Foray Into Boston

This weekend, we went to see Kendra in Boston and check out the New England Aquarium. It was great to see K again and meet her dog Ripley and cats, Eli and Lottie. As you might imagine the cats stayed mostly hidden and Ripley stole the show. After riding the train into downtown, Nora decided that living with Kendra and Ripley might be preferable to staying with her boring parents who just open boxes all day and won't get her a dog.

We had a wonderful time exploring Jamaica Plain (Kendra's neighborhood), riding the train, learning about the Big Dig, tramping around Faneiul Hall, and most of all the aquarium. Nora's favorite part was the sharks and my favorite part was the hands-on tidal pool area where we could touch the starfish and sea urchins.




Thanks Kendra!

Travels

I've been traveling so much this spring (and it doesn't seem to let up this summer) that the blog has really suffered. Maybe when we get settled in MA, it will become a priority again. Well, I'm pretty sure it will, since some of you actually seem to care what we do with ourselves. Anyway, we have been on the road this past week, visiting family and friends in AR. Unfortunately, while we took many photos of family, we somehow managed to forget to pull out the camera while catching up with old friends, something I regret. I am also regretting the number of times we've past through this state over the past few years and did not make an attempt to visit so many of you who are here year round. One of the many things I love about Facebook is that it's given me the opportunity to reconnect with old friends and better keep up with those that we've remained in touch with over the years. And it made it possible to actually see IRL several of you during this trip. Despite poor planning we managed to catch up with Bob & Sarah, Cindy and Eric, Jennifer & Ilya, and Trent & Sarah Beth and their respective families as well as Elise and Neil. Jason, Nora and I had a wonderful time seeing you all again! Here's a few pics from the first half of our journey:






On the way home, we're hoping to squeeze in a quick visit to the Ozark Folk Center - another crying shame that we haven't made it there in all these years of going back and forth.

Memphis Trip

Jason had a conference in Memphis last weekend and so Nora and I went along and met Jason's parents for a visit. It was a beautiful weekend. We hit the Memphis Zoo, Beale Street, the Bass Pro shop, the Riverfront and Central Bar-B-Que. Here's some photos of the trip:

A Few Days In the Frozen North

I had some extra vacation days saved up and so after Jason's final final and before Nora's birthday, we took a quick run up to Chicago to check out the Christmas Market, Santa at Macy's and a few sights. We had a great time, although Nora greatly preferred the luxurious Best Western with it's indoor pool to doing anything else in town. I found it amazing that we could find a hotel room in Chicago the week before Christmas cheaper than a cabin in the Carbondale vicinity but I'm glad we did because we had a great time. It was nice to get away for a few days before the craziness of a combined birthday/holiday set in.



Writing a letter to Santa at Macys.

In line to see Santa at Macys (she asked for gingerbread and candy).


Freezing at the Christmas market
Filling up the suitcase so we can't pack to go home.

My World Is Changing

I've been hearing about Richard Louv's Last Child in the Woods for a while now, and I finally got around to buying it this summer when we were in Arkansas. But it wasn't until I committed to go to a book discussion about it for work that i finally got around to reading it. I cracked the book yesterday and I'm almost finished - unheard of for me and non-fiction, which usually takes me weeks to finish - and now I can't stop talking about it. This book broke something open in me, and now I'm so emotional about it, I'm a mess, which is sort of a problem since I have to speak about it rationally tomorrow. Anyway to organize my thoughts, this is why I like it:

1. Louv could have gone a completely different way with the tone of this book, when I first started reading, I immediately bristled wondering if I was going to feel like a miserable parent for not taking Nora backwoods camping at the age of two. But he didn't. Yes, he clearly does stuff like this with his kids, but really what he's advocating is for parents to ensure that kids get out of the house and into a natural setting everyday. This could mean trips to the park, but it can also mean growing a seed in a dixie cup or watching the birds land on the railing. In one of the best passages of the book, Louv reassures us that making the reconnection is possible, that it doesn't have to be a giant task, and he gives us permission to have fun and to learn things too:

" But before I take you on this hike, let me say something about the pressures that parents endure. Simply put, many of us must overcome the belief that something isn't worth doing with our kids unless we do it right. If getting our kids out into nature is a search for perfection, or is one more chore, then the belief in perfection and the chore defeats the joy. It's a good thing to learn more about nature in order to share this knowledge with children; it's even better if the adult and child learn about nature together. And it's a lot more fun."

