Home Sweet Home

Here are a few pics of the new house. We finally got internet/phone/tv hooked up today. We're still swimming in boxes, but we've made progress and it's starting to feel like home. People here are really nice. They keep coming over with cookies and pies and baskets of stuff. I hope that eventually I will have time to blog a real blog. The next blog will probably be about Thanksgiving. I am cooking the dinner this year, and it will be my first time, so tune in for tales of kitchen disasters...

Happy Day

Today we moved into our new house in Leesburg, VA. Pictures coming soon. It was a freezing cold day with flurries of snow, and now we are drowning in boxes, but the difficult times are over and we can begin to settle in and enjoy life again. We won't have any internet until they come hook us up next Sunday, so if you email me and I don't reply, that's why. Hope you're all doing well and staying warm. See you soon.

Time for a Blog

Helping Aunt Kimmie
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

I think it's about time I blogged a blog, so here goes:

First of all, a shout out to my good friends, Rob and Michelle...hope you like the pancakes!

Next, the picture there is Daphne helping her Aunt Kimmie feed my awesome little nephew, Jackson. He is a really good little baby. I think the Peanut didn't know quite what to think about him...she was a little nervous when she got close to him. But, she told me that she is going to have two babies, named Jackson and Jackson, so I think she likes him.

Things here are pretty OK. If all goes well, we'll be in our new house next week. There is a lot that has to happen, but things seem to be on track. I will spare you the details, but it has been very complicated and difficult selling our house and buying the new one. Nothing has really gone smoothly, but thanks to my good friend and real estate agent Anne, who has gone above and beyond the call of duty, my family back home, who have been a HUGE help in too many ways to list, Kev's mom and dad, who drove all the way here to babysit so we could go house-hunting, my friends who have supported me through the whole ordeal, and Kev, who has somehow been keeping the wheels from flying off, I think everything is going to work out.

As soon as all parties sign by the X, I will post a picture of our new house. I don't wanna jinx anyting...

Over the weekend, we took a break from all this moving and shakiing to trek up to NY so we could see our afore-mentioned new nephew and hang out with kev's family. Daphne and her cousins are getting better and better at playing together, and they all had a great time. Kev's mom had lots of activities for them, including tie-dying shirts and making foam Christmas trees. It's a good thing, too, because it rained all day Saturday, and we didn't even leave the house. The drive to NY is long, but not TOO long, and it's very pretty. There are plenty of places to stop along the way. And we discovered that our new house is only one hour from Gettysburg, and a little over two hours from Hershey. We are never ever going to run out of cool stuff to do up here.

So, I am homesick, but hanging in. We have a play-date tomorrow with my nice knitter friend and her little boy. I can finally see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, and I know I will eventually feel normal again. Or something resembling normal, anyway. If there was only a way to watch the Mavericks...

Hope things are good with all of you. Thanks for sticking with me through the lean blogging.

Trick or Treat

Trick or Treat
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

Hope you all had a good Halloween. We enjoyed ours. Daphne was Dorothy, as you can see. It was a last-minute choice based on that was about all they had left in her size at Target. I am far away from my sewing machine, so I couldn't make her anything. Maybe next year. Anyway, we thought she looked pretty cute with her ruby slippers and pigtails, so it's all good. A nice lady that I met via a knitting forum invited us to her neighborhood for trick-or-treating, which was great because we didn't have to drag the Peanut all around this apartment complex. I can't wait to get out of this place. It is so noisy, and there are weird smells now and then.

Daphne's asleep, so I'm gonna go eat some of her candy now. She'll never know...

White House, The

White House, The
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

Today we finally took a trip into Washington DC. I had never been there, and I wanted to see the White House. There is a picture of it that I took today. Look at that lawn! On the roof, to the right of the flag, you can see a sniper-type guy. There were other guys walking around the grounds with big machine-gun looking guns. What a sad world we live in.

We went in on the Metro, which was pretty fun and easy. DC is nice and calm...not at all like New York City. I didn't hear any cars honking all day. There is so much to do that I can't imagine we'll ever be able to do it all. Today we just walked around and took the Peanut on the carousel by the Smithsonian. It was a really nice day. Almost hot, even.

Tonight we went for Indian food at a little place in the shopping center by our apartment. It was really good. Daphne even liked it.

