Follow the Wife is Gone Guest Posting Today!

Good morning, pretty readers. Rub that sleep out of your eyes and head on over to Creative Odds n' Ends where I am guest posting for the lovely Aimee. Last week she welcomed baby Gavin to her family and I have promised to help her hold down the fort while they settle in.

{via} Photo by Alice W. Photography

Congrats Aimee!

XOXO

Super Bowl Party Inspiration

Tom and Keith are ready for the Super Bowl! 

I love entertaining. My old roommates and I used to throw parties all the time. Some of our earlier bashes involved cheap kegs we’d chill in the bathtub and the more sophisticated soirees usually featured a signature cocktail and plenty of wine. One thing was always the same: We kept it simple, and everyone had a great time.

Since becoming a wife, I have not had many opportunities to entertain. We do not have much space or a big table so a dinner party seems hard to manage. We do, however, have a beautiful big screen TV, and last year we decided to invited some friends over for a Super Bowl party. We got beer, ordered wings and pizza and made a few simple appetizers. Each guest arrived with something in hand and we ended up with a feast. Everyone had a good time—even if there wasn’t enough room for us all on the couch.

This year we’re doing it again and I’m excited to play host. I’m even more excited because my favorite team is playing on Sunday. I think the Super Bowl is the perfect occasion for you to test out your hostess skills. There’s not much pressure—people just want to watch a football game and eat wings. But I have been thinking of a few fun ways to go the extra yards:

Invite a mix of friends. It’s always nice to have a lively crowd with lots to talk about. Just be sure you do the introductions—not everyone will go out of their way to talk to someone new at a party.

Serve something unique to the game. We’re filling galvanized tubs with beers brewed in New England (Sam Adams, perhaps?) and New York. You can also consider regional snacks like New England Clam Chowder.

Keith's tip: Raise the stakes! Organize a simple betting grid where everyone pays $5 or $10 for a square (or several squares).

Focus on creating a comfortable atmosphere for your guests. Food is always a top priority at a party, but at this type it is ok to rely on the delivery guy. Work on setting up a functional drink station with ice, slices of lemon and lime and glasses. Have lots of plates and napkins at the ready and make extra room around the TV.

Is anyone else having a Super Bowl party? Which team are you rooting for? And what’s your best hostessing tip?

Overheard on E! TV: Marriage Revelations from Kim Kardashian

“I’m learning so many things about him I didn’t know before,” a teary Kim confides to her mother in the back of a limo.

I was in the other room, but my head shot up when I heard this. I repeated the line to Keith. He laughed and silently wished I would find better shows to watch on a Saturday afternoon.

That line stuck with me. It repeated over and over in my head all afternoon. My first thought was something like, “Well, that’s why people date.” But when I kept thinking about it, I realized that I didn’t know everything about my husband when I married him. I knew a lot. I knew so much about him that I was certain any other little piece of information I could learn would not be a deal breaker. I knew about his political views, his cleaning habits and his feelings on Dave Matthews Band. And he knew all those same things about me. Flash forward nine months and we both know more about each other than we did on our wedding day. I learned that Keith likes his shirts laundered a particular way, which type of floss he prefers and that he gets really upset (like not just pretending) when the 49ers lose a big game.

I think I’ll continue to learn new things about my husband for a while. We don’t have kids yet, and I imagine that when we do we’ll learn a whole lot about everything. And I’m excited about that. Now I don’t want to comment on what Kim did or didn’t learn about her husband. It’s not my business (but she put it on national television, so I guess it kind of is). I’m simply relating her comments about marriage to my own situation.

Raise your hand if you’ve learned something new about your husband since you got married.And have a great weekend, everyone! 

 

Really Easy Infused Vodka DIY

I have another super easy DIY project for you and this one involves booze! But first I just have to say how hard it is to keep my “not change into sweats right when I get home” resolution. The first thing I wanted to do when I got in last night was peel off my jeans, but I remained strong and cooked dinner. And then ate dinner...in the same clothes. Are pajama jeans socially acceptable? Because if I’m going to keep this up I think I need to invest in a pair.

