.happy . . . .

. . . . half-birthday to my alaskan malamute, hudson! you are now 7 1/2 people years old!

. . . . adoptaversary to hudson as well!  celebrating 4 years of being our 90lb baby on the same day as his half birthday (sept 24)

. . . . 30th birthday to the man-friend!!!  we celebrated in style at edgefield -aka adult disneyland- last night with friends.  these past 10 years of knowing you have been full of adventure and joy, heartache and challenge, growth and change.  i am glad you were born and i am glad we are partners together in this crazy life-journey.

{we took this photo on our cross-country road trip in aug at niagara falls}

.hudson.

did i mention that hudson had his 7th birthday yesterday?

we had a party for him and our roommate, miss w, last week.  he even blew out the candles on his own cake!!

he may be growing older, but he's still got it.

.cell phone shots of the dog.

love this little butthead of mine.

.dog park.

o

after going out to breakfast at our favorite breakfast place with my man-friend, hudson and i spent a good amount of time at the dog park with the fantastic Phury (another of my derby girls, sadie (her dog) and caleb (her roommate's dog).

we followed that up with a trip to trader joe's (dog treats in the car!!!) and the h-bomb is now sleeping soundly at my feet. he's pooped. his 6 year old self can't quite bounce back as fast from hours of frolicking like he used to. sweet thing.

{all photos taken by phury}

.happy birthday hudson!.

our big fluffy ball of energy turns 6 today!

how has he celebrated so far? by sleeping, taking a few walks, and barking in his sleep.

good times :)

.6 yr engage-aversary.

i forgot to post yesterday that it was our 6 year anniversary of getting engaged! Six years ago, yesterday, my special man-friend and i went on a picnic in golden gate park, san francisco (we were there for spring break). he was insistent that we find the shakespeare garden (on of my favorite authors) and though i didn't understand why it was so important to him and was just focusing on how hot, hungry and suffering from allergies i was, i humored him and we finally found it. we settled down for a nice picnic of things we had picked up from local corner stores along our walk through the haight/ashbury district of SF while we made our way to the park. the details of how we arrived on the subject are a little fuzzy . . . but i do remember him producing a ring (how in the WORLD he had found time to design and purchase this ring without my knowing is beyond me!) and say the words "will you marry me?" (the hardest words any man will ever say, according to him) . . .

our engagement photo taken by adam white (no website to direct you to, sorry)

both wedding photos also taken by adam white

i have photos from the actual engagement day and week, but this all went down in the prehistoric times before digital cameras were all the rage. this means, i'd have to scan them on to my computer before being able to post them. they are ancient. 6 whole years. :)

to celebrate our day (we aren't really the kind of people who celebrate every mile marker - i.e. first kiss, first date, etc, but the man has been busy with school so it was nice to use this as an excuse to spend some time together), i was first presented with a surprise boquet of my favorite flowers DAFFODILS! this was fantastic because it has finally started to be nice here in RI, after a winter of snow and gloom and this last week straight of rain . . . the days are suddenly sunny and warm. not sure how long it will last, but i love it! so, daffodils totally remind me of spring and the huge bouquet totally helped to bring spring inside the house!



then we went off to one of our favorite breakfast restaurants, nick's on broadway where not only did our waitress recognize us (she's a regular at the restaurant where i work), but we got cat called from the corner by some of my derby girls! ha ha!

we both built our own omlettes and split some french toast. i had pineapple juice (yum!) and he had coffee. afterwards, we both had to get to work . . . but it was nice to have connected for a bit in the sunny morning.



next big mile marker? hudson's 6th birthday is next week!

.strong and brave.

photo taken last june of my sister's and i at our big sister's wedding. we haven't all been together like that since . . . can't wait til we all get to be together again!

my big sister is about to have a baby . . . any day now. she's due tomorrow. this is the first grandchild in our family, the first great grand child in our family and my first time becoming a real-live auntie! i am so excited! my sister has been so strong and brave through it all. the only thing i am sad about is that she lives so far away (tulsa, OK) and i am stuck on the east coast (in R.I) and can't be there. i've missed her whole pregnancy.

i do have tickets to fly out to see her at the end of april. but. that's april. sooo far awayyyyy......

i can only send her encouragement and support from afar. we've been talking on the phone a lot more lately and this has been awesome. i feel like we've become closer the last few months and gotten to know each other better. having 6 sisters like i do, it's hard to be close to all of them. especially since i live so far away from them all.

i've also been sending her tons of little packages full of books and clothes and silly things for the wee one. what else is an auntie for anyway?

