Wednesday, December 26, 2012

An Announcement

It's the time of year when people "announce" their New Year's Resolutions, so that's what I'm doing.

  So many people make resolutions that they never stick to. They set almost unrealistic goals for themselves. Sure, I'd love to lose 15 pounds, but a resolution isn't going to make me any more motivated to eat salad a for every meal. I really do want to ride my bike every day, but real life often gets in the way. But I am making a resolution that I know I will stick to. I know this will happen. Maybe not in  one year, it might take longer.

In 2013, I resolve to make every recipe in my favorite cookbook:


It's going to be tough, some are kind of weird. I will skip the "Baking for a Crowd" pages though. Lord knows, I don't need twenty dozen cookies hanging around.

I'll keep you posted on my progress. I suppose I'd better watch "Julie and Julia" for inspiration.

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Hurry!

Wow, I can't believe it's only 5 days until Christmas! I haven't even gotten my Christmas cards out. Anyway, Karl has a great idea for this year's letter, but he's been too busy at work to get it written. So, if you normally get a card from us, be patient, it will come.

Last night we had our first big snow, with more to come later today (the blizzard warning goes in to effect at noon today), so no brown Christmas this year. I hope the snow stays around for the Cyclocross National Championship in January, so all those people from elsewhere learn about real Wisconsin winter.

I've got cookie dough chilling and the cookie cutters are ready to go. Karl and Katrina have a snow day today, so they're rolling, cutting, and baking this afternoon. We'll decorate tonight after dinner. I'll be sure to get some photos of the best cookies of the year. I have some new cookie cutters that will make for fun cookies.

And now, I have to get ready for work. I hope today will be a short one because of the weather. I want to play in the snow too!

Monday, December 3, 2012

Part 4, In Which I Eat Lobster

  There's been so much excitement around here, with the new TV and the eggs, and now Christmas season is upon us; I almost forgot that I was still telling you all about my trip! To review: I arrived, I shopped, I biked and it is now Sunday, the day after the ride.

  So, I mentioned that I received a lunch invitation. Yup. I was invited to have lunch with 3-D Ted's Mom and Dad. I had such a good time talking to Mom after the ride, of course I said yes.  It was yet another beautiful day, and Dad gave a tour of the King Estate - he's very proud of it, I could tell (and rightly so, it was beautiful!). It was very low key, and I had a great time. Dad asked if I could knit him some fingerless gloves, (and those are in progress right now).

  After lunch, I wandered back and finally found the ocean!!




  I was wearing the wrong shoes to step out onto the beach, so I had a nice walk on the sidewalk. None of the shops were open, so I couldn't buy any cheesy souvenirs. I was hoping to find something "crabby" for Karl and Katrina, since they are both my KrABs. Maybe next year.

  My other goal for this trip (besides to ride my bike for 30 miles in a row) was to eat a lobster roll. Now, I believe I have explained my relationship with lobster before, so I won't go in to it again. But, it has been at least 20 years since I tasted it. Tastes change, so maybe I like lobster now. It's possible, right? I'm in New England, I can't not try it. So, on the advice of a friend, I set off to the Beach Plum, home of New England's Best Lobster Roll.


Here's the Before
That's a BIG lobster roll!
And, here's the After
The chips were good, anyway.
  No, it's official, I Really Do Not Like Lobster. So, here I am, with a $20 lobster roll that I'm not going to eat. I felt really bad, and did not want to just throw it away in front of everyone. So, like a big girl I asked for a to-go container and stashed it away and left in a hurry (like maybe I was late for an appointment or something). The problem was, I was still hungry but nothing sounded good. So, I headed to a nearby grocery store, hoping for inspiration. I threw away my "leftovers" on the way in to the store. It was Sunday night, the hot food had already been taken off the deli, so I ended up with a microwave dinner and a mini box of wine (and a straw). How depressing. I believe this is where the whole tone of the trip took a dive. Back in my room, I heated up the dinner, unscrewed the wine and turned on the TV. Luckily, I found something good to watch, or otherwise, I would have skipped the dinner and gone straight to bed. A mini box of wine is two or three glasses, and I'm a real lightweight. It's a good thing I didn't have to drive.

