Just in case you need the PERFECT gift to say "I love you."

Head on over here and buy you one. Or me one. Whatevs.

A statement of fact

Folks, I iron my sheets. This is not a confession or a guilty pleasure or a secret. Just a fact. I also iron clothes that need ironing but I do not iron my underwear or other things that do not usually need an iron. I prefer the way that iron sheets feel and that is why I do it. That may be why I'm really loving these pictures of Extreme Ironing found here. A few faves:

The Taste...

So - on Thursday afternoon we went to the Taste of Chicago - or "The Taste" as it's known by locals. I had such a delightful time - and we ate our way up and down the aisle of wondrous food. The event was really well run - and here are my two favorites - which is not to say that I ate anything I didn't like...

Crab Rangoon - oh hold me

Strawberry kabobs swimming in dark chocolate by the Chicago Chocolate Company. Now, folks. I really don't think I've ever had sweeter, juicier strawberries in my LIFE. And the fact that they were swimming in chocolate didn't hurt either. Di-vine.

I had such a good time - but by the end I was so full I wanted to die. Once we'd reached our limit we headed home - and basked in the glory of our cuisinetainment. The highlight (other than the food) was overhearing this family discussion:

A mother with two daughters (one 13 years old and one 9 years old) approach the Ferris wheel. Clearly the 9 year old wants to ride the Ferris wheel:

Mother: NO, look at that line - it's like 20 minutes long!

9 year old: So?

13 year old (wise beyond her years): Don't you know what you could EAT in 20 minutes?!

Truer words were NEVER spoken.

Double Oh My...

I'll trade this post for a...

I sure do love these great brooches over at Paraphernalia . Such a cool idea!

A word of encouragement during a failure is worth more than an hour of praise after success.

-Anonymous

Welcome back, Matt!

I'm sure I posted about Matt and his dancing around the world - but that must have been a while ago. Well - Matt's got a new video - and I love it. It makes me so happy and, frankly, emotional. But I'm also a goof - so what can you do? Please do enjoy.


Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

My amazing Craigs

So - I just have to give a shout out to my friends the Craigs - who just added Rebecca "Becca" Craig to their family on Saturday. And yes - this is how Katie looked after delivering Miss Becca. And go read the whole delivery story - it's so great. When I called to chat with one of the proud parents - I also got to talk to proud big Sister - and this was a highlight of my conversation with her:

Me: So what do you have for dinner on a day when a baby was delivered at your house?

P.B.S.: Um, I don't know - someone's bringing it over.

Me: Well, duh. Of course!

And really - I'm so glad that a fab friend "someone" was bringing over dinner - because frankly - what DO you cook on a day when you've delivered a baby - as pusher or catcher?! My vote would be: Monte Cristos and Fudgesicles. I'm also sad that I couldn't actually deliver that menu - because I think Monte Cristos would be a big hit in Vegas. But hooray for friends who see a need and just fill it.

What would you make if you were taking dinner to a family who just delivered a baby in their downstairs loo?

Getting ready for Bejing...

Tonight I was watching the gymnastic Olympic trials with Bennett - and while we were watching the ladies floor routines we had this discussion:

Bennett: I could never do that.

Me: Why?

Bennett: Because it's really funny - spinning around makes it really funny. Those people are kind of funny.

Image via Pyzam.com

Thinking of Mrs. Doctor...

So - my cousin, Mrs Doctor had her sweet Megaman almost six weeks ago - which, by the way, CONGRATULATIONS!! And I've been thinking about her a lot and what I could do to help even though I'm still so far way. So here you go - some random bits of the Interwebs, brought right to your screen. Now, you do not have to be Mrs Doctor to enjoy these sites and bits of silliness. But I did sit and think about her and ALL THAT TIME she has, just sitting around, trying to think of things to do with herself. Oh...wait...uh...yeah. And - even though this is so delayed - I love you Mrs Doctor! I'm so glad to know that you and Megaman and all the other folks at your house are well. Way to go!!

You could go and create a masterpiece like this! (And yes, I made this myself)

You could go and dream about these beautiful houses

Check out this

Or you could take an audio vacation here

I really like browsing through this site

A little inspiration...

If this Sunday afternoon finds you lounging and needing a few images and ideas to inspire you toward summer or a new project or a treat for yourself (or a swap!), then you should FOR SURE head yourself right over to Matthew Mead Style and click...for hours. Here are a few images that I just can't help revisiting:

Cinnamon Bun Babka Cake

Pavé Arrangement

Ruffle-collared ice cream cones
Doily wrapped votive holder
Old paperback book used as a picture holder - and his site has plenty of instructions and downloads. Seriously - get over there!

