The window next to my desk has an air conditioning unit on it. This side of the house gets full sun, so a long time ago, we put in the unit and installed film on the windows to reduce the heat. I tell you this because this morning, this gal/guy was hanging out on the air conditioner, just chilling and cooing.
I mentioned the window film because I am pretty sure s/he couldn’t see me because it’s reflective. So that’s handy.
I tried to get a video clip of the cooing, but while I was filming, Bird 1 flies off and Bird 2 is now holding down the fort.
This one has a very…”don’t let this guy drive the bus” look, don’t you think?
So I guess they’re pigeons? I suppose I could use something more reliable than a children’s book to identify it, hmm.
Mmm, oysters.
Kristina and I tried out this new food market the other day before she went back home. We had some really delicious raw oysters, a cheese board, a salad, and a crepe stuffed with macaroni and cheese and pulled pork. I mean, yeah. It was good.
We also attended the boys’ school fundraiser on Sunday night. More good food, especially the brisket tacos from Taceaux Loceaux (the name annoys me greatly, but what can you do?) (PS It’s pronounced Taco Loco. I don’t know how obvious that is if you’re not from here.)
Entertainment at the fundraiser
I may have hit the open bar a few times, because by the time we left, I had a fancy bottle of wine from one raffle and I’d outbid everyone for some hair salon services in the silent auction. It’s all for a good cause, at least.
Sunday was a really big day, actually. Between the garage sale and the school fundraiser, we also went out to cheer on my friend Heather as she finished her first half Ironman triathlon!
Well, I should say we attempted to cheer her on. Thanks to some gross ineptitude by local organizers, the website said the race finished at City Park. But no, it actually finished several miles away at the lakefront.
By the time we finally go there, she had already finished. 😦 I was so upset about it, and really freaking angry at the organizers. I wonder how many other people missed seeing finishers?
The kids made a poster for her, and the adults made a few too.
On the bright side, I almost got to see fellow identical triplet mom Kim close to the finish line. You may remember me posting about her husband, who was killed last year in a training ride for this very same triathlon. She decided to train for it and race it in his memory. So inspiring.
(My friend Robin, also a mom of triplets, also finished it. I know so many kick ass women!)
In horticultural news, a couple of weeks ago, I planted some jasmine along our iron fence. We only have a side yard, so hopefully this will add some privacy as well as some beauty and nice scents. And probably bees.
And it’s already growing! I don’t know how much I am supposed to nudge it along the fence, but it seems to be doing okay. I guess it’ll be a few years before the fence is covered, but it’s fun to watch the progress now.
On the other hand, the Bradford pear I planted when we moved in eleven years ago has some weird black spots on the leaves, which also look like they’ve been eaten. I need to figure out what to do about that.
Remember when my friend Matt got very very sick about five years ago? Well, the husband of another mom of multiples is currently very ill with the same kind of situation. A flesh eating bacteria. Matt pulled through, and I’m confident Melissa’s husband will as well, but they can use all the positive thinking (and other support) we can send their way.
I remember Alicia saying that Matt did as well as he did because he was a rugby player, so big and muscly and solid. Melissa’s husband Josh is a police officer, so similarly brawny, so I think this is a good sign. Keep them in your thoughts.
Next week, the boys and I are headed to Virginia for Emily’s first communion. A plane ride with all three – hopefully I won’t get barfed on this time. Hmm.
This past weekend, we took part in our big neighborhood garage sale, but more importantly, the boys and some of their pals had a lemonade stand to raise money for their friend Ethan’s surgery.
I think it’s safe to say the lemonade stand was a success…they made over $300! Very exciting.
As a bonus, I got rid of a bunch of stuff. Kristina was here for a few days, doing what she does best. Organizing, convincing me I don’t need to keep back issues of Real Simple, etc, etc. I have to say, over the past few years, she has helped me keep the clutter down in general. I try to buy fewer “things” and find it much easier to let go of the unnecessary stuff.
You don’t even want to know how many bags of preschool artwork and worksheets I tossed. Don’t worry, I kept a few things. But I only need so many stick figure portraits of my children.
Big milestone today! The boys made their first Apple purchase, an iPad mini they saved up for. Now we have three, so I am now confident we’ll never have an argument in our home again. Peace will reign forever!
It’s been probably a year since any teeth have been lost, but at about 5:20 this morning, Miles woke me up to tell me his very wiggly front tooth was now gone.
When Linus lost his front tooth, there was already an adult tooth behind it (I assume because the tooth he lost had been damaged years before, somehow forcing the adult tooth to come in faster? Is that a thing?) so this is the first gap-toothed grin we’ve seen from the boys.
