fawn.

Last year we pulled together a little shoot with Isabella from KBM. It was meant for a publication that will hopefully surface, eventually. Given that it was Bella's first official modelling stint we think she did a beautiful job at bringing the soft and sweet presence we hoped she'd embody. Sometimes the simplest things are the hardest to pull off. Thanks to Sunday, Crowns Clothing, and Papercup for the lovely clothes + The Emerald Parlour for being a fantastic Hair/MUA.

We're also pretty excited to have an article about us featured in this month's Frankie. You can see a sneak peek online. But you simply can't beat feeling the weight of this magazine in your hands as you flick through those pages that take you to inspiring places. We've almost read it cover to cover. Thanks Frankie, we love you.

april.

Our life is chaos. At the moment. Our schedule is all over the place and days run into each other. But there is a little place, up in the hills overlooking the city, where we often seek refuge. It's called a mother's house. A place to breathe, play games in the solitary cul-de-sac, raid a full pantry, and adopt the neighbour's cat.

To see what's been keeping us busy, with our first wedding season wrapping itself up, pop over to our theysoloved blog. And if it interests you, you can now find us on twitter and pinterest. We also received this in the post this week, a bit in love.

rubies.

These weddings of the summer have taken us on small new adventures, revealing parts of our own country to us that we never knew existed. We feel we have been away on these little explorations more than we have been home. New people, new scenery, new inspirations and new places to lay our heads together. Also the worst storms we have seen with our own eyes balanced with the sunniest of days we have had this summer.

One of these weekends, the last day we were in Nelson before we headed home, we had the day only to ourselves. In such romantic rain we found a small place we fell in love with. The horizon blurred under the still misty clouds and the rain fell so softly on us it made us want to lay on the rocks and stay a while. Much to Ben's delight, every stone on this beach was perfect for skimming. Quite wonderful and oddly mysterious how so many flat stones found their way to each other.

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Listening to: Joshua James, Of Monsters and Men, GROUPLOVE, First Aid Kit
Watched Recently: The Office (Season 8), Half Nelson, Blue Valentine, Levi the Poet

today.

Recently, among the chaos and enjoyment of the busy wedding season, we are learning to take joy in each day as it comes. For what it is and not what it is not. For the love we have for each other and for all the things we can do with our life together. For our successes, failures, everyday challenges and exciting new opportunities. For the new people we are meeting, for the friendships that are strengthening and for the loved ones who know us so dearly. For the moments when nothing is a priority but each other - the one who captures our heart and imagination.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." - 1 Corinthians 13:4

On another note, we're going to see Bon Iver (aka Bonny Bear) this evening. As most of you will know, New Zealand is at the bottom of the world and often forgotten about, so we are stoked that Justin has decided to grace our shores with his talented presence.

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Listening to: The Head and the Heart, Young the Giant, Timo Räisänen, Andrew Combs.
Reading: Transforming Worldviews, The Beach, The Controversy of Zion and the Time of Jacob's Trouble
Watched Recently: The Artist, Melancholia, Shame, Moneyball, Drive

vermicelli.

Over the last few months we have found a special little place in our hearts for chinese vermicelli - that's right, the thin transparent spaghetti-like noodle made from mung beans. We've found use for it in many a dish, preferring it over pasta and rice. They're a great healthy, low-fat, gluten-free alternative. Now we know that this isn't a food blog, but we have concocted a meal-for-two worth sharing.

Ingredients
- 150g vermicelli
- Half a chicken breast, cut into strips for stir-frying (or the equivalent amount of tofu for vegetarians) marinaded in 3 tbsp. soy sauce
- 3 cloves garlic, diced
- 1 thumb-size piece of ginger, sliced thinly
- 1 cup fresh mushrooms, cut into matchstick-like pieces (julienned)
- Half a red capsicum, julienned
- Half a carrot, julienned
- Half a courgette/zucchini, julienned
- 2-3 cups fresh bean sprouts
- Handful of fresh coriander
- 50g peanuts, chopped, for texture
- 1/2 cup chicken (or vegetable) stock
- Half a lime and Thai Chilli Sauce to taste

Stir-fry Sauce
- 1 tbsp. golden soy sauce
- 1 tbsp. dark soy sauce
- 1 tbsp. oyster sauce (or more soy sauce for vegetarians)
- 2 tsp. brown sugar
- 1 tbsp. fresh lime juice
- 1/4 cup chicken (or vegetable) stock
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

Instructions
- Marinate the chicken, or tofu, and set aside
- Soak the vermicelli in a pot of hot water for roughly 5 minutes, or just until the noodles are soft enough to eat. It doesn't take much. Drain and set aside.
- Combine all stir-fry sauce ingredients, mixing them in a cup. Set aside.
- Heat a wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat. When hot, add 2 tbsp. oil (we use sunflower oil) and swirl around - then add the garlic, ginger, chicken/tofu, mushrooms and a few tablespoons of stock to get it all sizzling. Stir-fry till the chicken's cooked. If the pan becomes dry add a little bit more stock.
- Add the capsicum, carrots and courgette. Stir-fry for a minute - not too long as these veges should retain some of their fresh crispness. Now add the vermicelli, the stir-fry sauce, a handful of coriander, and the peanuts. Lift and turn the noodles, tossing like a salad so the sauce distributes throughout the ingredients.
- Finally, add the bean sprouts, toss and continue to stir-fry for a minute.
- Remove from heat, transfer to plate, and garnish with coriander, salt/pepper, lime and chilli sauce.
- And if you're that way inclined, have a glass of wine to top it off. Recently we've been drinking this lovely French red (in picture). Eat. Drink. Enjoy!

Sorry, that was quite long! But it's well worth the experiment if you want to give it a go :) And on another unrelated note, our most recent wedding that you may have seen here is being featured over there at Magnolia Rouge - one of New Zealand's best wedding blogs! Have a read of the article, then check out their most recent online magazine volume here. Enjoy the beginning of your week :)

coast.

The wonderful Miriam White at Sunday, who we've enjoyed working with over the last year, is an extremely talented designer...as you can see from her most recent creations. Though we love Sunday, Miriam is set to pursue new endeavours in the fashion world - so even though she won't be releasing this collection, we all thought it'd be a pity to not show off the samples! This was actually a good chance for us to step outside our photographic comfort zone. And despite the raging, near-hurricane wind we loved it all the same. Plus, photographing Grace Alexander @ N Model Management was a treat.

Hair and makeup by Unna @ The Emerald Parlour.

cato.

On our other blog, They So Loved, we have just posted photos from our most recent wedding! Simon and Clare were such a lovely couple to be around - oh so creative and full of love. We both literally cried during their beautiful ceremony. And by the end of our time in Snells Beach it felt like we were leaving good friends. We hope you enjoy the pictures!