One, Wiz, Wit!

That means one cheesesteak with cheese whiz and onions.

While in Philly this past weekend, Steven had to make the tough decision between a Geno's or Pat's cheesesteak. I'm sure you've heard of both of these historic cheesesteak landmarks. If not, simply turn to the Food Network channel and catch some reruns. Steven was torn, and the fact that these dives are directly across the street from one another only complicated the matter.

Steven finally decided on Pat's. Not only has it been around longer (1933 compared to Geno's 1966), but let's face it, the line was shorter --it was the obvious choice.

I made Steven order the cheesesteak because I was intimidated by the big, Italian men yelling in their thick northern accents "eh you, hurry up and order already!..What?!? We don't do that! Go to the back of the line!"

Like a pro, Steven orders, "one, whiz, wit!"

 
It was pretty tasty. Not BLOW MY MIND tasty. But at places like this you pay for the experience, not the sandwich.

It was a good experience.

Have you ever ate at a famous restaurant? Or some place showcased on the Food Network?

Weekend Recap

My weekend festivities involved:

One swanky looking fiancé.

A sweet wedding with a lovely bride.

A new black and white dress from London.

Bad dance moves.

Good food.

Reconnecting with old friends.

It was pretty epic.

Now back to the daily grind.

Happy Monday, friends!

Puppy Love

Tomorrow morning Steven and I are flying to Philadelphia for a wedding. This means blogging will be no more until Monday {gasp!}. But I think you all will survive. More importantly, this means I have to leave Huckleberry for 4 days! I don't even know how to describe the anxiety I feel when I have to leave Huck. It's pretty extreme and highly embarrassing. I experience it every Monday-Friday during the work week. I hate, HATE, HATE leaving him for those 8 hours. 

It's tough being a fur mama! and Steven thinks I'm clinically insane. Which is probably a pretty accurate assumption...

Luckily, Steven's parents are kind enough to take Huck in while we're away. It's a relief we don't have to board him. {Honestly, if we had to board him I wouldn't go to the wedding. Yes. I'm that crazy.} But I still  worry. A lot. 

It's insane how much I love this puppy. He really is like a child. Since he was 8 weeks old he's been with me everyday. He depends on me to feed him, provide him with fresh water, and wipe his paws when he comes into the house. {What? It rains a lot in Seattle..he gets muddy paws..}

Sometimes I wonder if I've develop an unhealthy attachment to my pup. Maybe because I spend more time with him then I do even with my fiancé! Or because when I moved to WA I really didn't have a lot of friends and I transferred some emotional residue onto my pup. But I don't mind being that crazy animal lady. {As long as my interest doesn't extend to rodents down the road!} I love my pup.

The very first photo we ever took of Huck the day we brought him home.
Such a tiny baybay!

Okay, enough of me crying over my spoiled rotten pup. I'm sure Philly will be a blast. Neither Steven nor I have ever been! So be ready for a detailed account of our trip, accompanied by photos of course, when I return on Monday.

Happy, happy Wednesday, friends!

DIY Boutonniere

This weekend I pretty much neglected my computer..

and my camera.

It was nice.

But I'm BAAAAACK! and I want your opinion.

I'm thinking I definitely want to make the groomsmen's boutonnieres for the wedding.

Beacause a) it's cheaper and

b) DIY touches can really give a wedding a sweet charm. Don't cha' think?

So, which one do you like?

1. I like the pop of color that the first boutonniere provides. {Mine would be a more defined blue rather than the teal you see here.} And the baby's breath makes it easy since we will already have those flowers onsite for the wedding. {I'm buying baby's breath and blue hydrangeas from Costco and making my own bouquets for myself and the bridesmaids.}

2. I love the wheat in this boutonniere for a November wedding! And then the burlap..of course! Nuff' said. But where do I get wheat??? Kansas?

3. The final one is the first DIY boutonniere that I found and absolutely fell in love with it. I think the buttons and feathers are so simple and cute. The best part about this one is that I don't have to worry about flowers. I could make these boutonnieres months ahead of the wedding and store them until the big day!

Oh the options!!! I loved having your feedback on the wedding favors {coffee was obviously the favorite!} and would really appreciate your opinion on the different boutonnieres too!


Is my text getting increasingly smaller?? Or are my eyes playing tricks on me...
Strange. Blogger dashboard, stop messing with me. 

Happiness is...

 and knowing that it is mine to hold forever.

 Proving to a close friend, that my evil cat is indeed still kicking {she has to be at least 15 years old}

And I'm pretty sure we've been saying she's 15 for the past 5 years.

 Playing board games with my love. Even though I usually lose.

{As long as I can remember, I have to be the dog when playing Monopoly.}

My precious pup and his cute, expressive faces.

What does HAPPINESS look like in your life?

Whidbey Island

Steven and I went to Whidbey Island this weekend.

That's where we're getting married. I know, I already told you that.

Sorry for the redundancy. 

But I had never been to Whidbey Island, and neither of us had seen the venue other than online.

So we went to take a gander at it...

...and we were very pleased with what we saw.

 Even with the dead of winter, I really loved the grounds and could easily image it with the fall foliage.

 Cute, little playhouse for the kiddos.

 That building is the groomsmen's dressing room.

 Outdoor, makeshift bar. 

 Their gardens. All the food is organic and fresh picked from their property or other local farms.

 The barn. 

I love the modern light fixtures. Even with those, the barn doesn't lose its rustic feel.

