Beach Fun

Tonight was one of those nights where everything I tried to do went wrong, so here are some fun beach pix for the happiness of all (mostly me).

Carter may not have been born on "International Talk Like a Pirate Day" like his dad, but he has a little pirate in 'im...

Arrrrrgggggggg!

The Next Bobby Flay?

"But Thomas," you say, "you are already the best chef du meat that we know...you easily surpass the Iron Chef with your masterful grilling skills...."

"Wait, wait," I say, "I am aware of my own meat prowess, however, the time has come for a new generation. Yes, indeed, the future of the ultimate flavor profiles is...CARTER!"

Yes, tonight, Carter has taken meat flavors in a whole new direction that I can only describe as "The future of cooking."

Before-Boring old Lima Beans

After: Lima beans with WORCESTERSHIRE SAUCE!

That's right, Carter decided that dipping Lima Beans in Worcestershire sauce was the perfect addition to his meal. I mean, who would have thought it, and yet it is obviously the best thing ever. I see the culinary world being turned upside down as we speak, just waiting for chef Carter the get old enough to safely use a knife.

Also waiting for this dinner to end as he is eating one bean at a time switching between spoon and fork every...single...bean.

Off Again

We got home from our fun beach trip late last night, and I'm headed off for another week in NYC and DC well before you'll be up in the morning. We did take lots of good photos this weekend, so I expect Thomas will be posting some for you soon!

Beach Bound

We're headed down to Pensacola for a few days with Park, Ashley and Anna for some fun in the sun. Sorry we've been so bad about blogging lately - we promise to come back with some good blogging fodder!

Miracle of Nature

My petunias are certainly hardy and determined. Determined to not be contained by the window box. A new plant has sprouted about 5 feet away from where I planted the petunia, in front of another planter. You can see this in the photos below because, luckily, I took a picture of this miracle of nature before I showed it to Carter, who promptly ripped the flowers off. However, true to form, 4 or 5 new flowers are about to blossom to replace the two he took off.

Lullwater Park

On our bike ride yesterday afternoon, we finally managed to find the beautiful park on Emory's campus (we'd tried and failed to find it several other times). We took a break to feed the ducks and geese (and Carter) by the lake.

European Wine Glasses

Years ago, when my parents were visiting me in Chicago, we stopped at the Crate & Barrel Outlet store at North and Clybourn, and my mom bought herself a set of European wine glasses. At some point after this shopping trip, I decided that these were the best glasses I had ever seen and that I had to own a set as well. Sadly, this was after the store had stopped carrying them. I've been on a quest to find exactly the same glasses ever since. I'll stop anywhere that carries anything remotely like glassware and scour the shelves for glasses of exactly this shape and size. Many glasses are similar; none are the same. This frustrates Thomas greatly.

When we were recently in Arkansas, my mom gave me an early birthday present and told me I could open it whenever I wanted - after we got back to Atlanta. Perhaps she had tired of Thomas' unceasing lament that it is impossible to find the exact European wine glasses; perhaps she tired of my not-so-subtle hints that the wine glasses were to be reserved for my inheritance; or perhaps she just got tired of using them. In any case, when I opened the package this week, I found my mom's set of European wine glasses inside.

Hooray! Thanks to mom, and cheers!

P.S. Mom, Thomas is so glad that the quest to find the glasses is over that he doesn't even mind having the additional glassware in the house! Also, I haven't told him about the party plates you brought in May. Shhh...

Playdough

It rained pretty much all day, so we had to entertain ourselves indoors. We made forts, watched movies, and when we ran out of ideas, I remembered playdough. The homemade, salty stuff my mom used to make for us. So I whipped up a batch and Carter was highly entertained!

Question - I've got it stored in an airtight (mostly) ziploc, hoping it will last a few days. Should I refrigerate it?

Our Morning at the Park

This morning Carter and I packed a breakfast picnic and went to Piedmont Park where we ate breakfast, danced to the early-morning band, fed the ducks, visited with Anna, Ashley and Angie, and got a little silly with socks.

Quick as a Cricket

Quick as a Cricket was always a favorite book when I was a kid. My mom pulled it out when Carter was in Arkansas, and while he initially insisted on reading one of his own books, after Mom managed to read it to him once, he was hooked. We now often have to read it multiple times in a row. It's his latest favorite.

Another new favorite thing is popping the trunk. Carter figured out how to use the key remote to open the trunk, and he can be entertained for quite some time with popping the trunk and closing it. He lets out an excited squeal every time the trunk opens, and he's just as excited the fifteenth time as he is the first. Two small problems here - first, minor concern that this much opening and closing is not good for the trunk, and second, he unfortunately punches the panic button instead of the trunk button on occasion...

Ok, Ok, Wordle us too

Just click on it for a larger image. Thanks for the fun, Rachel!

July 4th on the Lake

We spent the 4th on the lake with my parents. The weather wasn't great, but we did get a couple of hours of sunshine, and the water was warm, regardless.

Thomas enjoys a breakfast beer

Carter insists on driving the boat by himself

Daddy Phil helps Carter with his balloons

Thomas and Carter go for a dip

More from Arkansas

Here are some more pics that my mom sent from Arkansas.

Carter goes for a ride at church.

Carter and Daddy Phil pick cucumbers.


We are headed to Arkansas ourselves today!

Day 4

We've done very little work today. This morning, we did a bit of organizing to complete the changes to Carter's room (pics below). Otherwise, it's been lunch, massages, wine tasting and now we're headed off to a Braves game!

Ironically, we've spent much of our child-free time working on Carter's room. Since Carter had never had a bedroom until we moved here, he didn't have any furniture and just inherited the pieces we didn't want in other rooms. He had no dresser, slept on a mattress on the floor and had two beat up trunks and a beat up bookshelf. We bought him a bed frame (which I stained) and a new dresser, and I refinished the two trunks that were already in his room (some of you may recognize these as the first pieces of furniture that I bought when I first lived on my own). We can't wait to show him his new room when we get home with him on Saturday!

Pictures from Arkansas

Here are some pictures that my mom sent from Arkansas. Carter is clearly having a good time!

Day 3

Okay, so we're still not picture ready yet, but I can tell you that the last two days have been filled with sanding, staining, painting and assembling. But we did get out of the house last night to finally see Iron Man. At the 11pm showing. It was good, but I was SO tired when it was over! Who are these crazy people who go see movies that late on a Monday night?! (Aside from us, I mean...)