Friday Night

It's nice when you make something up and it works, taste test tomorrow morning.

Saturday at Home

Hey Hey its the WEEKEND!

Friday is here at last.

It finally is starting to feel like summer here in San Francisco. For the last two weeks it has been sunny and in the 70-80's and cools at night. We will see how long it lasts though because when I got up this morning the city was covered in a blanket of fog and there was a cool mist in the air.

Last night when I got home I had a wild cleaning hair and did some dishes that were in the sink from the night before (I hate that!) and decided that I am going to have a garage sale sometime this summer. It is all just a matter of going through my stuff and putting things a side to sell. I did start though. I think I am going to call it a "making room for baby" sale. I need to call my landlord and make sure I can use part of the garage before and on the day of the sale. I am sure it will not be a problem. I was also thinking about making cookies and selling them, people love cookies! Now I just have to decide when during this summer I can do the sale. That is the hard part since my weekends are filling up and I am pretty busy.

Speaking of weekends, again, IT'S FRIDAY! Tomorrow is going to be quite mellow. I am going to get up and do some laundry or I will do it at night and just hang out and craft and read all day, maybe I will make a pie. Sunday, Tim and I are going to go to Napa to meet Wendy and Brent and the four of us are going to the Napa County Fair. They are having pig races, a Mexican Rodeo and I am sure there is going to be some good food and wine there too! You bet your sweet apple pie I am going to watch "State Fair" this weekend. Even though we aren't going to the State Fair, it will still get me amped up to see the farm animals, play some games perhaps and get some sun.

I wanted to let you readers know that Wendy and I have a little photo blog going if you want to check it out. It is http://www.magpiemockingbird.blogspot.com/ - lots of cool links and fun photos. I was so inspired when I started checking out "3191 a year of mornings" so both of us decided we would give it a shot at the photoblog. They are just photos of our daily serendipies! Nothing to heavy or too arty, just fun.

New Shoes!

Things the make me Happy!

Breakfast for Dinner

A Kitty that smiles

Breakfast is Served

Want to Stop Junk Mail?

Check it out...
http://www.greendimes.com/

For about a penny a day you can stop all of your junk mail, catalogs, etc. and help the environment. I just signed up and my new obsession is trying to think of all of the catalogs I get so they can contact them and have them stopped. I like looking at them but then they do right into the recycling bin. Waste of time and paper, I can look at my favorite things online if I want to instead.

Did You Know?
To produce junk mail for one year, we use 100 million trees and 28 billion gallons of water.
Stay tuned...

Weekend in Review

Hey, can someone hand me some coffee?

Ahhh, yess, Monday morning and the promise of yet another week. I had a really nice weekend so I don't mind so much having to work today. It is when I don't get anything done on the weekend and then Monday rolls around that I feel I need another day.

Saturday was so nice. I slept about 12 hours and woke up at about 10:30 AM to the phone ringing. It was Tim's sister so I spoke to her for about 45 minutes on the phone (Tim was out playing tennis). I slowly woke up and made myself some tea and got back into bed and read and slept for a couple more hours. At 3:00 PM I got up and took a shower and was ready to go out and do something. Luckily we had plans to meet up with Katie and Marc for an early dinner at Herbivore. We met them there and sat outside in the back since it was warm outside. We gave them a gift for the baby (due in one month) and ate dinner. Both of them crack me up so it was a lot of fun. All of laughed our way through dinner and dessert and then decided to go over to their place to play wii. Tim kept telling me about it and I was not in the "know" until I played it. I absolutely LOVED it. It was so much fun. We played tennis and boxing and Marc showed me around the wii system. You can get on the Internet, etc. it was really cool. The next thing we knew it was about 9:15 PM so we decided to head back home. When we got home we watched TV and I worked on a little craft project until about 11:30 PM and then it was time for bed.

Sunday I took a class in Berkeley from 11-6. It was a calligraphic flourishing class taught by a man who does Spencerian calligraphy (super ornate and swirly). I did not do the sample above, but that gives you an idea of what it is supposed to look like. On my way to the class I payed attention to my natural surroundings and to the trees that were in bloom (as promised on my Friday post) and took some photos. There was a band playing music by Peet's coffee so I listed to that for a while and when 11 AM rolled around I walked over to my class. The class was hard for me. I am a little heavy handed with pens and had to teach myself that the pen barely has to touch the paper in order to get the desired look. It is a beautiful art, it was fun to meet new people and doodle all day. I don't know if it is something I will incorporate in my other art stuff, but we will see. When the class was over I went home and Tim and I ordered Chinese Food and listed to some music, I worked on some craft stuff and then went to bed. I slept until about 8:00 AM this morning! Yikes! It felt good though.

