The Kaiser's Portrait

I don't know if you are familiar with Photo.Stamps.com ? You can submit a photograph and have it put on a stamp. And that is what I did with the photo above. I used the stamps to send out thank yous for baby gifts last year.

I was surprised yesterday to of gotten an email from Photo Stamps saying that this photograph has been selected from thousands to be a finalist in their photo contest. I filled out the respective form and signed the agreement and today got a Congratulations that Konrad's photograph has made it to the final pick!! Brendan and I are so surprised and hope that his picture will be the one that gets chosen... if not, it is still so cool that they picked it as a finalist!!

If the photo gets selected as the winner, it will go on display at the Smithsonian's Postal Museum in Washington, D.C. (Ironically, the same museum where my poster is on display and where my last job at the Postal Service was).

This picture of Konrad was taken when he was just 2 weeks old. Brendan swaddled him and laid him on our bed to take pictures of him for his first passport photo. He got some great photos out of it, this one being the best and it has since gotten tons of compliments. My brother and some friends have told me that I needed to put it into a contest... funny how it's naturally found it's way to one!

So, keep your fingers crossed and thumbs tucked that the Kaiser's portrait makes it into the Smithsonian's Postal Museum! I'll keep you posted.....har-har.

Anniversary Get-a-Way

This past weekend was sooo wonderful. I had surprised Brendan and Konrad with a weekend get-a-way to Washington, D.C. We stayed at the Fairfax at Embassy Row, which was very luxurious. We were upgraded to a king suite, which was super sweet! I had thought that staying in the heart of all the embassy's would be nice and romantic, we could stroll the streets looking at all the different countries' buildings. We had stumbled upon an Irish pub, I had my Guinness and Bren tried a couple different beers, then we stumbled down embassy row. We later ate at the Old Europe Restaurant, the best German restaurant in D.C. I snarfed down a big juicy pepper steak, Brendan had the Schlachtplatte, and Konrad had Spatezel (his favorite). The next morning, we went to the Finnish Embassy for a children's event "I Kid You Not-Kids and Teens in Finland", which featured the Moomin and some of his friends (Finland's equivalent to Disney characters - but so much better than Disney (except that Little Mermaid, yes Brendan...), music and Finnish children's lifestyle exhibits, Marimekko pillows and play areas... oh it was such a great time. Here is a short slide show of our adventures!

Dreamy Studio

Someday when we have more space (and I have more time...)

I want cool studio like this one. (Minus the cat!)

from Lovely Design

We Miss Miriam

We had Miriam over for tea this past Sunday, it was such a treat, I felt like I hadn't seen her in ages. I could of sworn she had new glasses, or her hair was different. Perhaps it was the sweater? I had remembered her in summer clothes... .oh it had seemed so long, but realistically she's been gone for only a couple months. We missed her.

It was a short and sweet time. Of course she came armed with her camera and as soon as her coat and shoes were off, so was her camera. Konrad flirted with her while eating his cheese (crack actually) and seemed to of picked up where he last left off. We showed Miriam how he can stand, push a cart, take a few steps on his own... it was exciting to see her reaction.

I managed to get a ~professional/legit appointment with her to take a family photo (not the one posted below) for our holiday cards this year.

Here are some of the images she took on Sunday, during an hours visit...amazing.

Easter Pretty Things

Easter is my favorite holiday and Spring is one of my favorite times of the year. Here are some beautiful Easter and Spring finds ~all the things I love.

One of the many things Easter has me thinking about is hats, this one is from the Hat Shop.

The the Atelier Lzc Matriochka tea towel ~made in France is from Rose and Radish.

This little cutie is hand made in Germany. You can find him hiding here.

I was delighted to of found one of these fellers hidden in a potted plant in our kitchen last week!

This is similar to how we decorate for Easter, though ours is a bit more whimsical.

I had never made Easter trees until Brendan showed me.

I will be sure to post my Easter tree in a later post.

And of course, my favorite flowers...tulips.

I love this idea from Martha Stewart.

This Man Learned German in a Week

This article from Der Spiegel is great. It made me think of my friend Katie who is learning German in Singapore (of all places)! As well as myself... ha I've been "taking" German for over a year now (very slooooowly).

The guy who this article is about, has learned German in one week, which is amazing. Of course, he's only able to do it because he has Asperger's Syndrome, a mild form of autism. What I find most interesting about him is his connections of shapes with the German language, which is explained in the article and it makes perfect sense (at least to me). I love how he describes the German language, "like a clean room with good sharp corners, tidy and straightforward". (Ironically, that is how Brendan and I foresee our dream home)

So, since I don't have your email address, I share this article with you Katie, as well as all the rest out there.

August Macke

I reeaaly want an August Macke calendar for this year, for the past two years I've been able to get them, but this year it's a bit harder since they're out of stock. poo

More Great Gift Ideas

6.

   

I love little notebooks like these. Brendan and I are constantly drawing ideas on napkins or random checkbook pages. It's gotten to the point where we just bring a notebook when we go out for dinner just to have on hand. I found these at the Laughing Elephant, and all of them are wonderful. ($3.95 ea)

7.

I can't believe I found this. We had dinner with some friends the other week and on their dining room table was a large laminated world map. We loved it and said that we'd like to do the same. I personally could stare at a map all the time, day dreaming of all the places I could go...seeing how far one place is from the next...or brushing up on my geography. I found this at the A+R Store. ($34)

 

Happy First Advent

 Last night we made our Advent wreath and the wreath for our front door all the while listening to Christmas music. It was a festive and cozy evening at the Soenneckens.

A Nice Morning in Shepherdstown

It's our 'last day' as a family together before I go back to work on Monday. So we decided to take full advantage of our day and go to Shepherdstown real early. We had our cup of coffee at the Lost Dog (my old employer when I was in college). The Lost Dog is preety famous here in She-town and serves the best (seriously the best) coffees. Yes, I owe all my coffee snobbishness to Garth Jansen, pictured above. 

We later popped by Lullaby Lu to exchange a gift and was lured to have our picture taken with Santa Claus. Piccadilly Posh was there taking the pictures. So, a really cool family Christmas photo is coming soon!! ...you bet I will be making an appointment with them for more pictures!

Nurse The Baby Poster

Brendan surprised me with this great gift the other day, now, how perfect could this poster be?

Richard Wilkinson

I really like Richard Wilkinson's illustrations, they are a combination of wood block, anime, and that familiar Japanese artwork. He mostly does work for the Telegraph Magazine, I like his subject matter - his work addresses lots of current health issues. 

Leonard Freed Exhibition, Berlin

If I were in Berlin, I would go see Leonard Freed's exhibit at the C/O Gallery (now through October 5). I love his photographs.