Happy Birthday!

A very Happy Birthday to The (bestest, cutest, nicest) Boy (in the whole world)!

I love you, I miss you and I can't wait to see you:-)

You're the best!

A little Moused Out

Greetings from cozy, warm South Florida (at least I think it is South Florida...Orlando is definitely Central, and I think this is South...e.b.? Clarity?). Anyway...

Disneyworld was awesome! I can safely say that three full days was enough, as we were both definitely dragging a little bit yesterday afternoon, but we had three very full days of fun! It is a total treat to be able to share this with little sister #2, and she is really easy company.

It was a little snowy on Saturday morning in Chicago, but we didn't have any trouble taking off on time. I was worried about that, so it was a good start to the trip. By the time we got there, got to the hotel, got checked in and settled and ate lunch, it was sort of early afternoon, so we decided to go to downtown Disney for a bit.

I would have been fine sitting by the pool for a couple of hours, but the idea of telling Tinkerbelle to hold off for a day before she saw anything Disney related was not gonna fly:-). We went to the Luau for dinner, which was really neat and lots of fun...then we were home, in our pajamas and in bed by about 8:30! I'd say that she was asleep by 8:34...

Not surprisingly, we were up really early on Sunday, had breakfast and were at the Magic Kingdom when the doors opened:-). And we were pretty much still there when the doors closed...hee hee. I very much appreciate that she is a wuss like me and didn't want to spin so fast on the teacups as to make ourselves sick...

We were in bed early all three nights and up early every morning, which let us get a whole lot of stuff in. We did most of Monday at the Magic Kingdom too, although we left a little earlier so we could go to Mickey's Backyard Barbecue for dinner. She really wanted to go to Animal Kingdom, so we spent Tuesday there, which was really neat! I had never been there before, so it was all new to me, too...

We got up this morning, picked up the car, waved goodbye to Disneyworld and made our way to the beach. I am definitely ready to relax and do nothing for a while...not to mention the fact that I couldn't afford more time in Disney...lol. Our only real task for the afternoon is to go to the grocery store and get food for the weekend (and for the cousins of Smoking Hot Roommate who are coming down after we leave). Other than that, it's beach time!

Hope you all aren't missing me too much:-)

Checking out!

Ahh...the last post before vacation!!! I better make it good so that you don't all miss me too much. I should be able to post once or twice while I am gone, especially later in the week, but you are all going to have to get used to the idea of being without me for a bit. Weep, weep.

Chicken fingers last night...me, Munchkin, The Boy and two friends of ours. Munchkin was quite the chatterbox, which is totally fine by me. I feel like she is a really happy kid these days, and that makes me feel good. She is doing great in school, has some great friends, still has the French boy in the picture, and is just basically enjoying life. Basketball season is almost over, and then baseball season starts (or maybe softball, that is kind of up in the air right now.) She is definitely looking forward to her time with Smoking Hot Roommate, and to vacation next weekend.

If I were as organized as Aaron, I would pre-write some posts to be posted as the week goes along, but I clearly am not. I have been meaning to share my thoughts on this preposterous newest "stimulus package" (in short...poorly conceived, wasteful, inflation-inducing, economically crippling), and that would have been a really good thing to pre-write. I am kind of late thinking about it, though, so I doubt it will get done. Unless I have a slow afternoon.

And, I suppose that I could pre-write a birthday post for The Boy next Thursday:-). Yea, that's right...I ditched him on Valentine's Day to hang out with one little sister, and now I am ditching him on his birthday to hang out with the other. Good thing I am so cute!

The weather has cooperated by suddenly getting very cold and very windy, which makes the idea of some sun and a beach all the better! It will be cold and snowy in Chicago tomorrow morning (fingers crossed that we can take-off on time). I checked the forecast, and Orlando looks like it will be in the low 70's while we are there, and then Jupiter will be a touch warmer than that at the end of the week.

Just to recap...we will get to Orlando tomorrow morning (if we don't run into any delays) and be there until Wednesday morning. We will probably putter around tomorrow afternoon, maybe sit at the pool:-), and then do one of the show dinners (the luau at the Polynesian, or one of the things at the Wilderness cabins). Then we will probably spend the next three days at the parks...the Magic Kingdom to start and then play it be ear from there. I will totally giggle to myself when Tinkerbelle meets Tinkerbelle...

