party anyone?

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!

on the verge of something else

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.  

good times, good times

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.

baby shower and spring-like weather

saturday we hosted a baby shower for ckl and soon-to-be-here babe.  i really enjoyed planning and cooking for it and enjoyed all our company even more.  

quite a few folks stayed after the shower (which was a co-ed shower) to watch wvu-louisville.  and then some stayed even after that!  

mmm and i woke way late on sunday.  late anyway, but then the time change made it even later. he graciously stayed home and cleaned while i went to early dinner at my mother's.  

beautiful warm weather!  izzy and i took a nice walk.  after b's nap we went to the park in first ward which was great fun.  teaming with children and adults alike.  

crashed early after taking benadryl.  i have the same plan in mind for this evening!

it's for charity!

raised a ruckus at the beanery last night to help about the comfort fund at the cancer center.  it was a wonderful excuse to be out with friends.  we stayed out too late and morning came too soon.  

quiet and uneventful day at the office.  i think thinks have been generally quiet and uneventful lately.  hence, not much posting going on .

listened to the shins and the shout out louds most of the day.  

countdown to austin officially begins tomorrow.  two weeks.  TWO WEEKS!

sea legs

tew over last night for dinner, drinks and girl talk.  i feel like i hadn't seen her in ages.  it was nice to catch up and laugh and watch sam and b tackle each other.

wicked winds blew in over night.  the noises kept me up and i had trouble sleeping.  made for a rough morning at work.  i perked up by afternoon thanks to 60 ounces of diet coke and a huge plate of mexican food.  

met mommy e at the bookstore so the boys could have a playdate. i loved catching up with her.  a constant friend.  

bed early tonight to make up for last night.  

old skool slumber party

had a slumber party with tew, sam and izzy at my mom's last night.  we started out by going to old navy where iz gave me advice on buying skinny jeans.  i still think the "skinny" jeans make me look "fat" but wore them out of the store anyway.  

we ate all kinds of sleepover food and stayed up playing with makeup and talking.  i slept on the couch in the downstairs family room with the tv on.  

my mom made us a fancy breakfast, just like when i was in high school.

b and i had a birthday party to attend and that was quite fun.  he was very well behaved til the guest of honor started opening presents.  we left a little early to head to aunt and uncles for his gram's birthday party.  tew and sam joined us there as well.  she's nuts!  lots of fun though, listening to frankie valli and teasing each other.  it's what we do.  

the android's conundrum

this day.  just too much.  this day has been FULL.  just full of words and thought.  music. connections.  friends.  and a birth!  one of my dear dear friends has welcomed a sweet baby girl into this world and my heart is just bursting.  another pair of soft apple cheeks to chew.  i cannot wait to meet this stubborn little girl who, i wager, will be just like her mama.

today is a day wherein i feel overwhelmed, but i like it.  stressed, yes, but happy to have the stress because it's proof of life and proof of some level of necessity in the great wide world.

a long day, a day all to itself that will stand out from other days because of all the tiny little things that transpired.  aside from the birth, nothing grand.  but little things that all make a great difference.  i can say with deep sincerity, my friends are some of my greatest blessings.  

for the price of a cup of tea

tonight i had my sssm all to myself.  well, i had to share her for a while with b, but that's ok, i guess.

we had a nice dinner and wine and lots and lots of chatting and laughing.  very strange not to sit next to her for eight hours every day.  very.  lots to catch up on and i think we only got half way through.  

fast-paced day at work and i was freakishly productive.  still in my thinking phase.  reading and listening and writing and zoning out for long periods of time, following tangents and snapping myself out of dazes.  

awfully quiet in the house tonight now that tew is gone.  silent almost.  

snug as a bug in a rug

had such a nice day.  a simple pleasures sort of day.  

woke up and scrubbed the house from top to bottom.  barely got everything done in time for guests.  mmm took b on a christmas shopping adventure so i could entertain in peace.  my ladies came over at eleven and we had a very nice and relaxing brunch.  boothie stayed on and watched b while i cleaned up.  

