Blogiversary

It has been two years since we started this little virtual scrapbook. In that time, we've posted 458 entries. Over the two years, I have posted 417 times Thomas has posted 41 times (though, I’ll say, as I said last year, that Thomas takes quite a bit more time and care with his entries than I do).

We were much more prolific the first year, when we posted 274 times, compared to 184 this year. You, however, have been much chattier this year, providing 536 comments, compared to 435 last year (which brings our average comments-per-post up to 2.9 from 1.8). The most commented on post to date is this one in which Thomas wears contacts, followed closely by this one in which he wears tights and this one in which we all learn our pirate names.

Thank you for reading and commenting!

Beach Pics

At long last, here are the non-pirate beach pics. See more on the other Fowlkes blog.

The men at mini golf.

Carter's refusal to let his feet touch the sand made the weekend somewhat difficult, and required some creative thinking.

Carter tries out Anna's shades.

Carter mini golfs. His "swing" looks more like air hockey than golf.

Tips from T #2

Tip: Be prepared that when you re-insert a contact lens tainted by jalapeno, even after multiple washes, rinses, cleanings, etc., it still feels like fire in your eye.

Luckily that feeling only last about an hour until, again, your tears put out the flame.

Tips from T #1

Tip: Never, EVER, put jalapeno in your eye. Ever.

Specifically, never rub your eyes after chopping jalapenos (though I would NOT recommend putting a whole jalapeno in your eye, either).

To be clear, after chopping fresh, organic jalapenos for dinner, then washing your hands (yes, I did that to be safe), do not rub your eyes with your brand new just home from the eye doctor contact lenses that are slightly bothering you. What happens when you do that is that your eyeball CATCHES ON FIRE! Yes, FIRE!

So the first thing you have to do is remove your contact lens. Which is difficult for a contact lens newbie like me under the best of circumstances (lights, mirror, etc.). Now imagine taking your lens out when your eye is basically swollen shut, flames shooting out of it, hopping up and down from the pain, trying to find a lens case (since this is only pair of these new lenses you have), and don't forget, USING YOUR HAND THAT HAS THE FIRE OF DEATH STILL ON IT SOMEHOW!

Now the lens (just one) is out of your eye somehow and somewhere in the bathroom (I gave up on the lens case pretty quickly). Your eye is still on fire and there is still hopping. Now try thinking about what to do to stop the searing pain, deciding to call someone and trying to decide who. 911? Poison Control? Alton Brown? Ah ha, Ashley! She knows food and medicine. Alas, the Iphone doesn't have voice dial and does have a touch screen, which requires both seeing the screen and touching it (which is hard while hopping). Eventually I pushed the screen in the right way and...voicemail. Thankfully Park is on speed dial (fewer screens to navigate) and I got ahold of Ashley that way who was very supportive in saying basically, wait it out.

Eventually, my tears smothered the flames. I believe I will see again with no permanent damage. I leave you with a plea...

Never, EVER, put jalapeno in your eye. Ever.

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.