Choose your own adventure

Birthday Edition!

Friday night, Joe and I went out for a "Choose your own adventure" adventure for his birthday.

His first choice (which he actually had to make the night before, so I could attempt to make reservations): Food?

1. Italian
2. Puerto Rican - so we went to La Isla in Ballard.
3. Burgers

Drinks?

1. Cocktails - this decision brought us to Hazlewood
2. Brewskies
3. H2O

Entertainment?

1. Ping Pong
2. Bar Olympics - We hit up the 4Bs and played pool, buck hunter, skee ball, darts and pop-a-shot. Joe won 3 of 5, so he took the gold. I'm still proud of the silver. (Everyone wins at Bar Olympics!)
3. Skydiving (leading up to the night, I kept telling him this is what we were going to do. He wasn't having any of it.)

Dessert?

1. Cupcakes - I had a hunch he'd pick this one, so I sneakily picked up cupcakes at Cupcake Royale during my lunch break.
2. Ice Cream

UW Basketball Tix?

1. vs. Arizona
2. vs. Arizona State - So next Saturday, we're continuing the adventure fun to watch the Dawgs crush the Sun Devils.
3. vs. USC

Then we went to the Royal Fork to cash in on his "senior citizen" discount... :)

Very fun night!

Knock Yourself Out

Busy day, but I took a little breather to enjoy a little blast from my past: Way over the Rainbow

I know the whole dance. And song. And even the back-up dancer moves. And so do 13 other former national consultants. We may have performed it in front of the National President - Jean Mrasek - at headquarters. I'm sure she was pleased with her selection of consultants after our off-beat performance. Really pleased. (Or trying to figure out how to hire and train 14 new consultants before the 2nd semester began. Yeah, probably...)

Blogger hates me and won't let me embed the video, so check it out here.

TGIF, right?

Update: Please note that this is not a video of me. Apparently I confused some folks, namely Josh. I could only imagine the excitement build, then suddenly pop like a balloon when it turned out to be an awkward 12-year-old boy jumping around and fist-pumping across the stage. And no, we were fortunate enough to not have our rendition filmed. Thank goodness. Ok, go on now. Watch the clip. I know you're dying to see it now... I hope I haven't built it up too much. Lauren Bakian, this one goes out to you!

little letters

dear good intentions,
i understand that you like your fruits and veggies, but you kind of went overkill at the grocery store last time. how will you ever finish a head of lettuce, spinach, 3 oranges, 4 bananas, 4 apples, 5 tomatoes, 2 zucchinis, 1 red onion, 1 bell pepper and 1 avocado? reminder: you live alone.

dear full marathon,
you're 5 months away, but you're still intimidating me. back off.

dear phinney ridge starbucks,
watch out for autumn and her flamingo-loving toddler that is not hers.
(p.s. i laughed a lot at this.)

dear sleep talkin' man,
i feel your pain. for years, i have had people tell me what i have said to them in my sleep. it's a shame (read: quite exciting) that your wife finds pleasure in posting your sleepy ramblings, sometimes even with audio.

dear anyone who has ever slept in the same room as me (i.e. an entire sorority sleeping porch of 25+ for four years),
my apologies for the excessive sleep talking, but my sincerest THANK YOU for not starting a blog about Petes Sleeping Speaks.

dear lunch break,
thank you for existing, even if it's often at my desk.

Amiche dall' Italia

My roommates from Italy came over for an Italian feast last night - complete with bread and olive oil/vinegar, wine and pasta. (Sorry, ladies - I forgot to whip out the Nutella! A minor obsession of ours.)

It was great to catch up! Learn all about Carol's wedding plans and Jessie's gutsy (and successful!) moves at work. As always, we promised that we wouldn't let so much time pass between get-togethers and I hope we stay true to that. Although, it's good to know that we can easily pick up where we left off...

Chillin' on the side of a canal in Venice.

Livin' la vita bella.

Funny story: So Carol and I knew each other because we just so happened to be Panhellenic Delegates and Presidents of our respective sororities for two years (Read: tons of meetings together where we shared our crazy stories of the crazy women in our houses). However, we were under the impression that we needed a third roommate. Fortunately, little Miss Straube met this "really cool DZ at a Pi Kapp toga party who was going to Rome too!" Bingo.

In an effort to reduce our risk of getting bunked up with "that crazy girl" of the program, we bombarded her at our next pre-trip meeting and asked her to be our roommate. She accepted our plea and later told us how weird she thought it was that literally attacked and forced her to say yes. Fortunately, it all turned out perfectly! Even if Jessie ended up being "that crazy girl." (Ok, just kidding. I think there was a clear winner of who really took the crown of Miss Crazy.)

