Ms. Porter House (pictured here in her puppy days) celebrates her thirteenth birthday today. By the traditional 1 year=7 dog years formula, that makes her a very respectable 91 years old.
Celebrations
September 01, 2010
July 05, 2010
Our 4th of July
We blew things up. (Yes, that is Sweet Sister with a blow torch. What, doesn't everyone use a blowtorch to light fireworks?)
We drank fruity drinks from pineapples and napped and played in the pool. (Evidentially, Nice Cousin specializes in artistic, served-in-a-pineapple concoctions. How did I not know this before?)
We were cheerleaders. (OK, I was a cheerleader. Sweet Husband and Nice-Sister-In-Law actually ran in the local "Firecracker" 5K, which was considerably more taxing than clapping and yelling for them as they whizzed by. They are the rock stars to my groupie.)
June 25, 2010
A Green and Golden Wedding
Wedding photo gig number two. Date: Memorial Day weekend. Setting: A pretty little lake, tucked away in the country. Bride and Groom: The very first really, truly friends we made in Lawrence...our favorite double date for sushi...and just a pair that it's so easy to be happy for.
And they totally let me take their picture in a canoe!
May 29, 2010
A Broccoli Romance
I fell in love with my husband over broccoli. Not even kidding. This broccoli, in fact.
We started dating my senior year of high school. (He was a sophomore--yes, I was the older woman!) Just about a month after we started dating, our high school band (of which we were both members) took a group trip to Washington D.C. We were big enough to be separated into two different tour groups, and--of course--we ended up in separate groups. But one of the days the two groups got together was the day we toured Mt. Vernon.
While others checked out the house, Sweet Husband and I wandered off on into the gardens. And for the first time in my life, I saw broccoli growing.
I was not a city kid growing up. I had dogs and bunnies and goats, for goodness sakes! But somehow I had never seen broccoli growing. It was like little broccoli trees just sticking out of the ground...I was entranced. And instead of making fun--as many sophomore boys would have done--or rushing me along or being bored, Sweet Husband was excited with me. And--while I can't claim that was when I knew he was forever, because that didn't come until later--that was certainly when I started to think that maybe he was a keeper.
Happy Anniversary Babe!
February 05, 2010
A Hat Fit For A Baby Brother
I don't often blog about my baby brother. He's right smack-dab between Sweet Sister and I in age (seven years younger than me, ten years older than her), and actually sort of the typical middle odd-child-out, despite the big age gaps between all of us. Sweet Sister and I are both very artsy--although each in different ways--while Baby Brother is much more athletic.
Like brothers and sisters sometimes do, we could be very mean to each other growing-up. I gave him three black eyes by the time he was in kindergarten (in my defense, two were accidental and the third time he told me to hit him). He once pulled me across the kitchen floor by my hair (my scalp still hurts when I remember it).
We weren't always such violent little thugs, of course--I still have the book that I read to him before bed every night for six months once, complete with voices and sound effects. But suffice to say, although I always loved him--and would have defended him to the death to any one outside the family, and vise-versa--it took us both getting a bit older before we really grew to like each other.
But, now that we're all grown-up, I must admit that it's very nice to have a brother. He tends to just show-up in Lawrence at the most fun times, always with some story of adventure to tell. He taught me how to play beer pong. He introduced me to Dave Mathews, and always burns me a copy of his new CDs. He's fearless when lighting fireworks. He helps move my furniture....and he's really become a guy that I'm pretty proud of.
And since I have such a nice brother, and today is his birthday, I decided that he needed something Meryl-made. And since there are only so many knitted things a college-aged boy will wear, I thought, perhaps, a simple hat was in order.
The pattern is Stephanie Nicole's "A Hat Fit For a Boyfriend" and it's knitted in alpaca. (Full details.) I was a little worried that it looked floppy as I was knitting it, but was actually very pleased once I had Sweet Husband try it on for photographing.
Happy Birthday Baby Brother!
January 26, 2010
January 01, 2010
Wiping Off the Check Marks, Starting With a Clean Slate
When we were back with the family just before Christmas, Cutie Niece was excited to let us know that her teacher had wiped all their bad behavior check marks off before the holiday so they could start with a clean sheet next year.
New year, clean slate--it's a nice thought really.
Actually, Cutie Niece reminds me of myself a bit sometimes, because--other than the normal mishaps that come with being a spirited little girl--she's a really good kid. I'm sure she got about one check mark to the average kid's ten, but that one just rankles her little soul. I was the same way.
I am the same way.
I can file a hundred court motions on time, but I beat myself up for the one that gets missed and ends up late. I can be a good friend day in and day out, but I remember the one time I fell through. I can be smart and on top of it 97% of the time, but I replay the moments that I'm not. The sins in my closet are tiny in the grand scheme of things, but sometimes I perceive them to be so big.
So this year, my New Year's resolution is to give myself a clean slate. To do my best and then let it go. To consciously work to tell that inner, self-doubting, naggy voice to just shut-up already. To wipe the check marks off and start with a clean slate....It's going to be such a great year!
Happy New Year's everyone!
(Picture c/o aronski / CC BY-NC 2.0.)
