morning laugh

Chris drives E & P to school every morning...always has because it's right on his way to work downtown...he just called to tell me that he was teasing Emma that he signed up to chaperone at her Junior Prom...said he had dance floor duty and that he wanted to see light between couples.  Emma's response was "save room for Jesus!"  Good Catholic girl..ha.  Heidi

happy birthday kris and sally!

My dear friends are celebrating birthdays this week (me too...ugh, 45).

Kris - started out as the sister in law of my dear friend, Linda....has turned out to be one of my dear friends.  She is adorable, funny, up for fun, very put together, loves to discuss books with me, is always supportive and always up for lunch.  She is totally in love with her wonderful husband, Don, and is an incredible mother.  She knits, walks, cooks, bakes and runs a successful small business.  She's 45 tomorrow!!!!

Sally - we became friends when her Alex and my Emma started half day kindergarten together 12 years ago.  She is a very British girl...loves to garden, loves her labs, adores her children and loves to play tennis.  She is is dedicated completely to her life...whatever stage it is in and is quietly the strongest person I know.  I think she is 48 on Wednesday!!!!

Grateful for these two wonderful, dear, dear friends!  Heidi

someone stop me!

Just took on parent rep job for Peter's h.s. baseball team.  Already team rep for Emma's h.s. swim team for the fall (already have meetings for that)!  Also, took on another campaign today...one I could never say no to...Dan Kapanke's upcoming senate race due to a likely recall. 

After a WONDERFUL evening last Friday night for my non profit, Blessings in Tanzania, I would love to dedicate most hours to that, but more important right now, are my own children's teams, etc.  Taking on another campaign means $, which funds all of these wonderful, extra activities...so it goes.

I learned a long time ago, that for every "yes," you must always have a "no."  YES is winning right now...so NO needs to catch up!  Heidi

kris.margaret.danielle.sally.kathe.sheila.ann.laura.deb.me

One of my favorite days of the year...book group brunch today at Kris' house!!!  Kris is an incredible cook/baker and she goes all out...mimosas, baked goods, quiche, turnovers, fruit...coffee.  It's such a good day/tradition that we've enjoyed for years.  Most of our book group meetings are on Monday nights over dessert and wine (1/month), but this is the day we look forward to (this and the Christmas ornament exchange) because it's sooooooooooooooo relaxing...sitting around her dining room table, eating, talking, laughing and really connecting. 

Today, we left a bit reeling after our dear Sheila shared that her husband is sick...seriously sick.  We all adore him and are shocked at the news.  I don't know what to do for her/him.  I'm so sad about this.  But, I do know this...our group is there for eachother...always will be.  Heidi

RSVP

Looked this up on the internet of course...couldn't have said it better myself!  People rarely RSVP these days...drives me crazy in my line of work...

What Does RSVP Mean? - The definitive explanation of the term RSVP.

Let's Clear Up the Confusion Over the Meaning of RSVP

By Donna Pilato, About.com Guide

Lack of RSVPs - A Growing Problem

I hear more and more often, and have found in my personal experience, that hosts often do not receive receive responses to invitation that tell them whether guests plan to attend their parties, even if an RSVP is clearly requested. This could mean either one of two things. First it could mean that rudeness is a growing trend in our society. Or, as I would prefer to believe, people no longer understand what the term means. Assuming the best, and that the reason guests don't RSVP to an invitation is a case of ignorance, not rudeness, I will clarify this for the record.

What RSVP Means

The term RSVP comes from the French expression "répondez s'il vous plaît", meaning "please respond". If RSVP is written on an invitation it means the invited guest must tell the host whether or not they plan to attend the party. It does not mean to respond only if you're coming, and it does not mean respond only if you're not coming (the expression "regrets only" is reserved for that instance). It means the host needs a definite head count for the planned event, and needs it by the date specified on the invitation.

Why It's Inconsiderate to Not RSVP

An incomplete list of respondents can cause numerous problems for a host including difficulty in planning food quantities, issues relating to minimum guarantees with catering halls, uncertainty over the number of party favors and difficulties in planning appropriate seating, among other things.
So the next time you see RSVP on an invitation you receive, please call your host and respond promptly.

Heidi

Surprise Tuesday

ahhhhhhh, "the good ones"....I loved it when Grandpa Milo called us that and SQUEEZED us so tight!  All of our grandparents made us feel so special.

Peter tackled the land mines in the backyard...got most of them.  I agree on the rabbits...I have found several mounds in my garden....good lord, they look like food pellets!  Ikea's candles...never tried them...probably because we don't have an Ikea here, although my b-day is coming up ;).

