a trip to IKEA.

Last week, my friend Dani and I made a trip to IKEA. We talked beforehand and agreed we were in no rush and were okay with taking our time, browsing, chatting, dreaming up ways to make our apartments and classrooms better.

I had a (short) list of things I knew I wanted to buy, but was so glad Dani was happy to browse. We spent 5 hours(!!!) shopping, but the time passed so quickly. It helped that there were a few funny moments.

+ A couple of young guys approached us, trying to sell us shoe cleaner. This is common in malls and other public spaces. Dani told them no, but they didn't listen, and one started to bend to show her how the cleaner would work on her shoes. That's when I told them (in Mandarin), "She said no! She likes her dirty shoes." One of the guys looked surprised, but the other one laughed and we did too. They left us alone though!

+ Towards the end of the fifth hour, I wandered over to a wall and was looking at some hooks. I didn't realize I was talking to myself about whether I should get silver or gold until a young girl beside me asked (in Mandarin), "What?" Without thinking, I responded in English, "Oh, I'm just talking to myself." She gave me a nervous look and moved away. I turned around to find Dani laughing at me. *insert face palm emoji here*

I wanted meatballs!

We even laughed (after a few minutes of whining on my part) about the restaurant being closed and having to eat our IKEA hotdogs outside. 

On a completely different note, I remembered Bridget's Target posts, and was inspired to share the things I wanted to buy at IKEA, but didn't: 

I spied these ottomans (they come in yellow and black) and thought they might be perfect for Mabel and Clarke in our entryway. The kids are always plopping down onto the floor to put on and take off their shoes, and while I'm sure they don't mind, it might be nice for them to have a place to sit. Plus they have storage! This would be greatly appreciated for hats and mittens once the cold weather arrives again. I didn't buy them because I need to measure the space, but they're on my wish list. 

Mabel has been asking to paint her bedroom walls pink, and while I'm not ready to commit to that, I did tell her we could get more pink accessories for her room. I spotted this pillow and took a picture to see if it met her approval. 

I can't decide if I would love or hate this coffee table for storage. Good for things like blankets or will I be annoyed that I can see everything?

I want a new lamp for the living room but haven't found any I love. Maybe this? Or is it too short? Too office-y? 

Okay, I'm not sure I like the look of these, but thought one might be good on the wall in our small bathroom for storage? Or maybe on the wall of the entryway? I showed T and he ixnayed it, but I'm still pondering, especially after reading this article. 

Would love this Hemnes shoe cabinet for the entryway. I don't think I'd use it for shoes though; I'd use it to corall a bunch of our junk. 

We have an art area for the kids where we keep paper, markers, watercolours, etc. The paper is all just stacked, but I want some kind of storage for it to keep it organized. These are a possibility but I'm wondering if they will be sturdy enough.

These organizers remind me of similar ones at Muji, but for a fraction of the cost.

This cart and the cutting board on top would be great as a side table in a small apartment, wouldn't they?

We're supposed to sort our garbage, recycling, and compost, and I'm still looking for an easier way to organize it all in our small kitchen. I want to check if this can be attached to the inside of a cupboard door under the sink. 

Another pink thing for Mabel. I actually ended up ordering this for her in pink and it's already hanging on the side of her bed, storing the Junie B. Jones book we read every night at bedtime. 

Also ended up ordering these pink storage containers. Mabel and Clarke put their "treasures" in them as soon as they arrived. 

I don't need these bowls, but I want them. They remind me of Tupperware we had when I was growing up. Perfect for making and storing taco salad or cuddling up on the couch with a big bowl of popcorn. 

I wasn't sure if Tony would want this storage container for rice, but my hunch was right and he did! Unfortunately, it was too big for our space (luckily I measured before we ordered it), so we ended up getting this smaller container instead. 

I can't stop thinking about this lamp. If it was available to order online, it would be on my bedside table already. It'll have to wait until my next trip. 

Pretty storage; need I write more? 

I actually ended up ordering this mirror too. I like it, but not sure I love it. I just don't like clutter and don't use a small mirror very often. 

I'm so happy I live in a city that has IKEA. Not so sure my bank account is though. 

Do you have any fave IKEA purchases or something that's on your wish list?

this is so me!

