doings | martha stewart wedding party

I was flipping through Martha Stewart Weddings a few months ago, because, well because WEDDINGS, and saw an ad for the Martha Stewart Wedding Party.  It looked fabulous, so I checked it out and was overjoyed to see that it was a fancy bridal show put on by the brilliant folks over at Martha and it was coming to the Ritz Chicago!  

Walking in, we passed Lauren Conrad, which was funny and unexpected.  I knew that she was coming, but I wasn't expecting her to walk past looking EXACTLY like herself.  That girl is a master of the personal uniform, and it's always perfect on her!  (I did not have the chance to tell her my thoughts on her recent Cinderella collaboration.)

 I was so inspired by this booth with the all-green tissue flower backdrop.  In fact, I came away from the show just dying to make an over-the-top backdrop.  Is anyone of need???

What would a bridal show be without china and linens?  It was so proper and lovely, wedding china is my favorite.  We checked out some beautiful new designs and chatted with the lady from the department store.  Talk about a delightful job to have!

I had checked my instagram the night before and saw that Darcy Miller (editor of Martha Stewart Weddings Magazine) had posted a photo of Intelligentsia coffee.  It took this fan girl approximately 0.03 seconds to realize that she was in Chicago and most likely going to be at the show.  I may have had a moment.  Okay, I totally had a few moments, and then again when I saw her in person.  Right after I'd popped a chocolate cupcake in my mouth, there she was, looking like the darlin'est thing I've ever seen, mingling around in her platform heels.  It was too much pressure, I couldn't think of anything witty (I'm a huge fan!) and then she was gone.  I didn't get the chance to say hello, it was a bummer.

We left with the best swag bags I've ever seen!  Magazines, earrings, note cards, sugar cookies, tea towels.  Fabulous!  But not before a lesson in boutonniere pinning!  Apparently the secret it placing it at a "rakish" angle and then pinning behind the lapel.  Now we know.

The entire show was fabulous, we sampled food and tons of cake, a live band kept the place hopping and all of the vendors were so nice.  We kept getting asked, "who's the bride?!?" to which Brooke and I would both point to Emily and say "she is!".  Haha!  I'm sure she loved that.

I'm hoping they choose to host this wonderful show in Chicago again, as a sometime wedding planner and wedding cake enthusiast, you can't keep me away from these things!

doings | crossfit foundations

I just completed my first 5 Crossfit classes.

After hearing so many mixed reviews of Crossfit, all of them falling into one of two categories, either "I love it!" or "Those people are crazy", I entertained the idea for a few months.  I'm a "calculated risk taker" kind of girl.  And very unathletic.  But after doing some not-so-sneaky research and listening to my brothers talk about it non stop, I decided I was going to sign up for the 5-night Foundations class (if there is one thing I learned through my scuba diving ordeal, it is, try before you buy).  I figured that 5 classes weren't going to kill me and I was really hoping that I'd love it and leave with a new hobby.

Walking in the door that first night was absolutely terrifying.  Actually, walking in the door EVERY night was terrifying.  The smell of rubber mats, sweat and fear met me.  Across the room, there was a man doing pushups.  While standing on his head.  The owner walked over and introduced himself and said "don't worry about him, he's just cooling down over there".  Of course.  The rest of my class arrived and we began with a warm up that was something like wrapping my one leg around my neck three times, doing a lunge with the other leg and then having to find my elbows and put them flat on the ground.  Our coach looked like he was chilling on the beach and my legs were a quivering mess.

Then we moved onto our basic Crossfit moves.  We spent 45 minutes going over the proper form of for pullups, burpees and pushups.  I was exhausted.  Mentally I'm thinking "you've got this Abbe, they'll probably have us do 5 more, 10 at the most and then let us cool down and go home".  Probably.  Then the coach says "okay, now were going to move onto what we call a WOD or Workout Of the Day".  Hello?!?  If that wasn't a workout, then what did we just do?  Let me tell you, our WOD included a few more than 10 MORE burpees among other delightful things, like pull-ups.

