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Archive for the ‘Photobooth Friday’ Category

Photo Booth Friday – No. 54

Posted in New Hampshire, Photobooth Friday, Vintage + Thrift, tagged , , , , , , on September 28, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

♥

our week in snapshots:

| highlights |

I read an article recently about stress. Obviously we all have stressors in our life, and they’re all relative, but in this article it said that the retired community is the least stressed of all Americans, and women in their 20s are the most. Huh. I have to say that I kind of felt a little better reading that because there’s a lot of figuring-out to do at my age, and at least I’m not the only one dealing with it. That certainly isn’t exclusive to women, we must just handle our stress differently than men, but it none-the-less made me feel a little less alone. Interesting, no?

I was absolutely captivated the other day at work when I accidentally glanced out a window and my eye caught on a flaming maple. Maples are the most beautiful trees in the fall. On the drive to work with Ryan yesterday our car climbed and dipped along the loopy back-woods road consistently being showered with fluttering yellow leaves. It was surreal. We have taken a liking to that scary road I described a few months ago. You know, the road with the one lane tunnel under the curved stone bridge? That part is still slightly terrifying. My heartbeat increases whenever we pull up to it, stop, roll down our window and honk our horn to warn anyone else that may be about to enter the tunnel from the other side. But the rest of the road makes up for it with its lakeside meandering and all of those gorgeous trees.

We caught the most fantastic estate sale on Saturday! I was so in love with the house, the yard, the pieces being divvied out, but on the other hand, thinking of the woman who spent so many of her years there and now has to be moved into a nursing home was heartbreaking. So many little memories handed out to strangers. We excitedly accept them and fill our house that will one day also be distributed in such a way. Everything is cyclical. We must each do our best to live a life that we truly enjoy. It’s so, so important.

Happy Friday,

xx.

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Photo Booth Friday – No. 53

Posted in Photobooth Friday, tagged , , , , , , , , on September 21, 2012 | 4 Comments »

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our week in snapshots:

| highlights |

Yesterday was my first day working as the social media manager for the little natural foods store where Ryan works! I plugged away at my new desk bulking up their online presence {obviously something I love!}. It’s so wonderful to work for an organization that I really believe in – the owner of the store believes that her shop should be a resource where farmers and families can come together to work for the greater health of their community in so many ways – from eating healthy, to supporting financially, to lowering our negative impact on the Earth {pollution, etc.}. I also didn’t hate that Ryan + I get to commute to and from work together, and that we can keep each other company during lunch. This is how things should be!

The weather man gave us warnings for frost the other night which means that our garden, for the most part, is on its last leg. It did well this summer, especially for our first try, but I’m a little sad to think that it’s over for the year. Of course, our kale will keep on giving, but the rest of the goodies will likely start their work as compost for next summer’s garden.

My Mom had a significant birthday on Wednesday! Well, significant, I guess, if you’re a Beatles fan. We all went out for dinner, and my dad re-wrote the lyrics to this song so they were all about my parents’ life together, then he, Ryan + I sang it in the middle of the restaurant. Surprisingly, I wasn’t as embarrassed as I probably should have been, ha! It was a cute moment and my Mom smiled through the whole song. Dad had even planned ahead and handed her a bottle of wine at the moment that we sang that line – cute.

Hoping you’re all well on this sunny Friday!

xx.

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Photo Booth Friday – No. 52

Posted in New Hampshire, Our personal history, Photobooth Friday, tagged , , , , , , on September 14, 2012 | 4 Comments »

♥

our week in snapshots:

| highlights |

Right now I can feel the sun on my face even though it isn’t. It’s that slight sting that lingers after you’ve spent some time outside and it’s definitely a highlight from this week. I have managed to pass the whole summer without a sunburn {a good thing, yes}, but yesterday brought a bit of pink to my skin and I love that. I loved this week.

On Sunday my parents, Ryan, and I walked down to the place where we’ll most likely have our wedding. I couldn’t think of anywhere more meaningful to make such a special commitment than on the shores of the lake where I grew up so we’re in the process of reserving this perfect location. Our vision for the big day is solidifying and coming together already! It’s wild how quickly these things happen once you’ve decided it’s what you want.

My bff and I made a trip back to Portland to do some major thrifting and it was such a wonderful time! We covered two States and hundreds of topics, then finished the day with a trip to her new house! She’ll be moving a little bit closer to us by October and I’m already in love with her house! I think I’ll be making as many visits to her place as she’ll let me make, it’s that lovely.