I saw this print, burst out laughing, and elbowed Tony, This is so me! Skittles are one of my favourite candies, I love my fanny pack, AND I'm going to Korea in June!

Liz Climo, I love your work.

happy friday!

Blogging has been all over the place for me this summer. I thought I'd have more time to write posts and publish them regularly and... nope. I know, I know, I choose how I spend my time. And during this season of my life, being home for a short time, a wedding, family, etc. the blog is not my priority. But I have so many ideas and I really do hope to have them up soon.

In the meantime, the main things that made me happy this week were wedding-related:

+ My Nan asked T and I to pick up a caesar salad kit at the grocery store and when I saw the best before date, I danced around and said, "Our wedding date! This makes me excited!!!" I pretended to be less crazy than I am, and started to walk away, before deciding to embrace the craziness and went back to take a photo.

+ Tuesday was a marathon wedding day. I got my dress hemmed, we dropped off balloons to be filled and delivered the day of, we figured out the food situation, met with our officiant, had my hair and makeup trial, met with our coordinator, chose the exact spot for the ceremony and reception, and finalized plans. Big thank you to Melissa for taking us and helping us!

+ I'm 99% sure I'm going to change my name. I made a few phone calls to try to be sure I'll have enough time before we go back to China. I'm not looking forward to the hassle, but when I look at T and think, "I'm going to be a Zhang!" I'm pretty sure I glow.

One week!

What made you happy this week?

Goldfish.

T called me last night, teary-eyed, to tell me Goldfish died. 

At first I was just relieved that it wasn't something more serious, but then we both cried a little. 

We've had him for 3 years (the length of my time in China so far). Tony fed him and moved him by the window "so he can see what's happening outside" every morning, and moved him away every night "so the bright lights don't keep him awake." 

This is the fish that I bought for my first students in Beijing. The one a two year old, who could barely speak English, named Goldfish because his (the boy's; not Goldfish') favourite book was "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?" The one G, after watching Finding Nemo, asked "Where's his mom and dad?" The fish that anyone who spent a bit of time with, would tell you that he truly did have a personality. 

It's amazing how many memories a small animal can give you. 

The crazy thing: Tony found him on the floor in the morning; we figure he jumped out of his bowl. "You mean he died because he jumped out?! Not because he was old or sick?!" I cried harder. We both did.

heart eyes for new york.

The other night, scrolling through Instagram, I saw this photo and literally thought, "Heart eyes emoji!" (What does it say about me that I sometimes think in emojis?)

(Photo: Caroline Donofrio)

a tale of 7 wedding dresses.

So... you might remember that back in February I ordered 7 wedding dresses.* 

You guys, I ordered 7 wedding dresses tonight. SEVEN. Fingers crossed I love one of 'em.

— Amanda Greer (@ajigreer) February 18, 2015

Some frequently asked questions: 

Why did you order them? Why not just buy one from a store?

I went wedding dress shopping and didn't find any I liked. They were all long, poofy, fancy, bedazzled, etc. I wanted a simple, short dress. Nothing too traditional or fancy. 

Why not have one made?

I do live in China where it's fairly easy to get a dress made. But I didn't know exactly what I wanted and I couldn't imagine what I'd look like in a dress just from looking at a photo. I didn't want to pay a large amount of money and not love the result. 

That must have been expensive. (Okay, so that's not a question, but a lot of people said it.)

Not really. None of the dresses cost that much, Shopbop and ASOS offered free shipping, BHLDN's shipping was $45, and we only ended up paying duty for the BHLDN dresses.

Can I see? 

I didn't show anyone except Melissa and Alanna (two of my bridesmaids) the dresses. I didn't want anyone's opinion to sway my decision. And you wouldn't take your co-workers or acquaintances wedding dress shopping with you, right? 

But now that I've chosen a dress, I thought you might like to see them!

Obviously, I can't tell you what I thought about the dresses after I got them and tried them on, because you'd know which dress I chose (I'm keeping it a secret from Tony), but I can tell you what I was thinking when I ordered them. 

TFNC Prom Midi Dress from ASOS / Short, check. Simple, check. Strapless, maybe? I liked the neckline and the waist. I didn't like the length but figured I could have it hemmed easily enough.  

