Weekend with Kieran

Kieran and I had the best weekend together. In fact, he says it was "the best weekend ever!". His Dad and brothers went away for the weekend to a Pathfinder Classoree, so it was just Kieran and I home together.

Everyone left around 5:00 p.m. Friday, so Kieran and I hung around the house for a little bit, watching T.V. and playing computer games, then we headed out to his absolute favorite restaurant, Five Guys, for dinner. They have the best burgers ever, and Kieran is a huge burger fan. We had a great dinner, then went back home for more T.V. watching and computer game playing. I watched the movie "Holiday" and Kieran joined me in bed halfway through the movie. We snuggled together while finishing the movie, then he fell asleep while I watched a bit more.

Saturday morning we both slept in, then it was back to the computers for a bit until noon time when we got dressed and headed to Tyson's Corner mall. We headed to the Lego store first where we browsed for a bit. Unfortunately they didn't have the particular Lego Kieran wanted, so we went to Game Stop next. He checked out all the games, while I found one I wanted to buy! American Idol Karaoke for the PS3! Then we went up to the food court where we found . . . Five Guys! So Kieran had another burger, but I chose something else.

While we were eating, Kieran asked if we were going to see a movie, so once we finished we went over to the movie theater and found that "Hotel for Dogs" had just started. We quickly bought tickets and got into the theater just as the previews were ending, taking the last two good seats together. It was such a cute movie! Not terribly realistic, but very cute. After the movie I wanted to do a little shopping, so we went to Abercrombie, andAbercrombie and Fitch (as Kohler has now outgrown Abercrombie). They were having a great sale, and I got something for each boy. Kieran was happy to be done with the shopping part!

From there we stopped in Barnes and Noble for a couple books and a strawberry Frappuccino at Starbucks for Kieran. Then we were ready to head home. I didn't really want to have to drive home in the dark in Stoehr's car! Back home, we immediately plugged in the American Idol microphone and started singing! Kieran didn't really want to sing, but I made him sing two songs with me, then he watched me sing for a while! We made up some nachos and it was back to computer games for him and a movie for me. I watched "Lost in Translation", and when it was over Kieran came to snuggle with me and I watched a bit more T.V. while he read Garfield comic books. He fell asleep around 11 p.m. again, like last night.

Sunday morning we woke up and played computer games and American Idol again, then got dressed and took Molly for a walk. It was 1:00 p.m. by the time we finally made it out to Starbucks for "breakfast". I tried their new Vanilla Rooibos Tazo tea (pretty good!) and had a piece of banana coffee cake, while Kieran had an Odwalla orange juice and a cookie. We shared the newspaper while we ate: comics for Kieran and the rest for me!

We made it home in time to do a little cleaning up before everyone else got home. It is so nice to spend time with just one child. And boy is it a lot easier than all three! We have to make an effort to do this more often. Hopefully Kieran will always remember our weekend together!

Kieran Says . . .

Another edition of the funny things Kieran has said lately!

This morning, when talking about the fun time we had this weekend, especially at the mall.

"I don't know, I just like it. It has Game Stop, the Lego store, and the food court. It's like a library of food!"

The other day, when I was calling his Dad on my cell phone, and he wanted to talk to his brother.

"You're calling Dad? Tell him to hook me up with Kaden."

There's always something cute coming out of his mouth!

Georgetown Tour {warning: photo heavy post!}

A couple weeks ago, we decided to spend Sunday in Georgetown. It's been ages since we had been there, and I'm not sure we're ever taken the boys. Our first stop had to be the Georgetown Flea Market.

It's not a huge market, but there are at least 50 dealers with things ranging from carpets to art to furniture, to the usual trinkets and ephemera.

I found a vintage clock for my collection (two total now!) but nothing else caught my eye.

The best surprise though, was that the boys loved it! Once they realized that this was like the best pile of junk to dig through ever, they started searching the tables for things for their collections.

Kaden apparently collects knives (he bought one in Yellowstone) and he found a nice curved, carved knife (that might actually be a letter opener). Kieran was loving the old watch/clock parts, and found a few pieces that he promptly took apart once he got home.

Kohler, being the frugal boy he is, didn't get anything, but he did have fun looking.

Definitely a place to return to, and also a desire to find more flea markets in our area.

We passed by Cafe Bonaparte, and while we didn't stop this time, it looked wonderful and I'd love to back. Something about the "crepes" sign!

We love the old cobblestone streets and sidewalks you find in Georgetown.

And who wouldn't want to live behind one of these doors! There are so many amazing streets and homes in this section of D.C. And you could walk to almost anything you could desire! Check out these beautiful doors, still decorated for the holidays.



And just think how much better this street probably looks in any other season, when the trees are blooming, or full green, or turning colors.

D.C. has to be close to 100% Democratic, and it was quite in evidence in Georgetown. Posters, signs, decorations, all congratulating and celebrating the new President.

