MWF seeking new local BFF

So as you may know my favorite friend Katie is moving all the way across the country.  In fact, there are only a few other places she could move domestically that would be further away (maybe Maine or St. Augustine)

Today we went to the beach.  I hope she posts a pic of either the dead non-singing bass we saw or the seaweed grass skirts (since you don't have an iphone you can mms it to me and I can post it) to show how much fun it was.

I soo heart this friend of mine and she had me at "yeah it was a little crazy" when I questioned her about a event in which we had both participated and were afraid to acknowledge its craziness in public.

Actually even prior to that time I remember that at the first playgroup I attended when moving to SB, she used her mad newsreporter skillz to discover everything about me in a short conversation.  It was only about an hour later when I realized that I didn't know anything about her.

See that is Katie's magic.  She asks the most detailed and interesting questions that make your own life seem infinitely more interesting than it actually is.  Some people talk so much you can hardly get a word in edgewise.  With Katie, you continually fall into a trap of being that guy--she asks so many questions that I always walk away wondering how anyone could listen to me talk for that long and still manage to appear interested.

Most amazing is that Katie isn't using this strategy to deflect from her own lack of interestingness.  She has more creativity in her small toe than most people do in their entire beings yet it takes you at least a year to even scratch the surface.   She takes brilliant pictures, she makes the most carefully crafted boutiquey bows worn by children all over, she has a wild sense of humor that you must listen carefully to catch (or read) and btw, her birthday parties are legendary.  If you are a regular reader, you know that she was our FIRST place baker in our dessert contest.  Her recipes are posted over here if you want some scrumptiousness.  There are so many other things to say about her but I don't want to reveal in ten minutes what it took me four years to learn.  Four years and what feels like a lifetime of friendship.

My one consolation is that Katie and I are friends online already--we read and comment on each other's blogs, facebook updates, and email each other links to funny/inappropriate/political shockery.

My other comfort is that she is moving to such a fun place I will be able to hold out for a periodic family vacation visit.

I won't say I am sad for her, only for me and the gigantic hole she is leaving behind.

Anything I forgot about her?

Coast to Coast

I cannot really explain how beautiful the Hudson River Valley is and these pictures do not capture it at all, but trust me when I say that if you are looking for a peaceful, lush green, historical masterpiece of a trip, you should really spend some time in this region.

The Hudson Valley is New York's Loire. Stunning and surprisingly underrated.

So here goes my very picture intensive post... with limited commentary to clarify.

Dinner in Saratoga Springs, forgot pics.

Next up, one of the beautiful Mansions built during the Gilded Age when the Hudson River was one of the financial capitals of the US.

Apparently there are a quite few of these beauties that fell into desrepair and have become the dwelling of the crazy cat lady types. I felt like I was an intruder in a past era in which Mr. Darcy was going to come strolling out of the lake in his skivvies.  Here is the backside of the mansion.

From Smart Remarks Book Club

The  backyard--or at least a very narrow view of it...

From Smart Remarks Book Club

Next up CIA

Grounds were stunning

From Smart Remarks Book Club

And one of their weekend cooking classes:

From Smart Remarks Book Club

I have several, several shots of the flora that I will spare you from viewing but you have to know that this was one of several gorgeous scenes I saw:

From Smart Remarks Book Club

The gardens of the Vanderbilt:

From Smart Remarks Book Club

And I hate to be geeky, but an inspiring visit was to this guy's old romping ground:

From Smart Remarks Book Club

Here was the casa where the Roosevelt's lived:

From Smart Remarks Book Club

FDR as a kid. Age 5. I know.

From Smart Remarks Book Club

Geeky history teacher paraphernalia:

From Smart Remarks Book Club

AND

From Smart Remarks Book Club

More flora... HUNDREDS of varieties of trees, hundreds!

From Smart Remarks Book Club

And while I didn't have Meg, I had this lovely little morsel hanging around for the day:

And wonderful hostess plus doggie:

 

From Smart Remarks Book Club

And of course lots of good food to be eaten in every last place

From Smart Remarks Book Club

This particular piece (espresso cheesecake) was eaten in the historical little town of Woodstock. Which looked like this:

From Smart Remarks Book Club

So... this does not capture the majesty of the Hudson River but hopefully it at least gives you the feeling that it invoked in me last weekend.  I hope that I meet her again one day.

