297/365 - Candlelit Breakfast

Big surprise this morning - storms (well, that's really not too surprising), high wind (again, not surprising), and lots of rain.

Then, just after the storm passed through, the power went out. That was the surprise.

And as we were scrambling to light candles (yup, no flashlights, no surprise there), I noticed our neighbors in the cul-de-sac still had power! No fair!

Oh, well, at least we got to enjoy breakfast by candlelight.



And the power was restored 3 hours later.

Read more...

272/365 - Chocolate Doesn't Last Long Around Here

I bought this six pack of chocolate bars two days ago. So why is there only one bar (plus a smidge of a 2nd bar) left? I guess I live with a bunch of chocolate fiends!



Note - I've only eaten 3 sections, the equivalent of 3/4 of one bar. I expect the remaining chocolate to be gone by the end of the day tomorrow.

Read more...

228/365 - Last Minute Assembly

School starts tomorrow, so we spent this evening assembling the kids' school binders.

But first we had to buy Brian a new baseball bat, new socks (navy blue to coordinate with his uniform), Erica wanted new socks for soccer, and I took advantage of a sale on Under Armor running shirts.

Then it we were off to the Wal-Mart to buy these special folders required for 5th grade, as I had held off buying them until I confirmed what Ms. J wanted. I warned the kids it could be crowded in the Wal-Mart, and they commented "But why? Who is going to wait until the very last minute to buy school supplies??".

Apparently lots of people wait until the last minute to buy school supplies as the store was packed, and we had to pick through remnants of folders to get what we needed. Note to self - never go to the Wal-Mart the night before school starts!

And the binders were assembled with care, the bags filled to the brim with pencils, paper and other "essential stuff".



I'll be glad when I can reclaim the Dining table as a Dining table, not a holding platform for school supplies!

Read more...

The Weekend - Days 224-225/365 - Around the House

Our first weekend home in over 3 weeks. And 4 weeks ago, I was frantically getting ready for our trip to Italy. [Note - I am still working through the pictures from that trip! I think I am half way through. I will finish them soon - I promise!]

As a result of the hot, hot, hot weather, and our lack of attention to the landscaping, the weeds have now grown to over two feet tall and I am sure the neighbors are all wondering if we will ever do any yard work.

It's just been too hot!

Fortunately, last night, a big rain storm came through. And it was cloudy this morning, which kept some of the oppressive heat at bay. It was still humid, but since I was already dripping wet after my morning run, it really didn't matter. I started clearing away the massive amounts of weeds by the pond, in the front and on the side of the house. I ended up cutting most of the squash plant down, too.



The weeds came up nicely because of last night's rain. Otherwise, I think Scott would have just taken the weed whacker to it. Of course, now we have three big piles of weeds on the patio. Time to get some landscaping waste bags.

After weeding, I took Erica shopping at the Outlet Mall. I managed to buy a pair of jeans, a cute scarf and a cool new kitchen tool - a Microplane!


I used it to grate fresh ginger and it totally rocks! I don't know why I waited so long to purchase one.

And for dinner, Brian helped set the table, and when I instructed him to "fold the napkins", he decided to fold all of them into origami fortune tellers:


They looked really cool on the table.

We cleaned, we ate, we watched TV the rest of the weekend. I went grocery shopping. We enjoyed our weekend at home.

(Did I mention it was hot? Waiting for cooler weather so I can wear my new scarf - please come quickly!)

Read more...

62/365 - Breakfast Table

Taken at 7:17am this morning.


The sun was shining and the kids were eating their typical school day breakfast - Brian, a apple toaster strudel and Erica, a cherry toaster strudel. Erica is reading the comics from the morning paper.

I've noticed the sun rising earlier and earlier in the recent weeks. In a couple of weeks, when we go back to Daylight Savings Time, the sky will be dark outside during breakfast again.

So, I'll enjoy these bright mornings for the time being. And I know they will come again.

Read more...

59/365 - End of Dinner

A pretty typical dinner at our house. Towards the end of dinner (Scott and Erica are both having desert - ice cream), Scott might read the paper. Brian has already finished and is in the family room. I'm cleaning the dishes (and taking pictures!).



We had "breakfast for dinner" tonight. It's not a common theme, but always a hit.

Read more...

55/365 - Winter Coaster Collection

Pretty self explanatory - we own a set of coasters for each season. This set started it all last year. I received these cute snowmen coasters during our Book Club's White Elephant Gift exchange. The kids love them.



We each have our assigned coaster - mine is the front right (holding the heart), Scott's is the front left, Erica's is the back at the top and Brian's is the back right (green scarf).

I think it is important to capture some of these little "details" - because I know the kids will remember these coasters when they get older (just like I still remember the plates we ate on growing up).

Read more...