats, my mom's old, useless Christmas decorations...why they lived in a mess, I don't know. Mind you, it had been 11 years since we lived there. And almost NOTHING CHANGED. Yowsers.
So, the new owners bought the house, and somehow it burned pretty much to the ground. When Jeff stopped by, the adults were there cleaning things up, and Jeff spoke with them. They had 3 kids. The best part of this whole story was that Jeff shared a lot of our childhood memories with them, told them about how the house had been in good condition and the wonderful times we had there. It opened their eyes to the possibilities, which the latest owners had deteriorated from view.
OK, the second best part of the story was this. The woman began speaking of how their oldest daughter (maybe she was 15 or 16) did NOT want to move, was really upset about it, angry, etc. Well, she was ripping out the carpet in my old bedroom, and her attitude shifted.
For some crazy reason, I had no carpet in my bedroom for a matter of years....we ripped it up, were going to replace it...and...got lazy? I don't know. But, concealed under an area rug, I began writing on the floor. With the dates (it was the 80's)....about life, how things were going. I intially intended for someone to find it years and years later...like a memorial, and like a message to a future owner.
Better than I ever expected, this girl found the writing and her attitude lifted. She told her mom she realized whoever had that room had been happy and had good memories there. It meant something to her, changed her perception, and she felt a connection with the younger me.
All I have to say is Hooray for that!! I am so excited to have heard that story, and it means the world to me.
Jeff says they plan on rebuilding the house almost exactly as it was. Of course, it won't be the same. But I do hope to go back someday and meet the new family and see what they've done. They did indeed buy a very happy, blessed home.
If I were a treehouse, my name would be Samuel.
I think my Gran read it in the newspaper. Then my Mom drove by the house (or what was left of it. The pictures are incredibly sad.
The interesting part is that Jeff went by there, as well, on his trip home to meet Parker. The house had been sold, and the new owners had moved a few things in and were beginning renovations.
This takes me back to last year, when Ian, Jeff, and I went to the house and decided to knock on the door and ask to come in to check things out. That's when we realized how poorly the owners took care of the house, and how they had changed nothing.
We walked away that day with my 5th grade project of Stonehenge, a drawing on notebook paper my brother Brian did and was still hanging up (?), the Pizza Hut magnet, an old Garfield poster (yes, also still hanging up)...what we left behind were all the random things the people who lived there decided to keep--our welcome mats, my mom's old, useless Christmas decorations...why they lived in a mess, I don't know. Mind you, it had been 11 years since we lived there. And almost NOTHING CHANGED. Yowsers.
So, the new owners bought the house, and somehow it burned pretty much to the ground. When Jeff stopped by, the adults were there cleaning things up, and Jeff spoke with them. They had 3 kids. The best part of this whole story was that Jeff shared a lot of our childhood memories with them, told them about how the house had been in good condition and the wonderful times we had there. It opened their eyes to the possibilities, which the latest owners had deteriorated from view.
OK, the second best part of the story was this. The woman began speaking of how their oldest daughter (maybe she was 15 or 16) did NOT want to move, was really upset about it, angry, etc. Well, she was ripping out the carpet in my old bedroom, and her attitude shifted.
For some crazy reason, I had no carpet in my bedroom for a matter of years....we ripped it up, were going to replace it...and...got lazy? I don't know. But, concealed under an area rug, I began writing on the floor. With the dates (it was the 80's)....about life, how things were going. I intially intended for someone to find it years and years later...like a memorial, and like a message to a future owner.
Better than I ever expected, this girl found the writing and her attitude lifted. She told her mom she realized whoever had that room had been happy and had good memories there. It meant something to her, changed her perception, and she felt a connection with the younger me.
All I have to say is Hooray for that!! I am so excited to have heard that story, and it means the world to me.
Jeff says they plan on rebuilding the house almost exactly as it was. Of course, it won't be the same. But I do hope to go back someday and meet the new family and see what they've done. They did indeed buy a very happy, blessed home.
