Friday, July 31, 2009

birthdays, weddings and weekends

cupcakes

Here are the things I am celebrating...
1. Friday
2. my good friend Chris' birthday
3. the last day of July, a beautiful month
4. sunshine

The cupcake photo ties all these marvelous things together. These were the little red velvet cakes that Sara made for our sunny July wedding reception, where Chris' band Swing Cheese played. And as for Friday fitting in? I think that everyone should have a treat on Fridays and celebrate something, even if it's simply a celebration of the weekend.

{photo by Dustin McLean}

from the car window


the highway home by Mia
As we drove back across the Canadian border to Washington, I took pictures out the car window. The clouds and fields were amazing.

Thursday, July 30, 2009

oh, Canada, cont.

Other things we did in Canada included, but were not limited too...
Photobucket

white dress in vancouver by Mia
... watching black cats and summer dresses in Gas Town...

vancouver water taxi by Ian
... taking an Aqua Bus across the water to see our good friend Carol...

vancouver pay phone by Ian
... playing with rare antiques...

wharf of vancouver by Mia
... and of course, visiting the bars.

oh, Canada

vancouver chinese garden11 by Mia
Did I mention that while up north we made a run for the border and found ourselves in Vancouver, BC.

vancouver chinese garden12 by Mia

vancouver chinese garden7 by Mia
We were there for 2 nights and 3 days and most of our photos from that time were taken in the Chinese Garden. Such a lovely place.

vancouver chinese garden10 by Mia

vancouver chinese garden9 by Mia

vancouver chinese garden2 by Mia
I loved these ladies in their hats and couldn't help but watch them.

vancouver chinese garden8 by Mia

vancouver chinese garden4 by Mia

vancouver chinese garden5 by Mia

vancouver chinese garden by Mia

vancouver chinese garden3 by Mia
Ian felt the textures of leaves...

chinese garden in vancouver13 by Mia

chinese garden in vancouver15 by Mia
... and I did a bit of bird watching.

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

twinkle, twinkle, little bat

Here's the official teaser... oooh, I'm so excited! I might pull my 3D glasses out for this one.

curiouser and curiouser

I have felt the need for some escapism lately, and whenever that happens I think about Alice.

wonderland
I love Alices adventures,
whether they be in Wonderland or Through the Looking Glass.
When I was little, I watched the old black and white movie with W.C. Fields as Humpty Dumpty so many times that I wore our Beta tape.
Here are some images from Burton's interpretation, due in theaters next year.

alice
Mia Wasikowska plays Alice. I did a little dance of excitement when I found out Alice would be reincarnated by a girl with my name.

the mad hatter
Can anyone imagine Tim Burton's Mad Hatter played by another? It has to be Johnny Depp.

the queen of hearts
Helena Bonham Carter, who can do no wrong and seems to steal every show, will be the Queen of Hearts.

the white queen
And the Oh sO lovely Miss Hathaway will be the White Queen.
There are more delightful images at here and they are all courtesy of Disney.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

never a dull moment



I am happy to say that my life with you, Mr. Crawford, will never be boring.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

vintage weekend

Santa Monica, Venice & Hollywood Forever
Hollywood Forever cemetery by Mia
Our mission for Saturday was to go to the
Cinespia screening of "Bride of Frankenstein" in the Hollywood Forever cemetery. If you haven't been to a summer movie here, you simply must go. It's wonderful. Bring a picnic (maybe a sandwich and cannolis from Bay Cities Italian Deli) and a bottle of wine and enjoy the sultry late night.

We decided to head south early and have a day of LA before the show.

After a long, hot drive down Highway 1, we needed to eat. We stopped at Chez Jay for some food, drink and history, but the kitchen was closed. So we had a pint and moved on.
Ian and Mao's by Mia
And then we spotted it...
Mao's Kitchen. Our friends, Sara & Kelly, introduced us to this wonderful place, but we never though we'd find it again.
Moa's dumplings by Mia

dumpling and chopsticks by Mia

orange ginger chicken by Mia
May I suggest the shrimp and spinach dumplings and the orange ginger chicken with a glass of home brewed ginger ale. Yum and yum.
hot pepper by Mia
I dared Ian to eat one of these, but he wouldn't do it.
fortunes by Mia

Mia at Moa's by Ian

Mia at Moa's 2 by Ian
Full and fortunate, we headed out into the heat. We made a few stops on Abbot Kinney, my favorites being
Madley & Surfing Cowboys. We were having so much fun that I forgot to take any more photos.

Sunny Sunday in Santa Barbara
On Sundays the Santa Barbara Museum of Art is free. So it was the perfect day to go see the Bret Weston photo exhibit. It's a must see for photography lovers.
vintage signs by Mia
Then to my favorite Antique Mall of SB...
coca cola by Mia

vintage chairs by Mia

cowboy Ian by Mia

Ian with vintage violin by Mia
... where Ian tried out cowboy hats and violins...
Mia and jewels self portrait
and I admired the costume jewels.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Sunday evening slowin' down

It's the end of an wonderful weekend—action packed and so much fun. And as excited as I am to show you all the pictures and tell you of the places we went, I'm more excited to just be home with my honey and our view of the clouds and trees and telephone poles.

Hope you all had lovely weekends too.

Saturday, July 18, 2009

breakfast of champions and tucans

Good morning and happy weekend. I am off to the store for milk to put in our coffee and cereal bowls. And then... a day with no plans! What are you doing this fine sunny Saturday?

Thursday, July 16, 2009

taco Thursday



Becky Still Making a Taco by Mia

While my belly is rumbling from missing supper, I am thinking fondly of Taco Thursday in Olympia.

Chef Wylie by Mia
The gentleman in the goggles and white rubber gloves was our chef, Wylie. He's fantastic.

nature prevails

trashy cactus by Mia
I've been spending my days in the garden since I've been home and I've found some interesting things. There are surprises a plenty out there. But one thing that is no surprise, the plants just keep growing. They pay no mind to our vacations and abandonments.

These beautiful cactus were pulled from the ground and then left with bare roots for weeks in buckets and crates. And here they are, blooming. It's more proof that nature will prevail.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

happy birthday to you, Lynn

This year, saying happy birthday was much more complicated. So we got creative...

7 Red Balloons


Isaac's red balloon by Mia
Ian and Annie's red balloons by Mia


Nicole, Sarah, Annie, Isaac, Noah, Kendal, Nickolas, Ian and I all sent our messages to you on the fog and wind. I would not normally condone the release of balloons, but there are some moments, when you are invited into the closest circle, not to say what or where, just to be there.


2 Trees

two trees by Mia


Ian at two trees by Mia

Ian and I climbed a small mountain to silently say... everything.

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