That was the first night.  The other nights included squats, crunches, ring dips and the alphabet soup code that make up Crossfit exercises names.  The coaches did an incredible job of making sure that we got all of the movements correct so that we will be able to perform the exercises quickly without hurting ourselves.  I had no idea I was so uncoordinated!  I, however, was not surprised at my fitness level.  This occasional jogger is really out of shape.

One night found me sprawled on the ground, forehead to the floor, 2 seconds away from crying my eyes out, because I couldn't do a pushup or even a modified pushup because my kneecaps were so bruised from burpees the night before.  It was a low point.  That night I saw a little bit of why people love Crossfit, I was the last one to finish the WOD, the last 10 pushups weren't happening and everyone got back down on the floor and did those pushups with me.  (it was really beautiful y'all)

I finished the course and while I'm not totally in love with it, there must be a slight affection in my heart because I signed up for the next 3 months of classes.  I'm also pretty sure that I signed something last night that said I'd look like a supermodel in 3 months or my money back.  That line was definitely in the contract. Haha!  With workouts this intense, it had better do something.

Working through all of that fear and physical exhaustion was such a good experience for me.  I'm not the type of person to exercise hard on my own, and having coaches that push me is great.  My brothers have also been supportive, in their own sweet little ways.  Dan and I have the same mobility issues and he reminds me everyday that I'm not an expert in all things Crossfit (what?!?).  The best part is talking about it when you're done, having someone to commiserate with when it hurts to walk up the stairs.  I told him that he was welcome to order me pink lifting gloves for Christmas.  He said he was in no way going to enabling me to be that much of a wimp.

And that is precisely the kind of support that I'm talking about.

doings | a little bit of a lot of things

As I mentioned before, I took a little break.  November was a good time for me to attempt to relax a bit.  I reread one of my favorite novels, traveled, spent less time on my phone, did some writing.  It was great!  Not instagramming has left me with a collection of delightful little things that have happened over the past month, and because I'm usually terrible about going back and blogging things,  here are a few snapshots of what I've been up to.  Some of these photos will probably be expounded on in later blog posts (probably... haha!)

Chasing fall in North Carolina...  The last few days of gorgeous colors!

Oh, and I got to see my best chum Anna for a few days!

While up in the air, I flipped open my American Airlines magazine and saw this article.  While in Normandy last June, I had the pleasure of meeting these men and their group from the AirPower Foundation in a tiny restaurant one night.  Americans have a way of attracting other Americans.  It's because we're all loud.  Ahem.  It was such a memorable experience, Captain Frank Padilla, after grilling Anna & I on our motives for coming for the 70th Anniversary of DDay, presented us with commemorative coins made for the event.  If you ever want to see it, just ask, I always carry it in my purse.  Be warned, asking to see it means that you will have to endure my long winded stories.

Rita's Italian Ice in Naples, FL.  One of the best things I've ever ate!

My magazine cover came out!

After slacking off on running for about a, um, er, year... I ran the 5K Turkey Trot.  My time was decent.  At least for me, and it was the first time I've run 5k without stopping!  Races are so much fun!

This guy, however, has not been slacking off in the athletic department.  He's not a runner, but his overall fitness level from Crossfit had him placed 2nd in his age group.

Our first big snow.  And very scary road conditions.

Welcome to winter in the north.

A very simple Thanksgiving table.  I hand sharpigraphed (sharpie marker + calligraphy-ish skills) the place cards.  Next time remind me to give myself a few days to get that done.  Hand cramps!

Trimming the tree with these cute elves!  

Public Service Announcement:  both of these attractive people are single and on the twitter, 

I'm still not cool enough to hang out with the twitter crowd, but if you are, you should follow along.  @BrookeAlline and @danielrpowers

Ugly Sweater Party games!  Marshmallows and chopsticks make for a really good time!

Sweaters!

And, last but not least, the gorgeous styled shoot that I worked on with friends last march, was finally published!  You can read more about our "Wedding Brunch at the Hunt Club" on Wisconsin Bride Magazine & Kathryn Grace Photography. 

doings | gone with the wind turns seventy five

Did y'all hear the news?

