Guys!

So sorry for no updates! Unfortunately work has blocked blogger and I've been traveling and then sick. I've been reading updates here and there and I hope to figure out a way to get over my blogger's block!

Wedded Bliss

More wedding shots...

Preppiest Movies

A Continuous Lean is a fascinatingly cool style blog about the classic American (often preppy) look, coming from a guy's perspective.  I spied this post about the movie Trading Places, which I have never seen, supposedly the preppiest movie ever.  I must update my Netflix immediately.  What are your thoughts on the preppiest movies?

I'm thinking 80s movies involving the Brat Pack or James Spader, don't you think?  St. Elmo's Fire, Less Than Zero, and the like...

Ordinary People is a classic... 

I love Match Point (and Matthew Goode)

Maybe even The Big Chill (oh Kevin Kline, be still my heart)

Back from Wedding Central

You may not have noticed, but I've been MIA this past week.  I was at home in Massachusetts for my brother RBM III's wedding!  It was such a blast, and everyone's hard work paid off because it was absolutely gorgeous.  We had perfect weather, too, and amazing fall foliage to complement everything.  That's me with my brother and niece dancing up a storm.  (My mother, SDM, made that gorgeous flower girl dress!)  I'll be posting with more frequency soon, I promise!

Dogs Are Proof That God Loves Us And Wants Us To Be Happy

A video titled: "My Dogs greeting me after returning from 14 months in Iraq". 

My friend Toi shared this video.  I cribbed the title of this one from Benjamin Franklin, I think. 

YES.

I think I am going to have to make this happen.  I saw them at Mohegan Sun on my 25th birthday.  What better way to ring in the new year?

Did anyone catch this hilarity last night on the SNL special?

Whale of the Day

My favorites, humpbacks!

"The Humpback Whale, Megaptera novaeangliae, is one of the most charismatic whales in the sea. Acrobatic, easily recognizable, and found in many locations in both hemispheres, it is a popular target of the whale-watching industry. Growing to just over 50 feet in length and weighing in at 30 to 40 tons, it is a large member of the Balaenopteridae, but certainly nowhere near the size of the blue and fin whales.
     Scientists have been studying the humpback whale extensively for decades, researching among other things its 1) impressive yearly migration- up to 10,000 miles round-trip- from summer feeding grounds in high latitudes to mating and calving grounds in the tropics; 2) eerily beautiful mating songs, the animal kingdom’s most complex melodies; and 3) communal bubble-net feeding behavior. The latter is truly one of nature’s most amazing spectacles, a summer-long "all you can eat Alaskan buffet." Up to twenty whales circle underneath a school of herring, exhaling streams of bubbles which, upon rising, entrap and disorient the fish. Swimming upwards into the stunned mass of fish, the leviathans open wide and gulp hundreds of gallons of sea water and the herring snack it contains, erupting from the surface with cavernous maws agape.
     Slow to recover from heavy losses in the early twentieth century, especially from the Antarctic whaling fleets and shore stations in the Southern Hemisphere, roughly ten percent of the pre-whaling era population estimate of 125,000 survive today. Sadly, this earns an "endangered species" badge even in our age of enlightenment.
     One of the continuing mysteries in whale watching circles is exactly why whales jump clear of the water, or "breach". Does the thunderous splash resulting from a 40-ton bellyflop serve as some form of communication with other nearby whales? Could breaching be a threat display, or a show of dominance? A means of knocking off itchy barnacles, parasites and other skin irritants? Or could it be simply for the sheer fun of it? My guess is that all are possible explanations- especially the last! We honestly know so very little about these giants of the deep and their mysterious ways, but everything science has uncovered hints that cetaceans are intelligent, social animals, capable of a remarkable array of complex behaviors."

images and text via Brandon Cole

Outfit of the Day

Devil Dogs

I have been slacking in posting lately because work has been such a whirlwind!  I wanted to share the treats I made for a bake sale at my firm.  My coworker, Heather, has a dear friend who has been suffering with cerebral palsy and testicular cancer, and whose medical bills are piling up.  Heather decided to host a bake sale and silent auction in one of our conference rooms as a fundraiser for him.  

I knew I wanted to make my mother's (SDM's) secret-recipe devil dogs, because they are always a huge crowd pleaser, and I decided to try Martha Stewart's pumpkin whoopie pies as well, which I saw on Kappa Prep's blog this week!  Thank you for that post!  The flavors are very different - SDM's recipe is made with marshmallow fluff and is deliciously sweet, and Martha's with pumpkin and cream cheese is more savory.  I really like them both, although I was good and didn't let myself sample a whole one.  Unfortunately my boyfriend P is not a big fan of sweets, but he really liked the chocolate cookie part when I gave him a sample.

