BFFs

Drew hung out with his two best friends today, EZ and SiMi.  There's certainly a good vibe in the house when three 9-year-old boys are just hanging out, acting goofy and having fun.

Erin's Art

Erin made this in art class and brought it home before spring break.  Today she gave it to Drew for his sports wall.

It's a Zoo Day

The first day of spring break: sunny and perfect for a zoo trip!

3 Country Music Acts

My college friend Tracy and I started attending concerts together in the mid-1980s after we both moved to the Chicago area.  Tonight we traveled out to DeKalb to see 3 fantastic acts.  First up was Sarah Buxton.  Best song:  Stupid Boy.  Here's Sarah and me during intermission.  She loved my necklace!

Next up:  Trace Adkins.  Every song was great, but You're Gonna Miss This gets my vote for best song.  I cry every time I hear it, and tonight was no exception.

Last up:  Martina McBride.  A class act all the way.  She's tiny and beautiful, and in my opinion she has the best vocals of any female country star out there today.  Best song:  Independence Day, altho I'm Trying from her new album is a haunting song about a complex relationship.

Popovers

I made my first popovers tonight.  I thought that a bacon and chive popover would be the perfect complement to baked potato soup, and it was spot-on.  Yes, making popovers with real bacon grease is a bit indulgent, but the taste is incredible!  If I could afford the fat and calories I'd make these on a regular basis.  For now, however, they'll have to remain an indulgent treat.

March Madness

The University of Northern Iowa men's basketball team has had a remarkable season this year.  I was thrilled when they made it to the Big Dance.  In fact, I remarked to Mom earlier this week, "It's just too bad UNI has to meet Kansas in the 2nd round.  I think they're a really good team, but I don't think they stand a chance against Kansas."

UNI proved they can play with the big boys when they knocked off the overall #1 seed - Kansas - today.  Welcome to the Sweet 16 UNI!  Regardless of what anyone says, you deserve to be here!  Enjoy the run!

Rediscovering the Classics

Because of a crazy family schedule this evening, I knew we wouldn't all be sitting down together for a family supper.  I've discovered on nights like that this that it's great to have breakfast for supper.  The kids jusst love this theme, but Baird's not a big fan so it works best on nights when he's eating out.  Tonight was one such night.

When Kelsey checked in after school, I asked her which she preferred, pancakes or waffles.  I got an enthusiastic "PANCAKES!"  from her and she said goodbye.  She called back about 30 seconds later saying, "Mom, when my friends heard me say 'pancakes,' they got really excited.  Can they come for supper too?"

Sure.  After all, making a triple batch of pancakes is as easy as making a single batch. 

After filling up on pancakes, bacon and hot chocolate, the group wondered downstairs to see what they could find to watch on TV.  Nothing was grabbing them...until they saw the DVD set that holds the entire collection of Looney Tunes.  They sat down and started watching.  An hour or so later, they came upstairs for air and remarked, "I don't think I ever realized how great the Looney Tunes really are.  They're so funny!"

I Scream, You Scream

Ben & Jerry's ice cream is legendary, and so is their generosity.  Every year they have Free Cone Day.  I love that they've kept up this tradition, even in these tough economic times.  This isn't just a chocolate-and-vanilla-baby-scoop kind of free, this is decent-size-any-flavor-you-want kind of free.  So tonight after supper I took the kids up to Lake Street to Ben &Jerry's for desert.  Kelsey and Erin went thru one line and Drew and I went thru the other.  The girls were done with their cones before Drew and I even got ours!  That's my ice cream cone that Erin's holding.  Yea, there was a lot more ice cream on my cone when I handed it to her for the picture...
Gotta love Ben & Jerry's!

What it Feels Like to Win

For the past few weeks, Baird's been spending Saturday mornings with the AWANA boys team, getting them ready for today's big event:  The AWANA Games.  This has been no small feat, since Baird:

*Never went to AWANA as a kid

*Has never been head coach of anything

*Has never won 1st place in anything athletic, ever in his life.

The boys team was small but fast.  They did well in every single running event, but were seriously challenged in the height and strength events like the 4-way tug and the balloon volley.  They squeeked out a 1st place win by just 1.5 points.

Baird treated the team to Oberweiss to celebrate their sweet victory.

Tonight when we were talking about the Games, Baird recalled, "After they presented us with the winning banner, and we were all standing in front of our winning score, and the boys had their medals, and all the parents were taking pictures, and the music was at a crescendo, I thought, 'this is what it feels like to win.'"

Cheers to Baird, Drew, and the rest of the boys for their victory.

End of the Season Banquet

There's a tradition at the end of a sports season:  the players and parents get together and eat.  The parents swap war stories from the season while the kids hang out one last time before accepting their medals or trophies for a season well-played.  Tonight was the end-of-the-season potluck banquet for the Little Huskies Wrestling program.

Potlucks are truly a crap shoot, no matter how well they are planned.  Some wind up with all salads and no protein.  Others are so desert-heavy that everyone goes home on a serious sugar high.  Tonight's potluck fell into the category of successful and balanced with plenty of food.

The boys in Drew's age group accepted their trophies with pride.  Drew was surprised to find out he earned a personalized backpack for wrestling 30 matches. 

Even though he has his tough guy game face on in the photo above, he was so excited about the backpack that he's decided to make it his regular school backpack.  Drew worked hard this season, and he's earned the right to wear his backpack with pride.  Congrats on a great rookie season, Drew!

A New Addition

Our TV had a nervous breakdown yesterday.  It was pretty obvious when we turned it on and the blue color went one way and the pink color went the other and everything else went blurry, that the time had come to replace it.  I was thinking perhaps over the weekend we'd go shopping, but Baird couldn't wait.  He called me early this afternoon to tell me he'd bought a TV over lunch and was leaving work early to bring it home and install it.  This flat screen TV is so big it truly feels like a new addition to the house.  And I'm thinking we might have to name it.

