it's valentine's day!

oh valentine's day. what a controversial holiday. and not one that i have ever particularly liked or celebrated- hubby and i rarely acknowledge the day, except maybe for a small love note or two. i do love making things and telling people i love them, so i made some cards for friends, and then i made some more for all my kiddos at school.

i found these over at mer mag and thought they were perfect. 

i made a few changes and personalized them a little so that each kid wouldn't get exactly the same thing.

i think pirates arrrr adorable!

{groan....sorry, i couldn't help it....}

well, whether you celebrate it or not, i hope you're all having a beautiful day!

the highlight of my weekend

ok, well that sounds really lame. i'm not actually saying the highlight of my weekend was watching my wonderful hubby cuddling with his adorable kitty {i kid myself and think that cache is my cat too, but he's in love with josh. so really, he's his cat} but back to what i was saying- this photo is really more symbolic than literal. i love my weekends with my husband and adorable kitties {even when they prefer him over me}

yeah, that's pretty much it. i just love...this.

{and don't be fooled, cache may look annoyed, but he loves this}

friday nights

Friday night is our date night. we don't do anything fancy, just cuddle on the couch, indulge in our latest TV obsession, and eat pizza (usually frozen, sometimes delivery) this week it struck me as completely ridiculous that we haven't been making our own. Seriously, we have a bread machine and making crust couldn't be any easier.

Before it goes in the oven:

 (tomato, red onion and yellow pepppers)

when it came out:

so yummy! 

Although i needed to flour the pan a little more, the bottom layer stuck a bit!

As for our TV obsessions, most often it's an old HBO show. Early this year it was The Wire. (seriously almost-unhealtily-obsessed with that one) and now it's Carnivale- it's like a combination of Water for Elephants and Grapes of Wrath (plus there's magic)

 And speaking of Water for Elephants, I'm so excited for the movie! Although I just discovered that Robert Pattinson is the lead. Am I the only woman in America who is not attracted to him. At. All?

have i ever told you?

...how much my husband loves me?

 a lot.

i'm talking get-my-name-tattooed-on-his-wrist-a-lot.

less than a week after our wedding we walked into a tattoo parlor and this is what he came out with. it was kind of a big deal. i mean i knew that we'd spend the rest of our lives together, but a tattoo feels a little more permanent than a piece of paper.

this is my very favorite love letter.


ever.

it's the 4th!

i'm so excited it's the holiday weekend!

the 4th has long been hubby and i's favorite holiday. it marks the anniversary of our first date {6 years ago!} we met up with friends, headed downtown and watched the fireworks.

 it was perfect.

we've pretty much repeated that same date every year. some of the locations have changed and sometimes a friend or 2 couldn't make it home- but mostly, it's always been the same. and we never miss watching the show together {and cuddling in the dark}

this year we're far away from those people and those places and while i'm excited for the weekend, it's hard not to be homesick at the same time.

but it's time to buck-up and stop this pitty party! we're having friends over today {the ones who are still in town, that is} and i still get to be with my love {which is really all that matters} and so maybe it's going to be a great weekend after all.

{but just to make sure we don't get too moppy, i've outlawed these names at our house for the next 48 hours: sarah & matt, rob, brad & caitlin, and don- we miss you dearly!}

{one year we played croquet}

{rob played in seersucker}

 {hubby played "swords"}

{and i was all business}

and last year, at a porch party with these guys:

{sarah! why so angry?}

{

{much better!}

happy holiday, friends! i hope it's a good one <3

bestie birthday package

i love it so much, i hung it on my door.

my lovely package from my bestie.
{how to describe it? accordion folding envelopes full of goodies, complete with a collage on the back} 

yes, i have the best friend in the world. i honestly have no idea how she did this, and how she made it so perfect, but it is!

i am one lucky girl.

{and in case you didn't know, today is her birthday! so make sure you go send her some birthday love, too!}

april fool's day fun

oh friends, i had a wonderful birthday! thank you for all your lovely wishes and comments yesterday :)

so, lets start at the beginning of the day, shall we?

i began my birthday day by scaring all my students with the most realistic fake mouse you've ever seen:

it was awesome!

and then i went home, decorated some cupcakes, and went back to school and had an april fool's day party, with all kinds of themed games {like word searches with no answers, and joker scavenger hunts} and of course prizes {like whoopee cushions, groucho marx glasses, and water-squirting rings for everyone!}

and what party is complete without snacks?

to drink: lemonade {or lemon jello}

it got lots of laughs.

to eat: mashed potatos:

peas, carrots and corn:

and chicken drum sticks!

yummy!

and then, if you can believe it, the day got better.

i came home from said awesome party, and hubby said he was taking me out to the lake for a little cook-out-birthday- picnic.

wonderful.

amazing.

perfect.

