Please, Please, Please

Go to A French Fatum and send your condolences to my best friend on the loss of her beloved friend and pet, Delfia. It would really mean a lot to me. This was an extraordinary animal and he will be missed by all who came into contact with him. I am just very sad right now.

Insanely Wonderful Dinner: La Campagne

La Campagne in Cherry Hill, NJ is a must for any Philly/NJ area foodie. It is a BYO serving "Continental Cuisine" in the style of Northern Italy and France.

This is where P's parents took us for dinner for his birthday. I trust their judgement when it comes to restaurants because they enjoy food just as much as we do. They had been there before and were very happy to be able to share it with us. All I can say is I am EXTREMELY glad they did. This is now my 2nd favorite restaurant...and that is saying a lot. Trust me. Everything from the ambiance in the dining rooms (it was in what appeared to be an old farmhouse so a few small rooms) to the service (very knowledgeable and polite) to the AMAZING food was wonderful.

P's parents brought the wine, Paraduxx which is always excellent and a Rosenblum Shiraz which is unusual b/c Rosenblum is a CA wine. For a couple years they had a partnership with an Australian winery to produce this particular Shiraz. Sadly, they do not do it anymore and it is a shame because it was so tasty.

We started off with Rome Point RI Oysters on the half shell with a mignonette sauce. The oysters were delightfully salty and buttery by themselves. The mignonette sauce cut the saltiness just enough to enhance the buttery flavor.

Next we sampled the 'cheese table' they had a wonderful assortment of local and imported cheeses. We ended up picking Carameaway; a soft cheese with caraway seeds, October Kaas; another soft cheese made with sheep's milk and a bit of raw cow milk. Both of those cheese were from a NJ farm called Valley Shepherd (I highly recommend a visit to their website if you are a cheese nut like me). The last one we picked was a huge hit, Blacksticks Blue from England. The cheeses were served with honeyed dates, fresh figs, balsamic strawberry sauce, sliced pear, apple and strawberries and little croutes. I already looked up the farm site so I can get the NJ cheeses. I will search high and low for the Blacksticks.

For an entree I had rack of lamb with potatoes Colcannon style and a pea and mint puree. It was heavenly. The lamb was so perfectly cooked and you could taste the greenness of the pea puree. The potatoes, you just cannot go wrong with them. :) My FIL ordered the same thing. P had the Magret Duck Breast. I heard it was good. ;) I didn't get a taste. My MIL had Salmon that came with a lemon risotto custard. I had a hard time passing that up. I also heard it was very good.

We wrapped up dinner with a trio of creme brulee (raspberry, coffee and vanilla bean) and for P a chocolate mousse cake. Also as mentioned earlier we were given house made limoncello.

It was a wonderful dinner and we had a lovely time. Anytime I can play a meal over in my head, wondering about how they came up with the combinations and wishing I could do the same, I know my whole body enjoyed the experience. I will definitely be going back. :)

Crackberry Friday: Peter is 35!

So tired from being an old man. ;)

Peter has this thing about his age. He had a difficult time with 30. So much so that we actually had his surprise party AFTER he turned 30 because otherwise he would have been saying "I'm not 30 yet, blah, blah, blah" all night. Seriously, that is what he did for 6 months leading up to it. Now he is 35 and he seems ok with it. I am not sure if it's because he has come to terms with it or if it's because he knows he can still act like a 12 year old. Anyway, we are off to a lovely dinner tonight with his parents. I got him a cute card, chocolate covered pretzels and

Warhammer: Battleground for XBox 360.

Yeah, I am a glutton for punishment. The geeks guys at the game store were pretty impressed that I bought it for him. For about 5 minutes I was a cool wife.

What Rattles Your Cage

I came across a blog today that asked my opinion. YIKES! Although you might not be able to tell from my blog...so far...I am a fairly opinionated person. There are somethings I don't argue about because I either don't think I am going to convince a person to change their mind (Republican vs. Democrat) or because I don't have enough information on the topic. When I do have all the info...back the f up.

