We have been home since last Monday, and the house is still in a pretty significant state of disarray. I do have the kitchen back together, and that was no mean feat since I had to start from the top down and wash and/or dust every single shelf, spice, dish, kettle and wall. But the floors do look very nice, and I am especially excited to be rid of the vinyl in the kitchen and to have the fir floor.
Ken is in the process of painting quarter-round so he can move on to some painting of the walls and trim. It does make it easy since the living room and dining room are both empty……but there is not one open square inch in the guest room!!
On Friday we celebrated 44 years of wedded bliss peppered with a few little exceptions along the way. Ken’s treat was a maple bar for breakfast!! We went out to dinner, but enjoyed a shrimp cocktail and a bottle of Washington wine before going downtown to Le Crème Brule.
I found a Columbia Valley wine, Palouse Hills, that is produced and bottled in Walla Walla. It was a reasonably priced, very tasty cabernet. I bought it for the significance of the name since Ken was at WSU during our early courting days and I can still hear Ray Conniff recordings serenading us at the student union building. Now the challenge is to find more of the wine because there only seem to be a few bottles available on closeout at the state liquor stores.
We had promised ourselves we would give Le Crème Brule one more chance, and it fared quite well this time. Ken had rack of lamb and I had duck maigret en papillote. Both were very nicely presented, and my only criticism is that my duck breast was a bit over-cooked. Espresso and crème brule rounded out the evening. There was even a small jazz combo playing which added to the ambience.
Yesterday was a St. Nicholas faire at the Olympia Waldorf School that Greta attends so I made an appearance for about an hour. Cassie was in charge of making gingerbread that was then being sold for $1 per piece, and there was a brisk business because it was very cold outside where some of the crafts and vendors were located. I purchased a few little stocking stuffers and walked through the school for a peek. Greta’s dad was there with her so I met Jason and visited with Greta for a few minutes. Her latest news is that she is now six!!
I can’t get warm, and I think part of the problem is our heating system rather than having been a hothouse plant down south for three months. For some reason the back of the house just doesn’t get very much heat, and of course that is where the television and computer are located, so it makes for some chilly leisure time.
I am beginning to feel pretty good about Christmas shopping. I think I am at least 50% there with some ideas for the rest. I LOVE the internet. And with many sites offering free shipping, it is hard to beat the bargains. I like to support Operation Christmas Child, but I passed on shopping and packing a box and went with a donation instead since I am so content not to have to go out to shop. Now I am anxious to finish getting the house back together so I can move forward with decorating, wrapping, and menu planning and baking.
The Ziemers called us yesterday to wish us a happy anniversary – Daryl was Ken’s best man. They are planning their annual trip south and hope to leave around the 4th of January. Daryl’s mother was in the hospital recently and now they are making some arrangements for someone to look in on her each day while they are gone. Daryl and Jan always spend most of their time at The Resort in Mesa, but since we will be just down the road in Casa Grande, I am sure we will see them once in a while.
Gary and Carolyn Ousey are now in Harlingen, Texas and then will join us in Casa Grande in the middle of January. They escaped the cold and snow in Victoria, but it looks like they are quite chilly in Texas at the moment.
Since this is not being printed, I don’t have to worry about a corrigendum, even though I am confident there are some errors. Ciao.
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