----------

anyway, i've been slammed the last few days and hope to play catch up today. it's raining like it's the PNW and will continue to do so all week. i secretly love it. i'm rained in with the pup and some tea. time for laundry, checking the kombucha, possibly braving the rain to hit up the grocery store (car is out of comission so this would include walking in the deluge) so i can make more granola, waiting for my seeds to arrive for this year's garden, working more on some art projects i've started, studying my roller derby rules for our upcoming assessments and prepping for tomorrow's day at the massage studio. phew. what a day off.

hudson spending his day relaxing with me while it rains outside

i also have fun news about a recent purchase i've made!! it's funny how little things can make me so happy! i'll post a blog of photos soon . . .

.my love and i.

so, i will totally devote an entire post to the meal, but the man-friend and i went out to the most delicious, vegan, 6 course, aphrodisiac dinner at the garden grille on valentine's day . . . mmmmm!!! best part? mushroom "calamari" with chili oil. afterwards, we took some awkward photos to try to commemorate the fact that we actually got dressed up and spent some time together.

I think there is an elephant stalking us . . .

the best shot we could get. we need our own personal photographer!

valentine shoes fancies

we have hardly had much time together lately since he's been studying for his exams. BUUUT, as of last friday, he is officially ABD for his PhD! this means he wont be spending every waking hour of his life cramming information in to his brain - only 40 hours a week. this also means that he and i will get to (hopefully) spend some more time together. we are looking forward to a trip to NYC pretty soon and, even sooner, breakfast together tomorrow morning! i love him.

speaking of spening all his time studying, this is what you get:

an 80 pound alaskan malamute who squeezes himself underneath your desk because he loves you and wants you to play with him instead of study.

sad face. luckily, now that the man-friend is done with his exams, he and the H-bomb will get to go hiking more often! maybe they'll let me tag along when i'm not at work? (i feel like i am aaallllways at work!).

----------

this weekend was nuts. a friend visited from out of town, REI president's day sale, valentine's day, several birthday parties, celebrating the ABD status of a certain man-friend, lots and lots of working, sleeping and eating . . . needless to stay tomorrow's day off will be sublime. on the agenda: sleeping in, breakfast with the man, bottling up some kombucha with juice, cleaning the house, organizing my life, roller derby practice. oh and did i mention lots of relaxing? yes. that's definitely on the agenda.

.domestic friday.

{image credit: ME!}

yesterday was a GREAT day at the massage clinic! totally positive experiences all around. i LOVE my job.

also, i feel totally suuuuuper productive today. i got up early (ok, ok, 8:30 is early on my day off!!), swept and vacuumed, washed the dishes, brewed a new batch of tea for our homebrewed kombucha, did an hour of yoga, sent my sister some sketches for her tattoo, walked the dog, blended up a delish smoothie, did two loads of laundry, hit up target (totally had to buy whip it!), the craft store (to get some things for finishing some necklaces i am working on), the sporting goods store (i needed new wrist guards for derby), mailed a few surprise valentine's packages, made a batch of granola, and cooked up a yummy dinner of polenta and mushroom sauce for the man-friend and i.

phew.

now? off to see a friend play at a fundraiser for local non-prof west side arts and then to see sweet mary bee at her cd release party!

busy day!

tomorrow starts my work week. i don't think i'm ready.

.recovered.

{photo credit: my man friend}

roller derby practice last night was the BEST EVER! it was so fun and challenging and awesome. i am spending today {my first day off in a while} recovering and prepping for my day at the massage studio {tomorrow} . . . as well as prepping for tonight's practice. i heart arnica and my joint salve(ation) from neohippiemama's etsy site. sooooo good for sore muscles!

so, while doing my research for my clients and designing a new coupon for an upcoming open house, i have been exploring cover lay down. this awesome site all about folk music covers! so cool to read about some of my all-time favorites as well as to discover new ones! favorite find of the day? j tillman covering townes van zandt. epic.

anyway, the H-bomb (my pup, hudson) is wishing i was paying attention to him. and my tummy was wishing i was feeding it (mmmmm, off to make a kefir smoothie!) . . .

.friday fancies.

pretty proud of my outfit today. got this new skirt on clearance for $5 yesterday. yessss.... i only buy things resale or on clearance. i just can't afford to be buying things shiny and brand new and full-price. but anyway, i knew it was a good choice when i was fixin' the hair and the man-friend walks in and says "hey cute girl!" so full of win.

hudson, however, is NOT impressed:
we got him that stuffed duck for christmas and he's already broken the squeaker. now he uses the duck as a pillow. so cute! i LOVE that he doesn't rip the stuffing out of his toys. he is actually really gentle with them. carries them around and grooms them. sort of like they are his babies. he's so special. we love him!

