Friendster

So, funny little story that I don't think I've ever posted about before. My husband and I met on Friendster, which some of you may remember as the precursor to Facebook and MySpace. Hubs was studying for law school and was in the library late at night. When he signed online there was a picture of a little baby in the "Living Locally" section (which randomly pulls three photographs of people living near your zip code. He clicked on the photo, thinking "Who the hell puts their baby picture up?" And ... voila! It was me:

LONG story short, after some prodding from a friend (thank you, Miriam), I wrote him back. We started e-mailing back and forth daily for about two weeks, talked on the phone for one week, and we had our first date (after law school finals) on December 22, 2006. Ten months later we were engaged, and we've now been married for, hmmmm, NINE months! Holy smoke!

I was reminiscing today and signed onto Friendster. It's been a while. I chuckled when I read my "About me" description. Pretty spot on:

About Me:
My friends call me "the shrimp heiress". I'm pretty sure it's 45% of why my boyfriend is crazy about me. Uhm, I tend to exagerate a little, and I love telling stories! I'm a big fan of feeding animals on the side of the road (i.e. in farm yards) and my favorite smell is skunk. I think you can learn a lot about a person by forcing them to ennumerate their top 5 fave foods. I talk to my parents every day, but mostly just to put my own insanity into perspective. I'm crazy, silly in love with someone who is pretty normal and OCD. I think I bring out a wicked good side of him. I like lists ... making them and then checking things off of them. My goal for the next year is to get organized so my bo stresses less about the status of my affairs. I don't know where I would be without spell check (clearly, I did not spell check this paragraph.) I am the queen bee entertainer. I strive to be Martha Stewart. So much for the nose piercing. That lasted 5.5 months. Lame-Emily. I would do anything - abso-freakin-lutely anything - for the people I love. Top on the list: Mark, my rents, my girls, my bro ... I would be no where without them.

What inspires you?

So, it's funny how little things set me off. I saw a picture the other day in passing, and I can't stop thinking about this color combination again. I've been poking through Flickr today, and there are some fantastically inspiring photos. We might soon be (re)painting another room in our house, and I think a light teal would look beautiful with some red accents. Hubs says it's too close to the kitchen, but we'll see!

Yummy low fat Sunday dessert!

I pulled out some insanely invasive mint from the garden today, and I wanted to put it to good use! I tried this recipe from Epicurious (formerly from SELF mag, I think), and it was quick, easy and so so delicious!

Strawberry-ricotta Parfait

• 15 ounces lowfat ricotta
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon granular Splenda (or other sugar substitute, or brown sugar to taste)
• 4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced, or 1 cup frozen, sliced
• 1/4 cup packed fresh mint, chopped, plus 4 sprigs
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup crushed whole-wheat graham crackers (but, I used low fat cinnamon instead!)

Mix ricotta, vanilla and sugar in a bowl. In another bowl, mix strawberries, mint and vinegar.

Spoon 2 tablespoon ricotta mixture into the bottom of 4 parfait or iced tea glasses. Add a layer of crackers, strawberries and another layer of ricotta. Top with remaining strawberries and mint sprigs. Serve immediately or chill up to 4 hours.

Surgery day

Winifred is at the vet's today getting spayed. If I'm this worried about the pup, what am I going to be like when I'm a mum? Hubs is taking very good care of her, and even put a soft down blanket in the car for the ride home. It will be a quiet weekend just resting and making sure she doesn't proudly pull those damn stiches out!

Here she is trying out her new do:

Update: She faired well, but she is now seriously obsessed with her hot pink stitches ... Like mommy like puppy!! We have a great pick of her in her Elizabethan cone that I'll post shortly!

I did it... I baked!

...And, as I suspected, it helped! I felt energetic, enthusiastic and inspired. And it was fun and refreshing to have the night in the kitchen by myself (with the pup at my feet, of course).

I made my standard chocolate cupcake. (It's really light and airy, and it reminds me of the cupcakes we used to have as kids.)

With a bright yellow buttercream (whoa butter) frosting because I thought they looked cheery. I stole the flower idea from the Citrus blog, which I saw posted yesterday on the site formerly known as Sk*rt.

Mine aren't as cute, but I was totally improvising, and I don't think they turned out half bad!

Oh, and while I was in the kitchen I made up a pretty fantastic recipe for turkey chili with grilled corn and a little garam masala! Yumm :)

I want...

...to go to a wedding where this sign is waiting for me when I walk in:

Are you getting married in 97 degree heat too?

A while back, I discovered Bella Umbrella, and I just covet them. This might have helped on my wedding day, blocking the sun in the 97+ degree heat. I love seeing bridal pictures of the ladies with their parasols.

Here are some of my favorite. Any that you see on the site and adore that I haven't listed here? The selection is huge - and you can rent or purchase for your special day.

Help us rename SK*RT!

So, as some of you may have heard, we are renaming SK*RT. But we need your help deciding what it should be.

