oh man...books!

it's no secret that i love a list. more than that, i love MAKING a list and i am not shy about admitting that i am quite good at it. i think back over some of the lists i've made and, honestly, they make me smile. the to-do list that filled a piece of notebook paper (front & back!) of stuff to get done before mom and dad visited our franklin place for the first time, the list of people to invite to the wedding or to send birth announcements to, the list of pros & cons for marrying ryan...just kidding, ry.

anyway, as much as i love my lists i also love lists that other people put together. i have often dreamed about doing everything on a particular list; for example: reading all the pulitzer prize winning novels or watching the AFI 100 greatest movies (erin & i actually tried that one but, whew, some of the movies were BOOOORING). needless to say, none of those things have panned out for me. and now someone's written a book about 100 places to see before you die! yikes! talk about the pressure of a list.

recently while reading up on new fiction, i came across an article about the 2007 winner of the man booker prize. i have read a few booker prize winning novels and wondered what other books had been awarded the prize. i looked it up and found that this year marks the 40th anniversary of the prize. curious, i searched for the past 40 winners. as i was looking at the books i realized something. THIS list seems manageable. THIS list seems like fun. THIS list is going to be the list i try to conquer. i've already read two of the winning novels, amsterdam & disgrace, and have another, midnight's children, waiting for me on my nightstand. disgrace is my favorite book of all time. it was written in 2005 by j.m. coetzee who won the 2003 noble prize in literature. if you are looking for something fantastic to read (although not really upbeat), i highly recommend it. in the meantime, i'll keep you posted...maybe a new list will emerge out of this. one can only hope...

top 5

it's time again for a top 5. i asked ryan for a new list and asked him to pick the category. after only a minute he said...CANDY! everyone likes some kind of candy - some people are chocoholics, some love the sour stuff and some just love it all. for me, there's nothing better than frozen candy - especially peanut butter cups and butterfingers. in fact, i bought 11 LARGE bags of candy for halloween because i was told our neighborhood got "hundreds" of trick-o-treaters. i guess maybe this was an off year because i ended up eating most of the candy myself. maybe that's why wil weighed almost 9 lbs at birth! anyway...candy....SWEET!

ryan's top 5 candy list

1. twizzlers
2. peanut m&ms
3. reese's peanut butter cups
4. reese's pieces
5. twix

shrimp & grits casserole

last friday we hosted our friends heather & alistair for dinner. heather & i share a love for southern food and southern cooking. their 4 year old daughter lily loves shrimp and, in my opinion, EVERYONE loves (or should love!) a casserole. so, we had shrimp and grits casserole featured featured in the december 2007 issue of cooking light. if shrimp, grits and casseroles appeal to you...give it a try! you won't be disappointed.

after dinner, overcome by the good vibe and camaraderie, lucy decided to show heather some love. if you've ever met lucy, you know this was VERY out of character. just ask denise...or mom...or ryan...or anyone really.

smothered chicken

when mom was here for spring break we made smothered chicken. talking with my neighbor heather about smothered pork chops led into a discussion of good southern food. she shared this recipe with me as best she could remember. it came from a friend of hers in virginia and boy am i glad it did. it was fabulous! (we added sauteed mushrooms to ours - yum!) enjoy!

smothered chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 large onions cut into rings
2 qts chicken broth
2 c. flour seasoned with salt, pepper, paprika, set aside
1 egg, beaten and set aside
1 tbls vegetable oil
1 package egg noodles

Dredge chicken breasts in egg & seasoned flour. Saute over medium heat in vegetable oil until brown. Cover browned chicken with onion rings and sprinkle onions with a few tablespoons seasoned flour. Add chicken broth, cover and bring to a simmer for 30 minutes. Serve over egg noodles.

34 things

it's been said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. in that spirit, i have decided to copy denise's fabulous 34 things list. it's a wonderful way to track personal goals and achievements. the list denise created inspired me to think about some of the things i want to do before i turn 35. trouble is...i am only 33 and my 34th birthday is a mere 5.5 months away. i am afraid i'd be setting myself up for failure with a list of 33 things to do before i turn 34 (especially with a new baby!) so my list is also a list of things to do before i turn 35. the list is a bit ambitious in parts but, hey, i do have almost a year and a half to complete it! i hope this is something i continue year after year...the lists will get longer but with any luck life will just get more fun!

