Friday, November 30, 2012

i saw you turn your lights off

i sped through the first season of GIRLS on demand.
i was partly horrified.
mostly uncomfortable.
and completely and totally hooked.

i realize that right now lena dunham is the hotness. 
and yes, i burst with pride and silently cheer when a new female writer becomes a star.
but i hear so much of wisty woo in everything that lena dunham writes, i can't help but love everything she does.
i am so over the moon excited for season 2 i can hardly stand it.



"i'm an individual. and i feel how i feel when i feel it."

love, polly

i am completely unashamed of how much i love polly. when pat teased me about changing my instagram name to "lovepollygirl" i was shocked, i mean this little lady is my best friend! i want the world to know that something so sweet and darling exists! the lewis heckel household can't be selfish and hog this cuteness to ourselves! and then i realized that i think women who identify themselves as "suchandsuch'smom" via email address, license plate, hashtag, what have you, are a little teeny tiny bit pathetic and so i changed my username.

but i absolutely can't help but share pictures of that little lady. yesterday i officially crossed over to "that kind of dog owner" when her christmas collar/bow arrived, and i had to whisper how much it cost to pat in fear that he would be disappointed in my financial choices. but i mean, LOOK AT HER! i would have paid double.


merry christmas! love, polly
if you want more of polly, feel free to follow me on my (new) user name: annamloo.

bow wow coutoure shop: here

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

wedding mantra



"everyone gets married and no one else is taking it as seriously as you."

i think all brides should have a friend like ashley sansing



snapshots 4

thankful for this little panda. also thankful i have 10 months to get a tan. yikes.

frame of shame.

frame of shame 2

this is how they say goodnight to each other

this was taken a few months ago when i was in chicago but thanks to bhldn's 20% off on cyber monday,  bridesmaids dresses have been ordered!

it's here! it's here! christmas time is here!

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

things i'm glad i learned when we were dating

pat and i have been sharing a nest for almost 3 years. some of you may remember when we moved in together i told him it was temporary. i am still not quite sure what i meant by that, but thanks to all my friends for just going with it. and while a small piece of me would love to have been in a situation where we dated, got engaged, and then moved in together, time was not on our side. and neither was the cost of living in chicago.

so over the last three years i have learned ALL OF THE THINGS. about being a good roommate, a good girlfriend, a good friend; about when to quietly throw beers in the freezer because his team is losing, when to admit this new recipe was a complete flop, and when to just march into the bedroom, put on your nightgown and turn on law and order: svu if a fight is a brewing, and you don't have the energy for it.

here are few other little things i am glad i know before going into a marriage:

1. boys like to put garbage next to the garbage can. or near it. and stack receipts on their nightstand. and that to them is throwing it away. except it isn't throwing it away. it's clutter. and clutter belongs inside a trash bag that is inside a trashcan.
2. they also like to line up empty beer bottles on the kitchen counter and then throw them away all at once. why? i don't know, but if you find out please tell me.
3. even when you explicitly tell a boy "do not eat all the leftover pizza, i would like a piece when i get home" he will still eat the leftover pizza. because boys love pizza. but so do girls. so when it comes to pizza, it's a dog eat dog world.
4. whoever cooks doesn't have to clean up the kitchen. just have this as an unspoken rule.
5. there are some chores that bring me happiness. let me do those chores. and the chores that i hate? well consider yourself a lucky woman when he LOVES to do those. this is one of many reasons why i know we were meant to be.
6. plan your meals at the start of the week.
7. if you desperately need alone time, just turn on teen mom, bad girls club, or real housewives of anywhere. he will leave the room/zone out and stop talking to you in less than 5 minutes, i promise.
8. if you only have one bathroom, don't lock the door when you are showering in the morning. i promise i won't rip back the shower curtain and scare you to death. (......or will i?)
9. hide in the apartment and scare each other. it's just so much fun. also ask me what a "happy meal" is. it's even more fun.
10.  if he has a 2 year old issue of sports illustrated, just let it sit on the tv stand. it's there so he can read it in a moments notice and relive his team's superbowl win. it's not worth the fight and honestly, i get it.

Sunday, November 25, 2012

make me wanna move my dancing feet

for some reason, the first dance has always been extremely important to me. not so much the style and technique of the actual dance, i could care less about that. probably because as a dancer, i have about three signature moves, all of which require loads of chardonnay in order to be seen. but choosing the song has been something i've always looked forward to. and not just for myself, i always seem to ask "how was the wedding? what was their first song?"
because THIS is what you will dance together first, as husband and wife. for the rest of your life, you will hear THIS ONE SONG and it will remind you of your mate, your partner, your best friend and your wonderful wedding. it should be a song that you listen to and think "if i could write music, this is what i would say to you."

so my love and i started with a list of 6 songs. we have narrowed that down to four. and we are cutting it off at four because let's be honest, we still have 10 months to go, and if i don't hold up my hand and say "stop" i will continue to add songs until there are just far too many to choose from.




but just for fun, what did you and your better half pick? or plan to pick? i'd love to hear! 


