thanks dad

we had our first photo shoot today. she does nice work. no broken images when transferred from camera to computer. yea! didn't have to do too much tweaking of the images, either. pretty happy about that, must say.

thanks, dad, we still need to talk price. love you.

leaving on a jet plane

although i do know when we'll be back again. late on thursday night.

we're heading to arizona to visit with family. kev's dad and step-mom live there as well as his little sister (and her beau, whom we've not met yet). his mom and step-dad are joining the fun, too. they actually got there yesterday (assuming they could get out of their snow bound house in arkansas).

a few days in the sun, relaxing, laughing, enjoying one anothers company...sounds perfect.

but today, today i must work. 10-7. then we have friends coming for dinner and we're having a slumber party! our house sitter is going to stay the night tonight because we leave so dang early for the airport and josie has pills that she needs a bit later than the time we leave, so he'll feed them when he gets up at a normal hour (perhaps i mentioned that here before).

i am almost finished packing. just have the toiletries that we'll still need in the morning to plop into their ziploc bag and then into the suitcase. one little wheelie for the two of us. rolling your clothing really does make a difference. i can't believe what all i got into the case! so kev will lug that and i'll have the big bag of snacks and entertainment (books, crosswords, knitting) as well as my purse. the last two bags aren't finished being packed yet because the dog would get into the snack bag and we'd have no snacks and i am using my purse.

this is real exciting stuff to read, isn't it?!? compelling, i am sure.

so yes, we're taking a vacay! a much needed vacay. must remember to print boarding passes when i get to work. we're out of flipping paper here...bah!

happiest of holidays

the fire is burning.
mom and simon are napping on the sofa.
josie is guarding her new toy which gifted to her from our neighbor's dog, adobo.
dad is loading photos from this trip onto his computer.
kev is doing crosswords.
chloe is sleeping on our bad.
i am thankful for a full house.

hope you and yours are having the loveliest of lovely days.

the menus are set

next week my parents arrive. i am so excited i can hardly stand it. they will be here for a whole week. of course i have to work a few of those days, but they understand it is what i have to do during the holidays.

anyone who knows me, knows i'm a planner. well about certain things. menus for upcoming visits, outfits to pack for trips that are months away, knitting to take on those trips...yeah, a planner.

i've got the dinner menus set for my parents visit.

the night they arrive, kev is working late. so it will just be the three of us for dinner. a few months ago kev made an amazing baked ziti with scallops and shrimp. i think that would be a great first dinner of the visit.

the next night we are having my best girls (from college) over so we can all visit. chunky black bean chili in the slow cooker. i'll make a double batch of corn bread, too.

on thursday that week my plan is to make a bean and corn soup. i am thinking there will probably be corn bread left over.

friday is the main event and i am going all out. a molasses brined turkey, mushroom and bacon stuffing, mom's potatoes, green beans, rolls, ginger snap gravy, with shoo-fly pie for dessert.

saturday we will not want to think of cooking so kev will bring home pizza from work.

sunday we have reservations at The Chart House. i've never been, but mom and dad went last time they were here. they have friends who moved out here a few years ago. she actually was my science teacher for about a week in jr. high school.

monday, their last night in town, kev is going to make his amazing vodka penne. i crushed some tomatoes this fall and added seasonings so kev could make it for them. it's so damn good.

like i said, i can hardly wait!!

quiet mornings

the house is getting going rather quietly this morning. a departure from yesterday. eli is with his mom in bed, getting fed. his dad is getting ready for yet another day at work. his uncle is sleeping still, while i am up making coffee and doing some light cleaning around here. today, i will remember to vacuum the house and wash the dog.

speaking of the dog...oscar has been my favorite dog for a long time, well favorite boy dog (sorry edgar). he is the reason i wanted a dog in the first place.

i remember the first time i met him my sister said, "he's a little wild and he will probably bark at you for quite a while, just ignore him." i walked in saying, "oscar oscar oscar" and he walked up, to me quietly, turned and barked at her. he and i have been friends ever since.

that was a long time ago. the old man is now eleven and a half(!) years old. i can hardly believe it when i watch him tear off through the backyard. but then, if we play too hard, the arthritus in the hips starts to act up and it's more evident. of course, the white mask doesn't make him look any more puppy like, but he still has faked people out.

he is a great dog with the baby. as soon as eli cries, oscar is up and by his side. he listens when we tell him no licking the baby. he moves out of the way when asked. he's just a great dog. i will miss him when we leave town tomorrow. i will miss all of them when we leave.

i miss them already...

smit-ten

yes, i am in love. he's my little bug. he had just been getting fussy after a lovely moment with his mom getting fed in their bed. she was hoping to nap, but alas...she ended up using the time to go through a box of table linens while he and i danced around the room to james brown.

at this point i asked my sister to get into my purse and pull out my camera to capture this shot. i'm glad i did.

he is such a snuggle bug!!! i love him ever so much. my little guy.

if i didn't love my life in portland so much i'd move here in a heartbeat. of course, i was hoping they would move up to where i live...but no such luck. ah well, such is life.

