Retour de Chine

He's home., originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

It was a long week without him, while he was doing business in Beijing and enjoying some tourist time in Xi'an, but he's home.

We've survived with careful planning, praying for patience, some extra treats, plans with friends, and lowered expectations. Made it through the beginnings of summer colds, thunderstorms, and preschool field trips with only a few text messages.

At 11 PM, I bundled the sleepy girls into the car, and pulled up just as his plane was landing. He pulled gifts out of his bag, momentos of his trip to the other side of the world. Then he dug into a plate of good old American leftovers, popped open a beer, and relaxed on the sofa, watching a Chinese movie.

Jade is supposed to bring you luck. It must have worked. He's home.

My favorite bouquet

My favorite bouquet, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

comes from small, grimy hands.

Happy Summer, everyone.

Friday the 13th is the Luckiest Day

Little Blue Eyes, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

One.

I can hardly believe you're already a year old. Crawling like crazy, pulling yourself up to stand, eating everything you can get your hands on (including chalk) despite still having only 2 teeth. Your nature, so calm and sweet, happy to play with any toy, busying yourself for long periods, then crawling over and pulling up on my pant leg for a hug.

You came into our life a year ago today, and it was like you'd always been there. You fit.

I can't imagine my world without you, my lovey. Happy Birthday, Anya.

Easter 2011: Best Shot I got.

Easter 2011: Best Shot I got., originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

The night before, Rowan threw up three times. (Once down her Dad's back, once all over his front, and one more for good measure.) After all the preparation for Easter, I was worried we'd spend it at home, in jammies, eating mass quantities of ham by ourselves. But happily, munchkins bounce back pretty quickly. Though she looks peaked here, by noon she was feeling fine and excited for her Easter treat (Root beer in a crystal glass.) I didn't push the photo session--it is what it is.

More photos on Flickr.

Rowan's First Rock Concert: the Imagination Movers!!!

Rowan's First Rock Concert: the Imagination Movers!!!, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

I didn't order the tickets until the last minute, so we ended up in the nosebleed seats, and apparently my daughter has inherited my fear of heights. But happily, she took my advice (in through the nose, out through the mouth... breathe, just breathe...) and was soon dancing, clapping and singing along. We had a wonderful time, just the two of us. And no, I have still not decided which mover I have a bigger crush on... (though Scott's in the lead. I've always had a thing for long hairs.)

A Celebration

Sprinkles!, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

I could have been folding laundry
or making the bed
or preparing lunch
sweeping
vacuuming
or unpacking another box
but instead
I shaved my legs
put on white capris
and painted my toenails turquoise blue
(which doesn't suit me)
because
yesterday
I saw the forsythia blooming
and today
the sun is shining.

She has discovered food.

She has discovered food., originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

And she is a fan. Big. As in gained a full pound in 2 weeks.

With Rowan, I was so careful. One new food every 5 days, for allergies! Because it's so common to be allergic to green beans!!! As a result, she hates repetition, except for PBJ. Leftovers cannot be served the next day; she won't eat them. Sometimes, she won't eat them again for weeks. It's rather annoying. (And wasteful. And I get tired of eating the same thing for 4 meals in a row because she won't help.)

With Anya, whatever. We went from purées to chunks in days (she did wait until she was 9 months old to eat anything but Mom-juice, so she had more coordination than she might have at 6.) I gave her whatever we had handy. Bananas, sweet potatoes, avocado. Potatoes, carrots, peas, corn, salmon, beef, chicken. Crackers. Cheerios. Gerber puffs, Baby Mum Mums. Applesauce and oatmeal. She doesn't eat much yet, but she finally eats. And apparently, she enjoys it. Though sometimes it's tough to remind her that the food goes in more easily when she actually opens her mouth. She loves to feed herself, though, so gets a sprinkling of chunks on her tray to eat, carefully, one by one, mashing them with her toothless gums and grinning.

This was beef stew (with a bit too much paprika, oops) and applesauce on a Thursday at 1:30 PM. I think she liked it.