If I were a treehouse, my name would be Samuel.
News: Part 1 (the good news)
If I said I had good news and bad news, which do you want to hear first? What would you say? Here, right now, I can't hear you. So, I'm picking for you. It's good news.
I'm an aunt! Or a cousin! Or whatever! You know, families are unique. So I have a half-aunt Traci who is only 4 years older than me. So she feels more like a cousin or another sibling.
Regardless, Traci just had a wonderful baby boy, Parker (named after my maternal grandmother's maiden name).
This is not only great news because Traci and Parker are healthy and happy, but also because it is the first child introduced to our family! Thanksgivings and Christmases have been plagued with a bunch of 30-year olds at the proverbial "kid's table," and now I think we've graduated with Parker's entrance to the family. Hooray for that!!!
I have been the youngest, at a chipper 31--well, I guess Ian is technically the youngest, but it's about time someone has introduced something small and wiggly and new into our tribe. Can't wait for the first big holiday event with a little one present.
Here are some pics with my dear Mom, Gran'ma, Gran, and Jeff.
Can't wait to meet him!!!
If I were a baby, I'm afraid my name would continue to be Lori.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
NC--Rehearsal and wedding (and mush in between)
Aha, our story is creeping slowly toward the purpose of our trip! After our dinners with our individual friends (thanks for the company girls, and for the wonderful dinner and coffee, Carmie!), Ian and I drove back to Tarboro (about an hour and a half) in some pretty heavy fog.
Sadly, we decided on that trip back to change our plans the next night and stay in Chapel Hill to avoid another late-night drive.
Thursday evening, we drove to Durham--I dropped Ian off with the guys for pre-wedding drinks (I think in some cultures it's called a bachelor party, but I think they just hit up the QShack and James Joyce), and I picked up Quinney (you may remember Quinney from her visit to SF) and we drove to Raleigh for Marianna's bridal shower.
The weather is something that I just can't get over (mainly the weather difference). I felt naked leaving the house with sleeveless shirts and sandals, and not bringing along some heavy back-up. I mean, we've been back in SF for a week now, and Friday night--heck if I wasn't wearing boots, jeans, a scarf and jacket, and STILL was cold.
Anyway, we go to Marianna's mom's house and there are more friends to see--mainly from McKinney (and of COURSE the glowing bride-to-be), but also the wonderful Rebecca Sketch who I was so excited to see is expecting. And met a new friend, Kelly, who work(ed/s) with the M's at Arnold.
After the shower, I drove Quinney home and picked up Ian from the James Joyce where we headed to our hotel to check in. The lovely Holiday Inn Express. Alas.
Next morning, Ian and I headed to Southpoint mall---I just had to visit the old girls at Avalon for all things "cure" (mani and pedi) pre-wedding. We soon found ourselves getting ready for our respective activities--can't speak for Ian (again, I encourage him to speak for himself in this blog...Ian? Ian? Are you there?)....but, I was off to a bridal luncheon at the Old Granary at Fearrington Village.
In fact, that's where the wedding and reception were. I'm just going to go ahead and put a fatty link here to the Fearrington Village. It is a wonderful, charming place and you should just explore that site and drool a little.
So, the luncheon was great. Got to know the bridesmaids a bit better, and Kelly from Arnold was also there....just love her.
Immediately following was the rehearsal. Can I now just prompt you to again visit the website? Gorgeous! Kind of ridiculous. It was raining a bit, so we rehearsed under a roof, but I just love the space, and I was so happy to see some old friends of the M's that had been to our house way back when, Hal and Jenn.
Can I just stop and say how much we really love Micah and Marianna (who we affectionately dubbed m&m, or the M's back in the day)? If you don't believe us, find them here and you'll have to agree.
OK, then we had a break where we all went back to our hotels and rested, got dressed again and headed to the Weathervane for the rehearsal dinner.
Delicious bbq buffet with the most amazing sweet potato mash on the side--which reminds me--I emailed them for the recipe and they haven't responded.