So, I am interested, what topics really get you going? I don't want any pointing of fingers or nasty words for those that might hold a different opinion, just what you might be passionate about. Have at it. Mine will be in the first comment.

Writers Workshop Wednesday: I wish I could...

I wish I could run. I see people every morning running/jogging. They have a serious look about them as if they know they are doing something good for themselves. There is concentration there and focus.

They are not walking the dog and picking up poop.

The run is all about them. They don't worry that they might not look good in the gym or that they may fart during Child Pose. They are out there on their own, sweaty, possibly gassy, with the wind in their face and th3e knowledge that they are winning the battle against poor health.

I wanna feel like that.

Do it for Chai!

Please take a moment to go to this blog to read the story of Chai, a lab mix who had a horrible experience with a dog toy. Pass on the information as well. It is important that companies realize that we will not take their crap.

The Chai Story

Thanks to The Daily Coyote for bringing this to my attention.

Off the Wagon

Ok, I feel like I am cheating on a diet or something. I have been dutifully eating local now all summer. Today though, after not eating for 24 hours, I fell off the wagon and got a hoagie at Wawa, Doritos Cool Ranch, a Nantucket Nectar and Butterscotch Krimpets. You see, I slept for approximately 1 hour the night before last. Yesterday I was a puddle of quivering jelly with dizziness thrown in. Not fun. I was able to eat lunch and somehow get home from work but there would be no dinner last night. This morning, migraine. Yea! When it was gone I was ravenous! Am I enjoying it? Yes but not as much as I would enjoy something from the farm stand.

Seriously, I have become addicted to the stuff there. I never truly realized how good stuff that is in season and grown locally is until I made it my mission to get it. I'll stop by there on the way home and load up. With what I paid for my lunch, I can probably get produce for the next week. If I could keep that in mind maybe I can steer clear of the crap I am eating today. :)

I haven't fallen off the face of the earth by the way. Internet and or computer at home still causing problems and I really have too much to do to blog at work anymore.

Crackberry Friday Late: Bad Ceiling Fan

I really hope you can truly feel the tackiness of this ceiling fan. The reason you cannot really see the fan blade is because they are clear. You know it makes them invisible. The gold leaves truly give it that "granny who covers her sofas in plastic" feel.

This fan was at a shore house that P and I were guests at this weekend. We had a wonderful time drinking too much and eating too much (why is it that you become ravenous after drinking and dancing at a bar?) playing volleyball too much (P) and sitting on the beach too much (Me). Saturday was absolutely beautiful and I didn't want to leave the beach but we were scheduled to take P's grandmother, who lives close to where we were, out to dinner. All in all a lovely weekend.

PS. I should be back to regular blogging as our home interent is hopefully getting fixed today. Yea!

Bela, Bela, Bela!

Ah, why do I love thee? I sent you fan letters as a child (not to Nadia although I liked her too) with dreams of becoming your new protegee. The fact that I was already past the age where I needed to begin my training would not have been a problem for the most fabulous coach in the world. I remember your defection, I remember all the the special dispensations for you to get your citizenship. I remember all your successes at coaching here in the US despite the criticisms from people who didn't understand your drive to make your gymnasts succeed.

Although we only get to see you at the Olympics now and not in the stands or in the coaches area you still are awesome. With your walrus moustache (reminiscent of Wilfred "testing Supplies" Brimley) and your emphatic opinions about the lack of skillful judges (they really did suck at times), I watched late into the night just to see you and your mismatched shoes and jacket combos go off on the scoring system and the lack of competent gymnastics judges. The wardrobe fail was somehow endearing combined with your still heavy Romanian/Hungarian accent.

I will always have that little dream of being your greatest champion ever and getting a big bear hug from the strict yet lovable Romanian coach. See you in 2012 Bela!

