Our Sunday Picnic and Other Things

In the days when I think I have nothing of readable value to share, I don't share much.  In those same days, I still want to be consistent, to share something, and to stay in the flow.  Know what that means?!  I get to write Anything I Want!  I mean, that's what usually happens, but when times get tough, I think it's better to keep to every shred of a good habit you can.  Like when I was trying to stop biting my nails.  It took me longer to stop gnawing on my cuticles, but I still celebrated having longer nails.  Or when I really didn't care about what I was reading, but I still read at least a verse of my Bible everyday because I knew it was something I wanted to always be in my life.

Also, all of the pressure of keeping up this blog comes from myself.  I guess it's a good thing I don't have any sponsors to attract and people to keep happy.  This is a small project, and it is a personal project.  Nonetheless, it is Mine.  And I want to keep it and take care of it.  My blog.  My little blog.  Full of stories and silly things and secrets and the phases when I tried to be cool.  I like it.

So here's what I'm going to write about today.

I like sushi a lot.  If you like sushi a lot, too, never, ever, ever buy it form Kroger.  It's gross.  But Fresh Market?  That's an all right choice if you're in a pinch or if you want to take it out to a Sunday picnic.

Caleb and I had a splurge picnic today.  We got sushi, a big turkey, ham, swiss, avocado, and bacon sandwich (not as great as it could have been), kettle chips, some pasta salad, and a bottle of Virgil's root beer.  (Virgil's is the way to go, my friends.)

We had wooden chopsticks for utensils, and I had a compact picnic mat I brought with my from Korea.  We sat on the ground with people from my church, and Caleb and I ate with our chopsticks.  That part, the chopsticks and the sharing from the same plate made me feel like I was in Korea again.  We did that all the time.  We brought food and ate from the same plates with wooden chopsticks.  I always liked it in Korea because it felt very familiar and close.  I've said before that I wanted to have that same kind of food culture with me again in America.  Today I did, and it made me very happy.

Community Inspired Engagement Shoot

Last month, Caleb and I met with his friend Garrett of RGR Photography to discuss what we would have our engagement pictures look like.  We wanted to have some shot in Downtown Newnan where we got engaged and where we have spent lots of time exploring and enjoying.  We also wanted to have a section that included more of our own personality.  After thinking through a lot of the unique ideas we've seen before, Caleb hit upon something that fit us perfectly.

One of our favorite rituals that Caleb and I share is watching Community together.  (We usually include the sacrament of indulging in Klondike bars, when we have them.)  There are a few episodes of Community that show the characters building, playing in, and fighting in pillow and blanket forts.  What started as an idea of having a pillow fort as the setting ended up being a production involving some of our closest friends.

We included subtle references to ourselves in the fort.  We're both wearing sweatpants from our rival colleges, I'm eating out of a ramen cup from Korea, a book from one of Caleb's favorite authors lies on the couch, and we made sure to have Community playing on the laptop, just like on our Monday evenings when we're catching it on Hulu.

I'm really pleased with how the pictures turned out.  Garrett rented a wide lens to capture more of the action and worked with us to the very end on helping our vision become reality.  Our friends were supportive and surprisingly directable.  Having people who are close to us there helped us have so much fun.

All photos are the exclusive property of RGR Photography.

Spring Wish List

I've come across a few things lately that I really like.  Em at Hip Hip Gin makes wish lists.  I bet she doesn't get all of the things she wishes for.  And, as long as I don't dwell too much on wanting them/not having them, I bet it's okay for me to make wish lists, too.  Just for fun.

By the way, I saw two of these things over at Shoko Wagner's Pinterest or her blog, Sho & Tell.  This girl knows what's up, and I recommend her as an internet personality to follow.

 

I want a coconut cake.
My parents brought home a piece of one from a Bible study last month.  I'd never had coconut cake before.  This one was so moist and lightly sweet and deliciously aromatic and tasty.
image by Julie Marie via Always With Butter via Shoko's Pinterest

 

 

Would you look at this Big Dipper constellation earring?
I have a thing for the stars.  I love them.  I love them so much.  I like star charts, star globes, the colors of midnight and gold, and Van Gogh's Starry Night.  I have yet to go star gazing under the biggest sky, but it's on my Bucket List.
via Sumally via Nojess, and I saw it first on Shoko's Pinterest.

This earring is from the Japanese company, Nojess.  I really wish I knew Japanese and that I could figure the online shop website.  I wish even more that someone on Etsy would craft something similar and provide English shipping instructions.  I guess access to international jewelry is just one more reason to start up on all Earth's languages.

 

 

Keeping with the astronomy theme just a little further, I really like this calendar, too.
for sale for approx. $13.11 by minudesign on Etsy
(I found it on Etsy's Pinterest board, Stuff We Love.)

 

 

A water garden!  How lovely, minimalist, and clean!  And so pretty.
I saw it on Free People's Pinterest board, We , and they saw it on Martha Stewart's website.

 

An excellent and simple tie dyed shirt.  Because, you know, summer's just after spring.
This one also came to me from Free People's We ❤ DIY.  This tutorial comes from Sweet Paul.

 

A kangaroo.
More specifically, I want a kangaroo at my wedding.  I don't know where the idea came from, but it came, it's here, and it's not going anywhere.  I think the presence of a kangaroo would make everything better.
Image by Rob Griffith via NBWNews

Caleb and I were walking through a CVS this week, looking for ponytail holders, when we came across some nail art tools which I was so surprised to find in an American CVS.  Caleb asked if he could buy them for me.  I was surprised and so happy and of course said yes.  That small present made me very, very glad.

Wish lists are fun, but I am most definitely thankful and satisfied with things I do have and even more with the intangible things I have.  :)