STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Dig me!  I'm ST'er of the week .  Thanks Erin!

1. how is your wedding planning going? is your wedding big, small, etc?

The planning is going pretty well.  All the major things are in order, we just booked our honeymoon last week .  We're expecting around 160 people or so, but we have a 'B list' of another 30 or so including people we'd really like to invite but just can't afford to - if people decline we'll be able to add a few.  FH still thinks we're going to be around 125, but I'm telling you right now NOBODY is going to decline because this is the first wedding on either side of our families (and first among friends too) in over 10 years .

2. you have been with your s.o. for a very long time, how have the two of you changed throughout your relationship? has it been easy to transition together?

We've been together a little over 9 years now.  I think we've really had it very easy transition-wise.  Since we've been together since I was 12 (!) and he was 13 (!), we've really grown up together, so we never had trouble making time for each other or fitting each other into our own lives since there was never your stuff/my stuff or your money/my money, it's always been our stuff and our money.  We also totally got off easy when it came to moving in together - we did it 6 days after I turned 18 (he had just turned 19) - because we already had so many similar habits and a similar lifestyle.  It felt like we had been living together for years it was so seamless.  I'm more thankful than ever for it now that we're seeing some of our friends in their 30's deal with relationships as they get more serious and try to figure their shit out.

3. where are you living now? (for some reason i am thinking denver, but i think i recall mentions of texas?)

Denver, baby !  We were  down to the wire deciding between Houston and Denver when FH was finishing school (this last June), and the offer from Denver finally came through just a week before he came home to graduate.  Whew!  I it here.

4. what are you plotting as your next purchase?

Hmmm, I'm really not much of a purchase-plotter, actually!  Much more of a sale-stalker.  I actually find that going out without a 'mission' per se treats me better than going in search of a particular item.  The only purchases I've ever planned have been my Handmaid bag, and wedding-related stuff!  I'm hoping to be more plot oriented now that the finances have stabilized a bit .

TheLovelyLady71

How many kids do you have/want?

Just one , methinks.  I'm really excited for pregnancy/birth/babyhood and beyond, but I can't imagine doing it more than once.  Just because I'd want to be able to savor it and really absorb it, I don't think I'd want to complicate it or be distracted with a second go 'round.  I work better in a emotional way with just one focus.  My current 'baby' is my kitty Dexter - he's a Bengal (asian leopard mixed with domestic tabby) and he's so.  freaking.  cool.

Who's your style icon?

I don't really have a style icon.  I tend to take people's style philosophies and make them my own instead of making their actual style my own.  IMO you can pull of just about anything as long as you are comfortable in it - it's the attitude that will make it or break it.

Who got you into fashion?

Would you believe me if I told you I wore a men's sweatshirt, jeans, sneakers, and a ponytail everyday throughout my entire 3.5 years in highschool?  Ha!  I can't think really of any one person or event that got me interested - the interest just kind of blossomed as I became more mature I suppose.  And though I enjoy fashion, I definitely try to focus more on being 'stylish' as opposed to 'fashionable'.

What did you do previously for a living, I 'think' you're a stay at home Mom????

I was a dancer and a dance instructor for a long time when I lived in Portland.  When we moved to Spokane, I was a receptionist at two different places to pay the bills while FH went to school.  Now that I don't have to work a dead-end job to pay the bills, I'm trying to figure out what I want to do that will make me happy - it's FH's turn to take care of the bills .

YAY for Elle!

do you have baby names picked out already?

what do you normally wear around the house since i know you stay home too?

do you get up in the middle of the night to pee?

what movie did you last rent and see?

last movie you saw at the theatre?

whos your best friend?

what the best present you got in 2005? ever?

where were you born?

are you going to change your last name when you marry?

whats in your purse?

thats it for now......

Here are my questions, straight from an American Express ad with Kate Winslet in domino magazine this month:

What was your childhood ambition?

What's your fondest memory?

Your wildest dream?

Proudest moment?

Biggest challenge?

What is your alarm clock?

What's your perfect day?

What was your first job?

Favorite indulgence?

Last purchase?

Favorite movie?

Inspiration?

Geez!  Talk about making me work for it ...

NCshopper

What was your childhood ambition?

I wanted to 'make it' as a dancer

What's your fondest memory?

There are so many!  Hanging out with my Grandma when I was little, going potatoe bug hunting with my friends as a kid, my last dance performance on stage, getting engaged, watching FH walk across the stage at his graduation ...

Your wildest dream?

In my wildest dreams, I would be a very talented singer.  Or a very talented shoe designer.

Proudest moment?

Watching my dance students perform on stage after working so hard all year!

Biggest challenge?

Keeping us afloat while FH was in school.  We made it work with so little - I still can't believe we actually did it!

What is your alarm clock?

FH - the perpetual up-5-minutes-before-the-alarm-goes-off kinda guy. 

What's your perfect day?

Really hoping my wedding day is going to take this one ....

What was your first job?

'Assistant Dance Instructor'

Favorite indulgence?

Spending a whole day sitting on the couch watching my Friends or SATC dvds.

Last purchase?

Holy crap I can't even remember!  I haven't gotten myself anything in awhile because of Christmas - time to fix that I guess!