Karma Butt Kicking - The Extended Version

So those lovely crab fries from Thursday helped karma out by giving me a merciless headache/migraine ALL F-ING WEEKEND. I know better than to eat that stuff (some preservatives, like the kind in Old Bay type seasonings can trigger migraines for me) in excessive amounts. I also was very aware that I was getting dizzy spells a precursor to allergies that kick into migraines later. So much for living in the moment. Sheesh!

I am much better after drinking tons of water and eating much better stuff all weekend but I didn't get too much done. My plan had been to cook all weekend stuff I could freeze for a taste of summer in winter. We have the most awesome corn around here this year (you can eat it raw it's so juicy and sweet) and the tomatoes are to die for and the peaches are incredible too. I've never done the freezing in excess thing and I am hoping that I have enough freezer room to actually do it. Do you cooks have any good tried and true freeze now and enjoy later recipes you can share with me?

Crackberry Friday: Or Karma Bit Me in the Butt

So, what you are seeing are the remnants of the Eagles vs. Panthers pre-game last night. On the left we have famous Chickie's and Pete's Crab Fries, hot dog wrappers and beers. On the right, you can see the monsoon rain that swept through Lincoln Financial Field last night. I would like to apologize to all the people who came out to see the game. You see, I told a little white lie/not completely false lie to get out of work at Lottery Yarn last night (am having dizzy spells again, just not to the point I made it sound). Friends of ours that I had not seen in ages had season tix and invited us. It really wasn't just the game, it was a chance to catch up with some of my favorite people. There would be people on-call at LY so calling out was not the worst thing in the world (hell I've gotten called in for stuff like this). The rain was not supposed to start till much later. Cue Karma bus makin' it's u-turn. We stayed until about 9:45pm. When we pulled into our friends place, the rain magically stopped. Cue Karma bus taking off after running over my ass.

We'll chalk this up to a leaning experience.

PS If anyone at Lottery Yarn reads this please keep it to yourself.

I Must Really Be Bored

Work has picked up considerably so my posting is a little erratic.

Yesterday I needed to grab a couple things from the grocery store. I have not been in a few weeks because I have been getting our food from other places. There are somethings that you cannot get from the farm stand though, things like deodorant. I have had a tiny piece of my Dove deodorant left for about a week. You ladies know how it gets when the solid gets low, it gets crumbly and when you use it you pray that you will be able to get enough off of it before is crumbles all over you and on the floor. Half of it fell off the week before. So the mornings have had this added little stresser of hoping it lasts one more day and hopefully I'll remember to pick up another one. FINALLY, the opportunity presented itself when I needed freezer bags and hamburger buns.

The sad thing is, I was actually excited about getting a new deodorant.

I was looking forward to slapping it on every morning without having to be gentle to prevent more crumbling. I actually thought of this as a pleasant experience. There is something VERY wrong with me.

Dear Co-Worker

Dear Co-Worker,

I applaud your efforts at healthy eating and brown bagging it. You are not only doing yourself a service but the environment as well. You even remembered to recycle that orange and white box that your meal came in today. Good for you.

NOW IF YOU FLIPPIN' COOK FISH IN THE FLIPPIN' MICROWAVE AGAIN WITHOUT THE AID OF A MATCH OR SOME SORT OF OTHER ODOR ELIMINATOR I AM GOING TO EAT A BEAN BURRITO AND CARPET BOMB YOUR OFFICE.

Things I Love

The new "Add to Wish List" button from Amazon. You can add stuff from any website (including Etsy, my bloggy artistic friends) to your Amazon wish list. This is like a flippin' dream come true for me. :)

A Few Notes to Catch Up

This weekend I neglected to post. So many things to do, so little time. So I am going to throw a few tidbits together, gathered from my scattered brain...

Saturday: Growers Market, once again blown away. Bought sheep's milk French Feta and yogurt. Have not tried either yet. Can't wait. Also bought TONS of granola. I know it sounds unexciting but this morning I am having a delicious breakfast of yogurt, peaches, granola and honey and on Saturday for lunch I had a small leftover steak sandwich, sweet orange cherry tomatoes with a little salt and marinated mozzarella. Que angels singing. We also went out to dinner for our anniversary. It was a gorgeous evening and we were able to sit outside at one of our favorite spots, The Spring Mill Cafe.

