Hard Working Man

12/365, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

This is a normal sight at our house. My husband, at work. He's definitely not one to leave it at the office. Relaxing just isn't in his blood. He cannot do something halfway, and doesn't understand how anyone else can, either. When he doesn't have anything to do, he goes and learns something. Like one of 5 programming languages he taught himself in the 90's. How to repair his own bike. How to build a computer. How to speak French. Extensive reading on Buddhist philosophy. Sailing in the 1800's. Sci Fi. Or changing his career path entirely, from Art (Yes, Art!!!) to Geology and Mineralogy to Geomicrobiology to Environmental Chemistry and Technology to Nanotechnology to Thinfilms to Solar Technology to Materials Science to Architecture and Sustainability to who knows what.

And he doesn't stop there. He not only learned French, he worked to get us a position there so I would be able to realize my dream of living in France one day. And now, he wants to find a way to go back.

A vacation for him is not laying on a beach with a beer. (Though he'd happily walk through a museum with a beer.) On our honeymoon in New Orleans, he went to every museum there was. Thankfully, we're well matched. I love that, too.

He's kind of maxed out on the academics--though I guess he could get a second PhD (don't tell him, please!) As a professor, he's constantly busy teaching, recruiting, researching, mentoring, leading a solar decathlon team, and now heading up an entirely new degree program. He's not tenure-track, but even if he was and got it, he said he wouldn't change a thing. It's who he is. The idea of taking it easy just isn't a part of his DNA. He can't not do his best. I love that about him. I love how hard he works, both for his calling's sake and for his family's sake. I love that when he believes in something, it is with every fiber of his being. I love his devotion.

This week, he figured something out. For the first time in 36+ years, he's bored.

Heaven help us.

Budding Foodie

I rushed to prepare dinner while getting ready for my rehearsal afterward. Dr. B walked in just as I loaded the plates, and we sat down to eat. She refused to come to the table, but rather than be late for Choir, I ate and ignored her. "I'll take care of her," he said. "She'll eat. I think she's..." he began to whisper, "pooping." (The potty training is still hit or miss, and the misses are often the messy type.)

I ran upstairs to change my shirt, and heard her sitting down at the table and pick up her fork. As I searched for another top to wear, she exclaimed, "Wow! Yum! This is yummy!" Hmmm... I wonder if she likes the garlic mashed potatoes? I zipped up my boots, and headed down to grab my choir folder. Maybe it's the pork chops with Roasted Garlic Rub and Dijon mustard and brown sugar glaze?

"I never had this before!!!" she said, gleefully, as she leaned over her plate, shoveling food quickly into her mouth.

I walked into the kitchen, smiling and proud of my culinary triumph. She loved it! Something I made was a huge success with my darling daughter. I took a quick look at her sectioned, plastic plate to see what had been such a coup.

Corn and Peas, mixed and boiled. With some butter.

"Hello, Food Network? Yeah, cancel that Toddler Tidbits idea. She's definitely not ready for prime time quite yet."

Spammed

I got hit with some sort of stupid bot last night writing in some sort of Asian characters that I don't read and leaving a lot of links in the comments. PLEASE DON'T CLICK THEM. Of course, this happens on the morning when I don't have time to go in and fix it all right away.

When I get back from the Valentine's Party, I'll go fix it, but I have also had to turn on comment moderation. Ugh. Why this could not have happened after my first cup of coffee, I do not know. Stupid bots.

Happy Friday, nonetheless.

Treasure Box

Treasure Box Diptych, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

We spent an hour or so flipping through magazines, finding most of her "favorite FAVORITE!!!" things in Martha Stewart Living. She chose crayons, a cat, a dog, lots of roses (purple are her mom's favorite), oranges, pots and pans, ballet shoes, an Eiffel Tower, a Sophie La Giraffe, presents, "bling", a girl with a lollipop, a mommy and daddy, tomatoes, fruit, multigrain bread, glass cake stands (they were very pretty, I have to give her that), and even a cupcake. She was very particular with each choice, rejecting the white bread and raisin bread, saying no to the orange roses, and turning down the chocolates (I do NOT know why.) I trimmed all the pieces, and we sat down after supper to apply them to the sturdy box I'd saved from a gift. I finished it after she'd gone to bed with a few extra coats of Mod Podge to protect it for her.

She now has a special box, just for her special little things. Little does she know how much of a treasure the experience was for me.

5/365

5/365, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

I guess her growth spurt is over--she's no longer eating much, so I'm getting more creative with what I feed her. Today, I turned her blueberries and yogurt into a smoothie. She liked it. (But she still didn't eat much.)

Note: more 365 photos are on my flickr site.