Favorite movie?

Little Women, You've Got Mail, The Butterfly Effect, 40 Year Old Virgin, Chicago

Inspiration?

I am inspired by my FH's ability to get up and go to work everyday and be interested in his job with no ifs, ands, or buts.  It's something I've never been able to do.

Laken

Favorite restaurant?

Thai Basil - so good, so cheap!

Favorite fast food restaurant?

Subway - I'm not much for burgers and stuff these days.

What do you get there (both)?

Thai Basil - Hot & Sour soup and Vietnamese Slaw w/ a side of rice

Subway - Turkey on wheat w/lots of veggies & mustard, hold the cheese and the mayo

Do you always order the same thing or do you vary what you eat?

I vary alot - usually FH and I both get different things and then we'll eat some of each others' meals too.  Or we split a meal so we can get dessert too!

What is the one daytime tv show that you watch that embarrasses the crap out of you? (i know there is at least one!)

It used to be A Baby Story on TLC.  I just found it so fascinating - now it seems like they show a lot of interventionalist scenarios, which pisses me off so I don't watch it anymore.  I rarely watch TV during the day - we just cancelled our cable because of that.

Favorite thing about Denver?

I like that the city is very outdoor-activity-friendly.  And that most mainstream stores are nearby for the most part.  And that there's quite a bit of culture to be had - something I was starving for after living in Spokane for 2 years!  I also find it super easy to both find your way around and get around quickly - what people here call 'traffic' is barely even traffic!

How was your first christmas "home alone" & away from your family?

Very .... restorative.  It was a little melancholy to be away from the fam, but it was also really nice to just be low key and do things when we felt like doing them instead of running around with our heads cut off for days on end.  And we didn't have to hold back our feelings about some of the presents we got - much less "Wow!  Thanks so much for the XYZ!  It's sooo unique!" and much more "Hon, look at this!  What were they thinking?  At least it still has the tags on ...".  That sounds awful, but y'all know what I mean I'm sure!  We promised to be back next year, so I enjoyed my year of respite while it lasted.

relrel

what's the one thing you rely on in your closet the most, ya know...that one thing that you wear even though you wore it already this week and haven't washed it yet and still sorta smells like the dinner you made that day but it looks great so you're gonna wear it anyway? 

Jeans.  Pretty unexciting, but I rarely really 'get dressed' more than once a week if we go out or something so my tops and stuff are almost always at the ready.  My favorite jeans fit best after they've been worn 3 or 4 times .

  what's the one store that you can't help yourself in? that no matter how hard you try you end up with a pile of stuff anyway?  

Just the grocery store, unfortunately .

are you a reader? what do you read?  

I am a reader.  I read anything and everything, as long as the subject matter is somewhat on the lighter side.  I like books about History, the Arts, Gardening, Decorating, Novels, whatever.

 republican/democrat/green/liberal/whatever?

I actually don't affiliate myself with any particular party, but my beliefs are pretty crunchy. 

and without thinking about it...pick...

lumberjack or sailor?  Sailor

ryan secrist or dick clark? Ryan Seacrest - watching Dick Clark on NYE was way too sad

daytime soaps or primetime soaps (ala dallas or oc)? Primetime

potato chips or pretzels? I like potato chips more, but rarely eat them.

spiderman or superman? Superman

vogue or harpers magazine? Harpers

socks or slippers for around the house?  Socks

kaykay

fav. color for clothes

I like to wear green, brown, gray, black, purple, teal ...

fav. color for your house interior

If I was allowed to paint, a soft green or a light beige

 how did you come up with the colors for your wedding

For years I actually wanted to do all green & white.  After actually beginning planning though, it felt really sterile and a little too traditional for us - we were brainstorming and I think I saw a picture of the color combo.  It stuck.  Sorry the memory is a little foggy since we came up with the color scheme when we first got engaged 3.5 years ago!

how many bridesmaids are you going to have

Just 2 - my best friend and FH's sister.

do you have girls nights out with friends and if so what is the craziset thing you all done

I've never had a crazy girls night out - I moved away from all my friends when I was 19 and haven't really been back since, and I don't have any solo female friends here.  It's hard to have a 'crazy' night out when you're sober and 19 - you can't get in anywhere!  I'm not much for crazy nights out anyway - it makes me uncomfortable.

shopchicago33

What book are you reading right now, or if you aren't currently reading one, what did you last read?

Haven't been reading anything lately because of the holidays, and my attention span has been at an all-time low anyway.  Been looking through a few Hawaii/Kauai guidebooks, and I have a book called Artistic License waiting for me on my nightstand.

Favorite magazine?

Mens Health - they have lots of cool factoids in there!

Favorite TV Show?

Lost!  CSI is a close second, and I also like House, Joey, Law&Order SVU, Without a Trace, Cold Case, King of Queens, Still Standing.

Favorite Alcoholic beverage?

I like pretty much everything, but tend to go the low maintenance route and stick with beer when I go out.  I'm a Guinness girl .

Favorite non-alcoholic beverage?

Iced tea, or Diet Coke - it must be Coke.  I cannot stand Pepsi .

What do you order @ Starbucks?

Tall, decaf, fat free, sugar free vanilla mocha, no whip