Sunday: Had to work at Lottery Yarn...booo! I was able to get up early enough to enjoy the AM with P and breakfast outside before the crazy storms rolled through. We lost power for about 30 seconds at the Lottery Yarn while I was there because of the storms. First time that has happened in my 2 years there. I ran to the front to prevent people making off with stuff. Sunday evening we relaxed, nibbled a little here and there and watched the Olympics. I am not that into it but I was VERY happy to see the US claim victory over the French in the 100m freestyle relay after the trash talk from the French.

That is about it. Kinda boring but also relaxing in a very nice way. Hope your weekend was good too!

Summer Nights

It is about 9pm. Tonight was one of those perfect evenings. I picked up steak, some fave cheeses and a boule for the soft cheese at the farmers market. When I got home I marinated the steak a bit, chopped up some patty-pan squash, baby potatoes, red onion and garlic tossed with salt and olive oil and let it sit for a bit before roasting. I finished off some white wine while P got the grill going and we munched on bread and cheese. We had dinner outside listening to Otmar Leibert (Flamenco music) and drank a nice Zin. The background; crickets, cicadas and other assorted creatures (including our backyard bats who I love). We went inside when G-dog became too interested in those nocturnal creatures.

Now I am listening to the neighbor kids shriek as they play hide and go seek or some sort of in the dark tag game. I can't help but smile because I remember doing that well past the age of...ahem...maturity and loving every minute of it. ;) It is a PERFECT summer evening.

Crackberry Friday: G-dog!

I took this pic on our way up to the Cape. G-dog is SO good on long trips as long as she can lay down. She's like a little kid in that she'll fall asleep as long as it's highway driving.

I'd like to take this opportunity to remind you all, unless you are a new visitor, that we adopted G-dog a year ago. We always knew when we brought a dog into our family that we would adopt. I was reminded of how important it is to consider adoption when I was out on Wed night. I was at a pet store (supplies, not selling pets) and they had some dogs there that were up for adoption with the foster parents. There was a little white and light brown pit puppy who was insanely cute. He was a mix and you could tell that he had a great personality; friendly and cuddly and would make a great addition to a family. Trouble is, he is tagged with that name: 'pit bull'. I really hope he gets adopted despite that strike against him. The only reason my heart didn't completely break was because he seemed to have a really nice foster Mommy. :)

PS: I have NOTHING against pure bred dogs or GOOD breeders. We had a Golden Retriever growing up and a German Shepard, both from excellent breeders. Keeping the breed strong by making sure the gene pool isn't too shallow is something good breeders do and I respect that.

Morning Walk: Change in the Air

I always look for it, every year. Sometime in August, there is a day that gives you a hint that the season is starting, slightly to turn. Today was the day. I noticed a different tang to the air rather than the usual humid heaviness that we experience in the middle of summer here. Although the high was in the mid 80's yesterday and today it will be 87, the air experienced a coolness that can only be attributed to sun not being around quite as long as it was a month ago. G-dog and I walked with a lighter step and I began to notice other things that told of the coming changes. The acorns are starting to fall, half eaten ones crunching under my feet, tiny green ones shaken from the branches. There are holes starting to appear in my flower beds, squirrels hiding their stash or stealing another's. The rabbits seem to be munching everything they can pack into their cheeks and all the woodland creatures are looking a bit pudgy.

Fall is my favorite season and this change signaled something in my brain to smile the rest of the walk, thinking of the evenings we'll spend around the outdoor fireplace, sipping wine and just enjoying the sounds and scents of the season.

My Island: Response to Your Requests

You guys have some great suggestions. Here's a couple reasons why a few of the people you mentioned are not there yet:

Elizabeth Hasselback: She is still young enough that her views could be tempered with knowledge and time. I will however move her to 'stand-by' for that time period.

