The Weekend Wrap Up

Normally I use pictures to capture the weekend but I let a friend borrow my camera so my words are what I have to give you.

Friday night- We drove to Troy to visit Will's parents. We stopped off for dinner at Whitney and Bryant Yarbrough's house so we could meet their new son William. He is beautiful. Some babies are just cuter than others and he is one of them.

Saturday Morning- My mother and her best friend Patti brought my nieces down to the farm. If you don't know Will's family has a small zoo. They have about 15 buffalo, 30 cows, 1 donkey, 2 horses, 9 dogs, 5+ cats, 2 geese, several chickens, and an African grey parrot. Needles to say the girls were enamored by all the animals. We worked up an appetite and headed to Monarcas for lunch to celebrate Will and Frank's (his dad) birthday . Then we spent the afternoon doing our own thing. Will needed to study and I had some books I wanted to read. The Artist's Way is a book I will be posting about each Wednesday as I work through it with a friend. If anyone wants to read it with us via blogland I would enjoy hearing your thoughts.

We ended our evening with pizza and a movie.We watched Inception starring Leonardo Dicaprio. I would recommend it. I was really impressed with the creativity and the artistic talent that went into making the movie.

Sunday- We headed home so we could get back for a lunch at the church we have been attending. We have been wanting to meet more people our age and this was a chance to get more connected. It was brief but nonetheless I enjoyed the conversations that I had. We then headed to a book study that began back in November. It is called Binding the Strong Man: A Political Reading of Mark's Story of Jesus. The author, Ched Myers, re-examines Mark and challenges the American hermeneutical lens that we bring to scripture. 

Then we headed home!!! I had a great weekend but I was so tired and ready to be home on my couch doing absolutely nothing.

Handkerchief to Bonnet

You will need an ironed 10x10 handkerchief.

Fold one end an inch and then iron flat.

Use a basting stitch and stitch along the fold.

Pull the thread so it gathers and then tie the ends.

Fold the other end 3 inches and iron. 

Place the ribbon in between and tack it on.

 

A bonnet. 

Here is the poem that you put with it:

Magic Hanky

i'm just a little hanky.

As square as can be,

But with a little stitch or two,

They made a bonnet out of me.

I'll be worn from the hospital.

Or on the Christening Day;

Then I'll be carefully pressed

and neatly packed away.

For her Wedding Day,

So we've all been told,

Every well-dressed bride must have

That something old.

So what could be more fitting

Than to find little me,

A few stitches snipped,

And a Wedding Hanky I'll be !

And, if perchance it is a boy

Someday he'll surely Wed,

So to his bride he can present the hanky

Once worn upon his head.

Make sure that you don't stitch too tightly so it can easily be cut. I love this gift. A friend of our family did this for my mom when I was a baby. My mother gave me the bonnet on my wedding day and we cut it so I could use it as a handkerchief. Of course you can dress it up however your creative heart desires.

Homemade Cards

Ever since Will and I started dating back in the fall of 2008 he has given me handmade cards. On my 1st birthday we were together I received "birthday in a box". He sent me a box of everything I would need to celebrate my birthday; right down to the cupcake mix. I found the cupcake card nestled in the bottom of the box. (I freaked out I was in denial at this point)

For our first date he mailed me an invitation that gave the details of the evening to come. He designed it after a wedding invitation and even inserted a piece of tissue paper. The others are various events or holidays. It is one of my favorite things that he does. Do you have any favorite things you do for other people or that they do for you?

The one on the far left folds out accordion style, it is 

pretty impressive.

The Weekend Wrap-Up

Friday Evening- This is how our weekend started. Our closet collapsed. Boo Hiss!

We had our first ever DFC, which stands for Dialogical Film Club. I can't take credit for the creation of this group. K.J. Swanson is the founder of this discussion group. She is a friend from Seattle. She decided that watching a movie where dialog was interjected through out the movie was more fun. We would watch pop culture movies and discuss why we thought they were so appealing to our culture. Will has wanted to bring the DFC to the southeast so that is what we did. We had 10 people over on Friday and discussed Demand (from  previous post). The conversation touched on topics of porn and the overly sexualized culture we live in. Then we got into the discussion of how we found out about sex and how our parents chose to communicate about this topic. Someone else posed the question: How do you plan to talk about sex with your kids or anyone younger? 

