Currently Link Up!

Welcome to our first "currently" link-up! Wendy from This Amazing Day and I are both super excited to co-host, but also terribly nervous that we will be the only bloggers to participate. I almost called my mom and asked her to start a fake blog and link-up. If my mom didn't think that sending an email from her blackberry meant she was texting (true story!), it might have been worth a shot. Wendy, any chance your mom blogs?

So here's the deal - each Thursday Wendy and I will open the link-up and we'll leave it open for the whole week. That's so lazy bloggers busy people like me can link up whenever they get around to it (let's face it - if I make it here on Thursday it'll be a miracle). Wendy and I are going to use the same themes and you can use those too, or choose to use your own. This week we're talking about what we're currently:

cooking
wearing
wanting
listening to
watching

So without further ado....

cooking. kale chips! Kale and I had so much fun making these together and he and I both loved snacking on them. Have you ever made kale chips? What do you put on them? Other kale recipes I should know about?

wearing. Dresses and skirts. I found out that #30DaysOfDresses is coming back in June and figured I'd use May as a trial month. Today was actually the first time I wore pants in over two weeks so I'm pretty confident I can make it through the month of June. My problem is that 30 seconds after I publicly commit to something on the internet, I immediately fail. So, in that case, I will not be participating in #30DaysOfDresses and I have no plans to co-host this link-up.

wanting. Nude heels. For those who are new here, my search for a beige trenchcoat haunted my "currently" posts for weeks. About four minutes after I finally found something, my friend Meg (go say hello to her new baby Emmett!!!) sent me a link to a sale at the Gap, which had about 43 beige trenchcoats I wanted. Three minutes later and it was too hot to wear a coat. And now nude heels are the new beige trenchcoat.

listening to. CBC Radio (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation). It's all I listen too. Even Kale will pass on a yo gabba gabba tune for the engaging and comforting tone of Matt Galloway in the morning. After spending every lunch hour with Rita Celli and Ontario Today, she unexpectedly announced she was going on maternity leave. I actually cried when she said she was taking a year off. That's normal, right?

watching. Mad Men. Who watches?!? If you watched Sunday's episode, we need to talk. I don't know anyone in real life that watches this show (except Emily @ Hope Squared, but I think she's behind). Extra points if you watch it and then devour every online analysis of the episode immediately after.


YOUR TURN! I can't wait to read what everyone is currently up to! Please link your post below and grab a button to include on your blog so your friends can find us!

<div align="center"><a href="http://harvestingkale.blogspot.ca/2012/05/currently-link-up.html" title="Harvesting Kale"><img src="http://i50.tinypic.com/ub05.jpg" alt="Harvesting Kale" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Kale makes kale chips.

It's probably not much of a surprise to find out that a lot of people end up on my blog when looking for information on how to harvest kale the vegetable, rather than Kale the toddler. Since I completely failed at growing anything green and leafy during my brief stint as a vegetable gardener two years ago (and I use the term "vegetable gardener" loosely - we had two raised beds. One was meant for green, leafy things, but ended up as a giant litter box for the neighbourhood cats. The other wouldn't stop growing tomatoes.), I'm not going to pretend that I have anything to offer in the growing department. However, I don't want folks to leave here completely disappointed and since Kale the toddler and I can make a pretty amazing kale chip, I thought I would share.

The most important thing to know when making kale chips with Kale, is the difference between the two (also, if you're new here, you'll probably want to know that this is my kids impression of a smile):

Kale chips are super easy to make and since there are no sharp objects involved with the prep, your kiddo can help out without having to worry about a trip to the emergency room.

So basically you take a head of kale, rinse it under cold water and clean it really good, pat it try with a towel, rip it into pieces (discarding the stems), and put it in a bowl.

Pour a bit of olive oil over the kale, add some sea salt and paprika, toss it, and dump it on a baking tray. Put it in the oven at 375 for about 15 minutes (until the chips get crispy).

Let them cool and then - enjoy!

And even if you're not into baby blogs and came here to find out how to harvest kale the vegetable and instead saw some cute pictures of Kale the toddler and learned how to make tasty kale chips - I hope you enjoyed your time here.

Now - shameless self-promotion:

People clearly have not realized that they reset the votes on Top Baby Blogs because I'm in the top 25 and still on the front page. This doesn't mean you should stop voting. In fact you should vote now and then call your mom and your grandma and your ex from the 9th grade and ask them all to vote too. Greedy? Desperate? I have very little shame...