ASOS Petite Bandeau Dress in Floral Lace / I thought it might be too flowery in person but figured I'd give it a try since shipping was free and I knew I'd probably be returning other dresses anyway.  

ASOS PETITE Dress in Floral Burnout / I didn't ever plan on wearing this as a wedding dress, but thought it might be okay to wear to the rehearsal or a wedding shower or just as a "normal, everyday" dress. 

Frock and Frill Embellished Top Skater Dress from ASOS / I liked that I wouldn't have to worry about my bra straps showing (always a concern, fellow well-endowed ladies, am I right?) or wearing a strapless bra. Wasn't sure about all that embellishment, though. Would it end up looking too blingy or fancy in person?

Joanna August Newbury Cap Sleeve Dress from Shopbop / I didn't think I wanted a long dress, but what if I did and I didn't even know it? I had to order one or two just to be sure. I liked that this one was simple and figured I could dress it up with jewelry. Note: I ordered according to the size chart and it was way too big. Melissa, Alanna, and I actually laughed. Size down.

Evangeline Dress from BHLDN / I loved the look of this dress! Long, yes, but simple and elegant. I could picture myself getting married in a park wearing this. Loved the sash with it but it was sold separately for $180, only $80 less than the dress. No, thank you; there must be other places to buy a sash. Note: I ordered according to the size chart and it was too big. Size down.

Prato Romper from BHLDN / This was the wild card. A wedding romper? Could I really get married in a romper? I actually saw it a couple weeks before I ordered all these dresses and couldn't stop thinking about it. It was pretty and fun. I imagined it being comfortable and perfect for a wedding picnic. I loved it! I wanted to wear a wedding romper! So I ordered it.

And there you have them! My 7 wedding dresses!* Want to try and guess which one I chose? 

P.S. Our Save the Dates, our Chinese wedding, and thoughts on wedding planning.

*Actually 6 wedding dresses and a romper. But that takes longer to say and requires further explanation, trust me. 

why I love my fanny pack.

Alternatively titled: "Why I've Spent a Ridiculous Amount of Time Looking for a Brown Leather Fanny Pack"

I bought this fanny pack when I was in Hong Kong. I love it. And now I want another one—I'm thinking brown leather—because I want options.

Why do I love my fanny pack? I couldn't have said it any better than Rachel Wilkerson Miller:

"When I step out in it, I feel insanely carefree. And I often find myself thinking, Is this how men feel every day? Because if so, holy shit.

I am constantly negotiating the things I will and will not do in my ongoing quest to be both accepted by society and also have a soul and fight the good feminist fight. And I've realized that while I will (or at least have) let a stranger pour hot wax on my vulva, I draw the line at carrying a big-ass shoulder bag.

As for how the fanny pack looks, well…any fucks I have to give about that actually won't fit in my awesomely tiny, hands-free bag, so I've had to let them go!"

Would you wear a fanny pack?

recently downloaded.

The other night T and I went out for dinner and before we came home I decided I wanted a bubble tea (duh). This is only relevant because it gave me an opportunity to take a detour through GAP, which I do often, "Just to look!" Steps into the store, I exclaimed, "Good music!" and started dancing around.*

I didn't have my phone with me so I turned to Tony and accusingly said, "This is why you should have Shazam! I want to download this song but I don't know what it is."

Patiently and wisely, T said, "Just listen to the lyrics. Remember some and search it when you get home."

So I stopped dancing and made an extra effort to listen. I think I even tilted my head. On the way home, I sang to myself, "Give me one good reason why I should never make a change."

And behold! Budapest!



Downloading this song made me think of another song I wanted to download. Completely different vibe but still so good.



What songs have you been listening to lately?

*If you know me, you know that I really do exclaim things. I speak in exclamation points!

celebrating the first day of spring.

If there's any day that deserves to be celebrated, it's the first day of spring. Especially when you live in a place where it's actually warm enough to go for a walk and eat frozen yogurt outside. (Sorry to all my friends back home. I promise I'm not trying to make you feel bad.)

Tony was nice enough to skip floor hockey on Friday to celebrate with me. We got frozen yogurt and ate it sitting outside, people watching. And then people watched me take a photo of my empty container ;) (And then I carried the empty container home, so I could take another photo in front of a white wall, in case I didn't like how the photo against the grey wall turned out. And Tony didn't even laugh at me, which is how I know I'm marrying the right guy.)

