Valentine's Day discoveries

Oh my. I have seen some things. Turns out that on Valentine's Day most families in the city of Richmond are at Krispy Kreme, mine included. Mac, Grammie, the noodle and I decided on a whim to go try their heart-shaped donuts for a morning snack (because a breakfast of blueberry heart pancakes was just not enough). We'd never been in a Krispy Kreme, but I have a sneaking suspicion we'll be back roughly every time we drive past it. Anyhow, the point is that it was an absolute zoo. A loud, kid-filled, sugary zoo. And it was 100% perfect.



But that's not all I saw yesterday. I also discovered that we aren't the only family desperate enough to get some fresh air and exercise for our child to patronize a playground that's still covered in snow. It was fun in a dangerous, break-your-back kind of way.

What else? I discovered Ledo Pizza and their claim is true... they really don't cut corners. I also found that they keep one of the two front doors locked there. This is good to know for next time so that I can avoid knocking the noodle's head into a door while carrying her kicking and screaming out of the restaurant because she chose to lay down on the floor instead of put on her jacket like a normal person. Uugh.

Another discovery... men were willingly shoe shopping at DSW with their wives and girlfriends and (gasp!) offering good advice. Some men were even there alone picking out shoes for their sweeties. Heels were popular. I don't know if I could be more shocked than if Mac gave me a pair of heels for Valentine's Day. I'm sure they'd be great for wearing at the playground.

But speaking of Mac and Valentine's Day, he gave me the one thing I wanted but was afraid to ask for. Did you guess yet? I'll give you three tries. No, it wasn't chocolate. Or roses. Or juicy pear jelly bellies. It was Chipotle. Normally, I wouldn't be afraid to ask for Chipotle, but I have been splurging ever since Friday night's birthday festivities, followed by a night of drinks and dancing Saturday night and of course pancakes, donuts and pizza already on Sunday. Don't worry, I worked out for about 45 minutes - I'm sure I burned it all off! : )

*** this photo taken before the infamous splurge of Valentine's Day 2010

I love

Happy Birthday, me!

It's good to be thirty-three...

So far, anyway.

Can't you do whatever you want on your birthday? I think you can. So, for my birthday, I'm listing 33 things I love (in no particular order):

1. haiku
2. Fiji
3. scuba diving
4. red wine
5. seeing life through a viewfinder
6. a clean car
7. the color orange
8. motherhood
9. avocados
10. putting paint on canvas
11. dave matthews band (still, and perhaps always)
12. sushi
13. San Diego
14. swing dancing
15. cooking
16. swimming
17. that OK Go video with the guys on the treadmills
18. Italian food
19. sunsets
20. anything by Augusten Burroughs
21. flip-flops
22. loud restaurants
23. roller coasters
24. mid-century modern architecture
25. new clothes
26. Jeopardy
27. magnolias
28. vegetables
29. Fall
30. the little noodle
31. Mac
32. my family
33. YOU

Enjoy this day and in case we don't talk, have a happy Valentine's Day, too!

xoxox

These are a few of my favorite (winter) things

Winter is not messing around this year, people! It's all snowy with more snow in the forecast. And this is Richmond! Virginia! Seriously.

The noodle and I are truly outdoors people but not so much when it's freezing. Plus, once we spend 20 minutes getting geared up in what the noodle considers appropriate winter attire (on this occasion it was my scarf, bunny ears, a broom and a Cheez-It roadie), she's often ready to come right back inside and beg for hot chocolate.


Anyhow, since we can't hit the playgrounds or our favorite park, we're finding new ways to amuse ourselves. While it would be fun if this list included things like escaping to Mexico for a while, we've had to get a little more creative this year. Here goes...

• Penguin potato prints - say that fast three times

• Freeze dance parties - dance... freeze... dance... freeze... giggle hysterically... repeat
  
• Performing guitar duets - I hold down the chords and she strums... we play a mean "Octopus' Garden"
• Visiting Busytown

• Baking ... you know, I should call it what it actually is - licking batter from the bowl
  
• Cleaning the house - I have no idea why she thinks this is fun, but I'll take it!
• Reading the newspaper - at least someone in this house finds the Richmond Times Dispatch worth reading

• Three-hour naps - thank God!
• And when all else fails, the noodle is all about Elmo's World, or what I like to call "20 minutes of sanity"
  

Anyhow, there's more snow in the forecast for tomorrow, so chime in. What are your favorite winter activities? We're going to need all the help we can get.