I Can't Get Enough of You, Baby

I thought I didn't need my daily fix, but I was wrong. The nerd/news junkie in me just kept crying out until there was only one thing I could do: Renew my subscription to The Wall Street Journal. I let it lapse after Lucy was born, figuring that while interesting, there were better ways to spend 45 minutes every day. You know: Shower, play with my kids, organize things, promote world peace, etc. But until it was gone I never realized how much I looked forward to slipping on my shoes every morning and running out to snatch up the paper, cradled in its blue plastic bag, fresh for my enjoyment. I've craved the the intellectual stimulation, window to the outside world, quirky stories, and conversation fodder it provides. Often it was what I thought about when I didn't have anything else to think about.

Although I have seen the paper change over the years due to its new ownership and have a quasi-moral dilemma supporting Rupert Murdoch (the Aussie media mogul/owner of The WSJ, Fox News, 20th Century Fox studios, various satellite and cable stations around the world, The Times of London and assorted British tabloids that cater to the lowest common denominator and feature scantily clad women in their pages) I do appreciate that he wants the lowly newspaper to survive in this digital age. His aim is for The WSJ to overtake The New York Times as the nation's (read: world's) newspaper of record, so we'll see how he does. I just hope it doesn't involve using dumbed-down stories and nudity to attract readers like he's done in other cases.

So apologies in advance if you have to put up with me starting a sentence with, "I read in the Wall Street Journal..." Feel free to slap me, but I might be too giddy to feel the sting.

What do you look forward to on a regular basis? Does something provide your daily fix?

A More Perfect Union

No, I didn't attend Ohio State, but the feelings of Buckeye pride are starting to sink in the longer we live here. OSU just hosted the grand opening of its new $180 million student union building and I can't wait to go take a tour. There's nothing like beautiful architecture, art, history, and about 50 different dining options at your fingertips to inspire awe. Apparently the building incorporates much of the material from the old Ohio Union, features faculty and student art, is Green and LEED certified (they have a special machine that breaks all the garbage down into pellets to fertilize other areas), sports lots of student meeting areas and is the home of multiple spectacular ballrooms. I'm getting giddy just thinking about it!

Love those gleaming floors...

The view from outside.

Now if only I knew where to park on campus to access said structure. Any tips? I think we might make the pilgrimage down next week in conjuction with the festivities for the opening of the Multicultural Center, as well as to see special exhibits at the new OSU Library and the Wexner Center for the Arts. I've been wanting to see those for a while as well.

Have you been in the new Ohio Union or Library yet? What were your impressions? If you're not a Buckeye, what's the best or unique feature of the campus you attended or one you have visited? I will never forget the smell of the fresh cedar mulch and the blooming dogwood trees on the HBS campus in spring.

Say What??

Conversation that just occurred between me and Ben.

Ben: It smells bad in here.

Me: What does it smell like?

Ben: Vitamin D.

Me: Huh?

Ben: And you smell like potatoes. You need to take a shower.

Granted, I'm still in my PJs at 1:41 on a Monday afternoon and could probably stand a shower, but potatoes and Vitamin D? I've hit a new low when I smell like things that I didn't even know had an odor.

Hello, My Name Is

Lucy got this monogrammed shirt as a gift from Andy's boss and at first I thought it was a bit nerdy, but now I kind of love it. She's following in the footsteps of many a sophisticated lady. Next stop: Initial pins and personalized stationery.

Lucy turned seven months old last week and she:

• Cut her first tooth.
• Rolled over with no one present to witness the milestone. I just put her on her front and when I came back she was flipped over, but she has yet to repeat the feat.
• Loves to jump in her Exersaucer. It's adorable when she drives the little wheel and presses her forehead down on the tray to look into the little mirror.
• Wants to be up with the big people and see everything. She's not content just to lie on the ground for long stretches anymore.
• Is a more finicky sleeper. She snoozes like a champ at night, but gone are the days when she'd conk out anywhere in her car carrier. Now it needs to be in her bed or somewhere with no distractions. This makes things tricky when we're out and about or at church during naptime, but she's still pretty cheerful even if she's short on sleep.
• Loves to squeal and sing and coo.
• Is a flirt. She makes noises so people will notice her and then bats her eyelashes, flutters those baby blues and flashes her biggest grin.
• Can't sit up by herself yet, but we're working on it. Okay, not really since I want her to be immobile as long as possible and postpone the inevitable babyproofing and chasing around.

Sticky Situation

Lucy and her pile of syrup I mentioned in the previous post.

A Whole Lotta Blarney

We had lots of fun on St. Patrick's Day, getting into the spirit of things with green pancakes and milk for breakfast. Lucy also joined the party by knocking over the huge container of syrup and then proceeding to play in it. It was my fault because I forgot she can reach and grab everything these days. But she looked at me with those big blue eyes and was so pleased with herself that I couldn't get mad. Ben's outfit change once he found out about being pinched if he wasn't wearing green.

We then made shamrocks that I cut out and Ben decorated. If you're thinking that they look like they were made by a child, it's a testament to my nonexistent art skills.

Spent the afternoon whipping up some green goodies for dinner - pesto, of course.

Super-easy and yummy Irish Brown Bread. Not green, but fairly authentic Irish fare.

The finished meal with green lemonade, spinach and pear salad, and green Jell-O.

How did you celebrate St. Patty's Day?

A Little Slice of Pi

How fun that there are so many holidays packed into the next few weeks! The celebrations began last Sunday when we attended a party in honor of Pi Day and sampled a number of delish pies. I wish I could claim the prize for making the amazing chocolate confection pictured above (shout out to Brittany and her delightful rendition of Paula Deen's Favorite Chocolate Pie), or the mouth-watering strawberry rhubarb crumble pie in the red dish. Sadly, mine turned out to be the thrown-together-at-the-last-minute raspberry sludge pie in the top right corner of the picture.

We found out Sunday morning that our existing plans had fallen through, so I had to be creative and make a pie with what was available without going to the store. Here's what it consisted of:

• Graham cracker crust made from the half package of graham crackers remaining from our Saturday night s'mores. Just enough to make do.
• 2nd layer: Vanilla pudding
• 3rd layer: A bottle of chocolate fudge sauce (waaaay too much for the size of the pie)
• Top layer: Homemade raspberry sauce I'd made to top brownies.

All in all the flavors weren't bad, but the chocolate was too heavy and the raspberry sauce slid off the top so everything ended up in a big shapeless pile. Not totally inedible, but not pretty on the plate. On the bright side, as one person pointed out, it would have made a delicious filling for crepes.

Nothing in the world like good friends and good food. Love those ladies!

Have you ever celebrated Pi Day?? We didn't until the past two years with friends who are the hosts with the most and commemorate almost every holiday, big and small. They are moving this summer and our social lives will be much poorer for it.