Where did February go? Somehow it got lost amongst long hours at work, lots of yoga classes, head colds and assorted sickness, acupuncture and chiropractic appointments, trips to the library, and David’s many job interviews. For the most part this month has been exhausting and stressful for me, although overall we are both feeling happy and doing well and excited about the many possibilities for the future. Right now David is on his way to northern California and will be heading to the east coast several times later in the month for on-site interviews. Keeping our fingers crossed.

I have a feeling that March will be a catch-up month for me in which I tackle the 400+ emails in my inbox, return the 19 messages on our answering machine, and hopefully organize a yard sale (in a futile attempt to get rid of the clutter!).

What are your plans for spring cleaning?

I am a huge Audrey Hepburn fan. In high school I was one of the first people on the web to create a Tribute to her. I own many of her movies, have read dozens of books on her, and often receive Audrey Hepburn themed gifts.

The last few days, I’ve started to introduce David to her. We started with Sabrina in all of its 1954 black and white glory. This is one of my favorite Audrey Hepburn movies as much for the stunning costumes as for the fantastical nature of it. We enjoyed it so much that we decided to watch the modern Sidney Pollack adaptation with Harrison Ford and Julia Ormond. It was great fun comparing the two versions, especially in terms of how far feminism has come since 1954. They are both charming films and I recommend them to every true romantic.

What film should I introduce next to David? I am thinking either Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Roman Holiday, or My Fair Lady (if I can get him to sit through a musical)… Drop me an email with your suggestion.

In some ways I feel like I am the last person to jump on the knitting bandwagon. Obviously it’s really popular, but I never really was all that interested in getting back into it (I learned how to knit as a child) because I simply don’t wear that many knitted things and already have plenty of scarves and hats. Then I saw the projects that my good friend Bridget was working on and everything changed. She knits colorful socks and legwarmers, lacy scarves, and beautiful hats. Her stunning projects and love of knitting changed everything for me. Suddenly, I wanted to give knitting another shot. I, too, wanted to make one of those cool felted bags, damn it.

David and I spent the last week of December in Silver City, New Mexico, with David’s family. For Christmas they bought me a gift certificate to Yada Yada Yarns, an adorable knitting shop located in the heart of the historic part of town. Together with cousin Rachel and Tanta Sherry, both of whom are avid knitters, we explored yarn colors and textures, read many of the hundreds of knitting books in the store library, and got me set up with my first project: chunky, light green, soft yarn for a long skinny scarf. I finished it in a day and was hooked. Since then, I’ve knitted a hat (which I make take apart for the yarn) and am in a mad rush to finish a scarf (in Tweed) for my Dad’s upcoming birthday; I’ve found some funky, fabulous knitting guides including Teen Knitting Club: Chill Out and Knit Some Cool Stuff, Last-Minute Knitted Gifts, and Weekend Knitting: 50 Unique Projects and Ideas; And developed a fun, creative new hobby.

This morning I woke up to the smells of french toast, homemade raspberry syrup, and English breakfast tea wafting from the kitchen (all my favorites!). David surprised me by framing the beautiful Penelope Dullaghan print that I received for Christmas, my parents gave me a beautiful “C” necklace from Tiffany’s, and my in-laws got me the most stunning blue-green yarn and a Mexican style mug, which will make a great vase. All thoughtful and perfect gifts. A great way to start off my 26th birthday! Thank you, family!

Check out pictures from the evening festivities at Flickr.

"I gotta get out of bed
Get a hammer and a nail
Learn how to use my hands
Not just my head..."

This morning on my drive into work I took a break from the usual classical music interlude to listen to KBCO (“world class rock”) and their A-Z countdown. I listened to the transition from G to H and the Indigo Girls’ “Hammer and a Nail” came on the radio. Immediately I thought about our blog and how I needed to post about our perpetual daydream of building our own house.

In preparation for this endeavor, we’re been reading books galore on the subject (from the library!). We’ve been reading about houses made out of tires, aluminum cans, adobe, cob, and straw. I’ve been reading up on passive solar design, rain catchment, storage facilities and graywater reuse, radiant heat, and greenhouse construction. Granted, we probably won’t put all this theory into practice for several (many?) years, but we’re having such a great time getting prepared.

Of course, we have the ultimate inspiration: our friends Melanie and Jeff, who built their cob house from scratch by themselves (with some help from friends!) out of renewable and recycled materials (see photos above).

Two alternative building books: Currently reading: The Good House Book: A Common-Sense Guide to Alternative Homebuilding. Next up: Building Green: A Complete How-To Guide to Alternative Building Methods. Both by Clarke Snell of Think Green Building.

Happy Birthday to my brother-in-law Lee! May you have an awesome natal day! XOXO

The above photo is from our excursion to Mexico last month for yummy margaritas and Mexican food. One of the many benefits of being just an hour north of the border in Silver City, New Mexico, for the holidays is that you can travel to exotic places like Mexico for lunch and, while you’re there, enjoy fine cigars (which even I loved!).