...beyond the fact that I hate running.
I do a four mile loop at the Capital Crescent Trail three or four times a week. It is often a highlight of my day. It clears my head and I get some of my most creative thinking done then.
There is a section on the Cap Crescent that always floods over when it rains. Given that it is currently monsoon season here in D.C., the trail is perpetually a huge mud puddle there. I have developed a finely tuned path around the puddle which involves crossing both lanes of the trails and circling the border of the puddle in a neighboring parking lot, crossing back over the oncoming lane and getting back on my side of the trail. While I was doing this today, a huge pack of hardcore runners (they were wearing matching shirts so they must be a team or something), just plowed through the puddle, spraying mud everywhere. EW!
By comparison, a little bit further down the trail, I had to make a quick leap out of the path of a out-of-control five year old on a Barbie Bike (parents, you may have jumped the gun on removing those training wheels), and accidentally stepped in a puddle where a tiny bit of mud splashed on my leg. I just about freaked out.
And at that moment, I realized that while I may have been the kid who could spend hours in the sandbox, I will never be the adult that can run through mud puddles.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Favorite Things Swap: What I Received
I was SOOOO excited when my doorman called and told me I had a package that I KNEW was my favorite things package. It was Christmas in May!!!
My Swap Buddy Jenny of JennyKate's Spot did an amazing job with the package.
The message in the card read:
To see what I sent in the swap, click here.
My Swap Buddy Jenny of JennyKate's Spot did an amazing job with the package.
Starting with the card (with a Starbucks giftcard inside):
The message in the card read:
"Lotions that soothe me...
Movies that move me...
Recyclable things...
Vampires with bling...
Something sweet to eat...
Making people's day...
And love along the way...
Oh, and coffee I must say...
These are a few of my favorite things."
So cute.
The packages were all individually wrapped in pretty paper and tied with raffia.
And inside the packages was an amazing assortment!
And inside the packages was an amazing assortment!
First, some comfy socks and lotion. I have already made use of this as I am currently recovering from a bout of Athlete's Little Toe.
Twilight Sweethearts that you rub to reveal secret messages. I have never seen/read Twilight but I get behind anything that involves candy.
Super Cute Notecards made of recyclable paper. I plan to use these in my effort to bring back snail mail.
Sleepless in Seattle DVD! I love this sweet movie and actually do NOT own it on DVD.
And last, my favorite of the favorites. These AWESOME Target Foldable Reuseable Bags. My mom and I are actually huge fans of this style of bags but I have not seen these cute designs yet!!!
Thank you sooo much Jenny for a great swap package. And thanks to Mammarazzi for hosting the swap!
To see what I sent in the swap, click here.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
We BEE Blogging: Liveblogging the 2009 National Spelling Bee Finals
Okay, everyone ready?!?! It’s BEE time! I am settled in on the couch in the Domestic Goddess Palace in the sky where I have finally dried off from getting caught in a massive downpour on my walk home. I had an umbrella yet it was raining so fiercely that I was literally soaked up to my waist. Ew. Anyway, in the spirit of the geekiness of the evening, I am sporting my Hello Kitty “I Love Nerds” t-shirt (although the AC has made it pretty chilly in here so I am sporting a beloved UW-Eau Claire sweatshirt over it.)
I have hydrated, stretched my fingers, and done some jumping jacks so I think I am ready to live blog this thing. Like last year, I am really going to try to not make catty remarks about the contestants' appearances. Lord knows that I still have self-esteem issues stemming from my middle school/high school years and I just had to walk down a school hallway to be judged, not a ballroom before a national television audience. However, there is one moustache in these finals that I do not think I can two hours without talking about it.
Let's go!
8:00 And we’re off! Aw, Bee Fist Bumps!!! So cute!
8:01 Okay, you HAVE to watch this youtube video of contestant Kennyi Aouad from the Bee two years ago. I watched it first thing this morning and it started my day off with a smile!
8:03 YAY! No cheesey forced opening!
8:04 First speller, Ramya Auroprem. Okay, the word is “avalement “ but it sounds like the announcer is saying “blah blah blah.” It’s a skiing word. Hmm, I never heard anyone use that word when I was in Aspen. Probably because I didn’t sky.
8:05 Serena Laine-Lobsinger is up! She is like the Gwen Stefani of spelling. Also, I have been calling her Serena Laine-Lobster all day. One of her interests: shopping! She seems incredibly normal. And describes herself as effervescent. Like Alka-Seltzer. Or at least that’s what I always think about when I hear the word effervescent. Her word: omphaloskepsis. And she nails it, with a laugh and a smile.
8:08 Color commentary time! Expert’s favorites for the evening: Kavya Shivashankar (my pick) and Sidharth Chand. So looking over my colleagues’ picks, every single speller except Anamika Veeramani was picked by someone to win. But Kavya and Sidharth are the clear favorites among my colleagues as well.