After you're done voting, you should probably give some serious thought to coming back here on Thursday when This Amazing Day and I co-host our very first "Currently" link-up. Don't know what this is? Find the details HERE.

top baby blogs.

The numbers have been reset on Top Baby Blogs and I would really appreciate a vote to help keep me listed! Click on the banner above and then vote by clicking the owl on the left. Thanks so much!

If you're new here, why not stick around for awhile? You can follow through BlogLovin' or Google Friend Connect (widgets on the sidebar!). Thanks for stopping by.

montessori monday: table setting

One thing that never ceases to amaze me is when I arrive early to pick Kale up from school and see him and his six classmates all sitting in their little chairs, at the table, politely eating their lunch together. Mealtime is an entirely different story at home. Lately Kale has been refusing to eat at the dinner table with us for more than three minutes. He's up and down off his chair, trying to crawl onto my lap, and running circles around us all (breakfast is a different story when he'll easily sit and eat for 30 minutes). I thought that getting him more involved in the meal prep might help and so for this weeks 'Montessori Monday' activity we worked on table setting!

Activity: table setting (practical life)
Age: 24 months
Materials: place mat, permanent marker, napkin, utensils, plate, cup

Part 1: Recognition of Identity 


Since we don't normally set the table, I wasn't sure how Kale would respond to this activity and if he'd understand the purpose. We started with all the materials in a bin and Kale was instantly curious. I showed him how to take each piece out and place it in the correct spot until we'd completed the setting. Then we put it all away, naming each piece as we went, before encouraging him to give it a try - which he was eager to do!

Part 2: Recognition of Contrasts


Once Kale had a chance to set the table and put things away (and set the table and put things away and set the table and put things away, etc.) I would put the fork on the outline of the spoon and ask "does this go there?" and he'd laugh and then show me where the correct spot was. Since our materials were so colourful, I could also ask "is this plate red?" when it was really blue. Kale is still working on his colours so half the time he'd say "yeah! red!"

Part 3: Discrimination between similar objects


Beyond the fork and spoon, there weren't really any objects that were similar enough to ask Kale to discriminate! Instead, I offer you a picture of a very proud two year old who can set the table all by himself:

So having Kale set his place at the table seems to have no impact on his apparent inability to sit at the dinner table for more than three minutes. It does, however, illicit the cutest grins of satisfaction that make me smile even when I'm saying "Kale, come and sit at the table, please!" for the four thousandth time!

As usual, I am linking up with Living Montessori Now for Montessori Monday! Be sure to check out others that have linked up for a bunch of great ideas.




Link up's are awesome, right? I think so too! That's why Wendy from This Amazing Day and I are hosting our own "currently" link-up on Thursday's! Click HERE for more details!

Please help keep us listed on Top Baby Blogs by giving us a quick vote - I really appreciate it! Just click the banner below and then click the owl on the left to vote! 

currently.

Lately I've been noticing more and more "currently" posts floating around the interweb. I forget where I originally got the idea to do these posts, but I did look around to see if there was a link-up happening anywhere and I didn't find anything. Sooooo.....I thought it would be a good idea to make one! Since I pretty sure I only have six followers, I asked my friend Wendy over at This Amazing Day if she wanted to co-host. Wendy tried to tell me that she thinks she only has four followers, but whatever - even if there are three of your out there that read both our blogs, that's still 7 potential followers we can hound to link-up! So here are the details -

We are going to host the link-up on Thursday's. That gives me four days to figure out how to do a link-up and for you to write an awesome post. Wendy and I are going to use the same "currently's" (themes? categories? dunno...) and you are welcome to do the same. This coming Thursday we're going to go with:

• Cooking
• Wearing
• Wanting
• Listening to
• Watching

You can totally use your own "currently's/themes/categories" - we just want to know what you're up to!! I usually do a "currently" for myself and for Kale - but if you want a post all to yourself, you totally deserve to hoard that space just for you!

Ok, so you're in, right?! RIGHT?!? We're so excited!

CURRENTLY - MAMA 


Learning about basic income, poverty-reduction initiatives across Canada, and community-based research ethics. I've been to so many conferences in the past two weeks that my head is swimming with new information. I enjoy the learning and networking opportunities, but the best part about conferences is always the food.  