2. He makes a really strong case for our need for Nature for a. mental health b. cognitive learning c. physical health d. the creative process. Our disconnect from nature is really messing us up on all four of these fronts and ruining the earth for everything else on top of it. Really that's it in a nutshell, but this book is so much more.

3. This book should be required reading for parents, educators and policy makers for Chapter 8 - the section on ADHD and the benefits of being in nature to combat it- alone. If you don't read any other part of this book, read that chapter, it is incredibly powerful.

4. He puts the responsibility for making our re-connection to nature on a multiple shoulders (well actually everyone) but he doesn't hang parents or teachers out to dry by saying its all their fault or that they are the ones who can fix this. He takes on universities, environmental groups, government, corporations,educators, parents and everyday folks and gives extremely sound advice about how to make this work. i.e.: this book doesn't just tell you there's this huge society wide problem that is destroying us, but it also gives ideas on how to fix it and points to places where folks are doing it right. Louv also cites lots of research to back up his claims but he also tells us where no one is doing any research, or not enough research, or the research is faulty to support his arguments to encourage more work to be done.

5. This book is readable. It doesn't overwhelm you with statistics (although there are plenty), it doesn't feel like you are being lectured, it's well set up and most of all it is extremely interesting, not just for parents and not just for educators and not just for green folks (although I am all three of those).

So, please check the book out. You can borrow it from me or buy your own copy or go to the library. Whatever it takes. If you want the readers condensed version check out the link to the Orion magazine article he wrote (it's where you will go if you click on his name above). Maybe you won't have the epiphany-revealing, earth-shattering, emotional reaction to it that I have, but maybe you'll like it anyway and maybe it will convince you to go take a walk in the woods. I hope so.

Double the Grandparents, Double the Fun

From the Arkansas Trip:


Nora's first fish

Under the waterfall at Garvin Gardens

On the boat
Driving the boat

Where Am I?

This month has been so absolutely crazy, as evidenced by my lack of posts all month. I was in East Prairie just after the 4th for a couple of days, then I had a Saturday training, then I went to DC for a conference/mandatory meeting and now we're all in Arkansas. DC was wonderful, when I wasn't in the hotel (which was terrifically located at 13 and Penn. Ave). In spare moments I checked out the Library of Congress, the National History Museum, the American History Museum and the Smithsonian Castle as well as Union Station, Capitol Hill, an evening cruise to Alexandria, VA, and oh yeah, a bunch of really boring meetings. I got back Friday night and then Saturday we were on the road again, my parents in tandem, visiting Jason's parents and his grandmother (mom and dad missed out on our side trip to Magnolia), and now we are at Queen Willhemina State Park literally in the clouds. This is Arkansas' second highest peak and it's been raining for days so we have zero visibility, but it's sort of cool to be all out in what seems like fog, but is actually the cloud cover. Mom and Dad are finding it rather trying up here, but right now, I'm sort of just relived to be here, since we had a pretty wet and long drive from Magnolia this afternoon (we drove down there this morning and then turned around and drove up here this afternoon) and this on top of three days with the in-laws. I might find it a bit boring by tomorrow though if it never clears off. While there is no cell phone coverage up here and the lightening earlier today cut out the land phones, it's sort of amazing that we have wireless up here, but we do. Unfortunately, we couldn't find the camera cable when we packed though, so I won't have any pictures until we get back in a couple of days. Hope we don't fall off the mountain!

In other news, Nora out-fished both of her grandfathers by hauling in 4 bream and they came up with zilch. They should use the Barbie fishing rod (yes, Nora has a Barbie fishing rod), I've learned just how reliant and simultaneously incapable of using cell phones my parents are (If you called either of them today, they can't call you back, but they sure are spending a lot of time talking about how they want to), and Jason is watching the MLS all-star team play Everton. This is the happiest he's been all trip. Nora's done a good job managing all of her relatives and putting up with a lot of car seat time. I broke down and added to her my pretty pony collection and while I think keeping up with the miniature hairbrush will be tiresome, it was sort of worth the time she spent extolling it's greatness instead of screaming her head off while driving through some heavy rainstorms.