8:09 Aw, Kyle Mou is back from last year. Um, most mellow kid ever. VP wife Jill Biden is at the Bee. She shops at the same Bloomingdales as me. Except she actually buys the Tory Burch Reva flats that I just try on and dream about.
8:13 Don’t believe that “beautiful night” imagery of DC that they just showed. It has been stormy all night. And I have the wet jeans to prove. Also, it is uber humid. My hair is in a frizz fro at the moment.
8:14 Kennyi (pronounced Kenny) is up! I love this kid!!!! Scilicet is his word. And he spells it! What a fun kid!!!!
8:17 Kavya is up!!!! Okay, the girl is a machine. “Hydragyrum”. Perfect! Oh, her cute little sister is back cheering her on.
8:18 The parents are sitting right on the stage. I don’t know if I could handle that. I get tense when my mom is standing nearby when I bake. Let alone spell at Nationals.
8:19 Sidharth gets his word, “Reykjavik”, the capital of Iceland. That one I knew. Sidharth is well, to quote Erin, "dude has a moustache." There, I said it. Wow! It was barely there last year but has really grown in over the past year.
8:20 Speaking of moustaches, this morning as I stood on the platform waiting for the train, I found myself standing between two guys with handlebar moustaches. What are the odds of that? Are they back in style? Handlebars Hot in 2009?!? Handlebar moustache #1 has always had one. He is an older guy who I have the kind of smile/nod/good morning relationship that you develop when you maintain the same regular public transportation schedule as someone else. It’s like you know them…but you really don’t. Handlebar moustache #2 is a newcomer though. Or maybe he has always been there but the moustache is new and I just never noticed him until the moustache appeared. Anyway, I just thought it was odd.
8:21 Okay, second commercial break already.
8:22 Someone needs to write a new musical about spelling bees. The Putnam County references are getting old.
8:23 Tussah is up at the microphone. And she is nervous. Wow. And what is she wearing? Her word is herniorrhaphy. Aw, she spelled it wrong. She looks so sad. And I still can't figure out her outfit.
8:25 Neat-o Neetu is up! Ophelimity. Which means economic satisfaction. The ophelimity of General Motors at this moment is low.
8:27 Dr. Bailey, the announcer, looks a lot like the manager of my neighborhood’s World Market store. I wonder if he moonlights there.
8:36 And round two of the finals starts!
8:37 Serena and Zac Efron sort of have the same haircut. I am not sure who that is a compliment for and who this is an insult to. Aw, she spells her mollusk-related word wrong. She’s smiling though. And one of the speller’s little brothers is picking his nose. We are down to nine spellers.
8:38 I really think if a purple elephant wearing tap shoes flew in front of Kyle Mou, he would just shrug and be like, “oh, well.” Unflappable.
8:39 Okay, this year’s batch of spellers just do not have the same personality quirks of last year’s spellers. Also, this year’s spellers have way longer names. I need to start giving them nicknames.
8:40 Is Aishwarya Pastapur wearing a Puka Shell necklace? I remember Luke on The O.C. always wore one. That’s what I always think of when I see one.
8:44 Commercial break. So I am doing some speller bio reading. Aishwarya’s role model is Amelia Earhart. Who plays a prominent role in the Night at the Smithsonian movie. Which I saw last weekend. And totally enjoyed it. It made me want to go to the Smithsonian, even now during peak tourist season. Well, maybe not that bad. But really, if you know anyone planning a family trip to D.C. this summer, they should see this movie first. It might make the trip more fun for the kids. But also tell them to stand on the right on the Metro escalators. And not to make a dead stop in the middle of sidewalks so they can read a map.
8:45 Kennyi is up! Ha, the sentence for his word (gyascutus) included references to Wikipedia and YouTube. Fantastic!!! Okay, even though I picked Kavya, I want Kennyi to win. He’s got more personality than the rest combined!
8:50 Kavya’s little sister is wearing one of those Washington D.C. sweatshirts so popular with the tourists. But she pulls it off. Her hair bow pulls the outfit together. Kavya’s word “blancmange.” She gets it.
8:52 Sidharth! Apodyterium. A Greek bath. “It was always difficult to tell whose toga was whose in the apodyterium” Eek…he doesn’t spell it correctly. And he’s not taking it well. Aw, all of the other spellers are giving him a standing ovation. I’m tearing up a little.
8:55 Neat-o Neetu calls her own ding when she spells the word incorrectly. She has a year of eligibility left though. I think the rest of the spellers are 8th graders.
8:57 Anamika gets a dessert word: simnel. “The Anderson’s had long lost their appetite for Aunt Millie’s simel but luckily their poodle had much lower standards.” HA! I want to write the sentences for the Bee!!!
9:06 Kyle’s word: “plaidoyer.” I would pronounce it plaid doily. But that’s just me.
9:08 Aishwarya’s word: “goombay.” Does Brett Favre still play for the Goombay Packers? (Ha, okay, I made that sentence up all by myself.)
