Category Archives: Ramblings

Signs of Summer

As the weather warms up, so does my craving for fresh produce.  I swear I could live on the strawberries alone, so sifting through our shots from the Solvang Farmer’s Market has my mouth watering.

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On Running With Abandon and the Death of Micah True

While driving home on Friday, I was struck by the sad news that Micah True (or “Caballo Blanco,” the central figure in the story I lauded just weeks ago) had died. The news hit me hard, because I had truly been so inspired by his life and his love of running. I was a little late to the news and, sadly, it seems I was a little late to his story… but I will be forever changed for having known and cared about this person who I never met… and, maybe, that is because I will be forever changed for having become a runner.

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Happy Valentines Day

Photo: Plum Pretty Sugar

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Sticking with love…

“I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.”
~Martin Luther King, Jr.

Photo: Time

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I hope you’re ready, 2012…

… I have a lot of plans for you.

Photo: Sparkle and Rain

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Merry Christmas!

… and a Happy New Year!

Thank you for all of your support in this first year of A Thousand Threads.  I could never have imagined how many wonderful friends I would make as a result of this little blog.  2011 has been an amazing year in every way… which makes me all the more excited for 2012!

I’ll see you all back here then.

xoxo Laicie

Photo: Remodelista

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Christmas Tradition

Rock N’ Roll Bride

When I was a little girl, Christmas was all about tradition.  The holidays were always the same.

On Christmas Eve, we would get all dolled up and go to my grandparents’ house, where it would already smell delicious.  With Grandma’s dip on the table and Grandpa’s Singapore Slings on the way, we would always leave an hour or so to catch up with family before dinner, torture when I was particularly young and couldn’t take my eye off of the presents in the next room.

Dinner was shrimp louie, clam chowder, bread and plenty of wine… and it was never rushed.  It wasn’t a traditional meal, but we were from the coast and my grandmother made the best clam chowder in the world.

Eventually, after no small amount of begging on my part, we would move to the next room for presents.

This was the best, but not just because there were presents involved.  It was best because it took hours, each person taking their turn in a single chair at the front of the room, opening a single present, until the huge pile was gone.

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Welcome Back!

Carter & Cook Event Co.

We had an action-packed holiday break.  It may have started out a little hectic (with loads of holiday traffic and a little late-night pie baking) but it was all worth it the next day.  Dinner was delicious and I was actually kind of proud of my pies — particularly the pumpkin.

I made a simple graham cracker crust and filled it with Paula Deen’s super-amazing filling (two words: cream cheese) then I topped the whole thing with a generous helping of whipping cream and a little dusting of cinnamon.  It was pretty and (thanks to Paula) super good.  I wish I had a picture, but you’ll just have to trust me — I think I’ll be sticking with this particular recipe for future holiday goodness.

We had a nice early Thanksgiving dinner, complete with a Singapore Sling, and spent a cozy, relaxing day recovering at home.  The next morning we managed to wake up nice and early for a short run (success!) and headed to Morgantown, WV to meet up with friends and celebrate the 116-year-old backyard brawl (WVU vs. Pitt).  The best news of the night is very much a toss-up between the WVU win and the deliciousness that is the cheese sticks at the Beanery.

The next day Mark showed me around his old campus and we visited the breathtaking overlook at Coopers Rock… then squeezed in a little more football (on the radio this time — because there is no way we could miss civil war) then realized on the way home that our very favorite pie shop ever, located in Hancock, MD and previously called Hepburn’s, has reopened.  It has a new owner and a new look – no more big red barn boo – but the same baker!!  We brought home a drool-worthy lemon crunch pie and proceeded to eat way too much… again.

Sunday brought a longer run that (try as it might) won’t begin to make up for the oh-so-serious amount of eating we did, but might do a little to help us train for the marathon we signed up for a couple of weeks ago (because we weren’t busy enough).

