laeroport

Friday nights are too busy to blog

We've had a busy week at chez laeroport.  Science fair preparations, the science fair, Cub Scout pack meeting, delivering Cub Scout popcorn, a Girl Scout meeting that I planned and prepared, organizing extra cookie pick ups, selling Girl Scout cookies in our neighborhood, collecting troop cookie money to deposit, planning a birthday party, and celebrating the school's 50th birthday.  It's been busy.  And tomorrow we have a pancake feed, a hike, and an out of town guest.  I'd better clean up a bit.

But we only had half a day of school today.  Eliot went to play with his friend who is homeschooling this year while Aidin and I snuck off to the donut shop for a snack and a round of Scrabble.  Yes, they have board games and a piano and bikes to rent at the new donut shop, as if the donuts were not enough of a draw.  You understand why it is our favorite place in town.

(My dad's name is Larry.  He likes peanut butter and jelly.  Perfect.)

And Scrabble is now the hot item at chez laeroport.  Target had Scrabble this week for $10, so while I was there scoping out Christmas and birthday gifts I picked it up.*  Since Wednesday afternoon we've played at least four rounds with the kids, not keeping score, just trying to make words.  And Tim and I have played two abbreviated games between trips to school to volunteer.  He smoked me both times.  ::grumble grumble::  Who me, a sore loser?  Pfft! ::grumble grumble::

Happy Friday - or if it is already tomorrow by the time you read this - Happy Saturday!  I'll be back tomorrow with (fingers crossed) some nice pictures of the Flint Hills in autumn.

* I picked Scrabble over Banagrams because a.) I'm cheap that way and 2.) I think the board will help keep us from getting CRAZY!

along the rocky road

We celebrated my birthday with my family last night.  I'm so lucky to have a Mom that still cooks my favorites for my birthday - this year, chicken enchiladas - and still makes me the same birthday cake that she's made me every year since I was eighteen.  The years that I lived in India, she sent the ingredients.

As much as I love the cake, what I really love is the time with my family, sitting around the table laughing.  And the drive there is pretty sweet too.

(drive by shot between St. Mary's and Rossville.)

We came home to no internet or phone last night, but it is back up and running today - fingers crossed.  Happy Monday.

hello, February

January ended and February began the same way.

Snow days,

 
embroidery,

 
crochet,

 
baking,

and more movies than I care to admit.  There was also a big kitchen clean-up and cracking the whip over Aidin's science fair project. 

 
I have several things that I have wanted to blog about, but putting my thoughts together with the appropriate photos is beyond me at the moment.  But soon.  I have some alterations and a blingy cowl and a bit of menu planning to share.

Ciao for now, friends!  Stay warm.

still celebrating

We've had Thanksgiving here with both sets of parents and my brother's family on Thursday and today at the farm with my far flung cousins.  Tomorrow is the celebration with Tim's extended family.  Excuse me while I have some more pie.

 

baking

I don't know what it is about Thanksgiving, but I can never start baking pies until late on Wednesday night.  The pecan is finally in the oven.  I do love my pecan pie recipe  (thanks, Martha) but dang, it costs a fortune to make.

 

I'm about to start on Kay Jones Ray's apple crisp from the 1988 Pleasant Hill United Methodist Church cookbook.  It is dead easy, which is good, because it is already 11:35 p.m.  Bob Parlocha is the only one still up to keep me company.

 
I really planned on baking more this afternoon, but got sidetracked with a double batch of what we will now refer to in this house as Pink Pumpkin cookies named for my friend Miss Chris of Pink Picket Fence.   It was not the plan to bake a double batch, but the first one disappeared as soon as I took it out of the oven.  That good.  I sprinkled the first batch with pecan pieces.  The second batch I added mini chocolate chips and pressed a chocolate chunk into the tops. 

Tomorrow there will be rolls and and brussel sprouts and trying to recreate Grandma Jean's coleslaw.  What are you making and baking for the holiday?

new year, new challenges

Several new challenges are giving me joy in this new year, all of which have little homes of their own on flickr.

After watching several friends document their days last year, I decided to do a 365 challenge, this year.  I'm just doing it for myself, not posting to a pool, but I'm already liking the results.

 

I'm also back to looking at things color by color.  After making the year of color challenge my weekly habit for three years, I have missed it since year three ended in July.  I guess Amy did too, because she's revived it for the new year.  Feel free to play along.  Last week was white + white.

 
(Yes, that is a tooth.)

This week is white + orange.

 

And once again, for the fourth year, I'm sewing along with Finny & Kelli.  With one recipe and one pattern a month, I am ready to eat well and bust some stash.

I'm nothing of not a joiner. {this may explain why I've been a happy camper Girl Scout for - ahem - 35 years.  and - ahem - if you're local and need some cookies, I can hook you up}

What are you joining this year?

November wrap up

Did you see these?  I love stamps.

 

Wednesday was our final feast at our beloved Montessori school.  The kids spent the entire month of November cooking and it was a joyous occasion to witness their hard work and pride in a job well done.