Below are some photos from my walk on 4th Street in Berkeley.

Stay tuned...

Surrounded by Beauty

I was walking to my car this morning thinking, I never really "take in" the view, I am always on a mission to get from point A to point B. Not that there is much of a view, but you know, really look at the flora and fauna of my own neighborhood. There is a staircase across from my house that I climb almost every morning to get to my car up on the next block and I actually took time today to check out all of the cool stuff that grows along the stairs and beyond. At the top of the stair case there is a really beautiful view of St. Paul's on Church street and beyond that, Twin Peaks. I guess I have gotten used to it. I have decided that this weekend I will look at my own neighborhood as I did when I first moved here. Everything is in bloom and the bugs are happy, it makes me feel good that I actually noticed that today!

Stay tuned...

Gratitude

Last night I had dinner with Sara at Cafe Gratitude. It was awesome. They have the best food ever. So fresh and grounding, I absolutely LOVE it. I think it is probably my favorite restaurant right now. I haven't burnt myself out on it yet. It would take a long time for me to get through the entire menu anyway, so I will be going there for a while still before I get tired of it. It was so nice to hang out and catch up with Sara. Her adventures in life amaze me, her bravery and hunger for adventure and good old fashioned motivation constantly inspire me. We had a really nice time. It is so nice to feel like what you are saying is the most important thing at that very instant. Everyone needs a good listener in their life. I am striving to be more engaged when my friends speak, but at times it can be frustrating when you don't get the same in return. I hope it was an even exchange last night.
Stay tuned...

Summer Solstice

Today is the longest day of the year and the official start of Summer!

Generally I use the Summer Solstice as a day to check in on what I have done over the last 6 months, the year is half over after all. I can't even tell you all how fast the time has just flown by. I deemed it the "Year of Katie" last year on my birthday and with that day coming up soon, I guess it is time to think about my goals for the next year. I think the added sunlight today will give me motivation to set aside some time for myself. I try to do that each day but the last couple have been pretty packed. So tonight it is all about ME.

Stay tuned...

Anti-Denti

Monday I had to go and get my teeth cleaned. I used to be an anti-denti until I met my Dentist. Seriously, I would freak out and be sick to my stomach the entire day I had to go visit the dentist. Now it is a walk in the park. Thank God they didn't find anything growing on my jaw bone like they did last time. No cavities, nothing exciting this time. Just wanted to post this to remind people how important it is to see a dentist every six months. Remember, tooth decay not taken care of can wreak havoc on your internal organs as well as your mouth!

Sacramento

Saturday, Tim and I got up and took off to Sacramento to meet Frankie Asch, the newest member of the Asch family. He is the sweetest little baby and makes the cutest noises I have ever heard. I love him to pieces and can't wait to visit him again in a couple weeks.
Tim and I stopped on our way to the Asch house at the Whole Foods Market in Sacramento. It was a super nice store and we picked up some panini's and salads for lunch along with some cookies. I have to admit, I love the suburbs. I loved sitting in a sunny backyard with close friends just hanging out and talking. It reminded me of being back home in Michigan. The perfect summer afternoon if you ask me. It will take a while until this Saturday is topped.
Stay tuned...

Hot in the City!

Way too hot yesterday to go to yoga, plus I felt really heavy since I was nursing a hangover and had pancakes, veggie sausage and egg whites for lunch. I hadn't packed my shorts for yoga either. I know that the heat helps with flexibility, but I couldn't deal yesterday. Now I am bummed about that decision. I decided to go home and work on some stuff there. I meditated for a while with a CD that I have and that was really nice.

I had most of the night to myself since Tim went out. It was nice and mellow. I am SO glad today is Friday though!

This weekend we are going to go to Sacramento on Saturday (tomorrow) to visit the Asch family. Sunday (Father's Day) we are going to go to the beach and hang out and maybe meet up with Tim's cousin for dinner. Even if it is cloudy on the coast we will still hang out at the beach, we love it. Just hanging out, reading magazines and checking out the waves and sometimes whales with our binoculars. I am looking forward to a really nice weekend!

Stay tuned!

PS - I started a new blog about our adoption process. Check it out if you are interested.
www.operationolive.blogspot.com - it is still under construction, but there are a couple posts on there. I am trying not to let the adoption stuff take over this blog! When we get the baby, that blog will be a place where I post her photos, videos, etc. for people to check out.

