PractiGal

Not Wishing It Away - No Way

A few months ago, my little boy lost interest in sitting on our laps for bottles and books. It was around the time when he began scooting around on his own, holding on to the couch; he wanted to be on the go & couldn't be bothered with remaining seated. I couldn't believe our cuddling days were over! He's only a year old, for Pete's sake!

He'd scurry around and check in with me now and then to look at the pictures in the books I was reading to him. I continued to read though; I knew he was still somewhat interested -- he just didn't want to sit still, especially once he started walking!

Then, this weekend, he took a real interest in his books again. He actually sat down beside me and on my lap while I read to him. I've even been able to coax him to have a bottle on my lap, as I read to him. Last night he sat with me for five books! Yes, they're tiny books, with only a few pages each, but still --  I'll take it.

There's nothing sweeter than snuggling an almost 15-month-old little boy, reading to him, smooching his soft, pudgy skin, smelling his freshly shampooed hair...

These are the moments I just want to freeze, so they'll last forever...

Pretzels and Potatoes, Aayaw

Growing up, we'd visit our city-folk relatives from my mother's side and our small town/country-folk relatives on my father's side. I have distinct memories of the smells, sounds, and tastes of those visits.

There was nothing like a hot chewy pretzel with mustard from that little shop on 5th Street in Philly. Mmmm. I remember walking over the sidewalk grates in the city too -- smelling and feeling the steam rising through them. We'd walk by row house after row house, til we got back to the one where our two aunts lived. I loved our trips to Philly.

Then there were our visits to northern NY. We're talking WAY northern NY, the North Country as its called. Beautiful country, north of the Adirondacks. One uncle was so proud of his small town, he had its name on a custom license plate. Everyone knows everybody, and it seems like everyone's related, too. But I guess that's a different post altogether...  We had lots of aunts, uncles, and cousins to visit up north. I especially remember my visits to Aunt Mary's.

Here's how a conversation with Aunt Mary might go:
me: Can we play that game with the pennies?
A.M.: Aayaw! (Aunt Mary for yes)
me: What's for dinner?
A.M.: Meatloaf and baDAYdas. (Aunt Mary for potatoes)

Over the years, these Aunt Mary-isms became part of our family dialect - at least among we three girls. In fact, eventually we morphed her words for yes and potato into one word: AayawBaDAYda. The beauty of this word is that it has two meanings.

For example:
Will you please pass the pepper?
AayawBaDAYda.

What's for dinner?
Chicken and AayawBaDAYdas.

I thought of my Aunt Mary this weekend and smiled. I was making BaDAYda salad.

Aunt Mary lives in Florida now, and I haven't seen her in many years. She's probably out there having fun on the shuffleboard court as I write this. I doubt she has any idea her dialect has become a mainstay in our family vocabulary.

Time for a cup o' tea. Aayaw. AayawBaDAYda.

Memorial Day

PractiGal and family salute those who've served (and are serving) our country. We thank you.

Click for history of Memorial Day in the U.S.
Some trivia: a town near here in upstate NY, Waterloo, claims to be the birthplace of Memorial Day.

This and That

A few odds and ends...

First of all, Happy Birthday to my college roomie, Lynn! It's the 1st anniversary of her 39th birthday today. Happy Birthday to you....  We're all singing, can you hear us!?? (Lynn doesn't have a blog, but if she did I'd send you there to sing to her! You're welcome to leave comments for her, as she does lurk here... )

Next, if you haven't already stopped by Caltechgirl's, be sure to do so, and wish her Congratulations! She's now officially Caltechgirl, PhD. I bet if you ask her questions about the meaning of life and such, she'll have an answer for you. Probably with or without Monty Python references! Yep, that's one smart cookie!

Finally, a message to all of you who are dying to wear white. As of Monday, YOU CAN! At least that's what I learned growing up... My mother said so -- she must have been right; either that or she brainwashed me. White shoes, pants, etc., can come out as of Memorial Day. So all you Miami Vice dudes, shine your shoes!

So, Mom was right after all!

... as was Sister Mary Elizabeth! 

Do you suppose the spammers will include a warning in their e-mails, with this news out there?

How's your vision???

