one does not simply walk into mordor.

the weekend is here! & we might just end up spending it 

watching a few lord of the rings movies here & there. 

whenever i watch one i can't help but get really into it, so

then when it's over i really want to watch the next one &

find out what happens, dang it! we watched the first one

last night & i'm like, "are they gonna find merry & pippin

after they got carried off by the uruk-hai?! frodo &
samwise are still so far away from mordor! gandalf
just died!" so. a hoot & holler at the frandsen house
this  weekend guaranteed.

isn't the bike brooch great?

much thanks to rachel for hearing it call my name :) 

in other news, speaking of lord of the rings...

yes.

have a great weekend!

anniversaring.

we really did have the jolliest anniversary day. like so

many other holidays around here, we had made an iron-

clad agreement not to get each other gifts...but then, like

clockwork, i wake up the morning of our anniversary 

to a tableful of chocolates, flowers, new shoes, & other 

gifts from that dang sneaky husband of mine! & of course 

i then felt like a bum for not getting him any gifts, which

is ironic, because it was me who had followed the rules

of our deal. husband kept our dinner that evening a bit 

of a surprise, which always keeps the romance alive. 

we ended up going to cafe du soleil, a little french 

place, in honor of our travels to europe this summer. 

taxi-ing in the rain:

apparently if you tell cafe du soleil it's your wedding anniversary, they'll

set out a little basket of flowers! which i went so far as to smell before

i found out they were fake...good thing this wasn't a first date, because,

how embarrassing would that have been, am i right??

we decided to be adventurous & order escargot! it was the first

time for both of us. &...it was pretty good! it all (& when i say

"it all," i mean, you know, the snails) mostly just tasted chewy 

& blended really well with the bread & sauce that came with it.

oh, & sorry these pictures are so dark. but here is the escargot:

& the french onion soup:

& french fries (i swear not everything we ordered at 

the french restaurant had the word "french" in the title):

oui had a great time!

updates from the phone-y.

updates of our lives lately, according to my little phone:

1. this is when i became so caught up in some epic reading 

for class i almost started praying to zeus (or jupiter/jove, 

as the case may be) for a few minutes there.

2. a little city college attempt at finals cheer. sigh.

3. oh my gosh, the sweetest little box from bigelow's, which is

kind of my favorite new drugstore, & one of the oldest in the city!

4. research party.............! yes? no? anyone?

5. the time we locked ourselves out of our apartment after church...

6. ...& had to wait in our lobby for a while for our doorman to arrive.

7. waiting...

8. ...& more waiting. i'm happy to announce our doorman did

finally arrive & we were, indeed, let back into our apartment.

9. husband's little breakfast heart he made 

out of fruit the morning of our anniversary.

10. benjamin & i were having a small "disagreement" earlier this week 

(happens to the best of us!...or, in our case, happens to the normal of
us :) & once when he turned around he was met with this little frowny.
we both agreed it was too priceless not to take a picture of, & like
magic the disagreement went away. isn't it funny how that happens?...

& my fluffy pink bathrobe is really comfortable, okay?!

 

11. oh man. this one makes me laugh. sweet benjamin was making 

scotcheroos to bring to our friends & i told him over the phone to pour

it all into a "pan." it was only when i got home from work a few

hours later that i realized i should have been a bit more descriptive. :)

12. SOMEone had a lot of fun with the caution tape!

13. chocolate ben brought home from germany: a "kuhflecken"

flavor, or "cow spots," in english.

14. or my other favorite: "dunkle voll-nuss," or 

"dark whole nuts." this one was the best.

15. just chilling with benny on campus for 

a few minutes, which is always a treat.

16. YOU GUYS. THE SEARCH IS OVER. i have 

officially found the cutest & smallest tub of vaseline EVER.

i'll end on that jolly note.

the most delightful book dedication ever.

while in the throes of researching for my paper for this scary class, 

i came across the best little dedication EVER. &

let's just say it provided a little light in the paper-writing darkness.

the dedication went:

"To My Wife Mia, A Perpetually

Interesting Daughter of Eve."

isn't that just a dream? it's been a few days since

i found this, & it still delights me every time i read it.

"a perpetually interesting daughter of eve"! how romantic.

ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY.

one year ago today!

one year ago today!

this happened:

this picture below was snapped right at the end of our big, blustery,

it-all-was-over-way-too-fast wedding day, just as we were leaving our

reception & people lined up to blow bubbles as we walked hand in hand.

i remember exactly what was going on in my head when this picture

was taken. a sense of giddiness, because the full reality of what had

happened that day had not fully sunken it yet...& yet at the same time

it TOTALLY HAD. as we were walking away from our reception

while this picture was being taken, i felt this incredible shock of 

fear. we had been surrounded by people people people for days

beforehand & then, suddenly, it was just him & me. me & him.

we were leaving our reception, yes, but it was also like we

were leaving behind an entire beloved chapter of our lives, only

to start a completely new one together. that was what i was feeling

as this picture was taken. fear & excitement. giddiness & loneliness.

hardly any idea of the adventures that lay ahead of us, we two drifters
off to see the world. & yet there was also a depth of joy i had never
felt before in my life. it's like i didn't know it was possible to be that happy.
him & me. me & him. every time i look at this picture, it's like the me of the
picture is asking the me of today, "do you remember, shayla?
do you remember how we felt this day?"

& while it has been a year since this picture was taken,

the answer is YES. i completely remember how i felt that day. 

happy anniversary, ben. i love you.



p.s. a big thank you to my beautiful sister-in-law rachel
for this beautiful canvas print! it holds a prominent
place in our homes and in our hearts...i hope that
doesn't sound too cheesy :)

happy mother's day!

oh my goodness. love this amazing mother of mine.

i could not have asked for someone stronger, sassier, 

funnier, more sensible, more spiritual or more hardworking

(this list really could go on & on) for a mom. i cherish

the dear, sweet memories i have & the priceless lessons

i learned while growing up in a household with this 

warrior for a mother. & now that i live far away with

a husband of my own, i realize every day how much

she means to me, & that THIS is TOTALLY TRUE.

photo cred to alta!

photo cred to...i can't remember.

& LOTS of love of course goes out to my  mother-in-law.

i count myself incredibly lucky to have married into a family 

who is so wise, caring & welcoming.

photo cred to morgan.

husband was sweet & surprised me with a little mother's day dinner

while i took a priceless sunday nap (don't you love those?). & while

i feel like i am as much of a mother as george clooney is a republican, 

it was a nice gesture all the same. happy mother's day to all you

hard-working mamas, future mamas, & just awesome women in general.

happy mother's day!

a peek into our summer plans.

this july columbia is sending husband to europe for not 

one, but two physics conferences (a polarized neutron 

conference & a superconductivity conference, in case anyone 

was interested :)...& your 7th favorite blogger will just 

happen to be tagging along! the 2 conferences are within one

week of each other, so we're going ahead & making a

big european jamboree out of it...kind of like the world 

cup. here are the places we're planning on hitting up:

sicily

venice

paris 

& rome.

we're very excited, of course, but more than that

we also feel incredibly lucky & blessed that husband 

has such great opportunities to make science in 

so many beautiful parts of the world.

au revoir!