so i grab my jacket, a blanket, and my book and hop in the car {telling him what a wonderful idea it is} and then we get there, and all our friends are there, with cake, and all kinds of other goodies.

 it was awesome awesome awesome. and a wonderful birthday, indeed!

and, if i do say so myself, i have the most wonderful husband. {and he's dreamy to boot!}

glorious day

walking to work today i just couldn't stop smiling. 

which isn't actually that unusual.

but today was so perfect. 

so beautiful!

blue skies and white wispy clouds.

bright sun shining and a cool breeze.

and birds singing.

i just couldn't help tuning my ipod to my favorite summer music.

music that reminds me of lying in the grass.

falling in love.

and laughing so hard it hurts.

and this song in particular.

it was the recessional song at our wedding. the only recorded music we used.

because it's our song {or one of them} and it's so perfect.

 carbon leaf- life less ordinary {partial lyrics}

Live a life less ordinary
Live a life extraordinary with me
Live a life less sedentary
Live a life evolutionary with me
Well I hate to be a bother,
But it's you and there's no other, I do believe
You can call me naive but...
I know me very well (at least as far as I can tell)
And I know what I need

The night you came into my life
Well it took the bones of me, took the bones of me
You blew away my storm and strife
And shook the bones of me, shook the bones of me
By the way, I do know why you stayed away...
I will keep tongue-tied next time

Live a life less ordinary
Live a life extraordinary with me.
If I could name you in this song
Would it make you smile and sing along?
This is the goal: to get into your soul
If I could make you dance for joy
Could that be the second-chance decoy?
The bird-in-hand I would need
To help you understand?

la boheme

we moved all the way out here {manhattan kansas} so that my husband could follow his dream- which led him to school. 

and will lead him to another school after this. 

but i'm not wasting my time here, either- i found a job i love, opened my etsy and am pursuing my suzuki certifications {teaching the violin is my passion}

we didn't exchange christmas gifts this year {we were just happy to be surrounded by friends and family} and we won't do birthday gifts, either.
life is more simple this way. we're taking less for granted and making the most of our time here. in a strange way,  we're living this crazy-poor-artistic lifestyle- doing what we must to get by, but pursuing our dreams non-stop and full-force.

it's kind of romantic.

and i kind of love it. a lot.

in fact, if we were only {only!} living in paris, i think we would be the quintessential starving artists. a scholar and an etsian.

 it's got a nice ring to it, no?

photos here, here, here

to my love:

happy birthday love. 
i adore you. 
{and all your silly faces}

a little cheese for your wednesday

What have you been up to this week? Me? I've been racking up some major wife points. that's right, I'm the "Best Wife Ever!" , in all capitol letters because this is my official title now (according to my hubby who has said this pretty much every day since last week.)

Why, you ask? Because I keep doing all these things that are kinda inconvenient, but not really a big deal- like letting him watch the K-State basketball game online last night (after the internet had not been working all day). Or picking him up a couple times, at odd hours, after he had dinner and drinks with friends (because we share a car and i had other plans that got me to bed early).

I don't really think it's been that big of a deal, but he sure does! So you know what that means- as I told him last night, I will be cashing all these points in on an not-yet-to-be-named future date.

Maybe some new boots? Maybe a free pass on doing the laundry? Maybe a mandatory Jane Austen movie marathon?

Or maybe not. Because really, when hubs is happy, i'm happy too.

photo from here

new year's resolution

i started reading cold tangerines last night, {which was recommended and borrowed from a dear friend} and i really love this quote:

"today is your big moment. moments, really. the life you've been waiting for is happening all around you. the scene unfolding right outside your window is worth more than the most beautiful painting, and the crackers and peanut butter that you're having for lunch on the the coffee table as profound, in their own way, as the last supper. this is it. this is life in all its glory, swirling and unfolding around us, disguised as pedantic, pedestrian non-events. but pull off the mask and you will find your life, waiting to be made, chose, woven, crafted."

i love this! this is what i want my life to be. this year i will live my life each and every day. i will work for my goals and plans and dreams every day. i will remember to stop waiting for my life to begin, and start living it. i'm excited about where i am, and where i'm going {even though i have an open-ended 5-year plan} this is my new year's resolution.

"your life, right now, today, is exploding with energy and power and detail and dimension, better than the best movie you have ever seen. you and your family and your friends and your house and your dinner table and your garage have all the makings of a life of epic proportions, a story for the ages. because they are. every life is."

i hope this inspires you today.

envelope full of love!

,i checked my mail last night and look what was waiting for me:

a package from my bestie sarah!
contents= new noah and the whale album.
homemade card just for me.
homemade banner just for me.

(sister banner to the blue one she made for herself)

it already has a home!

i really miss her (and her hubby too!)

and i'm getting a package ready to send right back.