i have no willpower.

so my hubby tells me that martha stewart is bad and that i shouldn't buy any of her products, but it's difficult to refuse when everything is just so darn cute. even her cheapo kmart collection is amazing, so amazing that i couldn't leave the store without buying these .

like i said, i have no willpower.

after browsing through her macy's collection i had to add the items below to my christmas wishlist. perhaps i'll add "the power to say no" as well. (sigh)

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas

normally i'm the no christmas music/decorations before thanksgiving kind of girl but this year i was ready to start blast elvis' blue christmas as soon as starbucks' red cups arrived. i'm not sure why, maybe because it's our first christmas together or because i have a real house to decorate. i know it's all marketing but the christmas decorations and music everywhere aren't helping the urge to cover everything with glitter and garland. i'm restraining though and hoping to go for the old fashioned christmas look instead.

our christmas celebrations began with the richards' annual christmas tree retrieval. we typically trek to the u-cut farm together to debate about which tree would be the best, even the year when it was pouring outside. this year we headed to the mountains to cut down our trees. the snow added to the christmas spirit and only caused one close call. there was much less debating too for we each got our own tree for our respective houses. oh, we really are growing up!


on the way back we the icecream cones at a nearby hamburger joint called our names -- you can clearly see why.

spooktacular!

frank and i carved our first pumpkin together tonight. after a brainstorming session we decided to copy the likeness of jack from the nightmare before christmas. can you tell? we're going to see the movie in 3d tomorrow night.

we were excited about seeing it glowing on our porch until we relized i had locked us out of our house. but let's not dwell on that.

happy halloween everyone!

it's all in the details.

i agree that it's more than a little sad that i haven't updated since june. but in my defense i did get married, start a new job and move. at least i have the next couple of blog topics cut out for me!

now after planning my wedding i've learned that it's all in the details. the details can turn you into bridezilla, but they also provide many opportunities to infuse your wedding with personal touches.

so without further ado, here's some of the details from our wedding:

old laurelhurst church : where frank and first attended together and near our first apartment. we fell in love with its spanish art deco design and amazing stained glass windows. when our photographer whispered "wow" upon entering, i knew i had chosen the right location.


ceremony : frank and i planned every word of our wedding ceremony. we went against tradition and included a pledge of support from our guests and a tree watering ceremony (instead of candle lighting). to know frank is to know his love of sequoias. we're saving the tree to plant at our first house.

in addition we passed out sequoia saplings to our guests as wedding favors.

decorations : the decorations at the church and reception site were simple. at the church we accented the pews with locally grown dahlias and candles. at the heathman lodge we used plants as centerpieces which my parents planted in the yard afterward. we did our best to have a "green" wedding.

food and beverage : quite a few of our guests were from out of town so we wanted to share our love of the northwest with them. we encouraged them to explore the city and hosted our reception at a beautiful lodge with salmon as one of our dinner options. we were especially happy to provide a local, seasonal microbrew for our guests to enjoy.

dessert bar : although i'm a big dessert fan, i'm not a cake lover. thus, i opted for a dessert bar instead of the traditional wedding cake. our guests were invited to sample a chocalate hazelnut cake, marionberry cheesecake, white cake with espresso filling, a berry tart, and other yummy desserts.

so tell me readers, what "green," untraditional, and/or personal details did you include in your wedding?

things i think are funny.

1. knocked up. i laughed and laughed and then laughed some more.

2. seeing eye horses. just picture it -- careful though, you might just fall off your chair at papa hydn's.

3. hot fuzz. if you enjoyed shaun of the dead, you'll love this one.

productivity

one of the most exciting things about finishing school is that i now have (a bit) more time to check off items from my to do list (which has been accumulating for the past year or so). in addition, i've been inspired by all of the thrifting and crafting blogs that i've stumbled upon on the web (you may have noticed some new links along my sidebar). i'm so excited to share what i've been up to!

first i went thrifting with my mom. i was pleased to purchase this white glass vase/urn to display a plant, a vintage coffee mug (i was jealous of little birds handmade), and of course some books for my classroom (i can't resist).

