Biggest Thankful Ever.

Sooooo.... BIG news!

Zimbags are now available in the flesh (cloth?) at a retail store! Soulfood, a wonderful coffee/book/music/poetry community in Redmond has graciously allowed us to have a spot in their store. Our bags are featured right where the line for coffee forms, where everybody can see them. This is a dream of 3 years finally come to fruition... we are so thankful for this opportunity.

Lauren and I are beside ourselves with happiness and I'm sure you've heard our girly squealing where you are. Tonight we will be heading back with the talented Kirsten to finish our display.

Here are some pictures.

The plan:

The before space:

The after (although more is to come on the corkboard display, stay tuned...):

The happiest bag elves ever:

If you live nearby, come visit!

xo, Meg

PS- Our online store is now active for those of you who don't live close enough to visit! www.zimbags.org

so thankful.

Hello. So many things to be thankful for these days.

Let's get started and see how long the list gets:

1. Desk Update. I am very thankful for my desk find and love the way it turned out. Look for yourself:

2. 19 days. We move into our house in 19 days. 19. Crazy. Our house has become a boxland.

Not Thankful For:

Thankful For:

3. Great music. I love music.

4. Fall. If I haven't mentioned it lately, I love fall.

5. My partner in crime. He makes me tick, keeps me on my toes, and makes me laugh until my spleen rips in half. For instance, we went to the movies and the girl next to him let him know she was going to put the armrest down between them and he responded, straight-faced, "That's probably the appropriate thing to do." Lauren and I were laughing so hard our spleens just exploded.

6. Exaggeration. I am prone to it. I am thankful that it exists and that I am allowed to take part.

7. New boots. If you didn't hear the bellowing where you live, I'll fill you in. My favorite fall boots had their final day a few weeks back when I tripped up the stairs at the doctor's office and the sole ripped off. And my soul ripped out of my chest. It was the saddest walk to and from the doctor's office ever. I'm sure people pitied me, pouting my way along the city streets while my sole flapped against the sidewalk with every step. BUT I found replacement boots that, dare I say, are better.

8. A desk for Ryan! Ryan's mom graciously donated a desk to our cause and Ryan is a happy camper and has already warned me that it is his desk and I am not to touch it. Except when I am revamping it. After that, he may store his piles of paperwork in it and it is his first workspace that he doesn't have to share since we've been married. Thanks Adrienne! You made one boy very happy. (Oh and me too, because there are enough drawers to hide all his junk/paper/receipts/bits o' things.)

9. Books a plenty. Between trips to the library, friends that send me books, and my own growing collection - I am reading non-stop and loving every moment. Even the double vision that occurs if I don't wear my glasses. And I'm thankful for a husband that appreciates my love for words, even though he doesn't understand or partake in it.

10. Down comforter. It finally came time to change out our summer blanket for our nice, comfy down comforter. And it makes me so happy. Bring it on winter. But don't really, ok? No snow this year. Please?

xo, Meg

wow.

It's been awhile, huh?

Well, of course it has. Things have been busy around here, what with getting ready to move and visiting family and watching the leaves change colors.

A few things I'm thankful for today:

1. Our house is now a house. It's not just 2x4s stuck in the ground with a little cement. Le Maison has windows, doors, walls, actual stairs, and all sorts of surfaces I am looking forward to cleaning.

2. A desk in the dumpster. One morning, while taking the dogs out for a walk really early, I spotted a beautiful desk that I knew must be my writing desk. And it was the perfect price: free. Someone left it outside the apartments dumpster. So Ryan (in his pajamas) and I carried it inside and I planned for it's face lift. I vacillated between black and white paint. You'll have to wait for an update to find out which I chose.

Before .... After photo coming.

3. A Remington Holiday typewriter. Many of you know that I have been wanting a typewriter for quite sometime and while I have one at my parents house, it's quite bulky to ship and needs some repairs I wouldn't know how to do. So yesterday, on a random stop in Value Village, I found a Remington Holiday typewriter in beautiful blue that is in pristine condition. The ribbon is in the mail and I will start using it for my first drafts as soon as it arrives! It was the missing piece in my writing process and now I feel my desk is complete.

4. Trip to the beach. Ryan, Andrew, Kendra, the pups, and I headed to Pacific Beach last weekend and had a ball. We made a fire, ran from giant bugs, slept in a tent (or car), and walked on the beach in the beautiful sun. Both Ry and I feel most at home in the sand with the sound of waves roaring around us. And the pups did really well. That was a surprise.

5. Autumn. It is officially Autumn and you can feel the change in the air. My favorite season is only 2 days in and I have already made soup, bread, and pumpkin pie.

xo, Meg

We're back.

Hi everyone.