Trip Pictures

A few sights from Texas:


Texas was really dry - no bluebonnets but this cactus was nice.


Jason's grandmother at the old tree

Nora and I with Bonnie

A little bit unhappy about waking up, but bluebonnets make it better.

Fire! In Goliad.

Nora and I on the beach

Home Again, Home Again

We're home, exhausted and ready to stay put for awhile, but home. I finished out our final days of the trip fighting a stomach bug (either food poisoning or a stronger version of Nora's ick) and we did a marathon drive from Port Aransas to Hot Springs - 13 hours in the car straight, including a very, very, very long haul through Houston at rush hour. Nora did very well, and Jason and I survived, although we're still recovering. We spent the two nights with Jason's parents, so they got a good look at Nora and then we headed home on Sunday.

One of the things that really made itself clear in my mind after this trip is how little bragging rights Texas really has. Basically, anything good that state has managed to hold on to is due to the work of a bunch of little old ladies, the Daughters of the Republic of Texas (both Kathy and Grant are members). While I might not agree with them on everything, I am happy that they are working on preserving whatever they can get their hands on. Everything else, I think the state would be happy to sell off to developers. And they are worse than the city of STL when it comes to signage. I mean, really, I know your a big state, but would it kill you to tell us how far away it is to the next BIG city? There are only signs showing what's 20 miles down the road. When you are traveling for 10 hours in Texas you sort of want to know how far away you are from Houston, Dallas, Austen, San Antonio and Corpus, not necessarily all of them, just the major city that is on the highway you are traveling on - really, would it kill you to tell us? Oh and side of the road picnic areas suck too. At least you have some plaques.

So listen up Arkansas, I don't want to hear anymore of your sad sack stories about your inferiority complex with your big neighbor Texas. Arkansas can run rings around Texas and every other neighboring state (as well as many others) in the state park arena. While Illinois is shutting down state parks, you are opening them! Building new ones! Arkansas has it goin' on. Texas, not so much - the state park we visited on Mustang Island (8$ entry fee) was sad, sad, sad. Facilities from the 60's, falling down and closed up, no brochures, basically, this state's facilities look like they haven't had an update since the Johnson administration (same goes for those visitors centers), and given that they've had two presidents since then to funnel some money back to them, this is pathetic.

Okay, I'm done with that rant. Bye now.

Notes From The Trip

We're on day 6 of our trip to South Texas and we've learned a few things along the way. 

1. Portable DVD players are a wonderful invention. 

2. One of the most unpleasant things in the world is waking up because a toddler is vomiting on you in a hotel room.  And we were so excited about that king size bed....

3.  The only thing worse about waking up with a toddler vomiting on you at 4 am, is when she continues to vomit throughout the morning,  We felt so bad for her, and it really sucks when you can't make it go away so she'll feel better. 

4.  While considerably less worse than the above, dealing with an explosive diaper blow out in a hot, dirty truck stop parking lot is pretty bad too.  Ganado, you are not my favorite Texas town.  Also bad is calling your friend from the night before and letting him know that you've exposed him to a nasty stomach bug.  Sorry, Bob. 

5.  Despite the unpleasantness above, the look on Grant's face when we finally arrived made it all worth it.  We all had a great time on the ranch, and Nora got to ride in the truck without a carseat, call the cows, and chase the dog, Bonnie, all over.  

6.  Rattlesnakes are really freaking big and really freaking scary.  I'm still freaking out that Nora was within yards of one.

6 a.  We really need to teach Nora some sense of proportion - rattlesnakes are really freaking big and really freaking scary and butterflies are not. 

7.  Texas history can be very interesting and it's worth driving down here to check out the historic sites even if you don't have family here.  Be sure to make a stop in Goliad for the presidio and mission. 

8.  South Texas really needs some rain.  It hasn't rained since August, and then it wasn't much.  When we were taking off it started to rain, but I'm not sure that it kept doing it. 

9.  One of the best things in the whole world is standing on the shore, letting the waves crash into you while a 3 year old giggles and giggles and giggles.  We might have been hungry and sleepy, but really, isn't this what what we came to the beach for?  It's pretty awesome.  