Paris Hilton: She's kinda playing a part or if she is that useless, she'll self destruct eventually. She's not really causing injury unless you count the little girls that want to be her....hmmmm...I may have to rethink this one.


Judge Judy: Now that is an interesting one. I think she's more an actress than anything though so not insane to the bone like the others. Her power maybe went a little to her head.

Jamie Lynn Spears: She is still young and she is on 'stand-by' because I am waiting to see how she handles herself. If she does better than her sister, she will not be going.

50 Cent: Need to look into.

So, here is how it stands until my next post about it:

Stand-by:
Jamie Lynn Spears
Elizabeth Hasselback

On the island:
Ann Coulter
Rick Santorum
Brittany Spears
Amy Winehouse
Lindsay Lohan

My Island II: A New Member

For those of you that missed my explanation My Island is a place where I send people that irritate me so badly by their presence that they need to be isolated in a place where they can do the least harm to the public. If someone REALLY pisses me off I am known to say, "They better be careful or they are going to My Island." I don't send them there automatically, there is a process and I am very picky about who I scoop out of the rest of the population's gene pool.
So far I have sent:
Britney Spears
Amy Winehouse
Lindsay Lohan
Rick Santorum

Flying stand-by:
Jamie Lynn Spears

Today, I am sending another person. She should have been in the original set but alas, I had forgotten about her for a brief moment when she wasn't trying to hog the political spotlight with her extremest right-wing rantings. She is:

Ann Coulter

This woman used to frighten me because of the filth that spewed from her mouth but with titles for her books such as:

If Democrats Had Any Brains They'd Be Republicans
Godless: The Church of Liberalism
How to Talk to a Liberal If You Must

Well, they really just show that she is a complete fool and thoroughly unimaginative. I mean, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that if you dye your hair (badly), starve yourself and wear sexy clothing on a book cover, drooling men are going to pick it up. She actually thinks that her message is getting through to people because of her book sales. Here are some lovely comments by Ann as gathered by Wikipedia:
On October 8, 2007, Coulter ignited yet more controversy when she was quoted as saying that Jews should be "perfected" into Christians. She was talking about Republicans with Donny Deutsch, a Jewish CNBC talk-show host, and implied that she considered Christianity a virtue. Deutsch asked her, "It would be better if we were all Christian?", to which Coulter replied "Yes". Deutsch asked her, "We should all be Christian?", and got the same response, with an invitation to come to church. Later on, Coulter said, "we just want Jews to be perfected, as they say", saying that this was what Christianity was, and she compared the 'New Testament to Federal Express. Further, Coulter said that Christians considered themselves to be perfected Jews. Deutsch implied that this was an anti-Semitic remark, but Coulter said she didn't consider it to be a hateful comment.[62]

...about 9/11 Widows
These broads are millionaires, lionized on TV and in articles about them, reveling in their status as celebrities and stalked by grief-arazzis. These self-obsessed women seemed genuinely unaware that 9/11 was an attack on our nation and acted as if the terrorist attacks happened only to them. ... I've never seen people enjoying their husbands' deaths so much ... the Democrat ratpack gals endorsed John Kerry for president ... cutting campaign commercials... how do we know their husbands weren't planning to divorce these harpies? Now that their shelf life is dwindling, they'd better hurry up and appear in Playboy.[88]

...It would be a much better country if women did not vote. That is simply a fact. In fact, in every presidential election since 1950—except Goldwater in '64—the Republican would have won, if only the men had voted.

So Ann, your idiocy and complete lack of knowledge about the world around and your continuous misinterpretation of what you don't know you has earned you a trip to My Island. You are a hateful person and the female equivalent to Dorian Grey. I am sure you and Rick will get along well. Maybe you and Brit can dye each other's hair. I'll send some peroxide in the next supply drop. She seems to know a little more about it than you.

I Didn't Do This and Award Time!

