Grateful Friday

Today I give thanks for...

A cozy night in after a busy week. I was home to take my cousin's call. It was along overdue catch-up call with him and his wife.

The ability to pivot. New York had to be postponed. Don't ask, but Linda. We've managed to come up with a clever plan to engage our customers from afar. Fingers crossed.

A movie date. The last minute change in plans meant I was home to celebrate Mike's b-day mid-week with my boys. We saw Heretic. Hugh Grant plays a psycho psycho.

We welcomed Mike to the Birkenstock Club.

We sure missed this girl, but she'll be home for Thanksgiving week before we know it.

A Sunday lunch to celebrate November birthdays in the fam. My mil, bil, nephew and husband are Scorpios.

Meryl is a marathoner. She completed the race in Madison last weekend like a boss in the rain.

 

Manny. When I was Face-timing the kids this week, he was rubbing all over the phone. In cat speak, that is love.

True and constant friends. We had a couple's date with Pete and Sue Saturday. It's the kind of get together that's easy, comfortable and necessary at least once a month.

Pete's a dog guy, but also a Gus fan.

I totally perfected the copycat Crumbl Chocolate Chip Cookie and now I need to burn the recipe because each cookie has like 900 calories. Pete and Sue didn't know that so I sent them home with the leftovers.

My Christmas cactus today. She hasn't flowered in years. This was a lovely early and unexpected surprise waiting for me at work today.

November. Second only to October.

These loafers.

Free and fair elections. Mandates. Time for change and healing.

Constant companions.

 

 

 

A throwback. Sully Teddy.

Weekending

Last weekend was such a very good one. Food, family, friends and football on another lovely fall weekend. There was no standout crescendo. It was all steady surges of goodness from beginning to end. We stayed close to home and escaped the noise and I so needed that safety and sanity. Casa Wags was busy with kids and cats coming and going. That is just the way I like it. Hazel is warming up to Manny. Gus still can't stop hissing when Manny is nearby and he sits outside Ted's door on watch when he's on break. They both bounce back soon after he leaves. That's progress and that's good because we love when he comes to visit.

Thursday I made a stop for a glass of wine with Candace before getting Lils and company from the bus stop. They were home long enough to pack up the Jeep with Caesar wraps and other goodies I had for their road trip to Purdue. Their golf clubs too.

Ted got word that he passed his audit exam and he'll soon find out about his TCP exam. Woot Woot! Hopefully, just one to go. We were going to go out and celebrate Thursday night, but Meryl was editing her story until way past dinner time even for us. I think she'll be glad when election season ends. We made a pizza and watched Ted instead. All good.

We did our shopping this week at Costco and Gloriosos. I dread going to the big box, but I love my little Italian market. The amount of money we spent is insane, although to be fair, we did splurge on some items. We were having friends for the Badger game Saturday night and I decided to keep it easy and delicious. Meatball subs and muffalettas for the win. I cannot do any better than they do. I tried a copycat recipe for Crumbl's Chocolate Chip Cookie for dessert and it was as good as the real deal.The game was meh, but the night was fun and I loved when Teryl came to visit with the old folks after their movie date. 

Sunday was sort of rinse and repeat. Meryl had another rally. Ted went to watch football with friends. I had fun in the kitchen baking my favorite new recipe to use up overripe bananas...the naughtiest double chocolate banana bread. Enough for everyone. I also cleaned out all the pumpkins and roasted the seeds. Enough to share. Then I put together a lasagna for Sunday night football. The girls came back through town starving so I made them some quesadillas and sent them back to Madison with bags of goodies because I love spoiling them. The Packer game was lackluster and the constant driving rain made me extra grateful for my warm cozy den and large screen.

Tomorrow I will vote and then hold my breath. I don't think it's incendiary to say that this is a watershed election. Time will tell whether or not I'll be in New York this time next week. Ted and Mike will vote with me and I am so proud that my girl sent in her absentee ballot long ago. I wish Hazel and Gus could vote too.

Weekending

We just got home from a before dinner walk on what feels like a perfect summer night. The path is lined with leaves thanks to the warm breeze that's blowing. The sun slipped away around mile 2 leaving us in the dark. In a couple weeks, it will be dark before we set out as we march toward solstice. I'm a broken record, but honestly won't someone stop this train. Tell me you know that John Mayer song? It's one of his best.