Here are the pictures of my contribution - I will try to take pictures of the silent auction in a little while too.  

Whale of the Day

Pitcher and butter dish from Jonathan Adler.  Must-haves.

Kate is Great

Kate Middleton is definitely positioning herself wisely with Price William and the royal family, according to this month's Vanity Fair. Apparently she has been sporting lots of Issa dresses lately. Love those. She always looks great and is definitely a style inspiration for those favoring a young but classic look. You can read the article here.

all photos via VanityFair.com

I Go Ahead and Smile

Landlocked Mermaid is too much!  What a nice welcome to the blogging community she has given me with this sweet award.  LLM, you definitely put a smile on my face!  Your blog is one of the first I check each day and I am going to refer to myself as a fellow landlocked mermaid from now on.  Let's hit the beach!

Characteristics for the Smile Award:
1. Must display a cheerful attitude (Whales of the day make me happy and I hope they make you happy too!)
2. Must love one another (I definitely love learning from you lovely ladies every day.)
3. Must make mistakes (Oh, there are PLENTY to go around!)
4. Must learn from others (This is the best part of being here, IMHO.)
5. Must be a positive contributor to blog world (I sure hope to be.)
6. Must love life. (I most certainly do - with so much beauty around here in the mountains it is hard not to.)
7. Must love kids (My 7-year-old niece is my life!  I could not love anything more than I love her.)

These are the rules for The Smile Award:
1. The recipient must link back the the award’s creator (I think this is her)
2. You must post these rules if you receive the award
3. You must chose 5 people to receive the award after receiving it yourself
4. You must fit the characteristics of the recipient of the award
5. You must post the characteristics of a recipient.
6. You must create a post sharing your win with others.
7. You must thank your giver.

Let's see - I am still so new to all of this, and I thank you all for bearing with me as I catch up and catch on to blogging!  It's such a cool community.  And so I would like to award....

Life in the Cove - Your updates, outfits and outings are so much fun to read about!  You've been so kind to me despite my n00b status 'round these parts!

Nina's Blog - You always have such fun shopping finds and I love your style!  Your blog is so upbeat and I love the glimpses into your family and professional life.  It's so nice of you to send me extra info on shopping finds or stores too.  What a sweetheart you are!

Muffy Martini - You're always there with a positive comment for me and I adore your fabulous blog.  Long live Junior League and Jack Berger!

Kelly Green and Navy - You have superadorable taste and I feel like we have so much in common!  Love reading your updates and I want to hear more about your impending nuptials!

And my pal K from Heaven in a Paper Cup is one of my longtime interwebz friends, about whom I cannot say enough.  She is both wondermom and hilarious!

Whale of the Day

via whaledive.net

Those are the gorgeous white "wings" of a humpback whale.  He is in Tonga and he wants a hug!  I think here he is "spy-hopping" with his head a little ways out of the water and floating almost vertically.

Tonga is one of the only places in the world where it's legal to swim with whales.  I'd cry if one got this close and I was in the water, but I still want to do it someday.  You can also swim with whales in the Sea of Cortez/Baja California and the Dominican Republic.  

Nan Kempner

Nan is one of my icons.  She's known for her glamour and philanthropy but here she is in the '60s, skiing at Sugarbush in Vermont, just a normal girl (!) shot by Slim Aarons.  

via New York Observer

via Jamd

via Jamd

And apres-ski

via Jamd/GettyImages

Here are some later shots of her

via All Things Beautiful

With Yves Saint Laurent, one of her closest friends.

via New York Observer

Here's a book she contributed to, which I have been meaning to pick up.

via Amazon

Nan and Yves are both gone now, but heaven's a far more fashionable place with them in it.

Whale of the Day

This is my mom and my niece in Provincetown, MA last summer after our whale watch.  This chicken finger looked familiar...

Oh What a Night

The Black and White ball was so much fun!  The special events committee did such an awesome job and everyone looked beautiful.  My sources tell me the party raised $18,000 for the Junior League of Salt Lake City!  

Here are some pictures.

The band was phenomenal - if I ever host a big party *cough*or wedding *cough* in Utah, I will definitely have the Soul Survivors!  We boogied to Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, The Temptations, James Brown and all the classics!

Thank you for the wardrobe advice.  I went with pearls on a ribbon (LKG tells me they are back "in," and I trust her more than anyone when it comes to fashion), a green wrap (gift from LKG, obvi), and nude patent Bettye Muller peep toes.

Whales of the Day

This is pretty awesome.  The Northeast Fisheries Science Center is a research arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, with research stations located in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Washington, DC.  These are aerial photos they've taken of different types of whales (and dolphins) along the east coast.

Blue whale

Common dolphins

Humpback whales, bubble feeding

Fin whale

Sei whale

Sperm whale

photos via the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration