shiny happy life

may

2011-05-14T10:22:00.002-04:00

may has come along and with it lots more rain. in between downpours, we have ben's t-ball games. what an adventure this is! he takes it very seriously and believes his sole purpose on this earth is to catch the ball.

the yard and gardens here are beautiful. i can't believe they are mine. every day almost brings a surprise. flourishing bleedings hearts, huge hostas. thriving berry patch. lilacs, clematis, roses. so exciting.

april

2011-05-14T10:06:00.003-04:00

we have been enjoying a lovely (if wet) spring. lots of fun over easter. ben hosted his friends at the house for an egg hunt.

carson came for easter as well. we took a day trip to pittsburgh and gawked at the bunny palace.

i'll let the pictures do the talking.

I suck

2011-03-19T14:41:00.004-04:00

Ok, so I clearly was unable to keep on top of sxsw posts. or any posts for that matter. I'll try to catch up here and now.

Day One:

Premier of Source Code. Saw it at the Paramount. Encountered Vera Fermiga in the ladies' room.

Day Two:

Turkey Bowl at the Alamo. I love you, Alamo! Very comfortable film, relatable. And did I mention that I love the Alamo?

A Bag of Hammers. Love this movie!!!!

The Pee-Wee Herman Show at the State Theater. Paul Reubens present. We were in Austin. That's over HEEEEYAH!

The Innkeepers at the Paramount. Hated it. WTF.

Frog Design Party. Delicious apps and copious amounts of alcohol. Lovely starlit Austin skyline.

Day Three:

A Matter of Taste. Loved it. Visiting Corton is now on my to do list.

Conan O'Brien Can't Stop. They aren't kidding. He's hyperactive, self-absorbed, and fascinating.

No Matter What. Slightly depressing but refreshing in a way. The leads are not professional actors. A touching movie, actually. Enjoyed watching it but enjoy it even more in retrospect. Director was gratingly pretentious, however. Ugh.

I know we attended some type of party because I ended up at Wasted on the Young well on my way to healthy buzz. Downed two Alamojitos while watching this feature length Australian version of the OC on steroids. The film was on steroids, not me.

Day Four:

The Dish and the Spoon. Um, lame mumblecore that I should not have put us through. I think I enjoyed it far more than husband only because I've been spending vacations in Rehoboth since I can remember.

The Other F Word. I pray this film gets distribution. An engaging look at punk rockers who find themselves in the compromising position of being fathers.

Flim Florida Fish Fry. Conch fritters and fried fish. Yummo.

Day Five:

Something Ventured. Cerebral but fascinating doc on the venture capitalists who gave Silicon Valley its start. Bad combovers and private submarines.

Foo Fighters at the Paramount. Um. Greatest thing ever. Um. They were there. Um, I was two feet away from Dave Grohl and got to say hi to him. Um, we were in line and got wristbands for a private show at Stubbs. Um, we were in the FOURTH ROW AT A FOO FIGHTERS CONCERT WHERE THEY PLAYED THE NEW ALBUM IN ITS ENTIRETY WITHOUT STOPPING. Um, can you say awesome? Then they played everything else. We were right behind the person who filmed this.

Day Six:

New Music from Wales. Annual showcase sponsored by the British Embassy. Handpies, rarebit, meatless sausage. Yum.

French Party. Canada Party. New Zealand Party- oh wait, I missed that. At this point I got a little carried away and forgot that I'm not actually a college coed. I'm a 34-year-old mother. Yikes. Blur.

Brett Dennen and Matt Nathanson at the Moody Theater. I wish I could say I didn't feel like puking the entire time we were there.

Berry Austin. Trip number one.

Day Seven:

The Head and the Heart. My new favorite band.

Devotchka. My other new favorite band. I've enjoyed them for years, but it's amplified now for sure. We saw the show in the clip.

No clue what we did that evening. According to Matt we went to the second floor of Maggie Mae's on 6th Street but left because it was weird. Then we stood in line at Esther's Follies but did not get in. I think I got street pizza and went to the room and watched Law and Order.

Day Eight:

Sunbathing at the pool. AHHHH.

Showcasing Scotland at the British Embassy. I hate to say it, but sort of a disappointment.

Fabulous seafood at Trulucks. Flight of Chardonnay. Seafood tower. Scallops. Berry Austin number two. I love you Berry Austin.

Day Nine:

Yorkshire and North East at the British Embassy. Tacos and techno.

MMM watched WVU lose while KTM got a sunburn at the pool.

Watched the Willie Nelson documentary and listened to Billy Bob Thornton yammer on and on and on and holy crap is he crazy.

Berry Austin number three.

Day Ten:

HOME!!!!

austin

2011-03-12T09:56:00.002-05:00

here we are again.

80 degrees. sunny. free-flowing alcohol. i am in heaven.

i am noticing that the older i get the harder it is to turn off the everyday laundry list of worries and just relax. we had a great day yesterday, but still, this morning i woke up in my usual "shit i'm late for work and i have 50 things to do and oh my gosh i just want to lie here" groucho mood. it took a few minutes to look around and say "wait a minute, i'm on VACATION."

we were incredibly lucky travel-wise yesterday. flight out of PIT left on time and our Midway flight was only about an hour late. and just like that we went from 30 degrees and 4 inches of snow to 78 and sunshine.

we arrived, registered and hit the ground running, or, well, walking really fast. went to a few lounges. experienced a sobe apple margarita. very tart and yummy. however, it's been, oh maybe 7 months since i've had hard liquor. i did fine, though.

we grabbed sushi on congress and went to the premier of source code. it was good, but probably the least favorite opening night flick i've seen here. we skipped out on the second premier and went to a random bar on 6th and watched the funkadelic "jean claude van jamme" perform. there is no way to describe the absurdity of this scene, and only my husband will understand when i say "when the man in the kilt tells you to dance, YOU DANCE!" truer words have never been spoken.

street pizza and bed after that.

i'm going to try to do a better job of capturing our activities this year. we'll see if i can keep it up.

feet upon the snow

2011-03-06T21:03:00.003-05:00

love this song.

the past couple of weeks have fluctuated between glimpses of spring and debilitating respiratory infections. i am beginning to feel like we will never again go for more than a day or two without someone being sick. (insert my standard whine here- i eat healthy, i exercise, i sleep, i have a relatively stress-free existence- how can i be sick so much?).

during the springy interludes we've finally been able to explore our new yard and neighborhood. there are so many beautiful old houses (including our own) and very interesting old trees.

we have tromped around the soggy yard, laying out spaces for herb bed, veggie bed and fish pond.

we moved rowan's hutch across the yard. he seems fat and content as usual.

shannon's birthday was this weekend. i volunteered dessert. tartine's lemon meringue cake. a time intensive cake with many steps. i enjoyed every second of it. i also enjoyed having yet another reason to use my kitchen torch.

all told, i think the cake has something like 17 eggs in it. a chiffon base, lemon cream filling and gorgeous meringue frosting.

l'opera

2011-02-21T18:43:00.002-05:00

our good friend came for supper yesterday. it was his first time at our new house.

i made giada's chicken and penne in a lemon cream sauce. i loved it. the guys? not so much i don't think.

i also took opportunity to make a dessert i'd been wanting to try out for quite some time: opera cake.

it was an enjoyable cake to make, but the clean up was out of control. three different sauce pans! hand mixer! stand mixer! sheesh.

i gave the leftover cake to my mother so i wouldn't eat it. i regret that decision.

2011-02-16T21:58:00.002-05:00

benny had his four-year well-child visit today. he loves the attention he gets at doctors' offices and he absolutely loves his pediatrician. he blushes and giggles when she touches him. it's very cute. verbal skills and fine motor skills are very advanced. smoothness with the ladies? not so much.

after his appointment we took advantage of the warmer weather and went to friendship hill to hike and ride bikes. we explored the grounds, pretending to be chasing bears, really tracking dear, and speculating on spectral activity. felt great to be outside, not wearing a coat, breathing fresh air.

i really do love something about that place. ben call's it albert's house and loves it there as much as i do.

we ate at apple annie's on the way home. good food and such a friendly atmosphere. they have an incredible dessert case. easily over 20 choices of cakes, pies and pastries. all made in house and all clearly delicious. i won the bad parent award for the day and let ben eat this:

oh yeah

2011-02-15T21:46:00.004-05:00

i think we are finally over our various illnesses.

trying hard to regroup at home and at work. i'm wiped out and it makes it difficult. all i really want to do is sleep. and watch niche programming on obscure cable channels.

tooling around on youtube this evening and remembered how much i totally and completely love this song.

a little roxy music to help you settle into your evening. god, i love to sing this song.

realized i forgot to post about something absolutely lovely. a few weeks ago we went to see lyle lovett and john hiatt. i might have posted about that, but what i know i did not post about was this song.

reminds me so much of my childhood. my parents, brothers and me, riding on country roads, piled into the car, singing songs, listening to stories. god. is there anything more family than that?

bread

2011-02-09T23:16:00.003-05:00

i have been hankering for good wheat bread for days. fresh out of the oven, substantial wheat bread.

after a day like today (our house fell victim to what appears to be a CTA-induced stomach flu) a hearty treat became a necessity.

