Wishful Thinking

::Swoon::

It Is The Little Things

I just have to take a moment and gush about my new favorite thing. I like things to smell good, which is hard...I live in a tiny apartment with a dog, a cat, and carpets that have not been deep cleaned since the late 90's...it is a fight to keep things smelling fresh, and Nag Champa can only do so much for a girl!

This just smells like you have fresh, clean laundry all over your house. It is fabulous. You should buy it. There you go, Febreze, free advertising. I endorse you.

Balcony Seats in my Backyard

Forgive my laps in posting, darlings, but I have been so busy this week! It has been Spring Break here and I have managed to enjoy it despite academic deadlines looming in the very near future. Let me apologize now that there are no pictures from most of break, as usual, I forgot to bring my camera to a special event, typical me.

Last weekend was spent back home for the wedding of some of our very dear friends. The ceremony was absolutely lovely. Fires crackled inside in gorgeous enclosures, while outside, storm clouds threatened a grey rain which never broke. Simple, radiant, elegant; those would be the words I would use to describe the event. The bridal party looked ethereal and the groomsmen were dashing, and needless to note the bride and groom were made even more beautiful by their obvious happiness. Félicitations, mes amis!

The wedding was followed up by a reunion of sorts. All weekend Grant and I were treated to delicious pozole, Mexi-Cokes, Doubleshot Coffee, homemade Italian food, semi-reubens, cigars, and slushies with our amazing friends. I think I love wedding weekends even more now that Grant and I have moved away from our hometown. Wedding weekends bring all of our old college friends together and for a few precious days we like to pretend that time will stand still.

Grant unfortunately had to return to work early Monday morning so I stayed in Tulsa for a few days to spend time with my family. I got a much needed haircut, too! Sunday evening I went to dinner with my Dad and step-mom with a run to Freckles afterwards! A viewing of The Jerk  and peeling more wallpaper as my mom slowly transforms an old office into her dining room. My mom and I also went shopping while I was in town for decorations for her house. I love shopping with my mom, she is probably the most creative person to shop with and she is such a blast!

This trip was really fun because Grant and I are also redecorating our apartment. Well, let me be more specific, our apartment is a culmination of decorations which span our lives from the last 10 years. Some things work well together...other things, not so much. For example, Grant hates all of my museum exhibition posters that are all over the place and says they make our apartment look like a coffeehouse. To be fair, the man worked in a coffee shop for nearly three years, so I will give him this one. Grant's decorations consist of 'novelty' items, like dinosaur piggy banks, cool rocks, and "brainy" kids toys. All of which are cool, but remind me too much of my high school bedroom. So, we are redecorating!

I have taken down the posters that had previously filled our entire entry way (conversation piece, I called it) and replaced them with a few, color-coordinated images. On our landing I put up a long framed mirror which also helps to catch some of the light in our living room. Next on the to-do list is put up our newly framed coffee sacks (from Doubleshot, of course) in the dining room. We still have new sofas to get and a T.V (apparently we are the only people I know who still use a box T.V.) but we are getting there. It's funny, we have been married almost a year and we are still trying to get things figured out with our living arrangements! But, I should say, that the coolest thing bought this weekend was a bench for our balcony! It was our (early) anniversary gift from my parents. It is just wonderful. In fact, I am sitting on it right now, enjoying the last rays of sunlight and the delicious smells coming from the kitchen as Grant makes dinner.

Enjoy the rest of your weekends, all of you out there, I know I will.

Just a Few Blooms

I am sorry that all I have this week are some lovely photos! Both Grant and I have had the flu, so I hope that you will excuse my laziness! Enjoy these images of a 50th wedding anniversary party  and some pretty spring florals, and an awesome ceramic pig (!) that were taken last weekend in Tulsa!

Long Night Headin' Into Mornin'

Excuse the title, I have just been on a serious Wailin' Jenny's kick.

This last week has been a super hectic one in the Baker household. Week two of Lent hit Grant and I with full swing and we are a little worse for wear. After a cranky wife didn't have sugar in her coffee for nearly two weeks and a husband who would rather read Tom Stoppard (no judgement here) than work on his own material, needless to say we were a little crabby and frustrated. I also had lots of projects due last week which sent me away to the dark confines of the Fine Arts Library for many afternoon and evenings. On top of everything Nyx was at the vet this week for surgery and all I wanted to do was stay home with her and make sure she was recovering well.

I have found myself operating on a very strange schedule. I feel like I have become some sort of night creature, I suppose this is how nursing students feel or the night-shift guy at the gas station. I feel like I only get to come out at night. This is not entirely true, but I feel like most of my life operates on a weird schedule in which I am indoors most of the time but only get to run errands at very strange moments. For example, tonight I am once again at the library working on a paper and afterwards (probably around midnight) I will head to the grocery store to do our shopping for the week. This has been my life since starting graduate school. I realize that anytime I don't have to be at work or in class and the sun is out I am not getting work done, I want to PLAY! I find myself looking over seed catalogues while sitting on our balcony, or reading something not related to school, or playing with out pets, or practicing my autoharp, or....just about anything else that does not relate to school. Also, most of my time is spent alone, which never really used to bother me but now it does. I feel sort of disconnected from everything and everybody.

