Busy busy bee!

Hello there! My apologies for the delays in posting... it has been a busy month indeed! For two people who generally like to hang in and relax (or nonstop watch The Wire...you know), we hosted 2 different dinners at our apartment, I had three new team members join my unit, I went to a Valentine's Pastry Market, B and I saw Deerhoof in concert, we filed our taxes, we celebrated the birthdays of good friends, we had B's parents over for dinner, I went to an incredible Ladies Night Out, and I baked a trial cake for T-dubs 1st birthday. That may not seem like a lot to some of you, but for us, that was jam packed! As busy as it was, it was delightful none the less.

Speaking of delights, one of the many delectable things I got to sample at the Valentine's Pastry Market was Katherine-Anne's Confections - specifically, her chocolate-covered-honey-vanilla-CARAMELS. Sweet baby Jesus, these were sprinkled with a little Fleur de Sel and the most incredible chocolate-covered-caramels that I have ever eaten. I bought a box for myself and told B he bought them for me, for Valentine's day. He was pleased with the arrangement. I was pleased that I got to indulge in these delights for the next couple of days. I cannot wait to get my hands on some more!

This is a picture I grabbed off her website of the assorted caramels; this isn't what the chocolate covered ones look like. I bet these are utterly delicious, too!

 Seeing Deerhoof perform live was another major highlight of our winter. They played at the Bottom Lounge, which I had never been to before, and was very impressed with the venue! Deerhoof, as always, was incredible. Hearing them (and watching them) play live is like nothing I've ever experienced - they're so electric, their music is so much larger-than-life, it's as if they fill everyone up with their energy and the room just explodes. Really, if you get the opportunity to see them live - GO.


On a different note, I'm going to work on posting more often/almost daily. This was one of my major goals in having a blog, but I've been feeling very shy when it comes to writing something. What do I have to say? What does what I'm writing about say about me? -- I'm going to try and lighten up a little and just post, and then when I begin to find a theme, or discover something that I'm really passionate about, I'll take it from there. Okay? Does that work for you? Great. ;) Goal #2 would be to comment more on the blogs that I'm reading daily. I feel like it's been a one-sided relationship, where I know so much about them, but I'm not communicating to them. Maybe that's a weird way of looking at things, but I know that I love it when someone comments on something I've written about.


Preview for tomorrow's post: A trial Monkey Cake for T-Dubs 1st birthday!!

Being Content but Dreaming Big

One of the reasons I started this blog was to help me figure out "what's next." At the beginning of 2010 I knew I wanted to do two things: graduate from school, and get married.

Granted, I had technically just graduated that December (2009), but I graduated early, and in Vocal Performance that's almost unheard of (side note: I wasn't trying to graduate on purpose, I just happened to take a lot of classes/overload during my freshman and sophomore years, and when I realized my junior year that I could complete a semester early and thus save a little money, I decided to work my ass off and do just that. I faced a lot of obstacles and had to petition (what felt like) everything I did [there was also a mix-up with the graduation program, cap and gown information; they still had me down for a May graduation even though I filed for December, so I found out three days before the ceremony that I couldn't walk. I was upset at the time, but now I don't even think about it]) so until I got my diploma in the mail, I did not consider myself a graduate.

At the beginning of 2010 I didn't think much about life after getting married - not that I wasn't concerned with my future, it simply wasn't the focus of my time and mental energy (pulling off a wedding with some crazy family dynamics while living 1,000 miles away took up the majority of those categories). I knew that I had a job as a nanny for at least a year, and hoped that B would be able to get a full-time job (which he did!), and knew that we'd live happily ever after. I didn't anticipate feeling anxious that I didn't know what I wanted to 'be when I grew up', or feeling frustrated that I couldn't tell what my 'big life passions' were. I just felt depressed, lost, in a seemingly never-ending fog.