9:11 I think I want to see the Disney movie Up. It looks super cute!
9:12 There are way too many commercials this year. I have had a DVR for five years. I cannot remember the last time I watched something live (probably last year’s Bee). I don’t handle commercials well. I have a funny story actually that I will save for the next commercial break. But the fact that Purex has created a laundry detergent that comes in a dryer sheet format is intriguing. Has anyone tried it?
9:16 Tim Ruiter is up. He is actually from the D.C. area. His favorite food is Dark Chocolate. I wonder if all of the antioxidants promote better spelling. I don’t like Dark Chocolate. I would rather eat blueberries for the antioxidants. Tim is also the last homeschooled student left.
9:18 Commercial Break. Again. I need a snack.
9:20 My snack: Bliss Milk Chocolate with a meltaway center. So good. Take that Tim Ruiter and your dark chocolate ways.
9:21 Kennyi is signing autographs for the audience!!! Maybe they will be on ebay tomorrow.
9:22 Ramya shirt looks like it’s from Anthropologie. I read somewhere today that a speller had to change his shirt because it had a Ralph Lauren logo that was visible.
9:24 I think this Bee is going to go late. There are six spellers left. And it’s 9:24 which is about 24 minutes past my bedtime. The things I do for the Bee.
9:25 Aishwarya’s word: “xebec”. I bet she spells it with a “z.” I totally would. It’s a ship by the way. A three masted ship or something. Wait, she got it! And that is why she made it to Nationals. And I did not.
9:28 Cute puppy at a spa commercial. Which makes yet another commercial break slightly more tolerable.
9:32 Anamika gets “Neufchatel.” There is a cheese word Every. Single. Year. Seriously, spellers, know your cheeses!!! And I know this one. Mainly because my college roomie Saira (a French major) just about fell over in horror when I pronounced it “New-fen-chet-ell.” I now avoid saying the word entirely and just say “the cream cheese with 1/3 less fat.”
9:34 Tim Ruiter gets “cretonne” which sort of sounds like “cruton.” But a fancy cruton.
9:41 Ramya just spelled out! The announcer just said “schwa sound.” Whoa that takes me back to Mrs. Brosig’s second grade reading class. Do they still teach the “schwa sound”? Or am I just old?
9:43 Whoa, Aishwarya just gave a look with attitude when told her word is a homonym. ANOTHER CHEESE WORD!!! Caerphilly! I have never had that kind of cheese. And I am a Wisconsin girl. Of course, at the moment, I have Laughing Cow cheese in my fridge. Which is sort of like portion controlled, poor man’s brie.
9:46 Kennyi! “Palatschinken” Pancakes stuffed with jam. Yum. Aw, he spelled it wrong. What a great kid! I’m so sad he’s gone.
9:50 Anamika gets “fackeltanz.” Tom Bergeron (the host…he annoys me so I have been choosing to ignore him) echoes my thoughts that it sounds like something you would yell when stuck in traffic. She throws a “u” in there somewhere and she’s out.
9:52 Four spellers left.
9:53 My funny story I mentioned earlier. Okay, it’s probably not that funny. But it’s getting late and I need to stay awake. So anyway, I am a DVR addict so I am always fastforwarding. I rarely watch anything live. But I am also a huge fan of the digital music channels. Especially the Solid Gold Oldies channels (music from the 50s and 60s). The other day I was listening to it and a song came that I do not like. Yep, I definitely tried to fastforward it. Like it was Music On Demand or something. Definitely didn't work.
9:56 Ha, okay the commercial with all of stars of ABC television shows living in the same house is funny. I love when Rob Lowe stomps on Ty Pennigton's megaphone.
9:57 The unflappable Kyle Mou just spelled his word incorrectly. But if the remaining spellers all spell their words wrong, he gets to come back. Except Aishwarya just spelled her word correctly so that’s not going to happen.
10:02 Woohoo, we are in sudden death Bee! 25 words left. Who is ever left at the end is the winner. So there could be a tie. We have Aishwarya, Kavya, and Tim left.
10:03 Aishwarya get “anatonomasia” – the making of a common noun or verb from a proper name. I call that verbacizing.
10:05 It’s so cute that Kavya and Aishwarya grew up together (one moved away) and are now in the finals together.
10:06 I wonder if Tim is more relaxed when he’s not in Bee-mentality. His intensity is scary.
10:09 I like that Kavya laughs at the funny sentences. The rest of the spellers seem unphased by them.
10:10 Tim just LAUGHED!!! WHOA! A miracle at 10:10.
10:11 Nineteen words left. And the three spellers all remain.
10:12 Aishwarya just spelled her word incorrectly. Again, she can come back if the other two spell incorrectly as well (but I don’t think that’s going to happen).
10:14 And it won’t because Kavya just spelled her word correctly.
10:15 Tim just spelled out!
10:16 Kavya can win it all!!!! C’mon Kavya!!!!