Adorable lighthouse at Mukilteo before you get on the ferry to Whidbey.

I'm very excited about the facility! The barn is exactly the sort of venue I was looking for and I just had a great feeling about my choice after meeting with the owner and his wife.

I think it's going to be a beautiful wedding.

In A Past Life, My Fiancé Was A Gourmet Chef...

I walked into my lake home after work to discover a homemade steak and lobster dinner topped off with caramelized onions. I always knew Steven was a good cook, but this dish truly blew my mind.

Oh yeah, did I mention it was a candle light dinner complete with rose petals and red wine?

Feeling very loved and very blessed.

Hope everyone else had a great V-Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! & Zombies

Me: If zombies came I'd kick butt and take names and scream, "Get away from my Huckleberry!"

Steven: Zombies don't eat animals.

Me: Oh, do they eat bunnies?

Steven: No, they never show zombies eating any animals.

Me: Because zombies are slow and stupid and animals are smart?

Steven: Yep.

Me: **whisper** I don't want zombies to take over the world.

Steven: **whisper** Don't worry. They won't, baby girl.

I don't know how it happened, but Steven's obsession with everything zombies has made me pretty curious about the rising dead myself. It's actually pretty embarrassing, and I didn't plan on sharing the above conversation that took place last night...

...until I got to work and found this email Steven sent me for a possible wedding cake.

I kid you not, the email subject line read, and I quote, "caaaaakkkke!"

He was very excited. But do not fret, my friends! I draw the line at fake blood on my wedding cake.

So. Not. Happening.

I hope everyone has a very lovey dovey Valentine's Day! 

Apple Chips

9pm and I'm finally getting around to blogging! LIFE = CRAZINESS!!!

Work is a mess this week. I honestly don't think I'll be able to blog early in the morning at all these next few days...so prepare for some night time reads ya'll! I want all of you to stay awake until I post everyday. Even all you east coast folks who are 3 hours ahead of me :)

Okay, I kid. You can just read the next morning..but read you must.

And can we forget the fact that I used the word "ya'll" above?

Anyways, I'm on a semi-healthy kick these days and wanted to share a simple recipe with you.
Apple chips are a great snack, super yummy, and way better for you then those Lays potato chips beckoning you from the dark recesses of the cupboard.

All you need is Apples, Cinnamon, Sugar, a Knife, and an Oven :) 

First, cut the apples into really thin pieces. The thinner the better. And don't worry about the core! Simply cut right through it as well!

 Next, mix some sugar and cinnamon together. I didn't measure anything. Just mix it to taste. {I mean honestly, can you go wrong with cinnamon and sugar?} and then sprinkle the mix on the apples, or just plop those babies in and drench them in sugary sweetness.

 Place them on a baking sheet at 250 degrees for an hour. I had to cook mine about 20 minutes more because my apples weren't sliced quite thin enough.

 And then eat, eat, eat. So sweet, crunchy, and GOOOOOD!

I hope you all enjoy!

Weekend To Do's

Oh Friday, how I've longed for you. 5pm can not come soon enough. Yet, it seems as though lately there are not enough hours in my weekend! With a to do list a mile long, it's hard to find time to simply veg out on the couch and relax. And honestly, is there really anything better to do than that on the weekends?

Although many of the things I have to do feel like chores, a lot of the stuff on my to do list is kind of fun too! I thought I'd share the fun, and not-so-fun, with you.

Fun weekend to do's:

1. Make a trip to Michael's to get material for my will you be my bridesmaid gifts! I'm sure you've seen this idea on pinterest. A cute way of asking the girls you want to be in your wedding party to join you on the big day! I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT MY IDEA IS YET. But I'll just browse Michael's until I figure it out. I'm thinking just a little homemade box with information about the wedding (color samples, pictures, bridesmaid dress idea, etc.) Like this one. 

and the best thing about this is that when I DO figure out what I'm going to do --I have blogging material. And we all know just how important that is :)

2. Make a trip to Whidbey Island to sign the contract and give them a deposit for the wedding venue! Which means Steven and I will FINALLY have an official date! Very, very exciting!

3. Puppy training. I have mixed feeling about Huck's obedience classes now. He's almost done with the 6 week program and overall, I think he's done really well. But now he's kinda getting bored with the whole "be obedient" thing. This is him at puppy training when he is supposed to be obeying the "sit" command. He decided to take a nap instead.

Not-so-fun weekend to do's:

1. Go to the DMV to get a WA state driver's license. I've been putting this chore off for 7 months. Does anyone else avoid the DMV like it's the black plague? I don't care what state you live in --the DMV ALWAYS = A BAD EXPERIENCE. 

2. Go lingerie shopping for a friend's wedding. I know this doesn't sound bad but when you  don't know the bride very well it can be...well, awkward. Steven's in a good friend's wedding from his college days. Which means, being his fiancé, I have to go to all the pre-wedding girly events. I don't mind that at all but it's weird buying lingerie for someone you've hung out with maybe 5 times your entire life. I mean do I go for sexy? conservative? Maybe a silk robe or nightie instead of whips and chains? Am I being overly worrisome or do you think shopping for intimates is weird when you don't know the girl that well? {And I was kidding about the whips and chains, FYI.}

......................................

I won't bore you with the rest of my to do list like picking up the puppy poo in the yard and mopping my floors. Instead, I'll just wish you a very happy {and hopefully productive} weekend!

Family Photo

...or at least our attempt at one.

Happy Wednesday, friends!

My Wedding Pinspiration

What do you think?