i tried the nine-grain whole wheat bread recipe from the art & soul of baking and it did not disappoint. there is no way to describe the smell of it baking. it came out with a beautiful, hard, brown crust. the inside was, praise the lord, not dry at all. this has become my new favorite bread recipe. goodbye baking with julia's white bread.

munched on bread and cheese while watching the season premiere of justified. i think this season might even top the first. some very strong characters emerging.

here's to a sickness-free tonight and tomorrow.

home, sick

2011-02-07T22:48:00.003-05:00

we have been taken down by some insidious cold virus. it is evil and everlasting. it has also turned my kid into an emotional timebomb. more highs and lows than a pregnant lady watching a hallmark commercial. i feel bad that he feels bad- i really do. but enough, already.

stayed home today and made up my mind to fight this cold psychologically. take it on from the inside out since nothing else seems to be working. i've banished the OTCs and have resolved to fight it with the neti pot, yoga, and chicken soup.

thinking today about how much the new house inspires me. it's just so pretty and cozy and comfortable. makes it hard to leave it sometimes. there just aren't enough hours in the day to tackle all the projects i'd like to. let alone finish them.

i did, however, finish making cherry oatmeal chocolate chip cookies today. as well as a batch of apricot ginger granola. comfort food at its finest.

benny's birthday bash

2011-01-27T20:04:00.003-05:00

last sunday we hosted ben's first REAL birthday party. invited the usual crew plus every kid in his class. we had quite a turn out, too!

we partied down at a local gymnastics facility. can you say "anticipation"?

the kids were precious- every single one of them. and, get this- BEN WAS WELL-BEHAVED. he was perfect. gracious. took turns. was polite. didn't throw fits. incredible. he and aj cracked us up hatching an evil plan of some sort.

he wanted a pirate party (again). i found a kit to make a pirate ship cake and was happy with the results.

still can't believe my baby is four. brings a tear to the eye.

three no more

2011-01-18T17:40:00.005-05:00

Yesterday my baby turned four. FOUR!

We started the day with snuggles, presents and a sugary breakfast. We built a fire early and watched Scooby Doo meets Batman and Robin.

Around noon we started baking Ben's cake- vanilla bean with white chocolate buttercream.

Began baking dinner. Beef braciole and pasta. I made Lidia's tomato sauce recipe and it was very good. Looking forward to leftovers tonight.

Family came over. A nice time celebrating Ben, the lovable maniac that he is.

Still tired from it all.

Ny brother-in-law shared these two very different covers of "I am trying to break your heart" with me. Trying to decide which I like best. Both are very good.

Lauren O'Connell

JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound

the original for comparison.

stacks

2011-01-16T23:49:00.006-05:00

feels so good having old friends in our house.

my books have been in storage for weeks. made their way home today and it makes things feel even "righter."

busy pounding, banging, stacking, arranging today. my fingers and toes are all smashed. i'm wearing five different bandaids! ben just thinks that's the greatest thing ever.

sitting by the fire, watching the eels concert dvd. before i sputter out.

she's a jar is the song of the day. reminds of a certain professor i had and a last ditch effort to get an A in his class.

braised

2011-01-15T23:16:00.005-05:00

catching a breath here, somewhat. the house is truly feeling like home and being here just makes me happy.

winter is wearing out its welcome with me, mostly because i'm tired of cleaning up salty melt tracks all over the house. and i'm tired of trying to keep a coat on ben. he's good with the hat thing, but he sees his coat as a mortal enemy of sorts.

the weather is lending itself to two things consistently: hearty food and saddish music.

good arms vs. bad arms. does it get any sadder than this song?

as for the food... braised beef ribs this afternoon. 750ml of cabernet started it off- in the pot, not our glasses. we enjoyed several hours of a delicious-smelling kitchen.

sous chef benny helped me roast fingerlings. i attempted to recreate an onion tart that matt likes, but i apparently missed the mark. still good, but not the recipe he remembered.

chocolate pie with the leftover crust.

all in all a lovely, homey day.

radio, radio

2011-01-11T22:12:00.002-05:00

months have passed and here we are. new house, new way. life is good.

watching elvis costello doing i his thing in a very purple suit. how can you not love him?

so many things to take care of in our new (old) house. i should spend some time here explaining how we've unwittingly moved into morgantown's own grey gardens. take from that what you will. but day by day it becomes ours a little more. comforting, homey, home. pictures and projects coming soon.

springy spring

2010-05-19T19:53:00.003-04:00

we're in the midst of a rainy spell, but still, it's just spring.

lots of cleaning, organizing and yard work going on.

we had a great trip to the zoo on saturday (except for my getting us lost a few times).

nothing really going on, just the usual flow between work and home.

spending a lot of time with bbb outdoors. the botanic garden has become one of his favorite places.

overflowing

2010-05-02T21:21:00.002-04:00

best of the best of weekends. after a relaxing friday evening, bbb and i hit saturday with a vengeance. we were both glad to see the return of the farmers market. i picked up a pint of cherry tomatoes and two steaks. this was my first experience buying beef at the market. i've been making a significant effort to be a locavore. mostly after watching food, inc. my reaction to this movie requires its own post.

after the market we took a picnic to the botanic garden. a nice lady directed us to sandy beach by the old dam. ben got his toes wet and i took some nice pictures. we also spent some time sketching the old water tower. there are so many interesting remains there, and so much wild life.

the first 90-degree may first i remember, we set up the paddling pool when we got home. after hours in the sun we went in and i went on a baking frenzy. why? because i discovered the greatest baking blog ever. i know i'm late to this party, but joy the baker is phenomenal. ben saw a picture of her hot fudge sundae cupcakes and requested them immediately. i also made bread and smitten's pretzels.

i put the tomatoes to good use in pasta with leftover mushrooms. i think, no, i know i gained five pounds this weekend.

today we went to church, lunch at max and erma's, then shopping. back home and bbb and i tackled joy's twinkies. incredibly sweet and fluffly. yum.

now, sitting on the couch, relaxing but secretly wishing i had energy left over to do more. how i love my weekends.

middletown trip

2010-04-27T23:05:00.002-04:00

our spring trip to maryland was probably one of the most-needed trips i've ever taken. i truly relaxed and came back totally refreshed. how often can you say that? both bbb and jake were very well-behaved. we spent 90% of the time outside, didn't eat out at all, and hiked all over the place. it was great to watch bbb enjoying himself and exploring the great outdoors.

i did get to hike my first couple (tiny) sections of the AT. headed south at Gathland State Park. Beautiful and peaceful in the rain.

The light was great all weekend- a perfect opportunity to take beautiful pictures:

allergies

2010-04-18T21:22:00.003-04:00

that's where i'm at.

is it too late to recap easter? or anything from the past nineteen days? my head has been in a fog.

easter was beautiful. we got out with brother number one on good friday and hiked around the old camp. i baked a lot and thoroughly enjoyed that.

i've been working in the yard as well because the weather has been so nice. until THIS weekend. cold and rainy and ick.

saturday evening i got a nice dinner date with my girls. lots of mommy talk and laughs and the general feeling that i'm not a lone in all this. (and a very nice rainbow trout stuffed with goat cheese, if might add).

today was a sunday. church, lunch, visiting with friends. mmm returned and was kind enough to entertain bbb while i got some work done. i didn't really give him much of a choice i don't think. oops.

almost forgot- last weekend we saw wilco in pittsburgh. always a treat. lunched a lidia's- another huge treat!

gearing up for work tomorrow. so much to do it makes my head go numb.

spring!

2010-03-30T20:56:00.005-04:00

spring for real this time.

i love baking and decorating for easter and spring. bbb and i have been busy making cookies and egg decorations for our easter tree.

we've also been busy in the garden and starting seeds. peas, arugula, spinach, swiss chard and mesclun outside. tomatoes, zinnias, eggplant, basil, rosemary and pumpkins inside. so far, so good.

in other wonderful news, the mounties are headed to the final four. along with mmm and kw! i'm so psyched for the the team and for my guy. momentous! tremendous! stupendous! we're taking bbb to the send-off rally tomorrow afternoon at the coliseum. i just can't let him miss out on this!

since mmm will be otherwise engaged, i'll be spending the holiday with my mom. i'm kind of excited about this as well. it will be fun to wake up in my mom's house on easter morning and do the whole easter bunny routine. also looking forward to eating as many deviled eggs as i possibly can. yummmmm.

trying to think of what to make for easter dessert. so many options....

family

2010-03-30T20:53:00.003-04:00

the boys and ruth came for a spring break visit. it felt so good having everyone here and best of all the weather cooperated. we were able to play and eat most meals outside. lots of nice pics from the visit.

home

2010-03-12T22:50:00.001-05:00

home! ahhhh.....

still jet lagged. hoping to get to sleep easily tonight after the big east semi-finals of course. let's goooo mountaineers.

looking forward to a very normal weekend at home.

kids don't float!