LMM came after that.  always fun to chat with that one.  

b and i took naps.  it was all i thought it could be and more.  i was on the little couch looking at cookbooks.  next thing i know two hours have gone by and it's dark outside.  almost 6pm.  

sing me spanish techno

fun night out with the comm people, but it always is.  got to know some of the new doc students and enjoyed spending time with my girlies k and b.  ckl ran the gauntlet with us.  we cut a rug to old michael jackson.  special thanks to the longwoods for getting us home safely.  a and i fit snugly in the kids' carseats on the ride home.  there are some advantages to being not quite adult sized. 

now i am tired.  good tired, though, and it's not too late.  big weekend.  feast festival tomorrow and brunch here with the fam on sunday.  

listened to music for hours and hours today at work.  finished a project and fell even deeper in love with rhett miller and neko case.  i just can't get enough.  

in the thick of it

ladies night here.  in the middle of it and feel like capturing it.  

boothie and tew over for dinner and drinks.  such a good dinner.  tortellini with brown butter and parm.  ravioli with gorgonzola and walnuts.  side of baby squash.  followed up by smitten's world peace cookie.  like itty bitty brownies that melt in your mouth.

having fun (lots of fun) but so much missing the hubs.  he's living it up in sandy ahgo.  as usual, i've eaten twice my body weight in his absence.  husband, when will you realize that your field trips are detrimental to my girlish figure?  

about last night

wonderful turn out for tew's farewell bash.  great mix of people.

in true ktm fashion, i drank too much.  i kissed too many people on the cheek.  i smacked too many bottoms.  i believe i might even have "woohed". friends, i ask you now, why do you not stop me from doing these things?  i guess it could be worse.  

can't believe it was tew's last day.  i think it will be a week or two before it really hits me...

peaches and pottery

pottery night tonight and not a night too soon.  i have come to cherish these nights together with my girlfriends.  we eat, talk, drink, complain, build each other up, advise, and laugh.  and oh yeah, we make stuff too.  i am so lucky to have these ladies in my life.  

i did two fused glass pieces tonight.  i can't say what they are though, because they are surprises.  that reminds me, i need to post a pic of my last fused glass piece here.  i really like working with that stuff.

in honor of pottery night i made another cake out of sky high cakes.  we had just gotten a bunch of awesome peaches so i chose the peach melba cake.  what a cake!  not difficult per se, but time consuming.  the cake itself is a cream cake.  it is filled with mousse made from peach puree, then frosted with a cream frosting flavored with raspberry puree.  i think it was pretty tasty.  it didn't look as elegant as i wanted it too, though.

and, just to keep you all informed, i am still basically without a voice.  it comes and goes, i guess, because i did talk a lot at pottery.  but i overdid it and i'm completely mute again.  went to urgent care this morning and they said i have an upper respiratory infection and promptly prescribed me meds.  thanks a lot, ENT, for telling me two days ago i was fine.  sheesh.  

boys night out

worked hard and played hard today.  skipped out of work a bit early and walked downtown to meet mmm and the boys at their watering hole of choice.  laughed and talked and drank and sang.  really laughed.  too many laughs to count.  too many drinks to remember?  hmmmm....

shared a cab with cole on the way home and reaffirmed that yes, indeed, he will take care of me and b if something happens to mmm.  thank god for that.  

it was nice to be out and be carefree.  best part of b staying at gram's?  sleeping in tomorrow.  no question.  

steph's baby shower in the am, and possibly a cookout with cole and others in the afternoon.  followed by vicky christina barcelona at the warner.  i figure mmm and i both win.  he can drool over penelope and i can lust over scarlett.  she brings out the experimental coed in me.  

i love the ladies

had a most excellent evening with my ladies tonight.  we descended upon the make-your-own pottery place like a gaggle of worn out, drunken geese.  not a flattering picture, i suppose, but i mean it in the best way possible.  honestly, it felt a bit like a tv show.  a bit like how imagined being a "grown up" would feel and look.  a room full of lovely, accomplished women letting their guards down.  complaining, joking, laughing, crying.  beautiful women in various stages of their lives, each with her own joys and worries.  but all of us there for each other.

growing up i always thought i'd fare better as an adult, and boy was i ever right.  driving home, thinking about each of my amazing girlfriends, i realized once again how lucky i am.  i have these interesting, funny, trustworthy people in my life.  my go-to girls.  men, marriages, divorces, babies, and no babies.  happy, sad, manic, depressed.  these women forever amaze me.  i have to say it again- i'm just so very lucky.

especially blessed to have tew in my life.  the past week alone has been filled with so much life and sharing and support- i can only hope it's gone both ways.  (tew- if you're reading this- i love you!  you are my SSSM!!!)

enough of the drivel.  

i like what i made this evening, at the pottery place.  it has not been baked yet, so i don't have a picture.  i made a fused glass plate.  the goal was to be sort of frank lloyd wright-ish.  we'll see.  hoping it will go nicely with the mission-style furniture in the living room. 

i'm going to bed a very happy girl...

ouch

boothie came over last night for dinner and drinks.  history should have told me that i'd wake up the next morning with a headache.  an all-body headache.  a bodyache if you will.  worth it, though.

beautiful warm night with a nice cool breeze.  

preparing this morning to head to the woods with tew, baby b and sam.  should be an adventure to remember.