Waiting for Ontarians to take a hint from our neighbours in Quebec. I'm so inspired and proud of everyone participating in the Quebec student movement. If you've been living under a rock (or only watch American news), you should probably READ THIS and WATCH THIS (even if you don't care to learn about the movement, this video is absolutely beautiful).


Wondering how to curb my ice-cream addiction. Kris and I are both lactose-sensitive, but we also have a major ice-cream addiction (that we appear to have handed down to our son). I tried to trick our taste buds with ice-cream's healthier cousin, sorbet, but to no avail. Perhaps frozen yogurt will save us from gaining 60lbs. this summer?


Changing my clothes 50 times a day. As the weather warms up, my laundry increases dramatically. I normally wear a skirt or dress to work and then come home and change into shorts and a t-shirt for bike riding and playing at the park with Kale. Then I wear pj's (for some reason I cannot wear the same pj's two nights in a row...I can't really explain why). This equals three outfits a day (minimum!), which means a mountain of laundry every week.


Attempting to blog more. I was on a role last week when I posted three times, but I have a hard time keeping up the pace. I'm hoping this late week link-up will help me since I tend to start the week strong and then disappear as things wind down toward the weekend.




CURRENTLY - KALE



Learning a thousand new words a day. I actually thought we'd experienced the "word explosion" everyone talks about, but since Kale turned 2 I've been corrected. The kid does not stop talking. We lay in bed at night and he talks for an HOUR before falling asleep. Then he talks in his sleep all night about swimming and helmets and the cat. Then he wakes up and TALKS.ALL.DAY. I literally have forgotten what silence sounds like.


Waiting his turn. Kale shows zero signs of patience in most activities, except when it's time to "wait his turn." I'm sure this is something his genius teachers have instilled in him and I could not be more thankful. He blew my mind earlier this week when we had to wait in a long line at the market. He actually stood still and even though I'm pretty sure everyone else in line was super annoyed by him repeating "Kale waits turn. Kale waits turn. Kale waits turn," I was totally floored and proud.


Wondering when we're going: to the park, swimming, or on a bike ride. Kale asks us to do these things about 6000 times a day (see point 1, I'm not exaggerating).


Changing every second. Remember when your baby was an itty bitty thing? And if you blinked, something about them changed? And then they got a bit older and the changes slowed down? Well, since turning two, Kale has not only started talking non-stop, but is changing SO MUCH. His mannerisms, his quirks, everything. STOP GROWING, CHILD!


Attempting to unlock every door that exists. Kale has developed a complete obsession with unlocking doors (or at least pretending to). He insists on unlocking all four car doors before he'll get in his carseat. When we get to school, he has to unlock every door in the gym and classroom before he can unlock the door for me to leave. Quirks are cute, but let's be real, not everyone wants to wait while a two year old unlocks the door to the mall before he'll let them inside.

our long weekend.

Now that we're all done laughing about our disaster of a trip to the zoo (version 2.0), I thought I would share some pictures from our weekend that didn't involve chasing our two year old away from peacocks (have I mentioned I'm terrified of birds?).

After our zoo adventure, we spent the rest of the long weekend relaxing in the backyard and soaking up the sunshine - well as much as 60 SPF sunscreen allows, anyway.

Just like swimming, outside, and bike rides, Kale is mildly obsessed with BBQ'ing. And by mildly obsessed I mean, talks about it all the time, insists on cleaning our BBQ at least once a day, and will not let Kris BBQ without him. Luckily, Kris's brother and girlfriend bought Kale his own BBQ last Christmas and we were finally able to set it up this weekend.

When not munching on a wooden burger from his BBQ, Kale enjoyed an enormous bowl of fruit salad. Naked. Because, why not?

The only time we left our house this weekend (besides the zoo) was for bike rides around town and to explore some trails.

I don't even want to admit how much ice cream we ate this weekend....

Did my fellow Canadians have an equally amazing long weekend? How are you Americans gearing up for your own three days of bliss?

Montessori Monday: Outdoor Washing Station

It's a long weekend here in Canada and we could not have asked for better weather. It's been all blue skies and sunshine for the past two days and Kale wants nothing more than to be naked in the backyard, jumping in and out of his little pool. Since there was no way I was going to get him indoors to work on a Montessori activity for this post, I settled for wrestling him into a t-shirt to do a little work outdoors.

