high and magic

Beautiful vday flowers- he did good

I died when I saw this is what they're called
(these are my all-time favorite flowers)
but that's how our love makes me feel
jk- kinda

prom for grown-ups

Guy's company does not have an annual holiday employee appreciation party.  Instead they save their party for the early spring, so some refer to it as a prom (Does this make me want to go more than I normally would? No duh).  Luckily I have befriended one of his co-workers, Elizabeth, and she told me about it so there was no getting out of the party for him- HA! It is always so exciting for me to attend an event as a guest- I love going to things I didn't plan (mainly to get my judge on) And like most girls, I enjoy getting dressed up.  Guy got a snappy new sport coat, but I couldn't find anything I liked anywhere so I borrowed a dress from my girlfriend Kelly- her dress collection had just what I was looking for AND it was free (take that, stupid Nordstrom Rack!) 

Hess rented out the entire Houston Museum of Nature and Science and the night was awesome. The lighting, flow, food, music- everything was extremely well executed. Guests could even view an IMAX movie about Flying Monsters every hour on the hour for free (at 10 pm after drinking all night this was FUN)- and you could get your picture taken prom-style!  Note to self: befriend the lady who planned it so she can add me to her team! By the end, my feet were killing me but we had such a good time, I think even Guy was glad we went.

that's what we industry folks call a GOBO

We clean up ok
Also- giant trilobite

Dinosaurs at night! very cool

the photo heard around the Facebook-
but seriously, the lighting at midnight in the
Butterfly Pavilion is clearly as good as it gets for us

that was quick

I don't think I've ever been so shocked at how fast February has flown by! I mean, I realize it is a couple days shorter than the rest of the months but this time around was a complete blur- Here are the highlights:

Saturday 2/2- Perusing Craigslist for a place to live (standard Saturday morning activity) I don't want to move- our house is amazing and I've loved living here and we will never find anything else like it- BUT we really need a yard for the two dogs, it IS expensive AND the busy street out front is not ideal. Since I am a Craigslist fiend, I am always on the lookout because you never know what you're going to find and I've found some true gems on that website.  Like our new house that we found that Saturday- It is 0.8 miles away but on a quieter street in the same neighborhood! 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, nice inside, big yard and- the true kicker- a guest house, making this home perfect for us when Thomas (Guy's brother) moves here next month for a new job.  Now we will be splitting the rent 3 ways instead of 2 and saving a lot of money each month! There's been some frustrating back and forth with the owners, and it was very competitive to have our application selected from more than 12 that were submitted but our new lease starts on 3/1 (this Friday!) Moving is a huge pain in the tush and I'm going to miss our home on Houston Ave, but we are very excited to move into our new place!

SUPER BOWL SUNDAY!

 My friend Adam is a bachelor dude who lives alone in a duplex that is very bachelor-esque and he offered to give me his 3-pot Crock Pot because someone gave it to him and he said he would never use it. So what better excuse to throw a Super Bowl Party than a new 3-pot Crock Pot? That and since we were officially moving and the Super Bowl was a good excuse to throw one last get together at the best party house ever.  Found all of my low-fat Crock Pot recipes on Pinterest: Buffalo Chicken Dip, Spinach Artichoke Dip and Bison Chili.  Also got supplies to make an Orange Crush punch to honor the fallen Denver Broncos who should've been playing in the Super Bowl (punch bowl, super bowl, chili and dips served in bowls? This theme was not official). Could not resist the football-shaped balloon or licensed Superbowl tablecloth. 

the spread

punch bowl, balloon, table cloth

For the first time since we've lived in this house, we hooked up the built-in surround sound to the TV- what a difference that makes, especially for a football game!! Beyonce's half time performance was a highlight for me- I am kinda embarrassed of how excited I was when Destiny's Child popped out of the stage.

Week of 2/4-2/8: Busiest week at work ever- At our launch party on 2/6, celebrity chef Monica Pope gave me a to-go box full of food she made AND a hug! On Friday 2/8, I took home 4 giant gorgeous floral arrangements from our gala.  The work is hard and hours are long but my job has some perks, I guess..

So here's what happened the rest of January:

Group photo

Jamming!

