Greater Kansas City Bartending Competition

Some logo work I recently did. The Employee Lounge is a sponsor of this years's event!

Girls Lake Weekend

A couple of weekends ago, I was invited to join a bachelorette party at the lake. Kat organized the entire trip and it was such a great weekend getaway. We stayed in a huge lake house next to a cheesy but colorful restaurant/bar staffed with young, beautiful teenagers. A chartered boat picked us up for an entire day of swimming and drinking. I met some amazing women who were so much fun and we made it the whole weekend with no drama or catfights. Just some great memories and one of the most fun bachelorette parties I've been to in a long, long time. Much better than a bridal shower. For sure.

Last group picture on the boat. Our house is the peach monstrosity behind us.

The bachelorette looking gorgeous on the water.

Christine met Garrett at her birthday party. Her friends had purchased her
a "new boyfriend" doll but Kat one-upped everyone and brought a living,
breathing, real man for Christine. Love is great that way, isn't it?

The only man present that weekend was Mr. Man. We hung him in our window the whole time.

The braver girls ripped off their clothes and went skinny dipping while it was still light out.
I was not one of them.

Paradise is open!

Party Cove at the Lake of the Ozarks. This was actually a nice, quiet weekend, which meant less pee
and fecal traces in the water. Our boat had bathrooms, these other ones did not.

On the way back, the sun streaming through the clouds was just gorgeous. Photo by Katie.

Cupcakes, drunk girls, food fight. What a perfect way to end a bachelorette party. :)

new shoes?

 
 

After a couple of years wearing the crap out of ballet flats, my feet decided to protest. I now suffer from fallen arches and my feet hurt like hell whenever I try and sneak on any kind of flat shoe. It's always better when I wear a heel but my poor footsies need all the support they can get. I love these lace ups, the color, the fun floral pattern. I can see myself wearing them all year-long. Need Supply Co. - Matilda Lace Up, $81.99, only size 8 left!

Passing Time

Tina....love this photo.

Amanda just graduated from college!

Cindy....hidden talent, Chinese yo-yo, YO.

Tracy was THE cutest baby ever. I can still hear her saying her alphabet.

When I moved to Kansas City, my cousins were all just little, adorable babies. I visited every year when they were younger, but as they were turning into teenagers and adults, I saw them less and less. Then I blinked and they all grew up, graduating from college, turning twenty-one and partying, hanging out with their boyfriends. How did this happen and wasn't it just yesterday that I was doing all those things myself? I'm glad I get to keep up with them on-line at least (photos are from their facebook pages). These are just the girls. We had a whole mess of boys in the family too.

daddy

This is my dad. He looks pretty much the same, minus the sneakers, plus a beer belly. He still loves those polo shirts. He still smokes his lungs out. He still parts his hair on the left and wears that same hair cut. Even though I'm 34-years-old this year, I still and will always call him daddy. When we talk on the phone, he makes sure nothing is wrong and immediately hangs up. We do not have heart to hearts, it's enough for us to know that nothing is wrong. But he'll call me back at least two more times. Every. Time. Now that I know what's coming, it makes me laugh. I just look at the phone and wait. Yes, daddy?

This is my father-in-law, who I called Daddy Charlie ONCE. I grew up thinking that I would call my father-in-law Dad or something like that. Not because I have an urge to, but because I was raised to. I still remember the day I called him that. We were at the Tara Hotel in Killybegs, Ireland, where George is from. I just blurted it out, half serious, mostly not. It felt weird and from my father-in-law's freaked out expression, it definitely came off as weird. So I stick to calling him by his name, Charlie, and we talk about the weather. Just like with my own dad, I try to get off the phone as quickly as possible.

Happy Father's Day to both my fathers. Even though we don't exactly connect on the phone, I am lucky to have two wonderful dads.

brass clips

Image Source: Baum-Kuchen

Love office supplies and these brass clips from Baum-Kuchen are so nice. $17 for the dozen, available on pre-order. I want them but I think they'd make an even better addition to my gift closet. So perfect. via Black Eiffel

sparkly fingers and toes

I only get a pedicure once a year. Maybe twice. Last year, I didn't get one at all because I wore ballet flats for most of the summer (which led to fallen arches and major foot pain, but that's another story). I always seem to be mucking around in something and as embarrassing as this is to say, I always have dirt underneath my nails. A few weeks ago, my friend Debbie treated me to a pedicure. Instead of regular polish, I got two-tone orange and brown. My pedi guy told me I looked like I had two bruised toes. I ignored him AND an old guy who told me the same thing. True to form as always, I bumped my foot on God knows what and ruined my fresh pedicure as soon as I got home. I smudged it around to "fix" it and from where I'm standing, and as blind as I am, it didn't look too bad. Top picture is blurry but I loved how it turned out anyway.

Still, two weeks later, my piggies were in need of a freshening up. I haven't painted my own toes in a long time, maybe three years? I'm just not that good at it. But then I saw this awesome nail treatment and it was totally do-able....even for a clumsy polisher like me. Two coats and some glitter? Can. Do. Nail polish was on sale at Target ($0.84 each), so what the hell, I gave it a go. I loooooooved how it turned out. I liked it so much I even gave my fingernails a coat of glitter.

