Overdue Update

My, my! Where has the time gone? We've been so busy lately with a lot of exciting happenings.

1. We closed on the house! We became official home owners on Thursday March 15 at 9:30am. As big of a deal as it is, we really just handed over a (large) check and signed or initialed a big stack of papers. I think it will feel real this Friday when we can actually start moving in.

2. Alex Trebek! Chris took the online Jeopardy! test a few weeks ago and recently got an email invitation to Philadelphia to take part in the second round of auditions. He's been studying like crazy (well, as much as he can in between packing and March Madness games) and will road trip to the audition on March 27.

3. Sister! My beloved sis comes to visit for a week at Easter and I can hardly wait. There's definitely plenty to do before she comes -- along with unpacking I really would like to get a porch swing and have it set up before she arrives. Eeee!

Making Matches

It's been my goal this semester in ceramics to make matching sets -- measuring out equal weights of clay, shaping each piece to look like the last, and glazing in coordinating colors. Nothing has matched perfectly yet but I have a lovely little set of similar looking pieces. These are going to be small nesting bowls or kitchen ramekins.

One Month!

Exactly one month until my best sister arrives in Richmond for nearly a week! I think about it every day. Eeee!
(This is us in 2009 when she visited Ithaca, NY)

Field Trip

There's a mummy exhibit at the VMFA with a 3D movie and amazing 3D glasses. Need I say more?

Roller Derby

Ever since Ellen Page starred in Whip It I've wanted to see a local roller derby bout. Last week a Groupon popped up for the River City Rollergirls' season opener at the Richmond Convention Center. We decided to get a refresher on roller derby rules by watching Whip It again (because movies translate directly to reality, right?) but it actually helped a lot in figuring out how to identify the blockers/ pivots/ jammers, exactly what a jam is, and ways teams can score points. (You can read about it here.)

Poe's Punishers (one of the Richmond teams) slammed the Charlottesville Derby Dames with a final score of 186-100. Even though Ellen Page and Kristen Wiig weren't on the track, it was still really exciting the see the heavily tattooed gals in fishnets ramming into each other on old school roller skates. They even have clever don't-mess-with-me names like Traumagotchi, KGBeast, and Rude McSlamahan.

Mates of State

A week ago, in rare form, I decided to google a local news website. Local news kind of scares me, but I wanted to be informed of any pertinent crime since I was headed to a dicey neighborhood later that day for work. I never did find the crime stats because I noticed a plug for Mates of State -- a band I really took a liking to about four years ago -- doing a show in Richmond that night. They played a lot from their old albums (my favorite is Rearrange Us) and infused it with songs from Mountaintops, their latest. It was the perfect surprise for what would have otherwise been a mundane Monday night. You can listen to a sampling of their tunes here.

20 x 200

If I can't spend my day making art, I'd like to spend it surrounded by some. That's the idea of 20 x 200...

(limited editions × low prices)
+ the internet 
= art for everyone

There are tons of prints to choose from in varied sizes and prices (and easily Googled promo codes!). I saw this untitled print a year or two ago and I kept going back to it in my mind. With a potential new house on the horizon, I checked to see if it was still available and ordered an 11 x 14 print this afternoon.

To me it says, "today is going to be a good one."

Wednesday

Some days you just need a giant cinnamon roll the size of your face. 

To share, of course.
Lucky coworkers.

Happy Hearts

[Image via Kate Miss]

We've never really done much for Valentine's Day, but I don't mind it. Some people get carried away with all of the hype, and others just as carried away with the anti-hype. I'd love to wake up to these lovely ranunculus and a sweet note just as much as a fancy dinner out.

On Our Way

[image via Hilda Grahnat]

Well folks, I can gladly report that this house's inspection is a lot easier to swallow than the last! With a new roof, we'll be in business. Negotiations and estimates are happening this week, so by Friday we should have a good idea of where we stand. In the meantime, I'm trying to hold back on scouring the internet for house-y purchases and instead spend my time browsing resources like Design*Sponge At Home, Domino, and Pinterest.