Being in Portland was a little sad. Although we were only there for a couple of hours, I saw so many familiar faces and realized that although New Hampshire is my home, Portland sort of is, too. When we drove through my old neighborhood, past my old job, I was so tempted to turn left into our old driveway, but then remembered that we didn’t live there anymore. I loved that neighborhood and do miss it a little. That was a great time in our life, the Portland years, I’m so happy we did everything that we did while we were there.

And yesterday I had a meeting at a coffee shop with Ryan’s boss! It looks like I’ll be doing some work with them that I couldn’t be any more excited about! I love local business, and this one is even more special than most. To be a part of it would be an honor and I’ll be doing what I really love – blogging! So, so happy to get started!

I think this was the best week of the whole summer.

xx.

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Photo Booth Friday – No. 51

Posted in Our personal history, Photobooth Friday, Vintage + Thrift, tagged , , , , , , on September 7, 2012 | 6 Comments »

♥

our week in snapshots:

Well, that one flew by! Honestly, where did it even go? I was just writing my weekly summation for last week, wasn’t I? Honestly, I can hardly recall anything of note that happened this week besides that on Wednesday I was able to go thrifting with the other Julia and brainstormed with her some ideas for upcoming blog posts. It’s so nice to have people around me that are supportive and invested in my projects. Thanks to Julia and Ryan for being the best friends a girl could ask for. I’m so lucky to have you both.

Ryan discovered some secret paths in the woods just a short distance from our house that are amazing. Pine needles carpet the ground and the trees are so thick that it seems to be dusk when you’re beneath them although it could be noon without. My only dislike for this new area of exploration is that to get there, you must go directly through a neighbor’s driveway. Ryan asked permission of the person, and he said he didn’t mind, but still it’s a bit unnerving to feel like I’m trespassing in order to get to the woods. What would Thoreau say of that? Every day I wish more and more to have our own little piece of land to wander and roam and let grow as it will and just watch it change with the seasons as though I’m not even there.

By the way, if you ever think it’s a good idea to move into a basement apartment, think again. In our haste to get back to New Hampshire, we signed a lease here and I’m still having a really hard time with it. They say home is where the heart is and home is where you hang your hat, but for us, home is where the most random things {cowboy boots, laptop bags, pillows} start growing mold and we have to turn our guest bed mattress on its side once a week to let the damp floor beneath it dry. Lesson learned.

This is certainly not the venue to complain, but the truth is that it’s hard to live without sufficient sunlight and to feel like you’re entering a cave every time you step through your own front door. But in the toughest times, it’s important to remember that things will change for the better. I want to harness this energy that could be lost to listlessness, and use it to propel myself forward into our next stage of life. In May we’ll be able to move and we’re hoping to make it our last. By then, you may be seeing us purchase our first house {if everything goes as we hope}. As for now – the sun is shining outside, our weekend approaches, and fall comes soon enough. I hope you’re all doing quite well.

See you tomorrow!

xx.

P.s. I should add, to end this on a positive note, that I couldn’t be more thankful for the cricket songs that fill the air 24 hours a day in this location. I leave the windows open as much as possible so I can hear these little darlings. They have such a comforting sound and I am so happy they’re here.

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Photo Booth Friday – No. 50

Posted in New Hampshire, Photobooth Friday, tagged , , , , , , , on August 31, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

♥

our week in snapshots:

| highlights |

The nights this week have been cold. I mean, so cold that we’ve had to close the windows, the heat has kicked on, and the cats follow us around the house trying to snuggle at every moment. Autumn is trying its best to sneak its way in, but summer puts up a good fight, still, during the day. Labor Day is this coming Monday which around here means the tourists go home. When the tourists go home, that’s the end of the summer. At least I still have my crickets to keep me company!

On Monday we got to see Sunnyfield Bakery and help out with baking some bread! Ryan helps a little with part of the delivery route, and so they invited us to come inside the bakery and see how things are done. Lost somewhere among the trees (it took us quite awhile and several circles and phone calls to finally find the place!) an old New England house looks out on the bakery’s namesake fields with sprawling mountains in the distance. A small crew (just three people!) spread out the dough, section it off, weighed it on an old balance scale, pat it into the right shape and pop it in their big brick oven to bake. While Ryan + I helped, we all chatted about book binding, blacksmithing, and how working in this setting definitely beats an office job. On the way home from the bakery we stopped off at one of my all time favourite farms to pick up some fresh ears of corn for dinner.

At home, we’ve been making some comfort foods for the cool nights. Ryan, of course, springs for pizza, but I opt for quiche on my nights to cook. This week I made my best crust yet and I can’t wait to try it out on pies in the upcoming months. I think my Grandma might be proud.