But most of all Sunday brought the first bits of Christmas to our home.  We haven’t gone to pick out a tree, but two tiny little reindeer have made themselves comfortable on our dining room table.  Next, we’ll need the perfect wreath for the door and one of the many gorgeous advent calendars I’m currently coveting… I might even try a button garland like the one above.

I can’t wait to finish up our decorating, bake holiday treats, wrap presents and watch Love Actually.  My Pinterest is already beginning to fill… Christmas is here!

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Friday Link Love

Glen Proebstel

Okay, I don’t know if this is hitting anyone else like a ton of bricks… but Thanksgiving is oh, about six days away.  Somehow it really managed to sneak up on me this year.  I’m not sure how.  My Pinterest is already beginning to fill with trees and lights and wrapping paper… but somehow it still feels like October.  Somewhere in between the emails and ideas and eBay purchases (all for the wedding) I forgot to prepare for the holidays.

Which is not to say that I’m not ready to bake some pies (my meager contribution to this year’s dinner) but more to say that, mentally, I’m not sure I’m ready for it to be Thanksgiving.

When I was young, Thanksgiving was always an event.  Family came from out of town and my grandparents welcomed them with a warm home and a huge meal.  We dressed up, we caught up, the adults drank singapore slings (silly, but my grandpa makes an amazing singapore sling — in a fashion that looks much less like the Caribbean and much more like the holidays — and it’s one of my most cherished traditions).

Since I left home, Thanksgiving has somehow managed to slip farther and farther from the agenda.  My family is spread all over the country, and my sister has a large family of her own.  Since the holiday break is a short one we don’t usually travel, and everyone ends up celebrating in their own separate way.  Sadly, because of this, a lot of the sentiment is lost.

We still have a celebration.  Mark’s family live close by.  Their home is warm and they always have a huge, delicious meal… none of that has changed.  But I miss my family the most this time of year.

My mom mentioned that we might need to think of a new tradition that brings us all together… and I think she’s right.  This needs to be done.  Had Thanksgiving not been so sneaky this year, creeping up behind me like that, I might have managed to brainstorm a few ideas already… but, not so much.

Any creative solutions you employ to get your own family together for the holidays?  Or have you settled into your own unique traditions?

If you still live close, give your mom a big hug for me at Thanksgiving this year, and don’t forget to take the time to appreciate just how lucky you are.

Here are a few things I’m loving…

Like I said, I’ve given in to the Christmas bug… come on, it’s only one week early, and look at these.  They are amazing.

I want to go to the Portland Bazaar — and if you do, I hope you’ll tell me all about it.  I want to live vicariously.

Great advice on blogging from Kat.

This chair, after… yes please.

Necessary.

Do you know how beautiful you would look on my feet?

Super cute and easy DIY glittered flatware.

Speaking of Thanksgiving.

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Time Management

Hyperbole and a Half

So, right now I should be:

1)   Cleaning my house.
2)   Writing a reaction to today’s Washington Post story on Iran.
3)   Responding to emails.
4)   Reading emails.
5)   Finding and booking vendors I have left to book.
6)   Showering.

Not to mention the long list of much bigger tasks on my to-do list: writing a book, learning a language… that guitar under the bed?

The list is long, but it has always been long and that’s okay.  I have a lot of goals for myself, and that’s a good thing.  Unfortunately, it also means I’m busy about one hundred and two percent of the time — pre-wedding planning.

To be honest, I’m not quite sure I realized the amount of time wedding planning would manage to suck out of the day to day.  So, for the first time (probably ever – I actually used to think I was pretty good at this) I find myself examining lists of time (and stress) management techniques… looking for a little help.

I imagine this topic is universal to a lot of brides… but it’s funny.  When I Google “time management and weddings,” all I seem to find is a grouping of checklists and possible schedules… and let me tell you, the last thing I need is another checklist.

I am fully aware of the long list of things that I still need to make a decision on.

No.  What I need are those real, time-tested, techniques that every college and university seems to have its own personalized copy of for incoming students… except, different…

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