a week.

Yup.  It was one of those.

When DH snapped this picture I was in a zombie state with Luna, who was apparently feeling the same way.  Char always tells me that we are the same person, just dwelling in two different bodies.  Luna and I connect on many levels.  ;)

Honestly, it wasn't a bad week--it was rather good-- just a really busy tiring one.  We had lots of commitments this week like a friend's birthday party uptown on Tuesday and taco night with church friends on Thursday.  The two late nights really got me. 

There were also so many things that I wanted to get done, but they just didn't happen.  Like buying mothers day cards...I did that, but then I forgot to mail them.  According to Google, Mothers day is now 1 day and 2 hours away, so I fail.  Then there was a huge truck that came down and delivered our furniture from Michigan (lovingly packed and sent by family).  And I didn't even take pictures for them, yet after all their hard work... or call to thank them.  Or keep my phone on for that matter!  I just kept forgetting to charge it after Wednesday.  Ugggggg.

Then there was Cinco de Mayo.  I forgot about it until the day of, honestly, and my kids drove me crazy asking why we couldn't have a party.  Why didn't you bring us food, Sra.?

I think the real question is, Paco, why didn't you bring Sra. food?

(((And just to set the record straight... Cinco de Mayo is a celebration of the Mexicans winning a battle against the French 200 years ago that is really only celebrated in one region of Mexico called Puebla.  It's more widely celebrated here in the US than in Mexico  :) )))

This weekend is one for chilling.  Next weekend we have plans with friends, and then the weekend after that is my BIRTHDAY!  I'll be 26.  Which means I'm more than 1/2 way though my 20s.  Which is weird.  My sister-in-law and her boyfriend are coming to visit that weekend.  And we are going to the National Whitewater Center.  So excited. :)

i.love.lamp.

If you haven't seen Anchorman, the title may have gone over your head. ;)

I have ALWAYS wanted one of these Pottery Barn lamps.  They are so modern and beautiful.  Their website indicates they retail for $169-$199.  Boo on that.  I pretty much settled on the fact that I would never own one.

 There are tons of similar ones all over, but they all cost a pretty penny.  Glass is in, people!

But oh, the Godwill.  How I love thee.  Amongst the crap....

I spotted this gem.  and the heavens opened up.   

The price?  $5.99.  I was on it like white on rice.  Like Luna on lettuce.  Like Charlie on bacon.  I may or may not have looked insane grabbing it.  I took it home, and I cleaned it with some Windex and that's all it took.  Shines like the morning star!  It's going in the guest room/future nursery on the side table that I also got from goodwill for $5.99.  I think $5.99 is my price.  Now I have to find something to stuff inside it like the Pottery Barn people.  i.love.lamp.

Hardly eye-candy.

When we moved into our home with a 25-year story, I was secretly hoping to find some relic or letter from the previous owner hidden in the walls....  A note.  A poem.  A clue to their story...

Little did I know I was about to find that clue behind door number 1...in our bonus room!!!  Literally.

I was showing a friend who had come to visit for the evening a tour of the house, and she asked to peek in the little doors.

I told her why not, and as Luna went inside to check it out, I peeked around the corner and noticed a box I had never seen before.  And we found a note placed inside!  Unfortunately, it wasn't a story, but information on how to work with ceramics...

 And then, wrapped in newspaper were tons of ceramics.  Creeptasic if you ask me.

Anyone feeling patriotic?

Need a little bell?

The ceramic hills are alive!

But I think these take the cake.  I put them on Charlie's desk to freak him out...and they did the job!

Who would ever make creepy babies like this???

So there we go...relics from owners past.  I took them to the Goodwill.  Guess how much they priced each of them for?  $2.99.  HAHAHA ;)  One man's trash is another man's treasure, right?

Royal Marriage

Fairytale!  I didn't expect to be swept away, but I totally was :)  Friday was busy at school, but the women in the front office and I huddled around the TV to watch their first kiss, which took place around 8:30 am US time.

