Author crush

I am currently experiencing a mad author crush on Shauna Niequist.  After reading her book, Bread & Wine: A love letter to life around the table with recipes, I have proceeded to follow her on every available social media option, put her blog on my blog roll, and try some of the recipes in her book.

Her writing spoke to me in so many ways.  Her stories of friends, family, love, loss, disappointment, food, entertaining, health, running, Chicago, and marriage were in line with where I am in my life right now at this very moment.  Her style is really accessible - both in writing and living.  I love reading work that is lovely and filled with beautiful words and at the same time is straight forward, with no pretense or effort to try to be too fancy.  Her writing is smart and honest.  I love her.  I want to be her friend.  Yeah, I know, I am crushing hard.

I have made her breakfast quinoa and have a number of others on my list for this weekend - gaia cookies, Nigella's flourless chocolate brownies, mini mac and cheese, breakfast cookies, and more.  Ok, maybe I won't make all of these this weekend, but I may get to one or two.

Wedding season

 Wedding season is upon us!  We have several friends who are getting married this summer and fall and we have a whole collection of save the dates and invitations.  It is very exciting.

Yesterday was the wedding ceremony of my best friend from college.  The venue was this lovely abandoned church in rural Nebraska.  Settled at the corner of two shale roads, this church is surrounded by farm ground in three directions and the church cemetery to the south.

We arrived early to help with preparations and to assist with a couple of last minute decorating tasks.  We had very little to do as the decorations were simple and the bride has a beautiful, simple, elegant style that she incorporated in every aspect of the day.

The church doesn't have electricity or running water.  Simple was best!

The guest book table set the stage for the ceremony beautifully.  A vintage suitcase held messages from the guests to the bride and groom.

 The interior of the church was rustic as you would expect at an abandoned prairie church.  The walls held some original art and I was particularly taken with this near the back.

 

A view from the entrance to alter gives you a true sense of the space.  There was a set of stairs up to the landing with the guest book and the sanctuary had these lovely wooden pews.

 

The directional sign from the county highway to the shale road was very charming.

 At the reception, the center pieces were very, very cute.  The repurposed vintage drawers were lovely and the geraniums brought in a wonderful pop of color.

 The dessert table was full of great things to eat and the display was beautiful.  My friend made the serving dishes and I was lucky enough to receive one from her for Christmas this year.

 She did a wonderful job of blending vintage items and her repurposed vintage glassware to create multiple levels.  The cupcakes, cake pops, cookies, mints, Chex mix, and more looks so attractive on this table.

Overall, it was a lovely day for a special couple. We were so happy to celebrate with them!

True friends

Where Women Create sends a weekly inspiration via e-mail. The messages and images are always interesting and I was especially taken with this one from last week.

I am so thankful for my friends and their support and encouragement, especially amidst the chaos.

A great life...

A friend from work gave me this cute saying.  I plan to display it at my office as a reminder that the little things that are the sum of each day add up to big results.  It is really easy for me to get lost in the details and to sometimes be discouraged about progress towards important goals.  This saying is a great reminder!

There are a couple of bloggers/writers/entrepreneurs that I follow that speak to similar concepts.  Both are wise, accomplished women and each has a take on finding simple truths about life.

Becky Higgins often posts ideas that speak to her thoughts on living a good life.  The posts always begin, "Part of cultivating a good life is..."  You will really like her website with links to her blog and free printables.


I am also a huge fan of Gretchen Rubin.  Her Twelve Personal Commandments and Secrets of Adulthood really resonate with me.  She posted the Secret of Adulthood graphic below.  It seemed like a good fit for my reflections on making a difference through incremental effort.

I imagine that many of you are reflecting on 2012 and preparing for 2013.  Whether you are in the middle of a deep cleaning project or thinking about your hits and misses of 2012 or planning some exciting new adventure for the new year, I am wishing you the best.

Eco-chic

 I am surrounded by creative, talented friends.  A dear friend from college has a growing business in which she sells her glass creations.  She takes glassware that you might find in an antique store or thrift shop and transforms it into beautiful and functional works of art.

My Christmas gift from her was this elegant two tier stand.  It is small enough in size and the pattern on the plates subtle enough to be cute and classic all at once.

I can see several different uses - in the kitchen and dining rooms to display treats, in our bathroom to hold soaps and lotions, and in my studio for scrapbooking and craft supplies.

I am really excited to have some of her work in my home!

She displays her work at festivals and fairs during the warmer months. If you would like to see more of her creations, let me know.

The alpaca stockings were hung...

My husband has the best luck in Secret Santa exchanges.  Every year his school gives the staff the chance to participate.  Everyone who is in draws a name and gets a completed questionnaire with some of the favorites of the person.  Instead of the usual boring stuff, my husband comes away with some awesome gifts.  This year was no different.

His Secret Santa gave him a Christmas stocking that was hand knitted with alpaca yarn and features a felted alpaca.  His colleague is an awesome knitter.  She also made the super cute and cuddly bear that I blogged about over a year ago.

We love this stocking - super cute and very meaningful. Thanks, Ashley!

It's a small sticky note that had a big impact.

What a nice way to be acknowledged for helping with a fun task!