Location, Location

Location was a big consideration as we were making nuptial plans. In the open air? In a familiar favorite venue? On a scenic site? It seemed to make the most sense to wed in Iowa as we and our families are from there. However, we have made our home in various places since leaving Iowa, and most of our close friends are in Chicago, Seattle, Boston or beyond. I wanted to be married somewhere that reflected an important connection for us. There were beautiful places we loved in the Northwest, but that would ultimately be difficult to plan or ask others to attend.

Once we finally made the decision to be married, the correlation to a city hall wedding fell into place. City Hall may not seem particularly personal, but it may have been that universality that attracted us. You see, it had obviously taken us a long time to reach the consensus that we wished to be married. Through the years Nathan and I have come to share what feels, is, a marriage. We simply lacked the terms that made this recognizable for others. So, once we finally decided to buy into the idea, I wanted that. Marriage, is as granted by our shared society. The fact that Massachusetts offers this right to all citizens made us feel even stronger about our city hall decision.

We live outside Boston, but we wanted to be married in the city…perhaps because we already generalize our location, or because of the grandeur, or because it seems more iconic. The current Boston City Hall has a contentious architectural reputation. Many think it's ugly or ineffective, others see it as an important symbol of modern architecture and civil structure. I tend to like that sort of thing, but I had to check it out for myself to make sure it was for us.

It turns out, I love it! It was constructed in the 60s and stands out as an exemplary Brutalist building. Yes, it is firm and blocky, but the repetition, smooth concrete, and the natural light inside is incredible. I was moved, imagining us in that space on our anniversary and wedding day. I walked through and took these photos. I called Nathan from the steps outside and told him it was THE place.

Once we found our spot, everything else started to come together. The warm gray of the concrete, the soft light and shadows cast inside, and the midcentury modern feel inspired the rest of my styling choices. (Which is to come next!)

1 Month of Marriage

Goodness, gracious. It's been a while. It seems like when there's finally something newsworthy I don't leave time to post! Apologies. However, I imagine those who may read this already well know what has been keeping us busy over the last couple months:

One month ago, Monday April 4, 2011, Nathan and I were married!

Happy (9 years+) One Month Anniversary, my Love!

Nathan and I discussed possible wedding plans for months--engaged 2 years!--but the actual decision making came together within just 3 months.

After much contemplation we chose to be married intimately just the two of us. We felt that the difficulty of gathering everyone we cared for in one spot, finding a meaningful location, and staying true to what the day was to us (a day 9 years in the making) was too much. We chose to keep that moment to ourselves and are making plans to celebrate the joining of our families this summer. This was a tough decision, and it affected everyone more than we wanted, but it is what we needed to do.

It truly was the most beautiful day. I will be gleefully daydreaming about it today and am excited to share it with you this week! I hope to recap our planning, wedding, and honeymoon for you over the next several days, so stay tuned.

25, I am!

Last Saturday, I turned 25! Very exciting, I know.

Thank you for all the wonderful birthday wishes, cards, and thoughtful gifts. :) I had a fabulous day. This is how it went:

We slept in, for starters, and then took a leisurely walk (it was warmer but overcast, a little moistness to the air--it's been feeling like Seattle!) to our favorite breakfast spot, Deluxe Town Diner. Nathan had the blueberry pancakes, and I enjoyed Eggs Florentine. So delicious.

Just look at those flapjacks! Fluffy perfection.

Hello, hollandaise sauce! For the record, Eggs Florentine is poached eggs, spinach, and tomatoes on an english muffin drenched in hollandaise sauce. I'm a recent convert. And a side of potatoes, yum.

We decided to host a party this year, something I haven't done since starting high school! So after breakfast we found a zipcar and zipped around to pick up all of our party foods. The rest of the day was spent cleaning up the house and prepping for company. That might sound like a chore, but it was quite relaxing.

Here is Nathan waiting at a bus stop on the way home. The sun peeked out and shone so warmly in the afternoon!

Later that evening, all my friends showed up and made it such a fun birthday. Now that our fireplace is working, we thought nothing could be better than testing it out by toasting marshmallows--hence, the s'more party! I made invitations to hand out earlier in the week. We stocked the dining table full of interesting chocolates and toppings, and Nathan whittled some sticks into skewers. It was a big hit, and a sugar high!

We still have so much chocolate in our cupboards, but most of the other sweets made it back to the breakroom at the store. Unfortunately we were having too much fun to take photos, but I did snap a pic of our fire on Sunday. It's still chilly enough to enjoy those cozy after-dinner hours in front of the flickering glow.

A superb beginning to 25. Thanks everyone!

De Vivre La Langue

These videos have been making blog rounds, for good reason. The typography is such a keen way of integrating language into travel fantasy. Of course I'm partial to Paris, but all of them are wonderful.

I haven't been putting any efforts toward that longing to learn French, but that video certainly alights the desire. Sigh. Just another member of the collective wanting to jet off to more exotic places this dreary time of year.

Here's one more video to exalt the joys of le Francais. ;)

My Valentine

This week brought us a mini February heat wave--40-50°! People are a little giddy and carried away by the warmth, so appropriate for this week's end. I'll call it Valentine weather, a love-induced flush.