  And that's the end of the day. Up next: A traveler's worst nightmare.


Monday, November 19, 2012

Monumental!

I've plastered this all over the place, but I'm so proud and excited!! Our first egg!!


We're going to hollow it out and keep it forever.

Thursday, November 15, 2012

I Went For A Bike Ride!

  It's time for another installment of "Becky's Awesome Vacation Stories."

  Let's review what we've already covered: I arrived and went to Walgreens. I visited the Krempels Center, ate a cupcake and went to bed early.

  Saturday morning, I awoke to the pitter-patter of rain. Uh oh. Riding in the rain is no fun. I looked out the window, and not only was it raining, but it was also really foggy. Double uh oh. I'm glad I brought rain gear. So, I had breakfast, kitted up, plugged the address into Dave (my trusty GPS), and headed off to the Krempels King of the Road Challenge! 

  Luckily, the rain stopped, and the fog just needed a little time to burn off. It was damp, and so that made me cold. I always have such a hard time deciding how much to wear. Jacket or just arm warmers? Leg warmers or bare legs? I was brave and went with arm warmers and bare legs. I had forgotten my padded gloves, and only had my wind-stopper gloves. That could be problematic, with my carpal tunnel. Then, I finally remembered to take some photos!

Rental car, rental bike

  We lined up (I always start at the back because I know most everyone else is faster than I am)

  Over the course of the morning, the fog lifted, the sun started peeking through the clouds, and I got hot. I stopped to take off my gloves and arm warmers, and a support vehicle stopped to make sure I was OK. "I'm fine." I said "Just stopping so I can strip." I think that comment surprised him. I thoroughly enjoyed my 30 mile ride. There was one place I wanted to stop and take a picture, but it was halfway up a hill, and I knew I'd have a hard time getting started again, so I had to skip it. A couple of hills had me breathing hard, but all in all, I felt good. Which is  pretty amazing considering I had only been on my bike one time since July!
Also amazing was the amount of chain grease I ended up with on my leg:

Yup, that tiny spot!
  Normally, when I finish a ride, I look like this:
Well, that ride was twice as long...
  
  But back to the story. After the ride, there was a lovely party. I ate a lot of really good pizza and met a lot of really nice people. I stayed around until they kicked us out of the parking lot. (When I ride with Mr. Grouchy Karl, we never get to stay and have any fun. Yet another reason I like traveling by myself.) But I think the highlight of the afternoon was when I introduced Flat Ted to 3-D Ted.
They got along swimmingly!

  Sadly, I had to return my super-fancy rental bike to the bike shop. I returned to my hotel for a shower only to find an invitation to lunch the next day. But that, my friends is a story for another day.

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Winner, Winner, TV Dinner

  I seem to have good luck winning charity raffles. Over the last 10 years or so, we've won:
 A Radio Flyer wagon 
Ours says "State Farm Insurance" on the side




 A large framed mirror

Yes, that's our prom picture, aren't we cute?
A fancy tire pump
We still haven't figured out how to use it
A super fancy bike light
I have yet to use this one
And last night we got a very unexpected call from the nice lady with the Friends of the Library. We've won the Grand Prize. A 50 inch LCD HDTV television!

I hope we can find somewhere to put it!


So I guess we're hosting all Superbowl parties from now on.

Edited to add:
I forgot about the Hunter ceiling fan I won over the summer. It was a bit more trouble than we expected, a couple of parts were missing, we had to buy a light for it, and it didn't exactly fit on the hardware from our old fan...  Maybe I blocked it from my mind.







Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Part 2: In Which I Go Exploring

  Let's review. I have arrived in New Hampshire without any problem. I found my hotel without any issues (thanks Garmin!), had dinner and went to bed. 