Surprise Tuesday is here again...every Tuesday, Chris and I do something nice for eachother...been doing this for years.  It used to be Surprise Wednesday, but for some reason Chris switched it to Surprise Tuesday this year.  We set a limit of no more than $5 each, but it's often more than that or way less.  For example, today Chris just got breath mints and gum...not too exciting!  But sometimes, I make him a cake or buy one...or give him a favorite magazine....or we meet for lunch...or he comes home for lunch.  He's got some stand bys for me...People magazines, which are a guilty pleasure or candles, which are an obsession. 

One of the most thoughtful surprises was a couple of Tuesdays ago when he gave me a $10 gift card to Sundance Theatre...I LOVE going to movies there alone in the middle of the week...it's quiet and it's so naughty because it's truly an escape!  I order the hummus plate or a gourmet pizza, or a muffin and latte and settle into my pre-selected seat for a wonderful, usually artsy fartsy movie...a perfect indulgence!  I thought it was sweet of him because he doesn't like that theatre or those types of movies but he knows I do.  It was also nice to know that he thinks I deserve a break in the middle of the day in the middle of the week sometimes.  He is such a great husband and dad...works so hard.  It's just a way to take time to think of eachother in the midst of carpools, swim meets, practices, baseball games, fundraisers, walking the dog, groceries, etc....

Heidi

ikea

Going to Ikea today to buy candles! Love their candles! This is their basic candle, but it comes in different scents! We go through them like crazy. Our house...as the kids say, when you walk in, smells like an old womans house.  I believe the moldy, old wood smell comes from the basement.  Not much you can do with a house that was built in 1925...except light some candles!  It's a great time to go there- it inspires you for spring!
love, k:)

                                           

Darn Rabbits!

I want to get excited about flowers, but those darn rabbits. It's like having a dog that went in the backyard all winter to do his "duty" (ie George). It is going to take a lot of cleanup! I think they were living under the branch that held fell....it's really quite disgusting!

I am not sure of my colors this year, most of my flowers I don't get until June. I should do more container gardens. Easier to handle. Maybe some herbs...or veggies this year, like Mom??  My neighbors grow tomatos, and have really good results. Salsa all summer he says! Maybe tomatos and peppers??  I can't wait to feel grass on my feet, and see everything start to bloom, more so than any other year. It's been tough. We are even suppose to be getting 2 inches of snow in a couple of days...sigh.

Heidi you always have a beautiful garden. You just have a knack for it. What are your colors this year, or do you do a mix? You can't go wrong with pink!

Love, K:)

The Good Ones

Grandpa Milo used to call Heidi and I the "Good Ones". I think our kids have now taken on that name. So proud of them all.

our desk bells...

I've got one of these sitting on my desk in my office.  I gave one to Krista too.  The idea is that since we both work from home offices, rarely do we get a "thanks, good job" or "keep up the good work"....so, every time I raise some money for someone, do something good or BLOG (hint hint), I ding my bell!  Emma and Peter think it's hilarious, but I like it.  It's like a verbal gold star.

Heidi

blogging by myself...

yes I'm blogging by myself!!!

Krissygirl, come on! 

NO SNOW :) :) :) :) :)

My yard is SNOW FREE...still some piles around the neighborhood (where the plows like to stack it), but virtually snow free!  My tulips and daffodils are poking up too!  Yesterday, I took a walk without a jacket!!!  And, it's only going to get better...rain for tomorrow so that will start greening it all up.  This is the best mood lifter...

I was a maniac cleaning up the front yard/gardens last fall, but the back yard and gardens are a mess...instead of removing the leaves, we just raked them to one corner of the yard...didn't cut down the perennials and the worst part, haven't picked up the 100 or so lbs of George poop from the winter.  With the snow now gone, it's a minefield back there!  Peter will have the glorious job tomorrow of picking it all up...he heads out with double newspaper bags on his hands (up to his elbow) and a lined leaf container...he learned last year that it's best to do this early a.m. while it's still cold...!    Heidi

A picture from last spring....

thinking about flowers today too...

love this one just as much...on our best day ever!

i love this amazing person...was a perfect day!

Political earthquake hits Wisconsin...

...the huge divide may be permanent.  Partisanship has never been greater and the bloodied battlefield is only the beginning...the Supreme Court race and upcoming recall elections are the aftershocks that will continue for some time.  The ramifications from both sides' behavior will be felt for YEARS to come.

Very sad for our state.

Heidi

love libraries and museums too!

Yes, I love libraries, although I tend to splurge on buying my books...I love to keep them.  Some I read again.  I read my all time favorite, Crossing to Safety every year.  There's just something about that book.  Peter and I like to go to the library in the summer...he walks out with a huge stack of military and gun books (I'm sure we've been put on some sort of a watch list in Madison;) and I love to find books I otherwise might not purchase...books on health, etc.  It's also fun and free to check out dvds!