Gone with the Wind had it's 75th birthday.  It's been a full 75 years since we first watched Miss Scarlett flirt with those Tarletan twins at the 12 Oaks barbecue.  75 years from the moment we cried as Atlanta burned and were convinced that tomorrow would be a new day.

And by "we", I mean, not me.  I was sadly not around for the original theater release, although my siblings might disagree with me.  They've taken to calling me "grandma" lately.  Which makes sense because I'm 92 at heart.  I was once told, by a man who recently celebrated his 99th birthday, that "you're only as old as you feel in your heart".  Bob Hope told him that.  I love Bob Hope and I do believe that 92 would be about as accurate age for me as you could guess.

Anyway, back to Miss Scarlett.

For two nights only, select theaters put this movie back on the big screen.  It was amazing to see how the quality stood up to modern movies.  After all of these years, its still a pleasure to watch the beautifully filmed scenes play out as the superb actors do their thing.  It's a timeless story of how people react when faced with difficult situations.  And one of my favorites.

I've read that most Southern women identify with either Scarlett or Melanie.  Which is funny to me, but also true.  It's not a happy book by any means, I read it cover to cover in about two weeks last winter.  All 732 pages, it was too cold outside to do anything else.  I just read and dreamed about warmer weather.  And got so very wrapped up in the drama.  Scarlett herself is a fascinating study, I just wanted so badly for her to break down, to be human, to show a bit of warmth.  But she never does.  She is so brave, but her bravery boils down to nothing but selfishness.  All of the characters really are fascinating really, sweet Melanie, wimpy Ashley,  shocking Rhett.  We all have our favorites.  My Mimi says that they are representative of the four main temperaments, which is probably another post for another day.

Tell me, did you get the chance to see this is the theater?  Have you read the book?

doings | lamplighter guild 2014

My friend Anna was the connection to Lamplighter and Mark Hamby.

She first pitched the idea of going to London to work on the recording for Lamplighter Theater early last year and I jumped at the chance to go.  A live studio recording, London, time with my best friend,     sign me up!  I attribute my love of radio drama to many long hours on the road as a child.  To this day, that trip is one of my top favorite life experiences.  So far.

You can read more about our Lamplighter Theater adventures here...

It was there that I met Mark Hamby for the first time.  He's the man behind Lamplighter Books, a company that takes rare and out of print books and republishes them in beautiful hardbound copies.  Lamplighter is also passionate about the arts and for the past four years has put on the Guild for creative disicplines.  A way for students to spend a week studying under some of the best Christian creatives around. 

I was approached with the opportunity to work on staff for this year's Guild, confirming one of my favorite theories on life "opportunity breeds opportunity" and jumped on it.  I warned everyone that I'm not a creative, I'm an organizer.  Thankfully, they seemed to accept me.  Since I live so far away from the rest of the team, I mainly kept in contact through emails and the awesome invention that is "google documents".  After about four months of student registration highs and lows, and schedule updates, it was finally time for me to fly to Upstate NY for Guild week!

The challenge of the 2014 Guild, was that, we moved our location to a breathtakingly beautiful state park (see photo above), and by doing that gave up a full hotel of attentive staff.  It became a team of about 15 taking care of about 85 students and 9 teachers.  Our jobs included transportation, shuttling students to and from 6 different housing locations, no internet or cell phone coverage, massive rainstorms and constantly changing schedules.

The first official morning of the Guild, my mom texted me at 8:42am and said "have a fun day honey! we're praying for you!".  And I just started to laugh.  I was standing in the middle of a soggy tent, while the great deluge happened only feet away from me.  My shoes had about an inch of water in them and my hair had trespassed into lioness territory.  By 8:42 that morning, I had gotten about two hours of sleep in a rustic cabin with a bathrobe and borrowed pair of Anna's socks as my only blanket, our first shuttle run was a bit less than successful due to a change of locations, because RAIN, our cafeteria tent flooded and we'd moved the tables and chairs to higher ground TWICE, and one of our teachers had a hole in his car tire.  It wasn't even 9am!

