celebrations | kimberly ah

Apr 08 2015

Kimberly AH Three Years Later

our tree at 3 And here’s that tree again.

I know it seems weird to talk about, but I think about this blog a lot. It’s not a job for me, but it is a place that gives me a bit of a routine, sometimes a bit of a purpose and, most importantly, a bit of connection with like-minded people. I feel like “the blogging landscape” has changed so much since I started reading Angry Chicken back in 2007. I loved reading blogs back then, probably because they were new to me, but also because people were just sharing. Sharing their art works, sharing their homes, sharing their ideas, sharing their recipes… Sometimes it feels a little self-indulgent to share, but it also feels wonderful to find other people who have the same interests in mail or cocktails or Japan or gardening. So, thank you again for sharing this space with me, for visiting and commenting and reaching out the old-fashioned way.

Cheers to another year “at home“!

Tagged celebrations

Apr 05 2015

1 Comment

celebrations, holidays

Happy Easter, Happy Spring

Happy Easter, Happy Spring, Friends! Today is a perfect spring weather day in Chicago so I’m out and about mailing some letters and planting the rest of my seeds for the balcony. I hope whatever you are doing today is equally enjoyable and relaxing.

Tagged celebrations, holidays

Apr 01 2015

13 Comments

celebrations, Office Supplies, snail mail

Write On In April…

Just when I thought I couldn’t handle another month-long letter writing challenge…well, here I go again. I heard about the Write On Campaign on Instagram a few weeks ago and I signed up for a free kit, so now I’m obligated, right?

In all honestly, I’m really looking forward to April, which is actually the “official” National Letter Writing Month. I’m looking forward to getting back into the daily habit of writing and catching up on my growing mail pile. And, I just found my original welcome note from the Letter Writers Alliance. March 29th marked my five year anniversary as a member of LWA. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate than writing letters!

Tagged celebrations, mail art, office supplies, rubber stamp, snail mail

Mar 31 2015

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celebrations, Office Supplies, snail mail, vintage

Going Postal Birthday Gifts

A certain mail-lover had a birthday last week and Naoto really hit it out of the ballpark (or should I say the post office?) with my gifts. He went with a postal theme and shopped on Etsy for some ideas and ended up choosing an upcycled mail bag purse, a postman rubber stamp, and an envelope necklace. I was thrilled with everything! The purse is made from an upcycled old Dutch mail bag. He ordered it from the Stiksel in the Netherlands and gave it to me with the idea that I could make it into a traveling mail pack. I love this idea, but I will probably carry it as a purse sometimes, too. I love that it has a “patina” and it’s the perfect size for both mail supplies and daily trips to the store. The next gift was a mailman rubber stamp from Pictureshow. Isn’t he dreamy? He reminds me of John if John was a mail carrier in the 1950s. Look at that overflowing mailbag of letters! It stamps like a dream and I love how detailed the image is. Here he is on a new Postcard Race. (By the way, I’m still doing some postcard testing…updates coming soon!) And last but not least, Naoto gave me an envelope necklace from MonyArt. The envelope charm is kind of rustic looking and I’ve been wearing it every day.

I love a good theme gift…way to go, Naoto!

In addition to the mail stuff, Naoto came home with a stunning bouquet of flowers. Those orchids…sigh…I’m reminded that spring weather is around the corner (even though it snowed seven inches on my birthday eve!)

Tagged celebrations, mail art, office supplies, rubber stamp, snail mail, vintage

Mar 19 2015

3 Comments

celebrations, Those Were the Days

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Today is my dad’s birthday. To celebrate, I’m sharing a story I wrote back in 1986 called Mike the Phone Man. I think we were finishing a segment on tall tales and we were assigned to write one of our own. I wrote about my dad, who was a telephone repair man. Here’s the story:

Once there was a telephone man. His name was Mike. One day something magical happened to him. Somebody wanted their phone fixed. And then one thousand more people called and he fixed them all at once. And then came pay day. Mike got one thousand dollars. And the next day he got called out to fix a line. And it was an eighty foot pole. And he climbed it in one second! And he got one thousand dollars again. And the next day he had to go fix another line. But the weather was very bad, But he walked and fixed it perfectly. And he got payed one thousand dollars. But the next day was Saturday and everybody went shopping that day but Mike went to the electric shop and bought a wire for Mrs. Jenken’s phone and it cost 12 dollars but of course he had it. When he went to fix Mrs. Jenken’s phone he had to go home for lunch. That night the magic went away and the next day he didn’t do so great but he was happy anyway. So he, his wife, and his two children lived happily ever after. THE END

Happy Birthday, Dad! Let’s celebrate with Portillo’s & Old Overholt! xo

(The story was written in second grade and, in case you’re wondering, I got an A in spite of the fact that I started every sentence with the word and.)