I'm thinking celebrating the first day of spring might turn into a tradition for our family. (How weird is it that I'm in a place in my life where I'm imagining traditions with possible future kids?!)

P.S. Last year's celebration, a poem, and a quote.

wedding napkins!

I didn't even know I wanted wedding napkins.

Well, I mean, I knew we'd need napkins. I'm not gonna have a picnic (a wedding picnic, no less!) and just expect people to wipe their mouths on their sleeves. (Slash, people probably won't have sleeves because it'll be summer and hopefully warm.)

The point is, I had thought of napkins, but I thought we'd probably just have plain, boring napkins. Or MAYBE colourful cloth napkins since we're only having approximately 10 guests.

But then I got an email from Tiny Prints and as I was scrolling to delete it, a picture of this napkin caught my eye.

I loved it! It is going to be the best day ever!, I thought. I love that bright green!, I thought. 50% off!?, I thought.

And that is how I ended up ordering 100 wedding napkins. (Do we need 100 napkins for 12 people? No. But I figure, meh, even our tiny wedding deserves special touches. And my Nan uses napkins all the time. I can give the leftovers to her and she'll smile every time she uses one, right? Ha ha! Plus, we can always bring them back to China with us and then we'll smile every time we use one.)

T and I ended up choosing "pumpkin" and "teal." (We loved "lime" but realized, Oh, yah. We're getting married in a park. There's already going to be lots of green.) We don't really have wedding colours, per se, unless ALL THE BRIGHT COLOURS count. So my plan is to incorporate them through details like bridesmaid dresses, bouquets, and now... wedding napkins!

This is not a sponsored post. I'm just your typical bride engaging in some impulse buying. Plus, I have stationery from Tiny Prints and love it!

craziness is a virtue.

I just said to Tony, "I have a question for you. A real one. So please think about your answer. If you had to pick one of your favourite things about me—just one!—what would it be?"

He thought for a few seconds, looked at me, and said in all seriousness, "Your craziness." 

I laughed, probably glowed happiness, and asked for an example of said "craziness." 

He thought again, a shorter time, and replied, "Singing loudly on the escalator." 

Yah, I've done that. More than once. 

And I love that he loves that about me, my craziness.

(The photo is from when I met his family during Chinese New Year. He loves it; I love him.)

thank you, david's tea!

This is probably full of Caramel Corn tea. Mmm.

You guys, I had a blog post pretty much written in my mind for today, but then I came home to an email that made me SO happy. Like, super-hooray-fist-pumping happy! Customer service is not dead!

Let me say it again: CUSTOMER SERVICE IS NOT DEAD!

Okay. Details. The other day, I sent an email to David's Tea Customer Service team, via a form on their website:

Hi, 

I bought the Carnival Collection of teas this summer and fell in love with the flavour "Caramel Corn." I see that it isn't available online to purchase by itself, but the other flavours from the collection are. So, my first question is, why isn't it? Second: Could it be possible? And third, if not, can you recommend any teas that would taste similar? I'm not able to visit a David's Tea store, because I'm living abroad, but I have someone who will ship tea to me. Please help a David's Tea-loving expat out! 

Thank you, 
Amanda

And then I forgot I had sent it. Until right now, when I read this email in my inbox:

Hi Amanda,

Thank you so much for reaching out to us.

We no longer have the caramel corn tea available online because we have sold out of it unfortunately. Since it's only around for a limited time, once we sold out of it that was all we had unfortunately. For a similar taste you could always mix these 2 teas together though:

http://www.davidstea.com/forever-nuts?&TF=&DEID= 

and

http://www.davidstea.com/movie-night?&TF=&DEID= 

We are also performing a tea consolidation from all the stores soon, so if we do happen to get more in from them, we'll make sure to post this tea online in the 'web special' section.

I hope this helps but if you have any other questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to contact us, we are more than happy to help.

Kind regards,
Tiffany

And that's when I literally almost yelled hooray! and fist-pumped in my empty apartment. Because even though I can't buy my beloved Caramel Corn tea, I got an actual reply from an actual person, and not just an automated reply from a robot!

