Mari's Memoirs of the Macrocosm

7.1.11

Happy Belated New Year!

May the new year bring us all much love and light! Happy Belated New Year everyone!

As I reflect on 2010, here's what I have come to especially appreciate:

A loving husband
The support and love of our family and friends
The first year in our new home
Our health and happy outlook

In looking ahead to the new year, there's so much hope and so much to be thankful for! Also, I hope to be more diligent about blogging.

Last night, we enjoyed Uncle Harold's art show. It had been years since I went to the Art Walk in Pioneer Square. The evening began with scrumptious dim sum at a little place my Dad introduced me to... Cheap and delicious! Then, we went to the show and it was beautiful to see so many of Uncle's pieces in one place! His exhibit is at the Gallery I M A and will last through the month. His artistic influence is the erector set, just like the one that you used to play with as a child. He has made buildings, dogs, animals, fish, birds and most recently pandas. The pandas are decorated with re-purposed inner tubes from tires. The material is tricky to manipulate, Uncle commented. I think it's really amazing! At our home, we have a salmon that is on a spring, so it moves back and forth, back and forth. It's the only salmon allowed in the house, as I am allergic. Thanks, Uncle!

28.12.10

Favorite Fall Foto

I LOVE this picture so very much. Trey is jumping for joy and his Grandma admiring it all. He is a constant ball of energy and light.

Gobbleness

Happy Belated Turkey Day! We enjoy two Thanksgiving meals for the holiday. First my Dad's home... Kelan and Corey sported one-of-a-kind holiday hats. The activity ended up with all of us crawling around like animals.

Mimi and Baby Cara

Then to Uncle Mike and Auntie Priscilla's where we ate and enjoyed.

This year I am thankful for life. I am thankful for each and every one of you who I am blessed to know.

Trey's Birthday Fun!

Alissa's son Trey turned 2! Alissa is my beloved cousin and growing up was like a little sister to me- following me around, practically as a shadow, sharing fashion tips and more. We didn't fight like sisters, but I have always felt a closeness to her. Her son Trey is such a gift to us all!

Trey has an aversion to food so he isn't that fond of actually eating food. We bought him a "Pizza Party" by Melissa and Doug This toy will quickly become his most favorite toy of all, he just doesn't know it yet.

My Uncle Mike's home is special to me for so many reasons. I practically grew up in this home and have so many fond memories of this abode. Since all of the children have grown up, my uncle has created his "Man Cave" which doesn't necessarily fall into the "special" category to me. But it's still well done. Can you guess what team he adores?

20.11.10

Family

Grandma and Amalia "writing" together. Spanning generations, love runs deep here.

Go Seahawks!

Thanks to our sweet friend, Susan, we got to go to a Seahawks game! What a game! It was sold out and it was my first game since the King Dome (yes, I am dating myself). Simon had never been! Our friend dL organized it all and what a fun day!

Sundari and Elijah's Wedding!

Congratulations Sundari and Elijah!

Simon met Elijah in his Sustainable Builders course and they became fast friends. Turns out- we adore them! They got married at Golden Gardens in September. I helped them set up the great event and it was marvelous! They are both very creative and it showed through out the event. They built this giant, gorgeous milagro, representing love and meaning "miracle" in Spanish. This picture does not do it justice- the actual heart was made of shimmering vinyl and the flames waved in the air as a fan blew on it. The giant piece was quite an effort! Everyone loved to dance and pose in front of it- including us!

Each table had an individual, different decoration. The balls represented the bride and groom. Simon and I helped them decorate the balls one afternoon (but there were many more to do!) Sundari's brother Ben and his wife Maria were the master minds behind this creativity. One of the ones I made was below- the yarn representing Sundari's craftiness. The ball with nuts and bolts represented Elijah's building efforts. He is an architect. Each decoration had a small ball of a milagro and this particular one had a small turtle to represent their future honeymoon- saving baby turtles in Costa Rica!

Congratulations to the gorgeous bride and groom! (Sundari's dress is made from reused kimono pieces. Gorgeous!)

21.10.10

New Beginnings...

Today, Simon is officially self-employed. He has been busy preparing for his first project- planning, researching, budgeting, organizing, permitting, and more planning. We are VERY excited about his first project- condominium remodel! New pictures to come! Congratulations, Simon!

6.9.10

Yurt fun- Happy Anniversary Simon!

A friend recommended we visit the Guemes Island Resort; getting the last ferry from Anacortes we traveled under the stars to our yurt. This perfectly sized space was a wonderful get away for the long holiday weekend. We hiked, massaged, rested and soaked in the sauna. It was BLISSFUL.

Food storage-squirrel protection!

Guemes Island Resort

Rain barn

Natural rain collector made by a creative local

Atop Mt. Guemes

Si took this mesmerizing photo atop Mt. Guemes. Not only did we enjoy a nice and mild hike, but at the top we spoke with a co-steward of the Skagit Land Trust. We learned a great deal about the preservation of the land and what the future plans for the land are. It was really interesting!

Guemes Island Fall Festival

We visited the community fall festival and just fell in love with Guemes Island-even more! Everyone was very friendly and talkative. The small town feel was very obvious and we enjoyed all of it. We spent a total of $26 and this is what we bought: 2 hotdogs, 5 small gift cards, 1 beautiful bowl and my anniversary gift a special peace pendant necklace.