Love-iversary the 4th

Let's pick up our story from where we left off. It was a Monday morning, they were walking to breakfast, holding hands, and they were official. Dating. Together. Going steady. But they had never yet kissed.

Now the boy in this story is a real gentleman. So hold your breath ... it would be a full five days of dating before the boy would kiss the girl. She was not the kind of girl who would make the first move. And she quite liked being wooed. 

Five days after deciding to be in a relationship, the boy and girl dressed up for a Halloween party (as Roxie and Billy from the musical Chicago). They left the party a little early because the boy wanted to go on an adventure. It felt much like a movie. Their perfectly coiffed selves running around downtown streets spotted with pools of yellow light from the street lamps.

They landed on the steps that bridge over the train tracks in Grant Park. He had been thinking about it for a few days. He loved her. And he told her. And she loved him right back. So when he leaned in to kiss her, she was thrilled and went for it too ... clink! Their teeth made a classic crash into each other. They laughed and proceeded to have the first smooch. 

From that day on, October 27 would always be celebrated as the anniversary of their love.

All Time Fave

I've been thinking lately about constancy. The things that have constantly been in my life. Other than my family and best friends, hardly anything has stayed the same in my life. Not towns, homes, schools, family situations. But occasionally things come along, and stick. Like Jesus. Coffee and baking. And Jake. (Clearly not comparables). There are also some bands that I'd consider lifetime partners. My all time favorites.

I define "all time favorites" as bands that I can listen to at any time of day, in any season of the year, and in any point in life. Here they are:

Date-iversary the 4th

In the beginning ... there was a girl who lived in a tower in downtown Chicago, and a boy who waited in the lobby of that tower nearly every day. Sometimes twice. They spent so much time together that their hearts filled filled filled with desire until those hearts grew so big that they overlapped! A nice little spot where their hearts partly coincided in time. A space in which to grow. The boy went home one weekend, thought about things, came back and said, "I'm ready if you are." They were holding hands, walking in morning sunlight, and they were official.

That was four years ago today!

Now this is what he loos like:


And this is what I look like:
 

This is where I sometimes daydream we might live one day: 

We like any reason to celebrate so we started with a coffee lunch date yesterday.

I asked Jake, "What have you learned after being in a committed relationship for four years?"
"That it can still be really fun."
And my answer, "To be truly selfless, not a pouting martyr."

I'm happy to report, that overlapping heart space has only grown grown grown.

A cozy combination

Friends. Hot cocoa. The Book of Common Prayer.

You're Going to Love This

Is it just me or are weekends more tiring than the week? Oh silly introvert. But I can't help it. I love my friends. They are hilarious. You're going to love this ... I call it "geisha by Alexa."


Alexa and I go way back.
To high school.
To AP Psychology junior year.
I love having her here in the city now, I feel a bit more whole to have someone around who knew me then. It reminds me of where I come from.



We had family dinner with Z&E per usual last week, and also invited Alexa and Catlin. I love inviting people to my home. All the time.

PS: Remember Mogwai? I do. Oh high school.

I Miss Mexico

I recently discovered the fun of clicking backward on my friends' facebook photo tags, to see the original oldie-but-goodies. I found these of myself in Mexico, and they brought be back instantly. I do wish I had my own photos, but once upon a time I was anti-photography and the way it takes over a present moment. Yes, even while studying abroad. So here they are, all I have:

1. my short hair

2. the sun

tepotzlan:

3. a strange man asked us if we spoke spanish and if we wanted a photo with his daughter

4. walking to find the campground

5. setting up camp for my friends (I didn't stay. I had a weird feeling about the place and took a midnight bus home.)

6. setting up camp

7. dancing with chinelos

8. horchata in our school cafe

9. field trip

10. field trip

11. the walk from school to the bus stop

12. a view of Cuernavaca, where we stayed and studied

13. a chapel we visited in D.F.

PS: Thank you friends for your facebook photos.


Now, the trouble with falling in love with one country is that it prevents you from seeing other places. I was in Mexico twice in 2009 and I missed it a lot these past two years. Jake and I are saving for another trip elsewhere but it's taking some self control to not redirect our travels south.

The Road Home

Fall colors, sailboats, family.

Autumn in Chicago: guest post by Paper Armour

I love Chicago.

I love autumn.

I love the real people I know who blog.

So I combined all of these things to create a lovely series of real, Chicago, falltime celebration happiness!

My final guest post for you comes from a dear friend and (now) neighbor! Jake and I have dinner with Elspeth and her husband almost every Sunday. Our conversations are usually about something creative, and I'm so thankful for that. It's no surprise to me that these two made a video. Welcome to our world!

I lived my entire life in Massachusetts before moving to Chicago for college and my family goes back way way way back in the history of New England. So a love for Autumn runs in my blood. It's no surprise to me that Autumn is most people's favorite season, it's so beautiful! It has been hard to adjust to Chicago Autumns though (this is my fifth Autumn away.) They're different and make me more homesick than any other time of year. I have been told that Graceland Cemetery has beautiful Autumn foliage, but haven't ever made the trip to see it. What I do instead is take refuge in the Lurie Garden in Millennium Park. 


The garden is surrounded by seriously tall evergreen trees that do their best to block out sound, but you still know you're in a city. I love the contradictory nature of the Lurie Garden, they're a refuge and a haven, yet not quite. It feels small and huge at the same time, because it's designed in such a way that you feel enclosed, and then you turn a corner and expect to be walking out of the garden, and OH MY! There's more garden! It's called a "garden" but it rarely has big swaths of colorful flowers. Instead it usually has many varieties of decorative grasses and wildflowers that look manicured and overgrown at the same time. It's even beautiful in the winter, which is quite a feat for any garden. Bring a book and a hot beverage, wear a sweater, and enjoy the haven you've just found.

I wanted to fill this post with photos of the garden, but my husband did me one better. He made an awesome video of our trip there! Don't worry, it's short and sweet.

 
Lurie Garden from Zach Harris on Vimeo.

photo credit via

breakfast & sleepover

Post-party breakfast ... at around 2 pm.


After breakfast, the womenfolk got lazy on the couch (I love friends I can be lazy with) while our gents practiced musix.

And that night, the little ones I babysit came to my house for once.
Jake spent the night elsewhere but in the morning when he came back, we played "jail" and this is how they set him up:

paaaaaartay for warmth

Oh my gosh our house is so warm after this Friday. If you know what I mean.

Jamie and Elspeth spent the night. (And I had an after-party on facebook with my neighbor who was locked out at 3 am woot.) But I cracked a joke the next morning like, "Man our house is so warm." And Elspeth said, "It's because of all the bodies who were in it." And Jake said, "I figured out how to close the window finally." And then I had to be like, "That was a joke people."