I'm really glad we got that in yesterday, because today is much cooler (okay it's the 70's instead of 84 degrees), overcast and rainy.  While we'll probably go back to the beach today (Nora will be really sad if we don't) I don't think we'll be getting into the water.  Also on the agenda today are the aquariums at the University of Texas Marine Science Institute.  We leave tomorrow morning to start the three day journey back home, although I'm wondering how feasible it is to do it in two days.  Wish us luck on the journey home!

Yearning To Go Anywhere

I've been making all sorts of travel arrangements lately, unfortunately, none of them are for me. Jason is off to Chicago next weekend for the Central APA and then to New York the following weekend, for the BIG sub-conference which is held in the middle of the Economists doing their thing. He's taking the train to Chicago and staying in nicer hotels cheaply thanks to last minute trips. While I know he won't be doing all sorts of touristy wonderful things (instead he'll be sitting inside hotel meeting rooms talking to others of his ilk), and it's north and therefore probably miserable weather anyway, I'm still consumed with jealousy because he is going and I am staying. The only thing on my agenda is a conference at the lake in April (I hate going to Tan Tar A) and possibly the TESOL convention in Devner(which is both up in the air and work). Jason's spring break is the second week of March and while we keep toying with going somewhere, it doesn't seem to be happening. And frankly, multiple days in the car with a three year old who is still potty learning doesn't seem really relaxing. I really need a healthy dose of sunshine right now. Can someone invent one of those easy transporter things and send the three of us to the beach?

Molasses

The Solstice, Nora's birthday, Christmas and New Years has come and gone. I've been on vacation and while I've been having a good time, I don't feel like I've really gotten anything accomplished. Family was visited, cookies made, presents wrapped, there was good cheer. I read and enjoyed both of the Sarah Vowell books I gave my father (Assassination Vacation and The Wordy Shipmates). But I'm due back at work on Monday and I still haven't unpacked anything since we moved in, other than the basics we took out that first week. There's people I should have called, thank you notes I should have written, projects I wanted to at least begin, and now its the new year, and while that should hold promise, all it really seems to hold is the prospect of time moving ever more swiftly.

Old Home Weekend

Our first trip without Nora was really quite fabulous. Although leaving was difficult. I tried really hard not to cry, and failed miserably. But I cheered up on the drive down. The weather was lovely, although it was much more humid in AR in in STL. We made it in good time even though we stopped at the Dixie Cafe for our obligatory sides of veggies and giant glasses of diet coke.

in front of the Dixie Cafe

When we arrived, Jason and I felt like visiting dignitaries at Hendrix. They put us up in the visiting professors apartment (Thanks Sarah!), he got an honorarium, free meals in the cafeteria (possibly the only place on Hendrix that is still recognizable from our era), and there was a lovely reception after the reading of the play and Q&A with Bob and Jason.

Posters!
The orange post-it is a parental advisory for adult content and language warning

The reading of the play was really fun. Thrillingly, I got to sit between the director and the playwright and while there was at least one point when we were the only ones laughing our heads off, for the most part, the rest of the audience seemed to think it was funny too. It was really something to hear the actors reading the words Jason wrote although sort of disconcerting too. Many of you are familiar with aspects of this play - Jason had been thinking about it since we were at Hendrix, and while it changed and improved over time, there are still elements that are recognizable from conversations we've had. But seeing it up there, with people who traveled miles and put a lot of time into making it happen, made it a really amazing experience. When I read it all the way through for the first time last week, I really liked it, but I wasn't sure if I liked it because I love Jason and I know Jason, and while I know people think he's funny, I hoped that the other parts of the play would come through too. I think that they did ultimately and while I know Jason wants to make some changes, I don't think that much really needs to be changed because it works. When the audience is laughing so hard that they are missing the next joke, that's a good thing right? Crowning it all was the Q& A with Jason and Bob fielding questions about the play from the audience. I could tell Jason was having the time of his life and that it was made even sweeter by Bob's and Sarah's participation in project.