I was lucky that B understood what I was (am) going through, as he went through his 'existential crisis,' if you will, a few years ago. His support, love, and challenges to remain content yet continue being creative have helped me immeasurably. Another thing that has helped me has been the blog Makeunder My Life, written by Jess Constable (here in Chicago!!). I've been recently introduced to her blog through one of the other blogs I read, and have been in love since the first post I came across. I felt like she was talking right to me about me! She has a page dedicated to the Best of MML and it was there when I found 'the post.' I was glazing over the post titles when I saw "What to do when you don't know your purpose yet." ! ! !  People actually talk about this?! I'm not the Only One?!!! Click on the link to get the full idea of what Jess is talking about, but in a few words at the top of the post it says "When you find yourself  lost in the dark...start feeling around." I LOVED that! The whole post I just kept saying "Yes! Yes! Yes!" to myself! It was exactly what I needed to hear. Listen to your gut, pay attention to yourself and what you're feeling, and be okay with waiting for the answer. I felt like she was saying "Yes, Sarah, you are in a time of transition in your life and it's okay to be waiting right now. Keep feeling around in the dark, and eventually the answer will come, and everything will be brought to light." And that, my friends, felt so good.

Check out Jess' blog, and also her incredible jewelery business Jess LC. She has no idea I'm writing this (or have any idea who I am. That's a little creepy, when you come to think about it, but hopefully she won't think that), so obviously I'm not being compensated to write a thing. I just wanted to pass it along so if someone else is stuck in a life rut, they know they're not alone and there are genuinely good people out there who want to help them, like Jess.

To close, I want to showcase one of Jess' necklaces that I am OBSESSING over:

It's from her Franklin collection, and it is Braille for 'Dream Bigger.' You can find the necklace and product info here.

A more formal introduction

Perhaps not 'formal' formal, per say, but just a little bit more about who I am and my little world here.

I'm Sarah, and I was married this past May to my darling B. We added to our little family a couple months after that by adopting our adorable and eccentric cat Rowsdower. To learn more about her quirky name and how to pronounce it, click here. Yes, we named our petite tuxedo cat after a burly Canadian man, but we have to say, it fits! She's such a funny little cat; she loves to lick you like a dog, especially when you pet her, she will come when called, and she loves to engage in conversation. Maybe one day we'll get it on video and I'll share it here. For now, here's a picture of her sleeping belly-up.

I went to college for music, majoring in Vocal Performance, but I haven't done a whole lot of it since then, and it's been a welcomed break. Music will always be a huge part of my life, but it's been nice to slow down and learn something different. By day, I'm a nanny for two wonderful families in my neighborhood. I am truly, truly lucky. You may hear me mention T-dubs and Little Miss here and there, as they provide great entertainment and are the most precious children. Here's a little peek of what I get to enjoy every day:

B is a writer, and a fantastic one at that. We received the news last week that three of his pieces will be published soon! They will be his first articles and stories to be published, and we are very excited and proud.

Rows, B and myself live in a quaint little corner apartment in a tucked-away neighborhood in northern Chicago. We feel lucky to have such an incredible location, but there are a bunch of little things about it that make living there not the most desirable. There's about 8 or 9 layers deep of paint (even on the door nobs and and security chain) that have begun to peel and crack as the old building settles more into it's foundation. We also have an oven that's about 30 years past it's prime and never holds a steady temperature (only mildly aggravating to an amateur baker). So this spring we will begin the hunt for a new abode. We would like to stay in our neighborhood (even on the same street - ridiculous, I know) but upgrade a bit in terms of, well, everything. Newer or recently renovated...you know the drill. We want to find somewhere that we can settle in for the next couple of years. I'd like to be able to have more freedom to decorate, paint and potentially change cosmetic things, so we'll see! I'll keep you updated when we start the search.

I'll leave you with a picture I adore, courtesy of Little Girl, Big City (a fantastic blog/tumblr, which I highly recommend visiting). I wish this was where I awoke this morning, but alas, I did not.

xx,

svl

Well hello there! First post.

Hello, blog! I've been thinking about you for quite some time, and I'm really glad you're finally here.

Today we had a 'snow day' in Chicago, so I was able to sleep in a little before heading over to T-dubs for a little playtime. There was a lot more snow out there than I anticipated, and it ended up being quite the workout just getting there.

I'm excited for this little blog to grow and develop, as I find my voice and discover what it is that keeps me writing. I don't have any specific purpose in mind for you, but I am quite fond of baking, interior design, and dabble a little with the world of fashion (or, rather, I am inspired by it).

I hope to cultivate a place where one can come to know me more, and I can know myself more, and be inspired and find lovely things in the everyday.

Thanks for stopping by!

xx,

svl

ps: I know this photo is Not very lovely at all, but this is what the outside of our apartment looked like as of this afternoon! So much snow!