And I was swept away back into wedding world again, and I watched the entire ceremony on recap.  It was hard to miss, after all.  The wedding was beautiful, and I loved the orchestra and the chorus as she walked down the aisle.  Just wells you with emotion!  Stunning.

What I loved most, though is that you could feel the love between them.  I saw it in their glances.  :)

But what I hope most for them is that they have a Royal Marriage, not just a Royal Wedding.  Money can buy you the most famous church in the world, a gilded carriage, two gorgeous dresses, fanciful flowers, and a million fans (literally!).  But a Royal Marriage is one you work at every day that is bought by sacrifices of your own desires for what is best with both of you.  It is filled with patience, understanding, honestly, integrity, love, sympathy, empathy and forgiveness.  The dress, the flowers, and the elegance are one day of your life, and what comes after is the forever part.  I hope for them it is as royal as it gets.

Trippin'!

When you live 11 hours away from family, that means that your break time is spent traveling.  It was energy sapping to see so many people in such a short time frame, but the rewards are great when you don't get to seem them every day :)

Unfortunately, this visit was also a difficult one because we had to see family members that we don't know if we will have the chance to see again.  Life is short, and we never know how long we have here on earth, but two of Charlie's grandparents are sick: his grandfather suffered a stroke, and his grandmother has terminal cancer.  They are taking it day by day, but getting to spend quality time when we live in the south isn't possible on a weekly or even monthly basis.  It was clear we needed to be there, and we felt so fortunate to be able to have the time off to fly up.  Being a teacher isn't an easy job by any stretch, but to be able to have holidays and "breaks" off allows us the opportunity to be with our family. Charlie works from home, so he is also flexible.  Blessings, blessings :)

 We made the rounds and saw my family and mutual friends.  We spent time with the siblings, the in-law siblings, and my grandparents, too which was great.  We also spent a night at an amazing dive with Charlie's best childhood friends (minus his friends Dan who now lives in California).  These guys are like brothers to me, and it was so great to see them all together.  We laughed a LOT.  I stayed up until 1:30 am, which is unheard of for me!...and then I was sick the next day. :(  Not even kidding.  And not even from drinking (I only had a couple)...my body just can't do that any more!  I don't know how I stayed up so late all the time in college!  A favorite pic of the night from Jess:

The great thing about being sick back home is having my mom take care of me and cooking for me like she did when I was a kid.  THAT was amazing :)

Here's one more picture my MIL sent.  Char and I with my brother and his girlfriend...and William and Kate!  She's throwing a Royal Wedding party.  How cool is that?  She has the hats and everything!  Some of the pictures got deleted, but we had a lot of fun with the cardboard prince and future princess.

In other news, being in MI again reminded me of how much I love the piano (and miss it!)  I always play when I go back...I've played since I was in Elementary school and I used to give lessons back in the day.  It is so much more relaxing than playing my flute.  I have been thinking this for several months, and I officially decided that as my "I'm over the hill to thirty" birthday gift, I am getting a piano.  :) 

We've I've done lots of looking and research (obsessive, really), and I even went to visit a home to see a piano someone was selling on Craigslist for $200.  We are going to probably go the refurbished route, because it's the most economical, and it will offer the best piano.  I'm picky.  My piano lessons were always on Yahamas and I grew up playing a well-made baby grand. I know the feel of a good piano, how the keys come back up to meet your fingers, and if it offers no opportunity for pronounced dynamics, then it isn't for me!

This is the biggest purchase we've made for the house since moving in, so I want to make sure we know what we are doing.  I initially thought (being me and loving free) people sell and give away free pianos all the time on Craigslist!  This is true, but from the research I've done, there is no point buying a $200 piano that is wildly out of tune (most sold on Craigslist at this price are) and then having to pay someone to bring it safely to the home and tune it for you...you're looking at a $700-$800 price for tuning and delivery.  That's assuming there is nothing wrong with it: like a broken sound board!  And then you are really screwed.  I don't know how to look for these things.  Why not just buy completely refurbished with free delivery?  It's about the same price in the end.  I found someone in our area who does sells refurbished pianos and has been in the business a long time.  I talked to him on the phone, and I was impressed.  But I know the pianos will speak for themselves.  :)

I posted this video last year after Christmas...If you can tolerate the out of season music.  I'm rusty, but I love to play :)  I was playing my Mom's piano.