Bob and Jason in Q & A

Cast, Director and Playwright

center. After sleeping in the next morning we checked out the campus. I think the thing that surprised me the most, was that despite that there is a new building every 20 feet, it still feels like home. I'll try to post pictures of how things have changed, but for those of you who haven't kept up, there is of course the new library, constructed just after we graduated, but also there are 2 new science buildings (Buhler and Reynolds still exist, the new ones are behind Reynolds and the other has taken the place of the former library), a new recreation center, including new sports fields and a pool with a retractable roof ( this is across the street from Couch in the East Hall/Mabee Center/Track area), several new dorms/residential housing (in the former soccer field behind Couch), the new Murphy Building (where Sarah works and where we were housed - it sits between Hulan/Campus Center and Reynolds - now called Axiom), and a new student and technology center is being built as in the former location of Grove. They were breaking ground on the Hendrix Village across the street, which will be retail and apartments serving both the community and the campus. Oh and they spruced up the Campus Center several years ago, but I think it and the cafeteria will soon be relocated into the new Student and Technology building. With the exception of East Hall/Mabee Center and the old Library, all of the other building are still standing and in use. Surprisingly some of them look much more attractive now - Buhler has been covered in vines and is actually quite fetching. There has also been a great deal of landscaping done with new gardens and a labyrinth out behind Trieschmann (I think there was a sculpture garden there before). Also missing is the WWI memorial, and as far as I can tell it hasn't been relocated.

Beautified Buhler

You would think all of this construction would render the campus unrecognizable and incredibly busy, but it really doesn't - you sort of are surprised when a building pops up where it wasn't before, but they fit in with the other buildings (despite being very large ones) and it doesn't really feel that crowded. We ate breakfast on campus, which gave us more surprises. While the cafeteria looks almost exactly the same (they have added some strange faux foliage and nice vinyl tablecloths), there have been some changes for the better.

same but different - odd addition of plastic foliage

There are now clearly marked, multiple, vegetarian and vegan(!) options. For breakfast there were eggs, bacon, sausage, veggie bacon, vegan sausage, 3 make your own omelet stations, a waffle station, gravy, vegan gravy, biscuits, vegan biscuits, grits, oatmeal, and lots of fruit, toast, bagels, and other breakfast breads.

blueberry waffle - note the new tablecloths

At lunch & dinner, I am told there is always an express meal bar with burgers (including veggie burgers)/other fast food sort of stuff, a build your own sandwich/panini bar as well as the regular lunch fare which includes meat, vegetarian, and vegan items. You can see weekly menus here. Oh and they have a frozen yogurt machine, which unfortunately couldn't be transported to Mills/Cabe for the reception, but was fabulous to see, nevertheless. I admit that I don't think I ever made it to breakfast while I was at Hendrix, so I can't really compare, but the vegan gravy rocked.

The rest of our visit included visiting with Jess and Sam and Eli at the Oyster Bar in Little Rock (I'm happy to say that the Oyster Bar is still as glorious as it always was - as was our company). We did a fast tour of the Clinton Museum, which I found interesting from a museum design perspective, the content probably would have been more interesting to me on another day, but I lived through all of that, and wasn't really in the mood to do it all over again. The museum is high on detail, which I liked, and found at times overwhelming and at other times, charming - I especially enjoyed the menus from several state dinners and the binders with all of Bill's daily schedules throughout his presidency. But unless you are a HUGE fan of Bill, I really cannot recommend paying the additional 3$ for the audio tour, which is just him talking on and on.

in front of the Clinton Library

On the way back to Conway we dodged the numerous mini-tornadoes spilling out from Ike to the southeast and northwest of us and fortunately made it back a Hendrix that still had power. After dinner with Bob, Sarah and Zelda and a nice visit and cookie making/eating, Jason and I returned to our apartment around 10:00, just in time for Hendrix to begin their evening festivities - Ike or no Ike. Despite our close proximity to the campus center dance and the high winds and rain, Jason and I slept through the night easily - I think it was the best sleep I've had since I was pregnant with Nora. While the campus looked a little wind blown the next morning (more fabulous vegan gravy for breakfast) and there were many downed limbs there didn't appear to be too much damage. Miraculously, the rain and winds went directly north and not north-east so we had a clear drive home on Sunday. It was a fun trip, but I was so ready to see Nora who was , of course, just fine without us all weekend and barely said hello when we came and got her.

Here we are in our matching Hendrix Media Center tees. Thanks Bob!

And We're Off!