 

We also had a fantastic Thanksgiving at home this year with 21? people - both our families - sharing the day.  And after so many years of hosting, I think we've finally got it figured out.  Most things came together on time or ahead of time, and I was certainly less frazzled.  My mom came up Wednesday afternoon and baked pies with me - that was fun.  And my camera stayed tucked away for the entire time.  Yay for living in the moment!

 
 
We had two parties on Saturday, so now I've seen a good portion of the cousins on both sides of the family.

On the downside, my grandma* fell while out in her yard on Friday.  It was a beautiful day and she was tired of doing housework so she thought she'd pick up sticks in the yard.  The result was an arm/shoulder break in four places.  She had shoulder replacement surgery yesterday and seems to be doing just fine.  She's a tough old broad, but keep her in your thoughts, won't you, please?

I'll catch you up on advent tomorrow.  Til then, enjoy.

* She's 94, but you didn't hear that from me. ;)

42 and feelin' fine

Wow!  What a great birthday!  Thank you all for the messages here and on facebook and texted to my phone.  I have some great friends.

And my family!  Let's not forget them!  My husband bought me a tiny laptop!  Woot! My children created and performed a puppet show for me!  I wish I had videoed it.  They treated me sweetly all day.  My mom made my favorite cake, the one she has made for me every birthday (except those years I spent in India) since I was 18.  She quietly delivered it from Topeka to my kitchen table.  (That cake is the BEST breakfast ever.)

And more cake! My dear friend and co-worker, Suzanne baked me a chocolate/raspberry cake to follow lunch at the office.  She also brought cini-minis from Munchers for breakfast.  Oy.  It is a good thing she is the person I walk 9 miles a week with, because I'll need to walk off all those calories. :)

And then there is the handmade gift that made my toes curl.  My very talented friend, Keela Patterson Lam created some wonderful jewelry for me, using Molly's buttons as a centerpiece.   I told her it is exactly what I would want without even knowing I wanted it.  She knows me well.  And I am blown away.

 
  
Also blowing me away - the new Norah Jones CD.  It isn't out until the 17th, but thanks to my friend Dan (of the Vertigo tea towel) I have been listening to it via NPR.  As if I needed another reason to love NPR. *

And this weather.  It is 2:00 and 74 degrees.  Yesterday was equally glorious, so thanks, Mother Nature.

Life doesn't slow down, birthday or no.  Eliot has a birthday party to attend tonight, Aidin and I have a baby shower tomorrow, she has a slumber party on Saturday night and Sunday I'm celebrating with my family - my birthday and my niece Clare's.  And next weekend we have a dear friend gettin' hitched.

Yep, busy.  But I wouldn't have it any other way!  Have a great weekend!  I'm off to the pool with the Brownies......

________________

* Best NPR moment this week: after doing a story on Sarah Palin's Going Rogue and the sarcastic Going Rouge that will come out the same day, NPR's musical segue: Barracuda.  I love it.

All my ideas come from the blogosphere

Here are a few things I've made this week to help us celebrate this favorite of holidays.  All from the brilliant minds of the blogosphere.

Halloween Correspondence:

 
In playing along with Kelli & Finny's CRAFT:along for this month, I'm sending Halloween notes to the Great-grandparents.  Okay, they are computer-made, not entirely homemade, but let's not be sticklers. :)

For teachers:

That Cindy  has so many fantastic ideas.  I stole this idea directly from her.  I was hoping I could get two bats per sheet of construction paper, but they are just *that* much too big.  I only had four sheets of black, so Aidin's teachers will get orange bats.  That's called going with the flow.

And for Aidin's class party, which is a FALL party, not a HALLOWEEN party, despite the fact that they get to wear their costumes and parade around the school (don't get me started on the mixed messages that is sending):

Owl cupcakes.  Aren't they soooooo cute?  They would be cuter if I could take a decent photo in my kitchen at 10:30 at night.

So for us, today: class party.  Tomorrow: trick or treating.  Sunday: Diwali party.  And no football games.  I'm putting my party shoes on now and not taking them off until Monday!

Happy Halloween!

I'm here.... really

Wow!  It has been a week!

For starters, last Friday night was our school carnival.  I usually run an activity, but this year Tim was working and my parents were at the Balloon Fiesta, so I got to wander around with the kids.

I took Friday off to make my cakes:

 

Two cakes out of one strawberry cake mix and can of frosting.  Rather economical.  The fish cake was baked in a jello-o mold that we inherited from Tim's Grandma 10 years ago.  She'd never used it and neither had we.  The square cake was  covered with starbursts that I cut into star shapes - an idea I stole from Kirsten.

Despite the three of us doing the cake walk at nearly a dozen times, none of us won a cake.

 

Hey, ho.  I tried to calm my sweet tooth on Saturday by taking this to a potluck. Darn thing wouldn't come out of the pan.  It tasted good, even if it didn't look all Martha wonderful.

Since Saturday I've been trying to get creative with self-portraits - it is time once again for our 7 Days run.  I love that group.  What a friendly bunch.

And now it is Friday again.  I'm leaving shortly for Aidin's school walk-a-thon fundraiser.  I'm looking forward to dinner out tonight with my college roommate and a relatively relaxed weekend for the kids and me.  I hope you have fun things in store as well.

Cheers!