We are back from our adventure in the mid-west/east. It was great to see family and friends, but we are wiped out. It will probably take a few days to recover (give me a break, I'm still recovering from surgery and diabetes meltdown too), but then I will be back with thankfuls.

There are many right now, but they overwhelm my currently frail brain when I start to think of them.

Hope everything is going well with you!

xo, Meg

PS- I can tell you one thing I am thankful for: supportive friends. That's nice.

Guest Writer: Ryan

Hello readers of ‘Rock Quarries and Applesauce Sandwiches’! This is Ryan stepping in to write an entry for Meghan’s blog. Let me start by taking you back in time...to fifth grade or so. Life was so much easier then. We were all care free, enjoying the moment. The amount of adventure and accomplishment that you could pack into a 24 hours back then seems completely improbable today. All this to set the stage that my writing style, vocabulary, and overall desire to capture a reader’s interest with my writing hasn’t evolved since. Enjoy.

Now that I’ve lured you in with a heightened sense of disappointment, I have some great news to share with you…we will soon be homeowners!!! We are building our first home in Auburn, Washington. Due to the ongoing economic downturn which hit the housing market hard along with the lowest interest rates in years, we decided that this is the time to take the plunge into home ownership. We are so excited to finally have the privacy and freedom that you have in a house compared to an apartment and it will be great to finally have a small fenced in yard that we can let the dogs (Telfair and Apollonia) play in freely. Again, we are truly excited and blessed to be able to purchase a home at this point in our lives and it is my hope that we will never take this nor any future blessings for granted.

Home Details
· 3 bedrooms
· 2.5 bathrooms
· Loft and Study
· 2 car garage
· Luxury master bathroom
· Master bedroom balcony

For a photo tour, go here!

Check back for more updates. Only about 70 days left until we call this place home.

Ryan

Thankful: Photo Edition

This past Sunday Ryan and I trekked up to Mount Rainier in search of some adventure, scenery, and peace. We found all. Although the views of the Mountain were obscured by fogs, we were able to focus on the details and the alpine fields (and the marmots, of course). For the first time in our marriage, Ryan had to convince me to finish a hike. It's usually the other way around, but I literally thought I was going to die. I'm glad he persuaded (aka: kicked my butt) me up the mountain. We reached Panaroma Point at 6,800 feet above sea level and went a bit further in the direction of Camp Muir, but turned back because it was so foggy we could only see a little bit in front of us and dew had drenched us.



It was a beautiful day. Here are my thankfuls from the past weekend in photo form:

xo, Meg

PS- The full album can be viewed here: Hikes, Bikes, and Walks.

Crazy times.

Things this past week and the upcoming week are going to be crazy. Crazy good and crazy bad. Just lots to do and see. And then.... vacation! September 1-11 we will be in a mixture of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina (with varying rest stops between the latter two.)

Here are some thankfuls to tide you over until my next posting:

1. Statistics is over after this week! Ryan can attest to the fact that I am indeed (and contrary to popular opinion) skilled in math, but am miserable throughout the process. Not to brag (well, kinda) - I rock at math (apparently, statistics in particular), but find it utterly boring. Perhaps that's why I hate it. I like exciting things. Not things with definite answers and proven paths to a solution. I enjoy problem solving on my own, from problem to solution with no step-by-steps. So, I am thankful that this class is almost over and that it has taught me what it is I hate about math.

2. I have the best friend and partner in the whole world (and probably the universe too). His name is Ryan.

3. I am back in control**, and you all know how much I love to be in control. My blood sugars are back under my control and submit to my carb ratio-ing and insulin injecting ways. For a while I was stressed to check my blood glucose as it could be at 400 or 50 - randomly. Not associated with any choice of mine. Ahhh, the feeling of control.*** **I do sometimes plummet or sky-rocket, but I see them coming after, say, I have eaten a giant chocolate bar or rock climbed for far too long. I still consider this control. ***I am under no illusion that this will be the way it always is. Chronic diseases have a way of showing you who is boss, but for now it is nice to feel in control.

4. Hiking trip. Sunday will be our first Mt. Rainier trip of the summer due to my recovery. We have been up there at least once a year since we've been together and I think you could call it our "happy place."

5. WEEEEE. I'm so excited about this one! We finally bought a backpacking tent and sleeping bags. I found stuff on great sale at REI outlet (you should check them out: http://www.rei.com/outlet/). Altogether our tent and sleeping bags weigh 11 pounds. 3 pounds for each sleeping bag and 5 pounds for the tent. That will make for easier hiking and camping! To top it off, my sleeping bag is the most beautiful color, which always makes life a little sweeter. So if you are up for a hiking/camping trip - let us know.

xo, Meg