Since my last post, I helped to host a wedding shower for my good friend, Leigh Ciarkowski! Leigh & I met in our bunco group in 2009 & we quickly bonded over our mutual love for dogs! Leigh & her future hubby have 3 dogs: Bettis, Maggie, & Peanut. Here are a couple of shots from the wedding shower, which was held at Leigh's friends' BEAUTIFUL home in Avondale - please note the LOVELY cake that our friend Emily made special for Leigh (www.primecakes.com):
After Leigh's shower, JD & I went out to celebrate {valentine's day} with dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse! JD stumbled upon a gift card at work & when nobody claimed it, we thought it must be fate! Dinner was lovely & we had fun getting all gussied up for a night out!
Over the weekend we tried to spend as much time outdoors in this beautiful spring-like weather as possible! I met some friends from the Phi Mu Alum group for an officers' brunch on Saturday while JD stayed home to bottle some more home brew! Sunday we palled around with our friends, Liz & Richard, after their return from their Las Vegas vacation! The group indulged in lots of al fresco drinking, per the usual...
This past Wednesday we celebrated my 27th birthday!! Sweet JD was so excited to give me my presents bright & early that morning! My most favorite was a special edition of the book The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde. The thing that makes this book special is that it is part of a collection with beautiful, unique cover art done by Penguin Books Senior Cover Designer, Coralie Bickford-Smith. Here is what my new book looks like - can't you just imagine it on a bookshelf?!?
{yes, this picture was taken in bed - I was that excited to start my collecting!!}
There are several other beautifully designed classics in the collection - I can't wait to collect more of these beauties!!
After work, JD & I met up with some sweet girlfriends at our favorite neighborhood bar, Parkside Cafe, for a couple of drinks, followed by dinner with my sweet sister in law, Katie All in all, a great birthday all around - I'm looking forward to what year 27 has in store!
Last night I did something totally fun & different with some fun girlfriends from work - Sips n' Snips!! You may be familiar with a similar concept, Sips & Strokes, where friends can get together to "sip" a beverage of choice & paint a picture under the guidance of an instructor. Well, Sins n' Snips is a little different ---- still sipping beverages, but instead of painting you are MAKING A FLOWER ARRANGEMENT!!! I was sooo excited to do this as "learning how to arrange flowers" was on my bucket list - and this way was much more fun as I had friends by my side! Here are a few pictures from the night:
and the finished product:
I LOVE them!!! And I can't believe that I did it! The really great part about doing Sips n' Snips is that the fabulous instructors (who own & operate Helena Florist) give you ideas & techniques for creating different arrangements at home!
This weekend we are heading back to GA to visit my parents & attend 2 wedding showers for my bestie Katie Davies! I'm sure to have lots of updates from that visit!
Until next time,
peace & love.
the bakers.
