lacking :(

definitely been lacking on the posts lately. i apologize for that, you faithful readers (yeah, like anyone's even out there!)

anyway thought i would give some updates...

dilemma #3 is pretty much solved. we have opted for NO DJ but a family friend (who we haven't decided upon yet...)

dilemma #4: bridal party - - also solved (as far as my end goes). my girls are as follows:
Rachel: Sister, Matron of Honor
Alicia: Lifetime friend (and i mean that, we were friends when we were 2)
Bekah: Cousin & awesome friend
Alyssa: Josh's sister
Kristen: roommate and first "K" of the SKANK's
Nicole: "N" in the SKANK's
Katie: last "K" in the SKANK's (and one of the friends that introduced Josh & I)
Staci: first "S" in the SKANK's, and fellow volleyball team member

i sent out "be in my wedding" requests last week to the girls, but have not had any response from 5 of them...WHAT THE HECK, GIRLS?! maybe they just don't feel like responding or think it's necessary to...? (i mean, it isn't "necessary" but i want to know they got them, right?!)

i guess dilemma #5 is not a big deal, but i'm trying to find a good wedding website to put all our info on. i have several that i'm signed up for but don't know which to keep. anyone have any suggestions?


other goings on in my life:
* Papa Koos (my mum's dad) is having bladder surgery on Thursday (tomorrow). there's a chance they may not be able to even get the bladder out now because of scar tissue, so we're really praying for that to happen. he has cancer in his bladder and has been taking some chemo medication which has at least stopped it from spreading, but the bladder needs to come out :(
* going dress shopping Saturday with mom, rach, bekah & my aunt if she can
* my sister & her husband are having a GIRL!!! i totally knew it. last friday i spent the afternoon with them painting the little girlie's room!
* work is going ok. fairly busy because i'm the only designer there at the moment. meaning i need to end this post and get back to work
* having a lot of fun browsing for honeymoon places. can't wait!!!

the daily green

several months ago i stumbled across the website "the daily green." [i believe i was led there through Real Simple, probably an article on easy ways to go green, unless it was from Domino or long enough ago to be from Blueprint]. anyway, i was excited to see that some of Knoll's products were featured in their "green homes" section on "green office furniture." [they are numbers 15 - 19].

going green?

the whole "green movement" has always peaked my interest and i would love to be more environmentally aware and have a smaller ecological footprint. you can find your footprint online, here, which i had done in college, and completed again today. My footprint is "21" - we would need 4.7 planets if everyone lived like me...[and i'm sure most people DO]. when i was younger [like, 12], i envisioned myself driving [like at age 17 or 18] some stupid looking solar-powered car that i couldn't be in when it got dark. i didn't want that. now, i realize, obviously i would be able to drive a "solar powered car" after dark, but also i wish so bad that i didn't have to pay these crazy gas prices and could have an anything-but-gas powered car.

i would love for it to be easier to be "green". magazines i read talk all about using light and solar energy to power their homes, using recycled materials, public transportation, energy efficient appliances...but for me, that's not really very realistic [or affordable]. however, there are some things i'm sure i could do to make a difference.

i stumbled across The Daily Green website which has a bunch of cool and easy things you can do to "go green". you can sign up for their newsletter by email as well.

here's a list of some things i can think of that are easy, and some i got from the website.

1. recycle. recycle. recycle. i'm not sure how much of a difference it would make, but it would at least help me to feel better to not toss every sheet of paper i don't need at work in the trash, or shove every plastic bottle in the garbage. i would also like to use recycled paper more, as well as other recycled materials [we have a lot of panel fabrics at work that are made from recycled fabric - one is made from recycled pop bottles or something.]
   
2. drive less or carpool. this is something that is possible for me, but out of probably selfish needs, i don't do. i could drive with my dad to work and home, but so often i don't go home right after work, so there's a problem.
3. Project Switch - switching your inefficient incandescent light bulbs. i don't really know much about this but i found it here on EarthDay.net.
4. pay bills online. how simple is this? i do it anyway, now just make sure you aren't getting the paper bills sent to your house as well.
5. eat produce from local growers. this seems fairly simple, as long as you can find where to get the produce.
   
6. "fill the fridge" - keeping it full helps it run to its max capacity.
7. "power shower" - take a 5 minute shower. this may be somewhat difficult [for those of us with long hair], but i'd say it's doable every so often.
   

Greenroom Eco [sold at Target stores] creates "environmentally friendly" paper products. Not much on their website, but i have a clipboard in the bottom red pattern made from recycled cardboard, and it's pretty cool! i have to get to Target to check out more things, then i can take some pics of that.

Earth Day is Tuesday, April 22nd. What can you do?