my bungalow dreams have come true.

like i mentioned in my last post, we finally secured a rental in Portland after quite a stressful process. the rental market in Portland is apparently extremely hot right now, some we talked to said it's the hottest they've ever seen it. this means places are snatched up immediately {and prices are hiked, wah wah}. people are even offering more than what the rental is listed for! ftw. so obviously this was not easy to navigate from across the country. luckily we have a couple of friends out there who were awesome enough to look at places for us. i think we had them look at six different ones, yikes. and we filled out apps for all of them, paid paid app fees, got credit checks done, corresponded back and forth via email and phone, even did a Skype interview, and crossed our fingers that something would work out. whew! it felt like we were buying a house or something. i can't even imagine what that process is actually going to be like.

in the end, we were approved for an adorable 1926 bungalow in NE portland. you guys, i'm going to live in a bungalow. in portland. is this real life? and it's on 1/3 of an acre with three garden boxes and a raspberry bush, oh and a garage converted into a studio space (which i haven't even seen photos of, hah). i am rather giddy about it. it was a really stressful process and i am so thankful it's over and amazed that we came out of it with such an awesome place (at least judging by photos & our friend's reactions since we haven't actually seen it). it's really crazy how it all worked out in the end.. i won't bore you with the details, but it feels very much meant to be, even though we will be spending more than we were hoping to.

and now i've already started pinning a million ideas for decor. we sold a lot, so we're going to have quite a bit of empty space starting out. and i know it's going to drive me crazy, but i'm hoping i'll be patient because we are going to have to buy pieces slowly. also have started researching the area and have already located a community garden, two farmers' markets, a New Seasons Market, and a Trader Joe's nearby. i am kind of giddy about all of that. if any of you just so happen to live in/be familiar with NE portland, please message me! it feels a little strange not even having been to the neighborhood we're living in, hopefully we'll feel at home there!

sorry for the wordy post, i'm just a wee bit excited!

We had a big day

Joel and I had a big day this weekend.

Well, we each had our own separate big days.

Joel's BIG DAY started on Thursday night at Pathway (our church), unplugging and loading up gear for his band's (which I am a part of :)) CD release show. Luckily, I was exempted from this task (one of the many reasons i LOVE being a girl). After returning home at around 4 am (somehow I managed to wait up for him; I'm not sure why), he took a little nap, got up early in the a.m. and drove through the blustery winter weather conditions to the City of Monroe to unload and set up gear and was still doing so when I arrived with Ron at approximately 5 pm. And continued to do so for another couple hours...

Finally, Goodnight House (Joel's band) took the stage around 10 and, despite losing sound at least two times (I continued playing they keyboard for quite some time without realizing it was mute), we rocked out. I especially rocked hard on my bells and keyboard ;) And you should have heard my monstrous vocals. Anyway, it did go really well despite the complications. We had a good crowd within a couple feet of us, some even singing along :) I am really proud of Joel and the beautiful music he has created. You should check it out at our MySpace page. CDs will be available online soon - I'll keep you posted ;)

Joel's big day continued the next day, as mine began. Well, really, mine started about a week prior when I made my first shopping trip and prepared some yummies in advance for our very first house party/the very first party I've ever hosted. I had very big plans for all of the hors d' oeuvres/desserts/punches I was going to make... As my sister said:

"You're ridiculous!"

I think there were probably like 12 food items total on the list. And they were pretty much all homemade dishes with few shortcuts (cause that's how I roll. Brownies from a box? Not in my kitchen! Store-bought frosting? Nuh-uh). I was thinking I'd have time to get started on my yummies on Friday, but it was not to be. Needless to say, there was not enough time in the day on Saturday to get it all done, so I had to cut a couple of fancy hors 'd oeuvres out :( And I had to get some help in the kitchen -- my sister Amanda and my friend Maggie saved the day!! Maggie even SHOVELED for me! This was supposed to be my hubby's job, but his big day was still in the works back at Pathway, where he was busy returning all of the gear he borrowed for the show. His big day finally came to an end when he returned to the Lane residence at 5ish, at which time he resumed his husbandly duties at home (i.e. taking over shoveling, taking out the trash and giving my toosh a squeeze to show his appreciation for my hard work).

I am sure that no one was surprised when I was late to my own party (I was still in the shower as guests were arriving). Typical Megan etiquette. I joined the party with my hair sopping wet (not how I had planned it!) and was finally able to relax and drink lots and lots of punch :) And chat and giggle with friends I hadn't seen in a long time. And convince a few of them I was pregnant after I stuck out my food stomach - hah! It was definitely a good time. I think it's safe to say that Joel and I's very first house party was a success :) Below are a couple of snapshots from my big day taken by Ron:




Maggs was absolutely the life of the party and loving every minute of it.

• • • •
In other news, my friend Becca got engaged in the luggage claim area of the Hawaii airport this weekend! (Her now fiance crept up from behind her - she had no idea he was going to be there). I shrieked very loudly when she told me the news - I am pumped for her!!!

Also, Joel and I had our first ALONE time last night in nearly a week! Thank you Jesus! I will leave out the details ;)

I am beyond excited to spend our very first Christmas together and relax, relax, RELAX. I couldn't be more ready :D