2010-03-12T22:38:00.002-05:00

by far the best part of our trip to alaska was our trip to seward and the day cruise we took from there. it was quite simply alaska, just the way you picture it. what pictures can't give you, though, are the icy cold wind, the bobbing of the sea, the bounce of the tour bus and the strange and wacky character of the people who choose to live in such a wild and expansive place.

the city of anchorage is the size of CONNECTICUT. helloooooo, that's huge. and only 300,000 people live in anchorage. 600,000 in the entire state. a state that is much bigger than texas. a state with only 6 highways. a state whose capital cannot be reached by car. what?

anyway, back to the cruise. we saw wildlife- moose, otters, dall porpoise, bald eagles, mountain goats, and the spray of a whale (i think!). seals and sea lions as well. our guide knew just where to go to find the creatures. we also saw bear glacier which was a thrill for me.

highlight of the trip? mmm being charged by a musk ox at the wild life preserve on the way home. classic! this guy meant business...

iditarod

2010-03-06T20:15:00.004-05:00

did i mention that anchorage is the craziest place i have ever been? it's just..... strange. unlike anywhere else.

i mean, how many places do you go where you see this?

or this?

or eat this?

i did eat a whole lot of this, though...

the iditarod start was great fun. i absolutely loved hearing the dogs yapping in the street. they were spastic, jumping like reindeer in a christmas movie. as soon as they started pulling their mushers, though, they would hush up and run their tails off. lots of characters in town that day for sure. we took lots of pictures, but, really, they all look the same. dogs in shirts and booties!

this dog wouldn't stop staring at mmm:

alaska

2010-03-04T20:35:00.003-05:00

i still can't believe we are here. it was an incredibly long day of travel (with a seven hour layover in minneapolis). we got to our hotel in anchorage at about 1:30 in the morning. i , for one, was cranky.

but today we definitely hit the ground running. nice breakfast in the hotel followed by walking around downtown. we went to the anchorage visitor center and got some very good advice. from there we took the city bus to the south side of the city. the native arts show is being held in the diamond center mall.

i learned something about myself. now, i'm far from a peta person. i not even close to a vegan. i wear sheepskin boots. but something about all that seal skin and otter fur makes me want to cry. i just can't do it.

the bus ride to and from was full of color. one lady said to a fellow passenger "you- you psychotic. you know. that means you follow your MIND." uh, ok crazy bus lady.

back in town we walked some more and shopped for souvenirs.

luckily, bbb doesn't miss us much.

waiting for the pictures to load!

it's official

2010-02-25T20:37:00.002-05:00

i'm the world's most unreliable blogger.

i need to make it part of my daily routine again. all of the snow and work and mixed up schedules have gotten me way off track.

i am trying to combat the winter crazies. i just want to see some grass and leaves and wildlife. take the kid to the park. trek to pittsburgh on a saturday and check out the museums. go to ikea. stuff like that. spring can't come soon enough.

HOWEVER- alaska is right around the corner! we leave for anchorage on wednesday. it will be (another) trip of a lifetime.

happy valentine's day!

2010-02-14T08:33:00.002-05:00

we've been dealing with snow. just snow. not much to write about except SNOW. ugh.

i've done a lot of baking though. sweets for the sweet.

things i love about home

2010-01-29T18:40:00.003-05:00

coming home from working. i change clothes and mmm, bbb and i hang out in the kitchen picking at the veggie tray we make dinner. where would we be without our veggie trays?

weekend mornings. bbb comes into our room when he wakes up and we snuggle and watch his cartoons. it's just cozy and perfect. i think so anyway. i think mmm feels crowded and grouchy!

playing scattergories with j and s.

playing the music game with mmm.

realizing the house is clean at the BEGINNING of the weekend (not the case this weekend).

my wvu slippers.

watching kipper with bbb.

sunday papers.

the fact that this house is filled with music, books, magazines and movies.

the fact that i have to stop writing this because bbb is demanding my attention!

my big boy

2010-01-20T21:13:00.002-05:00

bbb is three! THREE! unbelievable. he's such a funny/interesting/crazy little man. he astounds me and confounds me (and drives me absolutely crazy) every single day.

we spent the weekend putting the house back together after the floor remodel. have i mentioned that i LOVE the floors? they are gorgeous. it's like we live in an entirely new house.

monday the fam came over for bbb's party. pirate theme. i fixed jerk chicken and red beans and rice. first time i ever worked with scotch bonnet peppers. so hot they burned my nose when i breathed around them but very tasty.

i tried my best to make a fancy looking pirate cake. it looks nowhere near as nice as i wanted it too but it tasted pretty good and i'm fairly certain bbb liked it.

nothing too taxing on the horizon at the moment. settling into the routine of winter and second semester for mmm. nice, quiet, homey times.

hardwood

2010-01-15T22:17:00.002-05:00

we're home! i can't believe we've been gone for over a week. we stayed at my mom's while the kind men (jake and ernie) installed our new hardwood floors. exciting!

pretty tired from getting things back in order.

busy, fun-filled weekend ahead. celebrating bbb's third birthday!

i think it's bedtime now.

snow

2010-01-06T20:17:00.003-05:00

snow, will you ever stop? must we live like this forever? there are things i miss like grass and being able to leave the house in the morning without switching my dress shoes for sorrels. i also miss leaving our neighborhood without praying that we don't don't die. i miss that a lot. so, if possible, please go away and don't come back for a while.

it is true, snow, that you are beautiful. and if i were in a position to stay at home all day and gaze out my window at your splendor, well that'd be just great. or if i had some sort of lifestyle that afforded me daylight hours to play with my kid in the 8-10 inches in our backyard every day, that'd be great too. but seeing as how that is not the case, could you take a hike for a while? much appreciated.

ktm

bye bye 2009

2010-01-03T11:35:00.002-05:00

a pictorial review.....

christmas

2009-12-27T01:06:00.005-05:00

i feel very fortunate to be in the middle of a christmas marathon. so often it's a sprint that leaves you feeling a little let down with a touch of a sugar hangover. not this year.

we headed to colorado on the 24th and could not have asked for a better flight. since then we've been enjoying time with family- eating, relaxing, playing games. i'm trying my best to improve at wii golf and wii baseball. i'm fairly satisfied with my wii bowling performance.

bbb is enjoying his grandma, brothers, uncles and cousin. louise is sweet and takes her time with him. he's good at conning people into playing his new candyland game. and he actually did a great job playing outside with the big kids today- even without mom or dad.

i have, of course, been eating too much and will have to deal with that next week. but the food is too good to pass up.

we'll head home on monday and see what treasures santa left for us in west virginia. my family will come over to visit on wednesday. i work for three days and will then gear up for the bowl game. it's going to be another happy holiday week.

lazy

2009-12-20T15:55:00.002-05:00

we got all the snow we could have asked for yesterday. mmm shoveled a bunch and watched basketball. bbb and i went out and played twice. i think i had much more fun than he did on the sled!

we all went to bed early after a busy day out in the cold.

today has been low key. our roads are still pretty messy so we are staying in. i'm snuggled on the couch under blankies with bbb. he has been watching christmas shows and we've done a little baking. planning on beef burgundy (or my improvisation of it) for supper.

downloaded the epicurious app to my ipod touch. this will save my dear macbook from further flour in the keyboard.

looking out the window at the hill that faces ours. the houses are covered white and the sky is blue and grey. it looks cold but peaceful.

feast weekend recap

2009-12-15T23:23:00.003-05:00

it's late and i'm sleepy but i need to post the feast pics. some good "holiday cheer" pics of bbb as well. i am very grateful in this moment that pictures are worth so many words!

here are the feast pics:

sam and ott!

and here are some baking pictures:

also... bbb's cookie treats...

short post

2009-12-09T20:44:00.003-05:00

it is windy! really really windy! power around town keeps going off and on and our internet and cable connections are constantly threatening to go out. i love it! the massive storm system that's been crossing the country has finally hit our area. one hour east and instead of torrential rain for the past 24 hours we'd be covered in snow.

also wanted to post this pic. i love how it glows. i've been playing with the color accent feature on our camera. i need to get better at it.

perfect winter weekend

2009-12-09T20:27:00.005-05:00

we had one of the nicest weekends possible. it was full of wintry christmas fun. friday evening we went to black bear and the christmas parade with my mom, the webers and scotty. saturday i had the joy of watching bbb wake up to a world of snow. we baked in the morning and played out in the afternoon. sunday we hit up the university kids christmas party and finished our gingerbread houses. bbb was for the most part a delight the entire weekend. what more can you ask for?

just a few words about the gingerbread houses. i'm definitely happier with the house this year.

i tried something new this year with the windows and melted butterscotch candies in the

window cut outs which i think worked very well.

bbb really did decorate most of his on his own! i "drew" the lines on his roof, but he placed all

of the candy himself. i'm very proud of him!

christmas planning

2009-12-03T11:15:00.003-05:00

making list after list in an attempt to get organized for christmas.

there are so many things that i want to bake and for some reason i'm developing an obsession with making candy. i ordered a candy-making primer and i'm anxiously awaiting its arrival.

thinking back to my ridiculously ghetto gingerbread house from last year, i'm going to stick with a simple design this time around. thinking i'll let bbb have his own to decorate as he wishes.

i feel like this holiday season is going to be gone before it's even started. i think that's why i'm thinking about it so much- just trying to make it last and to make it as fun for bbb as possible.

thanksgiving

2009-11-28T20:37:00.003-05:00

we had a great thanksgiving weekend. a nice mix of doing things and doing nothing.