Saturday Day- I ran errands and took some pictures. In Birmingham we have had several "You Are Beautiful" paintings pop up over town. I have passed this one multiple times and I have never had my camera with me. However on Saturday I was ready to capture its beauty.

Saturday evening we went to dinner with my brother and his wife. We ate at Sol y Luna. We had a variety of tapas and sampled a few of their signature drinks. We ended the evening at the Garage.

Sunday Morning-I got to go and hear Dr.John Perkins. He is a gifted man. He spoke about reconciliation. He has been a leader in community development for thirty years. He spoke of how capitalism has become our Christianity. He also spoke of the ways in which we as a church have segregated ourselves from each other by race and that as Christians we are to be the voice of unity. He spoke with such boldness and shared difficult truths. I believe that what he said is true of the church. We do foster capitalism, neglect the poor, condone racism, and step on others in our greed. I am not saying all churches but a large majority of churches (middle class/white churches) preach a gospel of prosperity,comfort, materialism, and gated communities.(which tend to be middle class values)

He has written several books. Let Justice Roll Down is his biography. I would recommend it, it is an excellent book. It is fascinating how a man that was harmed to his core is able to be set free of the vice of anger to love those people that have caused him such pain.

Sunday Mid-day- I went hiking at Oak Mountain with Claire. We got lost, saw owls and hawks, found the waterfall, and last but not least reenacted the log scene from Dirty Dancing.

Peavine Falls

Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Gray

We own the yellow trail.

We made our cards.The one I made is on
the left and his is on the right. You may not
know this but Will is an excellent card maker.
I will have to showcase all of his wonderful
cards on my blog. They are my favorite.

I love this sign.

Isn't it great?

Thank you to the great woman at the theater for taking this
shot.

We had a great Valentine's Day. Will took me to see Casablanca at The Alabama Theater. I have never been to the theater or seen Casablanca. The Alabama Theater was so beautiful inside. There was so much detail etched everywhere and amazing chandeliers. My camera wasn't able to catch all the architectural goodness.

 The movie was ok. I can appreciate that it is a classic and how different movies are now, but  I wasn't WOWed by it..sorry all you Casablanca fans. I love movies but I haven't seen a lot of classics. I am going to make it my mission to see more classics this year. I did recently see The Wizard of Oz.  It is amazing how many one liners there are in that movie and in Casablanca. What is you favorite classic movie?

All you Birminghamers: The Alabama Theater will have 80's at 8 on Thursdays in March. I can't wait. They are holding a contest to see who has the best 80s attire. I was made for this contest. Grab your puffy sleeve prom dress or bubble suit (if you want to go more casual) and let's go.

A Valentine For All

A little depressing that I spilled these
hearts on a trauma and recovery book.

These are my favorite: Gobstopper Hearts

I don't tend to like Valentine's Day. I think this is partly due to being single for so many years during Valentines's Day. I never seemed to be dating anyone when the holiday came around. The one year I was seeing someone they gave me soccer shorts from a thrift store and a card they had made but ended up losing before Valentine's day. Needless to say that was not my husband. It seems to me that Valentine's was possibly meant to remind people to express their love to one another. I guess my question is why do we need a day to remember the other? Shouldn't this be something that we do already? Why does this holiday have to be for those that are in romantic relationships? Why can't it be a reminder to love in general instead of exclusion. Often times this day is a stark reminder that the person we so long to have in our lives isn't there and possibly may never come. I share this as a reminder not only to show love to a spouse or partner, but to those that are single, divorced, or widowed. Sometimes it is nice to know that people have remembered you in a time when it is easy to feel forgotten. I hope love is found for all on this Valentine's Day.