made it

i am sitting in the family room at my sister's house in los angeles. i arrived yesterday after a roughly 16 hour drive. i am thankful for chuck and gage and their willingness to make the trip with me. it was not too bad. i didn't ever feel like i wished it was over until we got into the city and i was driving. man, i can't imagine driving in that kind of traffic all the time.

can i just say, the drive was worth it?!?! i think you can get that from the photo, though.

i made my sister leave the house solo today, while david had to finish some things up at work. (actually, once i proposed that i stay home with the baby and allow her some time to herself, she ran to the store to pick up the last few things for the first dad's day dinner. i was the lucky chef) he was a little fussy in the beginning, but after a few burps and one spit up, he was sleeping soundly. then we had our first photo shoot. i love looking into that mirror and seeing myself holding him. he's everything i knew he would be.

it's been a lovely evening. watching my sister and her husband with their son is a truly wonderful site to behold. they are natural parents. and it was an honor to get to cook something that they both truly enjoyed (even though they had to eat in shifts...).

i can hardly believe i am an aunt. i love him more than i can express in words.

busy bees

mom and dad left this morning. tears came to my eyes this time. not sure why, other than i will really miss them. they are such amazing people.

we had many bottles they brought with them, most with labels removed. we finished the tomato bed and started in on the lettuce/asparagus bed yesterday.

we also started clearing out a bunch of weeds in the back to create a zen garden. a little earlier than planned, but ian (our landscaping neighbor and friend) gave us a bunch of crushed rock and i want to get it out of the driveway. we still need to get the weed barrier as well as more rock. will have to ask ian where he got the stuff he gave us so we can get more to match.

mom, dad...thanks for everything. we love you both so very much! still wish you lived closer...

planted

well, mom and dad are here and we've been busy already...

today we were out pulling weeds, planting veggies (tomatoes, hot peppers, corn, beans, zucchini) and cutting back some plants. we're all hot and dirty. well, dad's not anymore since he was the first in the shower.

we're going to have a light dinner of spinach salad with grilled chicken.

kev should be getting home from work shortly and perhaps we'll get to play a game. and drink wine. we need to make more empties for the rest of the beds.

i think it's my turn to jump in the shower...

they're on their way

just spoke with my parents and they were getting ready to leave sacramento. it is just over 600 miles from there to hear and if we average the speed to be around 55mph, it should have them here near 6:00 tonight. i get off work at 7:00 so i will have to remember to put the key out in its hiding place. of course they do have to stop for meals, so we might all be pulling up at the same time. that wouldn't be so bad, either.

the house is as clean as it is going to get before they get here (although i am really hoping kev makes the bed when he gets up...). their room is all ready with the new sheets on the bed, towels fluffed and waiting, and a drawer in the guest dresser is empty awaiting their things.

i am excited. i just hope that time flies today. who knows, maybe my coworker will offer to stay the last hour if i mention the time they are estimating their arrival.

i do still have to work tomorrow and monday (since they were originally arriving on sunday, monday is not a surprise to them, but saturday...they'll survive, though). but after that i've got a couple of days off (remind me that is why i worked a 6 day work week) and plans to play in the dirt with them! i hope they remembered to pack their gardening gloves and clothing! :)

speaking of the garden, kev had gathered more bottles the other evening. he sunk them all yesterday!! i was honestly very surprised by that. he soaked them, removed the labels, and arranged them in the ground so perfectly! then, then he sent me a picture. i love my husband!

new post

i took my mamasita-in-law to the airport this morning. i told her that next time, she better plan on more than two full days book-ended by travel days. i would have no more of it! i want to see her for longer. she's a pretty fantastic lady.

let's see, a recap of our events:

tuesday i picked her up at the airport. jill came with, which was a surprise for mamasita. the three of us headed to dots for lunch (yum) and then we dropped jill off at home and got the tour. mamasita loved it, with good reason. the two of us headed home and kev arrived shortly after we got in. he brought an unbaked pizza home from work for dinner. that will happen again in the future for sure! quite possibly the best pizza i've ever had. (yes dad, i'll put in the request to him now) but before we had dinner we walked over to north (bar) and had dollar pabst with one of kev's friends from his last job. it was really fun.

on wednesday we went to sweetness bakery, oh mah gawd! and while there we decided to go to the japanese garden, despite the fact it was a little drizzly. the gardens were gorgeous, even when the rain picked up. afterwards we went to mother's bistro for our anniversary lunch. yum! i had a bowl of stuffed potato soup with a salad. then the three of us shared a dessert. from there we headed to ikea, since mamasita is not near one where she lives in arkansas. that evening we went to the stone for our anniversary dinner. it was the perfect low key night.

thursday we got up and decided to go on a light hike in the gorge. such beauty. josie was thrilled to be along for the fun. well, until the skies opened up and dumped on us. big, fat, juicy rain drops. we were all soaked by the time we got back to the car. hungry, too! we grabbed lunch on our way to the house (one of the rare times i will eat fast food, and it was burgerville so not as bad as some). after we all were clean and dry we ran to the grocery store as well as target and tuesday morning. we got things so i could make lasagna, which turned out really good.

this morning we just got up and ate a light breakfast at the house before having to get her off to the airport. i am sad she's not here tonight. i missed her the moment i woke up this morning.

love you mamasita! i'm serious about next time lady!!

in a few hours

i got an email this morning from my mother-in-law (let's call her mamasita). it was two lines...