Then I am going to rent a car on Wednesday morning, and we are headed to the beach! SHR is picking Munchkin up from school at noon on Thursday and they are meeting us Thursday evening, in time for dinner. After that...just hanging on the beach!

So...try not to miss me too much!

It's morning somewhere, I'm sure...

I have pretty badly failed on my goal of posting every morning lately. Work has been busy, and tends to be really busy in the mornings and less so in the afternoons. The result is that it is now about 1:00, and I am just getting to today's post.

The good news is that my work this morning was in getting prepared for a meeting at noon that I didn't need to go to...which means I was able to raid the lunch selection and go back to my desk to blog and eat:-). Half of a chicken Caesar wrap, half of a turkey/avocado/bacon/ranch wrap, some potato chips and three giant cookies later...here I am!

I am getting really excited for vacation now! I did a lot of packing last night (the idea of packing bathing suits is just divine) and am pretty much ready to roll. I definitely bought us matching sunglasses...yea, I am that much of a dork:-P. Still not 100% sure what we will do at Disney...definitely the Magic Kingdom for at least a day, but beyond that I figure we can play it by ear. One of the water parks would be fun, but since we are gonna be at the beach for four days afterwards, I am not sure I wanna do that. I'll have to see where we end up:-)

Chicken fingers tonight, of course;-). Thursday wouldn't be Thursday without it!

Slow News Day

The beauty of a short week is that, by day two...it's already Wednesday. How great is that? Answer: pretty great!

I have, basically, nothing to write about today. Work has been extremely busy, which has limited my blogging and chatting time. And I am trying to get some things wrapped up before I go away next week, which adds some pressure.

Munchkin is going to go over and stay with Smoking Hot Roommate and The Rocket Scientist while I am gone. The Boy has some sort of last minute travel issues that will keep him out of town for a couple of days, so it just seemed easier to have the little one stay at SHR's. Actually, since we live basically right around the corner from each other, they can all decide where they want to stay day-to-day. Maybe the landlord wants to come over and make sure I'm not wrecking her apartment:-P

If I had known ahead of time, I could have had one of our (or her) cousins come out to watch her. Several of them offer all the time, and I think they really would love to come out and spend some time with her. But this all kinda came about last minute, so it didn't work this time. I desperately owe The Boy a vacation (just as "us" vacation) soon, though, so I can work on it then.

Anyway, that is really about all I have for you. I will try and bring a little bit more to the table tomorrow;-)

Snow Bunny Extraordinaire

I hope that none of you missed me too much on my three day blog break... I just never got around to blogging. I could tell you that I didn't have time, but that would be a total lie...I had tons of time!

So, let's see. Got on the road in really good time on Friday, and most definitely had Chicken McNuggets for dinner:-) Total treat! Then, I ended up going on a date with a 50 year old married guy...:-). Munchkin's friend's father really wanted to go out because his older son's friend plays in a band that was playing a bar nearby (did that make sense?). The mom was beat and didn't feel like going, so I went with him for a little bit.

OK..."date" is strong... It was fun, though. Ski bums always make for the most mellow crowd you can imagine. Lots of hemp clothing, giant sweaters and beards...:-) Good music and a couple cold beers, all pretty good!

Everyone was gone skiing all day Saturday (and Sunday and most of Monday for that matter...it was warmish, so they skied a LOT). I ended up making pizza on Saturday and spaghetti and meatballs on Sunday. And nachos and quesadillas, too:-). And cookies and brownies. For brownie sundaes:-).

I took the girls out on Saturday to do some night-tubing, which was really the only significant time I spent outside of the house. Other than that, I took several long soaks in the hot tub, watched TV, did some work and read a lot. Very, very nice! I could have used a waiter/masseuse, but I don't want to sound too picky:-P.

And, yes, I definitely watched Nascar on Sunday afternoon:-P. My favorite Nascar driver did pretty well (after those stupid idiots almost crashed him out of the race!)...but the real news is that Munchkin is totally buddies with the guy who won. OK...she sat next to him on an airplane last summer when she flew to Chicago by herself. Close enough!

I guess that gets us to this week...which is thankfully a short one:-). And I am, of course, super excited about vacation next week...Yay!!!

