R.I.P.

My grandmother passed away this week. I am so sad, but mostly because I talked about calling her with my sister this weekend and just never got around to it. I loved her so much. She was a lovely woman and so sweet. She loved her family very much and always let us know it.

This year she turned 90, and for her birthday we published a cookbook, which I wrote about here. As I said before, she was able to live out her entire life in her own home, for which I know she was grateful.

I hope someday I have as beautiful a spirit as she did. Always kind and generous. I hope someday I am as good a cook as she was. Never measuring, always just knowing the right amount.

I love you grandma. I know you are happy to see Grandpa and your sister again. We will miss you so very much.

A Curly World

Welcome to the world of blogging Curly Girl! I knew you were jealous that I blogged and you didn't. (is blog a verb now? I'm not sure) Anyway, if you want to know more about my sister Curly Girl or just check up on her family, check out her blog Our Curly World.

Two weeks later!

Well, sorry that I haven't posted, but it has been a busy two weeks. I went back to the hometown, packed all of my stuff on a truck, drove it out to the southwest (with the assistance of the parents) unpacked it all off the truck (with the assistance of many) and started setting up the apartment. The parents helped Curly Girl with her last minute nesting and then just a couple of days later her new baby was born. I'm still figuring out her personality, so no nickname for her yet. Went to get the Firecracker, who couldn't wait to see her new sis. New Baby is a BIG baby - 9 lbs, 10 oz and 22 inches long! The Gift thinks she is great, and wants to keep giving her kisses. He's being very gentle with her and is awfully sweet to watch. The QB took a few days off to enjoy the new girl, so the family is resting quietly at home.

My apartment is starting to come together. I hung some things on the walls this weekend, which always makes it feel more like home. And the furniture I brought fits (with only a slight inconvenience of taking the door off it's hinges to get the desk into the office) so everything has worked out great. Of course there is always something that goes kaput in the moving process, and this time it was my DVD player. Since I'm not ready to fork over $300 for a blue-ray disc player, I've been looking at new DVD players and am quite amazed by how small and light they have become. I was a somewhat early adopter on the DVD track, and my last one was big & HEAVY compared to the ones out now.

More unpacking ahead. Here's hoping the rest goes as smoothly as it has so far.

A Study in Potato....

No work today, so this morning I was hanging out with Curly Girl and the Gift. He wanted to play with the Mr. Potato Head that Aunt Smarty got him for Christmas (not his B'day). I mostly buy him gifts that I liked to play with as a kid. I figure if they've been on the market more than 35 years or so, they'll probably be fun for him. Luckily the QB's sister got him one as well, so we can each have our own potato.

The best thing about playing with Mr. Potato Head with a two year old is that there are NO RULES! For example - I see a mouth where eyes should be and 3 arms - I would have never made these, but I loved his so much that I decided you needed to see them too.

Notice the muscle arms and the flowered hat. I think I saw that guy coming out of the gym last week.

An extra mouth where the arm / ears might belong? NO BIG DEAL. We love it!

The Gift kept insisting that they be photographed together. Like they were friends.

Mustaches are fun, so we needed two on this one. One where it "belongs" and one over the ear that looks suspiciously like a nose.

I guess he has seen Aunt Smarty and Curly Girl with their sunglasses on top of their heads so many times, he wanted the Potato to look cool like us.

The master at work. And a nice side view of the two mustached Potato.

I had so much fun with these, I think there could be an art project for his room somewhere down the line. Next time you play with a Mr. Potato Head - let your mind run wild.

A Joyous Occasion

This weekend I am in faraway Kalamazoo to spend time with my grandmother for her 90th birthday! It is so very exciting to see her and spend time with her. She is not moving around as well as she has in the past, but she still lives at home and can take care of her own needs from day to day. For that we are all grateful. She has lived here for the last 50 years and really doesn't want to consider moving. We are also really lucky that my dad's sister lives close enough that she can continue to live here and we aren't really worried about her doing so.

Since a woman turning 90 doesn't really need much "stuff" we try to give her stuff free gifts. She has always been a wonderful cook and loves passing on recipes to everyone in her family. Her parents came to the US from Hungary, so there are recipes that I have for food you have probably never seen. Chicken Paprikash and Sekely Goulash are two of my favorites. So we decided to make a cookbook honoring her. I picked up a couple of tips from my cousins from bama on how to publish a book at lulu.com, and now a book has been born! It is kind of awesome, because it looks like a real book, and was done without too much trouble. (I must confess, I needed to ask Elastigirl's ManChild for help with making the cover, because he knows how to use Adobe Photoshop way better than I do).

Anyway, so now I guess I am some sort of editor / publisher. Check out the book here!

Shopping Extravaganza!

OK - I admit it. I was one of the crazy people standing outside in 25 degree weather to get a really good deal yesterday morning. My dad and I have a tradition of sorts. Wherever the best deals are, that is where we go first. This year we went to Circuit City. Really the worst that I have been to since we started this - and I've been to Best Buy, CompUSA, Staples, etc.... The WORST. My dad and I had to stand in separate lines to buy our selections, one for TV's and another for Computers, and it took 2 hours. Usually we are in and out in 30 minutes. We were only buying 3 things!!

As for the Christmas shopping, I made a pact with Curly Girl that I would make all attempts to be done with shopping by her birthday, December 9th! It will make Christmas so much nicer, and maybe I'll have time to do Christmas cards this year.

How about you, what do you have to get done by Christmas? (Only 31 days left!)

A Visit from Curly Girl

Today my sister, Curly Girl, is coming for a short visit from the suburban dessert. I am so very excited. We always have a great time together, even though we have never lived in the same city in our adult lives. Who knows, someday that may change.

She's bringing along my nephew, the Gift, who has a Christmas birthday and was the best present we have ever received! He's not quite 2 yet, but so much fun. Her husband, QB, is staying behind to close for the month at work. He'll be very busy, so we are glad that she can make it and he won't miss them too much.

She just called me to help her remember what she forgot to pack. I came up with a few ideas, but I wish that there were some surefire way to remember everything. I always forget something, no matter how detailed a list I make out before my trip. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to remember what you need?