Now everyone is asleep. I am trying to stay up late because the time changes and I don't want to be up at 4:30am. Curse the inventor of daylight savings time. Oh, wait. Maybe that was Ben Franklin. Hmmm...I usually like Ben Franklin. Oh well.

A Taste of Home

A Taste of Home
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

The other day we received a package from my mom and dad which included some of Daphne's toys and book, Kevin's favorite house-pen, and this stuff in the picture: my favorite coffee mugs with some coffee from Central Market, my milk frother thing, and some Kerbey Lane pancake mix. I have been enjoying my morning lattes since this arrived, and there will be pancakes in the near future. Thanks, M & D...we needed a little cheering up around here.

We're Here

Just want to let you know we made it Virginia. We are currently living in a corporate apartment with noisy neighbors, but it's clean and it will do for now. I miss my family and my friends and knowing how to get places without a map. Today we got a GPS, so that should make things better. I don't get much computer time, but when I do, I will blog more. I hope you are all doing well.

Cruel Cruel World

Just in time for me to move away, they opened up a Paciugo gelato shop a couple blocks from my house and an Oklahoma Original Fried Pie shop near my parents' house. I swear, if the New Albany Redmen come down here and bring Chicken and Dumplings, I'm not moving.

UPDATE: Today we went to get a fried pie, and there was a sign on the door that said, "Sorry. We are sold out. Please come back tomorrow." I guess I missed my chance.

Indiana Road Trip

Indiana Fall
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

Last night, my mom, Daphne, Jeff, and I returned from our big road trip to visit my family in Indiana. There is way too much to blog about, but the bottom line is, we had a great time. I got to do all the things I wanted to do (Zesto, Hubers, chicken and dumplings, apple dumplings, Fun Slide, Pizza King, etc.) and Daphne had lots of adventures. She was really good in the car and only had 2 major meltdowns in ten whole days away from home. She did manage to dial 911 at the hotel in Memphis somehow, but other than that, there were no major incidents. Please feel free to check out the pictures on Flickr...there are quite a few.

My biggest regret is that I was not able to meet the mysterious Fooie McGoo during my visit. He is supposedly a real hipster, though, so he is probably too cool for me and Daphne. Well, maybe next time, Foo.

PS. If you have never driven through Tennessee, I recommend it. It is very pretty.

Front Roll

During our trip, Daphne got to go to gymnastics class with her cousin Eavie. It was pretty hilarious. They put Daphne in this room with all kinds of colorful exciting stuff to climb on, and she went nuts. She mostly ran to a round pit in the back corner and dove headfirst into it. You can see it back there in the video. Then, one of the poor teachers would retrieve her and put her back with the group, where she would quickly squirm away and run off to the corner again. This happened at least 30 times. I promise. But, even though she didn't really follow the rules, she had a blast, and I never have to go back there and face the teachers again.

And on that Farm She Drove a Jeep...

EIEIO.

While we were in Indiana, Daphne got to drive a jeep at my Aunt Darlene and Uncle Marty's house. They live sorta out in the country. We got to see cows and horses, and pick tomatoes and peppers from the garden. Daphne got to feed the cat. But this jeep was the best part.

Breakfast for Dinner

Breakfast for Dinner
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

Tonight we had breakfast for dinner. What a treat. These are the Kerbey Lane pancakes I was telling you about before. If you are ever in Austin, please go to Kerbey Lane for the real thing. You will thank me.

Learning Lace - Latest FO

Lace 2
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

I knit this lace wrap for my mom's birthday. It was my first time doing lace, and it was pretty easy, but it took a long time because I needed complete silence so I wouldn't mess up the pattern. Now, I need to knit something easy that I can do while I watch TV in my corporate housing unit.

Anyway, I think the wrap turned out really good, and I hope my mom can find an occasion to wear it.

Pattern is from KnitSimple Summer '07, and the yarn is FABULOUS Blue Sky Alpaca/Silk. I think this might be my favorite yarn so far. Alpaca has never let me down.

