Monday, May 24, 2010

Weekend in Pictures

Happy Monday! I'm trying really hard not to dread work weeks and stop living just for the weekends. But its really hard. Especially now that the weather is nice and all I want to do is play outside!















Had a picnic at Iwo Jima this weekend. This is a great picnic spot with views of the Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, and Capitol Building.





Had a little fun compiling multiple pictures into one.















I think Max Power enjoyed the picnic and relaxing at the park too.















Saturday Turner and I rode our bikes to check out H street's farmers market. This was my first time biking in the city and I have to say it wasn't too bad! Still need to get used to it though!










It was at the end of the market though so a lot of vendors were out of stuff. So then we headed over to Eastern Market.





































And to pick up a few more things for a fresh yummy lunch we went to the grocery store.



















I waited outside with the bikes and our farmers market goods. While waiting I noticed the fun textures and colors of the bike rack and pavement.















After our farmers market lunch we took another ride over the Anacostia and back around by the Nats stadium. I got in lots of city biking practice this weekend!















Saturday night my friend from North Carolina was in town so we took her out to H. Street. I usually try to take all my out of town friends to Sticky Rice because their sushi is just so darn good.















Yes we are immature and still play with our food.



















Sunday morning I had brunch at Matchbox with my bible study girls. Most people don't know that Matchbox has a seriously banging brunch and is not just a pizza place. And on Sundays they have live jazz music. I love their cinnamon buns that come in a skillet.

Another exciting happening of this weekend that I don't have pictures of is my sister had her baby on Sunday! Its been a roller-coaster week for my family with the passing of our dog and the birth of a new little boy! We are extremely excited for my sister, brother-in-law and their new addition to the family. Unfortunately I can't meet the little dude until our family vacation in July. But I'm counting down the days and beyond thrilled for my big sis!

Friday, May 21, 2010

Rest in Peace Abby















Last night my mom called to let me know my dog of 14 years had passed away. This is the first real time I've had to deal with a pet of my own dying. And I have to say it is like losing a member of the family.

We picked out Abby when I was 11-years-old. My sisters and I had agreed on a name before we even picked out a dog. So when I went with my mom to see a golden retriever puppy and we learned her name was Abby, the very name we had decided on. I convinced my mom it was fate and she was to be ours.













I have to admit she was an awfully naughty puppy. Chewing up so many things my dad threatened on multiple occasions to bring her to a farm. Luckily he never followed through on his threats and she grew into the most loyal sweet dog our family could ever ask for.













She was always there to give you dog kisses. She'd stay up late at night to keep my dad company while he read. Then when he went to bed she'd scratch at my door to sleep on the floor next to my bed all night. Even when I was away at college she would sometimes stick with this routine, sleeping in my empty room.



























Abby was always under my mom's feet while she would be cooking. I think because she liked to be close to us, but mainly to catch any scraps. I can't really blame her though, my mom was a total sucker for her puppy dog eyes and would quite often throw a few treats her way.













She always looked like she was smiling a little dog grin. Maybe she was just panting from being tired, but I like to think she was happy when the whole family would get together.















She was the most loyal dog my family could ever ask for and we will remember her for that always.

Monday, May 17, 2010

Weekend in Pictures

This weekend was an amazingly beautiful weekend in DC. Besides the short thunderstorm on Friday I barely spent any time indoors, which equates to the perfect weekend to me!















Friday night I had a girls night where we all brought ingredients to make pizza and watched a chick flick. The perfect activity when its the end of the week and storming outside.



















Saturday we spent the day at Breaux Vineyards in Virginia with a group of friends. It was seriously on of the most perfect days. We do this sort of thing almost every other weekend in the summer and I highly recommend it as the perfect group activity out of the city.















I made to share with the group strawberry crumb bars from the strawberries I purchased at the farmers market. You are allowed to bring outside food as long as you don't sit on the patio so we all brought our own picnics. (Recipe adapted from this blueberry crumb bar recipe)













It was dog day at the vineyard so we brought Max along. (Though you can bring your dogs any day) He ended up chewing through his leash when we weren't looking and we had no choice but to let him run free. Luckily he makes friends easily and by the end of the day half the vineyard knew him by name.













Relaxing at the vineyard.













I was sneaky and got a group shot from afar.













Several rows of grapes were open for us to roam up and down with. So I ran back and forth with max.














Katie with max in tow.














Max loved running up and down the vineyard rows.





































Sunday we took our bikes to Rock Creek Park. I had never been, but there are some amazingly beautiful bike/walking paths.















The paths run along with a creek which makes it extra beautiful and relaxing.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Owl Themed Baby Shower Invitation













A few weeks ago my mom, sister and I threw my oldest sister an owl-themed baby shower. Truth be told I've never thrown any sort of shower before and I had such a blast planning it. It was slightly difficult planning with me in DC, my middle sister in North Carolina, and the shower in Boston where my oldest sister lives. But I think we pulled it off well with one full day before dedicated to hectic running around!

I'm sharing the invitations I designed for the shower today and will share pictures from the event tomorrow. I first got inspiration for the owl theme from a gift my brother-in-law gave to my sister when she first got pregnant. It was a modern owl stuffed animal made out of vintage fabrics. They eventually built their nursery theme around it.

My sister has a green and white birch rug in her dining room, which is where I pulled the birch trees into the design. I mainly chose the colors to be bright, fun and playful with the main color palette being turquoise, brown, and orange. They were a lot of fun to design, especially since they were for my big sister.

Stay tuned tomorrow for pictures of the designs I created for the actual shower!















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