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We're at Little Hills Lake floating around on rafts on a sunny day. Ted is three and just happy to sit on the water cycle aka jet ski even though it's tethered to the pier and not going anywhere. Charlie's content at Nanny's feet part of the party and dry. Soon we'll climb the ten flights of stairs for gloaming on the deck. We all got swimmer's itch, the rocks in the shallows rubbed our feet raw, it was hotter than Hades and we had no air, my brother was almost decapitated by the ceiling fan in the middle of the night (he was Ted's bunk mate), and yet it was THE best week of the year. No inkling of Lily on the way or Nanny's limited time. So scared of getting older. I'm only good at being young.

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We rolled into Madison Saturday morning and were immediately accosted by the 5 story naked Trump hung from a crane on the way into campus. That folks is the definition of deplorable, but it didn't dampen my mood because I believe this kind of distasteful antic exposes the real anti-democracy in our midst. No I'm not colorblind. I know the world is black and white.The streets are abuzz for Homecoming and driving through town is like a moving reel of all the once were and has beens. So many ghosts, but only a few goblins. We were in Madison for some time with Lily's friends and their parents. It was a fun day with a great group of people...some new, some known, and always far fewer than six degrees of separation between us a fact I find comforting. I felt old. I am old. So I play this numbers game to find a way to say that life has just begun. 

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We graduated and got season tickets along with all of our friends...his, mine and soon enough just ours. We never missed a game without good reason for the better part of a decade. It seems like yesterday and also forever ago. How is this possible? To be so close and so far away. Try to keep an open mind. I just can't sleep on this tonight. 

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We didn't stay for the game and were home by halftime to watch from our den. We had a room and may have scored some tickets, but I knew the pre-game would be enough. And while a small part of me wanted to stay, it was the right choice to head home. Enough is such an interesting, self realized concept. The girls were toast after the game anyway. Stop this train. I want to go home again.

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Sunday we woke up refreshed and mostly ready to go. We had to make a candy run because I brought what I had for the girls. Mums, pumpkins and pumpkin bars too. Chicken, cold brew, and homemade vinaigrette as well. Trick or treaters were out in force and it made my heart happy to see all the kids who have moved into the neighborhood in the last few years running around in bands. I may or may not have dressed up like a kitty. My brother and sister in law came late afternoon to watch our other team...the Packers, and I finally got to make them my new star recipe...smash-burger tacos that are a serious game changer. Ted came home from a day of football with the boys. We played some cards and caught up. His CPA exam went well. Don't stop this train. Don't for a minute change the place you're in.

John honestly we'll never stop this train.

 

weekending

It still feels like summer here, but it's looking a lot like fall especially in the last few days. This year winter is going to come as a rather rude awakening I'm afraid. That being said, I'm not complaining one bit. We enjoyed a fall family day Saturday. It was a great one for a visit to the apple farm. It was slim pickings because of our early, wet spring and lovely Indian summer, but we found some juicy crisp Golden Delicious apples that lived up to their name. The kids wanted to go and I love that. I visited once in the past month, but just for a pit stop in the barn. Ain't nobody got time for apple picking alone. Last year we also visited the third Saturday in October. It was cold and rainy and yet one of the best days of the year...ask Meryl. I concur btw. 

 

 

 

The idea was to same time next year it, but then we did a 180 and that was a wise choice. We were tourists in our town and finally took the Shaker's Bar Ghost Tour. Is it haunted? I'm not sure. Is it creepy? Without a doubt. It was an entertaining way to spend an October Eve on the cusp of Halloween.

 

Dinner was bar-side at La Merenda for a fabulous tapas spread. There was no star of the show because one was better than the next. Shout outs to the goat cheese curds, Potatoes Bravas, Argentinian beef and butter chicken. Whatever we had for dessert was nothing short of THE GOAT.

Let's just say we left happy and were home in time for SNL, which is funny so far this season. It's about time we can laugh at the ridiculousness that is politics these days. It's stranger than fiction. That's reality. I'm going to vote this week and that will be my piece.

The girls were up and on the road before dawn Sunday with coffees to go and sweet Manny my grandkitty. Lily was home for less than 24 hours, but they were good ones. I thought about getting a jump start on my day, but I ended up back in bed. Lately Sundays have been unapologetically lazy. Ted spent most of the day studying for his third CPA exam, which he sits for Saturday. Things are moving right along with a momentum I still find hard to fathom, and yet I'm well aware of the alternative.

The cats were happy to see the lovable little fur-ball leave and to be the recipient's of all the attention and play time once again. Hazel was curious. Gus was UNhappy. I thought their reactions would have been the opposite. It was fun to have a kitten in the house and Manny is 100 percent sweet, but I guess we won't be adopting a kitten any time soon. That being said, Manny can come any time.