Recent adventure

I just got back from a trip to Tel Aviv. While in Israel I took a bus to Jerusalem and took a hop on-hop off bus tour through the city. It was very surreal to be walking around Jerusalem where Jesus walked. The bus tour identified important sites such as where Jesus ascended into heaven, the temple where he hid with his disciples from the Romans, the Mount of Olives, and where King David is buried. I hopped off the bus to walk around the Old City for a few hours, looking fairly Biblical (I was wearing a scarf over my head) and evidently fairly local because different people approached me for directions while I was there. I asked a colleague if I looked Israeli and he said, "You could pass for Ashkenazi."
Strangers: Excuse me, can you tell me where is the Garden of Gethsemane?
Me (in my head): Um, I think in Matthew?

My most practical purchase ever.

Conversation with my niece

Audrey: Ears are gross.
Sarah: Why?
Audrey: Because of ear whack. [sic] Ear whack is the color of Pluto.
Sarah: Hahahahahahahahahahaha!

Mardi Gras

I flew into Lafayette for the Krewe of Carnivale en Rio Mardi Gras Ball on January 9 with my friends Brett and Ameara. This year's theme was Motown, and Ameara's aunt was part of the royal party (dressed as Patti Labelle for a Motown theme). The ball was super fun and we danced the whole night.

Molly put me in my place for calling her Don King with a chic new haircut. Such a cutie.

The time I went outside this winter.

Crystal and I decided to make a snowman after the blizzard in December. The middle ball (pretty much exactly the same size as the bottom ball) was too heavy for us, so our friend Jay came outside in shorts and a t-shirt to help us assemble our snowman. The snowman had no forethought, hence the lack of arms, a carrot nose, etc. The weather warmed up pretty dramatically the next week, so he was short-lived:

An aunt again

Congratulations to Joey, Brigid, and Molly Pitts on the newest member of their family, Charlie, who looks freakishly like his father. I can't wait to meet him next weekend in Texas.

I was very excited to learn that my dear friends Shannon and Roddy are getting married this summer in Austin at the Salt Lick, where I shared Easter lunch with them in 2006. Shannon and I worked together one summer at the Mustang Island Family Camp. Her full name is Shannon Eileen Kelly, like each of my three sisters (Shannon, Brigid Eileen, and Kelly), so naturally my parents liked her instantly.
She is one of the brightest, funniest women I know and her fiancee is altogether too much fun for a professor. I had the opportunity to have dinner with them last year in York and am looking forward to toasting this great couple in Austin, perhaps with a warm Busch tall boy in Shannon's honor.

Crafty like a fox

When I was a little girl my FAVORITE movie was The Frog Prince starring Aileen Quinn (Little Orphan Annie). My sister's child loves the film with a similar fervor. I always liked Princess Zora's blanket, and decided to make one for my niece for Christmas.

Fur helped me with the pinning and sewing of more than forty yards of red satin ribbon. We made the blanket slightly more fabulous than Zora's, with wider, shinier ribbon and bigger bows:

Don King does not appear overly impressed with her blanket in this picture, but Brigid says she loves it.

I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus

Mardi Gras Shoes

I am going to a Mardi Gras ball in January in Lafayette with my friends Ameara and Brett. I found these shoes at Nine West for twenty dollars:

and Crystal and I turned them into this:

Learning to read

Audrey has been reading and writing like cray-cray (crazy). Find handwriting samples here: http://audreymorrison.blogspot.com/ This is what she said to her little brother Clark, who woke up cranky and fussy from a nap:

"Aww, Clark. Are you sad because your name doesn't start with a blend? Your name does start with a blend!"

Take heart, little dude. Your name begins with a consonant blend.

Poladroid

I read about this program that makes your photos look like Polaroids, but I just downloaded it and think that the results are pretty fun.

Boston Visit

Last Tuesday I flew in to have dinner with my cousin Amy, her (cute) boyfriend Ross, and her newlywed friends Sarah and Jesse. Sarah and Jesse did not realize initially what I do for a living and that part of my job benefits includes free flights, so they thought that I must be kind of a big deal to fly in for dinner and fly out the next morning. We had a great time at Billy Tse's Chinese restaurant in Boston's North End followed by a visit to Mike's Pastry, home of the most giant lobster tail (a New England cream horn basically). The filling is, from my web searches, 1/3 pastry cream, 1/3 ricotta (which I normally don't like), and 1/3 whipped cream. Soooooooooo good.

Birthday Girl

My niece Molly had her third birthday party last month at my parents' house and while I wasn't able to attend, her picture is so beautiful that I had to post this. Great job on the cake, Mom. Molly is an adorable little stinker who has inherited my elephant memory, her mother's childhood temper, and her dad's accent.

Little Cuties

Wicked on Broadway!!!!

The musical Wicked offers a lottery two and a half hours before each performance in which they offer 25 front-row tickets for the evening's performance for $26.25 (tickets in this section go for more than $150 each). I have thrown my name in the hat maybe five times and never won, but on Friday we got to attend the most magical show that I have ever seen. Some combination of emerald eyes and blouses brought Crystal and I luck. If you find yourself in the city, make every effort to go...it is an absolute treat.

Brett and Ameara

Last week I went to Minneapolis to visit my dear friends whom I met whilst at the University of Texas. We had a great time eating, drinking, shopping, playing Tetris, and enjoying the beautiful weather outside. It is actually already starting to get a little chilly up there.

The Getty

Kevin and I visited the Getty Center in late July. I highly recommend the architecture tour; it really gave me a better appreciation of the (already) beautiful museum. One tidbit: all of the tiles are some multiple or fraction of 30", the average length of an adult arm. This human proportion was chosen to keep the space from being overwhelming to visitors. As per usual, I am a below average human being.

San Antonio Visit

In August I got to visit my uncle Patrick and his lovely new wife, Nastasya. I had fun with her kids at Chuck E. Cheese, but my favorite was watching Zach and Mackenzie feed the stray kittens in the neighborhood.