Nicaragua Part 1

Joe and I took our honeymoon in Nicaragua. It was perfect beyond our wildest dreams. Here are some of my favorite photos. These are mostly from Granada.

At the airport, awaiting our adventure.

View from the door of our hotel room at Hotel Spa Granada.

Colonial architecture abounds in Granada.

At Mombacho Cigar Museum.

Joe testing his cigar on the streets of Granada.

Lake Nicaragua. 

The market in Granada. The most intimidating (and smelly) place you can imagine.

The stairway in the tower of a church. Highest view in the city.

Do you see the sweat marks on my shirt? It was constant. We stopped noticing.

Mountains and Granada from the church tower.

My favorite photo of Granada? 

The art gallery in Granada. It was massive, full of local artists' paintings and crafts. 

Taking a break. 

Grecian style church in Granada.

Part 2 - Granada, Laguna de Apoyo and Mombacho

A Year of Astounding Change: Grateful

1:What did you do in 2013 that you’d never done before?
I got married, traveled to Central America, bought a house, moved to Ohio, begun renovating a house... I could go on and on. Wow.
2:Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I can't remember my New Year's resolution. I ought to set realistic goals.
3:Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yes, several people. Their babies are beautiful.
4:Did anyone close to you die?
Yes, my grandmother and my cousin's husband.
5:What countries did you visit?
I went to Nicaragua. It was unreal. I am forever changed.
6:What would you like to have in 2014 that you lacked in 2013
More self confidence, and a job I like more than my last.
7:What dates from 2013 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Well, my wedding day, every day of my honeymoon, John Mayer concert. They were momentous for obvious reasons.
8:What was your biggest achievement of the year?
I got married and traveled outside the country. Also I am running the house renovations. And I finally put things on Etsy. I went paleo/whole 30 for a month.
9:What was your biggest failure?
My job. 
10:Did you suffer illness or injury?
I may have gotten sick.
11:What was the best thing you bought?
My wedding dress, which was technically bought in 2012, but it's the best. Also any gift I gave to another person.
12:Whose behaviour merited celebration?
??? My family? 
13:Whose behaviour made you appalled?
The guy who dropped me at my wedding. Ha.
14:Where did most of your money go?
Wedding, honeymoon, house renovations, student loans, Christmas gifts.
15:What did you get really, really, really excited about?
My wedding duh. And Nicaragua. And Christmas. And summer. And John Mayer.
16:What song will always remind you of 2013?
Any song from John Mayer's Paradise Valley album, specifically Waiting on the Day (cake cutting song!). And You are the Best Thing by Ray LaMontagne (first dance song!)
17:Compared to this time last year, are you: (a) happier or sadder? (b) thinner or fatter? (c) richer or poorer?
I am happier, thinner, richer (not just monetarily). Wow.
18:What do you wish you’d done more of?
Talk to my family members. Go outside.
19:What do you wish you’d done less of?
Work.
20:How did you spend Christmas?
With my family in below-freezing Wisconsin. It was beautiful.
21:Did you fall in love in 2013?
Every day.
22:What was your favourite TV program?
Mindy Kaling Project made it to the top of my list. 
23:Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
No. 
24:What was the best book you read?
Inside of a Dog by Alexandra Horowitz
25:What was your greatest musical discovery?
Night Beds and Local Natives
26:What did you want and get?
I wanted a quilt made by my other grandmother. Got one. I also got a new camera.
27:What did you want and not get?
A horse, but that is not surprising. 
28:What was your favourite film of this year?
I don't remember. Silver Linings Playbook is the only film I remember watching.
29:What one thing made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Well, my wedding. And Nicaragua. Hard to beat that.
30:How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2013?
I'm not sure how to describe. But I've become more confident in my choices and am more willing to take a risk on something trendy.
31:What kept you sane?
Being able to run again. And my husband.
32:Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Well... John Mayer. 
33:What political issue stirred you the most?
I'm not sure. I feel very passionately about the encroachment of government and the police state.
34:Who did you miss?
My husband when we were long distance. My family. My grandma at Christmas.
35:Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2013.
People may judge me but it is still my right to make decisions for myself and pursue the things that interest me most. And, almost everything we have in this modern, western life, is frivolous and unnecessary. The most important things in life are health, happiness, friends and family, nature, doing what you love and God.
36:Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
Just remember on the way home, you were never meant to feel alone... AND a little bit of summer's what the whole year's all about...

Christmas Gifts for the Whole Family

Here are some sweet gifts for the whole family (if you're still shopping. like me.)!

Add it to your wishlist!

I've been dreaming of this clutch since I first bought a beautiful white elk hide from the Leatherhead in Louisville. It's the softest, most supple, most even hide I've seen (I hope to see many more!), and I fell in love immediately.

Shibori was trending at the time I bought it, and I knew the combination would be a home-run. I had to wait quite a few months before I could put my idea into action - the wedding, the move, the honeymoon, house renovations, all took up a good deal of time. But I figured it out and I got the first bag done!

The upper part of the bag is white denim which I dyed blue using the shibori style. The white elk hide makes up the bottom and it's lined with blue ticking. A heavy duty brass zipper is topped off with a leather tassel.

This is the sort of bag you take out on a dinner date, gift to a stylish girlfriend, or use everyday because it's just that pretty. It's utilitarian - it won't fall apart - it's modern but classic - incorporating three ancient products into a bold statement. It's bright but will go with everything. It says, "I'm fun, but I also take my style seriously. Let's get tea or coffee, I do both."