CAT ON A HOT-TIN ROOF

For whatever reason, JA decided that the warm and sunny van roof was a nice spot for a bit of a rest... Daddy soon convinced him otherwise.

SO SMILEY

 

LE smiles a lot. A lot! Yet, when I pointed a camera her way this week, she very uncharacteristically was a sober sides much of the time.

Except, if there was frosting involved. Her smiles are jewels...

GRANDCHILDREN: Life's Reward

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GIGI! 83 Years and Counting...

We're having a spectacular week--JA and LE are here from Omaha visiting for almost a week, and every day has been packed with good stuff.

Gigi arrived yesterday afternoon, and she says it'd been quite awhile since she's had a birthday like today. LE wishes her a happy birthday early this morning--in her sweet and lispy little two-year-old manner. We all(5 adults and 2 little ones) go to The Golden Roll for a sushi/bento box lunch--tempura shrimp and vegetables, chicken teriyaki with rice, California rolls, spring rolls, a humongous caterpillar roll, and MA indulges in a Boston roll. JA and LE focus on their bring-along turkey and PB+J sandwiches, but JA adopts the use of chopsticks for eating and also a bit of drumming.

We each have our priorities for the afternoon--including naps, work, swimming, shopping, and baking cupcakes. It's still a secret, but there's a small vanilla cake hiding on the screened porch and Crate and Barrel presents in the trunk of my car.

After everyone is up from the napping part of the afternoon, we frost cupcakes and decorate with gummy fruits and cutout cookies. JA tempts Gigi with a big bag of gifts, telling her she can't open them until Grandpa gets home.

 

To thee, we sing... Happy Birthday, GiGi!

It's almost bedtime for the little ones when Grandpa arrives, so we quickly arrange our cupcakes onto tiered plates, add candles to the cake, and sing the birthday song to Gigi. After Gigi successfully blows out the 9 candles (one for each decade, and one to grow on), JA and LE dig into their cupcakes while the rest of us begin dinner preparations. In the midst of all this, JA supervises Gigi's gift opening, even tearing the envelope off the card--for her convenience!

Tonight's meal is Al Capone beef roast (from Caputo's), mashed potatoes, green beans Amandine, and watermelon-feta-mint salad. YUM! A very special birthday meal.

A very good day.

THE APPLE STORE: Part 2

4:45am.

My alarm goes off and I get up. Immediately. I'm dressing and grabbing some snacks and out the door just after 5:00am to drive the almost one hour to Deer Park. I'm second in line, and the line is short. Two of the guys in line today were here yesterday, but their particularly- desired model was not on-offer. The supply changes daily and is unpredictable.


7:05am.

There are plenty of 32 gigabyte Verizon iPads available this morning, and so far only 6 or so people in line. I take my tickets, gratefully, and drive to Whole Foods parking lot to eat my fruit and Greek yogurt and wait for the 8:00am opening bell.

I find a perfect 5" layer cake for Gigi's birthday tomorrow, and a few treats for the rest of us.

By 9:00am I'm back at the Apple Store--having had two 3-shot Starbuck's cappuccinos so far this lovely (rainy) spring day. Business transacted, I'm a happy camper as I continue on my appointed rounds--shiny new iPad tucked safely into the trunk of my car.

I'm home by 11:00am or so--GiGi has to be picked up at O'Hare at 1:05pm and CA has soccer, so I'm the appointed chauffer...

By dinnertime, I get real and suggest food from Tommy's for the family rather than the meal I'd planned, while I want to eat something WW-friendly and healthy out of my own frig. (Not to mislead--I managed to totally blow my diet out-of-the-water today.)

A very long, and a very successful day. GiGi and MA acquaint themselves with my new toy. That's good. I'll have plenty of time next week to get comfortable with our new iPad. That's right... I need to practice saying ours.

EASTER

glasssteelandstone.com

Easter services at Fourth Presbyterian on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, and then spending the day with family--husband, sister, nephew, niece, nephew-in-law, great niece, and great nephew. A lovely Easter. Great food. Great fun!