A Movie Tradition

This past fall, My mom called me after she saw Julie & Julia for the first time and warned me, "You're going to be hungry after you watch the movie.  Make plans afterwards to eat somewhere better than McDonald's."

My friend Mel and I followed her advice, and after we saw the movie we went to The Buzz and split a plate of hummus.  It wasn't quite enough, and we wound up getting cheese at the Marion Street Cheese Market and taking it home to share with our hubbys for dinner that night.  It was such a perfect ending to a foodie movie afternoon. 

I was lucky enough to score the movie Julie & Julia as a Christmas present this year.  I've seen the movie quite a few times now, and every time I watch it, I get cheese from Marion Street Cheese Market, buy a little fresh fruit and some good crackers.  It's a fun little ritual, no matter who I share it with.  Baird thought it was a perfect way to experience the movie.  Missy was over on Saturday, and thoroughly enjoyed it.

This morning my friend Pat R. came over, and I shared Julie & Julia with her, as well as some tasty fruit, cheese and crackers.  When I declared that this part of my day was my Best Thing, Erin asked, "Are you planning on watching that movie with every single person you know?"  Well...maybe!

An Ethnic Worship Service

This morning's worship service at church was an amazing blend of ethnic styles and songs.  These flags graced the portico...

...and were carried into the sanctuary at the beginning of the service.  Drew led the procession, carrying the Christian flag.  As I've mentioned before, our church has members and attenders from many different countries.  To see my friends proudly carrying in the flag from their country of origin, dressed in native attire, gave me an incredible feeling of pride.

While the entire service was just amazing, my favorite part was when the children's choir and the adult choir sang together.  The children's choir sang the classic Christian hymn Of the Father's Love Begotten while the adults sang an African worship song in Zulu.  It truly was a little bit of heaven on earth.

Happy Birthday Erin!

My sweet Erin officially became a teenager today.  Here are scenes from her big celebration:

The girls took in an early showing of Alice in Wonderland, then came back to our place and made pizzas.  After cake and presents, they took over the basement and remade Jill and Kevin's wedding dance video - it was hillarious.

Erin has grown and changed at a breathtaking pace in the last year.  There are parts of her, however, that are still the same.  She still has smoldering, mysterious eyes.  Her smile lights up her whole face.  She's smart.  She's determined.  She's a hard worker.  She's competitive almost to obsession.  She's kind and thoughtful, and she knows how to charm even the grumpiest people.  Both children and adults are drawn to her.

Happy birthday to my wonderful middle child.  You challenge me in ways big and small, and my life is better because you're in it.

Signs of Spring

Drew and I went for a walk after school this afternoon, and I saw these signs of spring:

I haven't seen a robin yet, but I expect they'll be arriving any day now.  I'm so excited spring is here!

Drew brought this self portrait home from school today.  I love that he put himself in his cousins camp t-shirt.

Flashback

Erin and her friends were invited to a 1980s-themed birthday party.  This afternoon, they took over our living room and turned it into a retro beauty salon.

From Russia with Love

Tonight we headed out to Wheaton to visit our friends P&B.  They were living in Russia for the past four years and have just recently returned.  This is a busy household as B is due with #4 at the end of next month.  We enjoyed a tasty meal of ham with Russian-style root vegetables, and then spent time around the table catching up on our lives.
Thanks for a terrific evening, P&B.  It's good to have you back in the States!

Wonderland

Last night Baird and I took Kelsey to the midnight viewing of Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland in 3D at the Lake Theater in Oak Park.  There was certainly a young vibe to the crowd, as I'm pretty sure Baird and I were twice as old as everyone else in the theater.  It's been a long time since I was at a theater in the middle of the night watching a movie, but this movie was worth losing sleep over.
Tim Burton has somehow managed to turn this fairy tale into something that is eerie and beautiful at the same time.  The movie is stunningly gorgeous, never more so than in the walk thru the forest with colorful leaves falling - I felt like I was floating right along in the middle of it all.  And the way the Cheshire Cat appears, disappears, and reappears is pure magic.  In spite of all that, of course my favorite character is Johnny Depp's presence as the Mad Hatter.

See this movie in 3D - I just can't imagine it otherwise - and be sure to stay thru the credits at the end, you won't want to miss the surprise.

You know how good a movie is when you leave the theater and say to each other, "I can't wait to own this movie!"  Don't miss Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, it's just too good to pass up.

Foodie Film Day

My Friend Mel and I got together today for another foodie-themed film fest.  Mel whipped up this incredible dish, and as is the tradition, I contributed a side and beverage.  Amazing Italian food paired with with the bittersweet film Big Night made for an incredible afternoon that was still somehow comfortably mellow.

Timeless Food

Today was Casimir Pulaski Day so the kids had the day off school.  When I first moved to Chicago I thought people were joking when they told me about the holiday.  I had never heard about this Pulaski person growing up in Iowa.  It turns out Pulaski was born in 1747 in Poland.  You can read all about his life here, but the highlights are that he came to this country in 1777 and fought in the Revolutionary War.  He is considered the Father of the American Cavalry.
So, since there was no school today, Drew and I headed to The Depot for donuts.  Here's a snippet of our conversation:

Drew:  Have you ever heard of a timeless book?  You know, like in literature?

Me:  Ok...so what are some examples?

Drew:  Old Yeller, Robinson Cursoe.

Me:  Ok, what's your point?

Drew:  Yeah, well, this is timeless food.  These donuts will always be remembered.