10 on the 10th @ 10pm :D

I got this idea from my blogging-friend Rosey.

Here's my list of 10 -with 2 hours to spare!

10 things that put a smile in my heart -without fail

a. listening to my daughters' laughter

b. thinking about the Penguins winning the Stanley Cup

c. seeing that man jogging in the morning -he looks like I imagine a professor from the 70's might look. He wears what looks like dark blue Dockers, & a button up long sleeve shirt & a knit pullover vest & running shoes. & he wears silver wire rim glasses & his hair is kind of like a graying Gabe Kaplan style (Welcome Back, Kotter)

d. seeing either or both of the two sets of older couples on our block going to or coming home from morning mass -every day

e. good graffiti (not tagging)

f. talking/chatting/hanging out with girl friends

g. birdsong in the morning

h. snowboarding

i. creating/crafting

j. interesting architecture


Plain & simple, no pics to post today. And not exhaustive: next month might be another list :)

spilling her heart on the page

deciphered, for your reading ease:

"Your heart is the trophy!
You are the true love.
We spend the time together.
You are like a snowman.
You are like a diamond, red or pink.
You always smile.
You are like a silver button.
You fill my heart.
You are joy."

And I melted.... Have I told you lately how much I love my kids?!

for Nikki

randomness

new wheels for Fi: what is old is new again -or I was having 80's flashbacks


NatGeo in our laundry room: the spider versus the millipede thingy. I have never actually seen a spider wrapping up it's dinner in a web, à la Charlotte; it was fascinating. The spider was working it's little bee-hind off & the meal was doing it's best to wriggle away. I think the dinner got away: When I looked a couple hours later, the show was over & the entire web was gone...and a few days later I saw said escapee crawling across the floor.


This was how we chose to entertain the girls one night while waiting 45mins for our food to be served at an Ethiopian restaurant. Maddie was taking pictures with her phone, Fi was playing sudoku on Garrett's phone, Lib played chess on mine. Sign 'o the times?


Looky what our school got over the summer: Denver's first public elementary school authorized by the International Baccalaureate to offer the PYP programme!! Sweet!!


late one Saturday morning a few weeks ago, we heard fire engines -no big deal. Lib asked if it was on t.v. or outside, I said outside & then the sirens got louder & closer. Yep, 2 of the these bad boys and a rescue truck across the street from our house. Exciting & good eye candy ;P Thankfully it wasn't a serious fire!

since we're expecting snow

here are the last vestiges of summer 2009

monkey girl rigged up a jump rope to the monkey bar








Lib did not find the jump rope swing to be fun -or comfortable

a few more memories

the reason I started the list of appealing-to-me-things, & then I forgot to post them:

the sound of a flash bulb going off, you know that high pitched sound that I can't accurately describe right now but it kind of starts lower in pitch & slowly, but not so slowly, whines higher until it "pops"

the way those old Kodak flash cubes looked after they were spent

the way a wiggly tooth used to make my scalp tingle -I'm guessing it was neurons

this 'n that

a few things that I find appealing:

that fresh out of the wrapper, new sponge wetness

stepping on sand near the edge of the water at low tide & the look of the sand when my weight displaces the water immediately surrounding my foot

katydids & praying mantises & stick bugs

dental hygienist appointments

listening to the littles carry on conversations

rediscovering favorite music from my childhood that I had forgotten about in the chaos of everyday life

imagining everything I drive past turning into cartoon or mosaic

imagining brilliant color where there is none

the sound of a breeze in the woods

the pinkish "color" of gasoline seen through the little window in the hose while it's being pumped from tanker to in-ground tank

the sound of gas station tank lids being lifted & dropped on the pavement for the tanks to be "sticked" late at night/early in the morning

the cloud of mud & muck & algae that dissipates when river rocks are moved looking for crawfish
and the smell that goes with it. And the feel of the teeniest fish biting on my ankles in the process.

finding the smallest of small seashells -amazing that something soooooooo tiny lives in an expansive ocean

wooden matches

memories of smells:
-the gas smell from old time kitchen stovetops that had to be lit with said wooden matches
-my mom's old lily of the valley perfume
-school paste & tempera paints
-that rosin-y smell in gym class
-my dad's old Aqua Velva
-Blue Jeans cologne from the 70's
-wet pine needles on the forest floor
-axle grease, motor oil, gasoline vapors
-fresh cut hay
-waking to Sunday morning breakfast cooking in my mom's kitchen
-fresh mimeographed paper -and it's accompanying warmth

food stuffs

first up: we had a blast making delicious & nutritious (and easy!) gnocchi. They turned out okay, but I'll make some adjustments to the recipe for next time. I think I'll try boiling the potatoes in the skins instead of baking. And maybe use more egg and more flour and maybe some ricotta.


Lib's job was to cut the dough into individual dumplings


Fiona's job was putting the divots in each dumpling (the better to hold the sauce)


don't they look good -even before boiling?


after boiling


Fi chose to test the divots & decorated her plate before eating. Presentation counts for something, right?


Dinner at my good friend Kelly's house. Both recipes came from the Barefoot Contessa. So delicious!


I was hungry for matzo ball soup, well before fall. Homemade stock, natch-what else to do with the leftovers from beer can chicken? I took my inspiration & a few tips from this website. MMMMMM comfort food!


the banana bread recipe that I've been using for so long that I don't need to refer to it anymore. This time I improvised a bit & used peanut butter for the fat instead of vegetable shortening. It was tasty without being overwhelming. Bonus: peanut butter has less fat than shortening -& it's a healthy fat too! I also used white chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet or milk chocolate. I will definitely try this again.

two finished projects

I'll post details later...I just wanted to get the pics up since I haven't been here for awhile -& now you know why :)

The first hat is called Spring Beret. I think I'll do another one but in a different color -and probably a different yarn. This is in Lily Peaches & Cream cotton. I'm afraid that it'll shrink like the dishcloths I've knit...and then I'd have an American Girl Doll sized hat for Fiona's Julie ;P







This one is called Foliage. I had seen the pattern last year some time, then while I was still working at JoAnn's I saw this yarn that was part of a four skein kit to make a felted purse. I thought it would be perfect for the Foliage hat. And then the kit went on clearance for $7.00 (plus discount!)!! And voila! A handmade christmas present from me for Olivia (hence Fiona is modeling)

kids these days

generally don't appreciate their roots. And why, oh why, can't we have decent, innovative music here & now in the 2000's??? Must I ever more listen to "classic" rock? *sigh*