I did what I came to do...

The weekend started rough...
   -   There's flooding all through central PA
   -   The 3 hour drive was rainy & foggy
   -  Turnpike construction meant nothing to drink but fruit punch

But by the end of the weekend I did what I came here to do... get 2 friends hitched.

Mission Accomplished.

The wedding this weekend turned out to be absolutely lovely. The rain held off & we got our boogey on. And I realized I'm too old to "get low". lol Wonderful.

Week 58

If there's one thing you need to know about the 3 lovely ladies of F-Unit... we like to party. And we've got many years of experience under our belts. Before we reunite for a wedding weekend extravaganza, let's take a trip down memory lane.

Glory Days... or so we thought. But like a good wine,

I think F-Unit just keeps getting better with age.

Karaoke & strange facial expressions. They just go hand in hand.

I'm 90% certain we're singing "I'm I bitch, I'm lover..."

Tea time with the mad hatter. Pinkies up and brimmed hats.

We know how to do it classy.

I love you. No, I love YOU.

Eff it, let's dance.

Downtown & Grownup.

This weekend is the wedding I'm officiating for Fleegal's brother & I'm bringing Sama as my plus-one. That whole part of the state is having major floods, but the wedding must go on. So you can expect the next edition of F-Unit to be rain boots & formal wear. Classy. Always.

flashback time...

1. Share a flashback of your own. Dig through old photos & tell us a little story of days gone by. Click the little blue "Add Your Link" button below to link up.
2. Grab a button & add it to your post to let others know where the party's at.
3. Click click click... Stop by others' blogs who are linked up & leave them a little comment love.

<a href="http://heyasparky.blogspot.com/"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-yFIMN0jWqNo/TgQF8BiQdcI/AAAAAAAAA6E/SNEkWqKKvS8/s288/flashback%2Bfriday.jpg" width="252" height="200" /></a><br />

The Smarty-Pants Picnic

Last month I whipped together another Festive Food Friday for our office's forced-socialization requirements. Luckily I've been able to raise the bar a little closer to the borderline of "actual fun" which I consider a huge triumph.

Smarty-Pants Picnic was a hybrid of summer fun & academia in honor of a co-worker's doctorate. Books & gingham abounded. Picnic favorite dishes with a side of trivia. And let's be honest... it was mostly an excuse for mustaches and monocles.

Please feel free to use any of my ideas for a party of your own.

Week 57

This week I got to see a VERY dear old friend who moved to LA last year, & out of the blue she showed up at church unannounced & unexpected! It made my whole day... my whole week even!

No joke: I saw Amanda across the room & there was a table between us so I literally crawled on the table to get to her, I guess I got carried away, & next thing I know BOTH of us were on the table hugging. haha Actually Tink joined us up there too for a glorious, elevated, group hug. And I don't regret it.


Then on Wednesday when I was flying out for work, who did I run into? AMANDA. On her way back to LA. So we got a little bonus time to drink coffee & play cards while we waited for our flights. In what would does something so serendipitous happen? It was wonderful.


So now she's home again & the missing her part can start all over again. But I thought I'd show you a special memory of my special friend so that you'll be able to recognize her in the background of all your favorite shows & squeel the same way I do when I see her waiting for an elevator on Desperate Housewives or at a wedding reception on the upcoming premier of How I Met Your Mother.

This is us at prom. Actually it's us at a friend's wedding but we couldn't resist that backdrop to take the classic prom pose. Can you see why we get along so well? lol


And actually I have a photo from the first time we met too. I had no idea that this new girl Ray brought around (not an uncommon occurrence) would turn into such a good friend.

flashback time...

1. Share a flashback of your own. Dig through old photos & tell us a little story of days gone by. Click the little blue "Add Your Link" button below to link up.
2. Grab a button & add it to your post to let others know where the party's at.
3. Click click click... Stop by others' blogs who are linked up & leave them a little comment love.

<a href="http://heyasparky.blogspot.com/"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-yFIMN0jWqNo/TgQF8BiQdcI/AAAAAAAAA6E/SNEkWqKKvS8/s288/flashback%2Bfriday.jpg" width="252" height="200" /></a><br />

Craft Hope: Project 14

This post comes coupled with a confession: I want to spread the word on something I don't have the energy to do myself. There it is out in the open... but there's no reason why I can't use this blog to just pass on a good idea even if I'm not heading up some crazy rally. So that's what this is, sharing the love in case someone else wants to pitch in on their own.

Craft Hope has another wonderful project going on: Christmas in Dixie

Christmas in Dixie is going to be passing out boxes full of Christmas cheer to people who have been effected by this summer's tornadoes & have lost all those precious family keepsakes on top of everything else. They'll be providing lights & ornaments & such to help people rebuild emotionally in additional to the physical & practical rebuilding... sometimes losing those precious family mementos are the hardest to bare. And all Craft Hope is asking for on our part is the stockings.

So if you have some time & want to give a little hand-crafted love I totally recommend it. You can go to their website for all the details, whether you're making one or hundreds, and mail them in by September 23rd.

Fall Colors + Walking the Line

The mornings are chilly again, the kiddies are all back in school, & college freshmen are stumbling around grocery stores like baby deer learning to walk... it must be almost fall!

I've recently made a goal for myself: this fall I'm going to learn how to walk the line of put-together-casual. As a person who thinks they understand clothing pretty well this probably seems like an unexpected problem, but I'm noticing that I've segmented myself into 2 categories: Business Lauren, & Staying-In Lauren. Now that I'm in an office where I can wear jeans it's a problem. So prepare yourself, this probably won't be the last time I throw photos of myself on here for documentation.

Today I went for color combos that said "Hey, I'm a 27 year old professional, yet I like to kick it causal." How'd I do?

Coral * Navy * Moss

I forsee a Goodwill shopping spree in my future. Look out, colorful cardigans, you're in my sights. Maybe I'll even give one last try to the elusive skinny jeans. Eeek! Now I'm just talking crazy. Happy Tuesday, friends!

Week 56

In a few weeks I'll be officiating a wedding for my best friend's brother, so I've been busy getting my sermon together & trying to not look like a total idiot on someone's most important day of their lives. You might remember that this is actually the second wedding I've done, the first was for my brother about 2 years ago. But I don't think I ever shared how my wonderful friends helped me practice...

That Nicole, my fake groom... & Tink, my fake bride... & that lovely veil the bride is wearing is actually a strapless bra. :) My friends are shameless & silly & there for me even at the most ridiculous times. And that's what I love about them. I only wish I had recorded Caitlin's (father of the bride) speech "These kids love each other more than tacos love sour cream." Our faux-ceremony really did help me prepare for the real thing, I might have to schedule another one to help prepare again. After all, it's been 2 years & I'm a little rusty.

flashback time...

1. Share a flashback of your own. Dig through old photos & tell us a little story of days gone by. Click the little blue "Add Your Link" button below to link up.
2. Grab a button & add it to your post to let others know where the party's at.
3. Click click click... Stop by others' blogs who are linked up & leave them a little comment love.

<a href="http://heyasparky.blogspot.com/"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-yFIMN0jWqNo/TgQF8BiQdcI/AAAAAAAAA6E/SNEkWqKKvS8/s288/flashback%2Bfriday.jpg" width="252" height="200" /></a><br />