Wednesday, November 21, 2012

giving thanks

patrick and i have so much to be thankful this year. 
jobs.
good health.
our families.
polly girl.
friends that are sprinkled all over the country.
a beautiful engagement story.
the extreme luxury of planning the wedding we want.
each other.


we sure are lucky, me and my guy.

happy weekend, safe travels, and happy thanksgiving to you and yours!


two years ago i gave thanks in the days leading up to thanksgiving. look back herehere, here, and here

ps - coolest, classiest, and most joyful wedding ever? definitely possible. 

Monday, November 19, 2012

the world's best advice

someday i hope to be half the mom i was blessed with.
 because of eileen, i know how important it is to be your own best friend.
to never let anyone pity you. ever.
when in doubt, purchase it. you can always return! 
& when finding a mate, my mom told me three things:

1. find someone who loves you a little bit more than you love them
2.  if he is nice to you, but he isn't nice to the waiter, then he is not nice.
3. have a secret bank account because, "you NEVER know."

check, he is, and in the process of doing. thanks momma! 

Sunday, November 18, 2012

let me tell you a thing or two...

....about the loves of my life. clearly these women who i have asked to be my bridesmaids hold an incredibly special place in my heart and in my life, but before these months slip by i wanted to sit down and share their wonderfulness.

highlawn, corner booth

rome, 2007
4/5 of k&co in Morocco
charleston, sc
homecoming, 2007
chicago, 2010


6/2011
velleco-jones wedding, 6/2011

chicago, 2012

mangano-bishop wedding, 2012


christine - tri delta's weekly chapter meetings close with the entire room holding hands, and repeating a mantra "let us steadfastly love one another." and for three years, christine and i held hands and rolled our eyes as we said that out loud to a room of 100 girls. but if i had to use a word that perfectly describes our relationship it would be "steadfast."i can't imagine that i am an easy person to be friends with; i get mad far too easily, i still don't know when too much chardonnay is TOO MUCH CHARDONNAY, and i can be extremely impatient. but christine gets me. and she loves me. and in turn i get to call the funniest woman i know my best friend.

cheyenne - my oldest and dearest friend in the world. we were 11 when we met, best friends every other day during high school, shared a dorm freshman year of college, were roommates for a summer on hilton head island; simply put, we have grown up together. we share a lifetime of memories; high school proms and college graduations, first dances and losing first loves, the highest of the highs and the lowest of the lows. she is more than just my friend, she is family.

sara - have you ever met someone and wanted to be their friend? i have, and her name is sara. affectionately known as "wisty woo," sara was in tri delta and we pledged together, and then lived together senior year, and my wish came true, we were finally friends! i think it's important to have women in your life who you admire. and i admire sara. she is fiercely independent, has impeccable taste, and i cannot imagine my life without her unbiased advice and constant support. when i talk to sara what i get back, while judgment free, is brutally honest and that is the testament to a true friend.

marissa - "are you a virgin? do you drink?" are the first two questions marissa was asked upon entering my dorm room on the third or fourth day of college. we spent the next four years joined at the hip. we would tell people "oh if you met me, then you met her" and would sit at parties, on a couch, just the two of us, chatting away like we didn't spend every single second together. it's a rare thing when you share your entire college experience with another person, and that's just what we did. while we have most certainly had our lows, there is no doubt that for the rest of our lives, i will be ready and willing to do absolutely anything for her, and that, in my little opinion, is what friendship is: the understanding that things change, and sometimes bonds become weak only so that they can grow strong again.

ashley - the first time i heard about ashley mangano, well. i won't share that story because it is disgusting but so absolutely hilarious that i will never forget it. ashley is one of the few people i have ever met in my life that has a remarkable ability to make every situation a little bit lighter with her humor. whether it was laughing with a french man as he called marissa and christine "american chimpanzees" or telling us a detailed story at dinner about how she got dog shit on her face, there is never a dull moment. thank you ashley, for being who you are, and for allowing us to call you "mangina." you are the best.

becky - oh my b. what i wish someone would have told me when i graduated college was, "not only does the real world suck, but it's also really really hard to make friends when you are an adult." this was something i was completely unprepared for, and maybe if i had known this, i would have stayed close to the friends that i had. but i didn't. i moved to chicago because i was supposed to meet my husband and i was also supposed to meet becky and her other half, john. becky and i are so similar it's almost like we made our adult decisions together, just with her in ohio, me in virginia. we both moved to chicago all on our own, we fell in love with the city before falling in love with our partners (who we both met through city year), and we have almost identical taste in all things from clothes to books to food. whatever souls are made out of, ours is the same stuff.

