Mother's Day

I hope all the mother's out there had a fantastic day.  Happy Mom's Day mom! (I know you got the card, but a blog shout out can't hurt.)

I had a splendid Mom's day weekend. Smith took part in one of the kid's classroom's dad's camping trips (lots of possessives there.) So the boys were gone from Friday afternoon until Sunday.  So I was home. alone. in my own house. with no one to cook for, clean up after or schedule my day around. (except the cat. We named her Hermione, by the way.)

What I did:
-ran 2 errands for Smith, one of which was get his car inspected - I wasn't feeling lucky.
-bought a pair of shoes.
-went to see Jane Eyre.
-Drank 1 margarita. (it's been close to 5 years since I've had a rita. why? I don't know.)
-Stayed up late watching Downton Abbey.
-Went for an open water swim
-Went for a bike ride
-Painted my toenails
-Bought pre-cut, pre-chilled, perfectly ripe splendid watermelon. and ate it.
-Went to a friend's party with just us camping widow mom's and we tried really hard to not talk about our kids or what our husbands were doing (or not doing) while supervising hoards of children. Stayed up late talking and drinking ginger mojitos.
-Apparently slept in the next day. I woke to feed the cat and lay down again only to wake up what felt like moments later to my people coming in the front door after noon. yawn.

I also had a moment of nostalgia for my very first mother's day, 8 years ago. I walked up the hill to the pool and went for a swim by myself. It was the first time I had gone anywhere without Nbear. (that was a long 4 months.) And it was a great swim. On the walk back down the hill a boy had set out a table and was selling bouquets of lilacs from their lilac bush. I don't think flowers ever smelled sweeter.

Love to all, especially those who make us mothers.

This is one of those times when the universe is hitting me over the head.

For "mental health" reasons, I allow the boys one day of hooky per school year. Jbird was in dire need last week so I could finally comply on Friday. I brought him with me to the Y so I could go to yoga (yeah! my knee is strong enough to manage yoga!)Afterwards he asked about visiting the Town Lake Animal Shelter. It's next door to the Y and we often drive by. It is brightly painted and the kids always ask if we can go. On this particular day, I felt we had time to do it -- and we could even be sneaky about it. Smith wouldn't have to know! (he's happy to be a mostly pet-free household at the moment. He doesn't count the fish or the chickens...)

So there we were, sneaking out of school for the day and sneaking behind Smith's back and WHAM! we meet a film crew and make the news.

Sadly, we didn't even get to meet our "Rhino" because technically the shelter was closed to the public for another hour. So we wandered outside the fence looking at the variety of barking dogs. And then we went out for a leisurely pancake brunch. 

After we picked up Nbear from school the boys were puttering around outside and up strolls a cat we've never seen before. There is a large assortment of neighbor cats that visit our house, aka "Cat Switzerland" but she was not one of them. She walked right up to me and started purring and rubbing on me. Not at all like the regular skittish visitors. Jbird and N spent the rest of the afternoon teaching her tricks - walk over here, then over there, then over this, then through this hoop. She patiently let them dress her in towels and tease her with twigs. She stayed and purred.

This is her peering in the window during dinner. She was still there the next morning. And so it seems, we have a new outdoor kitty. It's officially been a week and she's still with us. No one has answered my Found Cat! emails, craigslist or signs. I have purchased actual cat food instead of feeding her the leftover pork tenderloin tidbits.

And for those family members who knew Spookers, yes, she bears a striking physical resemblance. Personality-wise? night and day different. THIS cat has yet to hiss or scratch any of us. granted, I haven't tried to take her into the shower, but I bet even then, she'd be sweet.

No name yet. We'll keep you posted.

Somebody is 8!

He sure looks happy, eh? It is a birthday year without a big party so we went en famille to a nearby smallish amusement park: go-carts, bumper boats, laser tag and the like.  Bumper boats were a big hit. I did not partake in the laser tag (crutches impeding my running, ahem) but the boys emerged sweaty and smiling. even Smith.

Then we returned home for his specially requested white chocolate ice cream cake. A first for me, but it worked okay.

Boo Ya'll!

Is it bad that I'm starting with the cupcakes? probably. Earlier this month we got in the mood by turning these Nanacake chocolate multigrain cupcakes... er muffins....

into spooky skeletons!

