Upcoming Adventures

So, coming off the Hawaii high makes me long to travel again. I don't have any BIG trips coming up, but I have some small adventures planned. Also have ideas for big plans. : )

ACTUALLY HAPPENING - Photos come from the first image in a Google search for the name of the destination city

Trips to Chicago

I just booked two trips for work that both take me to Chicago. My first trip will be May 4-6 and my second will be June 19-21. I am not the biggest fan of Chicago, but I also haven't really seen the city. My distaste comes from the O'Hare airport, which always ruins any flight that comes near it. I don't have any friends who live in Chicago, but in case I have time to do anything fun I would love any tips on restaurants or must-see sites.

Lodi Roadtrip Wedding Extravaganza

My friend John is getting married on August 6th in Lodi, CA. I kind of pushed Justin out of the journey to be able to roadtrip with friends Sarah, Jessica and Holli. We don't even have the invites yet, but we already have a schedule in place (that requires a ::GULP:: 3 am start time) and reserved a room at the posh Holiday Inn Express. I'm super excited for the trip and to hang out with some of my favorite people (like this girl) at the wedding.

Malibu Wedding Trip

Oh, did I mention I've been invited to like 7 weddings that all take place before November? Yeash! One of these is between Justin's lovely aunt Sherry and her boyfriend Mark. I'm not positive I will be going to this wedding, but I'm hoping to. Wedding on the beach in Malibu when it is gross and grey in Seattle October? Yes, please!

Texas Christmas Trip

Justin's wonderful grandparents live in Texas. It is a tradition in the family to reunite at Christmas. Justin and I went down to Texas for Christmas in 2009, but didn't go this past Christmas. It is usually pretty pricey to fly down, but will be worth it for family and a possible trip across the border to Mexico for cheap margaritas!

WISHFUL THINKING

Alaskan Cruise

I really fell in love with cruising after our honeymoon cruise in 2009. It is a great way to see many different places and considering it includes food, lodging and entertainment is pretty cheap. I haven't been to Alaska and we can leave right from Seattle on a cruise. The summer is the only time I would want to go on a cruise, so if we don't go this summer we will have to wait until next summer. I think I will look for last minute travel deals for August and September.

Ireland/ Scotland/ England

These destinations have been at the top of my list for places to visit FOREVER. I want to visit them so very, very much! I would love to get a vacation rental in Ireland or Scotland and journey to the other countries from there. Or backpack and go on the cheap. I've talked to my friend Heather about a possible couple trip, but this is just talk. ; )

Abu Dhabi 

Haha okay this one may be a long shot. My friend Jill lives in Abu Dhabi and I believe still plans to stay there another year. Whyyyyy? I have toyed with the idea of visiting her. Mostly because I like her, but also because when else would I ever, ever go there?

I ran into Jill's friend Shauna (twice in a week actually) and she actually did visit Jill quite recently. She echoed my thoughts - when else would you go there?? I'd like to combo it with a trip to Egypt or India. Okay, Egypt is out for obvious reasons. Traveling by myself to these places is maybe not the best idea.

Volunteer Travel

I like helping others and I also like travel, so combo those two and wam bam awesome. Habitat for Humanity has trips to New Zealand (yes, please!) and other cool places. My friend did a H for H tript to Bali and loved it. See Bali-themed cupcakes to celebrate her departure. There are also super cheap trips through this organization. Maybe South Africa, India or Thailand?

What do you think? Where are you going in the next year?

The Latest in Cake

So, I've been asked to make the wedding cake for my friend Katie's wedding in June. Since my skills are still very limited I'm happy that she wants me to make only the portion her and Peter will cut into and not enough for 250 guests. : )

Katie sent me a bunch of photos from The Knot of cakes she likes. I asked her to narrow them down to 3 and she narrowed them down to...8. Haha. These are just ideas and I'm still not sure what route I want to take.

KATIE'S FAVES:

She thinks the cutest is the one with orange flowers in the bottom left corner.

 

 

 

LIZ'S FAVES (Not that what I think matters when it is her wedding!)
I like both the first one and the bottom one with buttercream the most.