Friday, November 16, 2012

"what are your colors?"

i can finally answer this question!

i feel like i had been through every single color of the rainbow before realizing that the colors had already kind of chosen themselves.

& they look a little something like this


guys will be in grey suits
ladies will be in this navy beaut 
flowers will be complimented with lots of lambs ear and silver brunia
& there will be touches of pumpkin all around

oh yeah, and i'll be in a white dress.
i should probably start tanning.
like immediately. 


Tuesday, November 13, 2012

been there, done that!



if it wasn't already impossible to love kate and wills, this picture seals the freaking deal. 
how excited she must have been on this day.
to finally have that gorgeous ring on her finger.
oh, i just love those bloody royals. 

Monday, November 12, 2012

chicago style

my life's motto spied here


i never thought i really had a "type." the closest i guess i ever got to describing the kind of man i wanted to marry was when cheyenne and i (bridesmaid cheyenne!!) would joke that we wanted someone who could kick down a tree. 
because you can most certainly look at someone and know whether or not he has the physical ability to kick down a tree (zach efron? you do not. however zach from real world san diego? MEOW!)
and now, almost ten years later, i have found my dream man.


enter mr. ron swanson. 
i just adore him and i love nick offerman even more. 
PLUS the fact that he lived in chicago, AND he is married to megan mullally, AND he builds furniture?
shut the front door.

i'm sorry patrick, but "if he calls, i leave"
(but i know you can kick down a tree, you eagle scout you. xo)


"If properly dried and trimmed, New York-style pizza could be used to make a box for Chicago-style pizza. I love a slice when I'm in NYC, but it's like eating a Slim Jim compared with a filet mignon." - Nick Offerman

read the entire interview at bon appetit!

Friday, November 9, 2012

it's friday, i'm in love.

spied here

i've dated guys that i was crazy about. head over heels, can't stop thinking or gushing about. & that never lasted. cracks would form by a comment, or a look, a mean spirited joke, or unanswered text, and as quickly as it came, my feelings would start to vanish. i would find myself saying, "oh him? i barely even like him anymore."

and so when i met pat, and my feelings developed slowly i didn't know what it was. because ya know, when you meet "the one" there should be firecrackers. you should know right away. you should go home, call your girlfriends, and say "i am going to marry him." and that, quite frankly, just didn't happen.
it came softly.
steadily. 
and before i knew it, i was head over heels for a green bay packer loving guy with quasi-hoarder like tendencies, and the strongest moral compass i had ever known.


to quote one of my most favorite books,
 "i fell in love the way you fall asleep, slowly at first, then all at once." 



hurry home, you little rascal. your girls miss you.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

long neck inspiration



when i took this picture at 9am on st. patrick's day, never would i have thought it would serve as wedding inspiration. but it has. 
so here's to you john rozsa. 
and here's to america. 
and doughnuts. 
and bud heavy. 

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

we're not the greatest.



"With a straight face, you're gonna tell students that America's so star-spangled awesome, that we're the only ones in the world who have freedom? Canada has freedom, Japan has freedom, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Australia, Belgium has freedom. So 207 sovereign states in the world, like a hundred and eighty of them have freedom. And yeah, you, sorority girl. Just in case you accidentally wander into a voting booth one day, there's some things you should know, and one of them is, there's absolutely no evidence to support the statement that we're the greatest country in the world. We're 7th in literacy, 27th in math, 22nd in science, 49th in life expectancy, 178th in infant mortality, 3rd in median household income, number 4 in labor force, and number 4 in exports. We lead the world in only 3 categories: number of incarcerated citizens per capita, number of adults who believe angels are real, and defense spending, where we spend more than the next 26 countries combined. 25 of whom are allies. Now, none of this is the fault of a 20 year old college student. But you, nonetheless, are without a doubt a member of the worst period generation period ever period. So when you ask, "what makes us the greatest country in the world?" I don't know what the fuck you're talking about. Yosemite? 

We sure used to be. We stood up for what was right. We fought for moral reasons. We passed laws, struck down laws for moral reasons. We waged wars on poverty, not poor people. We sacrificed, we cared about our neighbors. We put our money where our mouths were. And we never beat our chest. We built great big things, made ungodly technological advances, explored the universe, cured diseases, and we cultivated the world's greatest artists and the world's greatest economy. We reached for the stars, acted like men. We aspired to intelligence, we didn't belittle it, it didn't make us feel inferior. We didn't identify ourselves by who we voted for in our last election. And we didn't... we didn't scare so easy. We were able to be all these things, and to do all these things, because we were informed. By great men, men who were revered. First step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one. America is not the greatest country in the world anymore. Enough?"

america, i absolutely positively am in love with you and am proud to be yours.
but this right here, this is how i feel this morning.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

the lesser of two evils




to say that i throw 100% of my support behind either of these men would be a far cry from the truth. 
but i still voted. and so should you.

c'mon virginia.