"on plane. see you soon."

i can hardly wait until 11:20 for that is when i will be standing in the airport waiting for one of the most amazing women i've ever met. she jokes that "what woman would want her mother-in-law visiting during their anniversary?" well, without her, i wouldn't be having an anniversary. i mean, she did give birth to kevin...

mamasita, this woman wants you visiting for her anniversary! i can't imagine a better gift!

eli

my nephew has entered the world!

6:10 pm on tuesday the 28th of april

weighing in at 8 lbs, 2 oz and 20" in length

i've YET to see pictures...it's killing me!

the gifts

my sister's baby shower was this afternoon. i had spoken with her, as well as two of her friends, about being on the phone while she opened the gifts i'd sent to her (sadly, with her living in the la area and me in portland...yeah, couldn't make it).

she put me on speaker phone (the only time in my life i have ever actually been happy to be on speaker) and i got to hear everyone's reactions. i could hear the ripping of paper, the oohing and ahhing (which was the perfect amount), and the laughter. it was the best thing that i could have asked for today.

the bib and the green jacket she'd already seen (i showed her when they were here for thanksgiving...i craved seeing her reaction). the blanket, she had no clue, but her response was also perfect (and i could feel the energy over the phone).

now that she's seen them, i can share with you all...

happy holidays

Happy Holidays from our family to yours!

This year has been an amazing one. We celebrated being in our wonderful new house a whole year! We planted our first garden ever and were rather successful. We traveled a bit to see family and friends. We renovated the kitchen. We had family and friends travel to see us.

Throughout this year our family and friends (who face it, are our family) have shown us love and support in many ways. We appreciate and love every single one of you. Thank you from the bottoms of our hearts.

We hope that this holiday season finds you surrounded by loved ones, sharing the memories of the year gone by, and making new ones for the year to come.

Now can someone answer this question: what is egg nog and why do people think it tastes good?

never thought i'd say it...

But thank goodness for KU football. :) Currently I am sitting at work while my family is at home watching KU football (KU/MU). I had someone call in sick. The other manager is going to be in shortly, to let me go home to the visiting family. After I get home I am going to see what the game plan is that my family came up with for dinner. The original idea was to go to the store and make turkey broth so we could make soup tonight for dinner in the slow cooker. That has now been a wash, since they've not gone and have instead settled down with the foolsball. I just spoke with Kevin and he said Dad has two ideas. We'll see what those are when I get home in a couple of hours.

I'm glad they can entertain themselves (with the help of KU football).

So yes, thankful still.

giving thanks

We are ready. The silver is ready. The dog is ready (to lay under the table and pick up anything that gets dropped).

The food is almost ready. The house smells wonderful. The desserts are waiting in the wings.

I am thankful for family who could join us. I am thankful for family I married into. I am thankful for my little family I get to live with here, the animals and Kevin.

I am thankful that the tests run for my sister's baby all came back with the results for which we hoped.

Remember to give thanks for all you do have in life.

happy birthday bay-bee

Today is your 34th birthday. Our 12th birthday of yours that we've celebrated together. 12 years. I have two responses to that amount of time.

1. Has it already been 12 years?

2. Has it only been 12 years?

It's kind of a tie.

Thank you for being the person you are. Kind, generous, loving. Funny, musical, interesting. You are my husband. But more than that you are my best friend. I am the luckiest girl in the world.

boy

My sister and her husband found out they are having a boy. 98% chance of it. Ever since I found out about them being pregnant, I've referred to the baby as him. Never waiving. I love little girls, don't get me wrong, but I knew she was going to have a boy.

She called me yesterday and left me a voice mail saying I am going to have a nephew. My heart sang. All I could think of was all the wonderful things I could knit for him. I've already got a jacket done in a kiwi green that is going to be adorable. I have a bib in a pale sky blue and a hat that is deep peacock blue both on the needles. The *Baby Yoda Sweater will be perfect, too. Oh Mah Gawd! I'm going to swoon. :)

(*sorry for no link, the one i have doesn't work anymore)

I did ask about names and am thankful to hear they are keeping that to themselves. I've heard horror stories of parents, family and friends saying things like, "Oh you can't name him *Jub Jub because I once dated an Jub Jub and it was..." or "Jub Jub, that's a dumb name...where'd you hear of Jub Jub?" or "Jub Jub was OUR baby name you..." You get the picture.

*For the record, I think Jub Jub would be a great name. ;)

shhh! i'm trying to talk here

I have had people tell me often, throughout my life, that I talk a lot. It finally has hit the time where I've heard it enough to want to say something snarky and rude back (because yes, I think people are being rude when they make that observation and feel the need to comment on it). I mean, honestly, do they not think I hear myself speak?

So now, I will probably be silent for a few more days because my in-laws from Chicago are in town. They arrived yesterday and leave on Thursday. We're going to get fabulous baked goods this morning and possibly hang a chandelier in our almost completed kitchen.