 

So many ideas are swirling in my head. The cake will be either 1 or 2 tiers. I am leaning toward 2 small tiers. I am also one of Katie's bridesmaids, so that is the main reason I don't want to take on more than I can handle. I'm not sure if I want to do a finished-looking all frosting cake or attempt fondant. 

When I saw Katie's dress it gave me an idea for the cake that would mimic her dress. The cake would be an all shimmery champagne color on the bottom layer and the top would be ivory and mimic lace. Just an idea.

What do you think? Which cakes do you like? Do you have any cool ideas or amazing cakes you've seen that would be good inspiration?

In other cake/cupcake news:

• Using one of my many Michael's gift cards, I signed up for a beginning cake decorating class. It was kind of a process because I had to wait for them to print out all of the documents. I just kind of assumed the class was on Tuesday or Wednesday. When I got home I looked at the flier and the class is on Fridays from 6:30 to 8:30 pm. I am not going to take 4 classes on a Friday night! Boo!
• My friend Sarah had a gathering for high school friends a couple weeks ago. She recently made her own kitchen island (crazy awesome) and joked about it being an Island Party. I took this as a reason to make island-themed cupcakes. I was also filled with longing for Hawaii at the time. Check out the results on Sarah's blog. Here is a photo Justin took:

 

MOTHERF***ING BRAIN CANCER!!

Did my title get your attention? Good!

Oh, man. Monday started out like any other Monday at home working in my pajamas. I saw a call from my friend Sarah B and considered not picking it up b/c I assumed it was a butt dial. Sarah and I aren't big phone people - especially in the morning on a work day. My curiosity got the better of me.

At first I couldn't tell if Sarah was really amused by something or near tears. Turns out it was the latter. She had just gotten off the phone with Sara M, who said her husband Kyle (and our good friend) was currently at Swedish in Seattle. Half of his body had gone numb and he was taken to the hospital where they found he had a large brain tumor. I started crying as soon as she said brain tumor. We both cried and blubbered. Then I called Sara M and we cried.

Fucking Brain Tumors. Should I be cursing on my blog? Well, I don't care, I'm going to. When Sarah said brain tumor it brought a rush of horrible memories back to me. My Dad passed away from brain cancer when I was in high school. He had an aggressive form that was inoperable and he only lived about 6 months. It was the most devastating time of my life to watch my Dad go from a brilliant, funny guy to unresponsive.

Sara M didn't know what kind of tumor it was yet, but said she would let me know when they got the results from the MRI. I know myself and many other people who knew about Kyle probably couldn't focus most of the day on Monday. Sara M finally called me in the late afternoon and GOOD NEWS! Kyle's tumor is benign and can be removed easily - well easy for brain surgery. PHEW!

Although Kyle's brain mass was ultimately not cancerous, I kind of feel like brain cancer is all around me lately. Last week I read that celebrated local newswoman Kathi Goertzen has brain cancer and then I received an e-mail from the Western Journalism Department informing me that my college PR teacher had passed away from brain cancer. WTF?

I was only in real distress over Kyle during the five hours when I didn't know what the diagnosis was, but overall the last week has made me take a look at life, my friends, my family and how brief everything can be.  If you are reading this and I consider you a friend or family member, know that I love you. I may not express that enough or even know how to express it sometimes, but I do. Very much!

P.S. Kyle had surgery on Wednesday and is doing well so far!  

Adventures in Antiquing

For the most part I like things that are new. New furniture. New jewelry. New cars. New buildings. When I was younger I used to really enjoy making old things new and buying the bulk of my clothes at Value Village. At some point I either really fell deeply in love with Target or got tired of rummaging through things to find treasures.

So, when my dear friend Sara suggested I meet up with her and my other dear friend Sarah (try not to be confused by the name similarity) to do some "antiquing" I don't think I was suuuper excited. But I was super excited to see them and I am usually up for doing pretty much anything, so I gladly agreed. Sara suggested we check out antique malls in Puyallup.

The Sara(h)s both own their homes and are much better than me at putting old things to good, modern uses, and heart antiques. So, it is amusing that I was the one who alerted them to a HUGE ANTIQUE SHOW happening that very same weekend at the Puyallup Fairgrounds. It features more than (gulp) 425 booths!