So P told me I could post the pic I took of him in the hospital...no, really he did. I am not sure why he had the change of heart. Maybe because of the mileage he is getting for it in the joke category.

I have to tell you, I am not so amused by it. I have stopped counting the number of people that have jokingly told me that I needed to "take it easy on him" and "tell your wife to stop hitting you. " Being in a prior abusive relationship makes you a little prickly on this subject. I am trying to take it with a grain of salt but I am not happy about it. I am also glad that he wasn't hurt worse although it looked much worse than this the next day. Lots more color. He really could have done some serious harm to his vision...

If you can't see the vacuum, how are you supposed to use it. Trust me, he's already pulled a few "I can't go out in public like this." crap to keep from running errands. Oh, but he can go to Coldstone for ice cream. Umm Hmm. Ok. So don't feel too bad for him.

Also

I SO love some awarding in my life. In particular I love this one because it suggests (rather accurately) that I am a bad ass. This is true although I am not sure that I have written a post that accurately pinpoints it. So, thanks to My2Boys I am happy to pass this on to:

1. Candid Carrie: If you don't already know she kicks ass, you need to visit.
2. BHJ at The Wind in My Vagina: His mission to out the pedophile at the community pool is heroic and his jam sessions with son just rock

3. La Dolce Vida: Because she is so creative and keeps coming up with new stuff for her jewelry

4. A French Fatum: You guys don't know her as I do but you should and she is just the best. She kicks ass all the time through thick and thin.

5. Hullabaloo at Hullabrouhaha: For the dress she wore to a wedding recently. She is the most rockin-est Scotterish gal ever!

Ok all, now you need to pass this wonderful award on to your kick ass faves! Enjoy!

Going Further Local

I wrote about starting this process AGES ago when I first started this blog and have tried here and there to do it but didn't do it very seriously until I read Barbara Kingsolver's book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. I absolutely LOVED this book. IT is not what you are thinking. It is not a guilt you into buying a farm, it isn't an elitist sort of handbook (although some small minded people might say it is) nor does it suggest you need to turn your life upside down to live by a set of harsh rules. As much as I wish that I could do everything they did...

1. I don't have a farm or really enough space for my own garden (also, SO many rabbits)

2. I have a 9-5 job (so do many many farmers though and that is terribly sad)
3. No room or laws) for my own chickens and turkeys.

4. I really like ocean fish

So I am trying the best I can to buy local and by the season. I am running into problems already.

Lemons, I use these in cooking but not ever local

Limes, see above

Bananas, banana bread, nuff said

So, I am altering my extreme-ness to the Willistown CSA's locavore pledge:

If not LOCALLY PRODUCED, then Organic.

If not ORGANIC, then Family Farm.

If not FAMILY FARM, then Local business.

If not a LOCAL BUSINESS, then East Coast

If not EAST COAST, then United States,

If not UNITED STATES, then Fair Trade

I can totally, live with this and really, most of the time will be in the top 2 or 3 (except for coffee). So I have committed our little family to this plan. In order to move forward with our new plan, I went to the West Chester Growers Market on Saturday morning. I had heard so many good things about it after starting my locavore research that I couldn't wait to go. I was not disappointed.

This is part of what I brought home yesterday. All grown or made within 30 miles of me. The thing wrapped in a plastic bag is what is left of the french loaf and the white topped mason jar is what is left of the granola from the same bread bakery (that granola was f-ing insanely addicting), Big Sky Bakery in Delaware (this is a kind of chain but all bread is baked locally from grains raised and ground in the US). The fruits and veggies are all from farmers in Lancaster County, mostly Amish who have adopted an organic way of growing most of their produce (no I didn't ask if they run puppy mills as well, if I find out they do I will not buy from them). What you don't see is the turkey sausage, pork loin and ground lamb I got from Lindenhof Farms. All their animals are pasture fed and hormone free. I will be making keftedis tonight with the lamb along with roasted eggplant and possibly tzatziki if I can find a recipe for it. Also, I have discovered that the Whole Foods closest to us not only carries local foods but also holds a farmers market a couple times a month. That combined with the farm I already can get to on a daily basis, Maple Acres, should sustain us until late fall/early winter. That is when I may have some trouble as canning scares the crap out of me.