10:17 KAVYA WON!!!! Now I need to figure out who won the office contest. She’s crying! So cute! And now, I’m crying!
10:18 Whew, and it’s over. Time for me to get some sleep. Thanks for joining me for some Bee fun today! It’s been a blast!!!!!
I have hydrated, stretched my fingers, and done some jumping jacks so I think I am ready to live blog this thing. Like last year, I am really going to try to not make catty remarks about the contestants' appearances. Lord knows that I still have self-esteem issues stemming from my middle school/high school years and I just had to walk down a school hallway to be judged, not a ballroom before a national television audience. However, there is one moustache in these finals that I do not think I can two hours without talking about it.
Let's go!
8:00 And we’re off! Aw, Bee Fist Bumps!!! So cute!
8:01 Okay, you HAVE to watch this youtube video of contestant Kennyi Aouad from the Bee two years ago. I watched it first thing this morning and it started my day off with a smile!
8:03 YAY! No cheesey forced opening!
8:04 First speller, Ramya Auroprem. Okay, the word is “avalement “ but it sounds like the announcer is saying “blah blah blah.” It’s a skiing word. Hmm, I never heard anyone use that word when I was in Aspen. Probably because I didn’t sky.
8:05 Serena Laine-Lobsinger is up! She is like the Gwen Stefani of spelling. Also, I have been calling her Serena Laine-Lobster all day. One of her interests: shopping! She seems incredibly normal. And describes herself as effervescent. Like Alka-Seltzer. Or at least that’s what I always think about when I hear the word effervescent. Her word: omphaloskepsis. And she nails it, with a laugh and a smile.
8:08 Color commentary time! Expert’s favorites for the evening: Kavya Shivashankar (my pick) and Sidharth Chand. So looking over my colleagues’ picks, every single speller except Anamika Veeramani was picked by someone to win. But Kavya and Sidharth are the clear favorites among my colleagues as well.
8:09 Aw, Kyle Mou is back from last year. Um, most mellow kid ever. VP wife Jill Biden is at the Bee. She shops at the same Bloomingdales as me. Except she actually buys the Tory Burch Reva flats that I just try on and dream about.
8:13 Don’t believe that “beautiful night” imagery of DC that they just showed. It has been stormy all night. And I have the wet jeans to prove. Also, it is uber humid. My hair is in a frizz fro at the moment.
8:14 Kennyi (pronounced Kenny) is up! I love this kid!!!! Scilicet is his word. And he spells it! What a fun kid!!!!
8:17 Kavya is up!!!! Okay, the girl is a machine. “Hydragyrum”. Perfect! Oh, her cute little sister is back cheering her on.
8:18 The parents are sitting right on the stage. I don’t know if I could handle that. I get tense when my mom is standing nearby when I bake. Let alone spell at Nationals.
8:19 Sidharth gets his word, “Reykjavik”, the capital of Iceland. That one I knew. Sidharth is well, to quote Erin, "dude has a moustache." There, I said it. Wow! It was barely there last year but has really grown in over the past year.
8:20 Speaking of moustaches, this morning as I stood on the platform waiting for the train, I found myself standing between two guys with handlebar moustaches. What are the odds of that? Are they back in style? Handlebars Hot in 2009?!? Handlebar moustache #1 has always had one. He is an older guy who I have the kind of smile/nod/good morning relationship that you develop when you maintain the same regular public transportation schedule as someone else. It’s like you know them…but you really don’t. Handlebar moustache #2 is a newcomer though. Or maybe he has always been there but the moustache is new and I just never noticed him until the moustache appeared. Anyway, I just thought it was odd.
8:21 Okay, second commercial break already.
8:22 Someone needs to write a new musical about spelling bees. The Putnam County references are getting old.
8:23 Tussah is up at the microphone. And she is nervous. Wow. And what is she wearing? Her word is herniorrhaphy. Aw, she spelled it wrong. She looks so sad. And I still can't figure out her outfit.
8:25 Neat-o Neetu is up! Ophelimity. Which means economic satisfaction. The ophelimity of General Motors at this moment is low.
8:27 Dr. Bailey, the announcer, looks a lot like the manager of my neighborhood’s World Market store. I wonder if he moonlights there.
8:36 And round two of the finals starts!
8:37 Serena and Zac Efron sort of have the same haircut. I am not sure who that is a compliment for and who this is an insult to. Aw, she spells her mollusk-related word wrong. She’s smiling though. And one of the speller’s little brothers is picking his nose. We are down to nine spellers.
8:38 I really think if a purple elephant wearing tap shoes flew in front of Kyle Mou, he would just shrug and be like, “oh, well.” Unflappable.
8:39 Okay, this year’s batch of spellers just do not have the same personality quirks of last year’s spellers. Also, this year’s spellers have way longer names. I need to start giving them nicknames.
8:40 Is Aishwarya Pastapur wearing a Puka Shell necklace? I remember Luke on The O.C. always wore one. That’s what I always think of when I see one.