  The whole reason I took this trip was to ride in a charity bike ride, benefiting the Krempels Center. I was invited to attend the morning meeting at the Center on Friday, so I could learn what they do (and so I could deliver some handknits to my friend Ted). I was thoroughly impressed by what they do the the Krempels Center. I stayed to listen to Ted and Timmy talk about bike racing and brain injury, and delivered the handknits afterward. As usual, I forgot to get a photo.

  It was time for lunch, and I wanted to explore the city of Portsmouth. Off I went. I had no real plan, so I just plugged an address that I randomly chose from the map in to my trusty GPS. Well, that restaurant was PACKED - so it must have been a good one. But, I was starving and didn't want to wait for a table, so I checked the map again, chose another random address and headed toward the center of town (I think it was the center, anyway). I found parking by a giant mural of a whale, I figured that would be helpful in locating the car when it was time to leave. I had a yummy (and healthy!) lunch, got a cupcake for later, then just started wandering.

I came across a kitchen store. I couldn't resist going in and comparing it with All Through The House. Yup, pretty much exactly the same. I recognized about 80% of their merchandise, was impressed by their tea selection, and bought some maple sugar candy in the shape of New Hampshire. Out the door and to the left. Huh. Two doors down, I found a toy store. (sound familiar to anyone?). I recognized a large portion of their merchandise too. I had to ask - "Your store isn't connected in some way to the kitchen store is it? Because that would be weird." I explained why I asked, and no it wasn't. But now I know, if I decide to run away to New Hampshire, I could likely find employment in a familiar environment. (It could happen, you never know).

Still, no photos. I had my camera with me, I was just enjoying myself too much to remember to take any pictures.

I would have loved to sit on a bench and knit for a while, but it was starting to rain, so I headed to the bike shop to pick up my rental bike for tomorrow's ride, then stopped for a very filling dinner on the way back to the hotel. I enjoyed my cupcake the way you should - in my jammies in front of the TV. Once again, in bed by 9.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

In Which I Arrive

  The post-vacation glow is starting to lift. I want to prolong it as much as possible, so I'm just going to tell about it in little bits. 

  My outgoing flight was uneventful. I left a gray morning with a few sprinkles. A short layover at O'Hare airport - just long enough to grab a sandwich. My "economy" flight had no snacks, just beverage. That's OK, I was busy knitting. Arrival in New Hampshire was in the sunshine. An airport security guard (a dude!) complimented my hair. I thought "Wow, I am going to like it here!" Car rental was a breeze, and because they were disorganized, I got a free upgrade. From a Toyota Corolla to a Kia Sportage - plenty of room to haul a bike, and it's a size I'm used to driving. Dave, my trusty Garmin, got me to the hotel without a problem. The "Moose Crossing" signs on the highway made me giggle.

  Hotel check-in was a breeze, and my room was on the ground floor. I had a patio door that opened right onto the parking lot, with a view of a funeral home / crematory. But, the room was nice, and I didn't plan on spending a lot of time in there. I asked at the desk where to go for dinner, and she recommended the restaurant right across the street. Yummy - home made soup and a nice salad with some really good dill bread on the side.

 After dinner, Dave found me a Walgreens, and I went for some essentials (I never bring toiletries, just buy travel size when I arrive) and a few snacks. By then it was almost bedtime and I was tired, so, as usual, I was in bed by 9pm.

All in all, everything went smoothly, and I was happy for that.

Up next: exploring Portsmouth.


Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Countdown

One. More. Day!! Then it's vacation time!
I think tomorrow will be the longest day on record. I'd better have something to keep me busy at work, or I'll go absolutely crazy!

Friday, October 5, 2012

Well Deserved

It recently came to my attention that Sweetest Day is Saturday, October 20. Why is that important, especially since my husband "doesn't believe in that made-up holiday"? (Maybe some handsome stranger will give me flowers and make him jealous)) It's important because I got called in to work the rush at the flower place the week before.