Thankfully, things started to settle from there.  It was one of the busiest weeks of my life.  I literally ran from one place to the next, got about four hours of sleep per night and forgot to eat.

The week had so many highlights for me!  Three of our teachers worked with Adventures in Odyssey, it was so much fun quizzing them on different episodes or asking them for the story behind the story for our favorite plots.  Anna and I happened to schedule things just so we would be the ones to pick up Kathy Buchanan from the airport.  Shameless we are.  But it was so much fun!  One of the perks to my job was popping in on different classes and getting to see what the students were working on.  Creative people amaze me!  I chauffeured the filmmaking class around for a few minutes and ended up in the credits of their project. (you can watch it here )

My very favorite part was the people.  Oh my goodness!  Not only the teachers and the students, but these two, Katherine and Nolan (with "tired-eyeballs Abbe" in the middle) are the ones who made the crazy long hours absolutely delightful.  They were my bosses for the week and I was just amazed at their output.  By the time I left I felt like I was saying goodbye to my family.  The whole team (about 15 total) really bonded and it was so much fun to be a part of something with such a high level of camaraderie and trust.  We're already talking about Guild 2015!

http://www.lamplighterguild.com
http://lamplighter.net/c/ 

doings | five for august

So I had about a 50% success rate for May.  Let's just lower the bar and make it a "five for august".

Deal?  Okay, here we go.

1.  Go to a drive in movie.  Seriously, right now that feels like the epitome of summery doings.

2.  Host a mini party.  I'm fully aware of the fact that I failed at this in May.  If at first you don't succeed...

3.  Attend two weddings and one corporate event.  We were invited to three weddings this month, but will miss out on one due to said corporate anniversary party that I'm organizing.  So much socializing!  But I think you know how I feel about wedding cake.

4.  Do a picture tour of my room.  And then pack all of my little things into boxes, because we're moving end of this month!

5.  Read three books.  Any recommendations?

doings | "when the game stands tall" movie

So this time it was my sister who got the email invite to attend a special movie pre-screening.

And...

Guess who she took as her guest???

It was me, guys.

I am the least athletic person is the entire world, but I love love love a good sports flick.  This one was no exception.  Brooke and I showed up at the theater and the rep from Sony said that we were probably the most dressed up people to ever attend a showing.  Haha!

As soon as I walked in I realized that everyone else in the theater was either a coach or some type of high school sports star.  We were the only ones there not in baseball shorts or a school polo.  Thankfully, they let us stay and watch the movie.  And even gave us the coolest swag bags with mini footballs, tee shirts and lots of other goodies!

The story is about a high school football team that has the longest winning streak in history.  And what happens after they lose.  I love the theme of the movie "its not about how hard you fall, its how you get back up".  It's kind of a reverse story of your average football movie, but I enjoyed the perspective of how these guys work to overcome failure.

Go see it on August 22, 2014!  Take all your people!

Details are here:  When the Game Stands Tall

doings | ten for may | recap

May isn't over yet, but I'm at the airport waiting for my next adventure to begin. Here's my recap

1. Plan and post at least one outfit photo to the blog.    Nope, didn't happen. Sorry about that. I'll try again next month. I'm just not much of a fashion blogger. 
2. Finish reading "I Married Adventure" by Osa Johnson (my new favorite!).    Yes! Read it and loved it!
3. Read one book on Winston Churchill (such a fascinating character).    About halfway through... Does visiting the War Rooms count?
4. Workout/Run three times per week.    Haha!  Oh my. Not even close, try again Abbe. 
5. Complete application process for Global Entry.    Yes. And it's a great status to have!
6. Attend opening night for Mom's Night Out - May 9th!    Yes!
7. Try four new recipes (any suggestions?).    Um... I made a few things. Nothing too blog-worthy. 
8. Continue to edit wardrobe down (I'm so inspired by this lady right now).    Yes ma'am. I bought a few things and have continued to get rid of things I don't wear or need. It feels so good!
9. Host one small party (because I just love a good party).  I was hoping to do something tiny and fancy, but no. Instead my family hosted 150+ for Memorial Day. Definitely not small!
10. Make something beautiful (my everyday goal).    Yes, I think so. Even if it's just cleaning something up, I'm in the business's of beautification. 