----------

in other news, i am being punished for making the most kick-ass dinner last night! the man-friend is SO FULL that he is making me WAIT for our friday breakfast outing until he is hungry. it's been . . . 13 hours since we ate dinner? and he's still not hungry?

it WAS a good dinner. i bought some rustic, sourdough olive bread from the local bakery. i sliced it open and topped it with grilled tempeh, swiss cheese (from non-hormone treated cows) and popped it in the oven to get all melty and toasty (both of those adjectives are REAL WORDS dispite what the man-friend might say) . . . when it was finished we topped it with fermented, raw cabbage (kimchi, or saur kraut) - at least an inch thick- and some organic thousand island dressing. put the top on that sandwich and you've got a vegetarian reuben to DIE FOR. pair that with a side salad of baby spinach, pecans and bleu cheese . . . you've got a delicious, nutritious meal . . . and apparently a meal that will cause some people to not be hungry 13 hours later.

-----------

as long as we are talking about fermented foods, here is a great article about the benefits and history of fermented foods. in short, fermented vegetables (in the meal above this includes the tempeh, the kimchi, the cheese, the sourdough bread and possibly the relish in the dressing) are beneficial because of the awesome healthy yeasts, bacterias, flora and fauna that they can add to the delicate ecosystems in our digestive tracts. this helps the food we eat to be more easily digested and it helps our immune systems to ward off any unwelcome visitors.

as i continue to educate myself on the topic i will be able to provide better information. for now, read the article i linked to above and read up on the topic for yourself. i'd love to hear what you have to say!

----------

so, i hear the man-friend coming up the stairs . . . maybe that means he is FINALLY hungry and we can go to our favorite breakfast restaurant. check it out: julian's.

----------

oh, one last thing, for those of you who LOVE the fleet foxes, check this out.

.it's the little things #1.

ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the first installment of "it's the little things." these posts will contain small lists of little things that make me happy.

yessssssssss!!!!!

#1) compost makes me happy! i LOOOOVE fresh fruits and veggies and greens and herbs (esp from the farmer's market and from my OWN GARDEN). and I HATE throwing away the beautiful nutritious left-overs (peels, cores, ends, etc) after i've chopped up the goodies and put them in my belly. it makes me so happy to take those brightly colored odds and ends and put them in my cute ceramic compost bucket (with a charcoal odor filter) to later take to the garden so they can return nutrients to the soil for next year's gardening expedition.

#2) this guy makes me happy! my bearded man-friend. he makes me coffee in the mornings, and often ends up being the one who has to take the smelly compost outside. :) he walks our pup every morning without complaining (even though it was MY IDEA to get a dog). he loves me through the ups and downs of life and the ups and downs of ME. he's been constantly by my side even when it was the hardest choice for almost 9 years. what adventures we've had! what adventures are yet to come!

#3) farm fresh eggs make me happy!! these are from zephyr farm in cranston, ri. the eggs are always so colorful and lovely - i almost don't want to eat them. but when i DO i find how much more amazing they taste than store-bought eggs. plus, how awesome is it to know that the chickens these eggs came from are NEVER CAGED and live in pastures! so great. also awesome? the fact that this farm is SO CLOSE by that i can go visit any time to meet those darn wonderful gals (the chickens that is) myself!

#4) hudson makes me happy! he's our 5 3/4 yr old (6 in march!) alaskan malamute. it's been amazing for the man-friend and i to learn to take care of a living mammal together . . . totally a challenge and there are definitely days that are harder than others. imagine living with a 3 yr old who weighs 80 pounds and has teeth and claws and sheds cotton ball sized clumps of fur all over your house? i say a 3 yr old, because malamutes are known to have very stubborn temperments. but they are also SO FUN and LOVING and SMART. hudson has definitely taught us a thing or two about love and sacrifice and consistency . . . and so much more. he definitely changed our lives for the better when we adopted him back in sept 2007.

#5) rice milk lattes make me happy!! since i am allergic to soy milk and i can't really digest regular milk too well (makes me all clogged up, ew!), rice milk lattes are where it's at for me. sadly, NO ONE in the state of Rhode Island believes in offering rice milk as an option in their coffee houses . . . so i am stuck drinking americanos until the man-friend can fix our espresso machine. while we were home in OREGON for the holidays, i had 3 GLORIOUS WEEKS full of delicious, steamy, rice milk lattes (like the one pictured above, purchased and consumed in the sellwood area of portland, oregon). sigh.


there you have it. the first installment of "it's the little things!"

what are some little things that make you happy!??!