(sorry for the crappy photos.)

i've also had some time to scrapbook. as you can see in the photos, the pages are still missing titles and journaling, but it's still progress! i'm hoping to finish this scrapbook of our adventures while dating before the wedding so i can share it with our guests. (top to bottom: portland rose garden, oxbow regional park, guster concert in seattle and our baptism at rooster rock.)

then yesterday i went thrifting again, this time with frank. i snatched up six books (for a friend, my classroom, and myself), two tins, two binders, and a game of scrabble. goodwill is the best place to buy books and games -- cheap and barely used!

no one puts baby in a corner.

given that we're playing exclusively 80's music at our wedding, it's really tempting to do something like this for our first dance.

enjoy!

welcome spring!

in the time between my posts, i often think of ideas for posts (which obviously don't usually manifest into an actual post). one of those posts that i've often thought about (and actually started a few times) was a formal welcome to spring. admist the dreary, wet, and cold days of late have been a few wonderfully sunny and fresh days. those days have ushered in the true signs of spring -- daffodils, tulips, and trees in bloom, birds and squirrels searching for food, and the sight of skirts and sandals.

frank and i have been enjoying the season whenever we can. first we spent a few hours at portland's waterfront taking our (soon to be revealed) engagement photos and walking among the blossoming cherry trees. then we travelled north to woodland's annual tulip festival to enjoy their colorful fields.

i'm also excited about other "newness" in my life. on saturday i graduate (finally!) from graduate school after earning my new degree. hopefully (cross your fingers) a new job will soon follow. it won't be too long until i move into a new home -- we're looking for a cute bungalow in se portland. but the most exciting of all (and the biggest change) will be our new marriage (only 103 days to go - wow!) it's both strange and wonderful to think of how different my life will be in just four months.

goodbye friends.

many of you have been nice enough to ask how the wedding plans are going, so i wanted to update you before i put my blog and (most) of the wedding plans on hold for the next five to six weeks.

i'm pleased to report that we have chosen a date (august 18th), booked ceremony and reception sites, purchased my wedding dress (it's beautiful!), and selected bridesmaid dresses, the menu, and a dj. this month i'm hoping to secure our officiant, finish the registries (macy's and rei!) and website, and send out the save-the-dates. other than a few stressful moments here and there the planning is going smoothly overall. hooray!

as i mentioned above for the next five or six weeks i'll be dedicating most of my time and energy to finishing school. i'll be teaching full time starting next week (ancient greece and rome - ugh) and graduating may 5th (phew!) thus if you don't here from me until then, don't worry. just send me a note to say "happy easter," "happy cinco de mayo," or "happy graduation."

UW Guatemala Project

in 2005 my brother, tim, and his girlfriend, carrie, visited guatemala to study human rights with a group of students from the university of washington. while there they saw first-hand the effects of genocide and war upon a country and its people. they also met with some of the country’s most prominent human rights leaders, including survivors, attorneys, and many others fighting to improve living conditions for the country's impoverished majority.

as you can imagine this experience greatly affected the lives of the students. together they made a commitment to provide scholarships for their peers on coffee plantations in guatemala. these scholarships would support the primary and secondary education of youth who plan to invest their communities' future. to find out more about the uw guatamala project, please visit http://students.washington.edu/uwgp/index.html.

the group is currently planning an auction, hoping to raise over $50,000. this money would establish the scholarships for at least 10 years. as a supporter of my brother, education, and human rights i invite you to join me at the auction on saturday, march 31 at the knights of columbus hall in seattle, wa. your $65 ticket will not only support the aims of the project, you'll also receive a catered dinner, participation in a live and silent auction, and the company of me, frank, and my family. to reserve your ticket you may contact me or email maya.sparks@gmail.com.

if you are unable to attend the auction or would like to help in another way, i invite you to:

• donate merchanise, services, or gift certificates to be auctioned on the night of march 31.


• make a tax-deductible donation. checks should be made out to "uw foundation" with "guatemala project" written on the memo line. please mail your check to the group's supervisor, professor angelina godoy, box 353650, university of washington, seattle, wa 98195-3650.

thank you!

i'm engaged!

my perfectionism seems to kick in at the most random times, like when i'm trying to blog about my engagement for instance. you see, i've been wanting to share this exciting news with all of you for the past few days, but have been contemplating over the perfect format and words. after the prompting of my friend and fellow blogger, bree, i decided to push past my writer's block to fill you in all on the details of the past week. i apologize for the delay!

wednesday was frank's birthday which he spent shopping for rings and meeting with my dad. that day he discovered that my coveted pearl ring would not be suitable for an engagement ring for it would begin to peel (and thus look icky) over time. wanting to recycle and not contribute to the corrupt diamond industry, we decided to shop for an antique ring instead. i hear that the meeting with my dad went well for good conversation and beer was had by all.

on thursday and friday evenings frank and i visited antique jewelry shops in the portland area. our favorite was maloy's for their knowledge and helpfulness. while there i feel in love with a 1930's art deco ring after hearing its story and seeing how it sparkled in the sunlight. thank you, frank (and eve)!

while scrapbooking on saturday frank called to sadly inform me that the appraisal was not ready and thus he wouldn't be able to pick up the ring that afternoon. i was a little bummed since i had been hoping that he would propose while we were at cannon beach that weekend for his birthday. monday was only a few days away though, so i knew i could wait.