we visited cabella's on the way to columbus saturday. i think i enjoyed the stuffed dead animals much more than bbb did.

we spent thanksgiving day traveling and ate my mom's. friday we took bbb to his first movie- a christmas carol in 3-d. this was probably not the best idea for many reasons. first reason- he refused to keep his glasses on so heaven knows what it looked like to him. second reason- HE TALKED THE ENTIRE TIME. loudly. we were "those people". it was not great! but i think he liked it!

today we relaxed around the house and visited with the webers. big boys go home tomorrow. then it seems like it will be christmas before we know it. i'm utterly unprepared!

seriously

2009-11-24T20:48:00.003-05:00

i have seriously been forgetting to post here. things just keep moving. i've been very busy painting and attempting to clean at home. bbb has been sick so by the time he's down i'm ready to crash myself.

there should be lots of nice things to write about over the next few days, though.

we head to columbus tomorrow to pick up the big boys. we'll be back for thanksgiving at my mom's. i'm so looking forward to this week together and all the food we get to eat.

everything feels right right now. meaning, the weather is right, the time of year is right, it doesn't feel like time is flying by at a crazy rate. it just feels good and easy and right. i can't ask for much more than that!

too much

2009-11-16T21:50:00.004-05:00

so much going on lately. home projects, work projects, baking projects.

i'm not even going to try to catch up. just going to say- carnegie science center with bbb. homemade ravioli (chicken; spinach). painting the main rooms of the house. generally being in love with my husband and kid and all the fun things we get to do.

went to see avenue q with acw last night. um..... hilarious. i can't get the bad idea bears out of my mind. i LOVE them. we went to the kenyan cafe beforehand. loved it as well. had chicken stew with matoke and i can't wait to have it again. it was the most comforting and filling dish i've had in so long. morgantown residents- PLEASE SUPPORT THE KENYAN CAFE! the proprietor is a great guy and the food is hearty, tasty and meant to be enjoyed. it's our duty to keep this restaurant around.

can't believe thanksgiving is next week. j and s are coming- so excited to seem them!

time change

2009-11-05T12:31:00.002-05:00

it's that delightful time of year when it's dark about 10 minutes after i get out of work. makes me sleepy and makes me want to do nothing.

we have not, however, been doing nothing.

last week i met mmm and his friends in FLA. we trekked to tampa for the game. that's all i really want to say about that. i did have a great time getting away and soaking in the sunshine, though.

halloween came next and bbb thoroughly enjoyed his night of mayhem. he couldn't get over all the kids in the street. our neighborhood lends itself to large groups of kids. we've never had a year wtih less than 300. bbb loved pretending to be scared and giving editorial comments to the other trick-or-treaters. perhaps the best moment was when he asked two old men passing out candy if they were "a couple of old pirates." i was proud.

this week has been spent running errands and taking care of odds and ends. i groomed rowan the other evening so he's extremely clean and fluffy. and his claws no longer resemble talons.

busy at work (as usual). board meeting today and tomorrow, though my responsibilities are thankfully minimal.

need to start planning holiday baking and gifts. thinking minimal this year. it's much more satisfying to focus on bbb and the fun he makes of holidays. he told us yesterday that he's going to be dash for christmas as well. mmm responded with a clear and loud "excellent!"

tasty treats

2009-10-27T14:45:00.006-04:00

my mom hosted her annual halloween party for the kids on sunday. bbb's little pals came over and shook things up for sure. i spent part of saturday and sunday baking for the event. note to self: it is not prudent to provide unlimited amounts of sugar to toddlers.

i had a great time baking, though, and i liked the way most everything turned out.

classic yellow cake with marshmallow fondant.

saffron pumpkin macarons from tartelette's recipe.

ghost sugar cookies.

chocolate bats and haunted houses.

and a spooky train.

i want to bake and eat it all again.

my mom fixed mummy dogs and cheesy bread and chili. it was quite a yummy spread!

true happiness

2009-10-18T20:47:00.002-04:00

i have had the most perfect weekend. i cannot actually remember a more perfect weekend. three generalities stand out: my kid was good, i got to see my family, and i got to relax.

friday night we ran errands. we got home and introduced bbb to a halloween compilation dvd that absorbed his attention for most of the weekend. we lazed around on saturday morning then headed to my mother's to see jeff, marilyn and the girls. bbb and i baked sugar cookies with his cousins then headed home to watch wvu beat marshall. except we didn't really watch it. he and i baked and napped and watched more of his halloween dvd. the kids was exceptionally well-behaved. i baked cinnamon rolls and an almond-lemon tea cake and made bbq chicken for supper.

after the boy went down, mmm and i caught up on survivor and went to bed early. i'm incredibly in tune with this cold snap. i love hearing the furnace kick on and i love the smell of the warm air. i love the grey sky and orange leaves and even the never-ending drizzle. i especially love it because i've just been hanging out at home snuggling with my guys.

this morning we woke late-ish again. more snuggling and halloween dvd, then off to my mom's for brunch. the big girls, marilyn and i took lindsey around campus. she seemed psyched at the thought of possibly coming to wvu next year. it was a lot of fun to show off the school i love so much.

headed home after that for more napping and snuggling and knitting. just a cozy day at home. i couldn't ask for anything more.

wilco weekend or the 30,000 calorie tour of columbus

2009-10-15T22:07:00.002-04:00

our wilco weekend was great! i'll start with the show. you know, columbus day in columbus? wilco was wilco. not the raucous wilco of so many years ago, but the tight, rhythmic, love-inspiring wilco of today. we had great seats in the wexner center and were fortunately seated next to non-annoying concert goers. i realized during that show the "the late greats" has become one of my most favorite wilco songs.

i will say that we made the absolute most of columbus. this is a town that we've driven through numerous times but never really visited. our first stop on sunday afternoon was german village.

we took this nice walk and visited several bakeries. the best one? this one. we sampled four different macarons and tried this gorgeous pistachio feullitine.

that evening we visited martini, an italian restaurant in short north. we started out with beef carpaccio. i had veal and spinach ravioli. mmm had gnocchi with beef and wild boar. not too shabby!

the next morning we explored the north market. i gawked over the pastries at mozart's north market bakery. the marzipan peach was other-wordly and i hope to recreate it some day.

we explored columbus a bit more before heading to the OSU campus to prepare ourselves for the show. other than my almost losing my purse, we had a great time there as well. a few observations: OSU students don't appear to drink much (as evidenced by the lack of watering holes). they run excessively. and they apparently have an inexplicable love of gyros. who knew?

delightful

2009-10-11T07:57:00.002-04:00

i've been trying to successfully recreate the seafoam candy my mom made when i was little and i think i FINALLY did it. i used the same recipe her family has been using for years from the 1937 household searchlight recipe book.

the taste took me right back to childhood.

more childhood feeling as we chased the balloons all over town yesterday evening. the annual hot air balloon festival is taking place this weekend and we were out and about during one of the launches yesterday. there's just something so beautiful about them.

leaving today for columbus day in columbus. why? WILCO. i'm so excited; it's been way too long since we've seen them.

i need more time

2009-09-21T19:46:00.003-04:00

if i represented my thoughts with a pie chart the biggest piece would most likely be devoted to this one: i just don't have enough time. the list of things i'm longing to do just grows and grows but i feel like my free time dwindles by the second (which, by the way, does not make sense because i have no new time commitments, other than those generated by bbb and he's been around for 2.5 years now).

i've been knitting a lot more lately and wish i could spend far more hours on it than i do. i've also been reading (currently devouring the last symbol) my "to read" list grew by three books this afternoon.

work is, as always, spinning out of control. i am eternally grateful to have a job, especially one that piques my interest, challenges me, and offers up kick-ass insurance. BUT, i came to the realization today that accomplishing everything laid out before me is pretty much an impossible task. accomplishing to my standards, anyway. i know i need to learn to live with this or i will go crazy. either that or i'll start working 60 hour work weeks. but that cuts into my husband/kid/reading/knitting/yoga/cooking time and i just don't know if i'm the kind of person who is prepared to give that up.

i had the opportunity this weekend to cook two good meals. chili and cornbread one evening and turkey dinner the next. i made ina garten's dijon roasted onions with turkey. an experiment that turned out quite well. also made pumpkin cupcakes with maple cream cheese icing from the art and soul of baking. evil. pure evil. bbb and i also made yummy sugar cookies. he had lots of fun frosting them.

in other news, we took bbb to get his big boy bike on friday evening. after riding for, oh, 32 seconds on saturday he looked at us matter-of-factly and said, "that's ok. i'll just walk." that's my boy.

via chicago

2009-09-09T20:49:00.004-04:00

we enjoyed a whirlwind tour of the midwest over the extended weekend. mmm, bbb and myself loaded up the family truckster and collected j and s for some quality time in kokomo. i must confess- i was in bed by 8:15 the first night.

saturday our troupe headed to chicago. the field museum could have been wonderful. could have been if we had not decided to take a cranky, napless two-year-old along for the ride. ice cream afterwords helped ease all our nerves.

husband and i rolled the dice and let the big boys tend to the creature while we enjoyed a few drinks in the hotel lobby. we really got bold and walked a block away to get pf chang's takeout. we got back to the hotel room and while it looked like keith richards had been in charge, none of the boys were any worse for the wear.

