Out Like a Lion

Well, summer definitely went out like a lion...a fun holiday weekend to be had and a very hot temp for the first day of September, which of course seems so strange since September just sounds so 'fall'.It started out on Friday with a birthday celebration for me...yes, Metal Mommy is another year older (and of course deeper in debt...I'm in America, aren't I??). It was the 42nd one, sort of a blah birthday. Although 42 definitely means you are IN your forties, not just hovering around it anymore. Vivian made me a lovely cake--she did pretty well with only yellow food coloring, random frosting tubes and a few candles. In her usual clever (and thoughtful!) manner instead of putting 42 candles on the cake she put four and then the number 2 candle. Yes, I blew them all out in one puff...of course knowing me with all of my hot air I probably could have managed 42 of them!! The only thing I really wanted was Godfather's pizza for my special meal...it's a memory thing, Godfathers was the pizza place I went to after every football game and fun event in junior high and high school. It was a nice gift indeed, considering Coreman had to drive a bit to get it, there isn't a restaurant very close by. The pizza was a bit cool by the time we got it home, but definitely worth it. Yum! I don't know if it's especially good pizza or just the association...but no matter! It's a pizza I can't refuse!

Over the weekend we got invited to Mark and Dawn's house to celebrate the end of summer with yet another lovely BBQ. Friends of theirs have a Sullivan too...a girl one! :-) I've heard a lot about them, so it was fun to finally meet them and have the Sullivans play. They were pretty much inseparable--my Sully was in the pool from 2:00 when we arrived until 9:00 when we left. Check out those pruney feet! Imagine if the Sullivans married? Sullivan and Sullivan. Sounds like a law firm.

And last night, an impromptu BBQ here with our friends Darcie, Dan, Elliot and Q. Here are the big boys talking gadgets, as always. Too bad I didn't get photos of the kids downstairs doing their 'band'--Elliot on drums, Sullivan guitar (a blow-up one, that is...) and Quinton on microphone. Luckily we did get some movie footage...good stuff. They were jamming along to "Smells Like Teen Spirit", by Nirvana. Makes a Metal Mommy proud...*sniff*...

And another *sniff*--off to school the kids went today! I am crying both in sadness and joy. Sadness of course because the summer is gone and you can't get those days back...my children are on to
another school year. Joy because the summer is gone and that means FREEDOM for Mommy! Although I will miss sleeping in, there is definitely something to be said for my very own schedule for a few hours a day. ahhhh.

Happy Back to School everyone!

From Pineapple to Tofu

Just call me Stephanie--I've been a cooking/baking fool lately. Well, it's not like I've been cooking a lot, I guess--I've just been more experimental. (and I'm just a fool.) Our gourmet dinner group of course lends itself to trying new things--although often I just want to make something that I know will be GOOD and I'm not in the mood to experiment. Inspired by the Byerly's spring magazine, I decided to go for making a Pineapple Upside Down Cake. It was daunting to me--will it be all mushy on the top?? Since I have to saute the pineapple and then actually pour the cake batter and bake it all in the same pan, will it really turn out okay?? For whatever reason I was feeling brave and went for it--and I'm glad I did! I have to say, the cake itself wasn't exactly spectacular--I mean, it was tasty and all, but I don't know if it really made a difference to chop and process crystalized ginger to add to the batter and it was a bit dry--but since Greg said it tasted just like his Mom used to make, I figured it was a success. There, I did it. I made a Pineapple Upside Down Cake in my life. There is something so 1950's about that, isn't there?? Nice! (yes, the cake didn't quite get centered on the plate...YOU try flipping over a hot and heavy Le Creuset sauce pan quickly and accurately on a serving plate...not so easy!)


Then tonight I actually cooked with tofu. (sorry, no photo of that one.) I've tried it in the past and never hated it or anything, but it never struck me as something I needed to eat much either. Lately tho I've been both wanting to find healthy alternatives and have some variety for goodness sake--so why not try tofu?? I found a site on the web that told how to cook it so it doesn't turn out mushy...I have to say, it was good advice. I used the asian marinade and it was downright YUMMY. Totally crave-worthy. Sullivan actually liked the first couple of bites but then started spanking his head Andrew Zimmern style, so I guess I can't really say it was a hit with the entire family. Ah well, I'm hoping that was just the sauce. (he's not a soy sauce kind of guy) I'll try it again. I did read somewhere that you actually have to get your kid to try something some ridiculous amount of times--like, 17-- before they will actually like it...so keep serving those kids that broccoli, my parental friends! (at least both Sullivan and Vivian do like that!)