Not too shabby. A little over half way completed. I'm excited for June to begin!

What did you accomplish in May?

doings | ten for may | I married adventure

Meet my new favorite book.

A friend recommended this book to me.  She said it was one of her favorites and that it reminded her of an "Abbe book" and that I needed to read it.  I was instantly intrigued by the name.  I Married Adventure.  It sounded so romantic, and exciting and, well, adventurous!  I already knew I was going to love it.  Waiting for my Amazon order was pure torture, I spent the time reading anything I could find on Martin & Osa Johnson.

This book was just as incredible as she said it would be.  It's the story of a darling, plucky, 16 year old, girl who falls in love with a man who travels the whole world over.   Her husband, Martin was a filmmaker in the early 1900's and captured some of the earliest footage of headhunters and African wildlife and she not only goes along with his crazy plans, she fully embraces them.  I cried more than once as I read of her escapades, because her courage and joie de verve was so very inspiring!

At one point, Martin tells her that he's giving up his dreams of Africa and taking her home to Kansas and he's buying her a house with a picket fence.  She looks up at him and says "that's the dumbest thing you've ever said".  (Okay, I'm paraphrasing, can't find her exact quote...)  She knew that that wasn't the life for them and she loved living the adventure as much as he did.  She learned how to fly her own plane, which I might add, was painted with giraffe spots!  She shot wild animals, managed an entire camp full of men and scientists, never got seasick, hiked up mountains and still dressed for dinner.  She wrote that "it seemed to me that I owed it to Martin to look my very best no matter what the circumstances".

I love biographies because they tell the true story of someone who those who went before me.  I can see in the span of 400 pages, life, love, struggle, failures, success, happiness, and grief, a real telling of how real people lived and breathed.  You find similarities in your own life and it builds courage in your heart.  Far better than any novel.  In probably the sweetest paragraph in the book, Martin smiles and says "It's all nonsense"  "What's all nonsense?" Osa replies.  "This thing about cake.  Not being able to eat it and have it too.  We've been doing it all along."

Postnote:  Just because I'm a little crazy and did waaaay too much research.  This is the cover of her first edition book.  Isn't it gorgeous!  This book is now a prized collectors item and very spendy.  I'm on the lookout for my very own copy.

Have you read "I Married Adventure"?

doings | ten for may | approved traveler

Several weeks ago, at the suggestion of one of my best friends, I applied for the Global Entry frequent travelers program.  It allows those who regularly fly domestically or internationally to bypass long security lines and go straight to a special, shorter line and keep on walking with shoes and coat on and with liquids and laptop remaining neatly in your bag.  Like some kind of famous person.

And really, who wouldn't want to feel that special when they travel?!?

After filling out the required paperwork online and waiting for my pre-approval to come through, I was instructed to schedule my in-person interview at the airport.  Dressed in a subtle "elegant world traveler" kind of outfit (dark denim jeans, black silk blouse, pointy-toed flats and Burberry trench), I arrived at the tiny office to find it was already packed out at 9:30am.  In the morning.

Apparently half the city of Chicago thought earlier was better too.

They called my name and my personal officer (okay, so maybe he was just the officer on duty, but for the sake of my story, lets just call him that), anyways...

"Officer Lew" asked to see my personal documents. Passport?  Check.  Drivers License?  You got it.  Official letter.  Right here.  Oh, you won't be needing my PADI Scuba Diver card, original social security card, birth certificate, parents birth certificates, baby photos, or resume, today???

Not a problem, I just like to be prepared.

Then I was photographed (I do believe that he could have cared a "little" but more about how my hairs looked) and fingerprinted.  Officer Lew complimented me on my fingerprints, which may just be the strangest and also best compliment I've ever received.  He went over how the everything works and then welcomed me to the Global Entry program.

And just in time.