PSS - Anyone notice my flickr link?

Sushi Overload

Tim and I went to Moki's for dinner on Wednesday night and this is how it all went down.
4 speciality rolls
2 maki rolls
1 bottle of champagne
+ 1 molten chocolate cake dessert
1 stuffed girl, could barely walk to the car and then went home and had to lay down.

Self Reflection

I have been trying to get my yoga practice back up and running and this week I did it! I went on Monday and the class just about kicked my ass! The instructor said it was going to be mellow but when she started telling us about how we were going to try and do the splits, I knew I was in for it. I did surprise myself a little bit though. My legs are pretty strong and a strong muscle is a flexible muscle, or has the capability to become flexible if it isn't already. I impressed myself with my lower body flexibility, but need to work on loosening up my shoulders, they are so tight!

Anyway, I am going again Thursday and am going to continue with that schedule for as long as I can. I am motivated and love the way I felt when I left class. I can't believe I was out of it for so long.

I love yoga for the time you get to only reflect and concentrate on yourself. It is 90 minutes of YOU time. When I am in class, it is just me and the mat, the instructor is there for guidance of course, but I tune everyone else out and work only on myself during those precious minutes I am in class. Before I know it we are singing the closing slokas and I am being pushed back into the world. The test is to try to keep that yoga mindset during the week when I am working, at home and with my friends. I don't tend to get too anxious and tied up in things so it comes fairy easy to me to keep mellow and in the moment. To go to class and do the ansanas and listen to the wisdom of the instructor keeps me on track though. For that I am grateful.

Thursday already?

My gosh, I haven't even had time to post my weekend update!

This past weekend was real nice. Saturday, Wendy and I went to the Legion of Honor to check out the French Jewelry Exhibit and the 20's deco French Ads and Art. It was not very crowded at all and for once I got to park in the little circular lot on a Saturday! After the museum we fought for a parking spot on 24th Street in Noe Valley and had lunch at La Zinc, very nice french bistro style place that has a great brunch on the weekends. I had a salad that had goat cheese on toast on the side drizzled in honey, yummm! Don't forget my Champagne a la peche! After lunch we oooooed and ahhhhd in the window of the Noe Valley Bakery - there are a million types of cupcakes in the window and you know who loves cupcakes? ME! We decide to stop on the way back to the car. We walk on to a used baby and children's clothing store at 24th and Castro. They had wonderful things. Lots of nice, clean, gently used baby things. While walking back to the car we had to pass by temptation island again, Noe Valley Bakery! We drooled while looking in the window at all of the cupcakes and decided what we wanted and then went in. I ordered a lemon cupcake and Wendy a red velvet. We walked out with our cupcakes gently resting in a cute little bakery box and once we got to the car before pulling out of the coveted parking spot, we each grabbed our cupcakes and started munching. We said nothing, silence in the best thing in moments like this. There are no words, really. My lemon cupcake was filled with lemon schmoo, like the bottom layer of a lemon meringue pie. The tartness of the filling mixed with the sweetness of the cake was such a wondering combo. On top there was a yellow butter cream frosting (not my favorite) with a little bumble bee with almond sliver wings. What a nice treat. Wendy wolfed hers down and while I was eating the last bite of mine she started gathering crumbs of mine off my pant leg and eating them! It was so funny! We started driving over to the next used children's clothing store in Bernal and Wendy pulled down the vanity mirror in my Jeep and noticed that she had red stuff on her face! It was from the tiny red dot on top of the cream cheese frosting that topped her cupcake. It was really funny because it was the smallest red dot and it just seemed to spread when it touched her face.

We made our way to the shop in Bernal Heights and it had a TON of clothing and great prices! I got some really cute stuff!

After our shopping excursion, we went back to my house and hung out and Brent came by at 5:00 and the four of us went to Moss Beach Distillery for dinner http://www.mossbeachdistillery.com/. It was pretty nice. We had a table right by the window so we could see the ocean. The menu was really appealing which made it hard to order. The food was good, the company was better! I wanted to go there because of all the hype about it being haunted. They actually have the place wired. When you are in the ladies room and look in the mirror the face of the ghost woman appears and disappears. It is pretty funny. I don't think I would go back there, but it was a fun night out on the ocean. I prefer the setting and live music at the brewery.

I cant believe it took me almost a week to complete this posting.

I keep saying I am going to get better, but that keeps going down the toilet.

Stay Tuned!