One of my goals this year is to read more — and lucky for me, I have a few plane rides coming up. Hopefully I can squeeze a little extra in.
So tell me, what are you reading and what have you read recently that blew your mind. I’d love to have your recommendations!
The date // watch our wedding video
The food // chocolate (… that romantic of mine picked up the most amazing chocolate for us to snack on with our sparkling wine)
The drink // the last bottle of sparkling wine from our wedding
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I am so so so happy that we decided to film our wedding. Being able to go back and watch our vows… to see our smiling faces and the happiness of our family and friends. There is absolutely nothing like it.
We’re settling in for a little bit of red carpet-watching at the end of a weekend that’s gone by much too fast, but I wanted to check in for just a minute to say hello, and thank you, thank you, thank you for all of your sweet words of support on my tattoo reveal. It means so much to know I’m not alone. And as always, you guys are beyond the best.
I hope you’ve all had an amazing weekend!
Eye this amazing converted fisherman’s cottage.
Buy my dream hat.
Make a gorgeous shawl from Brooklyn Tweed.
Bake some homemade fritos.
Jenna Lyons’ cameo in the new season of Girls.
I want to want to juice too, Erin… and I love this.
With Alt coming up in just two weeks and a full plate right now, I’ve been thinking a lot about ways to get and stay organized on the go. Even though the conference will be a little bit of a vacation — I’m so excited to see everyone, attend some great parties, and learn a ton of new things — I’ll also be working hard to keep up with everything at home. Luckily, that’s something I’m used to. So I thought I’d share a few of the ways I prepare to stay organized on the go — both to remind myself, and to give you all some ideas if you happen to be looking!
// Decide which device(s) are best to take. Major project? Bring your laptop. Just keeping up & taking notes? Use a tablet with a keyboard (this is what I’ll be using at Alt thanks to Lenovo’s generous sponsorship). Do you need your Kindle or can your tablet do double duty with a Kindle app?
// Check for wi-fi on the plane, and prepare accordingly. If you don’t have it, it’s a good time to sit down and write or read that paper that’s been nagging you.
// Use a cloud. It’s the best way to keep all of your work in one place, and to access it on the go. Evernote, Dropbox, and Google Drive are great options that cost little to nothing.
// Make a list. Nobody wants to get to the airport and realize they’ve left their phone charger at home. And if you really hate packing (like me) try Packing Pro to make the lists for you!
// Make a folder. Organize all of your flight details, appointments, etc in an email or other folder on your device for easy access. TripIt is a great option for doing all of this on your device.
// Use your commuting time to work, but don’t overdo it. You still want some time to relax and take it all in. Even if it’s just a business trip, it’s an opportunity to travel. Try not to take it for granted.
// And speaking of a little bit of time to relax — download GateGuru to find the best food on your layovers. (You know I’m always thinking about the food.)
So I got a tattoo of a tree… at Christmas.
We’ll just ignore that last fact.
I may decide to decorate it if things get awkward… put a little star on top, a baby Jesus by its side…
But really though, I got a tattoo of a tree. An evergreen. The kind of tree I climbed as a kid, and the kind of tree I’d spend all of my days underneath if I could. When I moved from Oregon to California, leaving my home for the first time at 18, I cried every day… I’d never lived somewhere with so few. It was all grey, no green… and even though I came around eventually, evergreens, Oregon, the outdoors… those are the things that have taken up residence on my heart, my bones, and now on my arm.
But my decision to finally take the jump and get my first tattoo goes far beyond the tree.
For a long time now, I’ve struggled with the fear of regret, sure that any truly permanent decision would result in a lifetime of agony and remorse. With this knowledge under my skin, I lived with one eye on the exit — always with a backup plan, just in case something fell through. And in a lot of ways, especially in my professional life, I still live that way. It’s something I work on all the time — but professionally, I can’t say it’s always entirely bad.
Personally, though, is another story. Personally it’s entirely bad.
I’m so excited to be over on Lark & Linen today, posting while Jacquelyn is in South Africa!
Go there now to see all of the details on this delicious cake — I’ll just be back here, still dreaming of the smell.
I mentioned once before that as a rule, Mark and I try to do something special just for us about every week — even if that means opening a bottle of wine and watching a movie at home. It doesn’t have to be big and special, it just has to be us. So this year I thought we’d try something fun and record our dates for all of you. Maybe they’ll give you ideas, maybe it will just be a fun way for the two of us to look back and remember the year. Either way, I hope you love following along!
The date // dinner and a movie
The food // sushi and bao
The drink // sake
The movie // American Hustle
The story // You can chalk date one up to too much NPR – or just the right amount, depending on how you feel about NPR. Mark and I are both big fans, especially of the weekend programming – Car Talk, Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me, Radiolab, This American Life – and lately we’ve taken to driving just a little bit longer to hear the end of whatever program we’re listening to. Some of these shows are truly amazing and we always learn so much.
… okay this is really nerdy. But you’re with me, right?
Before we all left for the holidays, I signed up for The January Cure. For a while there I even considered participating, maybe blogging about the whole thing. And then I forgot all about it.
My first email arrived yesterday, with the first assignment: make a list of the things that need to be fixed, cleaned, and organized in each room of your house. But after a hectic Christmas and an even more hectic few months, I can’t say that the Cure looked as good in my inbox as I thought it might.
Resolutions? Sure. Plans? Yes. Dreams? Always. But right now I’m not feeling very good about checklists.
2013 was so busy, I’m left with the desire to both slow down and speed up — to focus. Focus on reading, focus on writing, focus on my health and my happiness, and focus on making this the best year yet. That doesn’t mean anything will really ease up — I’m sure I’ll still be busy. I just want to be more deliberate about the things I choose to take up the time. And, most of all, I want to be more deliberate about balancing the things that nurture my ambition with the things that nurture my soul.
I want to balance present Laicie with future Laicie, and I want to worry about the little things less.
So that piece of trim by the door that’s come undone? It can wait. The closets? They’ll get there eventually. The holiday weight? It’ll come off. But none of it has to happen this month.
January is a new start. It’s beautiful, and hopeful, and I love the freshness of it, that everything has been scrubbed clean. But that freshness will fade, and the life that takes its place won’t be perfect. It will be ours, with mistakes made and lessons learned, and it will be better every day. We will be better every day, because a lot of what makes us better will be the dirt that takes the place of the clean.
A lot of what makes life worth living rises from that dirt — just look at this guy. So who wants to be perfect? I’d so much rather be surprised.
Last year we worked on our house (a lot).
… went on adventures.
… gathered with friends.
… ate.
… reflected.
… shared our wedding.
… enjoyed a nice cool August.
… baked.
… DIYed.
… and reveled in our first year of marriage.
Despite the occasional setback, I’ve never felt more lucky than I did in 2013 – and do right now – so I can’t wait to see what this new year has in store!
Did you have a good holiday? Tell me all about your break! Did you make any resolutions?
Here’s to a happy, healthy, successful and altogether lovely 2014! Today, anything is possible.
Life, love, and the little things… one thread at a time.
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