Thank you, David's Tea, for restoring my faith in customer service. You made my day.

life improvements / investing in myself.

I often think that if I had my move to Beijing to do over, I would make more of an effort to "settle in" at the very beginning. I wouldn't worry so much about saving money. Wouldn't think, Ehh, I might only be here a year so what's the point? when thinking of buying lamps, bedding, or even good coffee!

It's true, I didn't know how long I would be here for. And I am trying to pay off my student loan. But the thing is, none of us really know how long we're here for, do we? (Did you get that I'm not just talking about living abroad there?) And we can make smart financial decisions but still invest in our lives, our selves.

So. Here's a list of improvements that I/we have made and of ways that I am investing in myself:

+ We bought a mattress pad for our bed. And now every time I lay (lie?) down, I think, Why didn't we buy this sooner? Even Tony, who snapped at me in IKEA, You didn't have one for TWO years! Do you really need it now?! agrees that the money spent was well worth it.

+ We bought new curtains. Curtains are provided in our apartment, but they are heavy, beige, blah. I finally convinced Tony that lighter, different coloured curtains would make me happier, which would make him happier. Win-win. We went with green in the living room and gray in the bedroom.

+ We bought new bedding. All white. Simple. My dream. Now if only we could get double sinks in our bathroom. Ha!

+ We bought a new TV. That's a lie. We haven't bought a new TV yet. But we're going to. This weekend. Using Carrefour gift cards given to us by our employer. So a brand new 40" TV that we can connect our laptops to will only cost us 700RMB out of our own pockets. (As we stood in Carrefour discussing options yesterday, I waved my arm in front of one of the huge TVs and exclaimed, Imagine! It will be like C.J. Cregg is performing "The Jackal" right in front of us! (Tony's probably more excited about watching soccer.)) (And yes, that was just a parentheses within a parentheses. Can you do that? I just did.)

+ I bought a new hair dryer. Because the 1600W one I've been using for the past two years just isn't cutting it anymore. And again, we have those Carrefour gift cards. So a 2200W, ionic, "Pro Care" hair dryer came home with me.

+ I am currently planning an order from Lush. A friend gave me a bath bomb to try and I fell in love. Another friend gave me a sample of a facial cleanser and I'm amazed. I found out there's Lush in Hong Kong and they ship to China. Bye bye, money. Hello, better skin and a happier, more relaxed Amanda.

+ I'm also planning an order from David's Tea. No, they don't ship to China, but I have a mom who sends me birthday and Christmas presents/care packages. So I will place an order, they will ship it to my mom, and she will ship it to me. Thanks, Mom! P.S. Their Caramel Corn tea is my newly-discovered favourite and I can't get it online, so if you get some and love me, you could send it to me ;)

Okay, yes, that's a lot of buying. But we don't make big purchases very often. And gift cards. And investing in ourselves. And come on! Now I can watch President Bartlet run for re-election on a bigger screen! Woot! (How dorky do you think I am now?)

P.S. That image at the top only kinda relates to what I've written here, but it is the current wallpaper on my phone and it's made me happy every time I've seen it today. Thank you, Kara, for making it.

this is exactly why I want to elope.

I watched this and couldn't decide if I should be laughing or nodding in sympathy. So I did both. I laughed so loud and nodded so hard.

Guys, I've we've barely started on all of this wedding planning shit and already I'm cringing. (Sidenote: I have to be careful who I say things like that to, but here's the thing: I'm excited about the marriage, just not the wedding.)

I would love nothing more than to elope with maybe two friends, say some vows, exchange the rings, and then eat some yummy food, drink some delicious drinks, go on a relaxing/fun trip, and be done with it.

More thoughts on engagements and weddings coming soon. Maybe.

faces of long distance.

Tony went back to Beijing on Saturday, so we've been FaceTiming at least once a day since then. Which has reminded me of the photos I took while we FaceTimed on New Year's Eve in Vietnam/Beijing, which at the time, reminded me of last summer, when I was in Canada for 8 weeks and he was in Beijing. Follow all that? 

Aaaanyway, here are the photos; I call them "The Faces of Long Distance" (hahaha!):

Waiting, waiting, waaaiting.

Yay!

Hmph!