I leave for Europe in nine days!

doings | ten for may | mom's night out!

Mom's Night Out movie opened last night (one day early!) in most theaters across the US.  Since my mom will be traveling over Mother's Day, we (the five oldest, and obviously, most favorite, children) took her for a little pre-mother's day "mom's night out" celebration.  Haha!

I can promise you that we had a very casual low-key evening that included dinner, and a target run to pick up snacks and a home decorating magazine before the movie began.  Nothing crazy.  No lost kids, motorcycle gangs or salmonella.  Just a fun filled evening with sour gummy worms and diet coke.

I'm also happy to report that the movie was just as funny to watch the second time around.  My mom and the other moms in the audience (okay, so that was everyone... my poor brothers were the only guys there) were belly-laughing through most of it.  Go this weekend and be sure to tell me how much you love it!

Get tickets here!  http://www.momsnightoutmovie.com/theaters

doings | ten for may

Happy May Day!  I'm so excited that this month brings us closer to summer.  Here are a few things that I'm hoping to accomplish in the next four weeks...

1. Plan & post at least one outfit photo to the blog
2. Finish reading "I Married Adventure" by Osa Johnson (my new favorite!)
3. Read one book on Winston Churchill (such a fascinating character)
4. Workout/Run three times per week 
5. Complete application process for Global Entry
6. Attend opening night for Mom's Night Out - May 9th!
7. Try four new recipes (any suggestions?)
8. Continue to edit wardrobe down (I'm so inspired by this lady right now)
9. Host one small party (because I just love a good party)
10. Make something beautiful (my everyday goal)

Here's to successful endeavors!  

What's on your list for May?

doings | but mostly, wedding cake

first wedding of the year with Brooke  |  photo by my favorite Kathryn Grace

Hi!

Remember me?  I'm the one over here who claims to write a blog.

Sometimes...

The past few weeks have been busy.  My life is usually pretty quiet, and then there are those times when everything that could possibly happen, happens in the same two week span.

a tiny glimpse into our styled shoot...

The styled shoot I've been planning with friends for several months was last saturday.  I was so excited to finally see it all come together.  Our theme was "Wedding Brunch at the Hunt Club" and I "promise promise promise" there will be photos but in order to publish them there is a lag time due to exclusivity rights.  Unfortunately, when it comes to that, the stylist is at the bottom of the food chain...  I can tell you that I am so very pleased at the results and can't wait to see the sneak peek from our photographer.

celebrating a successful styled shoot with, what else, wedding cake!

My great uncle passed away last week.  It was a sad day for our family.  All ten of us kiddos were close to him and have the best memories of spending time with him over our lifetime.  He was diagnosed with cancer in January and lived exactly two months past that.  It was just enough time for him to say goodbye.  We made a special trip to Indianapolis about a month ago and even though he was very near the end, we were so blessed to be able to have one last time sitting around his hospital bed laughing as he told some more "Uncle Charlie stories"!  The man was always a nut!  And we miss him.

The next morning, Dad and I left at dark o'clock in the morning and drove up to the factory.  He had some meetings and I was helping to arrange a few things for the luncheon that afternoon.  We also brought along some friends to tour the facilities while we were busy.  And I got to spend the night at my Mimi's house, which is always a highlight.  I'm twenty five years old and I still love drinking root beer floats on her couch.

grand entrance!

I spent Friday and Saturday helping with the wedding our our dear friend Susan!  She'd asked me to be her day-of coordinator back in January and I was happy to do it.  My word did she make it easy on me!  Everything flowed along so smoothly!  Except for the poor pew decorations.  Note to self: hydrangeas are fickle, and very thirsty, arrange them the day "of" the wedding.  Even that problem was solved quickly!  Brooke helped with wedding hair and our friend Madisson, who was in town for the wedding, was a huge help to me as we worked on all of the final details!  We had the best time catching up while blowing up balloons and picking up ice and trying to remain calm.  The Lord was good to us and Neil and Susan looked so happy.  She wore her mother's wedding dress and the best cowgirl boots I've ever seen!