The bestworse part of the dinner was the procession of toasts to the bride and groom---man, I tried so hard to contain the waterworks, but was a bit hard to control with all the crazy love and support flowing around that room. Just insane.
Afterwards, we all headed to the West End Wine Bar (the Cellar, to be exact), where we met with tons of friends from McKinney.
AND my Hippos were all in town and also came to the bar.
It was a good: friend / happy to see everyone / I just love you all overdose. In a really lovely way.
I had a hard time saying no to hopping across the street to The Lantern bar with my Hippos, but alas I knew that I had a long day Saturday, and being hung over and tired was not the right answer.
Saturday morning, Ian went to meet the boys at McKinney bright and early for a little traditional golf--OK, not traditional golf, but they Tiger Woods it on the Wii.
I myself met the Hippos again at Weathervane (hey, the food's good and Hippo Kirsten had to meet her mom there at 11 anyway) for brunch.
Super fun. Miss those girls. Delicious. We laughed so hard at the silliest things and dished about the latest. We all live in different cities, in 3 different states. Ah, such luck they were all there.
Ian and I transferred stuff from Holiday Inn Express to stay at the Fearrington Saturday night. Can i just say shucks? I really wish we'd stayed there all along. It's gorgeous. I said that before. But the stay was so lovely, and the included breakfast Sunday was also lovely. I jump ahead...
Got my hair done at the Fearrington. I'm not sure how "just something kind of low...like a low knot at the nape of my neck....something loose"....translated to the bouffant I received. I knew I was in trouble when before they asked what I wanted, they yelled out--"She's got straight hair! I'll go ahead and get'er in curlers!" Or maybe a warning sign could have been: "Our usual clientele is the elderly, so it's so much fun when a young person comes in!" Plus they were running late. In fact, I had less than 15 minutes to make it back to my hotel room, put on makeup, and get dressed for the wedding before I had to meet everyone for pictures.
Marianna was beautiful. The flowers were beautiful.
Micah and the groomsmen were beautiful. I just realized that I've neglected to say both Ian and I had the honor of being in the wedding. Hope you guessed by now.
We took a few pictures, and soon it was ceremony time. Although rain had been a semi-permanent part of the landscape up until that day, the day turned out to be lovely. The ceremony was just lovely. Everything about it. Just such an honor to participate, and so happy to witness something so wonderful, and something I have such strong belief in. An added bonus is that I get to look across everyone at Ian and feel all of the love between us and know how happy I am that we decided on the very same thing a couple of years before.
Immediately following the wedding, and we had champagne and hors d'oeurves waiting for us. What a well-planned, well-executed event. Start to finish.
The reception was in the barn.
Us bridesmaids changed into the flip flops M got us for our bmaids gifts, and we headed that way. The food was outstanding.
Our biggest regret (and Ian is actually angry about this) is that we didn't eat enough.
But again, it was friends and more friends and more reunions. Here I want to interject that our experience at McKinney was priceless, and I have wonderful feelings and appreciation for our time there and the friends we made. In some ways, it made things harder to come back to knowing that elsewhere in the world were groups of people we loved and trusted and felt totally ourselves with. It's more rare than we care to admit, and I'm a little sad we've never found that here in SF.
By trust, maybe I mean that we proceeded to bust a move the rest of the night. Hadn't been dancing in forever, and we all went nuts. Haven't mentioned her yet, but I love Micah's younger sister Labryth, who is fun, smart, and lovely. We had a blast. It was such a fun, fun wedding.
After all was said and done, I escorted the extremely.....tipsy(?) Ian back to our hotel room, where I proceeded to take out about 100 bobby pins from my southern hairstyle, and we crashed in bed (not getting to enjoy fully the turn-down service that happened in our absence).
The next morning we had breakfast, then went back to our hotel for an additional nap in the bed. Ian's parents met us there, and we wandered around the village waiting on my bff Steph and her daughter Riley (almost 5, and completely precious). We all had lunch at the Old Granary, visited the famous belties (goats and cows), then shortly thereafter headed to the airport.
