On the bookshelf: book club reads

I've been slacking lately and haven't read anything other than our book club selections.  But none the less, they were great reads that I wanted to share!

Habibi - The first graphic novel I ever read!  It follows the story of a woman who adopted a young boy, and the love that grows between them.  It encompasses quite a few themes: lust, greed, hope, and the many similarities between Islam and Christianity.  Even if you aren't interested in reading this novel, I would suggest renting it from the library just to marvel over the beautiful leather cover and artistic images inside.  I was pretty knocked off my feet when I picked up my copy.

(My book club buddy, Beth, gave a great little summary here along with many other book recommendations).

The History of Love - A novel that follows the stories of 2 main characters: Leo Gursky, an older man who lives by himself, always recalling the love he lost & Alma, a young woman who is in search of happiness for her mother who lost her husband (Alma's father) to cancer.  The stories of both individuals begin to entwine and they are able to form a bond.  It's quite a sad story, but one with a lot of comic relief to keep the reader moving right along.  I would say our book club was 50/50 on this one - some loved it and some really didn't like it.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - I read this book on our very first girl's trip to Scottsdale and deemed it my "favorite book ever", hand's down.  Mostly, I loved how quirky the characters were and Foer's writing in general. I'm a big fan of Foer.  So, I shared my love with the book club and they all read it this past month, though almost no one liked it!  Whoops!  I didn't re-read it, but now I wish I would've to see what all I missed.  If I have suggested this book to anyone (everyone), be aware, it's not a definite "love it" consensus as I expected. 

Fun fact: The author of The History of Love is married to the author of Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close!  They even have "to my love"-like sweet nothings to each other at the beginning of their books. How cute is that?!

Sounds like hallelujah for the first time

Maybe it's pessimistic of us, but my friend Sam and I have a theory that Wednesday's are going to be difficult, maybe even down right awful, every week. Okay yes, it's definitely pessimistic, we're working on it!  But there seems to be something about the hump day that is always problematic. Though I do my very best to defeat this theory of ours. Sometimes I win, and sometimes I loose.

Today, it's about 2:30, and I've made it thus far with minimal bumps.  I consider that winning, don't you think?

There are a few things keeping me in good spirits; the two biggest would definitely be the tunes of a mix CD from one of my favorite Oklahoman's and these lovely images I've pinned recently:
  

all found here: http://pinterest.com/goofyken/

Each inspires me in a different way;  all good, all encompassing, all very real. It makes me laugh a bit at how a few pretty images and a great song can really turn an okay day into a great day.

Perhaps the excitement of seeing Hunger Games tonight for the second time is helping a little too. 

You know, just maybe.

Here's to a great Wednesday, for everyone.  ::clink::

To the Rocks

Out with the skis, in with the climbing gear!

On Sunday, Me, Ryan, and our friend Mike went for our first climb of the season.  We made our way to Clear Creek Canyon, right outside of Golden, and only about 15 minutes from our apartment. 

We had to do a little hiking just to get to the climbing area.   Everyone was impressed little Zia made it up (we were too!).

Ryan 'set' the route first -- so he clips in the rope every 10 few feet or so, with Mike belaying him below.  As Ryan progresses through the clips, he attaches the rope, which limits the length of a potential fall.  When he reaches the top, he set up a top rope for me to climb next.

Mike is belaying him the entire time, but if Ryan slipped right before he clipped in, then he would fall down to the next closest clip.  So, it's a little more tricky then what I do, by just climbing top rope.  Definitely have to be a skilled climber to set any route! 

I'm up next.
Helmet on.
Don't look down. 

And Mike right after me.

You can see how high up the route was, and then to the left an even taller route.  Eep, I'll have to work up to that (did I mention I'm terrified of heights?).  It's crazy we used to drive hours to find some outdoor climbing and now it's right in our backyard. 

And on our way back to the car...
a glimpse into some extreme climbing.  That overhang is insane and he is dominating it.

Picnic in the Park

The weather was insanely beautiful in Denver this weekend.
On Saturday morning, my friend and I went skiing clothed in gloves, jackets, and wool socks. 
And the afternoon was spent at the park in shorts and tanks, among happy pups, frisbees, and sun kissed shoulders.

It totally boggles my mind... in the very best way!

(I really missed hosting the Photo Swap this morning.  I'm thinking of a new project, hopefully to be developed very soon.)

It's true, spring has arrived

And it looks like I wasn't really in denial after all. 

It's now March 22nd with no snow in sight.

Sewing 101: minky baby blanket

My dear friends Adam & Kirstie are expecting their first child this summer!  And they just found out the little babe on the way is a boy.  I'm over the moon.  Oh, and so are they.

The last two baby projects were so much fun, I knew I wanted to make a lil' something again. So I attempted my first blanket.

With about a million options for fabric, I finally decided on this turtle print that caught my eye from the very beginning.  Who says baby boy items have to be pale blue?!  I loved the green so much that I picked a green minky fabric for the back too.  I tied it off with a royal blue ribbon and dropped it in the mail to California.

I hope the little guy enjoys (playing, spitting up, and rolling all over on) the blanket as much as I enjoyed making it!

Tutorial: Simple Baby Blanket
Fabric: Urban Zoologie Turtles Grass & Kelly Green Minky

Photo Swap: the finale

Last week's theme: Be You

I hope you all made friends with these amazing ladies!
  
 Abbey - The Pink Teapot
Valerie - threads and thoughts and things I love

Lauren - Pack n' Play

Sam - Love Never Fails

Thanks to EVERYONE for playing along! 

 - Kendra

A family event.

I love a good bike ride...  especially with this amazing weather we've had lately.  It makes you antsy to get outside, especially after working in a windowless office all day (so grateful for that office job, thank you, thank you!).  So after work yesterday, Ryan and I decided to bike to a friend's house and then go to dinner together.  A pretty normal event, especially when we lived in Oklahoma City.

Yesterday there was a little exception.
Zia really wanted to join us. 

Biking with a dog has proven tricky for Ryan, especially when his childhood dog helped him flip over his handlebars and make friends with a mailbox.  To say he was "hesitant" to take Zia on this little trip, is an understatement.  But we were traveling less than a mile,  no heavy traffic, and she listens really well. 

We gave it a shot.

And with great success, WE MADE IT.
Two goofy people yelling, "this way", "wait", "come on, come on", "wait", "good", "GOOD!", all the way down the street. It was quite an entertaining Tuesday night, for everyone.

Oh, we ate pizza.  And stumbled upon a Lil' Rockers concert with 5-10 year old's playing guitars and tambourines and singing unrecognizable lyrics.  Pretty adorable.

Weekend Snowshoeing

  
Last week was my Mom's birthday and we surprised her with a plane ticket to Colorado!  Among many other activities, we went snowshoeing together on Sunday. 

We hiked around the base of Mt.Evans that overlooked a lake that was beautifully frozen.   The hike was through all these trees, but every few steps you walked, the mountains were peaking through, begging for a photo. 

It was our first time ever snowshoeing and as awkward as it was at the beginning (we may have fallen a few times), we got the hang of it and had a really fun afternoon.

Mom - Zia misses you already!  We do too.