the next day was wonderful. we visited mmm's brother and his family (after a massive breakfast) and then spent a few hours at the lincoln park zoo. ok. here it is. the highlight of my trip. i got to see a POLAR BEAR up close. through glass, but up close. he just kept swimming back to us, smiling and showing off. he was magnificent.

headed back to kokomo for swimming and downtime at the hotel.

it was a lovely extended weekend and i hate that it had to end so soon. all of the boys were well behaved and it felt so good to be all together.

ready for fall

2009-09-02T21:25:00.003-04:00

cool weather for the past few days and it makes me ready for fall.

work has been out of control, taking it out of me completely. spending the evenings hunkered down with mmm and bbb and i wouldn't have it any other way.

gearing up for a midwestern adventure over my extended weekend. will worry about packing tomorrow. tonight i will veg.

wonderful weekend

2009-08-16T17:49:00.002-04:00

friday morning i left with coworkers to attend a committee meeting at the board meeting. admittedly, i was nervous about my part in the session but realized soon after arriving that i would be fine. the biggest reward? mmm was meeting me for the reception and dinner that followed.

we cleaned up quite nicely and made an impressive pair, if i do say so myself. our dinner companions were lovely. i was exhausted by the end of the meal and was entirely passed out by 10:02.

we woke a little late and had a HUGE breakfast. hash and waffles and eggs and it was all very yummy. we strolled around the grounds and gardens and visited the glass shop before heading to fairmont for josh and kristina's wedding. it was beautiful! the food was delicious and highgate is always such a nice place for receptions. we made some new acquaintances but the best part by far was seeing kelly.

the ride home was entirely uneventful.

today we have relaxed, cleaned, shopped and entertained the cranky, napless BBB. soon, very soon, will be his bedtime.

canaan valley

2009-08-03T22:07:00.002-04:00

we headed to canaan on saturday afternoon for a relaxing wilderness get-away. it was a nice mix of relaxing and exploring. feeling sleepy so i might just let the pictures do the talking...

blackwater falls.... beautiful every time i've every seen it.

j and s working hard to keep the boulder from falling on us...
the purple fiddle. slow service but good food. we also got to meet local activist/bouncer robbie. he educated us on the path and the importance of using recycled materials to make bean bags for the bean bag toss game.

our cabin at black bear resort.

me showing off my stellar kite-flying skills. mmm was jealous. b was not as impressed as i would have liked.

b sneaking out of yet another photo op....

incredibly cool chair at the blacksmith shop at penn alps.

perhaps my favorite part of the trip- penn alps. it might seriously be my favorite food ever. perfect fried chicken. killer mashies and the best homemade noodles i have ever tasted. fortunately it is far enough away that i'm not tempted to eat there more than a couple of times a year. i would weigh three hundred pounds if it were in this town.

the great outdoors

2009-07-26T21:38:00.002-04:00

j and s arrived yesterday. we had a very nice supper and the boys rough-housed like boys do.

today we celebrated jack's birthday with a party at cooper's rock. lots of kids and family and lots of good food.

the bigger kids enjoyed hiking more than anyone thought they would. they weathered scraped knees and turned ankles all in the name of adventure.

brother number one exerted himself as well. we all felt he hiked far too long and hard in light of his recent surgery.

jack appeared to have a lovely time, observing his celebrants from the top of a moss-laden rock.

boothie + ktm = rain

2009-07-19T09:43:00.002-04:00

friday evening boothie, mmm and i headed to south park to see steve earle. i had had a miserable day and was completely exhausted (still). we left in the middle of a huge rainstorm. boothie and i decided we can no longer attend outdoor concerts together. we bring the weather.

luckily, the rain stopped just as we arrived. we set up our picnic, poured some wine, and the music started. it was a completely relaxing evening. at least until it was time to go home.

oh and check out this video. we are in the audience!

exhaustion

2009-07-14T20:50:00.002-04:00

i'm done. i'm beat down and broken and i don't know what happened.

i know i've been busy. good busy. work is a whole other world right now. i'm sure everything will settle down soon. but for now, it's a marathon.

my only theory as to why i'm this tired is that all of the stress of the past few weeks (work, home, kid, etc) and the later than usual nights i've been having have caught up with me.

we saw conor oberst at 123 last thursday and that was just a great show. i really like his voice and i love that this incarnation is not the whiny, tinny sound that was bright eyes. ICK.

nice weekend full of work, play and relaxation. got to see public enemies which was very good and just nice to be at a movie on a sunday afternoon.

my big weekend project was baking croissants. they were fun to make and too fun to eat. i only ate one then took the rest to work.

cupcake

2009-07-01T23:41:00.002-04:00

scottie came over tonight and we had a very nice night. well, i did anyway. i think i probably yammered on too much but he's used to that from me i think.

b loved having the extra attention and they played with his flash cards. b really knows a lot of words! lots and lots of words and i don't know how he knows any of them.

we drank a bottle of cupcake sauvignon blanc and it was delish. i love the bottle and i love the wine. sweeter than what i normally drink but it suited my mood.

big news at work. a promotion of sorts. a promotion in theory, not in compensation. i'm so excited. something i've wanted for a long, long time. lots more work, lots more responsibility.

old 97s

2009-06-30T21:35:00.003-04:00

ahh, good times, good times.

sunday evening boothie and i set out on a great adventure. the old 97s were putting on a free show in northeast pittsburgh. sounded close and easy. WRONG. but getting there was half the fun. we arrived at the alleged venue to find no stage and several cars circling the parking lot. a little bit of instinct, a little bit of common sense and we finally arrived at the right place.

early enough to hear the last sound check!!! ahhh! and see them hanging out in their van!!! ahh!

we set up our lovely picnic. drank some wine, ate some snacks and then, then the cloud came. boothie, god bless her, headed for the car to get the ponchos. i have vivid images of her running from a wall of black water as she so selflessly left the safety of the car to bring me my poncho. she made it ALMOST in time. the ponchos worked great. we salvaged some food and the wine (duh).

anyway, the storm lasted maybe 15 minutes. then it cleared, was beautiful and the old 97s rocked!

the ride home was even more of an adventure. unfamiliar territory in the dark. but we talked and laughed and sang and eventually made it.

dinner last night with one, two and three. how often does that happen?

retreat today at chestnut ridge. not bad. not bad at all. oh, and, uh, we got to see the yurt.

recovery

2009-06-28T01:14:00.003-04:00

i'm getting old. very old.

thursday evening coworkers gathered at gene's. it was a fun night and a late night and i really don't think i recovered until sometime this evening. friday was, of course, an incredibly long day at work. exhaustion and a sore throat. again, i'm not the girl i used to be.

friday evening boothie came over and we had a lot of really great conversation.

number one home from the hospital today. we went to visit this evening and it felt nice to be with family and dogs. luna is adorable! i love that new puppy smell.

simple

2009-06-23T23:19:00.002-04:00

right now i have three things on my mind.

our garden. yoga. bread making.

only spent time this evening doing two of the three. the bread must wait til the weekend i think.

our garden is exploding. i'm so ready for homegrown tomatoes! we have some squash that's nearly ready. tiny little patty pan squash which is my favorite, just steamed all by itself.

indulged in an hour of yoga. feel all nice and stretchy with a mostly empty brain.

home again

2009-06-22T00:30:00.002-04:00

maybe tomorrow i'll try to recap the highlights of colorado, but for now it's all i can manage to talk about our journey home.

luckily the worst part of the trip was the very first part. the united line was long. i got nervous. but it went fast and mmm walked with us all the way to security. ben was a security champ yet again. and even though he did not nap, he was a model traveler during the flight. he watched two movies and ate his body weight in snacks.

my mum and number three picked us up. we ate at don pablo's. yum. on the way back to morgantown we stopped in canonsburg to pick up b's new treasure. you'll have to check out his blog tomorrow to see what it is.

and now we're home alone. it's quiet. and i'm tired. but can't sleep. i imagine things will feel back to normal, sort of, by week's end.

colorado

2009-06-18T10:23:00.002-04:00

we are having a fun and relaxing time with grandma in colorado. flying out with b was a bit of a challenge. he had to use the facilities about 5 times and kicked the seat in from of him for 2 hours straight. but other than that it was a smooth trip.

we have been visiting locals parks and elitch gardens.

i am eating way too much and not getting enough exercise. i think i finally have the motivation i need to kick myself into healthy living mode when i get back home.

i am, however, completely relaxed. what a nice feeling.

more fun at elitch gardens today and possibly the reservoir tomorrow.

party anyone?

