Late Post-Easter 2010

I am loving it here in North Carolina, but still get pretty homesick for family, particularly around holidays. So on Easter this year, Christopher and I took special care to plan a great day. I find that planning big dinners, pretty decorations, and fun things to do helps distract me from missing the usual traditions.

Maybe some of the things I do to celebrate seem a little over-the-top. And maybe it isn't very grown-up or practical to have "birthday weeks" and elaborate celebrations for two people. But I love it!

For our Easter brunch we had a sausage egg tart using this recipe for the crust, roasted asparagus, fresh strawberries and pineapple, and pretty chocolates from Whole Foods bakery. It was so fun to listen to General Conference and have a feast in between sessions.

This picture is a little fuzzy, but they turned out really cute this year. I did the pink ones, and Chris did blue/green

I made bunting! It looked so pretty we kept it up all week.

Christopher hid candy for me all over the apartment. It took over an hour to find it all. He couldn't stop giggling. Some of the candy had letters on the back. When I (finally) unscrambled it with plenty of hints, this is what it said. Yay for new music!

Something Therapeutic

Want to know something that can help you when meanies are getting you down?

Here's a suggestion. When I'm at work and someone calls, usually they are really nice. But sometimes they aren't. I just hung up with a very important person who was inconsiderate and made me feel bad. When I passed along the message to my boss by email, I wrote...

"Dr. ____ just called and would like you to give him a call back when you get a chance. His number is 555.5555 and I don't like him."

Then, right before I send it, I delete the last part, and I'm good to go. The idea of actually sending one of the uncensored emails makes me laugh, and usually I feel a little bit better.

Another email, uncut.

"The reason there is no orange juice left over from Bagel Tuesday is because I forgot to put the OJ away so a few of the residents drank all 48 remaining bottles of it last night. I think we should be glad because this means that they weren't drinking coffee, and let's be honest--they could all use a breather on the coffee."

And finally, an email to everyone in the office.

"I don't know who ordered the caffeine free pepsi. Please stop bugging me about it because it wasn't me. I know it looks suspicious because I don't drink alcohol or coffee, but trust me, if I had ordered a favorite beverage, it would be diet, and coke. And it isn't hilarious when you see me in the breakroom and joke about how I have my own personal stash. I do have a personal stash and it is under my desk. And it isn't even caffeine free so I guess the joke is on you.

Thanks!

Melissa"

Wahoo!

This picture says it all. The beach getaway was so much fun!

Hitting the Books

Our plans for the weekend are a little unbalanced. I'm leaving work early today, driving to the ocean with a big group of awesome ladies, and spending the entire weekend in a beautiful beach house reading good books and eating chocolate.

Christopher is staying behind, studying up for his terrifying end of year exam on Monday. Poor guy.

Happy Mother's Day Weekend!