Activity: Outdoor washing station (practical life activity)
Age: 24 months
Materials: Three bowls (soapy water, water, empty), scrubbers & sponges, towel for drying

Presentation: 


Part 1: Recognition of Activity

This one didn't need much of an introduction. Kale is a cleaning fanatic and is always begging us to do the dishes (I'm assuming this will stop when he's actually tall enough to stand on a chair and reach into the sink on his own). I explained that the materials were for washing and asked him to gather up a few things he wanted to clean.

Part 2: Recognition of Contrasts

I explained what the water in each bowl was for - one for washing, one for rinsing, and one to hold the clean toys. Kale got right down to business and dutifully scrubbed his small toy moose to a shine.

Part 3: Discrimination between Similar Objects

It didn't take long for the "rinsing" water to turn soapy and so asking Kale which was which was out of the question. We tried to ask him to show us different materials (sponge, scrubber, towel) and tell us what each was for. He was pretty good at doing this and was happy to do a little demonstration of how each "worked."

This activity was definitely a hit with Kale. He was really focused on each step of cleaning, rinsing, and drying and he was really proud of himself when he finished cleaning each little toy or rock. We left the station set up for the afternoon and he'd periodically return to it to wash new things. I think we're going to have to make the outdoor washing station a permanent fixture in our backyard!

two year old at the Toronto Zoo.

Some of you long-time readers may remember our family's worst trip ever little adventure to the Toronto Zoo last year. The story is one of my blog's most read posts - the result of people continually turning to google for all life's answers and guidance.

So when I saw the forecast for this beautiful long weekend, I thought "we should relive that time we went to the zoo and ended up hating life." Well, kind of. At the time I was thinking more along the lines of "we should try the zoo again because now Kale is two and he's going to get it and it's going to awesome and I can get a tan." Except I really should have been thinking the first thing because the only truth that came from the second thing was a slight tan.

We did everything right. I mean, we did learn a couple things the first time around. We brought lots of snacks. We left early so we could in plenty of zoo time before Kale's nap. We listened to the traffic on the way down. We minimized our stuff into a small backpack and my camera bag so we didn't have to lug around a ton. And most important of all -

We made a pact that we'd move at Kale's pace. We wouldn't lose our patience like every other parent seemed to be doing. We entered the gates with zero expectations.

Oh, it wasn't all horrible - but we did end up joining the ranks and losing our patience. We did end up make a beeline for the exit with a two year old under our arm like a football - sweaty, tired and exasperated. Why?

Kale had ZERO interest in sitting in the wagon. Kale has ALWAYS hated any form of restraint - we know this well. The stroller, the car seat, etc. Hates 'em all. We don't mind carrying him. We're used to it. We don't mind slowing things down to let him walk and explore. We're used to it. But when it's deadly hot out and there are seemingly 60,000 people with 12,000 strollers NOT WATCHING WHERE THEY'RE GOING, letting Kale lead the way is, uh, impossible.

Besides, Kale was way more interested in leading the way toward a weedy patch of land behind a random service station or into the shelter of a makeshift beaver damn than toward anything remotely cool. Like, say an ORANGOUTANG or a BABY POLAR BEAR. Seriously people, there were cute funny monkey's right in front of us and Kale totally ignored them. Instead he spent 30 minutes laughing hysterically at the dust clouds he was making my picking up dirt and clapping his hands. 

We did, however, manage to see a few animals...

After four hours of chasing Kale through throngs of people and bribing him with snacks to get him to sit in the wagon for more than four minutes, we made it official: Kale is not a zoo kid.

We beelined for the car and he napped the whole way home. When we got there, we filled his small pool up in the backyard, he stripped off all his clothes, covered himself in mud and dug holes in the sand. I opened a beer and laid out on the deck, lazily watching our son have the best afternoon ever.

Maybe next year, friends, maybe next year.....

celebrating 2 {part 2}

Celebrating 2: Part 1. 

After leaving Toronto, we headed to Niagara Falls for Great Wolf Lodge. We are kind of on the fence about GWL leading up to it. We had never been before and weren't sure if there would be enough for Kale to do as a two year old. It's not exactly cheap either, so it was a bit of a risk. However, Kale LOVES the water and after two days of warming up in the hotel pool in Toronto, he was ready to take his skills to the slides and wave pools. 

As soon as we walked into GWL I was all "ah sh*t, what have we signed up for?" The place is totally crazy. There are talking trees and giant moose and 90000 kids running around in swimsuits. Kale was clinging to me, convinced that a racoon was going to attack him at any moment (a totally justified fear, I might add). We threw our stuff in our room and raced to the water park where we all just about lost our minds. It is HUGE and there was soooo much for Kale to do. I didn't bring my camera in because it was impossible to walk around without getting completely soaked. 

