happy halloween!

ta-da . . . here's an image of this year's costume . . . my second sewing adventure : ) hope everyone enjoyed their halloween sweets and punkins!

architecture + wedding design

= neat-o icons for table names! and by the way- i must credit hb :) as he helped tremendously with the icon designs!


as we met in grad school for architecture, and since architecture has engulfed our lives when we are apart, it seemed fitting to incorporate some aspect of it into our big day . . . so instead of a '#' or letter or photo for our guest tables, we created architectural icons incorporating buildings, landscapes and other design projects . . . on the escort cards, we put miniature icons with everyone's name . . .

granted, we probably enjoyed the icons more than some of our guests, it was fun to add personal touches and allow others to learn a bit more about us!

what a week . . . our firm let go nearly 10% of the employees this week, including the project manager with whom i had worked for the last 9 months . . . what a doozy . . . while my hubby's place has let people go since the end of last year, it really hit me when it was so close and within our team . . . it's hard to say what the future entails, but it doesn't look good . . .

so my apologies for not writing in the last week, it seems the internet gods were angry with me and then with work anxiety, it just didn't happen . . . to update beyond the work news, i have moved my personal blog to a new address to allow me to expand the "alittlebitofsweet.blogspot.com" for my biscotti business . . . which, excitedly, might get kicked off here soon!
i looked at a kitchen space last weekend and have been in touch with 2 others - so we'll keep our fingers crossed that i can afford one of the spaces and be able to start selling for the holidays!

so as i read what i'm typing- it seems for the random readers out there, a bit more info might not hurt . . . my hubby (whom i'll sometimes refer to as hb) and i are in the field of architecture . . . we live in the pac-nw and work for larger, corporate firms. he is in the process of taking a.r.e. exams to become a licensed architect while i dabble as an intern earning hours within the field to also become registered one day . . . not sure when . . .

ok- for now i'm going to go back to watching my buckeyes as they battle penn state . . . will someone score a touchdown?!

p.s.- halloween and wedding pictures will be forthcoming!

peek-a-boo!

it's our baby! so in addition to wanting an excuse to put a picture of our pooch online- not much happened today- but the weather was nice enough to take her to the park- and we were home at a reasonable hour before the sun went down . . .

this is amber, although we often refer to her as any number of other nicknames from ham (for the camera and as much attention as she can get!), pepe (her tail curls like pepe le peu at times- and she occasionally releases 'le peu'), miss snarly pants (she's very moody and thinks that we're afraid of her ferocious, and harmless, snarl as she wrinkles her nose), and even on occasion the simpsons references lamp and puppy goo-goo . . . regardless- she's our babe- we love her and adore her and are better people with her in our lives . . .

now a little bit about amber . . . she is not my first ever pet, but she is my first independent pet . . . after graduating with my undergraduate degrees from ohio state, i joined teach for america and taught 6th grade science and social studies in rural north carolina . . . during my first year, i decided i wanted to get a dog and a cat- and i would start with the kitten so that she could still maintain some dominance when the puppy outgrew her . . . i started reading mostly about puppies that winter and had been looking online and through rescue groups for both- the kitten and the puppy- the last week of school, i went to a local shelter to look at kittens and ideally adopt one (there were so many cute pictures online and i was so certain i would find a kitten that i bought food, dishes, a litter box, collar and leash- for a kitten) . . . well- most of the kittens looked a bit sickly and none of them seemed all that interested in me- so i decided to walk down the puppy/dog aisle . . .

that . . . changed . . . everything . . .

you see- there were these eyes- so big, so brown, so sad, and they just quietly stared into me . . . all the other dogs just barked and barked, but this little black thing just looked eagerly upon me . . . what did i do? i opened her cage- she came to the edge and her tail wagged . . . i asked the staff guy about her- how long she had been there and what her outlook was . . . she had been dropped off nearly 2 weeks ago (she was only 6-8 weeks old when i saw her!) she had been left with her 3 brothers and sisters and he thought she was a shepherd/chow mix . . . since she and her sibs could share a cage- and they were young- they were fairly safe- now that her sibs had been adopted (because they were solid black- whereas she looked like a rotti pup) she was nearing a possible super sad fate if more dogs came in . . . that literally broke my heart and i told him i would be back- and with that- he said he would hold her . . .

why didn't i take her that day? well- at the time my landlord didn't allow dogs, i had an appointment to see a possible townhome i was hoping to rent for the 2nd year, and i wanted a bit of prep time as well as the ability to take her straight to the vet before i took her home . . . needless to say- once i saw the townhome, i was excited- they would allow a dog! and i couldn't think about anything else that night- i went and bought puppy food and some toys and made plans to pick her up the next day . . .

so that saturday to the shelter (where she promptly went #2 on the floor of the office and got all waggy), then the vet (where she weighed in at about 4#, we received her de-wormer and special soap and she sat patiently on the counter as we checked out) and back home and straight into the bathtub we went . . . now the first weekend i had her was scary- and the following monday she spent the day at the vet so they could observe her and get her nutrients to stay down- since then she is a puppy vacuum- and we recently got her a special food dish with obstacles (stay tuned) . . .

i really wish i had realized that i wanted to post about amber before now- because i don't have any electronic versions of her puppy pictures . . . but i will try to scan some this weekend- they are completely adorable - she could steal anyone's heart - and she still can . . . as i've rambled on about our meeting, i'll save more details about her for later . . . as i could talk about her forEVER!