Who knows what will be next on the menu? Actually, I think I may try a coconut rice pudding and try it out on my dear friend Stephanie when she comes over for coffee on Friday. She and my friend Darcie are about the only ones I can think of that would actually EAT that kind of thing. YUM, I say.

Try something new this week! Heck, it's spring. Or is it?! (she says as she laments about the weather forecast of another 6 inches of snow...)

A Birthday in the States

Happy Birthday to my friend Dan! The husband of my lovely friend Darcie, Dan has now joined us in the 40 demographic. It was quite a treat that we got to celebrate together--considering that Darcie and family are all supposed to be living temporarily in London right now. It's a long and crazy story as to how they ended up here, but basically my poor friend Darcie was stranded in Paris on a little vaca and couldn't get back to her family in England. Because of a screw-up with their visas, they all had to immediately come back to the states. I know it doesn't sound too rough to be stuck in gay Paris, but believe you me, it was not fun for her.

I feel very badly that they had to go through all of this, but on the other hand as I said to Dan because he got refused and old we all got to benefit by gathering at Chino Latino for an impromptu birthday dinner. It was a fun group of people, all people I've met and enjoyed over at Darcie and Dan's at some point. And get a load of that baby--his name is Crew, can't you stand it??--he was practically my little appetizer, I could have eaten him right up.


We all shared food and it was pretty good, but the best part about Chino is definitely the fun atmosphere--old suburban me feeling like I'm actually at a hip place for a change. And you've gotta love the tshirts that the employees run around in...one saying, "Wanna Bangkok?" and, "Ah, Phuket" ! All I could think of was bringing my kids in there and how their little eyes would light up with the naughtiness of it all. (I know, it's apparent I'm a parent.) Of course Sullivan wouldn't even get that Phuket could be mispronounced as a naughty word...he'd just be like, "oh, that's an island off of Thailand!" and then proceed to show me exactly where it is on the globe.

Tonight, more adult fun with Stephanie and John coming over for a raclette dinner. Not exactly gourmet food, but you can't go wrong with potatoes, ham and melted cheese. yum.

More Celebrating

Happy New Year, one and all! I hope you all have enjoyed your holiday celebrations....I sure have! It's been the perfect mix of relaxation and fun, friends and family. I am behind in my blog-posting, there have been many fun days worth typing about but alas, not a lot of time to spend writing about it. Or I DO write a long post and then get so frustrated that my photos won't upload that I just pass. This post will be mostly photos, let's hope it works!

Any New Year's Resolutions for y'all? I've never gotten into that, I have to say. I refuse to deny myself anything, and most resolutions are usually about giving up something that's bad for you. (I don't do Lent, either.) I'd love to hear yours if you have some!

OK, here is A Very Metal Holiday, by Suz:

Steph and I's last coffee date, where she gave me the most fabulous of all egocentric Christmas gifts...a Juicy Couture bracelet that has it's name on one side--but of course!--and none other than 'Her Majesty' on the other. OMG, Fabulous. In my not-so-humble opinion, every woman should loudly declare her royal status. How very Metal!!

Here we are at Stephanie's house, enjoying a lovely Ladies Brunch. As she always does whenever I'm over there, Stephanie spoiled us with amazing food and her most gracious hostess-ness. One of The Best ways to spend an afternoon...great food with great women. (especially when someone else is cooking it for you...Her Metal Majesty definitely approves..!)

Christmas Eve was so nice...going to the Christmas Eve service as good Lutherans do and then coming back here for some serious present opening. I will say I'm pretty sure we all got what we wanted...especially me, my big gift from my ever-luvin' being an incredible sparkly blingy oh-so-me pink tourmaline, diamond and rose gold ring. wow.

