Missing the Husband

It's been a long few days without Greg and I'm anxiously awaiting his return late tonight/early morning. One of my interns, Tara, and I headed up to Silver Lake Thursday afternoon for a wedding rehearsal not too far from our family's cottage. We had a little Girl's Night In after the successful rehearsal and then were back at the wedding on Friday for a long, but absolutely fabulous, day.

On our way home Friday evening, we hit a deer. A dead one. The poor deer had already hit a semi truck's trailer before I drove over him in the middle of the lane. I screamed. I did not cry. And then I called 9-1-1. It was quite a fiasco, but we finally got a police report and headed home - not getting home by 10p like I had anticipated. It makes for a good story, and I found out today our car damages will cost us a total of $100 to fix, even with the leaking radiator & broken belly pan. I suppose the full coverage insurance after YEARS of paying it is finally going to pay off, eh?

Greg hit the road on Friday afternoon bound for Troutman, NC to visit a friend who moved there a couple of years ago. He hasn't left the state of Michigan since we've been married, so imagine the irony when the ONLY time I've been in an accident since I lived in Chicago, he's out of town. Thankfully both Tara & I were fine, and the car was driveable.

The past few days have been good - I cleaned the house, caught up on laundry, printed/assembled/addressed/mailed baby shower invitations, had a fabulous potential client consultation, caught up on sleep, visited my grandma (and picked up her extra car) plus went grocery shopping and found a few good deals at Target. One of those deals included a super cute dress to wear to my sister-in-law's baby shower I'm hosting (along with my two sister-in-laws) in July.

Today the weather finally changed and it actually seems like summertime! I finally watered the lawn today too, for fear that if I let it get too brown, there will be no turning back. Happy Summer!

The Formal Living Room

New homes don't seem to have them. Greg and I talk about never using or wanting one. However, every time I see one, I cannot help but think about the bridal & baby showers, Thanksgiving dinners, Christmas celebrations and hide 'n' seek played in the formal living room. The plush carpet, lamps flanking either side of the tailored sofa and matching love seat and the solid wood furniture - it's utterly traditional and completely beautiful.

Today I stopped by my Grandma's house to pick up the cottage key. Her carpet was being cleaned in the family room, so in the living room we sat. I can honestly say that I've never been in there on a regular day - there was no finger food to munch on, no punch bowl, and no celebration - just the two of us chatting. And I love chatting with my gram.

Maybe formal living rooms are a thing of the past, but the concept of a living area, sans television, for social gatherings with neighbors, friends, family, coworkers, etc., greatly appeals to me. Maybe Greg and I shouldn't rule out that room in our next home.

Enjoying Summer

This weekend marks the first official weekend of summer for me - regardless of what the actual calendar says. It's Festival weekend in Grand Rapids - and for years, Greg and I have made our way downtown to support local businesses by buying food, shopping the art tents, and watching the locals showcase their talent - from ballet to rock concerts.

I can remember going to Festival all the way back to when I was a kiddo. One concrete memory is my mom taking me and my siblings, and my Aunt Sandy taking her three kids and all of us getting these crazy toys - they were foam alligators on a metal "leash" of sorts, and you'd "walk" it around. Very bizarre to type out, but I can picture it like it was yesterday.

Years later, my cousin Jenny and I would go down to our church's booth and work selling caramel apples slices. Ten years ago I was graduating from high school and attended with my boyfriend at that time. I remember meeting up with Kate and Jessica after working at English Hills that summer. I missed all three years while living in Chicago - 2000, 2001 and 2002. When I moved home in 2003, I attended with my girlfriends from high school - I have the photos, pre-digital, to remember.

The past five years, I've attended with Greg - we go down and enjoy yummy food and just enjoy summer in the city. I love people watching and it's a great way to kick-off summer. This year I will be sharing the experience with Greg and my high school friends & their husbands. I'm already looking forward to Saturday! (and thankful I have a wedding on Friday instead of Saturday this weekend...)

Happy Summer, everyone!

Learning to Use my Camera

When it comes down to it, I have no idea what I'm doing in Photoshop. I've been using my new camera over the past few months and I enjoy taking photos - but then it comes down to editing them and I'm all thumbs.

Here are a few I've taken of a giant limb in our backyard, and then the rest are of Olive. Nothing breathtaking, but something to look at, eh?

Wedding Season Approaches

This weekend is my last "free" weekend before my official wedding season gets underway. I've had a couple of amazing weddings this year, but they were solo events - one in March and one in April. Next week I start a six week stretch of events, then have a break for a mid-summer vacation with Greg, then I'm back at it the rest of the summer. Thankfully, I'm not quite as busy as last summer.

The best part about this weekend? Greg and I have absolutely no plans besides hanging out together around the house. Maybe finish up the pantry project (still need to paint the doors and put the new hardware on - however the doors are up and the food is in!), perhaps work on converting one of our cupboards in the kitchen to an open-view option (pop the door off, give it a fresh coat of paint on the inside and show off our Fiestaware) and maybe stop at Seven's to check out their modern wallpaper samples for our one and only bathroom. Our yard is really looking fabulous and Greg is working on getting his veggie garden in. He's been growing veggies from seeds in the basement over the past couple of weeks, and the plants are getting big enough to go outside.

Tomorrow I'm looking forward to coffee in the morning with Mindy, a longtime family friend. She's recently popped back in my life because of our wedding industry ties (she's a photographer) and I've enjoyed reconnecting with her.

Work, housework and enjoying Greg and Olive has been all that's going on. I cannot believe our 2-year anniversary is coming up soon. Time certainly flies!