(picture taken on our second road trip as she took control of the back seat :)

trick or tater . . .

so as i missed a few days, we'll see if we can catch up a bit tonight : ) (i need to stop reading blogs! - but one day hopefully i can add links to the ones i enjoy on many occasions . . . )

(oh- and last night i was a bit busy tasting wine with some friends of ours- and yes, wine won over the internet : )

here he is!


as i dug out a pumpkin basket for my desk at work, i found our mr. potato head : ) for now he's a ghost- we'll have to see what he wants to be next week . . . as for me- if we get our thank you notes worked on this weekend, i can buy fabric for this year's costume! (hint- i need to go online and buy saddle shoes . . . )

it's official!

i'm now a miller! whoopie! yesterday, i received my new social security card with my new name . . . yes, i'm a bit sad to leave my polish, hard to spell, hard to pronounce last name- and i hope that in some form i will be able to keep it with me and/or pass it along- we'll just have to be creative : )
and this weekend we will have been married for a month! for me, i really cannot express how fabulous that is . . . before i mentioned that i had married my soul mate- and i truly think that . . . our relationship is just completely wonderful . . .
a tid-bit of our history- we met in grad school for architecture- he was 2 years ahead of me- and as some of my friends got to know him, they claimed he was the male 'me'! for us, it's not so much that opposites attract (yes we have differences) but rather how much we compliment each other . . .
you will definitely learn more about him as i continue to post- for now- if you want a peak of our wedding- our photographer, vicki, of look photography has a wonderful blog entry that highlights the amazing day : ) thanks vicki!
http://lookphotography.blogspot.com/2008/09/sabrina-mark.html
(i still have to figure out how to make it work like a real link . . . sorry!)

dulcito

a little bit of sweet . . . well- we'll say it's a possible translation of the phrase in Spanish . . . and it's what I use to describe my baked goods as my official company title is 'a little bit of sweet, llc.' Currently, I am looking for a commercial kitchen from which I can bake for the upcoming holiday season as well as on a continuous basis for local coffee shops .

The first {dulcito} will be biscotti . . . a twice baked Italian cookie that is great for dipping in coffee and other beverages or just for munching. I've been making biscotti for about 7 years and while it started as a brunch cookie for a gathering of friends, it has become a holiday gift staple for my friends and family.

We're starting to develop additional sweets . . . but we'll get to that soon enough : )

dulcito

a little bit of sweet . . . well- we'll say it's a possible translation of the phrase in spanish . . . and it's what i use to describe my baked goods as my official company title is 'a little bit of sweet, llc.' currently, i am looking for a commercial kitchen from which i can bake for the upcoming holiday season as well as on a continuous basis for local coffee shops . . .

my first dulcito will be biscotti . . . a twice baked italian cookie that is great for dipping in coffee and other beverages or just for munching . . . i've been making biscotti for about 7 years. it started as a brunch cookie for friends and has become a holiday gift staple for my friends and family . . . all of my current versions have nuts (really, i'm not sure how my recipe would be the same without them) . . .

eventually it would be fun to create additional sweets . . . but we'll get to that soon enough : )

(image coming soon!)

dear blog

hello! what to say, what to say . . . well- in reality it is because i like to say a lot that you are here . . . i fear i've talked off too many ears and to hear is a precious thing . . . and since i can't always find fun details and tid bits twice, this seemed to be a good spot to keep track of my finds . . . besides the fact that i am addicted to the internet and e-mail (if only there was a 12-step program) . . . and who knows- someone else might share these interests . . . often times people nod in what seems to be agreement - though maybe they are just being polite?

a few things i should mention about this blog . . . i tend to ramble . . . i may skip around . . . and i frequently go on tangents- however, i hope to keep the posts on topic, with fun and interesting details and pictures when possible (citing credit as often as i am able)

what will i ramble about? well, i'm starting a biscotti business that i hope one day will develop into a bakery / sweet shop of sorts; i enjoy graphics and graphic design; i'm currently in the field of architecture after going back to school for my masters; food and cooking are things i can't live without; who doesn't like wine!; oh and less than a month ago i married my soul mate . . . as i've moved in and out of these topics, i have found numerous resources online and i hope this becomes my diary as i continue to learn and experience the joys of life!

thanks for stopping by . . . and if you're still reading, thanks again! i look forward to developing a network of friends and colleagues in this world of blogging!