The Weekend's Events

1.Friday evening we spent our time with an organization called Freedom to Thrive. Back in the fall Will, Tasia, and myself went to a showing of the documentary Demand. It discusses the reality of human trafficking in the United States and overseas. It was disturbing to hear the statistics and the stories of those that have been trafficked around the world. In an effort to learn more Will and I went to the training meeting to become film presenters. We are hoping to be able to show it this Friday night. If you live near by you are welcome to join us.

2.On Saturday I got to spend some time with Will before he headed back to school work. We walked down to Starbuck's to get some coffee and then came home and made breakfast. I really enjoy mornings where I don't have to wake up early and  be somewhere. I went to the library and picked up a copy of The Power of Now. A friend mentioned this book to me so I decided to check it out. I will let you know what I think when I start reading it. Then I took a trip to the fabric store to pick up a few things for some up coming projects. Here is one that I completed:

Molly told me about this great ornament idea. Every year when Christmas is over you cut the bottom of your tree off, drill a hole for the ribbon, and write the date on it.

3. We threw a party for Claire who turned thirty-one. The title of her party was "Making Therty-One A Derty One." It was a great success. We went to several dive bars around town to see how dirty it gets in Birmingham. We didn't get too far because we were so mesmerized by a place called Bourbon Street. It is a karaoke bar and let me tell you it was AMazing. Also Will and I dressed up to add to the "dertiness."

No Party is complete
without glow sticks...
well no 'derty' ones that is

  

The 'Derty' Couple

The Birthday Woman

Group Shot

I guess Zombie by The Cranberries
wasn't the best song to pick after all. 

A Bourbon Street staple: the Baby.
It was enough for our whole table.

Holly's 4th Birthday!

What a BIG girl. My niece turned 4 years old yesterday. She has such a spunky personality. She has no problem expressing how she feels. She also has the kindest heart. She loves to sing. Will made her a party hat for her birthday. He is her favorite. When he walks into a room she pretends he doesn't exist. He does the same until she can't take it anymore. Then she is attached to his hip as they play together. Last night she gave him twirling lessons in the kitchen. Sweet Holly we love you.

A Weekend of Fine Finds

Found this great chair at Goodwill.

Thanks to my friend Ivan who helped
me get it home.

I found these retro trivets that match
our kitchen. 

This adorable couple was married
this weekend and we found ourselves
celebrating with them...some more
than others.

Changing Appearances

I still am so new to the blog world. I originally just chose the templates that were available through blogger. As I began to discover more about "blogland" I saw all these great layouts.  I ventured into the world of mass blog templates. I really enjoy putting stuff together. I still need some tutorials because there is so much I would like to learn. (any takers out there?) As I applied all the trendy graphics I remembered this video that Will passed along to me and I thought I would share it with you. It is pretty funny and since I added a bird to my blog I thought it was only appropriate.




P.S. I am so proud of myself for figuring out how to add this video.

The Weekend's Events

                                                                                                                                                                                                

We got to hang out with this fun couple Friday night. We went to Tapped: A Food and Beer Pairing at Ted's Garage. It was cramped but we managed to get around to all the tables and sampled all the goodies. 

I bid on these two photos and won the silent auction. These were taken    by a local artist named Michelle Summers. 

                                  I got to relax on Saturday while Will studied. I made button flowers and hung some lanterns on our balcony. The weather was a cozy 65 degrees which made for a perfect day for a walk. It made me excited for all two weeks of spring that are to come.








                Cheddar-Studded Chili Turkey Burgers with Cilantro Cream by Rachel Ray. I got a Rachel Ray cookbook for my birthday. Will and I have been trying to eat healthier so we have been making nicer meals twice a week. This was last week's cooking creation.                                                                                  

On Saturday evening we got to spend time with one Christopher Barefield. We challenged him to a game of Scrabble. The game started with Chris in the lead. The first two words to be played were porn and firm. We knew it was going to be a good game. Will trailed the whole time to come back and beat both of us.While playing we enjoyed decaf coffee in our new coffee mugs from Morgan.(Will's sister)