And the big day involved a little bit of sewing for me. Nbear decided to be a Ninja, in perfect keeping with his desire to dress up as real people: Carpenter twice, Fireman, Policeman and a soldier.  Jbird was a knight. Check out the shiny suit. For the picture he threw in some fangs so spice things up.

We made our rounds with our friends which included a mummy in a complete state of unravelling

and the proverbial vampire victim.

My friend Bud will be very disappointed that I dressed up as nothing but a mom standing in the street while the kids made the rounds. Some just like to do things a little bigger. Literally.

Hope yours was happy!

The Trip: Automobile-Part 3

On the road again.
I felt compelled to show my kids to one place I remember being awed by when I was younger: Corning Glassworks. So on the way to Philadelpia* we made a stop at Corning. The museum is totally revamped from my meager memory, but elements of it remained. There were plenty of interesting science-y bits about glass as well as cool arrangements like this periodic table of elements completely made out of glass flasks? beakers? fleakers? (my science-y inlaws are about to correct me here.)

*take out a map, here's where I got a little crazy because it's totally not on the way to Philly.

And another display just out of baking dishes. In an artful array. It was difficult for me to not walk into this display and blurt out "exterminate! exterminate!"

Followed by gallery after splendid gallery of art objects out of glass. All fascinating. All totally not interesting to small boys. Sigh.

But something completely new are glass workshops. Initially we chose to make a glass bead, but by a major snafu which I won't bore you with here (I get exhausted just thinking about the walking we did to clear that up...) we ended up sandblasting instead.

And here is a wonderfully patterned sandblasted glass of his own creation. To be lovingly compared to the Chihuly in the lobby.

Late in the day with a tired demeanor about us, we headed south to my Aunt Becky & Uncle Peter's place. On the map, it really didn't look like we were going out of our way, but really, by the clock, we were. It took forever to get there. It was incredibly scenic and very beautiful but I also had the sense that I would never ever be driving on this road again in my life.  This was also around the time that the ipod, with all the stories on it, went on the fritz (of course.) I am pleased that central PA radio still KLoves its oldies because mom and I sung ourselves silly with golden oldies. But it was still a long drive. I was ready to give up and find a place to stay overnight while my mom urged us on saying "it's not much further now." And it wasn't.


My aunt and uncle have grown children, but still have some remnants of boy things in the basement. Building things and Lego's. Jbird and Nbear were busy for the next few days. Our days usually started with the amish farmer's market goodies like blueberry coffee cake, granola, yogurt and peaches. (I'm drooling again just typing it!) Followed by several hours of the aforementioned building projects, a dip in the pool and a fabulous dinner out somewhere. (charcuterie plate, truffle fries, salmon with white beans and a cucumber gin reduction followed by a tres leches cake with lavender honey ice cream at the Silver Spoon, being one such fabulous meal out!)

Here Uncle Peter is giving J a lesson about baseball. And math. All good.

Then it was the morning of Jbird's 5th happy birthday! Baba was the gracious grandma and hid cash all over the house for him to find. Aunt Becky took him to the toy store to spend it. And then, even better, they babysat the boys while I had a night out with my cousin David. Let me start by introducing you to the meatballs:

I should back up and say that the evening didn't START with the meatballs, but these lamb meatballs were the highlight of my night. David and I first stopped in a swank bar that used to be a bank and had grown-up cocktails before heading out for tapas.     Then we feasted.      Now, I've long joked that I come from a family of eaters and this was certainly true of David and I that night. At one point I looked around us at the other quiet couples, seemingly out on dates, negotiating the last tidbits of this or that dish and trying not to overeat in the eyes of their dining companion. Well. That was not us.  Plate after plate was licked clean and washed down with sangria. I was amazed that it was always the most unassuming looking of dishes that pleased the most. Like the meatballs. They just look like lamb meatballs don't they? ha. ambrosia. And those round flat looking brown things in the picture below? They look like nothing don't they? Squid, chargrilled with chorizo oil and a side of lemon and out of this world.

Honestly? I was completely stuffed. But there was more to be had. We took a stroll (to let that food settle down into those special crevices that we Hubbell-descendants have in our legs to allow dessert to happen...) and wandered over to a sweet, quaint, old soda fountain ice cream shop. Just look at the lovely syrups!