Ok, back to this really easy DIY project that involves booze. For Christmas, Keith and I made our own vodka. Now before you get too crazy, remember that I said this was super easy. We didn’t actually make vodka. I left out a word back there. We made our own flavored vodka. We flavored a vodka that was already made. There.

I love to give personalized gifts, but I’m not much of a crafter. So when my friend sent me a link to an article on this new home vodka flavoring trend I was excited and nervous. I got my husband on board and we ran out to Costco for two bottles of their finest Kirkland vodka and a pack of fresh basil. (That’s right, no vanilla bean booze for us. We were going to get crazy with this.)

After posing for a picture in the parking lot we came home, unscrewed the top of the bottle and stuffed the (washed) basil leaves in.

I set the bottle in a dark corner for two days to “brew”. While we waiting, we ordered these pretty bottles from the Container Store and I searched around the house for some ribbon to decorate the bottle. After two days our vodka had turned a pretty lime green color.

I gladly took it for a test run before bottling it up and was pleasantly surprised to see that it had a very nice basil flavor. I mixed it with lemonade, but would have added some muddled strawberries as well if I had any.

I rebottled it because the basil leaves were looking a little limp and not too pretty after two days. If you’re planning to keep the vodka around for a while, I’d suggest straining it from whatever it’s being infused with. You can add fresh ingredients back in if you’re going to be serving it at a party. It will decorate the bar and wow guests.

Give it a try. Then share your flavor ideas with me! I think I’m going to try rosemary infused vodka next.

On Rooting For Different Teams

We do not have to love the same baseball teams to love each other. 

Did anyone watch last night’s exciting football games? We camped out in front of the TV around 3:00 to watch the Patriots (Yay! They won!) and then the 49ers. Sadly, only one of our teams came out on top. I was really rooting for a 49ers/Patriots Super Bowl because I knew my husband wanted to see his team win. Between us, I would have been happy to see the 49ers win the Super Bowl, even if it meant my team losing. Does that mean that I would root against the Patriots? No way. Never. I grew up rooting for the Patriots and I strongly believe in team loyalties. My husband has been a lifelong 49ers fan and I admire that about him.

Now let me tell you about a little pet peeve I have. I get so annoyed when people think that because I’m a girl my sports loyalties are not deeply rooted. After living in New York City for five years, someone actually assumed that I had become a Yankees fan. What?! Are you serious? And several people have suggested that I become a 49ers fan now that I’m married to one. Now I’m all for rooting for the 49ers because if I don’t than I really would not be able to talk to my husband at all on a Sunday. But if you think I would trade in the Pats for the 49ers you are crazy. Crazy! I do no like explaining over and over that I like these teams all the time, not just when they are on a hot streak. All those doubters obviously did not spend any summer nights or snowy Sunday afternoons with my family while we were growing up.

Now I am married to someone who has different sports loyalties than me. After living in New York for so long, I imagined that I would marry a Yankees fan and I was ok with that. It’s only a game, right? That’s pretty much true, but I miss how exciting it was to watch games in a room full of people all rooting for my team. And it makes me a little sad to think that when our kids are babies they will not wear little Tom Brady shirts (yes they will) or worse, someone will stick them in a Yankees outfit if I turn my back for too long! (The horror!)

In the end, I think it makes our lives more exciting. We get to follow two teams. And we’ve learned how to grow thicker skin when our teams are playing each other. While I may never get my kids to root for the Red Sox or the Pats, I think they will grow up with the same sense of team loyalty and I hope they see whichever team they root for win championships and, of course, lose in nail biting playoff games. (It only makes the victories sweeter!) Who knows, maybe our kids will even surprise us and become Mets fans.

Do any other ladies out there have husbands that root for different sports teams? How do you deal? If you are both fans of the same team, I am jealous! Share what that is like, please. 

Happy Friday: Five Fun Firsts

 First Look {via} Photo by Brandon Werth

It’s Friday, let’s do something fun today. Here are five of my favorite firsts:

1. My first job was a lifeguard at the YMCA. I made one save in my entire career—a young boy who turns out was only fooling. (Not funny.) I was also a little disappointed that I was issued a bright red XXL T-shirt that said Guard instead of a bright red Speedo that said Guard. I really wanted a lifeguard bathing suit.