Lucky enough to run into Dave and Sara (from the wedding), and my Hippo Kirsten. Had a delay...basically, we were home in SF about 1 am (that would make it 4 am EST).
Back to work and the cold Monday. Had a great time. That's maybe why this post was so long, and I didn't even get in all I wanted to say about how much we lovelovelove Ian's family, the dogs (ah, Howard...you love your new home), our dear, dear friends from all walks of life.
Can you guys just come back with us?
If I were a wildflower, my name would be Gerald.
Sadly, we decided on that trip back to change our plans the next night and stay in Chapel Hill to avoid another late-night drive.
Thursday evening, we drove to Durham--I dropped Ian off with the guys for pre-wedding drinks (I think in some cultures it's called a bachelor party, but I think they just hit up the QShack and James Joyce), and I picked up Quinney (you may remember Quinney from her visit to SF) and we drove to Raleigh for Marianna's bridal shower.
The weather is something that I just can't get over (mainly the weather difference). I felt naked leaving the house with sleeveless shirts and sandals, and not bringing along some heavy back-up. I mean, we've been back in SF for a week now, and Friday night--heck if I wasn't wearing boots, jeans, a scarf and jacket, and STILL was cold.
Anyway, we go to Marianna's mom's house and there are more friends to see--mainly from McKinney (and of COURSE the glowing bride-to-be), but also the wonderful Rebecca Sketch who I was so excited to see is expecting. And met a new friend, Kelly, who work(ed/s) with the M's at Arnold.
After the shower, I drove Quinney home and picked up Ian from the James Joyce where we headed to our hotel to check in. The lovely Holiday Inn Express. Alas.
Next morning, Ian and I headed to Southpoint mall---I just had to visit the old girls at Avalon for all things "cure" (mani and pedi) pre-wedding. We soon found ourselves getting ready for our respective activities--can't speak for Ian (again, I encourage him to speak for himself in this blog...Ian? Ian? Are you there?)....but, I was off to a bridal luncheon at the Old Granary at Fearrington Village.
In fact, that's where the wedding and reception were. I'm just going to go ahead and put a fatty link here to the Fearrington Village. It is a wonderful, charming place and you should just explore that site and drool a little.
So, the luncheon was great. Got to know the bridesmaids a bit better, and Kelly from Arnold was also there....just love her.
Immediately following was the rehearsal. Can I now just prompt you to again visit the website? Gorgeous! Kind of ridiculous. It was raining a bit, so we rehearsed under a roof, but I just love the space, and I was so happy to see some old friends of the M's that had been to our house way back when, Hal and Jenn.
Can I just stop and say how much we really love Micah and Marianna (who we affectionately dubbed m&m, or the M's back in the day)? If you don't believe us, find them here and you'll have to agree.
OK, then we had a break where we all went back to our hotels and rested, got dressed again and headed to the Weathervane for the rehearsal dinner.
Delicious bbq buffet with the most amazing sweet potato mash on the side--which reminds me--I emailed them for the recipe and they haven't responded.
The bestworse part of the dinner was the procession of toasts to the bride and groom---man, I tried so hard to contain the waterworks, but was a bit hard to control with all the crazy love and support flowing around that room. Just insane.
Afterwards, we all headed to the West End Wine Bar (the Cellar, to be exact), where we met with tons of friends from McKinney.
AND my Hippos were all in town and also came to the bar.
It was a good: friend / happy to see everyone / I just love you all overdose. In a really lovely way.
I had a hard time saying no to hopping across the street to The Lantern bar with my Hippos, but alas I knew that I had a long day Saturday, and being hung over and tired was not the right answer.
Saturday morning, Ian went to meet the boys at McKinney bright and early for a little traditional golf--OK, not traditional golf, but they Tiger Woods it on the Wii.
I myself met the Hippos again at Weathervane (hey, the food's good and Hippo Kirsten had to meet her mom there at 11 anyway) for brunch.