Yep, definitely genetic.

Determination!, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

You may remember this.

It appears the gene is not dormant.

Very Personalized Valentines

I saw a link to a blog a few weeks ago with a very cool and clever idea for Valentine cards, and I figured, why not give it a try? So after a few photo snap sessions, we got the shot. Though iPhoto doesn't allow you to add text to photos, I scoured the internet for some help, and found a thread that discussed how to easily edit and add text to a photo using Preview on a Mac. (I had no idea Preview could do all the things it can do!) I added text, including some little hearts, and emailed my photo off to be printed. A few slits cut with a sharp knife, a lollipop added, and here you have it: Rowan's Valentines 2011. We passed them out at her preschool Pancake and Strawberry party today, and they were a big hit. (The photo of the photo makes it look weirdly photoshopped, but it wasn't in person.)


For her teachers, we added a little adult treat. Regular ball point pens with a flower attached by floral tape and some green electrical tape made a sweet addition to the cards. We made a few extras for at home, since I'm always hunting for a pen in my kitchen. These are easy to spot with their pink petals waving in the breeze.

And this morning, we celebrated together with pain au chocolat, strawberries, yogurt and espresso--our own tradition for special days like birthdays or Valentines day. It's a sweet way to start the day!

We hope you are having a lovely Valentine's Day!

We're moving!!! SQUEEEEE!!!

1 Exterior, front, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

We bought a house, and we finally sold ours. We close on both on Feb. 28th, so I'll be scarce on here. (Not like I haven't been.) Have a lot of packing to do. And planning. We are so excited.

More photos here.

Sold!!!

Sold!!!, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

Woohooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, we get the new house. YAY! The right person had to come along, and as it was, two did, so we got to pick an offer. Better late than never!

So in the next couple of months, I've got a lot of packing to do.

But tomorrow? I am NOT going to clean the toilets. In fact, I don't even think I'll make my bed.

Yippee!!!

A Walk in Paris

My friend is amazing. I miss her, and all my Paris friends. And I miss Paris.



If you don't read her blog already, please go there. Whether you like Paris or not, you'll like Irene. Promise.

Shades of Blue: Our Girls

Holiday 2010 Photos (Edited for more photos)

So I finally got it done. Phew. Not the best quality, but they're up. I only brought my tiny point-and-shoot with us back to North Dakota for Xmas, and honestly, I think the lens was kind of dirty. I'd been procrastinating putting them up because I wanted to try to clean them up in editor, but I couldn't do much so eventually I gave up and just loaded them.

Go here and here for more.

Now, I suppose it's time to start my Christmas cards?

Magic Blue Cheese Pecan Dip

Over Christmas, we were back in North Dakota. Staying at my dad's and Pam's house was great--no cleaning to do, no one showing our house, and very little cooking, save for the day when Pam was having major dental work done. (It worked, thank goodness! She had been in agony.) We also did some shopping, and realized living in the middle of nowhere North Dakota does sometimes have distinct advantages compared to the middle of nowhere Pennsylvania. I guess being close to Philly, Pitt, Baltimore, DC and NYC means we don't need diddly here. Grumble grumble grumble.

Anyway. We'd go into the local liquor store and marvel at the cheap cheap cheap prices (PA residents will understand--our local laws make our beverages about twice the price). A trip to the mall was mind-boggling at the quantity of stuff available. Unfortunately, we couldn't take too much advantage of the after-holiday pricing, as we had to pay to get it home on the plane, but I did find some jeans and boots and got some dresses for Rowan (much needed--she's a dress girl, every day.)

But my favorite discovery was something Pam brought out when we finally made it, after 13 hours in the planes and airports waiting for the blizzard to let us through on our final leg of the journey. Spread on crackers (crispy rice ones were perfect), it was a fantastic hors d'oeuvre. Slathered on a bun, it topped my burger. Had we run out of crackers, I would have eaten it with a spoon. We went back for more at the local grocery store deli, and looked at the ingredients. However, I'm pretty sure they lied so you couldn't duplicate it, because they listed "blue cheese, pecans" as the only ingredients, and I know of no blue cheese like that.