We hadn't yet eaten lunch when we passed by Thomas Sweet Ice Cream, but if we had, we would have loved to try the ice-cream here!

There are so many delicious places to eat in Georgetown it's hard to pick one, but the menu posted outside Mie N Yu drew us in. And boy were we glad it did!

The decor inside was amazing! Tented tables and booths, each table set a little differently, with pillows and cushions to sit on. We loved the mango and blueberry non-alcoholic mojitos, but they also have a huge wine list.

And the food was delicious too! Even Kaden found something to eat, with a smoked salmon appetizer. (Kieran had a slice of pizza we brought in with us!)

After dinner we were ready for some ice-cream but alas, Thomas Sweet was too far away, so we had to "settle" for Haagen-Dazs instead!

Actually, only Kaden & Kieran had ice-cream . . . the rest of us decided to wait for . . .

Georgetown Cupcakes! We had heard about this tiny jewel box of a store and had to check it out. Luckily the line was only 15 minutes long, so we bought a half dozen to try.

I've never been much of a fan of store-bought cakes, but these were truly amazing! They tasted homemade and even the frosting was delicious.

Two of my favorite store are in Georgetown: Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters. Not only do I love their products, but their store windows are always beautifully decorated as well.

Georgetown has always been a favorite hangout for college students and it's easy to see why. All the shopping your could want along with bars and restaurants. Don't even try to come on a Saturday night!


This is a very old part of the city, and the old canal runs along the back of the shops on M street. There are some great old buildings, including this one with stars on the side.

And if you continue down beyond the canal you eventually run into the Potomac River. There are walking paths down here, and if you walk along the river towards D.C., you'll come upon some great waterfront areas and the Washington Harbor. It's also a great place to spot the planes continually coming into National Airport.

Georgetown is very pet friendly (at least for small dogs!) and the waterfront is a great place for a walk with your favorite pet.

It's a great place to spend a weekend!

Dinner Time!

This has got to be one of the best cookbook purchases I've ever made! I have quite a few Moosewood Restaurant cookbooks, but this is the best of them all. The recipes truly are "simple", and almost every one of them has been a hit so far. Each recipe is also accompanied with suggestions of side dishes or desserts in the book that would pair well with the dish, and those have been hits too! Usually I just make up broccoli, peas, or a salad, so having an actual side dish has been nice. The healthiness of the recipes is a nice bonus.

Our favorite dishes so far include:
Pasta with Greens & Ricotta
Pasta with Broccoli, Edamame & Walnuts
Pasta with Caramelized Onions & Blue Cheese
(except next time I will use Feta instead!)
Tunisian Potato Omelet
Pineapple Fried Rice with Tofu
and the amazing soup you see below, Curried Cauliflower & Chickpea Soup
{image from Swell Vegan}

Side dishes we love include:
Coconut Rice
Apples Two Ways
Sesame Broccoli
Carrot Salad with Respberry Vinaigrette

We also loved the Lemon Coconut Tapioca Pudding. And keep in mind that my 13 and 11 year-olds loved these dishes too(the 9-year-old, not so much).

Our top two favorite recipes though, dishes that I could make every day and not get tired of: Curried Tofu with Tomatoes, and the dish below, Roasted Vegetable Curry.


{image from Poco-Cocoa}

How can you resist?! Buy the book here.

A New Day

In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Read the whole speech here.

And some moving images.





{images from Time Inc.}

{image from here}

Obama's first signature as President.
{photo courtesy of Day Life}

Photoshoot: Michigan

While we were in Michigan, we spent a day exploring and window shopping in St. Joesph. We stopped by the Box Factory to see the art and train set-up, and when I parked I couldn't help but notice these big, green doors on the side of the old brick building. Perfect photo setting! Of course the boys' weren't much in the mood and it was pretty cold, but I tried!

Photography Spotlight: Tom Baker

I have to share another photographer I recently found. His photos are simply lovely and filled with light, don't you agree?



You can find more of his work at Inspace.

Fashion Find

Design for Mankind has a new daily up today, featuring a day in the life of Martha McQuade, designer and owner of Uniform Studio. Amazing, beautiful clothing for women and children. Do you want to see the color palette of their winter '08 line, inspired by the colors of Iceland?

I don't know if those colors make me want to buy the clothes or visit Iceland more! The clothes are just as beautiful, with flowing lines and unfussy detailing.



Martha also has a blog, where you can read more about her, her life, and her work.

Photography Spotlight: Sandra Juto

Every now and then I'd like to feature a photographer who really inspires me. Today, in the first installment, meet Sandra Juto. Her amazing, beautiful photos catch my eye whenever I see them. You can find Sandra's work on her blog smosch.com, on her flickr page, and in her Big Cartel shop. She also does a collaborative photo blog called how we say hello. Enjoy!