 With the antique show as our new destination, we met at the fairgrounds in the morning this past Saturday. There were as many antique people as there were objects. On average I guess antiquing isn't so much a young person's hobby. I was very overwhelmed by the large number of booths and people. Somewhat thankfully 95% of the booths didn't accept credit cards and that's all I had to pay with.

I spotted a few pretty crazy awesome antiques and I asked Sara to take photos of them.

I really feel like these two statues should
be sold as a set.

Yep, that's Ronald Reagan as a teapot.
His nose is the spout.

Oh, man. This is pretty horrifying.
Who wouldn't want a spinal cord lamp
in their living room??

I don't have a photo of him, but there was also a Abraham Lincoln impersonator at the show. They had a special Presidential Camp set up for him. Haha. We were at the show for a few hours and my feet were killing me at the end. I didn't find anything I couldn't live without, but Sara got a planter and some cylindrical...candle holder? Sarah got a milk crate.

Even though I didn't buy anything it was definitely an experience and a fun way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

Introducing That Girl: A Guest Blog

Forward by Liz McNeil

Hi everyone. So, in case you didn't know my blog is H-O-T right now. So hot that my good friend Ms. Heather R. Sambrook requested she be allowed to test out the blogging world by guest blogging on Life as Liz. Since Heather is as, if not more, witty and fabulous than myself I responded with an excited, "Please do! I would adore it!"

Give Heather a warm welcome and please leave a comment to support her blogging efforts!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Blogging is the new black. It seems like all I hear about whether it be at work, from friends or from “the media” in talking about social media.

In my role as a marketer in a mid-size company, I see so much possibility in the way businesses can utilize this (usually) free media, engaging their customers and building buzz.

In my real life, as a 24-year-old girl from the ‘burbs, I love blogs. I like funny blogs. I like cute blogs. Long blogs and short blogs, its like looking through the window into someone’s mind and seeing what is most important to them. The way people manipulate their blogs and address what is happening in their life (here, now and for reals). Yes!

So, as an avid consumer of other peoples’ wittiness, cleverness, humor, and ideas, I have wanted to write a blog. Just dabble. Maybe a witty post here and there to showcase my own awesomeness.

BUT, here’s the problem. I have a job. And a social life. And a boyfriend. All three major time-suckers. Only probably because I also like to sleep everyday. (Some people, I know!). But now, Liz has agreed to let me guest blog!!!

HOORAY! I can try it out without the commitment. I wish all of life were like this! Imagine, “Oh, I’d like to take these jeans home, wear them a couple times, then decide if I’d like to buy them”, or “Yeah, this place looks nice, but I should probably live here awhile before making a decision”, or even, “Yes, I will order this plate of food, but if the person I am eating with’s looks better, I’m switching *Insert cute smile with arms up adorably image here*.

SO, awesome people who follow Liz’s blog (and I know you’re wonderful because she has very discerning taste and is incredibly witty and awesome herself), please let me know what you would most like to hear about. Here are some of my first ideas:

• Awesome words that I have learned from Liz and how they make my life better.
• Coupons, and how they are taking over my life (Groupons, especially Groupons, included.
• The Pros/Cons of Bridesmaids
• Grab-bag (something AH-MAZING to be determined at a later time, like when I’m not at work…)

So, leave a comment and expect something wonderful in a week or so! Christmas is coming early this year kids! Or, well, really maybe a little late, but I’m glass half full, so it’s coming early.

Sincerely,
Your Guest Blogger,
Heather

It's Not All About Me, Volume II

I was in the middle of writing another blog for unveiling, but was inspired to slip in a different post first.

Last week I was contacted by a guy at our old building on Capitol Hill who informed me a package with my name on it was there. So considerate to tell me! Thanks, Steve. Anyway, I thought, "What fool is sending packages to our place from 2 years ago??" : ) I found out who the package was from beforehand, but just picked it up today.

Look what I got:

Okay, so far this blog does sound like it's all about me. It's not. The package came from my friend Jill who is currently living in the armpit of the world, Abu Dhabi. Don't be embarrassed if you don't know where that is, I didn't. I've included a map for your reference. Jill is on her second year of teaching in the deserty region and even though I do not envy her general location I am continually impressed by her many adventures.