Traveling and the dog park

Tomorrow we wake up and trade 75 and sunny for 40s and raining in Michigan.  We are so excited to see our family for Easter, but the weather does not make us excited to travel, nor does the prospect of getting ready to do so.  Good thing that our family is there to welcome us with open (warm) arms!  Brrr...better put the scarf in the suitcase...

Today was so beautiful so we took Luna to the dog park on our last day of Spring Break at home to maximize the sunshine that we have here. 

Awkward alert!  

Luna is just not made for the dog park... she is really quite anti-social and weird with other dogs.  They all seem so happy to play, frolic, and sniff one another, but she kind of stands herself over in a corner, eats poop, and occasionally looks over her shoulder to make sure no one is coming near her...

Poor Luna.  I guess we have the "awkward kid" of the bunch.  Wish us safe travels!

Yard in Spring!

It's been a while since I've yard update.... but that doesn't mean things haven't been happening out there!  I wish I could take credit for the amazing blooms that have popped up, but alas, that was two owners ago.  She was quite the gardener, or so the neighbors say.  Thank gosh they are annuals so we get to keep enjoying their beauty!

We have our first rose of Spring.  According to the worn, faded tag in the ground it is Enfant de France....a very fragrant rose.  I hate the smell of rose perfume because it gives me a headache, but not this beauty.  The smell is so full-bodied: vanilla-ey, musky, sweet... DIVINE.  Today I sprayed some anti bug and fungus stuff on our bushes because I noticed a few of the leaves had some rust on them.  Roses require maintenance, but they are sure pretty.

And then there are the peonies in the back yard!  They haven't started to bloom, yet, and I'm really hoping I don't miss them when we are out of town.  Peonies are my favorite flowers of all time!  I am seriously so excited to have fresh flowers in the house :)  Ahhhhhh!

Then there are these I have no idea flowers... 

Charlie and I also mulched the back flower bed.  Everything is so lush and green and totally revived itself and came back to life!  (I don't know if you can see, but there is a Crepe Myrtle back there, too!  It will flower beautifully all summer!)

We LOVE our landscaping, and all the surprises have been so fun.  But then there is the grass.  Let's back that picture up:

Honestly, the back yard isn't so bad.  We are on a fertilizing and weed-spray regimen, and there is some patching that needs to be done (the "off" green spots are all weeds)...probably about 25-30% of the back yard.  But it is fixable.  We are cutting the grass on a really high setting to help weed-out (literally) and let the grass take over.  We will do some digging and overseeding in the fall (the best time in our region).... listen to how legit I'm sounding!  ;)

But then there is the front yard.  Oh, Lord have mercy.

This wouldn't be so bad if the homes on our street didn't have IMMACULATE lawns.  I mean like flawlessly perfect, not even a twig on the grass.  It's insane.  I feel like the failure yard of the street, but there is nothing we can really do about it at this point in the season and with having put pre-emergent down.  The yard hasn't been properly maintained in years and needs and over-haul.  As you can see, there is grass, but there is lots of brown (and a lot of the green you see are just weeds)...

Despite that our yard is clearly the suckiest one, we can take solace in the fact that as we improve it, we get to take complete credit.  Ah, hard work.

But don't worry, we haven't been all business.  Charlie is finally starting to feel/act more like himself after his surgery.  Good enough that we had some friends over last night for dinner... they treated!  It was so nice!  We had high hopes of having a fire pit, but the high winds (tornado producing in some parts of NC!) prevented that from happening.  So we used the microwave.  Nom, Nom.  Love me some s'mores!