An 8 second pick-me-up

Call me immature, but I think this is funny.

Rollin' with my homies

The 90's had great music. We learned this on our trip back when we listened exclusively to XM radio, 90's on 9. Best. station. ever.

Counting Crows, O Town, Melissa Etheridge, Live, No Doubt, Alanis, Goo Goo Dolls, Jewel, Whitney Houston, The Fugees, The Cranberries and so many more.

What are some of your faves from the 90's?

Snowy Awesomeness

I can't begin to explain how awesome last weekend was.

Maddie explained some of the reasons here.

I will give my little debrief via pictures because I think it appropriately captures the shear awesomeness of the weekend.

Playing in the snow.

Playing at Mt. Bachelor.

(the fresh snow was bliss.)

More snow playing. We can't get enough of it.

Lounging by the hot fire after playing in the snow.
Don't mind if I do! (Or if Autumn and Karen do)

Loving every bit of the snow.

Driving over the super, crazy, snowy pass on the way home. It was a hot mess. Well actually, freezin' cold mess!

While it's fresh to mind

Here are some of my favorite quotes from my girl's weekend in Sunriver.

1. "Omigod, I totally loved Freddie Prinze Jr. in highschool. I decoupaged his face on my retainer case."
2. "Oh, no! I think I'm a flower!" (For context, here's what we were talking about.)
3. "He asked me if I was 145 and I thought he was guessing my weight or something and I was like, really?! Then I realized he was asking about my snowboard size..."
4. "Wait, the Indigo Girls are lesbians? I totally thought they were sisters!"

This is just a sampling of the fun and crazy conversations that make me giggle.

More Sunriver stories to come!

The Sunriver Ladies

Sunriver bound!

I am counting the minutes until I head out for a long weekend in Sunriver! I've been pumped about this for a long time now, so I can't believe it's already here.

Maddie, Autumn, Erin, Stepanie, Karen, Lizzie and I are planning on having the time of our lives. (Time of our lives means: snowboarding/skiing, sleeping in, eating homemade spaghetti, watching girly movies, making brunch, dancing at the Owl's Nest with old ladies, hot tubbing, etc.)

This is the second annual trip, but it'll be my first since I had to work the same weekend last year. Check back next week for the amazingness of the trip captured on camera! (Possibly even one of Straube cuddling Karen? I hear she likes to cuddle on this trip...)

Pigeon-toed snowshoer

Yep, I'm a pigeon-toed snowshoer.

Not sure exactly why, but my snowshoes kept creeping in at the top. (Well, it was probably my lack of experience getting my boots in the bindings...) After a little help, the problem was solved, but I definitely used a few muscles that aren't regularly used in the process.

But snowshoeing is oh-so-fun! It's not too tiring, but I still considered it cross-training. We also lucked out with some beautiful weather - the sky was clear and the sun was shining.

We "off-roaded" a bit to set-up a little picnic down by the water. (Yeah, we're rebels.) Despite having three layers, my butt was no match for the snowy ground. Thus, we ate in a hurry and headed back to the Snoqualmie State Park before the lions and tigers and bears, oh my, came out at night!

I dubbed the lake behind me, Lake Erika.

(What? It could be.)

Snowshoeing Extraordinaire.

Hollywood Confusion

Last night, I was all geared up and ready

to watch this movie called Nine.

You know, the musical that's been compared to the likes of Chicago and whatnot.

Nominated for a couple Golden Globes.

Starring big names like Kate Hudson, Nicole Kidman, Penelope Cruz, Marion Cotillard, Fergie, Sophia Loren...

...then suddenly, this rather dark and gloomy movie started.

The movie was called Nine.

(Note: I didn't pick the movie, so I had no idea what I was getting into)

An animated flick about the end of humanity.

And these potato sack-like creatures running for their lives from giant machine-like creatures.

Seriously, Hollywood?

Release two completely different movies with the same name within months of each other?
Not a good move in my opinion. I'm sure I'm not the only one out there that was completely confused.

All in all, it was actually a pretty entertaining movie. I'm not sure exactly who it was made for because it would have scared the bejeezies out of my 6-year-old self, but that's how Hollywood rolls these days.