So the press blitz has begun. Jason had an interview yesterday with the Conway Log Cabin Democrat and this morning he made the Arkansas Democrat Gazette about the reading of his play, Yum, Yum, Yogurt, Ulysses! tomorrow night at Hendrix. Fortunately, the Demozette used the press release from Hendrix which was A. more coherent than his interview and B. included the mention of Jason and Todd's essay in Star Trek and Philosophy, which made the paper too! Both articles quote Bob as well, since he's directing. Hooray for the Hendrix publicity department! Jason is a little distressed with the Log Cabin interview, it sort of rambled all over and the reporter mentioned that Nietzsche was a great influence (he's not) and his offhand remark about absurd sexual fantasies of one of the characters got in, making the play sound a little more scandalous than it is. Nevertheless, don't bring your kids - Kevin Smith definitely was an influence.

We leave tomorrow for Conway and we're looking forward to seeing Bob, Sarah and Zelda as well as anyone else who might be at Hendrix these days. The reading will begin at 7:30 pm tomorrow night if anyone else wants to come see it. Jason's already gotten word that a couple of high school friends plan on attending. I admit I'm starting to get excited about the trip, but I'm a little worried to about leaving Nora so long. I know she'll have a great time with my parents, but this is the first time we are leaving her and I'm a little nervous about how she'll do.

Return to Posting

It's been forever since I've posted (as no doubt you've noticed) and since someone recently brought that to my attention, I thought I'd better do a roundup of what we've been up to.

Possibly the biggest news is that Jason has finished the big D and will be defending it on August 21 at 10:00 am. I'm so proud of him for finishing! And you all put that day down on your calendar to send him good vibes at the 10:00 hour. Fortunately, he doesn't have to sit in a Colosseum and wait for anyone and everyone in the university to come challenge him, but it's still a big deal.

Memorial Day weekend we traveled to Arkansas to see Jason's family and make sanity pit- stops at Bob and Sarah's on the way in and out. Hendrix is a monster that is slowly taking over all of Conway (which is rushing out at the seams anyway). The amazing news is that you get get a beer in Conway now. Yeah, I know we always could, but in a restaurant as opposed to a dorm or open field/warehouse. Like Fayetteville and Jonesburo, Conway has now authorized "private clubs" to sell liquor. So for a $5.00 membership fee, there you go. We had a nice time in Hot Springs, soaking up all the heat and sunshine that St. Louis had been missing and made a quick trip to Magnolia to see Jason's grandmother. All in all we logged over 24 hours in car time, and discovered both that Nora gets car sick and that Dramamine is our friend. Bob, Sarah and Zelda were all in fine fettle and we enjoyed the fabulous Mexican food of La Hacienda (of Conway not Hot Springs) which could only be improved with them getting a private club license, but probably not likely since they are not downtown. We even managed to squeak in not one but TWO trips to Dixie Cafe (one of the few places where Jason doesn't need 5 refills of his coke before the meal comes).

Once we made it back home, we were greeted by the return of the rainy season, that seems to be lasting all spring and into summer. We were rained out of a picnic with Todd and Natascha at the Shakespeare festival's Richard the III, although we bravely tried to sit out a full hour in light showers, before we realized that it really wasn't going to stop. Jason, Nora and I made a mad dash to Kansas City for me to do a work related training, but we also got to sample some excellent Mexican Food and Nora got to swim in the hotel pool. Nora and Jason checked out the KC zoo while I did my training.

Despite all of the rain, Nora and Jason have been active. Checking out the zoo, parks, and science center weekly in addition to their Gym and Swim class at the Y. Nora did her first somersault and has been enjoying the water, especially since holding on to Jason means she doesn't have to interact with all those other children.

That brings us up to date, and since we head to Chicago this weekend to visit Miriam, Andreas, Anouk and Christophe, you'll have to wait for photos for when we get back.

Spunk Lost and Found?

Carol has been complaining lately of a lack of blogging spunk and apparently it is a problem over here as well. I can't complain about a complete lack of activity, because, actually November has had plenty, which may be why I've done so little blogging.