8:44 Commercial break. So I am doing some speller bio reading. Aishwarya’s role model is Amelia Earhart. Who plays a prominent role in the Night at the Smithsonian movie. Which I saw last weekend. And totally enjoyed it. It made me want to go to the Smithsonian, even now during peak tourist season. Well, maybe not that bad. But really, if you know anyone planning a family trip to D.C. this summer, they should see this movie first. It might make the trip more fun for the kids. But also tell them to stand on the right on the Metro escalators. And not to make a dead stop in the middle of sidewalks so they can read a map.
8:45 Kennyi is up! Ha, the sentence for his word (gyascutus) included references to Wikipedia and YouTube. Fantastic!!! Okay, even though I picked Kavya, I want Kennyi to win. He’s got more personality than the rest combined!
8:50 Kavya’s little sister is wearing one of those Washington D.C. sweatshirts so popular with the tourists. But she pulls it off. Her hair bow pulls the outfit together. Kavya’s word “blancmange.” She gets it.
8:52 Sidharth! Apodyterium. A Greek bath. “It was always difficult to tell whose toga was whose in the apodyterium” Eek…he doesn’t spell it correctly. And he’s not taking it well. Aw, all of the other spellers are giving him a standing ovation. I’m tearing up a little.
8:55 Neat-o Neetu calls her own ding when she spells the word incorrectly. She has a year of eligibility left though. I think the rest of the spellers are 8th graders.
8:57 Anamika gets a dessert word: simnel. “The Anderson’s had long lost their appetite for Aunt Millie’s simel but luckily their poodle had much lower standards.” HA! I want to write the sentences for the Bee!!!
9:06 Kyle’s word: “plaidoyer.” I would pronounce it plaid doily. But that’s just me.
9:08 Aishwarya’s word: “goombay.” Does Brett Favre still play for the Goombay Packers? (Ha, okay, I made that sentence up all by myself.)
9:11 I think I want to see the Disney movie Up. It looks super cute!
9:12 There are way too many commercials this year. I have had a DVR for five years. I cannot remember the last time I watched something live (probably last year’s Bee). I don’t handle commercials well. I have a funny story actually that I will save for the next commercial break. But the fact that Purex has created a laundry detergent that comes in a dryer sheet format is intriguing. Has anyone tried it?
9:16 Tim Ruiter is up. He is actually from the D.C. area. His favorite food is Dark Chocolate. I wonder if all of the antioxidants promote better spelling. I don’t like Dark Chocolate. I would rather eat blueberries for the antioxidants. Tim is also the last homeschooled student left.
9:18 Commercial Break. Again. I need a snack.
9:20 My snack: Bliss Milk Chocolate with a meltaway center. So good. Take that Tim Ruiter and your dark chocolate ways.
9:21 Kennyi is signing autographs for the audience!!! Maybe they will be on ebay tomorrow.
9:22 Ramya shirt looks like it’s from Anthropologie. I read somewhere today that a speller had to change his shirt because it had a Ralph Lauren logo that was visible.
9:24 I think this Bee is going to go late. There are six spellers left. And it’s 9:24 which is about 24 minutes past my bedtime. The things I do for the Bee.
9:25 Aishwarya’s word: “xebec”. I bet she spells it with a “z.” I totally would. It’s a ship by the way. A three masted ship or something. Wait, she got it! And that is why she made it to Nationals. And I did not.
9:28 Cute puppy at a spa commercial. Which makes yet another commercial break slightly more tolerable.
9:32 Anamika gets “Neufchatel.” There is a cheese word Every. Single. Year. Seriously, spellers, know your cheeses!!! And I know this one. Mainly because my college roomie Saira (a French major) just about fell over in horror when I pronounced it “New-fen-chet-ell.” I now avoid saying the word entirely and just say “the cream cheese with 1/3 less fat.”
9:34 Tim Ruiter gets “cretonne” which sort of sounds like “cruton.” But a fancy cruton.
9:41 Ramya just spelled out! The announcer just said “schwa sound.” Whoa that takes me back to Mrs. Brosig’s second grade reading class. Do they still teach the “schwa sound”? Or am I just old?
9:43 Whoa, Aishwarya just gave a look with attitude when told her word is a homonym. ANOTHER CHEESE WORD!!! Caerphilly! I have never had that kind of cheese. And I am a Wisconsin girl. Of course, at the moment, I have Laughing Cow cheese in my fridge. Which is sort of like portion controlled, poor man’s brie.
9:46 Kennyi! “Palatschinken” Pancakes stuffed with jam. Yum. Aw, he spelled it wrong. What a great kid! I’m so sad he’s gone.
9:50 Anamika gets “fackeltanz.” Tom Bergeron (the host…he annoys me so I have been choosing to ignore him) echoes my thoughts that it sounds like something you would yell when stuck in traffic. She throws a “u” in there somewhere and she’s out.
