Our pre-Riley trip

We visited Lindy and Chris this week! Here are some of the things we did:

1. Got on airport bus to fly to Austin.

2. Saw cutest dog ever when we got there.

3. Ate fish tacos cooked by Chris. (Mmmmm. Lindy is a lucky girl.)

4. Ate fantastic chicken pot pie--every last bit of it--made by Jim.

5. Watched Sophie and Rick play tug-of-war at Cathy and Jim's.

6. Watched Rick do tricks. (Smart dog.)

7. Cuddled with Rick.

8. Spent time with Phyllis and Jessie.

9. Watched Riley stretch, exercise and hiccup--pretty amazing!

10. Saw Riley's bedroom and all the cool stuff Chris and Lindy have done to it. The next time we visit, Riley will be in it too! Sooooo exciting.

We had a great trip, and I can't wait to return to see Riley of Round Rock in March. Thanks for being such fabulous hosts/hostesses, Lin and Chris!

Utah Christmas, 2009

Here are a few quick comments on our wonderful Christmas this year. (Bob and I are headed to Austin tomorrow and we're both trying to get our Spring 2010 syllabi finished before we leave.)

After Logan and Jody arrived, Logies did a quick fuzziness check on Oscar, and Oscar passed! He (Oscar) has regrown all of the fur he lost when he was shaved at the animal shelter last February. We all agreed that Oscar has regained his feline gorgeousness.

More proof that Oscar Hammerpants is now "Oscar the Hairy."

We really enjoyed having Logan and Jody here for Christmas. As proof of their adorableness, I offer this:

Sean was here as well, and he too is adorable:

We played "guess baby Kincaid's name." Sean suggested that we create a list of names and vote on the winner. We all decided that baby Kincaid would be known as:

Logan made eggnog Christmas morning, whilst the rest of us watched.

I made a bunch of sugar cookies shaped like Christmas trees.

As usual, I cried after we dropped Logan and Jody off at the airport, and was reminded (once again) how lucky I am to have such an incredible family--immediate and extended. To borrow from a Sandra Bullock movie, my cup runneth over. Merry Christmas, everyone!

If I ever have another dog (or, if another dog has me)

I want it to be this dog.* Seriously.

Have you ever seen anything more beautiful?

* Photo credits: Sarah Ause, http://www.saussie.com/

Let's review

Okay, just to recap the last couple of days: As you all probably know by now, for weeks Chris, Dunc, Betsy and I have been plotting a surprise mini-party for Bob on his birthday. I cooked a nice dinner for just the two of us, and D & B were set arrive in SLC at 7:45 PM--unbeknownst to Bob. Earlier in the day I told Bob the bakery hadn't finished his cake and I would have to go back at 7:30 to pick it up. In actuality, I planned to head to the hairport, pick up D & B, and Chris was going to arrive at our house at about the same time we got home. It was a beautiful plan.

As it turned out, D & B were re-routed to Spokane, and their new flight was to arrive in SLC earlier than scheduled. I was a little worried about getting my butt out to the airport by 7:00, but I thought I would make it. But then, the flight from Spokane was delayed a couple of times due to mechanical problems, and after that, it was CANCELLED. Duncan, Betsy, Chris and I exchanged about 45 phone calls while all of this was happening, which required me to have to talk in a secret code, because Bob was sitting right there and I couldn't very well say, "Your flight was delayed? So I should pick you up at the airport at 9:00?" So instead I said intelligent things like, "Dang. Hmmm. Okay. See you later."

After about the 43rd call we decided we would have to spill the beans, since Dunc and Betsy weren't going to arrive in SLC until Sunday morning. See, the problem was that the birthday cake said "Happy Birthday Bob and Betsy," which would have been hard to 'splain.


So, Chris came over at about 7:15 and we told Bob. Then, we had some cake and champagne, Bob and Chris played pool, and the next day and got up early to pick up Dunc and Betsy at the hairport. Later that day, Betsy had the "Betsy" part of the birthday cake.

Meanwhile, Jane drank milk from her favorite cup.

In summary, Bob had an eventful birthday, and all is well. The end.

12-12: A very significant day

On 12-12 we celebrate all that is fantastic about Bob: amazing cook, loving parent, meticulous gardener, wonderful cat owner, helpful neighbor, hard working consultant, giving friend, excellent listener (an important skill for him to have these days) and of course, all-around best husband ever.

It was Bob's idea to bequeath our aging but faithful Protege to Dunc--who is carless after the passing of Joaquin--and buy a new-old car for me to drive to and from school. We are now the proud owners of a 2007 Corolla (which, by the way, has about the same mileage as the 1998 Protege). I think it's cool that Bob and I now have matching his-and-hers red Toyotas. I'll take a better photo when it's not so dang cold outside. (It was 12 degrees earlier this morning.)

Yesterday we had the Protege detailed, and it totally smells like a new car. Come and get it, Dunc and Betsy!