Happy Valentine's Day

Sorry for being so late in the day again...I have barely had time to breath yet today, let alone blog! But I am now sort of wrapped up for the week, so I have plenty of time! I also have a lovely vase full of Valentine's flowers to inspire me. Thanks, The Boy:-)

Let's see...big crowd for chicken fingers last night. Munchkin, Smoking Hot Roommate, The Boy and I were joined by two of my friends and their boyfriends. It's really funny how many people look at such a simple act...going out to the same place for dinner every Thursday...and say "Wow, that is really cool." And, it totally is:-) I know I have a bunch of readers with kids, and I would strongly encourage you to do the same. It is just a really nice, designated time to do something together every week. And it's fun:-)

I guess that this will be my only chance to wish everyone a Happy Valentine's Day. I think it is a holiday that should be on a weekday all the time. It is just fun enough to make a work day better, but it really isn't fun enough to waste a weekend night on...if that makes sense. I do love getting flowers at work:-). I sent The Boy a dozen warm cookies from a bakery that delivers...I am sure he will appreciate that. And I got Munchkin some candy, too. Her brother sends her flowers at school every year, which is really very nice of him.

Packing up and leaving right after work for the weekend...and I am looking forward to it. It should be a nice, fun weekend with loads of time to myself to sit by the fire, cook, soak in the hot tub, watch TV and read. I am sure that we will have some gossip about boys, too...that is pretty standard fare for teenage girls on trips...

I think the plan is to try and get on the road by 6:00, which lets us miss the horrible rush hour traffic and hopefully get in front of some of the later vacationer traffic. We are taking two cars and will stop to eat somewhere along the way (oh yes, I am very excited about the prospect of McDonald's). If we can get there and get settled in at a reasonable hour, then they can all get up early to go skiing tomorrow.

No word yet on whether or not I will rekindle my snowboarding career...maybe if it's not too cold!

Old Movies and Dirty Thoughts

Has anyone ever seen "Whatever happened to baby Jane?" It's a black and white movie from 1962 starring Joan Crawford and Bette Davis (who, according to multiple sources, really did hate each other). It was on last night for some reason and I watched most of it. I had definitely heard of the title, and guess that I always kind of assumed it was kind of a sweet movie.

Not quite...it is actually really, really creepy! And there were a couple of scenes that would still be a little bit edgy today, and must have been very shocking in the early 1960's. It was really good, though, and Bette Davis is fabulously nuts:-) I should check Snarky's movie reviews and see if she has covered it:-D. Or, maybe she can start doing retro-Reviews:-)

Total and complete change of subject...I have had a lot of really outstanding sex lately. I think people go through phases and cycles, and there are times that you sort of get out of synch with each other. There are also times that it seems really hot, and everything seems sort of new and exciting again.

To be honest, I think consciously about this, and I usually make an effort to keep things interesting. And The Boy is sort of the same way...he definitely knows how to push my buttons, and I try and work his, too. For example, he was really run down when he got home the other night, tired from work and from some other shit, too. So I figured he would really appreciate a nice long back rub before bed. And just maybe I broke out the thigh highs and little plaid skirt to assist me in that effort:-).

But we are also just in a pretty good groove...dually peaking libidos, maybe? We just really seem to be on the same page all the time, which is a really good feeling:-). Not just that we seem to want it at the same times, but that we seem to want the same kinds at the same times...if I am in the mood for soft and sweet, he tends to be, too. And if I am in more of a hair-pulling, fingernails in the back mood...he seems to be as well.

It would be nice to be able to bottle this somehow and use it later...hee hee.

Um...that's all, I guess...

(Other people's) Baby News

Seriously, no food ideas? I thought I had some serious foodies as readers, and yet no one has a suggestion for ski trip food? (Laurwilk being the divine exception:-)) You really disappoint me, folks...

It's super warm today! Of course, that is a relative term...it is supposed to get to 50, maybe. But for February around here, that is about as good as you could possible hope for. Warm enough to walk around without a coat (provided you have a heavy sweater, of course.) I walked out my front door this morning and saw two really beautiful Blue Jays nibbling on something on the sidewalk...I figured that was probably a good sign, no?

Based on a gchat conversation yesterday, I called an old friend that I hadn't talk to in a bit. I mentioned her very briefly in a post a very long time ago about her super hot boyfriend (now husband). Anyway, I realized that I hadn't talked to her in forever, so I called her yesterday to catch up. And found out that she is having a baby:-) Actually, I found out that the two of them had, within the last hour, decided that it was time to tell people (other than the family that they had already told), so I was the first person that she got to tell and not have to keep ot a secret. So, there is your lesson for the day...call old friends, because you may get some good news!