Super fun. Miss those girls. Delicious. We laughed so hard at the silliest things and dished about the latest. We all live in different cities, in 3 different states. Ah, such luck they were all there.
Ian and I transferred stuff from Holiday Inn Express to stay at the Fearrington Saturday night. Can i just say shucks? I really wish we'd stayed there all along. It's gorgeous. I said that before. But the stay was so lovely, and the included breakfast Sunday was also lovely. I jump ahead...
Got my hair done at the Fearrington. I'm not sure how "just something kind of low...like a low knot at the nape of my neck....something loose"....translated to the bouffant I received. I knew I was in trouble when before they asked what I wanted, they yelled out--"She's got straight hair! I'll go ahead and get'er in curlers!" Or maybe a warning sign could have been: "Our usual clientele is the elderly, so it's so much fun when a young person comes in!" Plus they were running late. In fact, I had less than 15 minutes to make it back to my hotel room, put on makeup, and get dressed for the wedding before I had to meet everyone for pictures.
Marianna was beautiful. The flowers were beautiful.
Micah and the groomsmen were beautiful. I just realized that I've neglected to say both Ian and I had the honor of being in the wedding. Hope you guessed by now.
We took a few pictures, and soon it was ceremony time. Although rain had been a semi-permanent part of the landscape up until that day, the day turned out to be lovely. The ceremony was just lovely. Everything about it. Just such an honor to participate, and so happy to witness something so wonderful, and something I have such strong belief in. An added bonus is that I get to look across everyone at Ian and feel all of the love between us and know how happy I am that we decided on the very same thing a couple of years before.
Immediately following the wedding, and we had champagne and hors d'oeurves waiting for us. What a well-planned, well-executed event. Start to finish.
The reception was in the barn.
Us bridesmaids changed into the flip flops M got us for our bmaids gifts, and we headed that way. The food was outstanding.
Our biggest regret (and Ian is actually angry about this) is that we didn't eat enough.
But again, it was friends and more friends and more reunions. Here I want to interject that our experience at McKinney was priceless, and I have wonderful feelings and appreciation for our time there and the friends we made. In some ways, it made things harder to come back to knowing that elsewhere in the world were groups of people we loved and trusted and felt totally ourselves with. It's more rare than we care to admit, and I'm a little sad we've never found that here in SF.
By trust, maybe I mean that we proceeded to bust a move the rest of the night. Hadn't been dancing in forever, and we all went nuts. Haven't mentioned her yet, but I love Micah's younger sister Labryth, who is fun, smart, and lovely. We had a blast. It was such a fun, fun wedding.
After all was said and done, I escorted the extremely.....tipsy(?) Ian back to our hotel room, where I proceeded to take out about 100 bobby pins from my southern hairstyle, and we crashed in bed (not getting to enjoy fully the turn-down service that happened in our absence).
The next morning we had breakfast, then went back to our hotel for an additional nap in the bed. Ian's parents met us there, and we wandered around the village waiting on my bff Steph and her daughter Riley (almost 5, and completely precious). We all had lunch at the Old Granary, visited the famous belties (goats and cows), then shortly thereafter headed to the airport.
Lucky enough to run into Dave and Sara (from the wedding), and my Hippo Kirsten. Had a delay...basically, we were home in SF about 1 am (that would make it 4 am EST).
Back to work and the cold Monday. Had a great time. That's maybe why this post was so long, and I didn't even get in all I wanted to say about how much we lovelovelove Ian's family, the dogs (ah, Howard...you love your new home), our dear, dear friends from all walks of life.
Can you guys just come back with us?
If I were a wildflower, my name would be Gerald.
NC--Our Second Marriage
As I mentioned in the earlier post, Ian lost his wedding band and Wednesday of our trip, we picked up the brand new, resized and re-engraved band.