Have a great weekend,

xx.

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Photo Booth Friday – No. 49

Posted in Our personal history, Photobooth Friday, tagged , , , , , , , on August 24, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

♥

our week in snapshots:

| highlights |

It’s the end of August and already we can feel the chill of autumn at night. At first I thought it didn’t seem fair. I moved back to the Lakes Region to be closer to the water and woods, yet the summer has passed so quickly I feel as though I’ve hardly had a chance to enjoy them. But the romance of harvest time is sneaking its way back into my mind with every chilly night, so with one more good swimming, reading, lounging on the beach day I think I’ll be ready for the fall. We discovered the cutest little coffee shop on our day off where I can visualize us sitting, sipping coffee, and looking out on the tiny town as the Earth prepares itself for hibernation. By the way, let it be said that my friend Claire always knows the best spots way before I discover them. She told me about this cafe years ago, but somehow I never tried it until the bakery that Ryan delivers bread for asked us to meet them there this week!

We also celebrated our 5 year anniversary, I’d say that’s quite a feat! I know that for many five years may seem just a tiny fraction of time, but we’ve come a long way from where we started and are proud of what we have learned about ourselves and each other along the way. That is something to celebrate. He really is quite the guy! Last weekend we found a pallet on the side of the road, and in only a little more than an hour, he whipped it into a new table! We thought at first it might be a work bench or place for plants to sit in the window, but we’ve been eating all of our meals off of it since he hauled it inside, reworked.

I hope your weekend is wonderful.

xx.

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Photo Booth Friday – No. 48

Posted in Photobooth Friday, Travel, tagged , , , , , , , on August 17, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

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our last two weeks in snapshots:

| highlights |

The most wonderful thing about these last two weeks, by far, was the Goodwill Summer Conference in Miami Beach. It was unbelievable. For three days I was surrounded by people who, like myself, are in love with thrifting, addicted to making, and always looking for new ways to share ideas. We spent the conference swapping DIYs and sharing funny thrift store stories in the swelteringly hot Florida weather. Now I know why everyone cringed when I told them I was going to Miami in August! I mean, it gets hot in New England in the summer, but not that hot – it was so humid that walking outside felt like swimming.

Still, staying in the Art Deco district forced me to venture outside. Just from my window in the Loews hotel I could see hundreds of beautiful vintage signs glittering in fancy scripts. The architecture of the buildings was a dream, and these towering structures came in every color imaginable! It was absolutely fantastic. The clothing style, however, was a different story. I guess Ryan + I stuck out like two sore thumbs because people kept asking us where we were from! Even amongst the other tourists we truly did look out of place.

My presentation went swimmingly {Of course, the sangria they served us didn’t hurt my comfort level up there}! I was nervous every second right up until I was introduced and stepped out onto the stage. But being up on there with Evette and Jenna – two of the other Goodwill bloggers – felt natural and fun. They were both sweet and supportive and so interesting! I’d love it if the whole group of us, behind the scenes people, too, could see each other much more often.

Of course, the trip home wasn’t quite as wonderful. There are no direct flights from Miami to New Hampshire {go figure!}, so we had a scheduled stop in Atlanta. However, Georgia was seeing incredible storms, so our flight to was delayed…causing us to miss our flight from. So, we spent the night in the world’s busiest airport, caught a very early morning flight up to Michigan {I know, right?}, waited for our final flight back to the Shire which was, again, delayed due to weather. Since our return we’ve been getting back to normal life and trying to catch up on everything that we missed. We came home to find our garden bursting with fresh veggies ready to be picked, and snacked ourselves silly while we plunked little snap peas, green beans, and cucumbers into our colander. We swapped palms for pines, took Atlas to the vet – much to his dismay – and tried our very best to battle the moisture in this basement apartment of ours. But, enough about me…

How was your week?

xx.

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Photo Booth Friday – No. 47

Posted in Photobooth Friday, tagged , , , , , , , , on August 3, 2012 | 2 Comments »

♥

our week in snapshots:

| highlights |

This week Ryan + I discovered a secret farmer’s market in the middle of the woods! There’s a long and winding road that connects our town to the one where Ryan works. We rarely ever take it because it’s narrow and there’s a one lane section that goes under a bridge. Before you go through, because you can’t be sure if anyone else is coming from the other direction due to the fact that the road beneath the bridge is not only unlit, but also curved, you have to stop and honk your horn to let anyone else know that you’re about to go under. Then you’re just crossing your fingers that the person coming in the other direction {if there is anyone} will honk his horn, too, before entering the tunnel. So, we usually avoid this New Hampshire back road. But, coming back from the eye doctor on Monday we decided to give it a try and saw a hand painted sign advertising for a farmer’s market at that exact time. We followed the signs further into the woods and discovered something reminiscent of our happy little markets in Portland, but on a much smaller scale. We came home with some extra fresh veggies and some locally made wine and called it a night with our new favourite show: Colonial House.