Oh - just a little sliver for me...

I guess I'm thinking of my Grandma Siple a lot these days! I saw this pan and instantly thought of her. This allows baking of a cake with many slice sizes - so that the host or hostess doesn't have to guess what "oh...just a small piece" - because Wavie has no idea how to serve a "small piece" of anything! Head over to Kaboodle for this awesome pan!

There is ALWAYS room for...

You're not having fun until you head over to Jello Time. Creepy and hypnotic - and making me hungry...

It also makes me miss my Grandma. She always makes such good Jello - great flavor combinations. And she never skimps on the fruit or Cool Whip.

Arrival...

I'm sure you've guessed that the road trip portion of the summer is over - for now! I arrived in Salt Lake on Tuesday morning and by 11:00 a.m. we were headed East, singing and snacking. We had two cars and cruised our way to Cheyenne, Wyoming. And I'm just going to say that I'm glad I don't live in Wyoming all the time. It was just fine to visit for a night - and that was enough.
Day Two of the road trip turned into the longest day, going from Cheyenne to Des Moines, Iowa. We saw a lot of flooded areas or fields that had clearly been flooded in the last few days. The rivers were swollen and quite high - with the water being right up under bridges as we crossed them. We had many a Baby Einstein and Elmo DVD and really made it through the long day without much incident. Although - sometimes grown up rest stops weren't as accessible through Nebraska and Iowa...and I did learn the art of the bladder punch. Funny, but not nice.
Day Three was our lightest day - so after a leisurely breakfast we drove along, still asking questions from the question books and discussing a wide variety of topics. We made our lunch stop in Davenport, Iowa at a McDonald's playland. After tag and dodge ball, we were on the road for the final two hours - which absolutely flew. I'm not going to lie to you folks, this road trip went SO FAST. Each night I was tired, but not crazy exhausted - and the company was delightful. Everyone traveled so well. So - now - we go about the business of getting the new house cleaned and ready to receive the contents on Monday! And now - it's nap time...yee-haw.

Best thing in a while...

So - there will be more pictures over at Making It Look Good along with his letter from this week - but this picture of Elder Taylor has brought me such joy today...and I think it will keep making me smile for many moons.

The Eldersaurus Rex...in his natural habitat.

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go...

So - in just a few short hours I'm on a plane to join my friends as we road trip to the newest chapter of their lives in Chicago. I'm super stoked for a fun road trip and many exciting adventures in Chicago. Here are just a few of the things I am excited about:





I will miss Portland and all my dear friends and Primary peeps - but am sure excited for my next adventure!

2008 Cheese Races...

Oh dear friends...it was spectacular. I loved it. Amazing. And I have proof and will have more proof once I get more pictures from my friends...

The McDermott ladies - ready to rock the cheese races!

The crowd gathered in the Cheese Arena

Many cheese racing hopefuls - but there can be only one winner.

During one of the second round "casts" Jane B.'s cheese had an unfortunate landing...a half-on-dangler. Sad.

So much cheese! Oh, and the tournament brackets! I do hope you'll join us next time. When that will be, I have no idea. But seriously - you should come...because it is SO fun.

We really lucked out because my father, McGyver had all the tools and equipment needed to make our Cheese Races successful: an above ground fire pit; a nice big grill; a charcoal chimney to prepare the briquettes; gloves; tongs; a bucket for collecting the raced cheeses. Amazing. We truly couldn't have done it without the Cheese Master. Thank you, Dad.

I'm back - and I'm serious!

Tonight is the night. Not only is it my return to my loved and missed blog but it is also the first official night of Cheese Racing. You may remember a million years ago I posted about Cheese Racing. If you don't remember, don't worry. It WAS one million years ago. But tonight is the night - and will begin in about five minutes. I thought about live blogging tonight - but I really want to enjoy the fun...so know that I will be back later tonight with plenty more fun things to read about. I'm serious.

In the mean time - you could head over to CheeseRacing.org and then have your own personal cheese race. I assure you that it works. Or if you want something totally random you can head over to Whorange and read about the upcoming trends in home decor. I think the new Polar Bear will be Moose...you heard it here first.

Wii Dishwashing Champion

I'm quite new to the Wii...but plan to get real good this summer!

Must see...

Many thanks to Ryan - for sending me this link...oh man...this has made my day!

If you haven't seen The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters...go now...rent it...and love it.