Tagged celebrations, memories, parents

Feb 17 2015

Hasegawa Happy Hour – Valentine Edition

For Valentine’s Day, Naoto went to Freddy’s and picked up a dozen meatballs and we stayed in and hosted a Hasegawa Happy Hour. I made “Sweetheart Manhattans” and we ate spaghetti and meatballs, salad, cookies, and gelato…it was quite a night.

I’m a big fan of Leopold Brothers Michigan Tart Cherry Liqueur and I’m happy to have a bottle back in my arsenal again. So I made up a cocktail that is not as good as my favorite cocktail at Amelia’s, but comes pretty close. I named it the Sweetheart Manhattan, but it’s really not too sweet…it’s just filled with love.

Sweetheart Manhattans

2 oz rye whiskey

1/2 oz sweet vermouth

1/2 oz cherry liqueur

dash of orange bitters

Stir all ingredients with ice. Strain into cocktail glasses and garnish with a Luxardo cherry. Enjoy with friends on Valentine’s Day, or any other day. Cocktails are better than flowers anyway…

Tagged celebrations, cocktails, food, holidays, vintage

Feb 13 2015

5 Comments

celebrations, crafty adventures, holidays, Letter Month, Office Supplies, snail mail, vintage

Vintage Stamp Valentines

I’ve been making some handmade Valentines for pen pals and friends since January. Yet, somehow, I am not done. I get distracted too easily, and Presley joins me and naps on my supplies, which slows things down too.

I decided to make some cards that looked a little bit like envelopes (similar to my calling cards for ex Postal Facto last year.) I started with some 4-bar cards and added pink and red vintage (or Japanese) stamps and a variety of washi tapes. I typed the message “You put the stamp on my envelope, Valentine!” on labels or directly on the cards. The labeled ones kind of look more like envelopes, but hopefully the silly message kind of makes sense.

They were a lot of fun to make and I was happy to be able to spend out some of my vintage stamp collection…although now I feel compelled to build up my red and pink stash again!

Happy Valentine’s Day! I hope your mailbox is full of love this weekend!

Tagged celebrations, crafts, diy, holidays, mail art, office supplies, snail mail, vintage, washi tape

Feb 06 2015

4 Comments

adventures, Forest Park, Oak Park

Holy Snow!

On Saturday night it started snowing and it pretty much didn’t stop until sometime early Monday. And it snowed some more on Tuesday and Wednesday. Our area snowfall was somewhere between the 19-22 inch range. Above is what it looked like when I walked for coffee on Sunday morning. Everything was still passable and it was very pretty! Late Sunday afternoon, Naoto and I walked over to our friends’ place for the Super Bowl. The wind had picked up by this time and sidewalks and streets were somewhat of a challenge to walk in. We ended up walking to the L and taking it two stops and then walking through at least a foot of snow in some places to get to their apartment. It felt a little insane, but it wasn’t very cold and we feel like as Chicagoans, we should be able to handle a little bit of snow. (That being said, we never would have driven in that mess!) By the time the Super Bowl was over, we found ourselves walking in the streets to get back to the train. Some homeowners were outside clearing the walks, but not everyone had, so you’d find yourself in a clear path that walked into a dead end of waist-high snow. In front of our own building, the snow had drifted up by the garage door and we had to climb a snow mountain to get to our front door. What a fun adventure! On Monday morning, things were bright and sunny and a big mess! We’ve been trying to walk everywhere (mostly to work, for coffees and to the blue mailbox!) so we don’t have to navigate the messy roads and crazy parking situations out there. Stay warm, Chicago!

Tagged adventures, celebrations, forest park

Jan 29 2015

2 Comments

adventures, holidays, in my library, snail mail, thrifted, Valentine's Day, vintage

Things To Make & Do For Valentine’s Day

I spent a few days with my parents last week and of course we went thrift shopping. I was in the store less than two minutes when this sweet book by Tomie dePaola jumped into my hands. It may be the best ten cents I’ve ever spent!

Tomie dePaola wrote Strega Nona and Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs, two of my favorite books from my days working with children. His illustrations are charming and his stories are sweet and timeless. Things to Make and Do for Valentine’s Day is a how-to book with crafts, jokes, tongue twisters, games and recipes to share for the holiday.

The book is designed for kids, but I think some of the projects are fun for adults, too. I’m going to try one out this weekend and I will report back next week. If it works out, I may use the idea for my Valentine envelopes this year.

Have you planned your Valentine’s Day cards yet? I have my prototype ready…now the real work begins.

Tagged adventures, books, celebrations, crafts, holidays, parents, shopping, snail mail, thrifting, vintage

Jan 08 2015

Elvis Is 80

Well, he would be anyway…

Presley and I will be celebrating Elvis today. We will be watching the Comeback Special on DVD. (I swoon over Elvis in the Comeback Special…) There is also a parade of Elvis movies on TCM. And, maybe we could even create a few pieces of Elvis mail…I know I have some Elvis notecards in my stash…but sadly only one Elvis stamp.

All Elvis, all day…as it should be.

P.S. My favorite Elvis song. What’s yours?

Tagged celebrations