Matt and I spent most of this past weekend up in Seattle for my friend's wedding. In case you were wondering, I had a lot of fun. In addition to getting to celebrate one of my best friends marrying a really great guy, I got to see friends from college I haven't seen for a while.
I loved pretty much everything about my friend's wedding. She was an absolutely beautiful bride. The ceremony was a combination of a traditional Lutheran service and personal touches (mostly through music); the pastor's homily included a few personal touches as well.
The reception was at a nearby Sons of Norway hall, which is pretty much awesome in itself. In addition to that, they had Kransekake, a traditional Norwegian cake, plus strawberry shortcake. Before dessert, though, we were given the chance to eat our fill of delicious appetizers, pizza, a pasta dish and chicken.
All three toasts were great. I especially liked how her sisters tag-teamed it, and how a friend from college used pictures to make her toast even better.
Another fun part of the reception was a photo booth they had set up, complete with ridiculous costumes for guests to wear. What a fun idea! One of my favorite accouterments was the bicycle helmet we spray-painted gold back in college when we dressed up for the midnight premiere of Star Wars Episode III.
And then there was the dancing. This wedding would not have been complete without a fair share of dancing, and it did not disappoint. In addition to the standard couples dances and the mixture of crowd favorites and slow songs, there were a few songs that required specific dance moves; I love how everyone joined in. On those specific songs, the entire dance floor was mirroring each other: scooping up salmon, jumping in the line, etc.
This month has been busy. Really, really fun, but busy.
Weekend 1
It started out with the regular busyness: working 40-50 hours/week, rowing, church, small group...add a Sunday School teacher meeting, Matt coaching youth baseball, and me anticipating the busy month ahead and trying to work ahead a little bit...and it was busy.
Weekend 2
I knew I was taking a half day on Friday the week leading up to this weekend, so I tried to work ahead a little bit this week as well. Of course, I still managed to work about 50 hours in addition to attending our weekly small group, having dinner with a family new to the church (a fun couple with two really great kids) and trying to make it to crew practice.
So why was I taking off early on Friday? Well, one of my best friends is getting married in August, and her Bachelorette Party was this weekend...PLUS another best friend was flying up from California to attend! I got off early on Friday so I could pick up her up from the airport, get a few last minute things for the party, eat dinner with another local friend, and make cookies for everyone (also for the party). Of course, the actual party was a LOT of fun, too. I love the bride (she was a roommate for 3 years in college), and I like her friends - those from college that I'm friends with, and those from high school that I've only seen a few times. We had a lot of fun hanging out in Seattle - from dinner and a show to karaoke. Plus we all stayed in a hotel together and got brunch the next morning. All in all, a really fun weekend!
Everyone at the Bachelorette Party
Weekend 3
I knew I was taking half days on the Thursday and Friday during the week leading up to weekend 3 (more about that later), but this also happened to be the week Common Ground was in town! Last year was the first time in 15 years I didn't get to see their show, so I had to make it to one of their Washington concerts. Plus my brother is one of the sponsors - I wanted to see him, too! The night we ended up going, they were staying in host homes anyway, so Matt and I took my bro home with us so we could actually get to see him for a while. We went for pie at Shari's on the way home, and then hung out for a little while before hitting the hay. The next day Common Ground was coming back south through Shelton, so we decided we'd rather drop him off their instead of driving all the way back up to Auburn, so I took a few hours off to grab lunch at Daddy O's before heading out to Shelton. I had SO much fun seeing my brother, and I'm SO glad it worked out for him to stay with us :D
NOTE: I totally spaced and forgot to take a picture with my brother while he was here...so the above is a video he created (along with a few other talented individuals) for the show!
Of course, all of the above meant I still had a lot of work to do before taking off early on Thursday afternoon. Matt's parents happened to win a week a timeshare of their choosing at an auction through their church, so they picked one near Long Beach as it was about equal distance from us and from Matt's sister in Portland. So on Thursday, we packed up all our stuff and headed out to Long Beach to hang out with the in-laws. Of course, I still put in a few hours of work in on Friday (yay for Internet access everywhere and a boss that's really understanding!), but it was still a really fun and relaxing trip!
Matt and our nephew at the beach
On Friday we wandered around Long Beach, played cards and enjoyed [some of] the Ole & Lena jokes Matt's dad was reading from his new Ole & Lena joke books. On Saturday, Matt's sister came up with our adorable 3-year-old nephew! Over the next couple of days, we went to the beach, went swimming in the hotel's pool, and just hung around enjoying each other's company. One activity I really liked was seeing the pictures Matt's parents took on their recent cruise to Alaska. It was fun seeing what it was like - from life on the ship to their excursions of whale watching, flying over glaciers, dog sledding, zip lining and kayaking - and really inspired us to want to go on a cruise (we'll see if that happens within the next few, or 20, years).