Next up, the musical Nine. I might need to convince a lady friend to watch it with me. Maybe?

via and via

TGIF

This weekend couldn't come soon enough. And this is why:

• It will be kicked off with a Hot Buttered Rum party at Ry Ry's place. (Yummy!)
• I'm finally going to sneak in another long run with Autumn and Maddie. It's been faaaaar too long.
• Another 3-day weekend! (leading into a 3-day work week since I'm taking next Friday off for Sunrivah!)
• I plan on sleeping in. A lot. It'll be magical.
• Nickybutt and Leanne's Housewarming Party on Saturday! They moved in a couple months back, but now they're officially ready to show off their new pad.
• Possibly some snowshoeing action on Monday. Perfect activity for a day off, if you ask me. (And I'll be able to check off another 2k10 goal!)
• Jack Bauer and 24 are back on Sunday! Stephers is going to cook din din for the 24 gang (Holden, Stacey, Team Barrows, Stephers and me) and we're going to watch JB save the world... again.

These ladies are also thinking TGIF. Can't you tell? Aren't their sparkly tops just lovely?!

DIY: Coldstone

via

Sometimes the ice cream aisle can be a little overwhelming. Do you splurge and go for the loaded Ben and Jerry's? Do you opt for the lighter version? Or does sorbet peak your interest?

A brilliant (well, you may have already done this) idea struck me as I was faced with this pressing decision: Do-it yourself coldstone ice cream.

Yum.

So what did I decide to include?

• Breyer's Vanilla Light Ice Cream (you can't even taste the difference.)
• Nutella (Carol, Jessie and I tried to add it to anything and everything as roommates in Italy.)
• Raspberries
• Dark chocolate M&Ms

I just pulled out my cutting board, threw a scoop down with the ingredients, then went to work with my potato masher, then WA-LAA! Tasty goodness. Try it. You won't regret it.

Teddy's on Roosevelt

Teddy's. It's a great place. If you haven't before, you really oughta try it out.

The owner, Dan, is great.

They have pool.

They have darts.

They have ping pong.

Relatively cheap beer.

Outdoor patio in back for the summers.

Fun post-poker memories.

(I brought my parents once and my mom was boggled as to why I liked it so much. I really think it's the laid-back, neighborhood vibe.)

Last night, I went with a couple people and decided that it might be a fun tradition for a random Tuesday night every so often. There were maybe 10-15 people there and one guy even bought the whole place a round of drinks. (Thanks, dude!)

I discovered Discovery Park

I don't know how I've lived in Seattle for over 7 years and never made it to Discovery Park until now. It just doesn't add up - I like hikes (check), beaches (check), new running routes (check), short drives (check), driftwood forts (check) and the outdoors, in general (check!).

Sunday afternoon we went for a little picnic and hiking adventure. We even packed some hot cocoa and marshmallows - yum! When we were headed back to the car, we must have taken a few wrong turns. It was odd - we passed a sign that said that the Visitor Center was .5 miles, so we walked in that direction. Then the next sign said 1.2 miles! I still don't quite know how that happened...

Next up, Alki! (because, strangely, I haven't been there either...)

A head above the rest

Aside from the poor gym picture quality, it is clear that Kam is a head above the rest of the kiddos in his basketball league. The thing is, he plays in the 1st-2nd grade division, he's in 1st and still the tallest. (As a reminder, we pretty much wear the same shoe and pant size...)

It was soooo much fun to watch him play on Saturday. He's not too aggressive and just sort of goes with the flow; occassionally looking at the sidelines to ensure that we're all watching, then sheepishly smiles and looks away. (Gosh, he's adorable.)

He made quite a few baskets which resulted in really, really loud "Yeah Kam!"s coming from the stands, particularly from his grandma. I had the same experience with my Grandma Toni. I think it must run in the family :)

This means I'm already making progess my Goal Project 2k10 list. Next up, maybe snowshoeing this weekend?

The roller coaster of 2k10

So New Years Eve was fun. A little homemade dinner action, some Wii and then a par-tay on Dexter with a perfect view of the Space Needle.

Here's Maddie and I ready to dance the night away.

(This is the dress that can be worn like 30 different ways. It's amazing.)

Joe and I taking a break from the dancefest.

Taking a breather on the deck with the NYE crew.

Then New Years Day hit. My sister was involved in a serious car accident, but things will be ok. It's been quite the week, but we're so very lucky to have so much support from our friends and family. I was going to keep this under the radar, but figured there was no sense in that. I've been "blogging" updates on her condition on a CaringBridge website my aunt set-up. We're on the road to recovery!

Ok, now really, go hug your sister/brother. Do it. That's an order.

It's not illegal?

Light rail, anyone?

Do me a favor.

Give your sister/brother a big, GIANT bear hug. Like huge. Also tell them you love them.

If they are too far away, call them.
Text them.
Email them.
Tweet them.
Shoot, fax them if that's what it takes.

{I'm continually reminded about how amazing my friends and family are. You're all the best.}