Just a little busy lately...

A little busy the last week or 2...planning a trip....working....planning another trip!!!

This past week, Jim, Taylor and I were away for 4 days doing college tours...Boston, Burlington, VT and then back to Boston! We had lots of fun, were very busy and did lots of walking...not so good for my chronic plantar fasciitis, but it was all worth it. Of course we had to head to the North End in Boston for an Italian dinner, and OF COURSE we had to go to Mike's Pastry later on that evening!(Waiting in line at Mike's)

(Taylor deciding on a shopping game plan at Quincy Market :)


(View of Lake Champlain from the 3rd floor balcony at the Champlain College Library)(Chillin' at Ben+Jerry's in Downtown Burlington with Elena)

Spring Stuff

Got out in the spring weather yesterday....started cleaning up my flower bed...will finish raking out the dead stuff a bit later. Then headed to watch Taylor in a double's tennis match...the bonus was the sunny, warm weather.
Jim and I dragged the kayak out of the garage this afternoon after having it sit there all winter...we headed out to the Dam and pushed off...3 hours of kayaking ensued...we found 2 hidden rivers and were surprised by a huge Great Blue Heron. Would have brought my camera, but it was too windy and I was afraid of getting the camera wet. Did take pictures with my phone, but I don't have a cable that will transfer it to my computer yet...but I will soooooon. :)

.So thankful it's spring....

Sunday Scenes

Just a glimpse into our day yesterday....

First Taylor was down for the count getting some much needed rest on the couch....Followed soon after by Jim clutching his favorite stuffed animal..lol

While they were busy sawing wood, I was busy making biscotti for the first time...
Almond and Pignoli Nut biscotti..yummy.

A quick look out the front door yielded..could it be?? Yes, a glimpse of green grass.

My phone contract was due to be renewed which brought Jim and I to Verizon in the morning to replace my phone...and none too soon as my phone has not been a happy camper lately...Dropping calls left and right.
Since I text lots and lots more than I used to--I decided on the Envy 2, with the full keyboard.
Love it!

And my purse is ripping at the seams, so a quick stop at TJ Maxx on the way home yielded this lovely spring purse with my favorite features..LOTS OF POCKETS for all my "stuff".

A very nice Sunday spent by all....

Makin' me HAPPY today.....

Freshly ironed shirts hanging in the closet.....

New orange bowls for cereal, yogurt, salad, dessert....luscious.

Enjoying my new subscription to my favorite food magazine...thanks, Dabs!

Best snack/pseudo dessert...Mint tea and Newton's Apple Crisps.

Taylor doing her Child Dev't class homework.... studying articles in parenting magazines.
So...cute.

I love my life....

A Fun Evening...

Last night we had a couple of dinner guests...Father Don, Jim's cousin, and Dabi and Brooks. We had a fantastic dinner of homemade marinara sauce with low-fat ground chicken meatballs, salad (romaine, strawberries, pine nuts, red onion) and homemade italian bread...mmm. mmmm.

We had DVR'd the UConn BB game so that we could enjoy dinner and then watch the game. It was an exciting game and Jim and Donald were absorbed in the game...Mom, Brooks and I were too, but not until the last 10 minutes...in the meantime, the three of us giggled through a picture taking session!

Music Junkie, Part 2

I would have purchased 2 more songs today that I really wanted, but unfortunately (or fortunately for my music budget) they are not available for download until tomorrow. If you are a fan of American Idol, you know that Adam Lambert and Anoop Desai rocked last night when they sang Tracks of my Tears and Ooo Baby Baby respectively. Jim and I got chills listening to them..they were unbelievable. Can't wait to download the songs from iTunes in the morning!

Here are the rest of my top 10 favorite songs (#6-#10) that I have recently downloaded to my iPod...(at least they are my favorite today) I have lots of songs in my music library now...some purchased, lots Taylor has shared with me, some from CD's I have or borrowed.

#6...One of my favorite all time songs, no matter the artist, is Amazing Grace. I love almost every rendition of it. But a couple of years ago, I heard Ruben Studdard (yes, another Am Idol winner who is in fact singing on American Idol this very moment...) sing my favorite song. Well, after listening to numerous other people singing this gospel ballad, I kept coming back to Ruben, and it was his version that I downloaded.

So #6 is Ruben Studdard singingAmazing Grace

#7.....KT Tunstall singingBlack Horse and the Cherry Tree
an infectious, have-to-get-up-and-dance tune; it rocks.

#8...Plain White T's singingHey There Delilah
a beautiful, melodic, hypnotic song.

9.....Beyonce singing
If I Were a Boy
(and Single Ladies I love too)

10......
Yael Naim singingNew Soul
This song blew me away from the get-go.

Hope you enjoyed my double posts on music...it's my new obsession!!