I did learn today that there is a surefire way of beating the blues and that is three-day old kittens. My friend Sarah is now sharing her house with six new kittens which Grant and I went to see today. They are adorable! It was such a neat thing just getting to watch them blindly flop around and squeak at one another. I can't wait until they get bigger and we get to see their personalities come out!

Well, this nocturnal thing is headed back to work.

Sweet dreams or happy rompings, be you a sun creature or a fellow nocturnal thing.

,Loves

Gardening for Escape

It has been the kind of weekend in which I only want to play. I don't want to think about my presentation tomorrow, or my midterm, or my paper due this week. I want it to be Saturday for about a week. The anthem of this weekend for me has easily been 'Bird Song' by The Wailin' Jennys. So beautiful!!!

This weekend was glorious. I had my first autoharp lesson! I just love this little (surprisingly powerful) instrument. It makes me smile with its myriad of sounds. I hope that I do it justice as time goes by. I also got a few more things planted on our balcony. Grant and I found a Mother-in-Law Tongue to add to our indoor plant collection. I baked scones and had coffee with friends. Grant and I also enjoyed a wonderful evening with Jasper and Deah. Watched 'Dead and Breakfast' (best zombie movie soundtrack I have ever heard) and ate AMAZING food. We have been so blessed with beautiful friends.

I realized that with the coming spring I have been experiencing such a need to be outside. I am interested in joining a community garden here in Norman/OKC area. Anyone know of one? I just want to get out in the dirt, such a great stress relief.

Ode to Technology

I am not sure why I have been thinking about this today, but I really miss my old Polaroid camera. You can see it here on Amazon. This is the model that I had. I remember getting it for my 13th birthday, it was green, came with its own carrying bag, and my parents bought me my first two packs of film. I have so many fantastic shapshots from various high school and family events from that little camera. It went with me one summer to Robber's Cave, S.W.U.U.S.I., Shangri-La (Oklahoma), Grand Lake and even Branson.

 Now, you can't even get Polaroid film anymore and my little green box is nestled in a storage bin at my parents' house. I think I should go get it, it can at least live out in the open. I don't want it to feel totally replaced...

Le Soleil et L'Ombre

I spent the morning with the balcony door open, listening to the birds make a rumpus out by the birdfeeder and giggling at the reactions of Nyx and Ginger to the birds that are so close, and yet so unattainable. I spent the afternoon on the back patio of Cafe Plaid sitting in the sunshine with my americano and readings for my Byzantine Icons class and slowly crawling through creating a Powerpoint for class over my current research. I always think it is funny when you have to present your research (which you find fascinating) to a group of people who would probably rather be anywhere else (undergrads).

Grant and I have decided to try and "do" Lent this year, both of us in previous years failing completely. I think we are both hoping that a live-in accountability partner will help. Our old pastor had a really neat perspective about Lent, give something up...but also add something. So, Grant and I are giving up red meat and sweets, but we are adding trying a new "fancy" cheese each week. I am severly cutting my Netflix watching, but I am adding an hour of pleasure reading each night. Grant, instead of reading the news every evening, will spend 1 hour each night working on his creative writing projects.

So far, so good. I did manage to get all caught up on Downton Abbey before Lent...so I think I will be stocked up for a while.

Cake for a King

 The little things are the big things. I woke up, did a load of dishes, made the bed, walked Ginger, straightened up the living room, and got ready for work. I was on time, traffic was heavy but moving, the sun was shining and I saw the first daffodils of 2012 off of Main Street! I even had hot tea in my travel mug and ABBA on my iPod, it was going to be a good day. After a day of work and class; I came home and baked a loaf of bread, got books in the mail and Grant's vintage national parks sticker (to commemorate our anniversary), and we made gumbo for dinner! Lassiez les bons temps roulez, bebes.

Funny Valentine

I cannot think of a time when I have ever disliked Valentine's day. I mean it! As I kid I loved writing Valentine's for my classmates and making a Valentine card sack out of a brown paper bag (anyone else ever do that?), then later as I got older spending the holiday with friends and loved ones. Valentine's day isn't just for sweethearts, it is for whoever you care about, and I always had such a good time no matter what!

Well, yesterday, I disliked Valentine's day. The day started out so rotten! I had a flat tire, I was late for work, I had a paper due that I was not feeling too great about, and I had a headache. Really, it was just not my day. On my way home after getting new tires, and a bottle of wine, I still had a headache and just didn't feel like celebrating Valentine's day. Let me just say right now that I am married to the most amazing man. Almost in anticipation of my downcast mood, Grant had surprised me with beautiful flowers on our coffee table, picked up the house and was walking the dog. For the first time all day I felt as if I could just breathe! The evening only got better as we poured over our mail. Valentine's day cards and a goodie box filled with candy from our parents, a wedding, a baby shower and a 50th anniversary celebration invitations were all waiting for us! Talk about love!