Updates

1. I threw some sweet pots in ceramics tonight! I was going for something tall and skinny and ended up with this:

Lovely, but short and wide! When I smacked the next lump of clay down on the wheel, I waved my hands over it and gave it all of the positive energy I could. And it became this!

I was so stinkin' proud. :)

2. House. The inspection came back and there's a whole mess of structural (under the house), electrical (in the house), and grading (around the house) issues. Thankfully they're fixable issues, but we're just waiting to hear back if the seller is going to pay to remedy all of these things. We really hope they do because we're not ready to put up the money -- likely A LOT of money -- to get it done. Positive energy our way folks! And just in case this house isn't the one, we know there will be others (hopefully just as cute!).

Shake It

This song came up this weekend at Zumba and it was the perfect little booty shakin' number to get my week started. Happy Monday!

Brass Drops

I bought these lovely brass drops from Kate Miss' jewelry shop a few months ago. She writes the beautiful blog For Me, For You that frequently features her plant collection and cute little cat Wendy. She has a shop update this Sunday, so take a peek!

No Blog Left Behind

Too many blogs for your bookmark bar? I have a little list going of blogs I love to read, but the list keeps growing and I always manage to forget about them until I'm weeks behind.

Enter Bloglovin -- the go-to place for all of the blogs you love in ONE SPOT. Your blog feed is updated as posts from your favorite blogs are added. It's great for just browsing pictures and handy for when you want to click the link to read the full post. (There's also a smartphone app!) Say goodbye to a million open browser tabs and hello to a perfect post-work antidote.

Just Looking?

-Friday-

Pre-approval at the mortgage office. Celebrated with drinks!

-Saturday-

Met with our agent to take our first look at houses. The first one was adorable on the outside but aging poorly on the inside. Number two caught our eye as soon as we walked in. Sun room, updated kitchen, built-in bookshelves, and still all the charm of its original date of 1951. We LOVED it.

-Sunday-

Went to see a few more open houses but kept thinking about that house. In a bold and crazy move, we put a low offer on it. The sellers countered back a few hours later within our budget. And here we are, Monday evening, with a scheduled inspection for later this week and spring in our step. Eeeee!!!

Game Time

Chris taught me how to play NCAA football on the Xbox last week, and all I can remember is that B gets your player to do a spin move. I think I'll probably be better at Dance Central 2 -- on its way in the mail thanks to Chris' surprise gift card from work!

Have a fun weekend! We're checking out two houses tomorrow, so I'll keep you posted on what we think...

Return to the Wheel

My third semester of ceramics started last night, and it's so good to be back! Thanks to the wonderful gift of bats (those bright green squares) from my dad and stepmom, my bowls have an infinitely better chance of staying symmetrical after they come off the wheel. And I think I did pretty darn well for my first night back!

And It Begins!

The great house hunt has begun! As soon as we got back to Richmond we starting asking friends for realtor recommendations. Since we found someone to work with, she's set us up with an online search site with our preferences already built in. Each day I get an email or two with new listings that fit our specifications. Addicting!

Over the weekend Chris and I started driving through some of the potential neighborhoods we're looking at, taking in the general feel and jotting down any other houses for sale that we spot. We've got some time (our lease is up in June) and if we don't find the right one we can always rent for another year. But I told Chris that this process is going to be like the Christmas I went to the cat shelter -- you can't go to a cat shelter and not come home with a cat (Cat!). I have a feeling that once we start seeing places we're going to come home one day with a house.

The illustrator who painted the house above was recently featured on Design*Sponge. I would love to have our (potential) new house done with Cat's little face in the window!

August 28, 1963

out of the mountain of despair

a stone of hope

Wandering

[Image via here]

I've seen a trend this week that a handful of blogs are posting about wanderlust. As I try to settle back in to the post-holiday routines, my mind drifts to places I'd love to relax too. Today I thought that a weekend at the Oregon Coast would be nice. Some stormy coastal weather mixed with breaks of sun would be perfect for cozy reading and bundled beach walking.

Winter

I'm fairly confident we had snow in December/January  last winter, but temps have been pretty high and it doesn't seem likely just yet. For Christmas I got this little DIY calendar and stitched in some satiny flakes in hopes that some real ones will arrive soon.

Friday Lunches

One of the best parts of my week is spending my Friday lunch with a fifth grader. I pick her up from her classroom, stand in the lunch line to get cheese pizza, and then head to the library for crafts, conversation and games. One time we even played 18 rounds of Uno. Eighteen! 

Sound fun? Learn more about becoming a Big Sis here.

Nom Nom

These are the fun little ceramic chopstick bowls I made for my sister for Christmas. She already put them to use with homemade pho on New Year's Eve! Love her. 

Happy weekend! 

The Nutcracker Ballet

Bum-ba-da-bum-bum

Bum-bum-bahh...

One of the festive activities over the holiday was going to the Keller Auditorium to see the Nutcracker Ballet with my mom and sister. My family used to go every year when I was young, and my siblings and I would put on shows from the various wintry scenes afterwards in our living room. OBT must have started doing a different version because I distinctly remember dancing around with wooden spoons from the kitchen....yet no chef to be found this year!

This show was especially fun to watch because Madeline, a sweet little gal I babysat after college, was dancing in the production. She fought off mice as a sentry in the first half and returned later from underneath the enormous skirt of Mother Ginger (the replacement for the enormous chef from my childhood I think!). She's in seventh grade now and practically as tall as Alyssa and me. My, my how time flies.

Seattle Photo Op

The week before Christmas my mom and I drove up to Seattle to see my sis Alyssa, her boyfriend David, and some of my best college pals. Even though I felt miserably terrible with a cold, we met up at Brave Horse Tavern for some brews and good laughs. My mom took on to the role of beaming photographer and -- in true motherly style -- took pictures of people taking pictures. (Please note David rubbing his flash-shocked eyes in the background of photo #6. What a trouper.)

Side Note

Do you like Brussels Sprouts? I'm kind of in love with them. I tried this recipe on Thanksgiving and made them again last night. So easy and tasty...together we can rid them of their bad reputation!

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts

3 tablespoons good olive oil

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

(some crushed garlic and red pepper flakes are a nice addition too!)

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Cut off the brown ends of the Brussels sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves. Mix them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Pour them on a sheet pan and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. Shake the pan from time to time to brown the sprouts evenly. Sprinkle with more kosher salt, and serve immediately.

Recipe via the Barefoot Contessa and Food Network, found here.

Home for Christmas

We traveled home to Portland, OR for nearly two weeks over Christmas and did a lot of Portlandy things -- ate at the Alder food carts, browsed books in Powell's, shopped local at the Saturday Market, and filled up on some Oregon brews at Bridgeport and Deschutes. We knew we were back in the Northwest when we arrived at PDX and saw a sign for the bike assembly area. Despite of all the gray and rain, Portland will always be home to us!

A Fresh Start

January, as of two years ago. How far we've come! 

(And how much warmer it is, too!)

HAPPY NEW YEAR! More Christmasy posts soon.