Birthday Surprise

Taylor wanted to surprise me by coming home from college for my birthday today, so Jim set up this elaborate ruse about having to go into work for a meeting, etc etc.

In reality, he headed to Brattleboro to pick Taylor up off the train!
It's super hard to surprise me with ANYTHING, but they pulled it off :)

Best birthday surprise EVER.
Love you, sweet girl!

Ocean breezes were calling

Seen while kayaking last weekend on Salt Pond Bay, Cape Cod, MA
Did we get stuck in the mud flats? yes
Did we have to slog through mud 6" deep to get unstuck? yes
Did salt water and mud splash all over us, and my camera? yes
Did we have fun anyway? yes

A quick link..

It looks like today I am sharing some links with you all. 

The earlier one from today hopefully made you laugh..this one will make you think and maybe cry. 

It's worth sharing. 

It's a post from a blogger who is a professional photographer, a wife, a mom, and a genuine lovely person whose husband was recently deployed to Afghanistan (I have to confess, however, that I have never met Karen Russell in person, but have been reading her blog for years...lol)

Here is one of her posts from last week that I thought deserved, no NEEDED to be shared.

Go HERE

A quick funny

Click here for the giggle of the day....

Mums for Mom [+Dad]

Our annual trek to the "Mum Farm" [as we call it] happened this weekend. Jim calls it the best deal on the planet. Huge, gorgeous mums, cornstalks with CORN still on it, and beautifully shaped pumpkins for an amazingly cheap price.

One photo challenge

Being such a blog slacker that I am, I am giving myself a blog challenge that I hope will be doable, and one that gives me the opportunity to improve.

I resolve to post ONE photo a day. Period. With a small description of the photo. Something my children can look at and remember HOME.

I have high hopes I can meet this challenge!

Here's today's photo:

The makings of Curried Butternut Squash Soup (from here) headed into the crockpot. Despite the decidedly UNfall weather we are having, looking outside and seeing the leaves begin to turn inspires me to once again crank out some soups from my kitchen.

Here's the recipe if you're interested....

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

• 4 tablespoons sweet butter
• 2 C finely chopped yellow onions*
• 4 to 5 teaspoons curry powder
• 2 medium-size butternut squash*
• 2 apples*, peeled, cored and chopped
• 3 C chicken stock
• 1 C apple juice
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1 shredded unpeeled Granny Smith apple (for garnish)

1. Melt the butter in a pot. Add chopped onions and curry powder and cook, covered, over low heat until onions are tender, about 25 minutes.
2. Meanwhile peel the squash (a regular vegetable peeler works best), scrape out the seeds and chop the flesh.
3. When onions are tender, pour in the stock, add squash and apples and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer partially covered, until squash and apples are very tender, about 25 minutes.
4. Pour the soup through strainer, reserving liquid and transfer the solids to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, or use a food mill fitted with a medium disc. Add I cup of the cooking stock and process until smooth.
5. Return puréed soup to the pot and add the apple juice and additional cooking liquid, about 2 cups, until the soup is of the desired consistency.
6. Season to taste wit salt and pepper, simmer briefly to heat through and serve immediately, garnished with shredded apple

4 to 6 portions

32 years.

I met a boy when I was seventeen years old. 

A mutual friend set us up on a blind date. 

I didn't really want to go, but reluctantly agreed. 

That blind date, turned into a second date, then a third, we fell in love, and well, five years later I married that boy.

We bought a house, had three kids, tried to raise them up to be the best they could be, and sent them out into the world. 

Now we are back to just the two of us again. 

 

You and me. 

Today marks thirty two years married, and a little more than 37 years together.

Still in love, and best of all, still in like.


My present for you...

32 things.

1. You are handsome. And sexy.
2. You love to hold my hand.
3. You clean up the kitchen when I cook.
4. You vacuum. And dust!
5. You smile when I take your picture, even though I stick that camera in your face too often.
6. You still make me feel young....even though I am almost a senior citizen (yikes).
7. You surprise me with roses.
8. You make me laugh...a lot.
9. You make a mean grilled pizza.
10.  You are the best dad to our three kids. 
11. You work very, very hard to support our family.
12. You say sorry first, even when I should be the one to say it.
13. You call people on the telephone because of my telephone phobia.
14. You laugh at my weak attempts at jokes.
15. You still make my heart do flip flops when you come home from a trip.
16. You love planning vacations together.
17. You kiss me goodbye every morning when I am still sleeping.
18. You know exactly what to say to soothe my worries. And that ain't easy.
19. You let me sit in the front of our kayak and take pictures while you paddle.
20. You have discovered how much fun cooking can be, esp when we cook together.
21. You grill our supper outside, even when it is raining (and I know how much you hate rain!)
22. You rub my feet every night.
23. You love to sing your favorite songs out loud, playing air guitar.
24. You are passionate about many, many things; but especially Giants football.
25. You changed millions of diapers when our kids were babies.
26. You got up at night many many times when our kids were sick.
27. You call me on the phone everyday from work to tell me you miss me.
28. You always tell me that everything I make is delicious.
29. You pour me a coffee on weekends and bring it to me.
30. You walk me to the bathroom in the middle of the night when we are camping.
31. You wash my car and vacuum it too.
32. You love nothing more than to come home, eat supper and then snuggle on the couch together.

And most importantly.....
 You tell me you love me every single day.

Happy Anniversary.