On Monday my sweet Valentine left work early to meet me for a quick bite and a showing of Casablanca at a little theatre....I guess that was many-a lovers' plan because it was completely sold out....we'll remember next year. Instead, we grabbed cappucino and hot chocolate from LA Burdick to sip while waiting for the bus. At home we watched When Harry Met Sally. A wonderful Valentine's Day...a vignette of the simple loveliness of my life with this fellow.

*

My mom sent a sweet Valentine package: a cutely quirky bee-girl valentine, favorite sour cherry balls, and a little bundle of family heirloom silver spoons. A reminder to create small and lovely moments daily, and to create special occasions rather than wait for them. <3 This day's special occasion: chai and girl scout cookies. After all, those darn cookies are only around once a year. So coveted.

My mom and pop went dancing for Valentine's Day this year. Isn't that great? :) Did anyone else celebrate?

Seeing Hearts

Happy Valentine's Day!

Are you celebrating this year? Do you have special plans today? In past years I maybe didn't like Valentine's Day so much, but nowadays I rather like it. Not because of my relationship status (it's been a long time since I wasn't in a relationship!) but because of the commercial, cheesy romance aspect of it. But as one of our customers remarked the other day about her favorite holiday, "What's not to love about pink, pretty things and chocolate?" I quite agree!

I got a late start on handmade Valentines as I was sparked by inspiration just days before I needed to send them. That said, I made a very limited edition, so my apologies if you didn't receive one from me this year. Beginning with the idea of "seeing hearts" I decided to make a series with iconic eyewear! Each Valentine features a favorite bespectacled icon with a coordinating phrase "eyechart" on the back.

To show you the whole set and make it a little more fun, I've created a little matching game below! Take a stab at matching the eyewear to the appropriate phrase. Answers will be at the bottom! ;)

1. Buddy Holly 2. Edith Head 3. John Lennon

4. Noam Chomsky 5. Woody Allen 6. Kanye Wet

7. IM Pei 8. Andy Warhol

A B C

D E F

G H

However you may (or may not) be celebrating, have a lovely Valentine's Day! I will be holding tight to my own all-year-round Valentine and most likely enjoying some chocolate. Really, I barely need the excuse.

<3

how'd you do?

Answers: 1H, 2G, 3E, 4F, 5A, 6D, 7B, 8C

You, Me and the Weekend.

I've been getting a lot of weekends off over the last month. I'm certainly not complaining. In fact, I'm coveting them...I try not to say much, keep it quiet, just in case it is an accident and they could be taken away. shhh.... :)

I love having my weekends to spend with Nathan. Aside from dinner with my good friend Ashley on Friday night (the Red Lentil is becoming 'our spot'...we both go gaga for the beet latkes), Nathan and I had the whole weekend to ourselves. It was fantastic...one perfect long date weekend. Saturday was chilly, so we stayed in doing household things and watching Arrested Development most of the day. We only left the house that evening for dinner (Tommy Doyle's...funny thing: we tried to eat here our first night in Cambridge, but the kitchen was already closed) and to finally see Black Swan. I loved it.

Sunday had a lazy start. The good ol' Sunday-sleep-in, followed by a batch of homemade pancakes and veggie sausage.

single flapjack.

the whole delicious stack and fake sausages.

After the big breakfast we bundled up and went to the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum. Nathan and I haven't done too much exploring off the green line yet, so we enjoyed seeing more of the city. The museum is remarkable. First entering the museum, walking into the loggia and seeing the inner courtyard, is breathtaking. How one woman could dream up such a place and collect so much over her lifetime is amazing. This one goes on my list of favorite museums.

enormous! this place was her house...can you imagine drinking tea in your own private courtyard amongst ancient roman statues, or entertaining in a parlor decorated with Titian and Giotto? Or letting Sargent use a room for his studio? I couldn't take any interior photos, but it's definitely worth looking up.

Renzo Piano is building an extension. Oh Mr. Piano, prince of museum expansions.

We had a short warm-up over coffee and chocolate croissant before taking the train home. Taking the T through the city with this fine young man is one of my simple pleasures.

We capped our weekend with dinner at home and Alphaville. Godard is a stylish filmmaker, but he may be too much for me. I better brush up on my French theory and New Wave history. yikes. A little more Arrested Development before bed.

More perfect Boston weekends, please.

The Blizzard at Our Door

Happy Groundhog Day...

Take a look at this and tell me what you think, Phil.

Winter. Forever.

We had another several inches yesterday (who's counting anymore?) and freezing rain this morning. There's now a crispy sheet of ice covering all that fluffy snow. Alas, there's nowhere more for the snow to go! I tried to help out with the shoveling last night, but the snow I threw onto the piles just rolled back down to the walk. hmpf

2 conclusions:

It's not too late to get snow boots after all.

Next year we may need to schedule a warm weather vacation into our regular holiday planning.

And no, I have not gone any farther from my house than this today.

In the words of Al Roker, I hope you're staying toasty, in your neck of the woods.