Museums...YES!  We don't have a lot of them in Madison.  We have a great Veterans Museum that we enjoy and we have a very nice art museum on campus.  We're gearing up for our road trip east to look at colleges and definitely hit some of our favorite museums of all time in D.C....I love the National Gallery of Art...my favorite painting is there...a Mary Cassatt...see below! We also love all of the Smithsonians and the Spy Museum.  You guys need to road trip out there to see all of the free museums!  That's the beauty of our nation's Capital, most museums are FREE.  Heidi

amy butler

I hate to say it....but I think her fabrics are better than Vera Bradley. I love amybutlerdesign.com!! She has products to buy like purses, pillows etc. She now has WALLPAPER! The patterns are beautiful. If you don't love the idea of wallpapering a whole room, pick one wall, or line the inside of a closet. You could buy a roll and split it. Check out the new designs! Tres chic!


love, K:)

George W

We all went to the History Museum over the weekend and saw the new George Washington exhibit. I love the History Museum, actually I love any museum. Our history museum is so beautiful in itself. You feel like you are walking into a mansion, its breathtaking, to me.


The exhibit was really great. They had life-size, life-like "wax" figures of George. Very, very interesting. Did you know he never had his own kids. She had kids, and they raised them and their grandkids. They also had a model of Mount Vernon. I told the kids how great of a place this is, and how someday I want to take them there. Steve would love to go there too. I really hope I can show them that someday.


I think the best thing you can give your kids is culture and the arts. Expose them to everything. I am happy to say one of the kids favorite things to do is to go to museums. I hope it gives them a little sense of class and good taste, and to know what beautiful things really are.
This was one of the paintings on display
                                           
love, K:)

Leave it to Peter

I love that about Peter....to say the darnest thing! I laughed so hard when I read that I almost cried! He probably knew Dad was upset, and Mom was worried, so he came up with somthing to lighten up the mood. He is the peacemaker, like me, his Auntie Tata. Aahh, second born.

My weekend, like most weekends was centered around Lily. Taking Lily places, hanging out with Lily and feeding Lily. I took 2 hours out and enjoyed watching a movie with Evan though, that was nice. Inception. Very strange movie, but we both liked it. Catching an hour or two with a teenager, is all I can expect, but it seems like enough for now.

I am looking out the window, and wondering will Spring ever come. It doesn't appear to be. 2 feet of snow on the ground, and the weather reports saying we are going to be dumped on tomorrow. I hope it misses us.

I went to the library on Saturday. Went down the aisle marked "Arts and Crafts".  This is an aisle I find myself spending a lot of time in when at the library. I always take home at least 6 books, thinking that I am definetly going to do this. This weeks selection was papercutting and sewing. I don't remember the last time I actually did something from one those books, but I love to look and tell myself I am going to do it.  I do love the library, and books.
I finished "Dear John". I have seen the movie, so I knew the ending.  But they changed the ending in the movie, so that was surprise! A quote that made sense to me, was "A person with autism lives in his own world, while a person with Aspergers's lives in our world, in a way of his own choosing."
I rarely buy books, I usually get them at the library.
Do you visit the library sissy? Or do you prefer a bookstore?
Love, K:)

                                     

the idiot doesn't fall far from the idiot tree

Tonight...

Chris & Emma home from the swim meet.  We're all exhausted from the busy week.  Chris runs out to pick up Friday night fish fry from the Seafood Center.  I tell Emma just because she's queen swimmer this weekend (and made two Speedo cuts!) doesn't keep her from helping out....after my 12th prompt, she gets on her boots to take George in the back yard...Peter quickly follows...to just be near his Sissy.

As I am setting the table, I hear/see Emma run in with George and then she tries to hold the door shut (just to bug her brother)...Peter pushes on the window and CRASH, the backdoor window smashes to the mudroom floor.  As we're quickly assessing the need to get to the ER, while picking up shards of glass, we are grateful that each only sufffered scratches.  Being Momma, I tell them they've learned a valuable and fairly painless lesson.  I then call Chris so he has time to "process" the incident on his way home.

Chris gets home, irritated, but we all sit down to dinner.  I remind him that he broke windows as a kid, to which Peter replies "I guess the idiot doesn't fall far from the idiot tree."

Tomorrow Chris says he's going to teach Peter how to replace the window...this should be good.  Stay tuned...Heidi

Rain and birds!

Washed the car yesterday so of course it's RAINING today...not SNOWING, but RAINING!!!!  And the birds are chirping like crazy and flying all over!  We may get less than an in. of snow tonight when it gets colder but for now, it's RAINING...washing all of the snow, salt and yuck away!

Had a great week of work...got six fundraisers organized this month for a political client and am in the thick of organizing a great event for Blessings in Tanzania at the end of the month.  Emma and Chris are at her State competition and Peter is at school.  I'm having lunch with my new intern today and all is right in the world....well, in my little world anyway.  Wisconsin is still MESSED UP.   Heidi

P.S.  Sissy, you need to blog!!!!