9:52 Four spellers left.
9:53 My funny story I mentioned earlier. Okay, it’s probably not that funny. But it’s getting late and I need to stay awake. So anyway, I am a DVR addict so I am always fastforwarding. I rarely watch anything live. But I am also a huge fan of the digital music channels. Especially the Solid Gold Oldies channels (music from the 50s and 60s). The other day I was listening to it and a song came that I do not like. Yep, I definitely tried to fastforward it. Like it was Music On Demand or something. Definitely didn't work.
9:56 Ha, okay the commercial with all of stars of ABC television shows living in the same house is funny. I love when Rob Lowe stomps on Ty Pennigton's megaphone.
9:57 The unflappable Kyle Mou just spelled his word incorrectly. But if the remaining spellers all spell their words wrong, he gets to come back. Except Aishwarya just spelled her word correctly so that’s not going to happen.
10:02 Woohoo, we are in sudden death Bee! 25 words left. Who is ever left at the end is the winner. So there could be a tie. We have Aishwarya, Kavya, and Tim left.
10:03 Aishwarya get “anatonomasia” – the making of a common noun or verb from a proper name. I call that verbacizing.
10:05 It’s so cute that Kavya and Aishwarya grew up together (one moved away) and are now in the finals together.
10:06 I wonder if Tim is more relaxed when he’s not in Bee-mentality. His intensity is scary.
10:09 I like that Kavya laughs at the funny sentences. The rest of the spellers seem unphased by them.
10:10 Tim just LAUGHED!!! WHOA! A miracle at 10:10.
10:11 Nineteen words left. And the three spellers all remain.
10:12 Aishwarya just spelled her word incorrectly. Again, she can come back if the other two spell incorrectly as well (but I don’t think that’s going to happen).
10:14 And it won’t because Kavya just spelled her word correctly.
10:15 Tim just spelled out!
10:16 Kavya can win it all!!!! C’mon Kavya!!!!
10:17 KAVYA WON!!!! Now I need to figure out who won the office contest. She’s crying! So cute! And now, I’m crying!
10:18 Whew, and it’s over. Time for me to get some sleep. Thanks for joining me for some Bee fun today! It’s been a blast!!!!!
All things sparkly!
Check it out! My mom found my spelling bee trophies!
They were the very first trophies that I ever got for winning something. (I think I received a participation trophy for my very brief foray in to Little League in the second grade. My team took 4th. Out of four teams.)
Even though my trophy collection grew over time, these always meant the most to me. Plus, the one is totally sparkly and cute!!!!
They were the very first trophies that I ever got for winning something. (I think I received a participation trophy for my very brief foray in to Little League in the second grade. My team took 4th. Out of four teams.)
Even though my trophy collection grew over time, these always meant the most to me. Plus, the one is totally sparkly and cute!!!!
Two for one!
Happy Birthday Mom (yesterday) and Dad (today)!!!
[Note: I was about eight before I realized that not everyone's parents had birthdays on consecutive days. I thought it was like a marriage rule or something.]
B-E-E Fest 2009!
So what started as an amusing distraction on a quiet afternoon in the office four years ago has morphed into a much anticipated event. I am, of course, talking about the National Spelling Bee Finals, or as I have taken to calling it “B-E-E Fest 2009.” Throughout the year, the Bee is a regular topic of conversation.
Most offices have NCAA tournament bracket challenge. And while we do have that too, I would venture to guess that few have a similar contest developed for the National Spelling Bee. And I love love LOVE how everyone gets into it. It is just so fun to see everyone gets so excited over this group of (uber)smart, driven, slightly socially awkward, most admittedly geeky kids.
This year I decided to add some treats to B-E-E Fest. I went in with two goals:
The B-E-E Fest logo that I designed:
Whenever I am planning an event or designing anything really, I always find it most helpful to design a logo for whatever it is. I find that it helps me set a tone (and a color scheme).
(The blue bucket is NOT part of the display. Just a necessary tool for a perpetually leaky ceiling.)
Some of my favorite fun facts:
So no winning word in Bee history has EVER started with the letter "B" so I called up my own Bee successes to fill in the gap. :) Yes, I was a Bee rockstar.
Words "spelled" throughout the day were SQL, UNIX, and STATS (um, hello, we are statisticians). My spelling output...
Most offices have NCAA tournament bracket challenge. And while we do have that too, I would venture to guess that few have a similar contest developed for the National Spelling Bee. And I love love LOVE how everyone gets into it. It is just so fun to see everyone gets so excited over this group of (uber)smart, driven, slightly socially awkward, most admittedly geeky kids.
This year I decided to add some treats to B-E-E Fest. I went in with two goals:
- It had to be Bee themed.
- It needed to be something that I could set out in our vacant cubicle so that people could drop in throughout the day. (Really, one day I am just going to set up a cubicle party planning business. I am getting way too good at it.)
So let me walk you through what I came up with.