34 things to do before i turn 35

1. start a supper club
2. find a place to volunteer
3. take a spontaneous vacation
4. host a girls night out
5. visit a state i have never been to
6. make a new friend
7. find a church to attend
8. take a class of any kind
9. take a swimming class with wil
10. paint something - just once!
11. visit the central park & bronx zoos
12. plant a vegetable garden
13. attend a baseball game (or two!)
14. see anything on broadway
15. take a music class with wil
16. see a performance at the met (denise...let's do this together!)
17. meet the new babies born in my family (cooper & upcoming baby cohorn)
18. spend a day at the modern museum of art
19. buy and give a gift to someone for no reason
20. go camping
21. take a weekend trip with my sister
22. paint the front door and trim
23. complete a photo album of wil's first year
24. have a family picnic on the beach one summer evening
25. fill in wil's baby book
26. see a performance of handel's messiah
27. play the piano again (maybe this will be my class!)
28. have a date with ryan at least every third month
29. read a daily devotional
30. take a yoga class
31. see a outdoor concert
32. attend one performance per season at the two river theatre company
33. start and finish our mudroom/playroom
34. attend 2 newcomer's club events

it's not easy being green

i am a huge fan of al gore. i was deeply saddened when he "lost" the 2000 presidential election; however, i am not sure the climate would be getting the attention it's been getting if al gore had assumed the presidency, so the trade-off is alright with me.

al was profiled on 60 minutes this past sunday. the focus of the piece was upcoming ad campaign to support the climate project, his non-profit organization focused on "the mission of increasing public awareness of the climate crisis at a grassroots level in the United States and abroad." it was a wonderful piece and highlighted, i thought, just how passionate both al and tipper are about the project. they are giving their own time, talents and treasure as stewards for the environment. it is a subject that i am increasingly passionate about and am even considering trying to become one of the presenters of the climate project at some point in the future. the planet is a gift to us all. although we are under no obligation to protect it there is a responsibility that we have to nuture and care for it. i truly feel that the work al gore, and others like him, is doing is important and relevant. i feel it my responsibility to do what i can to reduce my carbon footprint so that wil and future generations can enjoy the plant as i have.

that's not to say that it's easy. kermit the frog said it best, "it's not easy being green" and how right he was. mom said that when she was here to help us after wil was born that the hardest part of the 5 weeks was not the middle of the night feedings or the constant cooking and cleaning but the RECYCLING i made her do. i laughed when she told me that but i know that she meant it! recycling is only one of several things i have attempted to master over the past few months. i have also cut down on my paper towel use (don't you have 100 dishtowels!? i do!), tried to walk more and drive less, bought and exclusively use sigg water bottles, turn-off the lights when they aren't necessary and am using my own bags at the grocery store. we have changed out a lot of our light bulbs for more energy efficient ones and all of our appliances are energy star rated. yet, i agree with mom, it's hard. the recycling takes up a lot of my time and, quite frankly, the light bulbs that you need to use with recessed lights (of which we have many) are just plain ugly. however, doing the right thing is never easy and i am going to strive to continue to do a little each day to help reduce my impact on the planet. i hope that i can inspire even one other person to do the same. the smallest thing can make a huge impact. just think...if you use a dishtowel every time you want to grab a paper towel not only will you reduce the amount of trees being used to make paper but you will save yourself money in the long run! so give it a try. pull out one of those old tote bags that you never use and replace even one paper or plastic bag next time you head to the store. it'll feel good, i promise! for more green ideas click here and to start small click here!

new jersey sky

one day last week we actually got a taste of spring. at 6p it was almost 70 degrees. wil and i joined lucy outside and let the last sun of the day wash over us. i was looking up at the sky and thought of denise's post "texas skies". inspired by gustavo's picture i took this shot. as i looked up i felt connected with friends and family living far away. knowing that we all share the sky made the world feel a little smaller to me on that day. i am so happy that spring is on the way. it always gives me a much needed sense of renewal.

sleeping beauty

last week was a tough sleeping week for wil (and us). he seemed to go through a transition that had him more awake and unsettled at night than peacefully asleep. after talking to our doctor (who told us oh-so-kindly that we were being played) we got some much needed reassurance that things were par for the course. however, he also asked us some questions that prompted us to change some of our nighttime habits and the result has been great. in fact, last night wil went to bed at 8p and he's still asleep as of this writing at 7:15a! hopefully this isn't his version of an april fool's joke. in case of sleep emergency we recommend these products...snuggle, light, sound.

in other wil news: 90 is the new 100. he's growing like a weed and is in the 90th percentile for height and weight. (his head is hovering around 50% making him perfectly proportionate. hilarious.) he grew 2.2 lbs last month and 1 full inch. he now weighs 17.4 lbs and is 26.5 inches long. he is easily wearing his 6-12 month clothes! he is also now eating an array of food including sweet potatoes (loves) and peas (ick). he loves to eat and pops his mouth open the second we put him in his highchair. all-in-all things are great and we are so grateful to be the parents of such a happy and charming baby that, as of this moment, is still sleeping. 7:45a...i'll take it.