Our nephew playing with bubbles
Weekend 4
The week leading up to weekend 4 was actually a bit quieter. I actually had 5 full days to work, and was even able to get a little housework done, too! Yay for clean dishes and clean clothes that are actually put away :) Of course, I've had a lot of work to get done this past week, too...and I also got to go to dinner with a friend from college that was in town visiting her sister.
One perk from this weekend is I actually got to sleep in on Saturday. I usually get up at 6am to row (yes, I'm a crazy crew kid that rows instead of sleeping in every weekend), but practice was cancelled this morning since half the team was already at the regional regatta down in Vancouver (more on this in a minute).
Anyway...after sleeping in on Saturday I got to go to lunch with a couple of good friends from college, which was super fun. I always love seeing good friends! After that they took me over to Shari's and a teammate picked me up so we could head down to Vancouver for the Masters Regionals regatta at Vancouver Lake.
Talk about a big regatta. I don't remember the numbers, but over the course of the weekend there was something like over 1000 races...? There were a lot of crews there from all over the region - even one as far as Los Gatos, CA. Our team's guys were already down there since their race was on Saturday; all of our women's races were Sunday. Saturday night was fun. I always enjoy hanging out with the team, and steak fajitas/tomalito from Chevy's never hurts, either (guess where we ate dinner). Anyway, I was in two races on Sunday, and I felt like both went well. We didn't make it into the final for either race, but I felt like we had a strong showing and we hung with the rest of the pack. We were only a few seconds away from making it into the finals, too, so that's encouraging. Now we have even more motivation to train for next year!
Vancouver Lake
So after we were done racing Sunday afternoon, we packed up the boats, stopped for lunch, drove back up to Tacoma, unloaded the trailer, and got home around 5:45. Just in time to start getting ready for the youth BBQ. As it was our last meeting of the school year and the first week for new 6th graders to come, we fired up the grills at our apartment complex, ate hamburgers and hot dogs, and played on the basketball and tennis courts. It was really fun, despite being worn out from the regatta (leaving the hotel at 5:30am, hanging around in the sun, 2 races plus moving boats around really takes a lot out of you). Again, I always enjoy hanging out with people.
The Rest of June
So it looks like the last few days of June will be a little bit less crazy...last night we went to dinner and Super 8 with a friend, and tonight I finally had a chance to sit down and play online for a while plus talk to a good friend from California for a couple of hours on the phone. I'm looking forward to getting back to our regular amount of busyness as opposed to being just insanely, crazily busy.
A few other random items of note:
The Giants have been doing well, despite all the injuries. That makes me happy (the doing well part, not the injuries part).
We downgraded back to dumb phones (as opposed to smart phones...), and the transition has been amazingly smooth. I miss browsing Facebook from my phone sometimes, but actually prefer calling and texting from a regular phone...and ultimately that's the point, right?
My mom is awesome and sent me a couple of really cool items in the mail...don't want to give away the surprise for when I pull them out, but if I'm ever invited to another white elephant / ugly sweater party I'll be prepared.
I keep telling myself I'm going to blog more, and then another month and a half goes by without writing a word...I don't feel especially verbose at the moment, but at the same time I feel like writing. Strange combination, I know, which I think will amount to a post of lists.
I've been feeling extremely blessed lately. Here are 5 of the many reasons I'm blessed:
I have a husband I adore that loves me despite my imperfections.
I'm surrounded by supportive friends that I get to see on a regular basis.
I like, respect and have a good relationship with my parents and my in-laws.
I have close friends I can go for months without talking to, yet pick up exactly where we left off once we do finally talk.
Despite there being a lot of things I want, I have more than I actually need.
Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like to be born in a different time. I wonder how I would do being cooped up knitting all day, what it would be like living in a tribal culture, or what my opinions of current events would have been - without knowing the end result.
All of this also gets me thinking about how technology has changed so much more than adding the convenience of shopping from your living room or streaming movies through to your TV. As much as I enjoy Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Blogger, etc., I think it's easy to get distracted from real, face-to-face socialization. That being said, here is a list of what I like about my favorite types of social media:
Wow, there are numbers in each of those movies titles...weird.
To change topics again, I'm switching to animals. I recently realized I'm not an animal person. As much as I find pictures / videos adorable, I'm just not into taking care of them...maybe that's why I prefer wild animals? Here's a list of my top 5 wild animals:
This summer will mark the second complete year of living in Washington. It's really sunny today, which I guess is what made me think about summer and, henceforth, moving here. A lot of people still give me a hard time for one of the reasons I love living up here: the weather. I love the cloudy, rainy skies overhead 9 months of the year. I know most people don't share my sentiments for the gray weather...but there are other things I love about living in Washington (in no particular order):
Chicken Teriyaki. It is really easy to get good chicken teriyaki up here. It's everywhere. We have a couple of default restaurants, although we just tried a new place last night that was also very good. In fact, there are at least two teriyaki restaurants within walking distance of our apartment. It's a great substitute to a burger when you're on a budget.