Fun Thing: While I'm waiting for FaceTime to connect, I usually make a funny face to try and get Tony to laugh. It works every. single. time. :)

P.S. The truth about our relationship & the story of the proposal. 

a quick & easy trick for cleaning your couch.

Use a lint roller.

I know, I know. You probably think I'm silly/crazy/stupid because this is so simple. But I didn't think of it until a couple months ago and I talked to a few people and they hadn't thought of it either.

If your couch collects crumbs, dust, and lint like mine does, using a lint roller is an easy way to do a quick clean.

P.S. Do you say couch or sofa?

P.P.S. A similarly quick & easy trick for baking cupcakes and muffins.

eleven questions.

The friends and brunch mentioned below. Also, why haven't we done this much more often??

I've come a long way from my days of sitting in a tiny dorm room filling out Facebook quizzes, but I still love a good meme, so I was thrilled when I found out Leah tagged me to answer 11 questions. Seriously, it was the highlight of my Saturday night—along with being mentioned in Sarah's Weekend Links and watching Look Who's Talking with Tony (His first time! He loved it so now I know we're meant for each other! Ha!)—and I'm not even being a little bit sarcastic.

So, without further ado, the questions and answers*:

1. What is your earliest memory?
Whenever I'm asked this all I can picture is sitting in a tiny chair, eating McDonald's pizza (Do you remember when McDonald's had pizza?!), and watching Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (the original with Burl Ives, not a stupid remake, although the 1998 version stars John Goodman as Santa and I do love John), so that must be it.

2. What are you excited about?
Summer vacation! Although it won't be 'til mid-July because I signed up to teach 3 weeks of summer camp because tickets to Canada aren't cheap. But on July 18th Tony and I are outta here! Bye bye, big city, smog, and chopsticks! Hello, small town, blue skies, and Nan's cooking!

After answering #5, I have to change my answer and I'll move my previous answer down to #7.

I'm excited to go to a movie theater in Canada! It'll be over two years since the last time, and I'm gonna find myself a romantic comedy to watch and I'm going to eat all of the salty, buttery popcorn, and drink all of the fountain pop. Treat yo'self.

3. How did you celebrate your last birthday?
My birthday was on a Friday so I worked all day, but I was surprised with balloons, and cupcakes, and a new iPhone, and a latte so I'd say it was a pretty good birthday. And then I went to dinner with friends the next night and ate burritos and drank a whole pitcher of frozen strawberry daiquiri and was surprised with carrot cake, so again, I'd say it was a pretty good birthday.

4. What is on your bedside table?
Birth control, a hair elastic, lotion, a book, kleenex, and an alarm clock that goes off every morning, including Saturdays and Sundays, because I'm too lazy to change the settings.

5. What do you order from the movie theater concession stand?
In Canada, I always order popcorn and coke. I add lots of "butter" (it's totally not real, I'm sure, hence the quotation marks) and dill pickle seasoning. I also bring my own little pack of candy—Swedish Berries, or Fuzzy Peaches, or Sour Patch Kids—because the candy they sell at the theater is too expensive and going to see a movie already feels like highway robbery, doesn't it? (Hi, my name is Amanda and I'm 73-years-old, and say things like "highway robbery" and "my goodness!")

In China, they don't have salty popcorn! Can you believe it?! I mean, you can find microwave packs of it in "Western" grocery stores, but at movie theaters the only option is caramel popcorn. Now, don't get me wrong, I love me some caramel and put it on popcorn, I'm in love, but I still would like to have hot, buttery, salty popcorn with a cold fountain pop while I watch my movie, thank you very much. Anyway, since that's not an option here, I order the caramel popcorn and a bottle of water, or, gasp, I watch the movie and don't eat anything. (Which is kind of sad because one of the best parts of watching a movie at a theater is the eating, isn't it?)

6. What book are you currently reading?
The Book of Negroes. It's been on my "to-read" list for a long, long time and I've finally just started reading it this weekend.

7. Any summer plans?
Summer vacation! Although it won't be 'til mid-July because I signed up to teach 3 weeks of summer camp because tickets to Canada aren't cheap. But on July 18th Tony and I are outta here! Bye bye, big city, smog, and chopsticks! Hello, small town, blue skies, and Nan's cooking!