Finally, I have a devious plan. I have mentioned it before. I need any of my readers in the Detroit area to contact me immediately...you can do it by comment, email or gChat (me.accidentally@gmail.com). Come to think of it, if you have any good friends in the Motor City, you should get in touch, too. OK...get to it.

Various Vacations

Sorry to be late to post again today...this work thing is making me all busy lately. What the crap is that all about?

Anyway, the interview went pretty well, I think. It was actually pretty long. School #2 is quite different than school #1, even though they are probably usually considered to be sort of similar. They are really close to each other and tend to battle each other in US News and other important rankings of these things. But the atmospheres are really different. School #2 is definitely more intense, at least at the undergrad level. The graduate business schools are likely more similar than the undergrads.

I'd be really surprised if I didn't get into #1. A little less surprised if I didn't get into #2, although I still expect to get into both. Should hear in a month or so...fingers crossed anyway:-)

I chatted with Tinkerbelle last night, and she is counting down the days until vacation, as am I:-). Looks like I am going to head to Chicago on that Friday to meet her, stay overnight and then fly with her to Orlando on Saturday. We will stay there until Wednesday morning, and then rent a car and drive to Jupiter on Wednesday. That gives us three full days in Disney, which should be enough for this trip. Munchkin and Smoking Hot Roommate (and maybe some others) are gonna meet us on Thursday night and stay until Sunday, at which point we will all head home.

I think it sounds like a great vacation, and I am really excited. I have made essentially the same exact trip with Munchkin twice, and I am really excited to do it with Tinkerbelle this time. She is gonna love it, I hope!

In the meantime, though...skiing this weekend. I am likely to take charge of all of the cooking again...any ideas on what to make for three adults and five teenagers? Chili, pizza, spaghetti and meatballs and lasagna have all worked in the past...and lots of cookies and brownies:-). All thoughts are encouraged...

It needs salt, dumbass!

Well, the bitter cold finally broke, and we are into a stretch of balminess that is supposed to last all week. Keep in mind that when I say "balmy", the temperature will not reach 50 at all, but at least it will get well out of the 20's. It's all relative...

I had a really excellent weekend:-) Friday night, The Boy and I had an early Valentine's Day date at one of my very favorite restaurants. Easily the least pretentious atmosphere of a restaurant like it that I have ever seen. There was a part of me that felt like we could take down the Porterhouse for two, but I wasn't really in a red meat kinda mood...

Munchkin was kind of gone all weekend without really being gone...lol. She slept at one friend's house on Friday, then came home for about two hours to change for basketball (an hour of which she spent on the phone with Frenchy:-)), then came home to shower and change again for a birthday party and to sleep at another friend's house. Then I got her at about 1:00 on Sunday...so I didn't see a whole lot of her all weekend! The good news is that I got to see a lot of The Boy...hee hee:-D.

I did drag him to dinner with the school parents on Saturday, which he is a total trooper to go to. Not that it is exactly torture...they are all nice, it is a pretty fun crowd and the food is always great...but there are clearly other things that he would rather be doing, I'm sure. Like me...zing!!!

We met up with Smoking Hot Roommate and some other friends later on but didn't stay real long. They had been at it for a while, and we were way behind on the blood-alcohol level meter by the time we met them. Had to make the choice to either catch up quickly or call it a night...and we were both tired, so we decided to eschew the hangovers and head home.

I made stuffed chicken breasts for dinner, but they didn't turn out great. Just OK. They were stuffed with bacon, cheddar and bread crumbs and I think I made a couple mistakes. First, I assumed that the bacon would be salty enough that it wouldn't need more salt...and I was wrong about that. Second, I should have used actual bread instead of bread crumbs so it would have bound better. Or maybe some butter in the stuffing. However, I threw some cayenne pepper in which gave it a really nice late spiciness... I may try again some other time with some changes...

And that is about it. I have an interview at school #2 today (the one that actually is in Cambridge;-))...so wish me luck!

Grad School Update

Many, many apologies for my absence for blogland yesterday...stupid work nonsense had be wrapped up all day and unavailable for fun stuff. Damn you, employment!!!

What I wanted to write about yesterday is business school. I have touched on this a little bit in the past, but I figure that I owe you a full update on the process, and on my current thinking. Funny how I tend to tell you everything I do in minute detail, but leave out a lot of the major things...hmmm...