2009-06-12T23:51:00.002-04:00

wednesday night we cleaned like crazy to get ready for the doc students on thursday. we planned a cookout for them as they finished their week-long seminar with the guest prof.

thursday came and i really think everyone had a great time. well, at least the majority of the folks. b, j and s were wound up and entertaining the crowd. b was in heaven, loving the special attention he got from kb and dm. he especially took a shine to syd. like, almost in a creepy way. poor syd. believe it or not, several members of the group spent a great deal of time hula hooping. highly entertaining!

the cookout broke up and we were back to cleaning, though this time there was not nearly as much to do. j and i sang old journey and bon jovi songs while we cleaned. he knows these lyrics why? no matter, we rocked out and sounded awesome.

work was long today but not long enough. trying to tie up loose ends before vacay. didn't go so while. ended the day by delegating many things to coworkers. what else to do? this evening i started prepping for s's bday party tomorrow. he requested red velvet cake with marshmallow fondant, so that's what i'm making.

oh yeah. i was making the fondant in the kitchenaid when the bowl slipped loose from the stand and somehow my right index finger got caught in between the two. i'm very lucky my finger wasn't broken but i am afraid my fingernail might be really damaged. plus, it hurts!

big day tomorrow with s's party and packing for denver. can't believe it's time already!

sargasso

2009-06-12T23:45:00.002-04:00

tuesday evening mmm and i went to sargasso for dinner with myers and the guest professor. it was an absolutely perfect meal. i started off with the pear salad: bibb lettuce, light bleu cheese dressing, prosciutto, poached pear and toasted almonds. it was a surprisingly large portion and absolutely delicious. for my meal i opted for one of the specials: roast chicken breast with a morel, cream and chive sauce, wheat berry and wild rice on the side, and asparagus. then came dessert. omg dessert. chocolate hazelnut torte (which was thick and cakey, not souffle-ey like some are), hot chocolate sauce, a chocolate covered cherry, AND white house cherry ice cream with pistachios. white house cherry is one of my all time favorite ice creams and it is very hard to come by. so to have fresh, REAL white house cherry was a treat.

the food was only outdone by the company and lively conversation. it was a wonderful evening all around.

blurry

2009-06-08T20:50:00.002-04:00

at first i felt guilty about not devoting much time here this past week. then i realized that our day to day life has grown by two people. two very active people who generate lots of laundry and require much food. oh, and they are very funny people and i enjoy spending time with them. so i've been doing that in the evenings instead of spending time glued to my laptop.

friday night we straightened up around the house and watched best in show together. ha! harlan pepper. ha! so many good quotes in that movie. j and i have been running around naming nuts and trying to be hound dog ventriloquists.

saturday we headed to the three rivers art festival. fun family outing. mmm accused me of poor parenting. i allowed the little one to be too close to the allegheny river. i still say he was fine. and to quote j "dad, i'm the captain of the swim team!"

home to slippy slide and kiddie pool. built a fire and had s'mores.

sunday we headed to chestnut ridge in the morning. felt so good to swim in the cool water. afternoon we headed to the weber's. more slippy slide action and the boys had so much fun together.

so really, that's been it. kids kids kids. and the house shows it. so it is.

stormy nights

2009-06-02T22:15:00.002-04:00

second stormy night in a row. lots of electricity in the air.

came home from work and filled the pool and set up the slippy slide for the boys. lots of fun watching them slide around and play together. after they tired of the water they fooled around with various balls and games and had snacks while i fixed supper. b is in heaven having his older brothers' attention.

made vermicelli and turkey meatballs for supper. really liked the meatballs tonight. fresh herbs, no garlic. they were good.

worn out, relaxing, listening to the rain come down. actually, listening to the rain gush out of the clogged gutter above my bedroom window. i MUST clean the gutters but i only think about it when it rains. how do people keep it all together, the never-ending list of household needs and chores?

read a lot today about geocaching and caving. interesting things. i like the idea of getting out and exploring your own backyard. i had no idea there was such a strong caving community out there.

gorgeous day

2009-05-30T22:35:00.003-04:00

i got to sleep in this morning! heavenly! mmm and i went out last night with friends. happy hour then dinner at dragonfly. very good sushi and way too much of it. sat out on a deck at a random bar on high street. good music and lots of laughs.

finally got going this morning. grey and a bit chilly to begin with. went to mom's to get b and number three was there. we all talked for a while then headed downtown to run errands and enjoy the farmers market. more rhubarb. couldn't resist baking another pie. in the oven as i type.

b and i got home and decided to try out rowan's new leash. ha! i know it's absurd. it's a ridiculous invention. BUT, ro really enjoyed his time in the yet and b got a huge kick out of it. i know mmm though (again) that he married a crazy person. but at least i'm a cheerful crazy person.

b napped and i read on the swing. doesn't get much better than that. cut a bouquet of peonies. smells so good.

evening rolled around and i baked. pies, brownies, muffins. nice. i really do love making pies. and unfortunately i'm learning to love eating them too.

j and s here tomorrow. summer officially begins!

magpie to the morning

2009-05-28T13:24:00.002-04:00

listening to neko case, middle cyclone, over and over and over and it's just so good. perfect album to start out summer. rich and deep and warm and sort of feels like rain and humidity. sort of slow. lots of nature images and it's just the perfect thing for right now.

odd week, starting off on a tuesday. always nice to be one day closer to the weekend than it seems.

wipe out

2009-05-25T21:22:00.002-04:00

totally exhausted in the very best way.

yesterday acw and i took the boys to the woodland zoo in farmington, pa. it was nice to hang out and have adult conversation while the boys did their thing and looked at the animals. i realized yesterday that i have an unnatural fear of ostriches and the like. no bird should be taller than a human. it's just not right. those meaty bird thighs.... ew. give me shivers.

tried to coax b into a nap after the zoo but he would have none of it. cole called and we wound through the country to find some herbs at shields. no luck for him. he couldn't make up his mind so we wound our way back home.

this morning acw brought the boys over and we had a high time playing with the slip n slide and the pool. so happy the boys get on so well together. they are so different from each other! distinct personalities for sure, but in the end it's a very nice balance. we are so lucky to have such great friends.

rain moved in mid afternoon and b and i took it easy indoors. train play, youtube, supper and stories. very laid back. the sun and water took their toll. b was so tired he ASKED to go to bed at 7:00!!! mmm returned during our bedtime routine. he was sleepy too and went to bed early himself.

can't decided if i'm tired or wired. definitely not wanting to say goodbye to b in the morning. he's been my little shadow since friday afternoon.

more yard work

2009-05-23T23:07:00.002-04:00

b and i slept in this morning! almost 7:45 when we woke up! it felt great to be so lazy. we had waffles for breakfast and headed out to the farmer's market. i couldn't resist the rhubarb. fairly convinced that rhubarb pies are being baked all over town tonight. baked one myself and it was tart and sweet and hit the spot. no pie crust will ever rival ina's pie crust. i see no need to try any other pie crust ever. that one is far too perfect.

after the market we went to the walmart (for outside toys) and the pond store (for two goldfish). b loved looking at the koi and i honestly believe a couple of them weigh more than he does. we got our little comets and decided to name the napoleon and birdo.

mom over again to help do things. we finished leveling up b's play house. b and i planted eggplant and melon.

nice supper. chicken on fresh lettuce and hydro toms from the market. couscous and pie.

sleepy sleepy now. perfect day, one of the nicest in recent memory.

yard work

2009-05-22T21:35:00.002-04:00

hit the ground running after work this evening. set b up in his kiddie pool then worked on overflowing and treating the pond. a little late for that task. actually, i cleaned it out a couple of months ago but, without fish in it, the ph was off and it filled with algae. after the farmer's market tomorrow b and i will get a couple fishies.

planted more tomatoes and an eggplant and generally tidied up the yard. the veg bed is looking great. i know i planted our tomatoes too close together. i always do this. i get too excited, buy too many, and think i have more space than i really do. some day i will learn!

sleepy now, snuggling down in fresh sheet, enjoying the sound of a very quiet house. only wish mmm were here to listen to the quiet with me. most of the time i'm a-ok when he's gone, but sometimes, like now, i just miss him too much!

overwhelmed

2009-05-20T22:30:00.002-04:00

feeling really overwhelmed lately. feel like the house is getting the better of me. so much to do and no time or energy to do it. part of it is laziness i'm sure. i just want to be outside playing with b.

a bit of an adventure last night. we came home to find that rowan had escaped from his cage! b and i found him in the tv room. we chased him a bit and he headed into the laundry room. he cornered himself by the hot water tank and i snatched him right up.

nice evening tonight playing with b in the yard (avoiding housework!). i fixed him a sand pit by his playhouse. got some new sand toys at the dollar tree and he's pleased as punch. summer at last.

weekend recap

2009-05-19T08:21:00.002-04:00

still trying to catch up from our trip to see thomas the tank engine on the cuyahoga valley scenic railroad. b had a blast and i did too. it was a perfect weekend.

b was very well-behaved the entire time. i don't know what got into him. the thomas festivities were low-key and age appropriate. after our island of sodor adventure we went back to the hotel and swam. we ate dinner in the room and after that we were all pretty much exhausted.

sunday morning we woke, ate and swam again. then we headed to crown pointe ecology center outside of cuyahoga falls. they were having their annual organic plant sale. incredible. i've never seen so many varieties of tomatoes and peppers. lots of heirlooms and heirloom squash and eggplant as well. i got a patty pan squash, some herbs, and some different eggplant and tomato plants.

we headed back east and stopped at kent so b could see where daddy went to school. we ate lunch at mike's place- quirky and yummy with an overwhelming menu.

b loved his adventure. he's still talking about it and i'm so glad we went. i will cherish this memory for the rest of my life!

waiting

2009-05-14T22:40:00.002-04:00

nice dinner at oliverio's tonight. ate too much but it was worth it.

my mind is full of weekend plans and i can't wait for it to start. softball game spectating tomorrow night and our big day out with thomas on saturday. i'm ready!

and i am allergic to....