BUT! I looked on the trusty internet and found some other versions. It's really simple, so you can do with it what you like. On Tuesday, I threw together a hasty bowl and brought half to my ladies at my women's choir rehearsal. They loved it. So much, Marita took the bowl home with her. (Luckily, the other half was waiting in our fridge.) I even used a bit of it thinned with milk as an impromptu salad dressing. I didn't put specific amounts, because it's just a thrown together thing.

So here you go. Try it. Change it. Do what you like. But make lots, because it will go. Promise. And? I think it's magic, because I lost 2 pounds over the break. Woo hoo!!!


Magic Blue Cheese Pecan Dip

*1 tub whipped cream cheese (8 oz. I think? Regular works, too, but whipped made it easy to blend.)
*crumbled blue cheese (anwhere from 2T.- the entire chunk. I did the whole chunk. I'm a hedonist.)
*chopped pecans (I put in 1/2 cup)
*seasoning (I did a shake or two of Creole because I pretty much put it in everything I eat except dessert, but anything would work, as long as it's not too salty. Chives or fresh parsley would be great. Or you could do nothing and just let the other flavors shine through, which is probably what the deli did, and definitely what the internet did. Whatever you like.)

Toast pecans in a dry pan for a few minutes over medium heat until they start to smell good. Don't let them burn. Meanwhile, blend cream cheese and blue cheese. Flavors will blend while chilling, so you don't need a lot of blue cheese, but you can if you like. Add hot pecans and mix them in. (Hot helps to blend them, but if you don't have time to toast your pecans or if they cooled it's not a big deal.) Add your chosen herbs or seasoning. Chill in the fridge for a few hours to blend flavors. If it's too thick, you can thin it with a little milk.

Serve with crackers, as a bread spread, on burgers, thinned as a salad dressing, or just a spoon. Mmmmmm.

I'm working on it...

Little Norsk/Swede/Icelander: can eat Krumkake without breaking them!, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

Pictures to come, and a post about our holiday trip, but know it was fabulous and we're home safe and sound. We were able to see all the grandparents while we were back, but not all the friends and family we would have liked to--but then again, we'd have to move home to North Dakota for a month to make that happen. Or maybe a year?

Our house hasn't sold yet, so that's a bit disappointing, but we had a great Christmas and are getting back to normal around here.

Oh, and Anya has discovered her voice. "Mamamamamamama" and "Bababababababa" and I think she might have tried to say "Rowan" the other day, but I could be imagining it.

Also? I discovered blue cheese pecan dip. NOM. And somehow lost 2 lbs. Not quite sure how that happened.

OK, anyway. This is a terrible post, but I just wanted to let you know I'm still alive.

Happy New Year!

3 going on 30

Lunchtime Conversation:

"Mommy, since I pooped in the potty at preschool, can I have a caramel marshmallow after my lunch?"

"Sure, honey. It can be your dessert."

"No, I still want dessert. Nice try, Mommy."

It's official, she's a part of the family.

One for everyone... (Lucy's is hanging down low), originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

Anya's stocking arrived the other day. What a wonderful feeling to hang all of them together!

Merry Christmas!!! Classical Flash Mob

The Obligatory Xmas Card Shot

Christmas 2010, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

Turned out pretty good, didn't it?

My dad asked for a family shot, which of course, we didn't have because I'm always behind the camera. So tonight, I learned how to use the timer on my camera. It was late, so the sun was down (ie: after 4:30), but I did the best I could with the light, settings on the camera and iPhoto. Some day I'll figure it all out. But overall, I'm pretty pleased with it.

I love Rowan's feet. And how Lucy snuck in the bottom.

Who knows? Maybe I'll even get off my duff and make it into our own Christmas card. (Don't watch your mailbox. I think my record is Valentine's Day.)