The boys got this awesome new machine the other day, it’s called MEGAFISTâ„¢. Here’s a demonstration of how it works:
I’ll admit, sometimes it’s buggy and will switch into MEGAHUGZâ„¢ mode without warning. Or even more ominously, MEGATICKLEâ„¢. You gotta be careful with technology.
– You know I’m a big Morrissey fan, right? I got to see him 8 years ago in Virginia, but I was pregnant and, I don’t know, the show wasn’t as amazing as I’d hoped it would be. Well, I found out last week that he’s playing HERE! In New Orleans! For the first time since 1992! Exciting, right?
Except it’s the same week George and I will be in England. (We’re even flying into Manchester. Life is cruel.)
– In somewhat less sad news, I started planting jasmine vines along our iron fence. We don’t have a back yard, just a side yard, so maybe this will give us a little more privacy. In a few years, anyway. And it will smell nice.
– In case you were wondering where in the heck my “Bootcamp Day XX” posts have been (only kidding, I know no one has) it’s because I’m trying to let my achilles’ tendon heal. I’m not sure what’s going on with it, but it hurts sometimes, mostly when I’m going down stairs, or running. So I’ve been sticking to cycling. And sleeping later. It’s frustrating, I’ve never really had any running injuries before.
I ran a tiny bit on the treadmill this morning, just to see how it felt and it definitely felt weird. Tomorrow I have some new shoes coming in the mail (going back to my old trusty Nike Structures that I wore from 2001-2013, but got too expensive, but yay for old models on eBay) so maybe the extra stability will help.
I also read that I should be wearing shoes with a bit of a heel (I mean, not stilettos, but not my beloved Toms, either) so I guess I’ll be the cool mom sporting sneakers with my high-waisted pleated jeans this summer. Or something. Or maybe I’ll just get some wedges. Or something.
I just want to make sure that I can still do the Rocketchix triathlon in July again. We shall see.
– Just had the most delicious lunch, must share. I mixed together the following in a bowl:
shredded chicken that I slow-cooked last night in taco seasoning and salsa (the shredding-in-a-stand-mixer is the bomb, btw.)
quinoa
chopped avocado
salsa
plain greek yogurt (stand in for sour cream)
And I just mixed it all up and gobbled it up. If I wasn’t doing the Simply Filling thing with Weight Watchers, I could have added beans, corn, and cheese, but it was really good even without those.
– I never finished posted pics from when everyone was visiting last week. This is one of my favorites, so I’ll just share this one. Me and my nieces and my boys. When we’re in Virginia, I’ll do one with Andrew and photoshop them together or something.
Last night’s episode of NCIS New Orleans was terribly exciting, no? I don’t mean the plot or the atrocious accent of that one guy (HUH?) or just the typical New Orleans cliches they threw at us, but MY STREET!
Just for fun, a few screen shots from the episode, next to the photos I took while they filmed…
My view: The gray SUV that carries NCIS people (I guess) screeches into the driveway of the “coroner’s office”!
On TV: The gray SUV that carries NCIS people (I guess) screeches into the driveway of the “coroner’s office”!
My view: People run out of the building, away from the gunman! (Then they stood in our driveway.)
On TV: People run out of the building!
My view: Scott Bakula and other randoms run to help the security guard who got himself shot!
On TV: The pain is so real!
Okay, that’s enough. You get the idea.
One more screen shot, where you can see our house! And our garbage cans! And a tiny bit of my van! And my neighbor’s house/coffee shop!
Handily labeled for you.
Well, I think we’ve proved that my block makes a great place to film things. Now if anyone just needs a cute 7 year old boy and some spares, have your people call my people!
Watch tonight! It’s the episode they filmed in front of my house last month. You might catch a glimpse of something from one of these scenes… (spoiler alert?)
Those are mostly pictures I took from my desk, so the action was really close. It was cool to see how everything is done, but I also got pretty jaded towards the end.
“Yawn, there goes Scott Bakula again.”
(Look, my mom loved Quantum Leap when I was growing up. This is exciting stuff to have the star on my sidewalk!)
Anyway. Look out for the coffee shop – that’s really my next door neighbor’s living room.
For the past few days, they’ve been drawing, reading, and playing chess. WHO ARE THESE STRANGE KIDS?
Yesterday, I came home from a bike ride (that’s kind of a lie. I went for a bike ride, popped a tire by the pub and ended up spending a few hours there.) and the boys were surrounded by drawings. Good drawings.
Somehow they found some video on YouTube that teaches kids how to draw using letters and numbers, and they’re now obsessed. I approve.
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