Two Years

Hello there! You are now reading the blog of a woman who has been married for TWO years. Woo!

This past week, Russ and I took a trip to Seattle and Portland for our anniversary. It was basically a foodie trip since most of the activities on our itinerary involved eating. No complaints here. We had lots of oysters and fresh fish. Mmm.

Seattle affirmed that I am not made for cold weather. Seattle weathermen claimed they were having one of the "warmest" days yet this year--the same day I went out and bought a scarf. However, we were lucky enough to not get rain since we were doing a lot of walking.

Here's some pictures from our anniversary:

Space Needle

Anniversary Dinner

We did lots of the touristy things: Pike Place Market, library (my favorite), Space Needle, Gum Wall, etc.

Gum Wall was actually pretty gross. It's interesting to look at in pictures but not fun to walk by. 

The first thing Russell said when he looked out the plane window as we landed in Seattle was, "Trees!". Everything was green. I forget what it's like to live in a state where there isn't a drought. There were lots of pretty flowers and lots of bouquets sold at low prices. 

We also visited the EMP museum for a couple hours. Lots of fun and opportunities to be silly:

We took a day in our trip to do a day trip to Portland. We hopped on a train and 3.5 hours later, we were in another city and state. (Again, California fails me. Russ and I jump in a car, drive 8 hours, and are still in the same state. I must've complain though. SoCal offer me the best climate and location combination my body can deal with.)

In Portland, we ate more food. And bought an iPad. And books. And did lots of shopping. That's what happens when we visit a place that has no sales tax: we eat and shop.

Yummy cheese board before our dinner in Portland

Since we did a lot of packing and moving recently, taking a break and going on this trip was good for us. I enjoyed lots of quality time while eating and exploring.

I can't believe it's been two years. Before our anniversary, I kept saying "our first anniversary" because it hasn't felt like two years. I love being married. Russell, here's to two years and many more to come! Can't wait to see what this next year brings.

Finished Weave

I finished my first hand weave on my handmade loom.

Not sure what I'm going to do with it yet, but look at the textures!

Pretty Things & Hobbies

After living in Carlsbad for a year, we finally made it to The Carlsbad Flower Fields. They only open for a couple months every year and we had missed it last year. So glad we got to walk through the colorful fields before we move away from this beautiful city.

“The earth laughs in flowers.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson 

Since I work from home, I've picked up a few hobbies. That's not right. I've picked up a lot of hobbies. And most of them useless and random.

Left: crochet; Right: hand weaving

I've gotten really good at crocheting flowers! I'm trying to learn how to crochet other kinds of flowers but it's taking some time. So instead, I've been crocheting the same flower over and over again but in different yarn thickness and/or color.

Did you know that looms and wall tapestries are back in? Oh, the things I learn from spending too much time on Etsy. Anyways, it's back in but I don't have the money or the skill to actually weave a full-blown tapestry with a full sized loom. I opted for making my own handheld loom with cardboard and yarn. Surprisingly, it's very fun. I'm liking it. Once I finish my first woven...thing, I'll post it.

I haven't done too much yet on my new old sewing machine since knowing myself well, once I start on that I'll be obsessed. I'm trying to finish up random house projects before I tackle a new one. Thinking it over, it's probably a good idea to hold off on sewing until we move into our new home and then I can go crazy with making pillow cases and curtains. Although, Russell did ask that I use my new machine to sew shut the holes in his pants pockets.

We've gotten a couple more orders on our Etsy shop and that has been keeping Russell busy. It's been a creative mess at the Henry household. I fear for our future home. We're going to have so many random things.

Until next time!

Easter Weekend

You guys, I had one of the best Easter weekends. I can't stop smiling about it. Russell and I drove up to Oroville on Friday night to spend time with his family and drove back to Orange County on Sunday afternoon.

The week before Easter had been a stressful week. Between work, packing, worrying -- my body signaled its unhappiness with me. Lots of back and neck pain. On the drive up to Oroville, Russell had to exit and pull over for awhile because I got the worse headache ever.

However, pulling over to the side of the road around 3 AM ended up being perfect because little did we know, there was a blood lunar eclipse happening! I remember looking up (because my neck hurt and I was trying to stretch it) and pointing out the moon to Russell and how red it was. Later, I saw a news article about it being one of the shortest blood moon total eclipse. Around this time, we were in the middle of nowhere (Bakersfield), at the side of the road off a highway, where no city lights canceled out the stars. I think we stood at one of the best views. It was beautiful.

We stayed with Russell's mom in Oroville and she gave me her sewing machine she received when she was 9. It was her first ever sewing machine and I felt so special when she gave it to me. This machine was made in the 50s and is still in great condition. She taught me the basics of sewing and now I am excited to practice. Hello pillow cases and curtains!

She also gave me some pretty cool outfits from the 50s. Just in time because high-waisted skirts and crop tops are coming back again.

On Easter Sunday, we attended their church, sang hymns, and put flowers on the cross (which I had never done before. Oroville has some of the best wildflowers I've ever seen and everyone put their own flower on the cross. The end result was beautiful. I wish I took a picture - so just take my word for it). We had Easter lunch in Russell's uncle's house where we quickly caught up with his relatives, some of the best people you could ever meet.

Russell's grandma found out Russell and I don't own a TV and I think she felt bad for us. She insisted we take her old extra TV she had lying around in her storage shed. Friends, this was such a sweet gesture and what she gave us made me smile so much that of course we had to take the TV:

Straight from the 80s

It only plays in black and white. It's fairly small and its screen is not even as big as my laptop screen. It even contains a contrast setting on the back of the TV as well as a built-in antennae! After receiving this gift from Grandma, I am smitten with it. We are planning to get it working. I mean, if we are going to have a TV in our house, this TV would be it. How amazing is this? Come watch the game at our place, guys!

I came home feeling so blessed after this weekend. Grandma even insisted we take some plants from her greenhouse so we now have a roma tomato plant and a butternut squash plant. What started out as a stressful week ended with so much love and happiness.