2009-05-12T21:23:00.002-04:00

EVERYTHING!

how bout that? 57 injections today which led the allergist to one conclusion. i am allergic to everything. i am not violently allergic to any one thing, but i am consistently and significantly allergic to pretty much every known environmental allergen. i was thinking, you know, a little ragweed, a little tree pollen, a little cat. nope. everything. even dogs. dogs!

anyway, i'm very glad i had it done and i'm hopeful and excited that it will pay off in the end.

feeling over the stomach flu for the most part, so that's good.

jack in the hospital tonight and we're all worried. something has got to give.

i want a do-over

2009-05-10T13:24:00.003-04:00

as far as mother's day weekends go, i would call this one the WORST. friday night i stayed at my mom's and woke at 3:30 sick, awfully sick. it didn't let up til around 8:00 saturday night. mmm was out of town so my mom took care of b and me. thought i felt better this morning. drove home then mmm took me to shield's for mother's day but we both felt really sick in the car on the way home.

still feeling sick now. gross and awful and i think this is the worst sick i've ever been. but i think it always feels like that when you're sick.

we did get tomato plant, so that was something. maybe after a nap i'll feel a little better.

long day

2009-05-07T21:59:00.002-04:00

still waiting for mmm to return and it's 10:00! hope he gets home soon. i can't imagine how long HIS day feels.

work was work. stopped by boothie's to feed the kitties and they were cute and needed lots of pets and love which i gladly gave. zoey stretched farther than i've ever seen anything stretch before. i had to call jt for advice on how to give them their dry food.

b and i played in the yard at home. all of his veggies are sprouting and he's soooo excited. so am i. it's a beautiful garden and he works so hard to take care of it. he's taking excellent care of the berry patch as well.

here's a face that always makes me smile...

i itch therefore i am

2009-05-05T23:08:00.002-04:00

i have been off of all allergy meds and decongestants since friday. i ITCH. like crazy. pretty sure it's all in my head, but so what if it is? the bottom line is, i ITCH. after that test on tuesday i'm going to take a whole blister pack of benadryl and some sudafed just for fun. allergy test, that is. a gillion sticks in my arm to figure out definitively what makes me miserable and how to make it all better. i'm not sure why i waited so long to do this. i think partly because people would talk about getting shots and i just assumed it was some type of medication in the shots, not an actual personalized vaccine. i guess you can call it a vaccine.

at any rate, i ITCH.

baking frenzy

2009-05-03T21:28:00.003-04:00

rain and rain and rain. won't be letting up for a while either. instead of moping i decided to bake.

played around with the men this morning. put b down for a nap in the afternoon and made oatmeal cherry choco chip cookies, cinnamon rolls and cheddar gougeres. i ate so much this afternoon that i only allowed myself a salad for dinner.

pleased with everything. the cookies have become one of my favorites. homey and chewy but the cherry adds a zing to them. the gougeres were a total experiment. the recipe is from tartine and i will definitely make them the next time i have company for dinner. they are savory and salty and nice little bites. the cinnamon rolls? i tried smitten kitchen's recent experiment. bad idea. the rolls are awesome, but they are in the kitchen calling to me and i know i'm going to have to go eat another.

strange evening. b woke from his nap disoriented. i took him into bed with me to calm him down. we both ended up falling asleep and did not get up til after 6:30! the kid usually goes to

BED at 7:30! nice nap though, nice to snuggle and feel like he was still my little baby.

hard rain

2009-05-02T00:53:00.002-04:00

sleepy tonight. it's been a long week. still, i cannot believe it is may. i hardly remember april at all.

meeting for work today. serendipitously, my first cousin once removed was there. amazing that he recognized me. especially considering that i do not go by my maiden name. we calculated that it's been twenty years since we've seen each other. TWENTY! makes me feel old old old even though i know i'm not.

yard work this evening, then watched the order of myths, a lovely documentary by margaret brown. ready for bed now and wondering what i will do with my child on such a rainy weekend.

fly me to the moon

2009-04-28T22:38:00.002-04:00

had a lovely evening in the garden with b last night. we planted many things and i'm hopeful that they'll grow and grow and grow. corn, beans, pumpkins, watermelon.

strange day today, overwhelming in ways, thoughts weighing down. i want to be able to stay home, sit in the yard, play with my kid and talk to my husband. not in the mood for much else. a little bit of spring fever and a little bit of something else.

nice night out with mom and number three tonight. laughing and singing and remembering. long night drives with the family, don mclean, anticipation. station wagon, windows down, each to his own thoughts. comforting memories.

hot weather

2009-04-27T09:25:00.003-04:00

it's been absolutely gorgeous these past few days. i've spent every free moment outside.

friday evening i went for dinner and a movie with the ladies. lots of laughs (and screams!). saturday i concentrated on constructing b's new play house. it's awesome! i can't believe i did it myself and i can't believe it's finished. still have some landscaping to do around it but the building itself is complete.

yesterday we spent the afternoon at my mother's for number one's birthday. 48! it was an incredibly relaxing day. the kids played in the sand and took a group shower to get all the muck off. the adults ate and talked and enjoyed the sunshine.

b and i got home and mmm returned shortly after. after b went down we watched the first segment of planet earth in hd and it was awesome. polar bears! and crazy crazy birds!

the only downside to this weekend is the unbelievable sunburn i have on my back. seriously painful and i feel like an idiot for allowing myself to get such a thing.

on the verge of something else

2009-04-22T23:27:00.002-04:00

mmm left for philly today and it feels strange without him. things just feel off.

boothie came over after b went down. lots of catching up to do. good speaks. we also spent lots of time with ro and helped him discover the second story of his bunny condo. he really enjoyed it! he enjoyed all the extra attention as well. he took a little nap after playing so hard.

i'm sleepy too. evenings always go by way too fast. never enough time to enjoy the quiet.

burger and fries

2009-04-20T20:34:00.002-04:00

looking through a foodie magazine tonight and a tantalizing photo of a red, juicy burger and hand cut fries graced one of the pages. drool. i would say i contemplated that burger and fries for about five minutes and then i decided to write about it here.

real burgers, REAL BURGERS, are total comfort food for me. a reliable choice (at least a more reliable choice) in most restaurants, i tend to order them when i'm traveling, especially for work. tew and i have a habit of this together, actually. generic conference hotel. nothing looks great. long day of travel. what to get? why the $20 burger and fries of course. yum.

i remember burgers. like the one i had at the hard rock cafe in nyc my sophomore year of high school. or the late night burgers tew and i ate in boston with oh-so-yummy fries. falstaff's burgers, may they rest in peace. the black and blue burger at the alamo. so good i got it twice.

how did a carnivore such as myself end up with a vegetarian for a child? perhaps he must remain meatless to account for my own meat gluttony.

ketchup

2009-04-19T20:18:00.004-04:00

feel like i'm playing catch up here. i don't remember much before friday so i guess i'll just start there. work, of course. mmm picked up pizza for supper and that was 100% satisfying. i watched my vampire show and went to bed relatively early.

saturday morning b and i got an early start. we headed to lowes and got some herbs and landscaping provisions. then we worked non-stop in the yard til mid afternoon. we planted and raked and made a new compost bin out of wire fencing. while b napped (i use the term loosely) i created a pea gravel pit for the swing.

we got cleaned up and met mmm so we could go to aj's naming ceremony together. such a special day. things are as they should be and i'm still in so much awe of my friends, opening up their hearts and lives to take on another tribe member. relief as well. i feel such a great sigh of relief. he's finally, legally, eternally theirs.

we got home from the party and played in the yard a while. after b went to bed i built a fire in the chiminea ckl and jl gave us. what a great way to dispose of all the sticks cluttering the yard. relaxing as well.

shew. this is long.

today b and i lounged in my bed for quite a while. then we found some motivation and headed to the mon river trail. we saw lots of birds and trees in bloom.

this evening- well that's when i finally lost my mind. i tricked out rowan's cage. he now has his very own two-story bunny abode.

lovely weekend and i'm sad to see it go.

good times, good times

2009-04-15T20:47:00.003-04:00

had a real treat tonight. b and i went to boothie's for dinner. we hadn't been to their new place yet and it was very nice. b loved watching zoe and abby, the kitties. zoe was a little more tolerant. abby was smarter- she hid underneath the bed.

nice to catch up and chat. made me feel like i could just relax and be. i probably let b run around too much but she said we could come back so i guess it's not all bad. how did we end up being adults? when did that transition happen and why do i still feel like a 22 year old most of the time? guess it's better to feel 10 years younger than 10 years older.

mmm is out to dinner for work. i need to clean the house but i might just watch home improvement television instead.

down the rabbit hole

2009-04-13T20:31:00.002-04:00

spring fever is descending. saw a bright happy blue bird on the trail at lunch.

wet weather. a bit chilly but it makes things smell good and makes things grow. the cherry tree is budding and the apple tree is covered with small green leaves.