I'll be working Friday, Saturday at Giggles, Sunday at flowers, Monday at Giggles, Tuesday at flowers, Wednesday at Giggles THEN I get to leave on Thursday! Throw in a late-night LMS gig (welcoming the veterans home at the airport from the Honor Flight) on Saturday night just for fun. Wow, I'm really going to need a vacation after a week like that!

In preparation for my ride at the Krempels King of the Road Challenge (sponsor me here, get your friends to sponsor me too- I'd love be in the top 10 fundraisers) I took advantage of a beautiful fall day yesterday, and planned to go for a nice long bike ride. I was all ready to go, excited because I hadn't been on my bike since the ill-advised ride on July 4. It took a while to get my bike out, there are bikes and doors and bales of wood shavings in the way. I did finally extract it, leaned it up against the house, and here's what I found

Needless to say, I was mad. I found out that someone who shall remain nameless, but lives in my house and owns a lot of bikes, took my pedals and put them on his time trial bike. I am not a bike mechanic, I was not going to reattach my own pedals. So, I changed plans, got out the old mountain bike (and had to put on a water bottle holder, but that was not a surprise), and took a little trail ride. The scenery was beautiful and I left the camera at home. I surprised myself by making it up "hospital hill" without a problem, and riding over the floating boardwalk was fun (but against the rules). It was over too soon, and the rain started to fall just a few minutes after I got home. I hope I'll have time to ride a few more times before I leave, but I doubt it.

Monday, October 1, 2012

Which is it?

I'm either the coolest Mom in the world, or the dumbest.

It's semi-permanent, which means it washes out in about 2 months.

In other news, this past Friday, I attend my high school band's alumni reunion. It was homecoming, so the alumni get to join the current band on the field for the pre-game. I had a good time, even though there weren't very many people there. I'm mad at myself though because I forgot to take pictures while I was there. But, here is one of me practicing at home:
 
  Yeah, that's my high school band jacket, AND IT STILL FITS! It's funny how you hear 4 drum clicks, and you immediately mark time. I still got it.

Friday, September 21, 2012

Anticipation!

Four more weeks. Four more weeks. Four more weeks until my vacation!
These next four weeks are going to take forever, and my four day vacation will go way too quickly!

When I come home, I'll go right into Christmas mode at work.

Maybe no one will notice if I never come home?

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Versus

                              
     VS 






   I've decided to donate a hand knit item for a benefit. The benefit is for an old friend, so I want to donate something that will actually bring in some decent cash. At first I was thinking I'd give a sweater, but after some comments I've seen on Ravelry, I'm having second thoughts. Maybe socks would be better since I have knit a lot more socks than I have sweaters. 

  With the Christmas shopping season approaching, I won't have any time to knit at work, so it might be April before I'd have a sweater finished. Socks, on the other hand, are much quicker. 

Please weigh in, what do you think I should do? I have about a week to decide.

Thursday, September 6, 2012

A Little Ouchy

  So, I had a root canal today. I'm lucky enough not to have had one before (thanks for the healthy choppers, Dad). It was not horrible, but also not on my list of things I like to do. It turns out, that the throbbing pain in my mouth was caused by Irreversible Pulpitis. Sounds fun, doesn't it? According to Wikipedia, I had all the symptoms. Root canal is the only treatment. At least the anesthetic numbed the pain for a few hours. 

I did get to stop for lunch with Karl on the way home from the dentist. We wanted to stop at our favorite gyro place, but found it has closed. :(

Then I remembered about a restaurant we haven't been to in a very long time - a stereotypical Wisconsin supper club kind of place. On the lake, boat parking (and snowmobile parking in the winter),they bring your soda still in the can with a glass of ice. I had the walleye sandwich. Not too bony. A little lemon juice and a hint of tartar sauce. YUM! It was worth the mouth pain.

My mouth is still pretty sore (I skipped the carrot sticks at dinner), and it is actually swollen. I hope it's better by Saturday because I have a gig with LMS.


