Monthly Archives: February 2010

I’m going to risk sounding like a pessimistic you-know-what and just say what I’m thinking…I’ve never been good at keeping my mouth shut anyway.

Today I woke up to the sun shining, the flowers blooming, and the smiling face of my mother.  It was so nice to have a second set of hands helping and someone to say “good morning” to.  I was excited about putting the horses out without their blankets, and had plans to work in the garden.  It was the perfect day.

As I left the barn after feeding the horses, I suddenly got “bummed out.”  I didn’t want the flowers to be blooming; I didn’t want the birds to be laying their eggs; I didn’t want it to be time to plant the vegetable garden.  No, I wanted to have the anticipation of spring – I wasn’t ready to give up the excitement of what’s to come!  I think part of my attitude about not wanting spring to be here is because I know that just as quickly as it came, it will go.  I LOVE spring. I love having flowers in the house; I love the crisp, cold mornings that turn into sunshiny, temperate days; I love watching the bulbs push their way through the cold, hard ground – peeking out with a jubilant burst of color.  I don’t want that thrill to stop!  Silly, I know, but it’s something I’ve been thinking about.  Please tell me that it’s not just me who has ever felt this way!

Massive Magnolia Volcan Buds

I dressed up the house with some flowers from the garden – I love that!  I’m doing everything I can to prolong spring and enjoy it as much as possible!

RANDOM PHOTOS OF THE DAY

What is it about girls and shoes? My daughter is only 20 months old, and she already LOVES shoes.  I found a pair of absolutely adorable little sandals today at Marshall’s, and as soon as I pulled them out of the bag, her face lit up and she started bouncing all over the place.  “Zahs!” she exclaimed (short for “zapatos”).  Even though they’re a few sizes too big, she insisted we put them on immediately, and then had to show them to Boots, then to Jax, then to her baby dolls.  At one point, I caught her standing in the living room, just staring at them.  So freakin’ cute!!!

Her first pair of gold sandals!

She got a new swim suit, too, so she was THRILLED!

Grandma Lene and her dog Cassie came over for dinner and to spend the night.  I’m sure by now you know how much she loves the two of them.  Ellie loves making my mother laugh, and succeeds more often than not!  The dogs were happy to play and entertain her as well! In my opinion, there aren’t many things more heart-warming than watching a child play with their animal friends!

The three friends all tangled up

the dog shouldn't have been on the couch - but it was a good photo opp!

For dinner, I was happy to have an excuse to cook as I have been craving my absolute favoritest dish: Thyme and Tarragon Chicken.  It’s a recipe that my brother handed off to me years ago, but he it got from his friend Monika (the founder of the uber cool Hip Cooks Cooking Schools in Los Angeles and Portland), and she apparently got it from a Jamie Oliver cookbook.  I’ve done so much tweaking to this recipe that at this point, I’m not even sure it’s the same recipe. As an interesting side note, it was after I first made this dish years ago that I decided I wanted to learn to really cook. With this recipe, I discovered that I COULD cook! Now that I think of it, this is yet another thing that my dear brother Jake contributed to my life: he introduced a passion and love of not just food, but of the preparation process!  See, there IS a reason he was my maid of honor (and on a side note to the side note, it was NOT my ex-boss Patrick Dempsey who gave me the idea to have a male “made” of honor…in fact, he stole MY idea for that movie, I should be getting residuals………………..ok, maybe I took that story a little too far.  Let me get back on track).  The T & T Chicken was delicious, and one day I’ll post the recipe.

the last stage of cooking...you have no idea how insanely delicious this smells and tastes...I dream about it!

Victor worked on the office in the shop today, and managed to get a lot done…should be interesting to see how it turns out!  I think I might have to take it over for my crafts room instead of letting Jeffrey use it! Hee hee…

RANDOM PHOTOS OF ELLIE TODAY

Taking the baby into mommy's room to sleep