happy stuff.

today was the first of five free days between the end of one job and the beginning of another. i spent the entire day helping a friend pack/unpack into a new house (tomorrow is the actual move and i’m guessing i’ll be around for that as well). some people might say this is a terrible [...]

thanks, alkelda! :)

we got home last night from our trip to the appalacian mountains to visit my family. i had a great time! here is a short list of happy things from the last few days: –fluffy tapioca pudding –creamy malt-o-meal –spending the afternoon with my dad in the shop, building a spool rack –a rooster whose [...]

yesterday, on our drive to my parents house, deep in rural kentucky, we passed a buggy. it almost looked amish, until we got closer and saw a head of bouncy white hair topped with a red and white cap. as we passed it, i looked at the driver and realized it was santa! the man [...]

on the first leg of our trip, i noticed lots of colorful christmas light displays. my favorite was large, lighted letters facing the highway that spelled out “ba humbug” [sic] right beside a clunker car decorated with more lights.

last year, i began a tradition of sharing with friends and family our new favorite recipes of the year. i like to try new recipes and if it’s good enough for a repeat performance, it becomes a contender for “favorite new recipe of the year.” this year was a little more slim on fantastic recipes [...]

a few days ago, on the way into a friends house, i heard honking and looked up and saw a beautiful line of white swans flying in a v formation against a perfectly blue sky.

i am a list maker. it is the only way that i can stop the hamster wheel in my brain. this time of year is particularly listy, but i’m pleased to say that many of the major to-do’s are now have-done’s! the big one i checked off this morning was paying the property tax bill! [...]

my mom called this morning to announce that her arucana chickens (very young) laid their first lovely blue-green eggs!

so… yesterday, all of the christmas packages from mr. h-s’s family showed up. all in one day. from 4 different sources. some via the u.s. postal service, some via some delivery service that dropped them at the door. it was kind of exciting to get them all at once! haven’t opened any yet…. mr. h-s [...]