Tuesday, September 4, 2012

What I did on my summer vacation: a photo essay

  My summer vacation was very busy. 

I played my trumpet. A LOT!

Thank goodness for a few measures of rest!


We built a chicken coop and got some chickens (not necessarily in that order).
The girls love their house!
We took a trip to the Land of Lincoln (literally!)
Rub his nose for luck!
No offense to the flatlanders, but the Wisconsin State Fair is better.
I did ride my bike a few times before it got obscenely hot
Woo-hoo! I'm in the lead!
But it was a really hot summer,

So I stayed inside a lot. 

The garden failed. We did get some potatoes though.
That's the extent of the harvest!

We're fostering a little weenie
Her name is Jazzy

 And now that school has started, maybe life will be a little less crazy.  
Probably not.



Monday, August 27, 2012

Dogs 101

Did I really forget how much work it is having a dog? Have I really become that much of a cat person? 
Um, yes I did and yes I have.

I picked up Jasmine last Tuesday, just a few hours after returning home from our whirlwind tour of Springfield, IL. She was a grumpy weenie. She had been shuttled around all day, and I didn't blame her for being grouchy. But, it didn't take her long to settle in and by the next morning she was much happier.

But I wasn't.

This whole getting up at 5am to take the dog out is not my thing. I need my 10 hours of uninterrupted sleep. Now the poor pup seems to be having some urinary difficulties, resulting in having to go out to pee every 2 hours or she pees on the floor. EVERY 2 hours, all night long. Pair that with back-to-back LMS gigs far from home (2 hour drives, each way, both gigs). Now I'm really tired. 

It was so nice to stay home and do nothing all day Sunday! But now I need to find a vet that works with the rescue group so I can take poor Jazzy in to find out what's going on.

She is pretty cute though, when she's awake. She's elderly, so a long walk is all the way to the end of the driveway and back. And she sure gets excited when we get inside and it's time for a cookie! Even grumpy Karl talks baby talk to her when she does that.

So, if you know anyone who is looking to adopt a calm, quiet dog, I can hook them up!


Thursday, August 16, 2012

Weenie Countdown

6

She's a little old lady.



Do you know anyone who wants a weenie? 
We will be fostering Jasmine starting next week.

Monday, August 6, 2012

Goals

You may (or may not) have noticed that I have increased my fundraising goal for the Krempels King of the Road Challenge. I have three months to go, and I've already reached my original goal. Thanks so much to everyone who has contributed so far! But I'm not one to sit back and relax. I'm going to keep nagging you (something that I'm very good at, just ask Katrina!) until I reach the new, updated goal. It's only $200 more. That's just $20 from ten people, or only $10 from twenty people.

A HUGE "Thank You" to Pam, who got me over the $500 mark! And her reward is a new pair of hand knit socks, custom sized, knit by me! (I'm thankful she has tiny feet)

Now, Let me sweeten the pot. The person that gets me over my new goal of $750 gets a hand knit as well. Any hand knit item they choose: socks, scarf, hat, sweater, king-sized afghan... Whatever they want! I am up for the challenge.

So, as they say in the Windy City, give early, give often!

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Well, sort of

So, when I said we were getting a puppy, that's not exactly true.

I sent in an application to be a foster parent for Midwest Dachshund Rescue. Because every home needs a pack of wiener dogs!



But still, please sponsor me for the Krempels King of the Road Challenge.


Monday, July 30, 2012

Peer Pressure?

C'mon. You know you want to.You won't get hooked on it, that's just a rumor. You won't get in trouble, I swear! Are you scared? Don't be a wimp.

All the cool people have already done it... Sponsored me in the Krempels King of the Road Challenge, that is!

As you can see, I'm extremely close to my goal! The ride is a mere 12 weeks away, so get a move on! Simply click on the green DONATE box to the right, and it will take you straight to the secure site. You won't get a bunch of spam, they won't sell your address to anyone, and it's tax deductible.