This is How You Eat a Corny Dog

This is How You Eat a Corny Dog
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

So, our family has been making the rounds, going to all the places we will miss the most when we move. On Saturday, we were displaced from the house for a showing, so we went to the great State Fair of Texas, and had a really good time in spite of the heat and the Daphne melt-down at the very end. I didn't blame her. The state fair is fun, but it is also a real beating if you stay too long. Anyway, there were all the usual things: corny dogs, the Fun Slide, the Texas Star ferris wheel, etc. And Daphne got to go on here first amusement park ride with no parental sidekick! It was a little viking ship ride that just went in a gentle circle, and she thought it was the greatest thing ever. Pictures on flickr if you wanna see. I will miss the fair.

Other places I will miss include the Arboretum, Cafe Madrid, Legal Grounds (coffee shop), Central Market, Studio Movie Grill and the Inwood theater (the one with the couches), the Dream Cafe (cheese grits), Mai's (#38a), Shabby Sheep yarn store, and on and on. Sigh.

However, there are a lot of cool new things to look forward to in Virginia. My cool brother-in-law, Pat, even sent me a list this morning that included a restaurant with flourless chocolate waffles, a whole store of pies, a place with cosmic bowling, and a corn maze, among other things. He also informed me that Vigiinia is home to four types of owls! So, it will be fun exploring the area and finding new places to go and things to do. Now, if we could just find a house.

LRHS Movie Review

So yesterday we went to see the Dark Night. Even though I liked the first one, I didn't expect much, but it was great. Heath Ledger was a perfect Joker. I can't wait to see what happens next.

Word of advice: Go to the bathroom right before it starts, and don't drink anything during the movie.

Four and a half (out of 5) penguins.

Another movie you should get from Netflix is "Lars and the Real Girl." It's good. I promise. I'd watch it again.

I'm an Aunt!

Welcome to the world, little Jackson Martin "Blueberry" R---. We can't wait to meet you!

All the best to Kim and Marty as the adventure begins. Great name, guys...much better than a boy named Sue. I can't believe we didn't guess it! Please send pictures soon...

The Best Part of Cookie-Making

The Best Part of Cookie-Making
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

Morale has been low around the LRHS-HQ lately, so Sunday we took a day off from fretting. We made the Kerbey Lane panckes for breakfast, and they were really good. Not quite as good as the real thing, but they hit the spot. Then we had to vacate the house for a showing, so we went to the Arboretum and let Daphne run and run. She had a blast, and the weather was beautiful. Cool and breezy thanks to Hurricane Ike. It's sad that it takes a devastating hurricane to make the weather here so nice. Shout out to the people in Indiana (of all places!) who are dealing with a much more difficult aftermath. Anyway, later that evening, we made chocolate chip cookies, and as you can see, I had a helper who could not resist the spatula. I don't blame her. The cookies were good!

So, we are starting off the new week hoping we'll get some good news about finding a place to live. It's hard feeling sorta homeless, but I know overall, we have NOTHING to complain about. I shall do my best to stay positive. And chocolate chip cookies can't hurt!

The Big One is Coming

There is now a For Sale sign in our yard. We are very sad. It might not be so bad if we actually had a place to live in Virginia, but so far, no deal. It is becoming difficult to have a positive outlook, but we will muddle through. There are, after all, no lions.

Meanwhile, we're hunkering down for Ike, which will probably just mean rain and wind for us in North Texas. I just got back from the grocery store, where milk and bagel supplies were perilously low. I think about half of Dallas was there, stocking up for the weekend. Hopefully it won't be too bad.

As a treat, I bought a box of Kerby Lane pancake mix. Kerby Lane is a place in Austin that serves the best pancakes on Earth. We will have those on Sunday.

A big LRHS Happy Birthday to Kim! Are ya one? Are ya two? And so forth. Woohoo!

The Big Day

The Big Day
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

Today was the first ballet class. It was very cute, but chaotic as I'm sure you can imagine. Five 2-year-olds (and their mommies) trying to learn to point toes and curtsy (curtsie?) turned into five mommies mostly chasing five 2-year-olds around to the Nutcracker Suite. But we had a great time, and Daphne didn't want to leave when it was time to go home. Ah, these are the moments you never get back...

Three More Days...

IMG_0318_1
Originally uploaded by Tara H.

...until Daphne starts her little ballet class. We went to buy the shoes today and tried on her leotard. She tippy-toed all around the room. We will only get to go to a few classes before we move, but I can't wait. It's gonna be so cute.