know any good wines?

I ended my day yesterday being held hostage by a sick 6 year old in my office as she snuggled up against me on the sofa.

Amara has what the doctor called virtually a kidney infection.

She was given some heavy meds to deal with the pain and her fever.

And I prescribed myself a glass of red at wine o'clock.

It was then I realized that in one week, I will find myself - sans family - in Wine Country.

I've never been to Napa or Sonoma. I can only base my excitement on friends recommendations and internet ramblings.

So if you know of any good wineries I should try and hit, let me know. (Chateau St. Jean and Benziger Wineries are two I'm considering.)

I'd love to try some fabulous Californian meals too. (Just don't tell me to try Mustards Grill or Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen because sadly my hotel is a good 45 mintues west of their locations.)

And I have that whole Team Challenge running thing. Have I mentioned I'm running the Napa to Sonoma half marathon? [smile]

But back to the vino.

Last night's bottle was courtesy of a co-worker who makes it out of his basement. And it was delightful.

Sometimes I go for Two Buck Chuck (which goes for $3 here).

I do love Francis Coppola Cabernet Sauvignon.

How about you? How do you celebrate wine o'clock?

Photo credit: Supafine
License: Morgue File

I can't cook

Yes I like Spam. And pasta is as adventurous as I can get in the kitchen.

I'd rather do take out.

But I want a new kitchen!

Actually, I don't even need the kitchen. I want a patio.

In the Yellow House, I had a terrific backyard.



I had my morning coffee on that deck nearly year round.

I could read a book while Amara played on the swingset.

Here in the Grey House, not so much.

It's just grass and trees.

So there's no coffee breaks. No cooking out. No outdoor time.

And that's kinda sad.

So tonight, we're meeting with a contractor to price out a patio.

I have no idea if we'll actually take the plunge and do it. Money's tight right now.

But with our perpetual staycation, I need a place to relax.

I'm thinking maybe a fire pit.



Or even a fireplace.



I'd love a pergola.



And of course, Dad2Amara is drooling over stainless steel grills and refrigerators.

So while it may all be a pipe dream right now, it's nice to dream.

What's in your backyard?

And what do you wish were in it?

I need the ideas.

A side note: Amara and I took part in the date and time oddity that took place yesterday.



At 12:34:56 on the 7th month, 8th day in 2009, Amara and I were in our front yard.

What were you doing?

generosity

This summer has taught me so much about the generous spirit so many around me possess.

Many of the flowers and shrubs in my yard are transplants from other's gardens.

This bloom came about just yesterday.

(ok so it's not much of a Wordless Wednesday post but I thought I'd have to explain it a little bit!)

nearly famous

During a trip to Target this past weekend, I was shocked to see school supplies already filling their seasonal shelves.

It was the first week of July. The temperatures have barely made it over 89 degrees. Yet there were aisles and aisles of backpacks and notebooks.

Yikes.

But the filler paper and pencils made me think about some of my “famous” classmates.

Who needs six degrees of separation? I can narrow it down to just one or two.

For those in Northeast Ohio, you’ll be familiar with the county corruption scandal. Federal indictments have started to come down and you guessed it: I went to school with one defendant that has already pleaded guilty. I even think I kissed Brian Schuman on the school bus on the way home from our Catholic grade school.

I went to high school with Miss Michigan 2004. And Stacey is just as nice as she is gorgeous.

A roommate in college ran for State Rep in his home state. I’m still friends with Josh Watson on Facebook.

I have some not-so-famous classmates too who live exciting lives. There are friends that work at CNN. Classmates that are now serving our country overseas.

And I don’t think I’ve done so badly myself.

Makes me wonder what Amara and her classmates will be up too in 20 years.

Do you have any famous classmates?

when losing is pretty cool

It was a big weekend for Amara.

Being one of the youngest in her kindergarten class, Amara watched as kid after kid boasted about the tooth fairy's visit.

Every so often, Amara would tug on each tooth, hoping one would be loose.

And finally one day last month, the dentist mentioned that she would be losing a tooth this summer.

Well I came home Sunday after a long run to a hysterical child.

Amara was eating Cheetos and her tooth loosened so much it was barely hanging on to the gum. And she was bleeding.

Of course Dad2Amara was of no help consoling her.

He suggested to her the old tie-the-tooth-to-a-string-and-attach-it-to-a-door technique and it freaked her out even more.

So once I calmed her down, I was able to convince her to have lunch.

And lo' and behold, the tooth came out!

My baby's first tooth came out!

I don't know who was more excited. Me, who rushed to find a camera.



Or Amara, who rushed to call Lolo and Lola2Amara and Grandpa and Grandma2Amara.



We put her tooth in a special faux silk pouch strategically placed beneath her pillow.

I sadly thought I wouldn't get to see her reaction when she woke up this morning to find that the tooth fairy has visited. (I'm at work early today...don't ask.)

But Amara ran into our bedroom at 6 a.m. to show us the dollar coin that magically appeared.

Losing her first tooth is just another sign that my baby is growing up.

Sigh.

I've missed you

Have you missed me?



Because guess what.

I've missed you.

And I've missed blogging.

I'm realizing that the friendships I made online are important to me (including Jen who was nice enough to send me a note last week).

And my writing is a bit – ahem – rusty.

But no worries.

Amara's still cute.

I'm still alive.

I'm still running the Napa to Sonoma half marathon on behalf of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation. It's hard to believe it's two weeks from today!

So can I promise I'll be around every day?

Nah.

But I'm hoping to show up every once in awhile. Just bear with me.

celebrate Independence!

Happy Fourth of July!

Thank you to all who serve this country so that we may be the land of the free!

grounded

**revised**

For those of you still around, you may have noticed that Mom2Amara has seemingly checked out.

Call it perpetual writer's block.

It's not that Amara has gone boring. She's as sassy as ever.



Just the fodder doesn't seem to cut it.

Or I'm just so used to condensing my thoughts in 140 characters or less a la Twitter that I just can't blog.

Or I can use training for the half marathon as an excuse.

Or family obligations have me so preoccupied I can't see straight.

Whatever it is, I can't bring myself back here. At least not right now.

And I can't find the time to visit some of my favorite bloggers. And that's not right.

So until further notice, this blog is grounded. On hiatus.

I may be back once in awhile. But it won't be like it used to be.

I hope you all will understand.