Flavors galore of course, with all types of toppings and phosphates and fizzes. Just about everything to whet your whistle. I ended up with a peanut butter sundae. Served by the cutest girl to ever serve me ice cream anywhere. I wanted to take her home with me (and her ice cream too.)

For all the times I've been to visit my aunt and uncle, I've never technically been TO Philly. They live outside of town in a lovely, lush green suburb on the edges of Amish-ville.  David gave me the nighttime walking tour of the highlights. No, I didn't get to see the Liberty Bell, but I walked by it. Ben Franklin bridge? Lit up in lights. We spent a bit of time down by the water checking out the swans, the boats and the bridge.

Then it was truly the witching hour, the last train back  and we dashed back to the station. Bye David! Thank you for a truly memorable night out!

The next day we compared notes on our evening. The boys had amish made angel food cake with ice cream. I told them about our grown up cocktails, like dirty martinis and manhatans and N quips that David must like the Dirty Sock-y Tinis.

On the road again. We said goodbye to my mom here (she'd been a trooper and a saint to come this far!!!) and went off through Lancaster on my way to see my oldest best friend Jennifer. Memorable sights along the way: barefoot Amish girls pushing their scooters along the road.


We arrived at Jen's a little early and were greeted by all sorts of beauty. Butterflies galore and the sweetest cat ever. (I swear, if I could have figured out a way to take that kitty home with me, I would have!) Nbear somehow fixed the frog fountain in the pond too.

Jen and I had a fun night of catching up. She is one of those friends who I don't see very often, but when we do see each other, we seem to pick up right where we left off. I still feel like I can tell her anything and she would understand.
I also got a sneak peek at some old friends: Willy and Wanda. Jen and I played with these when we weren't playing Barbies. Or dissecting field mice. Or playing chase in the corn. We played a lot. They look remarkably clean, don't they?

I am always sad to say goodbye to Jen because I know it'll be awhile before I see her again. I'm so glad that it worked out that we could see each other. And I'm glad her husband Matt Damon was there too. (Just kidding Don, but great to see you too, albeit briefly!)

On the road again, for the longest stretch yet. We powered through listening to (newly purchased books on CD) Huckleberry Finn and Tales of a 4th Grade Nothing and then got the ipod to work again too and started listening to The Penderwicks again. (this is where I click over to Amazon and give that book a 5 star rating.)  We passed through the rest of PA without event and entered via toll booth (of course) to Ohio. One nice thing about Ohio? Lovely rest stops. Of course, I come from a state with paltry excuses for rest stops. (Oftentimes it is just a picnic table on the side of the road... seriously.)  So yeah! Ohio! The boys even talked me into letting them play some video games while I asked the friendly information guy for some maps and suggestions on places to stay the night. I found what must have been the last hotel room in Streetsboro and we settled in to some good old fashioned Food Network cake challenge: building a cake for the Simpson's movie. We finally tore ourselves away to find some of our own food to eat. I admit feeling worn out and weak. I succumbed to some comfort "Mexican" food. For being in the middle of Ohio, it was not bad. And it wasn't a chain. So I gave it 2 thumbs up.

Somehow on the way back to the hotel I drove to the end of "town" and found an ice cream stand. I don't know what it is about the northeast, but ice cream stands, despite only being open for about 3 months of the entire year, are everywhere. I was going to resist and just let the boys indulge, but they had blueberry. And you know I love me some blueberries. Best. Ice Cream. Ever. (didn't I already say that once in this post? This time I mean it.)

As I was planning this trip and looking at maps and routes and destinations, I  seemed to recall finding an old friend on Faceblech and didn't she live in Ohio? I tracked her down and she met us at a lovely, convenient Ohio State park for a nosh and hello.  Here's Tina and Jbird talking about the lovely qualities of squeaky cheese (aka Amish cheese curds.)

Her brood played with my brood and we got to catch up. Jbird kept warning us about alligators. The boys digged and swung on the swings. Tina is happy and healthy and her kids are awesome. Although it was odd to see her tall boy below. Some of you may remember him as a baby at my wedding... I remember meeting her youngest son when he was barely 2. I'd never met her daughter. whew we're old.

Same as it ever was.

The Trip: The Train

The first portion of my summer was spent (apart from swim lessons) figuring out how I could take this crazy trip I had in mind. I wanted to go to NY to visit family and see the lake and I wanted to go to Chicago and see Smith's sister & brother-in-law. I wanted to see my Aunt & Uncle in Philly.