We returned Sunday from our trip to Arkansas for Thanksgiving which was a bit of an exhausting drive and required more luggage than a debutante's tour of European capitals. But Nora got to see her grandparents again, and Jason's grandmother, Grant was up from Texas and Max was down from Bentonville. Nora had a great time re-arranging Kathy's rock tray and bowling walnuts, and practicing her piercing shrieks among people who find it endearing. Jason and I took advantage of the free babysitting to eat a meal together (as opposed to in shifts between Nora chasing) and to check out downtown Hot Springs and marvel at the changes that have occurred since our Little Rock residency. Happily, the fabulous toy store is still there and we had a great time buying too much stuff for Nora (musical instruments, kitties, and a music box). For those who care, the Arlington now has a Starbucks and they've done some redecorating so it's not quite so bright in the lobby. Oh, and there was some football game between the Razerbacks and LSU, I'm told it was quite a game, but it's really not my thing.

We took a little side detour to Conway to see Bob, Sarah and Zelda. They ministered to our need for a place to unwind and an audience to vent about the horrors of travel and holidays with family. Zelda kindly played big sister with Nora and let her touch and play with all of her toys (even the horses and unicorns) and read stories to her and prevented her from destroying the house while Jason and I languished on the couches and made Bob and Sarah entertain us with stories. It was very restorative. Hendrix has grown by leaps and bounds and I learned that there are actually two new mascots - one with a sword and one with a banner not sure that one is that much of an improvement over the other.

Now we're home again and December looms in front of me. I actually do have some Christmas spirit this year and while that doesn't translate into putting up a tree (we really don't have any room). I did get an advent calendar for Nora (it came yesterday and no, I didn't pay that much for it) and I think there is some serious baking in my future (I've got the whole Veginomicon to get through!). The Rock N' Roll craft show is this weekend and while I know I will be shopping I also hope it inspires some more craft activities. Unfortunately, I didn't really have an opportunity to work on Nora's stocking this break and my mom has made a lovely one for her already, so I might not get it done, but I had so much fun with the felt food, that I'm hoping I get another project underway soon.

Fallen Behind

It's been forever since I've posted, and I really have no excuse. But here's a run down of what we've been up to lately. Last weekend (not this just past one, but the one before) we made a mad dash to Chicago to see Anouk and Christoph and their parents. We had a wonderful time visiting the zoo, Northwestern University, watching the kids, and eating delicious food. Oh, and there might have been a stop on the way home at Ikea that was way too expensive and time-consuming, but one of us had a lot of fun. Nora generally felt that Christoph was just fine, despite his fondness for baseball bats, but that maybe Anouk should keep her distance a bit. I've got excellent video that I will eventually post.

This past weekend, I was baby showering in honor of my cousin Leah, who is due at Thanksgiving time and then Todd and Natascha made an amazing brunch for us that was made even more amazing by Nora sitting in a big person chair and eating all of her waffles (graciously made vegan by Todd) while the rest of us actually got to eat and talk! She then tried to put her syrup sticky hands on everything and everyone, but fortunately the kitties were too quick for her, or else there might have been some grooming nightmares.

The weekends prior to these two were spent painting all of the furniture in the bedroom and then re-arranging said furniture in the bedroom and then deciding one of the bookcases looked better in the living room which resulted in more furniture moving in there. Big thanks go out to Todd and Laura who got in on the rearranging (Todd actually got talked into it twice!). Jason is completely sick of the upheaval, but we've got to get it all back in shape (which it's not) before Friday when his parents arrive. And I'm working all day Saturday. Whew. So that's where September went. Do I have any pictures of all this activity? Yes? But of course not handy. I will eventually post them....

In food news, I've been proceeding with the Isa recipe testing. Sunday I made some black bean soup in the crock pot which we didn't get around to eating until last night, so it was a perfect opportunity to test Isa's vegan cornbread recipe. I loved it, but I should warn readers that this is not quite like southern cornbread (it has more flour) but nor is as sweet as northern cornbread. Perhaps it's a happy medium. I did it in the 9x9 cake pan as Isa (a New Yorker) instructed, but I think I might see what happens if I were to do this in an iron skillet, which is how I do regular non-vegan cornbread or maybe in muffin tins. If you aren't a cornbread purist, or if maybe you think of this as something else entirely, I'd recommend giving it a shot.

Given the eating of black bean soup and cornbread along with the date on the calendar, you might think, ahh fall is here. Unfortunately, it is not. Yesterday it was 90 degrees and the rest of the week plans to hover around in the 80s. I am so very sick of this non-fall weather. It is the time of long skirts and boots and cute sweaters. I'm still here in my capris and tee shirt, although I did put away the sandals, but still, this is definitely not office wear (although I get away with it in the summer). What am I going to do? It's bad enough we don't have any apples due to the late freezes this spring, and I'm sneezing my head off with allergies (seriously, every hour!) but I could handle that if there were some crisp weather.

