Second Year. Check.

Well, I've finished my last final of my second year of law school. Now, just 60 days and a bundle of fun crafts stand between this moment and the moment when I get to marry the love of my life. I can hardly contain myself!

Wedding Progress: Vows, Dress, & Rings

We are down to 60-odd days before the wedding, and the planets are aligning. I'm in the middle of finals (2 down, 1 to go) and trying so hard to concentrate on school, but wedding forces have other plans: vows, my dress, and our rings.

We started our vows last weekend. There are some things we need to edit, rearrange, and finesse, but we have agreed to the basic things we'll promise to each other to do for the rest of our lives. Wow-that's a long time!

This week, I got a call from I Do Bridal telling me that my dress has arrived (just shy of a month early). This has taken me by surprise. I still need to sew my sash; I'm not done with school yet; my first alteration appointment isn't until early June; I have no idea where I'm going to hide my dress. I'm waiting until my last exam is over before I pick up the dress, but it is so good to know that my dress has arrived. (My clutch arrived at our house yesterday, and it is just as adorable in person as it is on Etsy.)

Today (after exam #2), I went to the jeweler to inspect our wedding bands. George's band is ready to go. Mine is currently a wax mold and will soon be solid platinum. John at Marci Jewelry handcrafted my engagement ring, so they used the engagement ring to make a mold of the wedding band. The mold looks soooooo good, and I can't wait to see the final product. This setup (diamond band for engagement and solid band for wedding) isn't typical, but I am sooo pleased with how it's turning out. And, I'll have a lifetime of being able to put my hand in my pocket, of being able to take off my diving gloves, of being able to grip my ski poles, of being able to flip through files without ever having to worry about my ring. I love that.

And now...back to the books.

A Little Plug for Etsy

I just purchased the clutch I'll carry at our wedding on Etsy, and I noticed that it just passed one year since my first Etsy purchase. It's high time to share this gem with you all!

I am a total sucker for handmade items. I love to give them as gifts, use them as inspiration for my own projects, and buy them for myself. This is why I think Etsy is just about as revolutionary as Google (sorry, Babe). It's a site of people who make and sell handmade items in "shops" hosted by Etsy. Sellers are all over the world. Really, I've fallen in love with items made in Israel, Turkey, New Zealand, England, the US, you name it. There are few things you can't find on Etsy, and I love that you can search items by geographic area if you want to see what sort of creative goods are made locally. I've purchased several items for myself and for gifts and received a few items from Etsy, and I'm always amazed at how awesome the products are...not to mention the care sellers put into packaging and writing a note of appreciation. Although all the shops are independent (and merely hosted by Etsy), I think the sellers feel a certain pride in their work and accountability to the site which keeps the quality level really high.

Next time you're in the mood or market for a handmade good, think about trying out my friend, Etsy.

Market Happiness

After my visit today, I wrote a post all about how much I love Pike Place Market, but I decided that it was too much of a rant.

The market happens to be one of my happy places in the city: lots of cool art, fresh and local food, great people-watching, even better people selling goods, amazing view of the Sound, and the most beautiful selection of flowers around (especially now, during tulip season). Basically, I feel like a real part of the city when I'm at the market, and I love that.

That's all.

The Little Seeds That Could and Other Spring Tales

You may recall that George's mum visited us last summer and worked a few miracles in our garden. While she was working around the yard, she came upon some laurel seeds and decided to plant them in a row near our front door since we'd like to have something to block off the utility area where we store our hose and would like to store our rubbish bins. She mentioned that she'd put some seeds in the ground and left a stick to mark the area. We took note but didn't really have much expectation. Fast forward through the worst winter in Seattle's memory, and look at what we have:

Well done, Pat!

The other plants near the front door seem to be doing well. I think we lost one or two over the winter. The area is still quite full, and I can see how a few of them are growing and already taking up more ground space. Of course, we are also anxiously awaiting the bloom of our rhododendron in the next month or so. It has the most beautiful pink flowers!

The feijoa cannot be given the same clean bill of health. It was risky to plant it in this zone under normal conditions. In any other winter, it would not have spent nearly a month covered and surrounded, completely, by a blanket of snow, and it might have stood a chance. Alas, winter was not kind to our precious plant, and it's anyone's guess as to whether those few green leaves are going to pull it into our beautiful sunny summer. We're rooting for you, little tree!! [Writer's note: If we're this fussy about our plants, imagine what it'll be like when we get pets, or when we...gasp...have kids.]

While we were working in the yard on Sunday (and pretending that spring had sprung), we were amused by a few things in our little corner of the world (other than George spraying himself with the sprinkler). First, I was working in the front and George was in the back when I looked over my shoulder and discovered a couple (male and female) of mallard ducks wondering onto our lawn. I knew George wouldn't believe me if I didn't call him to see for himself. They were a bit too friendly with me, but they waddled away as soon as George pulled out his G1 for a little photo shoot. There is a creek nearby, but I have never seen ducks in our neighborhood, let alone in our driveway!

Later, while I was weeding and grooming in the perennial border that Pat planted for us, I laughed out loud when I got to the spot where she planted a variety of catnip. Sure enough - the only thing left in its place is a nub of a plant covered in cat hair. Perhaps that explains why our neighbors' cats like to visit our yard so frequently. I'm guessing that one won't be coming up this year...

Finally, to prove that the joy of buying a home from an idiot never really ends, we discovered that a fern that's not doing too well had been planted above the weed liner. I can't believe the thing lasted 2+ years with so little soil and no real root growth! Hopefully our attempt to save the little guy will be successful.

George worked so hard on our lawn this weekend. I can't wait to see it thicken up. Hopefully our plants will all cooperate and help us entertain our VIP guests this summer. In the mean time, let it rain and sun and rain and sun...