That's about it, weddings, a funeral, work and life in general.

But mostly, wedding cake.

Neil & Susan's delicious cake!

doings | mom's night out movie!

Several weeks ago I received a email from the folks at Provident Films asking if I'd like to attend a prescreening of their new movie "Mom's Night Out".

Um, let me think about that for a second... YES!

My friend Josh Walsh just happens to be the associate producer for this movie.  (Friends in high places, y'all!)  It was an absolute blast finally getting to see a movie I'd heard so much about!  The fact that a bunch of friends starred as extras only added to the fun.

The Erwin brothers, who also made the incredible film "October Baby, are behind "Mom's Night Out" and they did not disappoint.  I can't remember the last time I've laughed so hard during a movie!  It was that funny.  And heartwarming.  And funny.

There was even a representative from the MNO team at the theater to hand out goodie bags (yes! yes! yes!) and to emcee the evening.  She had a great sense of humor as she talked a little "behind the scenes" with us.

I absolutely loved the MNO nail file, which we were informed was NOT a tongue depressor. Haha!

Click here to watch scenes from the movie! 

And make plans to take your mom to the theater this Mothers Day weekend!

doings | happy birthday dr suess!

We love a good excuse to throw a party.

And when you have a house full of Suess fans, and the dear man has his 110th birthday, its more than a good excuse.

My sister Elle has taken it upon herself to throw a yearly birthday party for the dear, Dr Suess.  She is 13 years old and her party planning skills are already shaping up fantastically!  Elle planned the whole thing, hand-illustrated the invites, planned out the menu and decor, and created her own games (draw a "who" in two minutes and a trivia quiz, thankfully no rhyming was involved).

We had appetizers and mingled for a few minutes before the meal.  These are caprese skewers (get it? they look like his famous hat!)  We also ate goldfish crackers.  Of course!

It Poor Miss Grace is cropped out of this photo and Cal is the lone male at the table, but at least the decorations are cute!

 The centerpiece of Truffula Trees.  They're made of pompoms and sitting in a bed of truffula seeds (ahem, skittles).  I died of the cuteness!

I wish I had a full shot of the buffet.  We feasted on "roast beast" sandwiches, "one fish two fish" blue jello, brussel sprout "who hash" and had "yurtle the turtle" sundaes for dessert.

 And its the little Cal-boy.  He absolutely adore it when we throw parties.  Food everywhere!  And he can snack for hours without anyone telling him to stop.  Oh and the sugar, he's also a fan of the sweet treats that we serve.

Bravo Elle on another snappy party!

doings | yerkes observatory

I love getting the opportunity to play tourist in my own town.  And despite my best intentions to tour Yerkes Observatory, it's just never happened.  I've grown up hearing stories and wondering about this famous refracting telescope that sits on a hill overlooking the lake and decided that Saturday looked like a great day to go.

My little sisters are fascinated with stars and astronauts and such.  I figured they'd be up for an adventure.  

They absolutely were!  

I'm just plain crazy about museums, architecture and other things that most people find boring.  The three of us were practically giddy when we left the house at 9am.  The rest of our family told us to "have fun!" and rolled their eyes.  Oh we will, thank you!

The tour didn't disappoint!  Our guides were funny older gentlemen who've spent waaaay too many years here at Yerkes.  We learned all about the beginning of the observatory (lots of money & Chicago politics involved).  

And there is it, the telescope!

I affectionately call these girlies my "space cadets", even though they're actually brilliant.  The building that houses the telescope is unheated, it was a toasty 17 degrees inside, but it was worth it to be on the floor as our guide raised and lowered it for us (and whistled a sic-fi theme, bonus!).  

We stood in the very same spot that Einstein once stood.

The architecture was surprisingly ornate.  Terracotta exterior and painted plaster inside.  The pillars had celestial designs and very funny characters hidden throughout.  It reminded me a bit of Rosslyn Chapel, one of the strangest places I've ever been.  

And then we bought postcards and astronaut ice cream in the gift shop.

Because I believe in supporting great museums.  And where else are you going to find astronaut ice cream?