2. I must have pulled off the over-sized T-shirt look because the first boy I kissed was also a lifeguard.

3. The first time I flew on an airplane was on a family vacation to Toronto the summer before I entered sixth grade. I wore a dress and my brother and I thought the turbulence felt like a fun roller coaster ride. Now I clutch the armrest and gasp every time there’s a bump during a flight. I always remember my mother reminding us to, “Calm down! Not everyone thinks this is as fun as you two do!”

4. I wore a black ruffled dress on my first date with Keith. I’ll probably never get rid of it. He took me to dinner at a wine bar on the Upper East Side and out for drinks after. I suggested the bar based off a suggestion from a co-worker—she said it played fun music and had lots of dancing. When we walked it the place was DEAD. Saturday, not Friday, was actually the day when all the dancing happened, she later said.

5. I bought the first wedding dress I tried on. Everyone knew it was the right one, but I tired on a few others just to be sure. I made a lot of quick decisions while wedding planning and did a little bit of second guessing as the day got closer and closer. I never once regretted picking that gown though. I spent a lot of time looking at the photos of it on my computer when no one was around.

Now you go: Share some of your first moments with me. 

One more thing before you lead out for the weekend! Click here to follow the wife on Facebook. 

Problem: Wrong bra size. Solution: An Intimate Affair in NYC

Let’s get to know each other a little better, shall we? If you’ve stopped by this here blog more than once you probably know that I’m not a full time blogger, but that I make a living as a magazine writer and editor. Which magazine? Well The Lingerie Journal to be exact. It’s an online trade publication for professionals in the intimate apparel industry. It gives me the chance to talk with retailers and manufacturers and learn a thing or two about how they run their businesses and it also lets me spend some time drooling over the latest lingerie styles. I love fashion to pieces, but I think I love intimate apparel more. Lace, ruffles and chiffon all make me melt a little whenever I see them. And then I usually buy them. There are several drawers dedicated to my underwear in our house.

{via}

 

Now that we’re a bit more acquainted, let’s talk a little bit about intimates. I feel like we’re close enough to talk about this stuff now, don’t you? My good friend Moira of Bra La Mode just told me about a bra fitting event she’s hosting at Bra*Tenders in New York City on January 29. I’m really excited about this event because not enough brides give wedding day intimates their due credit and I think this is just the thing to make people realize how very important they are. The reporter in me needed to know more so I picked up the phone and called Lori Kaplan, the owner of Bra*Tenders to learn about what she’s doing for women. She had this to say: “A lot of seamstresses will tell a bride to come to her first fitting with the undergarments she is going to wear with the dress. The dress will fit a completely different way without them and this is sometimes a huge awakening for a bride.”

What’s really shocking is that it’s not only brides who don’t consider intimates enough. Most women are wearing the wrong bra size, Lori says. “The right bra can make you look ten pound thinner and ten years younger in one minute. It makes a woman feel more confident and a woman who feels good about herself will go out and do good things in the world.”

Whoa.

Will the right size bra help you find the cure to cancer? Maybe. Lori mentioned one customer, a makeup artist, who was wearing the wrong size bra. “The back was riding up and the straps were falling down and she ended up spending the whole day fidgeting with her bra.” So if you’re a cancer research doctor, I suggest you book an appointment with Lori right away.

Here’s how you’ll know if your bra is the wrong size:
-You have side-boob.
-Your boobs are spilling out the side.
-You have four boobs instead of two.
-Your boobs bounce A LOT when you move.

If you’ve experienced any of these boob symptoms, it might mean you’re wearing a bra that’s too big or too small. But don’t let me be the judge of that—speak to the expert.

ATTEND: Bra La Mode’s Intimate Affair at Bra*Tenders 630 Ninth Avenue at 44th street in NYC. January 29, 2012 @ 12:00. 

RSVP here. Then tell me, are you wearing the right size bra?