Funny... - Brady

how much more pleasant writing papers is when I'm at Lake Wawasee.

(Not a photo taken this year, but might as well be.)

MOH's to the MAX! -Amy

So, I have to say, I have the BEST MOH's in the world!

Not sure what that means? Not updated on the very latest wedding slang?

Well it simply means I have the best Maid/Matron of Honors in the world! Kelly is my Maid of Honor, and Brady is my Matron of Honor, and those two little cuties did something adorable and awesome: they sent me magic in a jar!

Ok, maybe not magic, but I did get a wonderful little package the other day, along with an email telling me that I would be receiving a prewedding de-stresser. They sent me Living Tree Botanicals Limon Vert Scrub(aka, an AWESOME body scrub to use in the bath or shower).

This stuff is awesome! I am bound to be the bride with the softest skin, since I use it MUCH more than I am supposed to. More importantly, how awesome is it that my MOH's thought of me and sent me this lovely gift! They are AWESOME! Thanks, MOH's! You are the BEST sisters and MOH's a girl could ask for!

Here's a picture of a similar product (I couldn't find a picture of my exact product):

Fabulous Chicago Weekend! -Amy

I had an AMAZING time in Chicago this weekend with 14 of my very close friends! One of my friends has been through a bit of a difficult time, so we decided to make a huge girls' weekend to celebrate how awesome she is. Her sisters really did all the planning, but we LOVED enjoying the plans! It was so good to see these girls, as some of us have not seen each other since graduation. It was long overdue, and we all decided that we MUST keep these weekends going! Here were some of the weekend highlights:

We arrived at different times on Friday evening, and started the celebration right away. We had some snacks and cocktails at my friend, Katherine's, apartment. She is so lucky to live just blocks away from all that Michigan Avenue has to offer. We ended up going out to a bar that was pretty close to the apartment that night, and it was a lot of fun.

The next day, we were slow moving! We did however have a wonderful lunch at "The Grill on the Alley" which is located in the Westin on Michigan Avenue.


Next, some of the girls had spa appointments, while the rest of us walked and shopped on Michigan Avenue.

After plenty of shopping, we refueled with some Starbucks, and then went back out for more! After our break, we happened to see Giuliana and Bill Rancic (Giuliana is the E! correspondent) walking down the street! Needless to say, my friend, Chelsea, and I shamelessly followed them into Gucci where we had to pretend that we could afford anything in the place. After working up the courage, Chelsea talked me into going over to tell them that we were really big fans. She did, and then they asked where we were from, talked about how Lakeview was a great neighborhood to move to, and over all, became best friends in a matter of a 30 second conversation. I'm sure we'll hang out all the time after I move!


After becoming BFF's with famous people, I had the good luck to go with Merrit, a friend and fellow bride-to-be, to the Ralph Lauren Cafe for a drink and to catch up!


Then, we all headed back to get ready for a night on the town! We started with dinner at "Lux Bar." HOLY MOLY they have the best french fries I've ever eaten. They are cooked in truffle oil, then topped with garlic aoili and Parmesan cheese. Seriously, to die for.


After dinner, we headed to "Lasalle Power Co." and "English" for some REALLY fun dancing that went on well into the wee hours of the morning! It was seriously one of the best times I've had, and I am SO happy that so many of our "group" from college could make it.

At the end of the weekend, we were all saying our goodbyes, and it made me super excited when one of my friends said, "The next time I see you it will be your wedding!" Holy moly! 69 days, and then another AWESOME party. I can't wait!

I have AMAZING friends!

Smile Like You Mean It - Brady

I'm not particularly photogenic. I slouch. I get "sleepy eyes" when I smile. If my lips are dry they disappear into my gums. My hair tends to look flat, and my clothes get wrinkled the minute they come into contact with my body.

So, probably in high school, I started doing certain things to try and look cuter in pictures. Once or twice I actually looked up a list online of tricks models use.

I've made a resolution recently. I'm not going to be fake about photos anymore. In other words, I'm not going to arrange my body in a way that I think will make me look thinner or smile in a way that I think will make me look prettier. I'm also not going to insist someone not take a picture of me because I don't think I look good enough at that particular moment. I'm not going to ask people with digital cameras if I can see the screen right after they take a shot. I'm not going to "un-tag" myself from other peoples' Facebook photos because I don't like how I look in them. And I'm not going to put my hand in front of my face when someone just wants a picture of his daughter-in-law on Christmas morning! (Sorry Fred...)




Here are two pictures of me. The first is fake Brady, and the second is the real one:









I know they don't look super different, but in the first one I can tell I'm smiling wider than I do in real life and I'm working really, really hard to keep my eyes open. I'm also tilting my head down on purpose because I read that that pose is more flattering. The second one is just me.


To prove that I'm serious about this, here's the worst photo of me I could find in a quick search of our iPhoto library. Enjoy, and go Slicers. :)

The Old 'Hood - Brady

Kelly has a knack for coming up with good activity ideas. Last night Kevin and I were disappointed because by the time we got home it was too late to go for the run through our old neighborhood - Old Town - that we had planned. Kelly suggested we get up early, run south to Old Town, grab some coffee, and take the bus back up to our apartment to get ready for work.

So we did! 5 a.m. felt really early, but it was an awesome morning. Old Town is gorgeous - there are all of these colorful houses on narrow brick-lined streets. At one point, honestly, I told Kevin it reminded me of Key West.

We saw all of the places we used to go - Second City, Ranalli's, and Coldstone on Wells Street, to name just a few.

Here's a picture taken from the window of our old apartment. We were looking down at Clark Street on a particularly exciting evening. When I was student teaching out in Oak Brook there were snowy mornings where my footprints were the very first on the path you can see in the photo. I always felt like that was a big accomplishment in the big city.

I can do anything good. - Brady

Wow.

I think my favorite line is, "I like my Allisons."



Thanks to the blog red letter daze for finding this one. :)

Isn't this nice? - Brady

"Throughout our lives we will go through the processes of opening to new information, integrating it, and stabilizing our worldview. No sooner will we have reached some kind of stability than it will be time to open again to new information, which is inherently destabilizing.

If we see ourselves as surfers riding the incoming waves of information and inspiration, always open and willing to attune ourselves to the next shift, we will see how blessed we are to have this opportunity to play on the waves and, most of all, to enjoy the ride."

-DailyOM


I read this on a blog called Blissful Self a couple of days ago and keep thinking about it.

Let's follow that up with a nice ocean shot by my favorite photographer, Kevin Rasp. :)