I’ve made my final preparations for the Goodwill Summer Conference for which I leave on Tuesday! I’m nervous to speak up on a stage, but was so happy to find out this week at Michelle Smith, the Communications Specialist of Goodwill Industries of Northern New England will be up on stage with me! When I worked for GINNE, Michelle and I bumped into one another occasionally, and found that we have quite a bit in common. Since we met, she’s been so supportive of my dream, and we still connect via the internet even though we’re no longer living in the same State. Yep, that’s the same Michelle who runs the Etsy shop MaineBelle and sponsored my giveaway last week! I’m really excited to see her at the conference and to have one familiar face up there with me on stage!

Rob + Pam’s house is really coming along, and they plan to move in next weekend! That means that both my best friend and Ryan’s best friend will be living within a half-hour of us. Obviously, we squeezed in a little time to help them painting. I can’t wait for them to feel settled and at home in the Lakes Region with us! But the best part of my week? Just a few minutes ago when a car drove by blasting this. Fantastic.

Happy Friday!

xx.

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Photo Booth Friday – No. 46

Posted in Our personal history, Photobooth Friday, tagged , , , , , , , on July 27, 2012 | 12 Comments »

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our week in snapshots:

| highlights |

Really, it’s been two weeks since I’ve sat down to look back through my snapshots. I’ve been working hard to prepare for the Goodwill Summer Conference at which I will be presenting several DIY projects to an audience {public speaking skills, I hope you haven’t disappeared!}, and although I know it can’t be true, I feel like I have less time in every day than ever before. We have managed to take a little time away from the working world and escape to Camp for some quiet time by the lake, and that has been a tremendous help with keeping me sane. Also, I’ve somehow managed to get up with Ryan before 8 am three times this week {until now, this hour of day has been completely unheard of in my world}. Of course, my body still doesn’t function properly until about 10, but at least I’ve gotten some good reading in – more on my current read later!

Our friends Rob + Pam {Ryan’s best friend since childhood and his wife} bought their first house only a couple of towns away. They invited us over for the first night in their new home, and we all slept on the floor on blankets, sleeping bags, and mattresses that had been hauled up by family members. Before settling in for the night, though, we all stood out in their yard and watched the stars above the warm glow of their newly purchased home {the for sale SOLD sign still stuck into the grass}. That moment felt significant to all of us, I think.

But, really, the biggest highlight of these two weeks was when my silly, handsome, insightful, wonderful, goofball of a partner got down on one knee and asked me to be his for the rest of our years. {Of course I said yes.} Since then, the little things that had been bothering me about work, money, and to-do lists, have melted away, less important.

I hope your days are as happy as mine.

xx.

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Photo booth Friday – No. 45

Posted in Photobooth Friday, Vintage + Thrift, tagged , , , , , , , on July 13, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

♥

our week in snapshots:

| highlights |

I cannot believe that a week has passed already! The summer is flying by with barely a moment to spare! I’ve been working a lot at my day job, on my Etsy shop, and writing for Goodwill. It seems there’s barely a moment between each task on my to-do list, but at least I make a little progress every day. On Saturday, I believe, {all of these days tend to blur themselves} I certainly had my work cut out for me restocking the things I’ve sold in the past month and finishing up a custom order, when suddenly my primary sewing machine seized up! That’s alright, I told myself, it’s for this reason mainly that I wanted to have a second one. I knew the time would come when this 50+ year old heirloom needed a break. So I switched over to the other one, and wouldn’t you know that that one started giving me problems, too? I don’t usually believe in signs, but decided that it might be a good time to call it quits for the night and just watch Funny Face instead.

Ryan came to the rescue for me, though, on Wednesday and brought ol’ Bess down to the workshop to have some repairs and now, I’m told, she’s back to her good old self. I’ll be testing her out as soon as I finish this post! I’m so lucky to have the support of Big, Strong Uncle Ryan {as our niece LG calls him}. Speaking of LG, yesterday I took a break from work while the machine was still in the shop, and spent the afternoon at Camp with my family. I think it’s safe to say that the next generation of waterbabies is starting to earn her fins because she and I spent the entire afternoon floating around and splashing in our little cove. All of the neighbours came over, and Ryan, too, after work. It was the perfect way to end the week.

Happy weekend!

xx.

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