Plans for the day: mail Christmas packages, upload my students' feedback on their papers, build a big fire in the fireplace, and prepare for the winter storm that is scheduled to arrive at 1:00 today. And tonight I shall make a special candlelight dinner for Bob: prime rib with Bernaise sauce, asparagus, and new potatoes. I swear, life is grand!

Happy birthday to my wonderful husband!

Thanksgiving prep day

Today we are getting ready for Thanksgiving. Bob has already made a banana cream pie for the Starbucks lady, and now he's making two pumpkin pies, one for us and one for Uncie David. Then we will shop for sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, stuffing, green beans, cranberries, and all the stuff to go with it.

And now, to get you in the holiday mood, a little Bohemian Rhapsody...

My vote for best performance is Beeker. Any other nominations?

And now, a timely video for Lindy AND Chris

I'm embarrassed to post this after making all those disparaging comments about Crosby Stills and Nash yesterday, but here is a lovely live version of "Teach Your Children," 'specially for Lindy and Chris.

This song always makes me cry.

Special birthday surprise for Chris

Here is a birthday song I picked out just for Christopher Kincaid--along with two apologies.

1. I'm sorry for being almost a week late. Happy birthday on the 11th!
2. I'm sorry I couldn't find a live recording of this fantastic song that actually sounded decent. I think Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young drank heavily before performing, which caused a bit of temporary tone deafness. (Seriously. Do a You Tube search and you'll see what I mean.) This album version, however, is heavenly.

Happy, happy, happy birthday...and thanks for making Lindy so happy.

And just for fun, here is one of the live recordings, with authentically off-key harmonies. Ouch. Fun to watch Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young in their youthful glory.

Them squirrels is smart

All summer long, the blue jays and magpies stole from the food we put in the feeder for our little squirrel family. The birds would pick through the feeder trying to get at the peanuts and sunflower seeds, knocking all the corn on the ground.

When the weather was warm and there was a lot of food around, the squirrels didn't seem that interested in the corn, but about two weeks ago, the squirrels started moving all the corn from the ground back into the squirrel feeder, one kernel at a time, presumably so they'll have plenty of food for the winter. They find one kernel, make sure it's corn, run up the tree, crawl into the feeder, and run back down again--millions of times. The ground is still blanketed with corn, so I guess I'll be watching them do this until the snow falls. Look at this cute little guy!

Mommy to be

Lindy was here this weekend!

We did baby-having preparation stuff, like shopping for strollers (we found a fabulous jogging stroller at REI) and deciding which books to read to baby Kincaid first. I'm not sure, but I think Lindy chose Click Clack Moo, Cows that Type, because it is funny and involves a sneaky duck. (I gave Lindy a bunch of my favorite little-kid books.)

Bobbyanne, Michelle, Andy, Chris, Devon, David and Laura came over for breakfast on Sunday and we had crepes and some other good stuff. Like a dope, I FORGOT to take photos of this event, but it was great to see everyone. (Sidebar: Can you believe Bobbyanne and Dan got married??? How cool is that?)

Thelxi had a shower for Lindy, and they decorated onesies. Lindy drew this cute picture of baby Kincaid and Rick!

And now for a cat update. Oscar enjoyed having Lindy as a roommate. He is still happy and healthy--and blind as a bat, poor little guy.

This photo is called The Circular Cat. It's like a circular argument, only furrier.

Janie is still a princess.

Our front yard was pretty for a couple of days, right before it snowed. Now everything looks like dead sticks. Here's a photo, in memory of the pretty fall we had this year.

All done

Words cannot describe the horribleness of grading. I know how important it is for students to get useful feedback so I take grading seriously, but I hate every minute of it. I can think of a million things to distract myself from grading, which is why I have such a close relationship with the critters in my back yard, like this dude.

.....and also why getting a big pile of papers finished is so glorious. I just sent out my last feedback sheet. Here is the pile I've been working on for the last week:

And here is the dramatic side view. Spectacular, don't you think?

And now that I am finished, I am going to go read a BOOK and drink a glass of WINE with one of my CATs while Bob watches the game. I'm reading a fabulous book called The Help. I'll tell you all about it later. Now, it's time to luxuriate.

And Lindy and Chris sold their house! And Logies is running a marathon tomorrow! And Dunc is turning into an ironman! Life doesn't get any better than this.

Back in the saddle

Oscar man has managed to cheat death once again. Ever since his miraculous recovery on Tuesday, he's as chipper as he can be. Here's proof that he's up and around, eating, drinking, and purring, and he's even back to meowing loudly when he gets lonely. (Still can't see a thing, though.)

Jody thought that maybe he had a little stroke, so that's one possibility. Another theory is that he got CO2 poisoning. Sunday night we discovered a leak in the gas line that feeds the fireplace starter; I smelled gas and Bob fixed the leak right away. I didn't think much about it, but then on Tuesday night, I began to wonder if the gas leak and Oscar's meltdown might be related. I did a little research on gas leaks, and apparently pets and small children feel the effects of carbon monoxide poisoning well before adults do. Two symptoms of prolonged exposure to CO2 are confusion/disorientation and an inability to walk!