December 31, 2009
2009 :: Some Highlights
Just a few moments and adventures from the outgoing year....can all of this have really happened in just 12 months?
Quite Possibly the Perfect Buche de Noel
I can't let the year slip out without a post about this guy, but I promise this will be my last Christmas-y post. (Excluding a little Christmas present knitting, but that doesn't count right? Right!)
Through the whole month of December I went back and forth about whether to make a Buche de Noel (that's a Christmas Yule Log cake, in English, but it's so much more fun to say it in French). Our local bakery makes them, but they're kind of expensive...which is fair because they can be a big pain to make yourself.
'Round about December 22nd though, I found this recipe promising an "easy yule log". It looked simple enough, so I finally made up my mind to give it a go.
Seriously--easiest buche ever! It took me less than an hour (excluding cooling time, of course) to put it all together, and it tasted wonderful! I'm so excited to find a buche that doesn't take four hours and four thousand ingredients--yay, yay, yay!
Have a happy, safe New Year everyone!
*****
Bûche de Noël (Slightly modified from Easy French Food)
- 4 eggs (these have to be at room temperature)
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup cake flour (sifted before measuring)
- 2 Tablespoons Grand Marnier or other flavoring
Butter a 10 X 15 inch jelly roll pan. Line with parchment paper and butter that as well. Preheat oven to 400° F.
In a mixer beat the eggs until they are very thick and light colored (this takes about 7 minutes). Continue beating and add the sugar in 1 tablespoon at a time, allowing each spoonful to mix in before continuing with the next. Beat in the vanilla as well.
Stop the mixer and sift 1/2 cup cake flour on top of the batter. Using a spatula, gently stir the flour into the batter. Sift the final 1/2 cup flour on top and then very gently fold this into the batter. You want to stop as soon as all the flour is integrated into the batter. This will give you a lovely, airy cake.
Pour and spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake for just 10 minutes. Do not overbake or the cake will be too stiff to roll without breaking.
Dust a clean dishtowel with powdered sugar. As soon as you take the cake out of the oven, turn it out onto the towel. Remove the parchment paper and allow the cake to cool for a couple of minutes. Douse with Grand Marnier or other flavoring. While it is still warm, roll the cake up from one of its short ends with the dishtowel inside (this way the cake gets used to being rolled and won't tear when you fill it and roll it back up). Allow the cake to cool completely.
Unroll the cake, and spread about 1/2 of the chocolate buttercream (recipe below) evenly on top. (This recipe really does make enough icing, so don't be scared to use too much!) Carefully roll the cake back up and neatly place on your serving dish.
Optional: To enhance the yule log effect, cut off the ends at an angle and use these to create stubs on the log (they're supposed to look like cut off branches), attaching them with some buttercream.
Frost the outside of the log and, using a fork, trace irregular lines in the frosting to give it a woody effect. Cover the cake carefully with plastic wrap and allow it to "age" in the refrigerator for several hours.
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- 1/2 cup soft unsalted butter
- 3 1/4 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 cup buttermilk
- A little more Grand Marnier or other flavoring
Whip the butter in your mixer until is is light and creamy. Sift together the sugar, cocoa and salt and add this to the butter. Beat until well mixed then add the vanilla, buttermilk, and a splash of whatever flavoring you're using. Beat until very smooth. You may have to add a little more buttermilk to give it a spreadable consistency. This makes just the right amount of buttercream for the yule log cake recipe above.
December 30, 2009
Ornament Swap 2009
Although I believe more will be trickling in still, these are the ornaments I've gotten so far in Freshly Blended's Ornament Swap. It was a lot of fun this year because I got to see, not only the ornaments I received, but all of Nice Mom and Nice Mom-In-Law's ornaments too.
I've only done this for two years now, but it's become absolutely one of my favorite holiday traditions. Everyone is so creative and the ornaments are always beautiful! To see more of them and be completely inspired, check out the flickr pool of all of this year's ornaments.
December 29, 2009
A Merry Little Christmas (Part Two)
Christmas morning we woke up to this outside...
Inside, for the very first time, we filled stocking for each other this year. We must have both been thinking along the same wavelength, because both stockings contained (among other things) new wool socks!
(Beautiful but chilly hardwood floors + winter = a newfound adoration of wool socks!)
Presents were opened and general Christmas morning laziness ensued...
...but eventually we 'roused ourselves up to go outside...
...where we shoveled both at our house and at our "adopted" snow shoveling house for about two and a half hours. It was a workout! In fact, we had discussed going sledding afterward, but we were both starving by the time the shoveling was done...
...so we feasted instead! I chose bread and cheese goodies, while Sweet Husband had ribs. Then we had a movie marathon and knitting session, punctuated by phone calls from family near and far.
It was a very nice little Christmas indeed!
December 28, 2009
A Merry Little Christmas (Part One)
I hope you'll forgive me as I tie up some Christmas-y loose ends this week. As is usual, December isn't long enough!
But our Christmas celebrations? Pretty much perfect, I have to say.