watching gore vidal on bill mahr. interesting to think of people who have seen so much. especially to hear such an erudite person commenting on the span.

shiny happy life confectionary

2009-04-12T22:34:00.003-04:00

and hours of baking this weekend.

first, rem and cars came over to bake a bunny cake for easter. i used the vanilla buttermilk recipe from sky high cakes and it did not disappoint. enough batter left over for 12 cupcakes. i whipped up some buttercream and let the girls go to town decorating. i think they did a fantastic job!

rather late (for baking) last night i launched into clothespin cookies for g. i cheated and used the leftover buttercream to fill them. they still tasted good but i'm wondering now if i didn't disappoint my brother. i just hate having extra frosting and not using it.

even later last night i began making the lemon blueberry cake from sky high cakes. a very fun recipe, it required a homemade blueberry lemon ginger preserve. the kitchen smelled delicious all even long as i worked on that.

i did substitute the italian lemon buttercream in the book with a basic confectioner's sugar recipe. i never ever ever have luck with italian buttercream.

a lovely easter day with the family all together. b was fun to watch though by the end of the day i was very ready for him to be sleeping. i want more of this weekend. it was a great one.

west virginia botanic garden

2009-04-12T22:21:00.002-04:00

saturday afternoon mmm was gracious enough to wrangle the kid so that i could have some quality time with rem and cars before they left. we set off with gram on a nature hike through the west virginia botanic garden. we mostly stuck to the reservoir loop but we did lots of meandering through side paths.

the place is gorgeous. something about it that stokes my creativity. maybe because the early spring landscape is still rather barren. you have to slow down and look very closely to catch glimpses of color and glimpses of life.

the girls made me proud. they pushed through trails and explored natural and manmade wonders without an ounce of fear. it was heartening to hear their imaginations run on, concocting stories of what different ruins might have been or how old a particular tree might be.

we saw a turtle! that was my favorite part!

good friday

2009-04-10T21:06:00.002-04:00

we had a very nice day!

the men let me sleep in a while, then i set to cleaning the house. i finished my chores and b and i ran for the border. he had a cheese quesadilla. i had three chicken soft tacos fresco style. and then we saw the easter bunny. b was psyched. he high fived him and hugged him and tickled his fur. it was spur of the moment and i'm really glad we did it.

rem and cars came over in the afternoon. we played lots of wii, wii fit specifically, and unlocked loads of new exercises. then we pushed ben in his car all the way to the park. played a bit then came back for supper.

relaxing with mmm now, watching my vampire show.

girl time

2009-04-09T21:32:00.002-04:00

long day at work. frustrations mounting. can't quite shake it off.

mmm took b home after work. i stayed at my mom's with the girls and we baked sugar cookies for easter. it was so nice to talk with the three of them. such unique and funny girls. growing up quickly but nicely.

home now. going to listen to music i think, maybe make a super sweet mix or two.

granola and taxes

2009-04-07T22:51:00.002-04:00

somehow ended up with a burst of energy this evening.

we got home and i did yoga while the boys played. then b and i made granola and cookas. then i started in on taxes.

brain dead now and ready for bed. good evening though!

monday monday

2009-04-06T21:16:00.002-04:00

husband's back and all is right with the world again.

sorta.

i feel terrible. achey and stuffy and tired. i know it's allergies. bumped up my appointment with dr. h. gonna ask for shots. i think it's my only option! i can't feel like this anymore! ridiculous!

got lots done today at work. always seems to go that way when the boss isn't around. it's like a universal truth or something.

relaxing evening at home. made baked ziti and it was really tasty. i could eat it all. i was going to make granola and cookies but that's just going to have to wait one more day.

me and my man

2009-04-04T21:14:00.002-04:00

having b all too myself and i love it.

rem and cars arrived at my mother's yesterday. we all ate dinner together and the kids were, well, MY kid was out of control. but it was all in good fun.

we lazed around this morning and spent the afternoon in the yard and working on easter projects.

ready for husband to get back from st. louis.

feeling a little under the weather and hoping it's just allergies.

down time

2009-04-02T22:17:00.003-04:00

just like that, everyone is gone.

j and s left on sunday. mmm and grandma left yesterday. the house is totally quiet. it's just me and b.

worked in the yard last evening. i dragged the old raised bed frame down from the top of the yard to side of the deck. b and i removed some sod and filled in with some dirt. about 1/4 done. b planted seeds and was incredibly excited.

accomplished a good many things at work today. interesting requests from the executive office.

transliterator

2009-03-30T21:09:00.003-04:00

things still bustling around here. friday morning turner and i went to erickson for our first peer screening of the spring. a little rusty, both of us.

izzy came over in the evening to watch twilight with us as planned. i think there was more real-life drama going on via text than in the actual film.

saturday morning the boys went with mmm to run errands and b and i ran errands on our own. we bought a peach tree! brought it home and s planted it for me. he did a great job. we cleaned up around the house in preparation for grandma's visit. nice steak dinner and lots of wii action in the evening.

boys left yesterday. b, grandma and i took it easy around the house.

back to work today and i missed b all day long. mondays are rough like that.

busy busy

2009-03-26T21:34:00.003-04:00

busy week, busy day. meeting, eye appointment, lots of work at work.

this evening we went to mav's birthday party. it was fun for the kids but also really nice for me to catch up with acw, md and nbl. i do think they need to invest in some type of ventilation system for the play room at chic fil a, though. holy moses, it gets hot and muggy in there. the kiddies don't seem to mind a bit. funny to see ben all red and sticky and sweaty. he had a high time.

indulging in another early bedtime. makes life a whole lot easier, not being exhausted all the time. indulged in some yoga as well. i have neglected that practice for way too long.

down home

2009-03-25T22:24:00.002-04:00

my moms made fried chicken tonight and a mess of mac and cheese. YUM. she had a house full, too. aunt and uncle, jack, izzy and shannon, tew and sam. our whole crew, of course. we were an unruly bunch and i think the oldest generation were a bit put off by all of the adolescent humor. we wore them down, though. in the end we were all laughing.

b thinks whenever that many people get together and eat it's a birthday party.

we got home late and b went to bed an hour late! he gets very agitated when this happens. "it's seven o'clock! bedtime! it's really dark! bedtime!" believe me. i'm not complaining. i love having a child that's eager to hit the sack.

meeting in the morning followed by eye doctor. mav's birthday party after work. chick fil a. chicken three days in a row!

brownies are good

2009-03-24T21:29:00.003-04:00

rowan came home today! picked him up from dmf's house at lunchtime. quite a fiasco getting him back in his cage. accidentally let him loose trying to greet him. three adults and one dog were hardly a match for the 2.5 pound rabbit. once captured, he came to work with me and sat on my desk for the rest of the afternoon. so cute. he flipped and flopped and napped and ate some pear.

b was excited to have him in the car with us but was sad to miss out on seeing toby.

usual comfortable chaos at home. chicken dinner and j and i had brownies for a late night snack.

boys

2009-03-23T22:36:00.003-04:00

boys arrived this evening, full of energy and lots of news. they always have so much to say. both in their own way.

the wii-related activities began. i scored second in bowling but lost miserably in boxing and tennis. can someone help me out with the wii tennis? i suck! like, REALLY suck. j tried to help but to no avail.

baked cookies and muffins and brownies after supper. the challenge now will be to not eat them.

back into the groove (mostly) at work today. walked with jbc on the trail at lunch. lots of catching up to do. we walked to the store and i got salad fixings for myself. can't wait to eat it all again tomorrow. there's a special place in my heart for bleu cheese crumbles and balsamic on mixed greens.

home!

2009-03-22T23:42:00.002-04:00

so happy to be home. happy as a lark. mini crocus and iris up in the front yard, forsythia blooming and even a few daffodils.

the best part of being home, of course, is having b with us. he was waiting like a puppy, standing at my mom's storm door when we pulled into her driveway. we were all very excited to see each other and it seems like he speaks in whole paragraphs now. such a funny and amazing little guy. we had a snack together when we got home and he got to stay up almost an hour past his bedtime. such a good little guy- no fussing at all. we read the little engine that could and he tried to determine which engines were percy and james. he also couldn't get over the fact that a monkey was on the train. a monkey! on a train!

as soon as he hit the sack i started cleaning and just now finished. not a great job but good enough. i even unpacked all my stuff! that is quite an accomplishment for me.

j and s come tomorrow! we are all very excited about that as well. can't wait to have some serious wii competitions and hopefully buy and view twilight on bluray. we all three have read the books and izzy too so i'm hoping to have a watching party for us. it's going to be a great week!

last night

2009-03-21T23:00:00.002-04:00

it's all a blur at this point! so much music, so many movies, it's all kind of running together.

let's see. yesterday we went to the scotland party and the scotland show case. fun. loud. mmm saw ben harper. i declined. why did i decline? because i hate ben harper ALMOST as much as i hate jack johnson. they make me want to beat people with sticks. ugh. so while husband went to see ben harper i sat like a nerd and read a book in the sun.

saw a lovely movie tonight, 500 days of summer. great soundtrack, good acting, beautiful to look at. nice change of pace from all the shoving and pushing of the shows we've been seeing.

last night. ready to go home but i know i'll miss this place as soon as i get there. can't wait to see b and all his new tricks.