Anyway, early in January, I submitted applications to two schools. [Two super smart-kid schools that I still can't really believe I could attend]. That included some essay writing, some recommendation commandeering (thanks to Bossy Foxy, Papa Bear and another one of the partners:-), and the assembly of a resume. I am almost ashamed to say that I have never written a resume, and needed lots and lots of Big Sis' help to do so...

Obviously, both schools are local...I am not moving anywhere any time soon. And, per the feedback I have gotten from almost everyone that I have asked, I am only interested in going full-time. From everything I hear, part-time is much harder, takes forever, and you miss out on many of the best parts of the experience. Since everyone else at work is post-grad, there isn't really a policy for reimbursement anyway. I suppose I could ask, but I don't really feel it necessary since they would give me a giant raise when I came back:-D. I'll end up taking on a whole lot of debt (maybe $75-80k over two years?), but I am not really worried about that...it will pay for itself in very short order.

So, where are we. Well, both applications are submitted, and I am confident that I will get into both. OK, sort of confident:-). I had an interview on Wednesday at school #1 (the one that is really in Allston even though you think it is in Cambridge:-P) which went very well. They loved me:-). I have an interview at the other next week, and hopefully that will go just as well.

However, I am not totally sold on enrolling in the Fall. It is an awfully big commitment, and I am not quite sure yet that I want to be that serious for my whole life. I love my job, and I love what I do...but I don't know if I want to be as serious about it as the other people that I work with. And it really only makes sense to do the work, spend the money and get the degree if I plan on doing that, at least for a while. There is something appealing about that...but I am not really convinced that it is me. So, I still have some thinking to do...

Anyway, that is the update...applied, should here in a couple of months, and then have to decide shortly thereafter.

Beyond that...it's the weekend! Had a great chicken finger date with Munchkin last night...it was so cold that we cheated and took a cab:-). Just the two of us, which I never mind, and we talked a lot about school and boys and her various activities and weddings and all kinds of fun stuff. She has a super busy weekend ahead, complete with two birthday parties, a basketball game, two sleepovers and some homework. And she will probably find some time to chat with Jaques L'Escargot.

I have an early Valentines date with The Boy tonight. I will be gone skiing next weekend, and we have a school parents dinner thing tomorrow, so this is really our only chance to have a Valentine's Day date. Not that the world would end if we didn't, but it seems like we should do something, right? Well, other than me running off to another state...hee hee:-)

That's enough for now...have a great weekend!

In lieu

Thanks to everyone for the insightful feedback on registering yesterday. I should correct one thing...a whole bunch of you seemed to find this to be a selfless and somewhat classy act. Before I accept your kudos, I have to admit that I would register at the Bank if it wasn't incredibly tacky...lol. So, yes, maybe your opinion of me has changed...but I can not lie by omission for the purposes of making you love me...:-D

Many of you hit on my biggest concern...which is that a lot of people will give us gifts anyways, because they want to, and not because they feel obligated. And while I would rather them have some guidance, I feel like registering tells everyone else that you are not really serious about not wanting gifts. The phrase "No gifts please" combined with "The bride and groom are registered at Crate and Barrel" seems to be sort of disingenuous and tacky.

I think at the moment we are leaning towards including a brief note with the invitation that very, very clearly spells out our sincere wish that people not buy us gifts. I actually think that picking charities helps in that sense...because it essentially is registering in the sense that it is telling people what you want for your wedding.

In addition, there are some things that we could do that would so obviously mean a lot to us that I think it would help people get used to the idea that this is what we really want. Something has come up with The Boy that makes a particular cause really relevant, and I love Hall's Kitchen's idea of finding one or more organizations that help young children who have lost one or more parents (and may not have mega-awesome big sisters and super cool pretend families!). I think if we asked that people donate to those places, they would understand how important it was to us, and realize that we really do mean it!

That is where we are at the moment...I think we are set on not registering at any stores, but are still up in the air on what to tell people and how. More on this a it develops...

Tomorrow...more things that I owe you updates on...school!!!

Loose ends

Well...surprise, surprise, it's snowing again...who saw that coming?

I have a couple of random things today. First, a hearty congratulations to Aaron and his lovely bride Sarah on their upcoming wedding. I believe that the big day is this Friday! I still remember their first date...and I guess it speaks to how long I have been blogging that I have been around for their entire relationship so far (well, the portion of it that he has chosen to share;-)). So, congratulations to them both and best wishes for a great wedding and a great marriage.