Sand Castles

We're on our way home now, but here's a little movie of Nora on the beach.

More Michigan

The vacation continues! We've been back to the beach on Monday and up to White Lake to see a lighthouse and eat some nice Mediterranean Food. The table next to us held a woman and her son - both were reading their own copy of the newest Harry Potter. I think they talked briefly about Snape and other than that continued reading. Saturday I did buy my copy, but Jason has been the one reading it. I think I'll have to save it for the trip back home, unless I break down before then and tear it away from him.

Yesterday we were back in Holland, where we visited the Dutch Village. So here's some obligatory pictures with wooden shoes:


This Flat Beatrix is for Fred:


We also went into downtown Holland, which was really delightful. Their downtown shopping area of about 4 blocks had two independent bookstores, a terrific toy store, some nice clothing shops, and a ton of restaurants including an Viennese style pastry shop and cafe and an Irish pub were someone bought someone else a football hoodie. Practice has already started.


And here's a shot of that monster grill and the Grand Marshall, who Nora is now calling Groshal.

Michigan

We're in Michigan, and while yesterday was a little exhausting, today is going very nicely. On the way up, we passed though Holland, and so we thought Flat Beatrix would like to pose for a picture for Carol and Fred. We plan to run back down to Holland sometime this week to get a closer look at their windmills and giant wooden shoe, but this is all we glimpsed from the car.


We are staying about an hour north of Holland in Muskegon. This is not as big a tourist location as the small towns south of here (Holland, Grand Haven, South Haven, Saugatauk, St. Joe) but it is a nice place. We visited the beach this morning, but we didn't take photos since we forgot the camera. The beach is part of Pere Marquette (yeah, that same guy was up here and they name parks after him up here as well) State Park and it was very nice and clean, with a beautiful view of Lake Michigan, and it's about a mile from where we are staying. Nora spent the morning shoveling sand into her pants and down my shirt, and on the beach towels and in Jason's shoes and even some into her bucket. Then we all hiked out onto the pier to see the lighthouse, then back to the beach for fried perch and fries and tator tots and mushroom burgers. It was a terrific morning.

About where we are staying... we rented a place I found on-line. It's held by a small realtor, and it's a little old and could use some new mattresses and slipcovers for the old couches, but overall its fine. If you bother to click on the link, you will see pictures of our realtor/and the house's owner, Dave, and our place is listed under vacation rentals. It's the yellow house. Dave is nice, but as we quickly found out he has a different set of priorities when it comes to vacation rentals. We have a grill in the back yard that is big enough to roast several small children and a television of similar size. It also has a terrific back yard with a view of Lake Muskegon (which is really a bay off of Lake Michigan). Oh and there is also a pool table, which is now doing a second job as Nora's changing table (don't act all horrified, it isn't a nice pool table). However, the kitchen is not what we would call well equipped. But things are freshly painted, though some of his other improvement projects are not quite as well executed. All in all it is fine for the week and now that we've revised some of my cooking plans, we are settled in.

We haven't checked out the rest of Muskegon yet, we were too tired when we got in. Although Mom and I did go to the grocery store, which was unfortunately, very similar to a Walmart Super Center - called Maijor or something like that - that was also extremely depressing and Dad, Jason and Nora explored the marina and found a very nice little grocery shop that caters to the big boats and yachts when they come in and now we are well provisioned. We plan to check out "downtown" Muskegon tomorrow when all of the bikers have gone. Oh, yes, I forgot to mention that this weekend is Muskegon's Bike Festival so we saw lots of tents selling leather and tattoo services when we came into town, but haven't bought anything ourselves.

After buying all that stuff we were too tired to cook so we ordered carryout pizza and then, some of you might be aware that there was a certain game on last night with a certain international celebrity making a debut appearance for a team on this side of the pond. I'm sure Jason will make a guest commentary about that later.

Here's Mom and Nora this morning - posing on top of Nora's changing table, wearing the new apron that Grammy made her. She's ready for the beach but unfortunately Daddy and the Grand Marshall aren't up yet.


So, that's all for now. I'll post more later.