So, in true sk*rt fashion, we're going to host a fabulously fun great big contest -- and turn the naming decision over to you, our clever readers. We've narrowed down the name choices to a handful or so of lovely selections. All of these domain names have been purchased, or have been inquired about. But we want to hear which one you like best -- or even better, hear your own suggestions!! But be warned, this contest is SUPER SHORT and will be wrapped up by Friday at midnight PST. So vote early, vote often! On these. Or others. We can't wait to hear your favorite(s).

And, if you have a blog, help us out by spreading the word!! Talk about it with your peeps and readers. Get their opinions. sk*rt affects lots of people, their links, their technorati lovin', their thoughts about bacon. So help us get the word out. If you don't have a blog, just stand on your house and start yelling. People will hear you. And it may result in you receiving a 28-day rest in an undisclosed location. Sounds pretty good right?

The prizes are great. Check it out NOW and vote TODAY!

Laziness and boredom

Admittedly, I totally blow lately. Sorry. I've been lacking inspiration and have just been plain bored. For like three weeks now. Pathetic. So, to get back on track, I've decided to bake tonight! I'll be giving away the goodies tomorrow, because I'm trying to lose all that winter weight ... but I'll have fun pictures to post of my creations tomorrow. In the meantime, how CUTE are these cupcake decorations. I'm totally making them for my next party! You know, come to think of it, these would like awesome in your wedding colors on top of your cupcake tower!

I'm it!

I'm feeling so much blogger love lately - particularly for Aletha and Jessica. And, it looks like they are feeling a little bit for me too, because they have both recently tagged me for the always fun six-random-facts post. I'm happy to participate, and though I've posted six random things before, there is NO shortage with me! However, am I a terribe person if I don't pass the game along? Please don't hate me for it ... there are just few people I read regularly who haven't already done this.

Okay, without further ado, I hope this entertains:

1. While I love my little puppy, Winifred, I am completely obsessed with chow-chows. I had a loving and fabulous dog, Celeste (named after Babar's wife), growing up, and I hope we can get our little one a friend soon. Today, Martha posted on her blog about the passing of her beloved dog, Paw-Paw. I recently met Paw-Paw at the Martha Stewart Show, and I am slightly heartbroken today. Only visit the site if you are not a crier. I was a little weepy at work today.

2. I'm messy. My house is clean. My being is spotless. But, when completing crafts or tasks - like painting - I just get totally disgusting! Nothing a wonderful, steaming hot bath can't clean off, and unlike my husband, I'd rather just get the job done, get filthy and worry about it later!

Here are some pics from our weekend painting extravaganza!

3. My husband recently said to me, "You know how I can tell which socks are yours and which are mine? You NEVER turn yours the ride side out." As with all of my clothes, my socks go inside out into the wash. I just don't see the point in taking the time to take them off properly. Be glad there isn't a photo to accompany this one!

4. I secretly wish this had been my bridal bouquet:

5. The BEST present that I received recently was actually one that I'd previously given. My gift was such a huge hit, that my parents decided to give it back to me! And thank god they did! William Sonoma's spiced nut croissants are the best things to have in your freezer. Take a few out the night before, leave them out overnight to rise, and bake them for 20 minutes in the morning. You won't believe how incredibly flaky and delicious these things are. Well worth the money!

6. Here's my most randomest fact: A relative of mine named a cruise ship after me. The ship crashed into the Great Barrier Reef and is at the center of some huge controversy. So, if you Google my name, you get a lot of random legal documents about the "Emily Cheramie Boat." Funny, right?

Album Cover, take two

You all have been so incredibly kind in commenting on the proposed album cover, and I definitely appreciate it. Here's another option, which I think is simple and elegant, and our wedding colors! I'll definitely do a recap of my/our favorite photos shortly. I'm always more that willing to reminisce. And, thanks for indulging

me.

Anthropologie assault

One of my coworkers is wearing this jacket today. I think I might knock her out in the bathroom and steal it. I love it that much.

Wonderful Bridesmaid present (and Etsy find!)

I love the idea of giving personalized stationary to your Bridesmaids. I made everything from scratch for my wedding (save-the-dates, invitations, thank you cards galore... God, I'm so obnoxious), but many brides just simply don't have the time (I don't like sleep much). And because of that, we should be grateful to Etsy peeps like Turtle Papers (in Seattle). Their personalized items are affordable, unique, and beautiful quality.

Emily falls off the face of the planet again

I'm sorry! Things have been busy and I've been slightly lazy after days spent on the computer at work. Ms. Winifred is keeping me quite busy after work, as well, with runs in the park. Hey, at least it means mom gets a little (much needed) exercise too!

You may have noticed the Sk*rt logo in my sidebar. About two months ago I was selected as one of 21 new editors of the fabulous social media web site (through an intense - har har - application process). If you're not already familiar with Sk*rt, you're going to want to be. I get a good hour + of quality internet browsing out of the site. Rather than poke around and come up empty-handed, I'm assured good finds daily!

In addition, I have been feverishly working on our wedding album. I've finished the cover, and I'd love your thoughts. Too much?

Etsy find: ESDesigns

It's been quite at work this week and I've been distracting myself by "pouncing" a lot at Etsy. My favorite find of the day is Elizabeth Scott's jewelry. I definitely think I need a new pair of earings :)


They come beautifully packaged as well and would make a lovely surprise gift for someone.