DaddyO's Burgers. Speaking of burgers, theirs are delicious. Yes, my husband works there, but that doesn't mean I have to like the food. I tend to be a little picky about fast food, but DaddyO's makes good quality burgers with their own special sauce. Mmm...I could go for a burger now...
It's beautiful. How can you not enjoy the green of evergreens with Mt. Rainier in the distance?
It's light longer. Well, at least during the summer. It's not uncommon for the sun to be out until past 9pm in the months of June, July and August, allowing even more time to get outside and do something fun!
Sometimes it snows (but just a little). When it does snow, it's just enough to be really pretty and fun to play in, but not enough to last for months at a time. It's also a big enough deal that a lot of businesses shut down and get snow days along with the kids in school.
Life Pointe Church. I have to include our church on this list, because I love it! From the day we started attending, it felt like home. Our Life Group is a HUGE part of that as well :)
With all the things I love about Washington, I do have to admit there are a few things I miss from California:
Friends & Family. This one's obvious, but needs to be said. Most of our family, plus a lot of close friends, still live down in California. I really wish they all could've just come up here with us, although that's not exactly practical.
The San Francisco Giants. I've been a fan for as long as I can remember and have a lot of fond memories of going to the games, especially with my dad. I was SO excited about them winning the World Series last year, although I was also a little sad I couldn't go to any of the games or just celebrate with other fans before, during and after the games.
Chinese food. I grew up in a predominantly Chinese/Taiwanese neighborhood. In addition to standing out in class photos, I learned to expect a certain quality of Chinese food (thanks to all the family-owned restaurants). Although the places I've tried up here have been okay, none of them have quite hit the spot.
Disneyland. Even though we lived in Northern California, a trip to Disneyland only took 6 hours, which made it much more feasible.
I love my husband. I love birthdays, anniversaries, random dates and moments of romance...but Valentine's Day doesn't do it for me. When I was single I thought it was because I'd never had a boyfriend on February 14, but I don't think that's it. There are three main reasons I don't like Valentine's Day:
All my favorite Valentine's Days activities happened when I was single. Nothing against Matt, but a Star Wars marathon with friends beats out dinner in a crowded restaurant or some other "couples" activity. Don't get me wrong - I love going out to dinner and "couples" activities, but February 14 is pretty much the worst day to go out to dinner or do something couple-y since it's so crowded.
It seems obligatory. Because Valentine's Day is the time you're supposed to tell the one you love that you love them, it seems obligatory. A card expressing love to me would carry so much more weight in my mind on random days throughout the year than the one day everyone is supposed to give one.
The jewelry commercials. They drive me crazy. Granted, I'm not your typical woman who likes jewelry and flowers, but an expensive necklace doesn't express love to me. In fact, the only jewelry that really does express love in my mind is an engagement / wedding ring, and that's because of what it symbolizes. Plus commercials like this are just creepy:
That being said, there are a few things I like about Valentine's Day:
The treats! I guess the way to my heart is through my stomach...
The day-after candy sales.
Cheesy Valentines to/from friends.
I guess I just liked Valentine's Day the way it was when I was little, before it became expected for romance to enter in.
Today (now that it's past midnight) marks the official end of the Christmas season. Yes, I know most people have been done celebrating for days (if not weeks), but since I love the holidays I like to celebrate as long as I can. The 12 days of Christmas actually begin on Christmas and end today, Epiphany. I don't remember a whole lot about it (my years of Lutheran upbringing are failing me), but I do remember that it's been Christmas this whole time despite most people moving on. Sad, I know.
Anyway, this past Christmas / New Year's was really fun. Throughout December, we attended three white elephant parties - my favorite kind! I also got to head down to California for a few days and spend time with family / a few friends. Unfortunately Matt couldn't make it down too, but I was glad I got to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and my mom's birthday with family, in addition to visiting Matt's family and a few friends I still have in the area. Matt's parents came up and took us to dinner the day I got home too - him getting to see them was great, too.
Although I enjoy seeing people more than actual gifts, I was pretty excited about some of the wonderful items I received: Beauty & The Beast on DVD, various SF Giants paraphernalia, a few Wii games (Glee Karaoke, High School Musical Sing It and Wii Fit Plus), and more.
More than anything, seeing friends and family again made me really appreciate just how blessed I am. There are a lot of people I wish I could see more and spend additional time with. I've been surrounded by fabulous people my entire life - and continue to be included in wonderful groups of friends and family. Thank you all!