The festivities kicked off Christmas Eve with a little party at Sweet Husband's work. Every year after the store closes on Christmas Eve they have a little party with champagne to celebrate the fact that they've all survived another Christmas season in retail!
They may look sweet, but these are battle hardened veterans, I tell you....
We managed to get home just before the real snow started....
And, in a wonderful little last minute, impromptu-y thing, ended up having some of the best company I can think of for dinner....
After some games and dessert, our guests headed for home and we went out for a somewhat tipsy romp in the (then getting much deeper) snow with the pups. The Christmas pj's were opened, Twas the Night Before Christmas was read, and we settled in for warm, cozy night....
December 25, 2009
Happy Holidays Friends!
Did two Christmas cards this year--dogs weren't being cooperative, so we decided to do one of just us too. And then we giggled.
You would too if you were out on your porch with a camera and a tripod and your neighbors laughing at you!
But aside from that....travel safe if you're traveling, bunker down cozy if you're staying home, and have a very Happy Christmas!
December 24, 2009
Porter Speaks: Waiting for the Man With the Bag
Mom says Santa will be coming soon. I'm watching for him very carefully.
It's my duty to bark at everyone who enters our house, of course, but also I want to be sure to get the jump on Moe vis-a-vis Santa's bag of treats. While Moe is much quicker than I am these days, I have infinitely more patience--thus, the waiting....
And I'm also hoping he'll give me something extra special if I return his hat!
December 23, 2009
An Ornament Wreath...Er, Sort Of
The idea for this project came from Just a Girl. It's supposed to be--and her's ended up as--a wreath.
Mine? Not so much...although it is kind of an attractive "ball of balls", so to speak.
It really should be an easy little project--take ornaments, string them on wire = wreath.
I believe my mistakes were three:
- I didn't buy enough ornaments. I started with 36 little ornaments. I should have had double that number at least.
- I somehow got glass ornaments instead of plastic. When you're bending and squeezing the wire, trust me, you want plastic. I ended with 34 little ornaments.
- I think the verdict is still out on whether to use a coat hanger as your wire base (as Just a Girl suggests). If you had the right number of ornaments--or a thin, crappy coat hanger--it would probably be just great. I evidentially picked the most sturdy coat hanger ever built, which made it very difficult to bend or (when I ran short of ornaments) cut off. Sweet Husband had to get out the super-duper wire cutters, and even then it was dicey.
Nonetheless, I still think it ended up very passable.
December 22, 2009
Homemade Holiday Fabric Goodies
If you'd asked me a few years ago, I wouldn't have dreamed I'd be the type of person to whip up my own table runners and pillow covers. But I wanted some Christmas-y stuff and didn't want to spend a lot of cash on something that will spend most of the year in a box, so I decided to give it a go.
My table runner, while it ended up OK, could use a little work still. (It's a very long seam to keep straight and even.)
However, I will probably never buy another pillow cover again. Literally, it's one of the easiest bits of sewing ever to come out of my machine. Like, if you've ever made a pillow, it's even easier than that. I used these directions, and it only took me about twenty minutes to make two. At that rate, my little throw pillows are likely to get new covers every month!
December 21, 2009
A Small Solstice Offering
Although I know many people think they're a nuisance, our entire family gets a lot of entertainment value from the squirrels that have built a nest in our backyard. Sweet Husband and I get a kick out of watching them perch on the fence preening their tails and surveying their territory. The dogs get a kick out of chasing them up the trees and barking at them. (I swear they even let Porter almost catch them just to make her feel young and spry....)
And since it's the longest night of the year--and certainly cold enough to be getting on with--I gathered up some goodies from the kitchen tonight and set them out as a small payment for all the fun.
A little popcorn, orange slices, roasted chestnuts, and some dried cranberries--a solstice feast fit for the king and queen of squirrel-dom!
Milkweed Balls
I first saw these a few years ago around Christmas time at Pendleton's, and have made sure to get some every year since.
Their common name is, um, not really appropriate for a family blog. (Hushed whisper: They're called monkey balls.) But they're actually a type of milkweed pod that dries up really well. Flower Garden Girl has a post about growing them--maybe I should try that next year?
I'd have to come up with a new name to call them though--I can just see it now!
Stranger walking in my garden: "Hey, what are these neat-o plants?"
Me: "Oh, they're primate genitalia."
Kidding aside, they really do deserve a better name, as they're such a cool, sculptural looking plant. Maybe I can call them "Christmas Lanterns"?
December 20, 2009
Stick Stars
What does one hang in one's bathroom for Christmas? Particularly when one's bathroom is a tiny, humid, little room where anything fabric-y would look perpetually damp or (ugg!) grow things?
Why, stick stars, of course!
Also great for last minute decorating--all you need are sticks and string!
December 18, 2009
Acorn Bells
I saw these on etsy last month and thought they'd be just the thing for the little acorn toppers I've had sitting in my windowsill since Halloween. I made mine (two words: hot glue), but you can buy them very affordably from pinkbeeb0's shop. (Go look at the pictures if nothing else, they're beautiful.)
I think they'd be pretty as present "toppers" too...not in my house, but, you know, in places where the dogs believe in not eating Christmas.
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