Top three highlights: 

1. Kris and I decided to split a pitcher of beer with dinner. About halfway through, Kale was all "let's ditch this joint and go run laps through the lobby." As Kris and I manically tried to guzzle our beer, our server came over and informed us she could bring some plastic cups so we could take our beer with us. I'm pretty sure I cried tears of joy at this point. Actual tears, people. 
2. Kale wasn't big enough for any of the slides - except the family slide. Basically the entire family goes in a giant tube down a huge tube slide. The three of us piled in, with Kale in the middle, gripping handles on either side. You could tell he had no idea what was going on and has we hurdled down the slide, a look of sheer terror overcame him. It was heartbreaking and adorable all at once. The next day we tried it again and he had the same reaction - but at the bottom he cheered and yelled for "mo' water!" 
3. At 8pm the talking tree, the moose and a bear read a bedtime story to all the kids in the lobby. There were easily 100 kids there, all sitting in rows in their pj's and listening intently. Kale loved it and clapped along with the other kids, yelling at the owl and racoons. 

We woke up on Monday, Kale's actual birthday, spent a few more hours at the water park and decided to go visit the falls. Kale passed out after three seconds in the car so we just kept driving home. 

We spent the afternoon with Kale's Uncle Karl and Aunt Niki, eating BBQ and running around the yard. After they left, it was just the three of us for birthday cake and presents. 

(apparently I'm the only one excited here....) 

I'm really glad that we decided to spend the weekend celebrating Kale's birthday this way - touring Toronto, having brunch with friends, going to GWL, and keeping things low-key at home. For us, it was perfect. 

And at 9:40pm, I crawled into bed beside him. Remembered his birth just two years before. Kissed his sweaty toddler forehead and whispered "happy birthday." 

a simple (but perfect) afternoon.

We're not even at hump day and I can already tell you this week has been rough. I'm not sleeping well at night and when I don't get sleep, I turn into a total monster (or "mom-onster" as Kris calls me). How I ever made it though 15 months of nursing my son every two hours is BEYOND me. 


Anyway, Kris went to his first scuba diving lesson tonight and I was desperate to turn my week around and enjoy some quality one-on-one time with Kale. So I came home from work, turned my phone off, and focused on being 100% present and focused on Kale. 

We made pizza together and ate it under the afternoon sun on the back deck. 

We took a bike ride to a park we don't normally go to. 

We ran and ran and ran. We spun ourselves dizzy. 

We bought ice cream in a boathouse and sat by the river watching ducks. 

We read a few extra stories before bed. 

We cuddled until he drifted off to sleep. 

It was all pretty perfect. 

The kind of day that makes me forget about rough weeks and no sleep. 

happy birthday to mama.

Today is my birthday. 

For a second, I was a little sad about getting older. 

Realizing that Kale will never catch up. 

I'll just get older and older and older. 

Then I woke up, crawled into bed with Kale, and this happened: 

And I was happy. 

And in case that wasn't the cutest thing you've ever seen, I offer you this:

FYI - "uppa" is papa (Kris) and his birthday really is in August. 

currently {v.3}

That's right - I found a beige trenchcoat! 

Anticipating a weekend of celebrating ME! Sunday is Mother’s Day and my birthday is Monday! That means this weekend is pretty much all about me. Now if only I could convince Kale of this….

Looking for some summer wardrobe staples. I swear, every summer I open up my drawers and find NO summer clothes!! Where do they all go?! And how come I have no idea what is in style anymore?! So give me your suggestions – what do I need to look somewhat hip this summer?

Thinking about the ongoing war on motherhood and recent backlash against attachment parenting that’s been popping up in the media lately. I love this response from The Mamafesto about the new Time Magazine cover story “Are you Mom Enough?” and PhD in Parenting’s critical analysis of Elizabeth Badinter’s book, The Conflict: How Modern Motherhood Undermines the Status of Women.

Welcoming warmer weather. Next week the weather is supposed to warm up and things look a bit more consistent. This year has been absolutely brutal for me in the migraine department, since they are triggered by barometric pressure changes and the weather has been all.over.the.place these past few months. Not only am I desperate to wear a skirt without tights, but I wouldn’t mind going more than two days without downing 40 liquid advils. 