I spent a lot of time going through lots of options, flying here, driving there, flying over there and back... I even went through a long spell of planning on driving the whole way (Mississippi! Graceland! Kentucky?) I would stop and see just about everyone I knew between here and there too! It was going to take a lot of time. Smith, unfortunately couldn't join us for the trip due to work (for which we are always thankful) so it was going to be just me and the boys and a lot of driving.

Despite numerous people saying "Oh! How exciting!" the more common reply was "Oh! How crazy!"

I brushed aside the comments and kept planning. I didn't see reason until a series of gentle prodding questions from Sinda came up. Questions like:
"How many hours a day do you plan to drive?"
"So how long do you think it will take?"
"How old is your youngest again? Will he do well for that long in a car, day after day?"
"How do you plan on keeping them amused if a dvd player is out of the question?"
"How do you feel being the sole driver AND the sole parent for this entire trip?"

so. Plan #4,021 was hatched instead: I would take the train to Chicago. Then I would rent a car and drive off to see my various relatives in NY & PA and then drive back to Chicago. Then I could museum visit and frolic before flying home, courtesy of ye olde Uncle Tommy's airline (we could get buddy passes and fly standby for free!) Now I was getting excited.

The morning I had been planning for what felt like months had finally arrived. We boarded our train in Austin, just behind the YMCA and set off, spying MOPAC out our window as we traveled North. We passed the school and thought of the number of times we've been on the other side, watching the train and hearing it roar past. We were now part of that roar. It's exciting.

Here is Jbird happily playing a game as our day gets underway.

The route from Austin to Chicago via Amtrak is 28+ HOURS, give or take. I have friends who were 24 hours LATE after a similar trip. So, I smartly booked us a sleeper car that would accommodate a family. We had more than ample room. It was on the bottom floor of the train car (each having 2 floors) and our berth was the width of the train; allowing a view out windows on both sides of the train. We had benches, seats and fold-down beds with ladders. The bathroom was a few steps down the hall and what you might expect on an airplane. The kids could stretch and wrestle and rest and read, build forts and play Cat Warriors until their hearts content, without bothering a soul but me. This was the only portion of our trip that I was able to read anything from the 2 books I brought. [The Learners by Chip Kidd.  The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.]

We spend the entire day traveling through Texas. It was after we pulled up the blankets and turned out the light that we heard the conductor announce the next stop: Texarkana. The view out the window for the entire day pretty much looked like this:

Or this:

Here was a tiny bit of excitement, a Pullman train!

Our other bit of excitement was when J locked himself in the bathroom and couldn't work the handle to unlock it to come out. There was some sadness on his side of the door and lots of calm, comforting words from my side. The porter was very quick to free my little bird, who then hugged me and promptly ran down the train and locked me out of our berth. Thankfully the older child saw reason and let me in, without bribery.



When we woke up the next morning, we were rewarded with this gorgeous view:

St. Louis by morning... ah. We totally missed Arkansas. Sorry ya'll. Next time.

Overall the train was a very pleasant way to travel. Sometimes when I take a plane trip it all feels very surreal. I step into a small metal tube and take off to land, well, it could be anywhere. Then I get off and have an adventure for awhile, then I step back onto that metal tube and I come home. I can't help but wonder "did that adventure really happen?"

I did experience some small moments of isolation too, although that was more due to my travel companions than the train. In the dining car they would seat you as space allowed, one would often share tables with strangers. I could hear many around me strike up conversations about where they were coming from and where they were going and the usual small talk. Because we were a party of 3, we were seated by ourselves, with just ourselves to make small talk. By dinner time, I was eyeballing some wine...

The train itself was clean, comfortable and safe. The people were friendly and there was no rush. The food offerings, in that special dining car, were varied enough to please a small array of tastes. But by the end of the trip the one menu for a breakfast, a lunch, a dinner, another breakfast, and another lunch, was worn out. They also ran out of some dishes and if you had the spinach salad yesterday, you may not be gung ho for it being your only option today. Here was Nbear at our last meal.

We were soon as happy as this little guy though in Chicago.

Our train was early, but the bags took forever. An easy drive to Aunt Alex's and we were sitting on her porch looking at the trees and I was drinking a grown-up drink and making small talk with other grown-ups. The cicadas were LOUD and the night was clear and cool.