One of my best friends from high school came to visit! She's visiting the U.S. for a while and made a special trip up to see me :D We had lots of fun. Highlights included exploring boutique antique shops, watching movies, making homemade Norwegian pancakes & Belgian waffles, wandering around Seattle and more. Here are a few pictures:
Nice hat!
I think this dress is SO FUN (it comes in blue, too)
Yummy prawns
The fuzzy penguin in Seattle
While we were in Seattle I also picked up another jar of Tayberry jam (combination of raspberry and blackberry?). AND it started raining. I was one happy girl!
It’s been a super-long time since I’ve posted anything. Things have been busy! We decided to move to Lacey on November 30 and got our new apartment December 1. After two weeks of shuttling our smaller stuff down to our new place, we rented a truck for our bigger furniture and loaded/unloaded it (with a HUGE thanks to those that were able to help). The day after we moved the big stuff down, Comcast came to set up our Internet and phone, and we drove down to California for three weeks.
While we were in California, we had a great time celebrating Christmas and New Year’s with family and a few friends. I have a lot to say about the last month, so I’ll break it into chunks for your skimming convenience ;)
Dead Laptop
Isbjorn, my most recent laptop, died this past month. Apparently computers don’t work when they can’t find the hard drive. Despite the frustration, a part of him lives on in Matt’s laptop as the battery was able to replace his broken energy source.
Joe’s Crab Shack
If you have a chance to go to a Joe's Crab Shack, I definitely recommend it! We went to the one in San Francisco with a few friends even though I can’t eat crab or shellfish. Their burger was good, though, and the servers dance. Ours even got up on the table to get her groove on! She also convinced half our table to get up and dance with her (and the other servers).
Family Events
We had a great time seeing family for a variety of Christmas activities including:
Christmas Breakfast at the Claremont Hotel with Matt’s family.
Decorating Matt’s parent’s Christmas tree to the Oak Ridge Boys.
Christmas Eve with my family.
Christmas day with Matt’s family.
Indonesian Chicken Curry in Woodland with my family.
Traveling through Redding and Portland to see Matt’s grandparents and Moses (our nephew), Cara and Dustin (his parents). Okay, that’s not really Christmas...but it was fun.
Other Fun Stuff
Here are the other exciting activities we were able to experience while we were in California:
We had a chance to see a few friends in the area that timing worked out with. Activities included Spades (yay team Women!), hanging out in San Francisco, various dinners and watching movies.
We saw Avatar and Sherlock Holmes. I really liked Avatar, even though I’m not a huge fan of 3-D. I actually forgot it was 3-D while I was watching it. Sherlock Holmes was fun, too, although it wasn’t the best movie ever. I would recommend renting it instead of spending the money on a movie ticket.
The Browns won the last four games of the season! Even though it was a rough year, ending on a good note was nice.
We got a free cake for our 1st anniversary! The baker that made our wedding cake included one free cake for the first anniversary, and she agreed that it would be easier to pick it up a month late instead of shipping it to Washington. As we expected, it tasted delicious =)
Disneyland
Just for the record, Disneyland is really busy on New Year’s Eve. I’ve never seen lines that long. Especially in the ladies’ room. I really appreciated that Disney knows how to handle crowds, so we were able to get where we wanted to go. That was very convenient. A few more comments about this trip to Disneyland:
The new dragon in Fantasmic! looks really cool. WAY better than the first one.
Certain foods just taste better at Disneyland. Like churros. And corn dogs. I’m pretty sure Dole Whip tastes good everywhere, but I’ve only had it at Disneyland so I can’t be sure.
If you lose an Indiana Jones hat on Grizzly River Run, there is a chance you’ll get it back. It just might not look the same. Chris’ hat decided our raft wasn’t good enough for it and jumped out on a drop...and then sat in the water for a while before Disney mailed it back. Sadly I haven’t seen the recovered hat, but I can’t wait for pictures (hint, hint Chris)!
Disney’s merchandise this year is really cute! I was very proud of myself for not giving in to temptation and buying something.
I won a Dumbo! The boardwalk area of California Adventure was completely re-themed to include Disney prizes. We played the clowns running up the ladder game (where the water shoots out of the cannon and you hit the target to make them go) and I won =)
Our New Apartment
We love it! Not only is it bigger than our last place and include a pool, hot tub, gym, sauna, etc...the rent is the same price! As much as I love that there’s a gym on-site, that also means I have no excuses not to use the gym on site. We’ve been really good about going over the past week. Hopefully we’ll be able to keep it up!
We’re also almost completely set up. We have a few more pictures to hang up and need to find spots for a few more items, but all in all it’s starting to feel like home. It’s nice how quickly we were able to get settled. So far the only thing I don’t like about the apartment is the lack of counter space – both for cooking and for stacking dirty dishes. Haha.
Of course, I can't possibly include an entire 3 weeks that were full of activities into one blog post, but that's pretty much the gist of what's been going on in our lives lately.