1/12 (date I last posted): This day was busy but I can't remember why.  I bought a new dress (pictured- one of my 'errands') for the weekend's wedding reception because I have a weird thing where I have to get a new dress every time I attend a wedding.  That night we drove to Halletsville to celebrate Heidi and Dennis Ludiker's eloped nuptials! Held at the impeccable TR Ranch, Heidi had all of the details planned to a T- the drinks were delicious and it was great to see the fiddle family and play some tunes! Our other friends Mike and Kelly were having a housewarming party/oyster roast (I love oyster roasts) in Houston that night, so I attempted to make us leave early to try to do both but early turned into 10 p.m., we had a 100 mile drive and the party was over by the time we got back to town. Always sad to miss a party, I was less sad because I was tired from being heartbroken and drowning my sorrows over the Broncos playoff loss (I was watching the game in Julie's trailer while they showed the slideshow from the wedding in Mexico.. I'm a bad person). Not going to lie, playing tunes with my homegirls Heidi and Kimber felt awesome! An additional resolution that I always make is to practice my fiddle more often. I should get on that as the Texas State Fiddle Championships are coming up quick!

Week of 1/13: Devastating loss. My little fiddle sister, Kaitlin Kenney went missing on a rafting trip in the Grand Canyon. My former violin teacher texted me the news Sunday night, and I thought maybe she was just lost- but talking to her mom the following morning confirmed the fear that she was really gone.  She likely got up in the night to go to the bathroom, slipped and fell into the river. As awful as this sounds, I am slightly relieved her death wasn't violating or violent.  This girl was the sweetest smiling happy free spirited goofball I knew.  I adopted her as my 'little sister I never had' because she was my favorite of the younger fiddle girls, and her big brown eyes and dark hair gave us a slight resemblance to one another. All week I found myself crying at my desk and obsessively googling her name- her disappearance became a national news story. The song "I'll Fly Away" was stuck in my head all week long. I am thankful her family has such a strong support system of friends and neighbors, and am glad my family was able to bring them a hot meal since I felt really helpless being so far away. They still have not found her body and it might never be recovered. The outpouring of love, support, photos and memories on her memorial Facebook page have been a comfort. Her mom always looks out for me at fiddle contests and has long called me her 'other fiddle daughter.'  I can't wait to see her in April at Halletsville. They both came to the cookie exchange party over Christmas, and I am so glad I spent a good amount of time talking to Kaitlin.   She was and always will be so special to me.

Week of 1/20: Not super memorable. I'm actually this close to going through my phone to see what the hell I did that week but I don't feel like getting up.  Aside from a strange feeling my stomach that made me feel uncomfortable the whole time, here are the highlights:

• Monday was MLK Day and we technically had the day off, but my boss decided we should work and save the day off for Good Friday when everyone else has off and we technically don't. Meh.
• Thursday night I invited a group of the lady friends over for wine night.  We hadn't really seen each other since Christmas and it was wonderful to have all the girls in the house to drink some wine and eat some cheese and gab the night away!
• Friday night Guy was in Austin and so I had the house to myself.  I watched Pitch Perfect- the movie about competitive college A Capella groups- it was so bad it was good enough to watch twice.

• Tuesday 1/29: Saw my favorite band, the Punch Brothers, down the street at Fitzgerald's. I loved it.

haha joke two weeks later..

My bad- I was like "here's a marathon of posts of the stuff I've been doing this past month!" and then did not post a single thing! haha sorry to psyche out the two people who read this blog.. I had a hard time deciding which way to go, so I think I might just do bullet points instead of a different post for all the days I did blogworthy things- actually that may be the only way I can remember what has happened in the past six weeks (sad, I know) Turns out I really need this blog to help remember stuff/deal with my short-term memory loss.

one month later

So much for being a regular blogger...but that was my resolution for 2011 and 2012 AND I'm kicking ass on my 2013 resolution to make doctor appointments! Am I nervous for them? Absolutely! But I am confident I am seeing some of the best in this town that is known for good doctors so I'm looking forward to getting half of them knocked out before the end of the 2nd month of the year! Here comes another marathon of posts updating the past month.