Hudson Valley Tour

What I experienced yesterday:

More of What I Do

Here is a little clip for your viewing pleasure.

Travel bad.  Reform good.

Travelogue

You may be wondering how many days I traveled in a year--July of last year to June of this year including a week projected in June:

93

I know.

Happiness

Moonwalker

Casey, Bridget and I are taking a "Mom and Me" Michael Jackson hip-hop dance class. It is a Thriller to say the least.

Saturday we learned how to do this:

Since then Casey moonwalks everywhere--around the living room, kitchen, hallway, etc. Apparently he has taken to doing this at school as well so when I asked about it, I sucked in my breath ready to hear about how the other kids are making fun of him (he has a track record.) This is how the conversation ensued:

M: So... do kids think that is so cool?
C: Some.
M: Oh do others think it isn't cool?
C: Some kids are like "that is so cheap."
M: So... what did you say to them?
C: I was like "hey at least I have the guts to do it."
M: I LOVE IT! High five, that is my son.

I seriously never expected that to come out of his mouth--we have really struggled with how to fight back against the bullying stuff at school, trying to be more assertive, etc. and it just never occurred to me that one day he would just become more confident.

Thanks MJ, for the great gift of confidence to my 10 year old.

Happy Mother's Day

Today was a wonderful Mother's Day for me--I finally learned the secret to enjoying this day: remembering its purpose is for each individual to celebrate mothers in their own way.  That little shift in my mindset made all the difference for me today.

So I must do a post on someone who deserves to be celebrated today: Auntie Lissa.

Melissa watched my little Meg for me from sunup to sundown including some evening hours.  She played with her in the pool, the hotel room, shopping areas, and all around Napa so I could work without disruption.  She came for the week at great personal opportunity cost and was amazing.  Meg already has a bigger vocabulary because Melissa is always so interactive and attentive. 

We did get to stay in the beautiful Napa Valley Embassy Suites which I always forget is so nice until I stay there again:

I know it isn't quite like the River Terrace Inn for location, but it was near the outlets, which led to other benefits to me...

It was wonderful to go shopping with Melissa who even played the role of personal shopper by putting a beautiful coat on hold for me at BR which I ended up buying...

And to go to dinner, even if it was for a few split seconds only while Meg was restless at the table at our favorite place, which incidentally still is not serving that fabulous farro salad we had so many years ago:

 

Lastly, just hanging out and watching the Biggest Loser results, or talking feels like it is never enough.

So since she is always gifted with children and treats my own children with such love and attention, I would like to spend my Mother's Day wishes on her today.


Happy Mother's Day Liss!

Scaling up

My work is scaling up big time--think of this: instead of adding one child at a time, you add quadruplets.

So this has had me on the road 6 of the last 11 weeks.  It doesn't sound like much but it has taken a toll on me.  And Steve.

In other news, the company "one machine to rule them all" policy led my IT department to give me a Lenovo instead of a Mac.  While this has me very sad, I have come to terms with the fact that at the end of the day a machine is just a machine.

At least I get to keep my iphone.

Dessert Finale

When you are in the finals, you are supposed to have home court advantage.
You also should prepare a trophy in the event you don't win.

In spite of refrosting my red velvet cupcakes because the recipe contained too much sugar, those little red dealios with cream cheese topping still could not stand up to the amazing crunchiness of Katie's *lemony peach tart and maple cream sauce.

If you are going to lose on a dessert competition, being beat by this particular dessert makes it very sweet.
Now that we have run through two of these tournaments, I can honestly say that in this case, the best man really did win.

Congratulations to Katie on overcoming homecourt advantage and winning the FINAL round of baking. I think someone should alert Michelle Obama that a star baker is moving to the capital region.

And PS, though we had a small group, we were able to tackle immigration and engage in a heated debate about Arizona's new police state law. Now I bet you are sad you missed it.


*Not sure this is the real title