A lovely Christmas dinner with friends and family. Dinner, gift exchange, a girl's card Bingo and a Men's Bowling game on the new Wii that Santa brought....fun had by all!

As you know, holidays are all about spending time with family and friends...and it was quite nice to spend a morning with my friend Darcie and her two sweet boys, in town from their year-long stay in London!

New Year's Eve found us at Stephanie's sister Stacey's incredible home, quietly partying it up with her friends and family. How lucky are we to be included in such company??

We spent the first day of 2008 over at Mark and Dawn's house warming up on a cold cold day with some fabulous chili. Four different kinds, to be exact! (my personal fave was a Vegetarian one that included cashews and raisins...sounds strange I know, but to die for...definitely a recipe I will get!) Another day spent with great people and food, even a little dancing to "Laura" by the Scissor Sisters...why have I not heard of this band?! Great disco-dance/sometimes bluesy/glam rock music with in your face lyrics such as "you can't see tits on the radio...". METAL!

Hallelujah, successful photo posting! Here's to 2008!!

Happy Father's Day!

To all of you Dads out there. Hope you're having a wonderful day! Coreman's began with wonderful homemade goodies from the kids and a nice breakfast of peanut butter toast and strawberries made by Viv. Then at church he got to lector and read aloud the word 'bosom' not once, but twice. Well, I guess two bosoms are better than one. Amen!

It's been a fun-filled weekend. Our neighborhood parade was yesterday, I have a running date with my friend Darcie and family to meet by the corner and celebrate the festivities together. What is it about a parade?? There's always laughs to be had at the 'Daughters of the Westerly Winds', the thought of sinking your teeth into a giant Big Mac or getting attacked by the Vulcans, a group of guys that always seem to mark Darcie and I with their black grease paint 'V's on our cheeks. Ug. At least it's not kissing anymore, they used to come around and plant one on you! Not PC anymore, I'm sure, so no more of that. As much as we groan when we see the dreaded Vulcans come down the road, it dawned on me that the day they pass us right on by without so much as a glance to mark the pretty young thing across the street will be a sad day indeed. Then we'll know we are REALLY old!!! This year even Sullivan got branded.

And who should come marching--or riding!--down the street about halfway through the parade? My daughter herself. She and Coreman marched for the Children First organization. We were all going to do it, but between my aching back (that still hasn't completely recovered from the gourmet dinner night!) and the fact that Sullivan would really much rather watch than participate, he and I sat on the sidelines. I was a little disappointed, I have to admit...I had my pageant wave downpat. Vivian had hers going, though...so much that she complained of a sore wrist afterwards! Hilarious. I don't think she got much sympathy from the sweaty walkers.

After getting myself washed up and dolled up, my friend Donna and I went out for a night on the town. We headed downtown to a restaurant called Brits, and enjoyed a meal up on the roof. It was a busy place, all night we were being approached by men... who wanted to take our extra chairs. It was a little disappointing that that was all they wanted, I have to say. Hey, I'm a happily married woman but it's been a while since I've been picked up on and it would have been fun to say no. We did manage to have some good fun with a couple of guys, tho...near the end we had been sitting and gabbing with our bill on the table. A guy came over to us and asked us if we had paid our bill. I can't remember his exact words, unfortunately, but he was very rude and was basically telling us that he would take our table as soon as we leaved. ! After he sauntered off to stare at us from the bar, Donna looked at me and said, "No Way is that guy getting this table." I approached a couple standing close by and asked them if they wanted it, and we worked it out just right that as the guys were coming in for the kill we quickly swapped places with the couple. ha! No one gets rewarded for rude behavior, and we made sure of it. Go Donna, I love the way your mind works! You're so METAL!

Today, just relaxing around the house and getting ready for the big yard sale next weekend. We are total gluttons for punishment. Every year we haul all of our crap out in the front yard, sit out there in either the sweltering heat or pouring rain all day and haggle with people that offer a quarter for something that is marked 50 cents that we actually paid 50 dollars for. But every year we have to do it. The best part is that I leave my sale and go spend my money we've made on other people's junk. It's all part of the Circle of Yard Sale. Then that junk gets put our in our sale in the next year or so. Enjoy your weekend!