Jill is the kind of friend you talk to other friends about. Maybe because she lives in the armpit of the world, which is always interesting. Or maybe because she is wonderfully unique, incredibly creative, always generous or super cute. Pretty much her only downfall is she keeps befriending Canadians in Abu Dhabi. Ewww Canadians.

Jill blogs about all the cool stuff she makes and her weekend vacays to India, Egypt and Jordan. Most importantly, she blogs about NOVELTY SNACKS. I love reading them and wish I could go on so many faraway excursions.

When I was doing some of my own traveling, she sent care packages that would be waiting at my hotels before I got there. She just thinks to do stuff like that. Here I am enjoying a mud mask sent to me. I've known Jill for a relatively short time compared to some of my other friendships, but I know she's a keeper. Not that I routinely throw away friends. Haha.

Anyway, thanks for the stuff, Jill! Sorry I publicly made fun of Abu Dhabi...and Canadians, but hopefully this makes you smile. Or smirk bemusedly? Anything?

Also, I have so many cupcake cups now! I really need to get around to making ALOT of them. I want to use the cupcake stands like whoa. I've looked on Etsy and think there is a serious market for individual cupcake stands out there. I think I might start with these as a template since they come in pieces and make some of my own.

It's not all about me

I often feel like a blog can be very me, me, me, look at me, MEEEEEEEE. So, why not write about other people who do neat things? Sound good? Okay, cool.

I'm assuming my friend Katie has been interested in cooking since she was a wee child, but I didn't realize how in love with cooking she was until we were out of college. It was around then that she started doing weekly dinners with her friend Sally (her real name). They've been doing weekly dinners for about 3 years I think. Note: I also realized how much she loves cooking when she leased an apartment that is 2/3 kitchen and 1/3 living space.

Sally & Katie trade off cooking each week and make a unique recipe. Well, unique and new to them. When I lived in Seattle I received an open-ended invitation to these dinners whether they were at Sally's or Katie's.  I made dinners for them on occasion, but the burden of feeling like a mooch still weighs heavy on me. Note: I should preface this by mentioning that Katie is one of the most generous and inclusive people I've ever met - if you are new to a city find a Katie. I don't know too many people who would be cool with someone coming over week after week and eating their food.


Katie in the middle with Sally on the left and
Sally's roommate Emily on right



It took me a while to realize that they liked having more people around to eat and critique their food. What is the point of cooking without someone to enjoy it? Why would I make cupcakes without someone to eat them? When I offered to prepare dinner Katie and Sally usually just looked offended like I was taking away their week to cook.



Katie & Sally are now on their (2nd, 3rd?) volume of books documenting their recipes. Every meal they've made was captured by camera and then they compiled a recipe book combining the recipes —I'm assuming only the good ones and not chipotle my-mouth-is-on-fire chicken, right?

Anyway, I bring all this up because Katie's love of making food for others has actually turned into a small side business. When I got engaged Katie and Sally asked if they could cater the wedding. I said of course if it would work with the venue. But then I realized I also wanted Katie to be my bridesmaid. I know the idea of a catering bridesmaid makes some people cringe, so we will just say that somehow that ended up being successful.



Katie cutting lasagna

 

I had to put this because Katie's mom is adorable



Yummy food! Contact Katie for all your small catering needs!

TANGENT: I like to take credit for the fabulous life changes my wedding created - even if I'm imagining it. Like Erica who was once a lovely and talented photog. I saw her potential fabulousness and tapped her for the wedding. Now she is shooting weddings and engagement photos left and right! Check it

Now, more than a year after my wedding, Katie gets consistent small catering jobs. Her best clients are the people she works with. One woman has Katie cater for all her family events and has her prepare weekly dinners and lunches. Katie and Sally are also currently slated to cater an office Christmas party this season. It is small now, but I think she will continue to grow and maybe one day she can quit her day job! GOOOOOO Katie!

Whether it is photography, food, craftiness, a way with words, etc. I have such wonderfully talented friends. : )