Second, I have to give a shout out to this post from Billy...the two pictures at the end actually made me laugh audibly at my desk. I think it is the hat...

Third, I have had a bunch of questions about wedding planning, and I am kind of embarrassed to say that I don't really feel like I have much to do. Part of it is that I don't waste time on non-sensical details (um...the centerpieces should match the invitations and the bridesmaids dresses? I apologize for not being able to summon up even one ounce of concern...) And another part is that I am using basically all of the same vendors (caterer, florist, DJ, photographer...) that Smoking Hot Roommate and Big Sis both used the last two years.

I may not register...is that bad of me? We really don't need anything...we have very nice dishes and glasses and silverware and linens and all of the stuff you should register for. I don't have formal china which a) doesn't really bother me, and b) isn't enough stuff to make it worth registering. In addition, I am not exactly getting married in the easiest or cheapest place to get to, so I feel like just traveling to be there is present enough from most people.

So, I am thinking that we should include a note in the invitation telling people that we really don't want them to give us gifts. Anyone have any thoughts on this? I could also go the charity route...either ask people to give to a charity of our choice instead, or a charity of their own choice...not sure how I feel about that.

I guess that is enough for now;-)

Weekend recap

It is about 40 degrees outside, and it feels like we have all been transported to Aruba...it is amazing how quickly you get beat down by 12 degree days... Being able to walk around without a hat and mittens seems like almost summer!

So, let's see...the weekend...where to begin. How about Friday:-P? First of all, I did get a copy of the email from my boss to the prospective employee, and it was kinda hilarious. The whole thing was really in the vein of a well crafted back-handed...basically "We are sorry to have wasted your time, we really mis-read your resume and we apologize for having you come in for an interview based on our misunderstanding." But it very clearly said "let's be a little more realistic next time."

Munchkin had some friends stay over on Friday...so I only went out for a little bit to have a drink with some friends while the girls were at the movies. Then I met them and brought them back to our place...I hung out with them for a bit, but then I sort of left them alone. The Boy stayed out with our friends, but he was home kinda on the early side, too.

Saturday morning started with making the girls breakfast (of which The Boy ate roughly 60%) and then getting them all off to their various homes. Getting three 13 year old girls packed up, even after one night, is no small task...it is exhausting...

Then Munchkin talked to Pepe L'Amore for a while (how many different nicknames do you think I can come up with for him?) I have to admit that I am at least a little surprised that they have kept this up. At that age, kids tend to have very short attention spans...and this has now gone on for about a month. I guess she really like him:-)

We had a bit of a change of plans on her date with the kinda-dorky boy. His father caught something of a violent flu this weekend, and couldn't go (which is probably a huge bummer...this was kind of a big deal, and I have to feel like he wanted to be there), so his mom asked if I wanted to go at the last minute. I know her a bit through school things and I like her, and Munchkin thought it was a great idea, so I met them for dinner and for the concert. It was actually a pretty good time.

Munchkin was gorgeous, as always, and the boy got her a really pretty corsage thing to pin to her dress. His mom said he was actually kind of excited to pick it out on his own...and despite his obvious social awkwardness, he has a wonderful, understated taste in pinned flowers...lol. I talked with his mom quite a bit, and she gushed about Munchkin even more than I tend to:-D From her perspective, Munchkin has given her son a much needed shot of self esteem, and she feels like the simple gesture of agreeing to go to this thing with him made him immediately more confident and just basically happier. So much so that there may be another girl in the picture...hee hee:-)

Anyway, I don't really spend much time at the Symphony, and I doubt I would enjoy it that much if I did, but it is kind of a treat. The music is fantastic, and while the whole experience is a touch on the snooty side (:-D), it is certainly enjoyable once in a while. I don't quite see myself buying season passes, though...

Took a LONG walk with The Boy on Sunday morning, which was really nice. It was nice to be outside without the cold physically hurting! We stopped for breakfast and just kinda meandered and enjoyed the quiet time. He actually had a lot to talk about, so it was nice to be able to sit and listen for a while.

Then I did some serious de-cluttering of the apartment. Packed some stuff up, threw some stuff out, cleaned and just basically got everything more organized. Desperately needed to do that, and I felt much better when it was done! Finished it all up with a Super Bowl party at a friend's place. Didn't stay until the end, since Munchkin had to get to bed, but I did let her watch the end of it at home. Very exciting finish!

And that, I guess, is about it:-) More snow tomorrow, I am hearing...