Don't worry, I am not going to get all preachy on you (I really hate that to begin with after being told I was probably a lesbian because I had short hair freshman year in college by one of those 'witnessing' 'Christian' people on campus). I will say, however, that the food I have consumed from farmers markets, grown in season has been absolutely delicious. I don't think I could go back to the other stuff if I wanted to (tomatoes are f-ing AMAZING right now) considering my love for cooking and good food. I will report on how I am doing with the whole locavore thing more regularly if not for any other reason other than I love food.

Update: The kefthedes (Greek meatballs) totally rocked and the tzazaiki (sp) made them even better. I could though, kill you with my garlic breath. When I halved the recipe for the tzazaiki, I forgot to half the garlic. There are Greek mothers who will need to burn their recipes after this awsome cooking feat. ;)

Tag!

I have been tagged in a Meme by Tami at Neurotically Yours and I haven't been tagged in awhile nor do I think I have done this one. Also Tami said sweet things about me so I am going to do this one. Flattery will get your Meme passed on...


Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.

Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.

Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

1. The left side of my sternum is lower than the right. You can't tell to look at me but it can do a number on underwire bras.

2. I used have the movie Clue memorized. I proabably can still recite most of it but my memory is not what it used to be (I am serious).

3. I am scared to go to the movies at a theater. I have to be REALLY excited about one to go (LOTR trilogy, SATC...). I might post about this fear sometime. It does actually have a root.

4. I read magazines from back to front. Easier to flip pages.

5. I LOATHE fruit and chocolate together, except for chocolate and bananas.

6. I worry that my dog is mad at me for showing her what vacation is like then bringing her back to the daily grind.

7. I was in the ER on Thursday night with P.


I tag...
Hullabrouhaha because she has time to do it now that her living arragement is sorted.
As Cape Cod Turns because she is awesome and you should be visiting her blog.
Killing a Fly with A Ukalele is Probably the Wrong Thing to Do because she is a new bloggy friend from down under.
It's a Wonderful Lie because I need to live vicariously thru someone inthe 20's ;)
An American in Norway becuase she is in the US right now.
A French Fatum becuase she is fun and you should be reading her blog as well (she's a bit secrative though)
John Deere Mom because I like her and her kids are too flippin' cute.

Crackberry Friday: Power of the Cape

I jotted down some notes while I was at the Cape and one was about the power that seems to reside there for me. I wrote this down on my first night because of the massive thunderstorms that were rolling through and the way they made me feel. The lightening, the clouds and the wind seemed so much more fierce than they do at home. I am not sure if it was just the fact that we were next to the water but in my mind, it was the same power that pulls me there every year. Even though I am not there at this moment, I feel my heart physically being pulled away as if I should be moving back to that place.

The dreams I have there are more realistic and almost crisp; those dreams that seem so real you are not sure they didn't happen. I had a quick though emotional one while I was there. I dreamed that Peter and I had just arrived. It was night and my Mom came out to greet us. We walked into the house and as I turned the corner, there was my Dad, clear as can be. The dream lasted moments in my head but I remember he had on a blue tee shirt and shorts. His hair was the dark brown almost black with peppered grey he had before he lost it from the chemo. It was just so fast. Just a glimpse but there was so much in that glimpse. I saw that he had been relaxing in the sunroom, waiting for our arrival. He was looking forward to seeing us there and enjoying our time together. I felt all of this and so much more in just that short time. I am teary just thinking about it now and that is a big deal for me because I tend to block most emotions pretty much ever since he got so sick. The emotions that I was able to feel at the Cape, allowed me to relax and open up my mind while I was there. This is why I so strongly feel that I belong there. It's like when I am there, there is a piece of me that fits with the rest and then I am complete; able to cry, able to laugh, able to feel.