We had driven to Raleigh--I was having dinner with some friends from McKinney (part of our dinner club from when I lived there...once a month, someone would host the dinner and plan the menu. The others would each bring something--dessert, wine, coffee, a side dish...I really miss those girls). I went to McKinney and it was great to see so many people. My favorite thing is when everyone insists how West Coast or California I now am. When in fact my style is EXACTLY the same, and there have been no drastic changes in my appearance. I'm so city, I tell you. Need I insert a big ol' WINK*WINK*.
Yeah, didn't think so.
Anyway, I also had a pre-dinner drink with another friend from McKinney, Becky (told you we had a good, packed week). Ian also came to McKinney, and he whisked me pre-dinner to Duke Gardens, the site of our wedding, before he joined up with his friend for dinner.
It had just stopped raining. The park was completely empty, and it was probably the most beautiful I've ever seen it. We had a small mini-ceremony to break in the ring. We videoed the experience, but alas the file's too large for upload. Probably better for both of us that way. Let's just say that it was a great gesture, and as it's almost our 2-year anniversary, it was nice to reinforce our commitment in a somewhat pretend-official way.
If I were a marriage, my name would be Infiniti (yes, I spelled it wrong, and yes, I'd be hippie).
We had driven to Raleigh--I was having dinner with some friends from McKinney (part of our dinner club from when I lived there...once a month, someone would host the dinner and plan the menu. The others would each bring something--dessert, wine, coffee, a side dish...I really miss those girls). I went to McKinney and it was great to see so many people. My favorite thing is when everyone insists how West Coast or California I now am. When in fact my style is EXACTLY the same, and there have been no drastic changes in my appearance. I'm so city, I tell you. Need I insert a big ol' WINK*WINK*.
Yeah, didn't think so.
Anyway, I also had a pre-dinner drink with another friend from McKinney, Becky (told you we had a good, packed week). Ian also came to McKinney, and he whisked me pre-dinner to Duke Gardens, the site of our wedding, before he joined up with his friend for dinner.
It had just stopped raining. The park was completely empty, and it was probably the most beautiful I've ever seen it. We had a small mini-ceremony to break in the ring. We videoed the experience, but alas the file's too large for upload. Probably better for both of us that way. Let's just say that it was a great gesture, and as it's almost our 2-year anniversary, it was nice to reinforce our commitment in a somewhat pretend-official way.
If I were a marriage, my name would be Infiniti (yes, I spelled it wrong, and yes, I'd be hippie).
NC--the beach and the goodes
At long last, Ian and I made a trip to our hold home of NC for a whole week. And what a week it was. The originial purpose of the trip was the wedding of two dear friends, but we took advantage of the trip.
Just should write that we had a really great time. We truly miss family and friends back East, and we were fortunate enough to spend time with a lot of them.
We flew into RDU after taking the red-eye Friday night, and were met at the airport by my boss Carrie, and her husband Paul (who happened to be working out of the Raleigh office those 2 weeks). We immediately took off to Emerald Isle to Ian's parents' beach house, home of many holiday memories (4th of Julys, Thanksgivings, Easters...), home of excellent food, late night boardgames, hours laying at the end of the dock, quality doggy time, bottles and bottles of beer and wine, and overall joy and relaxation. It was excellent to share part of my old life with new friends...
I don't have too many pictures of the weekend, because Ian's dad and Carrie shot most of it (hope to have more soon). You're going to get stuck with too many puppy pictures, but it was so great to spend time with Howard and the worm, you're going to have to deal with it.
Alluded to above, we took naps, had amazing food all weekend, took boat rides, got some needed sunshine, played games until late in the night, and had long catch up conversations with Ian's parents, and Hilliary and Francois (my siblings-in-law!).
The only drawback from the beach was that Day One Ian lost his wedding band to the ocean (I like to imagine some seahorses down there finally got hitched...and in style, I might add). It was a bit sad, but the ring is just a symbol after all....we took care of the missing ring soon after.
In the early afternoon Tuesday, Ian and I drove Carrie to the airport in Raleigh for her flight back to Seattle. We hung out in Raleigh for a short time, buying his new wedding band, getting it re-engraved. Small tidbit: the price of platinum has doubled in two years.