Ruffled Clutch

Image Source: Bon Bon Atelier

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Fun ruffled clutch tutorial from Bon Bon Atelier.

weekend at the lake - part three

 
 
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Everyone has or should have one of those crazy friends who, no matter what, makes every situation more fun, more exciting and more memorable. For us, that friend is Tim. Whether it's a quiet weekend away or a full blown house party, Tim is always ready to bring out his alter ego, Luchador, to amuse us, to make us shriek with laughter and sometimes to make us shield our eyes when he's out in his full glory. Timmy was the keeper of our flame, carting wheelbarrows full of driftwood during the day so he could keep the bonfire burning bright and warm each night. He was our grill master and smoke master and the best bit of drama anyone could want to keep things fun at all times. Thank you, Tim, for always bringing the party with you wherever you go.

weekend at the lake - part two

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For this year's lake trip, we invited our Supper Club friends along. Which meant that packing plenty of food and adult beverages were of more importance than the latest swimsuits or accessories. Each couple picked a meal to cook and we tried to eat lots of fruit and veggies. Part two of the lake weekend is all about the grub.

Horse Glasses

Image Source: Candystore Collective

Image Source: Candystore Collective

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When I was at the antique mall, I saw this beautiful set of drinking glasses, frosted, with simple gold and white horses. I already have so much glassware of my own, but I couldn't resist buying them for my Kentucky Derby loving friend Jeanne. Before I could them gift them to her, I ran into one of my favorite servers, Rita at Genessee Royale. Rita is also a horse lover who, like Jeanne, throws a big Kentucky Derby party every year. Unlike this set pictured above, mine did not have the wire carrier and it only had seven glasses. So Rita ended up with three and Jeanne got four. The full set is available at Candystore Collective for $96. I think I got my seven loose glasses for $10. I practically stole them, right?


When I purchased these horse glasses, I immediately texted Jeanne: I have a prezzie for you! She promptly replied: I have something for you too! Later, we exchanged our unexpected surprises for each other, and I shrieked with delight. Guess what she got me? Juice glasses! Thanks to Tina at backyardINK for sharing this link.

weekend at the lake - part one

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Three years ago, our friends invited us to join them at Sunflower Resort, their annual summer getaway at Lake Pomme de Terre. There's a television we never turn on. No phones or computers to distract us. Just the zipping of speed boats in the distance and lots of time to catch up on books and trashy magazines. Craig and Jeanne have been going for the last fifteen years. After we went that first time, it was easy to understand the appeal. It's small, quiet and the two best days of relaxation and sunshine we get all summer. If you're ever near Wheatland, Missouri, make it a point to stop and take a moment to escape from all the busy-ness of life.

Busy Bee

 
 
 
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My prickly pear was in full bloom this weekend and the bees were helping themselves. I caught one diving right into the soft pollen center, swimming around and then popping back out after it had its fill.

Makeover

Caged heart at the Birdie's storefront on 18th Street in the Crossroads.

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After working on my other blog, I realized that I needed the same visual consistency for this one. The fonts have changed. I re-designed the header, added some navigation tabs underneath and moved some of my links around. Popular Posts (from the last 30 days) and Recent Comments are new features. You can also click "Like, Love or WTF" at the bottom of each post if you don't feel like making a specific comment. And the color scheme now consists light grays, pastel green and white, soft colors that recede so you can focus on the posts. Hope you like all the changes, please leave me a comment if you have any suggestions for improvement. My husband already told me to darken the gray a smidge on the header. I just might listen to him this one time. I was so excited to be back with my new look that I posted some over the weekend. It's great to be back!

Happy June!

 
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June is my one of my favorite months in Kansas City. If we're lucky, then for a week or two out of the month, the weather is cooler and a lot more tolerable. The grass hasn't burned to a crisp yet and there is just gorgeous color everywhere. What's your favorite month of the year in your part of the world?

SOME IMPORTANT DATES IN JUNE

June 5 - World Environment Day

June 14 - Flag Day » also National Flag Week

June 19 - Father's Day

June 21 - First Day of Summer

This is also Candy/Dairy/Gay Pride/Rose/Fruit & Vegetables Month!

Calendar illustration and design by Fresh Fish Creative.

Recipe - Hot Sauce

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I learned how to make this hot sauce from my friend Rebecca, a small-town Kansas girl who ended up marrying a friend of mine from high school who is Lao-Hmong. Not only does she make this great hot sauce, her sticky rice and papaya salad are amazing too. I have a lot of friends who are in interracial marriages and I am always impressed by the ones who adapt and embrace a completely different culture. Although I love my husband and his Irish roots, I never quite fell in love with bubble and squeak, beef stews or potatoes served a hundred ways. I much prefer the bright, spicy, acidic flavors of southeast Asian food. Give me some lime, cilantro and fish sauce and call me a happy camper.

Rebecca makes this hot sauce by hand in a mortar and pestle so the colors are brighter and the flavors have more depth. I am lazy so I throw the whole lot into a mini food processor and bzzzzzzz, blend the crap out of it. This is a yummy dipping sauce for grilled steak and chicken and sticky rice, but with all the fresh ingredients, it will only last one extra day in the fridge. I poured the hot sauce into a long-necked bottle (which is what I had laying around), but a wide-mouth jar is much better for this chunky hot sauce. I added a hand-drawn label, created during some extremely dull moments of jury duty. 

Read the recipe after the jump.

Last Bloom

 

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All the pretty flowers that were heading for the compost pile after a recent house cleaning. Photos ©Fresh Fish Creative