Anyway, we had a guy from Questar in today to check out the house for any more leaks, and he gave the house a clean bill of health. Strange happenings. I'm just glad my little guy is back in the saddle again.

Mysteriousness in catville

We've had an interesting and scary couple o' days with Oscar man. On Sunday night, we noticed that he was a little unsteady as he walked around, and by Monday, he was totally disoriented and could barely walk--kept bumping into things and couldn't even find his way to the litter pan.

We took him to the vet, who told us it looked like there was "nobody home" when he looked into Oscar's eyes, and that he probably had dementia--just like Ribbie. We took him home and put him in his little bed, and I sat with him while I graded papers. He mainly slept. I checked on him a couple of times during the night because I didn't think he'd be with us in the morning. He was a very sick kitty.

The next morning, Tuesday, he woke up all perky, and he's perky again today. He's moving around a little slower than he was last week, but he is walking. He comes into the kitchen when he hears cat food cans being opened, and he's eating like a horse again.

I know it's possible that he may not be with us much longer, but he seems to have just snapped out of it. He's still running into things like crazy, which leads me to believe he is now completely blind, and I suppose that could account for some of his disorientation. But what explains his inability to walk or even stand up on Monday? And why was he suddenly able to walk again on Tuesday?

I wish someone could explain this to me--not that I'm complaining. I'm happy to have Oscar with us a little longer.

Rice pudding, as promised

I swear, there is nothing more comforting than rice pudding. I made some yesterday, and when Logan, Jody and Sean stopped in to say good-bye on their way from the cabin to the airport, I forced them to to eat some . . . . and then I had to make some more. I'll put the entire recipe below, but first, take a look at the pudding-in-progress.

First you cook the rice, milk, sugar, lemon zest butter and salt for about 45 minutes.

Then you mix three eggs and vanilla until it's all frothy and bubbly.

Then you put about 2/3 of the rice and milky stuff into the frothy eggs and vanilla, for reasons that are unknown to me, and then return the entire thing to the pot on the stove, and cook it until it's creamy--about 15 more minutes.

And then you put it in a bowl and refrigerate it until cools down a little bit. When you're finished, it looks like this, but only for a few minutes because you'll want to eat it while it's still kinda warm--and depending on how much comforting you need, you may eat a lot of it.

Grandma Rose's Rice Pudding

(Don't ask me who Grandma Rose is.)

2 quarts whole milk

1/4 teaspoon lemon zest

1 cup converted long grain rice

3/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons butter

Pinch of salt

3 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a large saucepan, bring the milk, lemon zest, rice, sugar, butter and salt to a simmer. Cook for 30 minutes on low heat, stirring occasionally, making sure the rice does not stick to the bottom of the pan. [I've made this rice pudding a bunch of times, and it always takes more like 45 minutes--otherwise it's too thin and liquidy. Maybe it's my stove?] Taste the rice after 30 minutes; it should be tender. In a large bowl, beat the eggs and vanilla extract until frothy. Slowly stir 2/3 of the hot rice into the egg mixture. Return the rice and eggs to the saucepan with the remaining rice and on low heat, stir the rice constantly for 5-8 minutes until creamy. [Again, this always takes more like 15 minutes--otherwise, it's too liquidy.] Pour into a 2 quart shallow dish, sprinkle with cinnamon, an refrigerate until ready to serve.

And in weather news, what a difference a day makes! Look at what happened to my beautiful maple tree over night.

And here is the ground beneath the tree. Thank you for your year of faithful service, maple leaves.

I thank you.

Critters and other things in our back yard

The block just ended, and I'm mainly grading papers, so I've had lots of time to gaze out my window during the day. Here are some of the things I've seen recently.

No post is complete without a photo of a squirrel, so here is the daddy, munching on a delicious peanut.

The maples are turning, and this one is right outside my window. When the sun hits it, it looks like it's on fire.

We have a cute neighbor cat who visits us every day because there are so many interesting things to hunt in our yard. He's never been successful, but he pounces at everything that moves. Here he is "hiding."

The jays have come back. Yay! I'm rewarding them with millions of peanuts. Interesting factoid: The squirrels are not intimidated by the magpies, but they definitely are afraid of the blue jays. Blue jays are smart. And mean.

And if you thought THAT post was exciting, wait till you see what I have in store for tomorrow. I'm going to make another batch of rice pudding. I'll have pictures, and the RECIPE.

Drum roll, please

We have a monkshood plant that grows right outside our bedroom door. I love this plant because it is gigantic and purply, but it blooms too late in the season. Every year it's a race between the monkshood and the snow. If the snow comes before the monkshood blooms, the plant is a goner until next year. Last year the snow won, but this year, the monkshood won! Yay!

We are routing for all of the little blossoms that have yet to bloom....and it's supposed to snow this week. Bloom, monkshood, bloom!