"It's a good thing"

I have to admit that annoying as I find Martha Stewart, the girl knows her crafts. I've seen her on TV a few times, and she is more than a little rude, but goodness is she a whiz in the kitchen/garden/basically everywhere. So you can imagine how completely beside myself I was this morning when I came across this at my bookstore:

Awesomeness in a hardback

The book is a freaking work of art. I cannot wait to try my hand at some candle/soap/silhouette making. One project I will not be trying is the seashell wastebasket shown on the cover, because, honestly, ew. Martha, you drive me nuts in person, but good job on the book. (I also like your really old book where you meticulously document your total renovation of an old schoolhouse. That one I found at Value Village, so it gets extra points.)

Other things that are making me smile right now, in no particular order:

- The hubs is making our bread today. I've been making all our bread from scratch the past few weeks, because it's fun and tastes so good. The dough also makes killer pizza crust, so the batch takes care of several of our meals each week, plus makes enough to give a blob of pizza dough and a loaf of bread to the family upstairs. Hubs really hovered over the project last Sunday, so I promised that he could take over bread-making this weekend, and he's cute-excited for it. I'm just ready to eat a fresh, warm slice.

Who wouldn't want a piece of this?

- Sun! It's not that warm out today, but it's definitely springy and sunny out. I even busted out a little skirt to wear on our bookstore bike run earlier. And it smells sooooo nice out there too.

View from our front yard

- And finally, studying for the bar exam. I'm actually enjoying this for a few reasons. One, I'm way ahead of schedule. I like taking care of stuff super-early; it gives me the same smug sense of satisfaction that I get when I'm all stocked up on something (for example, when I've made a freezer full of meals or bought a huge new bottle of olive oil). Also, some of the stuff is sort of interesting. Like, did you know that when you stop payment on a check, the stop payment order always automatically expires after 6 months? So someone could still present the check to the bank after that 6 months and it would be paid if you didn't renew your stop payment order. I didn't know that. Third, I get to make flashcards to help me learn some of the stuff, and I always enjoy seventh-grade activities like making flashcards. Plus, I know that studying for the bar will only be fun as long as I don't have to do it, so I'm enjoying it as much as I can now, because in a few short weeks I know I'll be singing a different tune.

AND:

- I'm weeks away from being DONE WITH SCHOOL - oh my goodness, my eyes well up with tears of joy whenever I think those three beautiful words.
- Next weekend's my big birthday trip to Denver to hang with Dad and attend a mini-reunion.
- The next weekend I'm pretty sure G will be making a Seattle run to hang out with us for a few days, which is a relief because I miss her!
- I've finally got Amelie from Netflix, and since it's everyone and their dog's favorite movie, I'm curious to see what all the fuss is about.
- The hubs has a police-job interview at the end of the month. Yay!


So basically, I'm having a great day.

Love,
J

PS: Happy Birthday, dear Lauren! I love you!

Dear Husband...

The Husband

(This blog will hopefully be the excuse I need to take more - and better - pictures)

Sweet Husband,

Thank you for a wonderful day. I know it didn't start off well. I woke up sad and very much not wanting to go to work and school. But you were so patient with me as I sulked around the apartment, glaring at you every time you tried to say something encouraging.

And then this afternoon, you called me at work to tell me to skip my dreaded afternoon class. You were cutting out early and taking me to a dermatologist, since I've been so upset lately with my ever-increasingly bad breakouts (what is it with those? I'll be 25 next week, isn't it about time for my skin to waive a white flag? I mean, come on already.) And even though the doctor ended up being sort of a tool, your gesture was so thoughtful that it made me smile all afternoon.

So thank you times a million, my lovely husband, you are so wonderful to me every day. I am so grateful for you, and I hope that I make you feel as loved as you make me feel every day.

xoxoxo, lots of love, me

Long time reader, first time blogger

Birthday Bunny for Laura

Tonight, I blog. I've been closely following about 10 different blogs for the past year or so, ever since I realized what a great way it is to keep busy during my law school classes. Because really, who wouldn't rather read about the escapades of this spicy lady or the new projects of these crafty gals than listen to a two and a half hour lecture on payment systems? (I'm not exaggerating, that's really how long that class is, and it's very, very dull. And also quite pointless. Except that it's on the bar. So I guess it's relevant until the end of July. After that, it's pointless.)

I think it'll be good. "Good" in that I will find it fun, and honestly, that's all I'm looking for in anything lately. You know those "25 Random Things About Me" lists going around on Facebook? And you know how everyone writes something like "#13: this is really hard, I can't think of that many things to say about myself! Lol!!!" I don't get that. I could write a freaking book on myself every day, because I am incredibly self-centered and find myself and my thoughts endlessly fascinating. So here I go.