on sunday frank and my first stop at the beach was at ecola state park for a hike to crescent beach. the hike was steep, but worth the sweat for it led to an (almost) secluded stretch of sand. after our picnic lunch i lay down on the blanket while frank went for a walk. after a few minutes he returned saying, "look at this cool crab leg i found!" when i sat up he was down on one knee, holding out the ring. needless to say, he asked me to marry him and i said yes! (it was silly and sweet just like him -- how could i not?)

soon after i called home to share the good news with my family. my mom teased me for being so gullible and believing frank's ploy of the delayed ring pick up.

after hiking back up the steep hill, frank and i checked in at the tolovana inn. we had to share the good news with the fronk desk too (of course!) and they congratulated us with a room upgrade, champagne and chocolates! frank and i thoroughly enjoyed the fireplace and beach view from our new room and were able to toast to "a life full of fun and adventure." i started my "look hot for my wedding" diet immediately following the chocolates - yum!

monday we returned from the beach and have been sharing the news with family and friends while starting to plan the wedding. we're planning for an august wedding so we must move quickly. good thing i bought a wedding planner today and have been subscribing to martha stewart weddings all of these years!

(frank jumps with joy.)

film review: pan's labyrinth

since viewing the science of sleep i've been entranced by this idea of the space between dreams and reality. pan's labyrinth beautifully and flawlessly dealt with this concept; i watched it yesterday with frank and his brother, jeremy. the hopeful story of a girl destined for royalty in an underground kingdom unfolds amongst the cruelty and misery of war-torn spain. i highly recommend it.

in addition to fueling to aforementioned thoughts, the science of sleep and pan's labyrinth reminded me of my love of foreign films. life is beautiful is one of my favorites. does anyone have any recommendations?

i've been wasting time this morning by browsing scrapbook page layout ideas online. below is one i especially liked; i think i'm going to print my pictures in various sizes to add more variety to my pages.

look at me, mom! i'm (almost) a real teacher now.

this week i began attending my practicum full time. that means i'll be there every day until the end of january. it's nice to not have classes or homework any longer, but i've still been busy with long hours at school, planning lessons, reviewing student work, and completing my worksample. in fact, i was so tired after school today that i spent my friday night taking a nap!

for those of you who don't know what a worksample is, it's a lengthy unit plan which must meet multiple pages of requirements prescribed by the oregon teacher standards and practices commission. all in all, i have over 55 pages in mine so far and continue to edit and add to it as i teach it throughout january. i spent most of last weekend working on mine, after which my dad remarked, "i hope they're paying you well for all of the hard work you do." very funny!

although lesson planning isn't often a fun nor thrilling experience, it is interesting and rewarding. i've been learning more than i ever wanted to know about mammals and the students are excited to research a mammal of their choice. during science this past week i've heard, "ms. r, did you know that...?" repeatedly. as a teacher and lifelong learner, academic talk is music to my ears!

in addition to science i've also been teaching math and pe. the students have been talking about the new nintendo wii non-stop, so i connected our math lesson with their interest by showing them a misleading graph comparing the product to other game systems. it makes me smile to recall how up in arms they were when i pretended to use the graph to persuade them that playstation was the most popular. this weekend i'll be figuring out how to teach 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders to play hockey. any experts out there?

overall, i'm feeling blessed to have this opportunity to fine tune my skills and try new teaching strategies with these amazing students. my teacher's and supervisor's feedback is helping me to improve and to provide welcomed assurance. it felt good to read my supervisor's note which said, "as you progress through your career always remember and appreciate the gift you have in making that special connection with each student."

happy new year!

instead of ringing in the new year with a party, frank and enjoyed a delicious meal together at pambiche, a cuban restaurant near his apartment. we passed the hours until midnight snuggling and watching lady in the water. just minutes before new year we turned on dick clark's rockin' new year's eve and toasted with two bowls of cereal (we decided to save the champagne for another celebration). although not as eventful as years past, last night was a delicious and comforting way to start a new year together.

what are your secrets?

one of my sunday rituals is to read the new secrets posted on postsecret.com. if you're not familiar with the site, the creator provides these instructions:

"you are invited to anonymously contribute your secrets to postsecret. each secret can be a regret, hope, funny experience, unseen kindness, fantasy, belief, fear, betrayal, desire, feeling, confession, or childhood humiliation. reveal anything - as long as it is true and you have never shared it with anyone before."

the secrets i read each sunday are often shocking and/or depressing, like this one i read this morning:

nonetheless, i return each week for secrets i identify with or find uplifting and funny. this one is one of my favorites:
perhaps one day i'll send one of my secrets to postsecret.com.