The B-E-E Fest logo that I designed:
Whenever I am planning an event or designing anything really, I always find it most helpful to design a logo for whatever it is. I find that it helps me set a tone (and a color scheme).The sign welcoming every visitor:
The set-up
(The blue bucket is NOT part of the display. Just a necessary tool for a perpetually leaky ceiling.)The decor.
Using the bios for the Bee contestants on the National Spelling Bee website, I created little pennants with fun facts on them.
Some of my favorite fun facts:
- Speller No. 106, Annie Howard aspires to be an actress but would settle for a job in engineering or architecture.
- Speller No. 127, Victoria X. Wang says that she is "multilingual-ish," as she attends an after-school Spanish program and goes to Chinese school on weekends.
- Speller No. 141, Jeremy S. Johnson makes spelling studying sessions more fun by throwing a small ball back and forth with the person who is quizzing him.
- Speller No. 149, Elizabeth Platz and her brother have a prized collection of Beanie Babies.
- Speller No. 290, Andrew Grose, whose delicacy of choice is the scallop, has a zest for trying new foods and is learning to cook. He hopes to turn that passion into a career as a chef and restaurateur.
- Speller No. 285, Sam T. Matherly’s mom says that the best thing about him is his red hair.
- Speller No. 275, Caroline Ellissa Willett is a serious musician who began studying violin as a two-year-old.
- Speller No. 270, Andrew Traylor is quite the advocate for coffee, ramen noodles, and burritos.
- Speller No. 232, Julianna M. Canabal-RodrÃguez always eats pepperoni pizza before a spelling bee.
I bordered the cube with pennants and then scattered the rest on the counter.
B-E-E Cakes
At the moment, I am VERY into mini cupcakes. They are so cute! So I made several dozen mini cupcakes (chocolate with vanilla buttercream frosting and vanilla with lemon buttercream frosting). I then designed these little cupcake picks adorned with a fancy letter on the front and word, its origin, and its definition on the back. So there were a few spontaneous spelling bees in the hallway today as people picked up their cupcakes.
And the Grand Finale!!!
A C-O-O-K-I-E buffet!!!! I literally wanted people to play, er spell with their food.
So I made oodles and oodles of alphabet cutout cookies (I lost count of how many, suffice to say ALOT!) and iced them in a rainbow of colors (somewhere around the third hour of icing, I began to crunch the numbers to see if I Wanna Be A Domestic Goddess could afford an assistant. It can't.). Then I decorated 26 Chinese Food take-out container with winning Bee words throughout time.
So no winning word in Bee history has EVER started with the letter "B" so I called up my own Bee successes to fill in the gap. :) Yes, I was a Bee rockstar.It was a hit!
(To create the elevated surface, I used cloth napkins over the many NAICS code manuals I have in my cubicle.)
Words "spelled" throughout the day were SQL, UNIX, and STATS (um, hello, we are statisticians). My spelling output...
The requisite...
The more fun...
I think everyone enjoyed B-E-E Fest! And I had a blast putting it all together. (And special thanks to my mom and my nephew for helping me with some of the projects while I was home last weekend!!!!)
T-minus 59 minutes until the Bee starts!!
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Favorite Things Swap: What I Sent
And it's time to reveal what I sent to my Swap Buddy, JennyKate, as part of Mamarazzi's Favorite Things Swap. Many of you have been asking what I sent and I have been pretty good at keeping it top secret.
But first a few thoughts on the swap:
1) When your favorite things are mostly found at the Holy Trinity of Bloomingdales, Anthropologie, and Sephora, a $30 price limit is a challenge.
2) That said, it was actually pretty easy to find my favorite things. It took one trip to Target and my mom had to pick up a few things that I could not find in the stores here.
3) The hardest part was picking out the wrapping paper. I actually did not take a picture of the finished, wrapped products but my swapbuddy has a pic on her website
4) The most fun part was designing the cards that I put on the outside and inside of the package. The outside card included a description of a favorite thing and pic related to it (some of this pics are old pics that I had taken over the years and some are new pics that I took specifically for the swap). The inside card had a quip about why it was my favorite.
For ease of loading pictures, I have created separate blog entries for each of my 12 favorite things. You can link to each of them below (or just scroll down).
Favorite Thing #1
Favorite Thing #2
Favorite Thing #3
Favorite Thing #4
Favorite Thing #5
Favorite Thing #6
Favorite Thing #7
Favorite Thing #8
Favorite Thing #9
Favorite Thing #10
Favorite Thing #11
Favorite Thing #12
You can also read JennyKate's blog about the package here.
So without further adieu....my favorite things!!!!
But first a few thoughts on the swap:
1) When your favorite things are mostly found at the Holy Trinity of Bloomingdales, Anthropologie, and Sephora, a $30 price limit is a challenge.
2) That said, it was actually pretty easy to find my favorite things. It took one trip to Target and my mom had to pick up a few things that I could not find in the stores here.
