A Birthday Brunch

On this chilly Sunday morning the whole family came together to celebrate my mother's birthday. Brunch, it turns out, is not only a relatively economical way to throw a party for 20 people, but it also falls at a pretty convenient time of the day. So those who needed to study, play lacrosse, go to their Lego meet or walk the dog ~ could still fit it all in after birthday waffles and fruit salad.

Over the years I have always tried to get a group family shot at gatherings. This one is funny because the only one who is paying attention to me standing on a folding chair in front of them to get a good angle is my own son, Ronan. That's funny.

My mother found some of my photo albums that have been in her basement for 30 years! A little moldy - but they still held enough treasures of forgotten moments, funny clothing and old prom photos for us all to enjoy.

The easiest birthday cake I never had to make. This is a 3-tiered GIGANTIC coffee roll birthday cake (well, I put it together, stack, stack, stack) from Kane's Donuts in Saugus. Plug, plug. They are awesome. Have you been? It'll just make you happy when you go. Happy Birthday Grandbabs!

2 Things Making Momma Happy

Hmmm. Very happy this very chilly afternoon. Which one to choose. One now, one later. For 3 years I have wanted to see this great band on St. Patrick's Day and I have just always missed the boat. I would think about it at the beginning of March and by then I was w-a-y too late and the shows were all sold out. So today I went to the box office in person and bought a bunch. They are in my hot little hands. And I am deliriously happy 'bout it.

And waiting for me when I got home, well, just the best or the worst depending on how you look for it. Problem is you can't just eat one or two or even three. They are awesome. And I thought this was funny. AS IF a Double-Stuf Heads or Tails Oreo isn't bad enough, there is a recipe on the back for a Heads or Tails milk shake adding chocolate syrup, milk and ice cream to the cookies. Even a girl with a crazy sweet tooth has her limits. And I take my Double-Stuf Oreos straight up.

Happy Weekend.

On a Winter's Day

This has been a *very* unusual winter here in the Northeast. While last winter it was record-breaking in it's own extreme way with a snow day once a week, this winter has been extremely mild with no snow in the whole month of December and almost half of January. This is a flooded field in our sports-field complex near 3 schools. The town purposefully floods it with the intention that it will freeze and be used for a skating rink.

There are at least 2 spots in town where this is done and I think it is something so charming that brings the past to the future. Instead of finding a frozen pond that may be pitted with tree stumps and branches, this is a nice, flat and clean spot with pretty smooth skating when it's solid.

Typically by now the little ones with their pom-pom hats, middle-school kids with their hockey nets and high school kids in their blue jeans would be sharing this frozen space.

Unfortunately for the skaters as of January 11, this is what the "skating rink" looked like. But it did make for a lovely walk with Brady and Bono before Brady heads off to his next semester at the University of Illinois.

The geese are loving it and it was chilly but a refreshing way to spend some time outdoors. Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get.

if you gotta be sick....

Here are a few recommendations.

Chicken soup, of course.

Watch these movies. They never cease to charm.

Barbra Streisand is such an amazing actress!!! In 1969, Funny Girl was her first movie and she won Best Actress that year. The costumes in the theatrical numbers are awesome. And back then they were all made in the USA. I'm just saying.

Toward the end of the movie she wears her hair short, but longer on one side. Almost a contemporary look today. I had not seen the movie in years and well, here comes a cliche...they don't make them like that anymore.

Buy Kleenex "cool" tissues in the blue box.

Over the past 4 days I have had cup after cup after cup of herbal tea and gone through about 200 tissues. The new Kleenex brand "cool" tissues are fabulous and true to their name. No chafing!

Little spheres of joy

If it makes you happy, it can't be that bad.
Almost 11 a.m.
Cup of joe.
Still in pj's.
How are we all going to pull it together for 7 a.m. roll call tomorrow?
When life begins it's normal routine again after 10 days?
Umm. Umm.

Bowling in the New Year!

Our annual bowling trip during this vacation week let us to Jillian's/Lucky Strike Bowling in Boston. Literally a stone's throw from Fenway Park, it is the most fun place! Big - no huge - screen tv's at the end of every lane made watching the Patriot's beat the Buffalo Bill's while bowling and eating a winning trifecta!

Perfect food for New Year's Day when all of us were tired for one reason or another. Coconut shrimp, root beer float, onion rings, chicken fingers, salsa burger...perfect.

The only drawback to the afternoon is that I had never bowled with the "big" balls before and I didn't like it very much. Even the 5 lb. ball proved cumbersome and heavy for me. I guess as with anything else practice makes perfect, but I think I'll always be a candlepin gal.

Driving away as the sun was setting on New Year's Day. It seems like we are all only together a couple of times in the year. We pass each other in the driveway or the kitchen, there is work and obligations and varied interests that take us all away from each other. That's why I love this week so much. It's like the universe takes a deep breath.