Tony will meet my family and friends, we'll sit and stare at the blue sky, we'll drink blueberry and watermelon beer, we'll go to PEI, and I'll hug some people real hard. Ahh, summer, hurry up.

8. Which TV couple(s) are you rooting for?
I'm gonna have to disagree with Leah here because I am so in love with the idea of Sarah and Hank (Parenthood) being together. I'm also rooting for Julia and Joel, although I also kinda love the thought of her being with the hot teacher guy. Like Leah, I'm NOT rooting for Amber and Ryan, at least not unless Ryan can get his shit together. I'm also not rooting for Drew and Natalie because I think she treated him like crap.

Outside of the Parenthood world, I'm also NOT rooting for Frank and Claire Underwood (House of Cards). I mean, I don't care what happens to them romantically, but I really hope they get what's coming to them.

9. What’s the last thing you bought?
A venti iced vanilla latte and then I complained that it was too small, asking Tony no less than 5 times, "Is this actually a venti?!" Hashtag first world problems.

10. What’s one thing you are passionate about?
Books and reading! I stayed at work late on Friday, partly to actually do work, but also to show a couple of colleagues how to put books on their e-readers. I ended up spending a long time recommending different books and authors to them and explaining why I thought they'd like them. I was in heaven. No exaggeration. I get so excited anytime I'm around/talking about books and authors and reading. I think I should seriously consider a career change. Not even kidding.

11. What are you grateful for this week?
I’m grateful for Tony, always. I'm grateful for friends to talk to and have dinner and brunch with. I'm grateful for low AQI days and the thunderstorms that help bring them.

And now, to keep the fun going, I tag Melissa, Georgia, Sarah, Joella, Mika, Summer, Sheridan, Josette, Amber, Bridget, Molly, and anyone else who wants to play along! Let me know if you do; I'd love to read your answers!

P.S. I think I'm supposed to come up with a new set of questions, but I'm lazy and the new season of Orange Is the New Black is calling my name, so feel free to answer the same questions I did or come up with your own. xo.

*I fell down a rabbit hole of reading other people's eleven questions, and I ended up substituting a couple of questions from here and here because I don't have a favourite kind of cheese (I love all cheese! Or, at least, all the cheese I've ever eaten.) and I don't have a garden.

things I swore I'd never do.

I always swore I would never tell my boyfriend what to wear. And then tonight I caught myself telling Tony to change his shirt.

The way time goes, it won't be long until I'm calling him "hubby" and telling my kids "because I said so!"

P.S. Sorry for the blurry photo, but it's one of my favourites. It's just so him.

P.P.S. This wasn't the shirt he was wearing tonight, but it's one I begged him to throw out because it was full of holes/I never wanted him to throw away because it was his favourite and so comfortable.

P.P.P.S. No, not engaged or pregnant. Promise.

conversations with best friends: embracing flaws.

Me: "He loves God!"

Melissa: "And I love Michael Jackson. Some people would consider that a flaw, but I embrace it."

Laughing. So much laughing.

Melissa: "You like to pick people's dead skin off their bodies.* I could NOT accept that, but I accept it because you are my friend and I love you."

*Picking people's dead skin off their bodies equals peeling sunburns, in case that's not clear.

#operationsunshineandwhimsy.

I've been feeling better since my last post. Lighter, happier, more excited. More expressive. More me.

Maybe it helped to get it out. Maybe I'm noticing those moments more now that I'm aware of why I think I was feeling blah. Maybe this week and this weekend were just exceptionally good. 

I don't care what the reason is, I'm just glad I'm more hooray! and yay! and life is good! 

And I've decided to try and document the things that make me feel that way. My plan is to share photos on Instagram and tag them #operationsunshineandwhimsy. I might also tweet the moments and things that make me feel that way and use the same hashtag to keep track. 

I decided on #operationsunshineandwhimsy because those two words -- the way they're defined on my blog's "tagline" -- are what I want to feel, what I want to be, what I want to put out into the world:

sunshine: (n.) brightness or radiance; cheerfulness or happiness

whimsy: (n.) an odd or fanciful notion; something quaint or unusual

Here are the photos I've shared so far on Instagram, all from this weekend (It's just a coincidence that they're all yellow):

Hooray! A yellow straw! - Me

I don't understand why people don't like dandelions; I love them!

This weekend has been a good one.