Birthday Highlights: New Moon!

In case you hadn't heard (because you live under a rock), this was my birthday month. Notice the way I use the words "birthday" and "month" together like that. It's because I fully believe that birthdays are righteous enough that they should be celebrated for a full month, not just one measly little day!

I did lots of things to celebrate my birthday this month, but certainly one standout highlight was seeing the midnight showing of New Moon with the girls. Can you tell which one of us is most excited by the photo??

We kicked off the evening at Ashley's--she made pizza and we watched Twilight (my first viewing!) Then by 9:30pm it was time to head for the theater to join the other crazy teenage girls in line. We got to the theater and I thought something was wrong. There was a police car and news van parked out front...but no line. What? We couldn't be THAT early?!? Oh no, we weren't. They had the line(s) wrapped all over the hallways inside...then the super late arrivers (us) were all the way out the back door! Pretty classic. Thankfully they moved some groups into their theaters early on, so we got to spend most of the time lined up inside--then the final hour actually in our seats. Did I mention that they were showing New Moon on 9 screens and that 6 were already sold out when Ashley bought the tickets 3 weeks early...!?!? Good times!

The movie itself was as expected. Not good, but I'm totally going to watch it a million times! Watching it with a crowd of teenagers, though, was epic. I loved all the cheering and booing, and oohhhing, and gasping. You can be sure to find me in line for all future midnight showings of the series!

One quick movie-related note: based on the book series, I'm Team Edward all the way. But man, after the wonderful topless goodness of New Moon, I may have to switch to Team Jacob, just for the movies!

{Sigh.}

Mr. Cash

If you hadn't noticed, this has been a year of big events for our circle of friends. Just a couple months ago, our friends Lindsey and Matt welcomed their first son, Cassius, to the world.

Isn't he awesome?!?! Those cheeks! I can't stand it. I love that he is so unmistakably BOY!

The proud parents looking ridiculously happy and adorable...

This is a more recent shot--his features look so much more developed already! Like you can tell what he's going to look like when he's 20. Love it!

This is a shot of me at my babysitting tryout (otherwise known as Card Club). I'm pretty sure I passed with flying colors. I wore him for half the night and he barely made a peep. It was so much fun!! These wrap things are A-MAZ-ING, btw. Hands-free goodness and comfy for everyone!

Notice the way I'm cradling his head? Here's an interesting note--it's not because I was concerned about it flopping all over. Oh no--this kid is ridiculously strong! He was pushing against my hand all night with crazy amounts of force...and he was 3 weeks old at the time!! This one's going to be a linebacker, for sure!

Congrats Lindsey & Matt!! We couldn't be happier for you! (And for our babysitting prospects!)

Oh Picasa!

Oh, how I've missed Picasa! Ever since I got the Macbook, I've been using iPhoto. It's great and all, don't get me wrong, but in so many ways it's just nowhere near as quick and convenient as Picasa. So, I finally decided to download Picasa on the Book tonight.

Ah, it's like heaven! I cropped all these photos, brightened them up, threw them into a collage, and uploaded them to blogger in just a few short minutes. Everything takes so many more steps from iPhoto to Blogger. The upload options from iPhoto are just too limited--time to branch out on the partnerships, Apple!!

Hopefully I'll be back to some more regular blogging now that my convenient little tool and I are back together again.

As for the collage--this is what I spent my day at home doing yesterday--getting ready for Christmas! I'm so excited to decorate our own home for the holidays. I spent Saturday night gathering mad amounts of holiday decorating ideas to my Tumblr account, then threw together these fun little frames--inspired by an Ali Edward post I remembered from a couple years back.

If anyone's interested in seeing larger individual photos of my little holiday decor collection, visit my PICASA (love!!!) album here. Now get inspired and go make your own! They're so simple! Some are just holiday cards from prior years that I liked and kept. Others are scrapbook paper with embellishments or holiday sayings added with alphabet stickers. And one you might recognize as a vintage Starbucks gift card holder!

Just for fun, I thought I'd share how ridiculously messy my workspace gets when Raf's not home to regulate...!

(How do you like our loaner dining set?? Nice, huh! It's so cool to have a kitchen table. I love how the Universe provides!)

Dear Blog

Dear Blog,

I'm sorry to have neglected you so. It's not that I don't care; I think about you all the time. It's just that I've been busy getting sh*t done. It's not you, it's me.

I promise to give you more attention soon. I have so much goodness to report! It'll be fun to catch up.

xo

b

Image by Mary Kate McDevitt, via Share Some Candy

Point Reyes

We're currently sitting on the couch, enjoying a bottle of wine and the fireplace at the awesome little B&B we booked, the Bear Valley Inn. Certainly can't complain about that!

We made it to town in time to grab a yummy lunch at Cafe Reyes. This is the same place we had dinner at the last time we were in town, and I couldn't wait to get back to it. It's just so cool without trying. This time I was on a mission to learn the name. I couldn't find it online, and panicked while walking through town, thinking maybe it had closed. Nope. They just don't have any signs outside:
This is the only indication that the place has a name:
We were slightly confused by the menu. While it makes sense that it's a pizza joint (wood fired oven), we distinctly remember it being Mexican food. But there was nothing but pizza and a few salad type options on the menu today. Then we came back to the hotel and saw a restaurant listing indicating that it was Mexican. Weird. Maybe only at dinnertime?
The good news--it was still good. Raf's pizza was especially yummy. I read somewhere that their dough starter is from Naples. Doesn't get more authentic than that!
We also got to enjoy more than the food today--the weather was GORGEOUS! Seriously, unbelievable. Last time we were here the fog was so thick you couldn't see more than 4 feet in front of you the entire time. I'm thinking that's why all I remembered was the good eats, rather than the breathtaking scenery. Man, it's amazing here.
We spent the afternoon walking and lounging at Limantour Beach.
Little friends that greet you on the walk up to the beach--I dig the mohawks!
Good day, for sure. Especially since we still have dinner to look forward to! Happy Weekend, friends!

All Hallows Eve

Just found this shot of the cousins on Cool's Twitter. Makes me happy. :)

Also learned that Zoe finished the Harry Potter series last month. In record time. Like a Rock Star. Raf is feeling even more pathetic as he gets started on The Half Blood Prince.

Pretty

Shop: Paper InStyle Etsy shop.

Excited for the Holidays!

Keep Calm & Carry On parody cards via dippylulu's Etsy shop.

Lee Crutchley

Loving Lee Crutchley's Quoteskine, discovered on Share Some Candy.