3) The hardest part was picking out the wrapping paper. I actually did not take a picture of the finished, wrapped products but my swapbuddy has a pic on her website
4) The most fun part was designing the cards that I put on the outside and inside of the package. The outside card included a description of a favorite thing and pic related to it (some of this pics are old pics that I had taken over the years and some are new pics that I took specifically for the swap). The inside card had a quip about why it was my favorite.
For ease of loading pictures, I have created separate blog entries for each of my 12 favorite things. You can link to each of them below (or just scroll down).
Favorite Thing #1
Favorite Thing #2
Favorite Thing #3
Favorite Thing #4
Favorite Thing #5
Favorite Thing #6
Favorite Thing #7
Favorite Thing #8
Favorite Thing #9
Favorite Thing #10
Favorite Thing #11
Favorite Thing #12
You can also read JennyKate's blog about the package here.
So without further adieu....my favorite things!!!!
Favorite Thing #1
Um, like I could do a favorite things swap without including my favorite breakfast. The breakfast that I eat every day! Oatmeal! I sent a super cute bowl with my signature oatmeal mix (oats+dried cranberries+walnuts+coconut), a Barney Butter packet, and a granola packet to top it off with some crunch.
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
Favorite Thing #2
I went to graduate school and worked in the South for three years of my life. There I was introduced to homemade macaroni and cheese. Suffice to say, it has NOTHING on the original Kraft Mac-n-Cheese.
Funny note about the picture on the card. Heading to home to Wisconsin last weekend, I did not have a picture for this item. I was scrambling. My mom and I were actually taking pictures of galoshes and umbrellas at Target. Luckily, shortly after my parents picked me up from the airport, it started pouring. I sent my Dad into the parking lot outside Joann's Fabrics to take pictures of the puddles. But it had stopped raining by then. Then we got into the car and got caught in a Green Bay traffic jam (I did not know that these existed there) and it started pouring again. So that pic was taken by my out the window of the truck on good ole Highway 41 in Green Bay.
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
Favorite Thing #3
These are my favorite pens ever!!! I use them everywhere, at work and at home. It's my signature ink color.
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
Favorite Thing #4
If it is 8:30 in the morning, there is a 90 percent chance that I have already spilled something on myself. I seem to only spill stuff on myself during breakfast. The stains that these wipes have taken care include cinnamon, banana (yes, they stain), oatmeal, and blueberries.
The pig in the picture is actually called "Replacement Pig." HA! A longtime friend of the family gave me a stuffed pig that I loved when I was a kid. Then there was an incident involving a leaky ceiling, mold, and my stash of stuffed animals. Pig did not make it. I was distraught. A few years ago, I received a package in the mail from my Mom. She had finally found a suitable Replacement Pig. I keep him far, far away from any potential water hazards.
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
Favorite Thing #5
I am a seriously firm believer in making the workday fun. Easiest way to achieve this: fun office supplies!
Favorite Thing #6
One of the perks of living near a popular Metro stop is that businesses will give out free samples during heavy commute times. Especially in the summer time. I think that is what summer marketing interns get stuck doing. I always feel bad for the Orbit gum people. They have to dress in that silly Orbit Gum Girl outfit which sort of looks like something Carol Brady would wear.
Anyway, two Christmases ago, the Lindor truffle people were giving out these Milk Chocolate truffles out. Until that day, I was always mildly afraid of Lindor truffles. I thought they had some weird fruit middle or something. Really, I had no clue what they actually were. What that actually are is FREAKIN' DELICIOUS! We had a huge bag at the office a few weeks ago and never has candy disappeared so quickly.
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
Favorite Thing #7
Ah, my daily smile care regimen. First off, the Colgate Wisp is the greatest thing to happen to dental care in a long time. Little disposable toothbrushes to throw in your handbag in case of a garlic emergency.
For the chapsticks, I have about 46 different kinds of chapsticks in my possessions (and I am not exaggerating. They are everywhere). These two are my favorites. I use the Softlips when I am going to be outside since it is SPF 20 (The one I sent is cherry flavored. The one I use most often is coconut cream). I use the Burt's Bee Pomegranate Replenishing when I am inside, most often when I sitting at my desk in my office. Both are so moisturizing and taste yummy!
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
Favorite Thing #8
While I am not huge full monogram person, I do like working my initial into my decor. One day I will have to do a post on the "R"s in the Domestic Goddess Palace.
And I like also putting a little R in my notepad (and who doesn't love Post-its?!?!).
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
Favorite Thing #9
Um, if you know me at ALL, you know I love all things sparkly. :) This one was a no-brainer!!!
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
Favorite Thing #10
Again, with the fun office supplies. Who wants to use a boring manila folder when you can use these cute ones?!? I have tons of different styles of file folders, from Current and from the Container Store. It makes filing fun!!!!
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
Favorite Thing #11
Like I could do a favorite things swap without including something cupcake related!!!!
More on the Favorite Things Swap here.
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