What are you waiting for??


Oh, and we're getting a puppy. :)

Thursday, July 26, 2012

As Usual

Ugh! I wanted to write a nice long post about all the craziness in the last month. I have photos from the family reunion, the Hangar Dance, camping with swarms of biting flies, eating at Paul Bunyan's, and much more. But, as usual, the day got away from me and all of a sudden, it's 9:00 and I'm ready for bed.
So, I'll leave you with a 3 week old photo of Little Jamie, the nosy one. She's much prettier now.


Friday, June 29, 2012

Is it over yet?

 So the month of June has turned out to be pretty busy for me. Six LMS performances, one City Band concert, and a 40 hour work week all in the last 2 weeks of the month! There have been a lot of late nights (late for me, anyway). Needless to say, I'm sleepy!

 The chicks are doing good - growing, keeping me entertained. They're at a really ugly stage right now when their regulation feathers are coming in, so no photos until their looks improve (and I have time to take some!). The chicken coop is almost finished:

I went with a "peas and carrots" color scheme.
We still have to put on the doors and screen it in.

 Word must be getting around that I'm a good bird caretaker because today I had a fledgling sparrow keep me company at Giggles (the third one this year!) She was pretty cute, and luckily, I had my camera with me today.
I named her Sylvia.
She gave me a present!

 We've had a few "odd" Ladies Must Swing performances lately. Last week, it was a Healthcare Marketing convention, where we were "background music." Who hires a 19 piece jazz band for background?  
At least it was outdoors, and the weather was nice.

 Then, last night we played at the National Women's Music Festival. We were honored to be invited, even though we really didn't know anything about it. Well, lets just say, I didn't see any men in the crowd, but I did see a whole lot of buzz cuts, hairy legs and combat boots. I felt very out of place.

 Tonight, we played for a fundraiser for the Badger Honor Flight. It was "Honor the Military" night at the local stock car races, so we were invited to play before the race, and then the National Anthem and Armed Forces Salute. The cars were doing their qualifying laps while we were playing, so I'm not sure anyone actually heard us until they turned on their hi-tech sound system:

Honest to Pete - they gave some kid a PA mic and he held it in front of our speaker!
 At least that gig was done by 7:30, and it was only 6 miles from my house (we can hear the roar of the cars in our back yard)

 Now, just one more day of work, then I don't have to work again until next friday. And I have 4 whole days before another LMS gig!

 By the way, the NEW Ladies Must Swing CD "Just For A Thrill" is finally available! And I am actually playing on it! If anyone wants one, they are $20 (sorry, no friends & family discount), just let me know!

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

No TV?

Apart from the Tour de France, I doubt I'll be watching any television this summer - I'll be enjoying chicken TV instead! Already these chicks are hilarious.

Yesterday was Day 2 of their lives. I thought they might enjoy some "extra protein" so I sent Katrina to the bait shop for some waxworms. I ran home over lunch, and we introduced the girls to live food.

At first they were scared of the worms. Then they got curious and pecked at them for a few minutes. Then, finally, one chick picked up a worm. The other girls saw her, and each picked up a worm too. But then, they really didn't know what to do with them. So, they ran around for a few minutes, each with a worm in their beak. 

By this point, we were laughing so hard we could hardly see! Finally, Pickles realized she could eat this thing in her beak, and down it went. Then she wanted another, so she started chasing her sisters, trying to grab theirs (Go Pickles!), and some worm tug-of-war ensued. Little Jamie finally swallowed hers, and poor Babs (who I think is more of a Barbara - we'll see) was still not sure what to do with hers.

More tug-of-war! Little Jamie came up the victor, and poor Babs didn't get any worm. She needs to learn to stick up for herself a little more.

After all that entertainment, I dried my eyes (tears of laughter!) and had to go back to work!


Monday, June 11, 2012

They're Here!!