Loving Family Craft Night. Kale’s school sent home some craft supplies and asked that we have a family craft night. The “product” was then sent back to school and the kids talked about them during circle time. I’m not sure who enjoyed making the craft more – Kris or Kale.

Looking for his keys. Clearly this is a trait passed on from mother to son. Every morning he looks for his keys (because he needs to “unlock” every door from our house to his classroom…surprisingly there are a lot) and he can’t find them. He looks at me, makes a face, puts his hands up and shrugs, “Keys go, mama?” I don’t know, but keep an eye out for mine while you’re looking.

Thinking about the guy who cuts the grass at school. Seriously, I spend hours preparing food and crafts for this kid and he forgets about them three minutes later. A man comes to cut the grass at school and we hear about it at dinner for the next week.

Enjoying all of his birthday presents. Little does he know that the days of the giant circus tent from Uncle Karl are numbered. Enjoy while you can little man, I want my living room back (no worries – I’m not the worst mother ever. The circus tent will find a new home outdoors when the weather warms up).

Wishing we lived in a hotel with an elevator, a pool and a buffet. Seriously, Kale was made for hotel life. The other day he looked at me and asked “el-a-bator?” I shook my head. He asked “swimming pool?!” Sorry, buddy, we don’t have one of those either. His shoulders sagged. He thought for a moment. A light shone in his eyes. “Eat?” Sure, we got food. Let’s do buffet style. 

celebrating 2 {part 1}

For Kale's first birthday, we ended up having three separate celebrations - one with my family, one with Kris's family, and one with friends. Somewhere in the middle of that, we moved, our parental leave ended, and we hired a nanny. It was kinda insane. 

So for Kale's second birthday, we decided to do our best to keep things low key, not do a party, and spend the day doing things Kale LOVES. 

I ended up having a conference in Toronto from Thursday to Saturday, and so Kris and Kale came down on Friday and we stayed in the city until Sunday. Kris and Kale had a great time exploring the city (I'm going to nag Kris to post about this himself) and when I finished my conference, the birthday celebrations officially began! 

We spent most of Saturday afternoon walking around a bit of Toronto and spending time at the hotel pool. Kale absolutely loves the water and as soon as we'd walk into our hotel room, he'd run to check if our suits were dry. Then he'd announce "swimsuits dry! Go in elevator to swimming pool!!" He'd then run through the lobby of the hotel in nothing but his swim trunks, inciting smiles from all the guests. 

In the pool, he has no fear. He asked to jump from the edge of the pool into the water over and over and over. Kris or I would catch him as he jumped, until he told Kris one day "no papa catch Kale. Kale go under water." So Kris let him jump straight in and Kale went under and when he came up he announced "more! more!" 

At the last minute, I decided to send out an email to some friends from the area to invite them for brunch at the Dakota Tavern. We've been there a couple times and you might remember be mentioning how they have a bluegrass band that plays and all the kids love to get up front and dance. Anyway, even though it was last minute, we were super happy that about 12 or 13 friends were able to make it - including some little friends, Holden and Seba. 

Excuse the terrible photo's - it's super dark in the Dakota! 

After brunch we headed to Niagara Falls for the real celebration - at Great Wolf Lodge! I'll blog more about this next time....until then, I leave you with a picture of Kale and a talking tree that scared the poop outta him.... 

and then he was 2.

diet coke and a sandwich.

Sometime shortly after Kale was born, Kris and I watched the movie Date Night with Tina Fey and Steve Carrell. There is a scene about half way through when Steve's character asks Tina's character if she ever fantasizes about being with someone else....he admits that he does (Cyndi Lauper). She says she fantasizes too, but her fantasy is about sitting in a hotel room, with no sound, so she could drink a diet coke and eat a sandwich without being interrupted. 

To me, that sounded perfect. 

Since then, whenever Kris asks me what I want for my birthday or christmas or "if you could do whatever you wanted, what would it be?" I tell him I want to sit in a hotel, in silence, and drink a diet coke and eat a sandwich. 

Well, GUESS WHAT? 

And yes, this is my first overnight after way from Kale (and it's kind of awesome). 

p.s. they didn't have diet coke - I had to settle for diet pepsi. 


p.p.s. the diet pepsi cost $3.95 from room service. 


p.p.p.s. I met Cyndi Lauper's band once when I worked at a ski resort and they gave me four front row tickets and backstage passes in exchange for free ski rentals.