The homecoming to Ian's parents' house in Tarboro was great. They had just finished a huge remodel that had them living out of various random rooms since March. The final product is incredible! Imagine getting the opportunity to design your own kitchen / master bedroom / master bathroom / craft / laundry room. All the detailing you want. They now have a dream kitchen (it's really home of the Supersize Kitchen--2 microwaves, 2 different sinks, 2 different pull-out trashcans, more counter space than you can imagine...built-ins for days.
Plus, the puppies were there again which was great. I took a swim in their new spa tub (oh, how I miss my old tub) a couple of times.
If I were a lobster, my name would be Cynthia.
Just should write that we had a really great time. We truly miss family and friends back East, and we were fortunate enough to spend time with a lot of them.
We flew into RDU after taking the red-eye Friday night, and were met at the airport by my boss Carrie, and her husband Paul (who happened to be working out of the Raleigh office those 2 weeks). We immediately took off to Emerald Isle to Ian's parents' beach house, home of many holiday memories (4th of Julys, Thanksgivings, Easters...), home of excellent food, late night boardgames, hours laying at the end of the dock, quality doggy time, bottles and bottles of beer and wine, and overall joy and relaxation. It was excellent to share part of my old life with new friends...
I don't have too many pictures of the weekend, because Ian's dad and Carrie shot most of it (hope to have more soon). You're going to get stuck with too many puppy pictures, but it was so great to spend time with Howard and the worm, you're going to have to deal with it.
Alluded to above, we took naps, had amazing food all weekend, took boat rides, got some needed sunshine, played games until late in the night, and had long catch up conversations with Ian's parents, and Hilliary and Francois (my siblings-in-law!).
The only drawback from the beach was that Day One Ian lost his wedding band to the ocean (I like to imagine some seahorses down there finally got hitched...and in style, I might add). It was a bit sad, but the ring is just a symbol after all....we took care of the missing ring soon after.
In the early afternoon Tuesday, Ian and I drove Carrie to the airport in Raleigh for her flight back to Seattle. We hung out in Raleigh for a short time, buying his new wedding band, getting it re-engraved. Small tidbit: the price of platinum has doubled in two years.
The homecoming to Ian's parents' house in Tarboro was great. They had just finished a huge remodel that had them living out of various random rooms since March. The final product is incredible! Imagine getting the opportunity to design your own kitchen / master bedroom / master bathroom / craft / laundry room. All the detailing you want. They now have a dream kitchen (it's really home of the Supersize Kitchen--2 microwaves, 2 different sinks, 2 different pull-out trashcans, more counter space than you can imagine...built-ins for days.
Plus, the puppies were there again which was great. I took a swim in their new spa tub (oh, how I miss my old tub) a couple of times.
If I were a lobster, my name would be Cynthia.
The Great Reveal
Alright, now that we're back from North Carolina (and Ian's new tattoo is no longer a secret), I can also share the funny pictures of the Great Reveal.
Ian went under the needle on July 3rd (the day Jeff and I flew home from Seattle). When Jeff and Ian picked me up from the airport, they were twins. Not quite the Arnold Schwarznegger / Danny DeVito kind, but they at least had dressed identical spots on their bicep to look as though they'd just had tattoos done.
I for one knew that Ian actually got a tattoo. Jeff, on the other hand, well he's just a jokester.
Anytime I asked about Ian's tattoo, Jeff would show his---"I got one, too!!!" We ate pizza, and they both had the bandages. When we got home, they each removed the bandages to reveal the final product.
I can't exactly tell which I like better (after all, Jeff's was a tribute to me as a 4th grader, and Ian's was a tribute to his dad), but I do think Ian's looks a bit more realistic.
I guess it's all in the detail.
Ian's finished product (I think Jeff's has been washed away by now. At least I hope so...):
If I were a tattoo, my name would be Helena Dupree.
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