Today was the day! We set off with Dave, the trusty Garmin, who, for some unexplained reason, led us down every country road imaginable. After a beverage break (we were thirsty gals!), we arrived at the hatchery, where the nice man found our box amid the stacks of boxes waiting to be picked up. It was all very exciting! The nice man also told us to all if we have any questions, and that no question is too dumb. That made me feel good.

Then we buckled up and headed for home - taking a route with only 5 turns instead of the 27 or so that Dave sent us down.

She's kind of excited.
When we got home, we gave the girls a nice big drink,

They were so thirsty!
a little snack,

Left to right - Little Jamie, Pickles, and Babs

and then left them alone so they could check out their new apartment.

Tomorrow we're going to give them their first snacks - maybe a little lettuce or a couple of bugs. Yummy!


Monday, June 4, 2012

Clucky, Pecky, and Pickles

For those of you who asked, these are the breeds of chickens we're getting:

Barred Rock

Buff Orpington

 
Black Australorp

Sunday, June 3, 2012

Fast Track to Cluck Town

  First and foremost. Please take a moment to click the green DONATE button on the right, and make a donation (no matter how small) to the Krempels Center. If you have already done so, THANK YOU! If you haven't yet, what are you waiting for?                   right here  → → → → → → →

News on the chicken front: We've had to put a rush on the coop construction because the guy building it (the shop foreman at Karl's place of employment) only has until June 11 before he'll have actual job-related building to do. Karl's going to go "shopping" on Monday (since he's the materials and inventory guy, he knows what surplus is laying around the yard), and they'll get the coop at least semi-done by the end of the week. I'm glad I finally made up my mind about the design.
Pretty close to my design


 Katrina and I will be doing the finish work: painting, installing perches, putting up the screen.

I'm ordering the chicks tomorrow! They won't look like this.

In other fun news - our garage door was broken, so we bought a new one. The old one was a solid door, the new one is panels. The new one has a higher clearance inside the garage, and isn't going to fit. We have three options: jack up the garage roof, jack up the entire garage, or move the garage door opening 8 inches to the left. None of those options are going to be very fun. Once again, I thank my lucky stars that my dad is a carpenter, and we don't have to shell out thousands of dollars for this project. I'm going to owe him big time - at least a rhubarb pie or two!

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Cluck, cluck.

It's official. I've lost my mind, and we're getting chickens.

Chicken coop plans are drawn, I'm just waiting for the carpenter to come home from vacation (Dad doesn't know what he's in for). Today, I'm taking my "backyard poultry permit" application to City Hall. I've already registered with the state as a "livestock premises." Plans are in place for housing the fuzzy babies. 

No, we're not going to eat the chickens (many have asked). They're pets with benefits.
Pretty colors!
Now, we just have to decided which breeds to get.

Thursday, May 17, 2012

No rest for the wicked!

  I survived the Mother's Day rush at my flower job.

An extremely close representation of what I did for 2 of 10 days!


  They called me again early Monday morning (just as I was settling in to watch the Giro!) and need me for the next several weeks. Luckily, it's Mondays and Tuesdays only. I could use the extra cash, so, sure! 

  And now, it's almost Syttende Mai weekend. Never heard of it? Well, neither had we until we moved to Stoughton. We actually moved in during Syttende Mai weekend 1996. Wow! That's a long time ago! We have come to love the festival (OK, really just me), and enjoy the annual festivities. Three years ago, we even had a princess in our midst.

The only time Karl has ever been in a parade, only because he got to drive the convertible.


So, I will once again don my bunad,
Sexy, isn't it?

 make krumkake, 

Wait until you see the flavors we're cooking up for this year!

and wear out my lip in what Karl calls "The longest parade in existence."

I am a true band geek!
I will not, to the best of my ability, eat fried cheese curds (they always give me gut rot!),  a cream puff (too much whipped cream!), or lutefisk (eeuw!).  I will eat something wrapped in lefse, some corn on the cob, and lots of broken krumkake.

So what are you doing this weekend?