Acquisitions

Behold! Garage sale season is upon us in the northeast. And it's a beautiful thing. Now I can play the $20 game, stretching it much further than at the consignment store. This week's aquisitions include various pjs, shirts, overalls, shorts, videos, a spring jacket for next year, and a ride-on fire truck.   I thought some of the prices were a bit high for garage sales, but who can resist a Lion King t-shirt, and a shirt with various Sesame Street character heads peeking out by the buttons! Total cost: $19

In an unrelated acquisition, we are now the proud owners of a plastic turtle sandbox. As I mentioned before, I have looked at them in the store, and in neighbors' yards. And no, I didn't take this from someone's yard. My husband did. A front yard - alongside a neighbor's garbage. I don't have the guts to shop curb-side yet, but my hubby finds decent things on occasion, and well, you can't argue with the price! I don't know why this turtle was discarded; the only defect I see is a missing eye. I may need to fashion a patch for the missing eye -- I'm guessing we'll be the only ones on the street with a pirate-turtle sandbox. Aaayyyy!

Curried Lentil Soup

This recipe is on a well-worn piece of paper in my house. It gets a LOT of use. Yum yum. Easy, delicious, low-cal and high-fiber. What more could you ask for? I'm submitting it to this week's Carnival of the Recipes .

Curried Lentil Soup
(serves 6, at least)

2 tsp olive oil
1 c. chopped onion
1 1/4 tsp curry powder
3 c water
4 c chicken broth (or veggie broth)
3 c lentils (or one package - that's what I use)
2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil , or 2 tsp dried basil
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp salt (and pepper to taste)
1 (14.5-oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion; saute 4 minutes. Add curry; saute 1 minute. Add water, chicken broth and lentils; bring to a boil. Cover; reduce heat. Simmer 40 minutes or until lentils are tender.  (Or, after onion is cooked you can put all ingredients thus far in a crockpot and cook on high 3-4 hours or low 7-8 hours or til lentils are tender)

(optional) Place 4 c lentil mixture in a blender; process til smooth. Return mixture to pan.

Add basil, vinegar, salt, and tomatoes; cook til thoroughly heated.

Nutritional info, per serving:
104 calories; 2 g total fat; 7 g protein; 17 g carb; 10 g fiber; 0 mg cholesterol; 168 mg sodium
That translates to 1 Weight Watcher point per serving!

President's Plane

It was a dreary, rainy day... but here's Air Force One leaving town today. Impressive photography, I know! Just after this shot, the plane was hidden by the clouds...

How About Some Sunshine?! It's a Big Day!

Living very close to an airport has its ups and downs. In the summertime, conversations pause while airplane noises rattle the windows. Most days you don't need an alarm clock, since flights start taking off around 6a.m. On the upside, when the Navy's Blue Angels * come to town, you get to watch an airshow for free from your back yard.

And, when the President comes to town, you might catch a glimpse of Air Force One.

It's a big day for Monroe County, in western New York. Today when President Bush arrives, it will be the first visit from a sitting President since 1989, when former President Bush, the elder, visited. He's coming to talk about social security in a town hall style meeting at a suburban school.

I heard on the radio that there will be 100+ roads closed when the presidential motorcade travels from the airport to the school, though they haven't announced which roads yet. This could make getting to the office for my mid-morning meeting a challenge! But I'm a gawker, and I hope I see something on my journey! If they're closing so many roads, I'm guessing he's taking a very indirect route to the school, since I'm pretty sure you could get there by taking fewer than 10 roads. And, word is, he'll be enjoying some NY Barbeque for lunch - like it will compare to what he's used to? And what? No chicken wings!?

I'll report back with an update later!

{* This reminds me, I need to write about the Blue Angels' guest appearance on my wedding day!}

A Googler's Conundrum

I know I'm not the only one who occasionally Googles someone they haven't seen or heard from in a long time. I guess it's my inner sleuth, keeper-in-toucher,... busy-body. You know... "I wonder what good old what's her name is up to." An old friend, relative, etc.  Typically when I do this, I come up with nothing.

But one time, I found some actual news (news to me, anyway). I was thinking of a relative I hadn't seen in a long time. I typed her name and hometown into Google and got a LOT of hits. A LOT. Turns out this relative played a prank a couple years ago that got her into trouble with the law. And she ended up losing her job too.

Whoa. I never expect to find anything like that when I go a-Googling!

Fast forward to today.

Suppose that you're me, and that out of the blue you receive an e-mail from this relative. Do you inquire about this incident?

And yes, this is a true story.