First Annual Howard Haines Appreciation Day

Adam and I bought our house as part of an estate sale. We got a great deal on a fixer upper that is beautiful and has a character that charmed us the second we walked through the door. We have done a good deal of work and still have a great deal to do, but every day we look at each other confident in the knowledge that THIS is where we belong-our home.

About a month ago we were going through some of our paperwork and we learned that Howard Haines departed this life on February 26, 2008. We purchased this house from his estate. We knew that we should make sure to take a moment each February 26 to honor the life of Howard Haines.

Howard was a professor of music at Drexel University. The executor of his estate, Adelle Rubin, taught in the Theatre Department there. She stopped by the house in December while we were working away at fixing old wiring and painting walls, etc. I had a chance to chat with her for a good while about Howard. Howard was very passionate about three things, music, teaching, and his friends. Adelle told me of many evenings enjoying the company of Howard and friends at dinner parties he used to hold here (some friends of his from down the street stopped by one day to tell me the same thing). She also let me know that this house was always filled with wonderful music and there were bookshelves everywhere stuffed with cds and books about music. He loved this house and for years he decorated it elaborately at Christmas and entered the parade of homes. Howard was a man who truly enjoyed life and all that it had to offer. Adelle brought me a photo of Howard in his tux with his baton and he looked extremely proud. You can tell by looking at him that he was at home in front of an orchestra.

I would have loved to meet Howard, I think we would have enjoyed his company as much as his friends. And I think he would have liked us. Adelle told me he would be proud to know that this house, our home, passed from one artist to another.

So, Howard, tonight Adam and I will raise a glass to you in celebration of the wonderfully full life that you led. We promise to fill the house with music and host friends and family as often as possible to continue to honor your spirit.

It is hard to get good mole in PA!

On Friday night Adam and I decided to give Mission Burrito a try. It is the little Mexican joint around the corner from us. If you know anything about me, you know that I LOVE Mexican food. Really, really LOVE Mexican food. In fact, I will eat chips and salsa (not the jar kind, but homemade) until I make myself sick, really, I can't stop myself. It's like heroin.

Anyway, they boasted a salsa bar (please see above comments about chips and salsa) and if you bring your own tequila they will make you margaritas. "How can we go wrong?" I thought. So, armed with our trusty bottle of Jose Cuervo Especial, we headed out.

We could not have been more wrong. Their salsa bar was lovely, and lucky for them they give you a teeny tiny basket for chips and then tell you there is only one free refill. Otherwise I would have eaten every chip in the building. Adam got a steak quesadilla, and the steak was so tough he could hardly eat it. I got the enchiladas mole (I do love me some mole). If you don't know anything about mole it is basically a rich gravy made with hints of peanut butter and chocolate, and a good mole is to die for. This was NOT a good mole. It was actually more like a sauce made from powdered hot chocolate mix, and on chicken enchiladas it wasn't so tasty.

But the worst part, by far, were the margaritas. When I handed over our bottle of tequila for them to make us a tasty drink, they informed me that they bring us the mix and we pour in our own tequila. Ok, that's weird, but whatevs. Then they bring us a plastic pitcher and two teeny tiny glasses (I guess they match the chip baskets). When we get a look at the pitcher there is about 2 inches of some sort of small particles lining the bottom of the pitcher. I thought, well it's just the mix, I'll stir it around and it will be fine. Ha! Turns out, best we can figure, that their idea of margaritas is Country Time Limeade with a whole lotta sugar. These were, by far the worst margaritas we have ever had. I think we barely made a dent in the pitcher they we so hard to get down.

All in all, it was a wonderful date night with my husband. Sometimes the bad food dates we have are better than some of the good food dates that we have. Mostly because we talk less when we are eating good food, but when there is bad food involved we seem to cherish our conversations and making fun of the food always leads to lots of laughter.

Trip to DC (part two)

First off, sorry this has taken so very long to post. What was a relatively peaceful existence of late spiraled out of control into ridiculous amounts homework, and things exploding at the theatre (not literally, but you get the idea).

It will be nice to fondly remember our trip.

I will first start by going back to zoo day when Serena was desperately trying to take photos of the pandas and really only shooting the ground next to the panda. Enter Louie, such a great dad just trying to help get the best picture. He very calmly pleads with Serena to let him hold the camera so he can make sure it is on all the right settings. This went on for, oh, 3 minutes or so. Serena would NOT let that camera out of her hands. And every time Louie asked he was met with "No! You're just gonna mess it up! I've got it! I know what I am doing!" Literally. He finally gave up. I had a hard time not laughing.

I mention this because just last week Max (the son of my Technical Director and Costume Shop Manager) came to work (he had pink eye-but just a little bit as he explained to me). Max is one week younger than Serena, and just as intelligent (they are both super sharp kids). He was on his way to lunch with Dad and Barney. Glenn (Dad) calmly asked him to leave Barney at the theatre so nothing would happen to him. He was basically met with the same response from Max that Serena had given to her father. Although instead of "You're just gonna mess it up!" he got "Mom said I could bring Barney. And she is right, and you are WRONG!" Again, I had a hard time not laughing. Anyway, just a little story to let Louie know that he is not alone out there.

Back to DC: We got up early on Sunday morning (well, early for Adam and me). And again enjoyed some yummy coffee while being entertained by Serena. Deb cooked breakfast on Saturday, so Louie made some of his world famous omelets on Sunday. Yum. We ate until we were stuffed, Serena shared some of my omelet.

This time our after breakfast program was Disney story about how Tinkerbell came to be. It really wasn't that bad (although Adam's and my favorite part is when the squirrell gets beaned in the head and cries, and not when Tinkerbell saves Spring). And the fairy that ushers in the music of spring reminds us of one of our favorite costume designers.

After our movie we got ourselves dressed and headed outside so Serena could teach me how to ride a bike. At 3 and a half, she knows pretty much everything. It's good to have her around in case you come accross something unknown.

Safety is very important, and you canNOT ride a bike without a helmet (Serena told me this, so it HAS to be true). I, of course, did not bring my bike helmet with me, and Serena was unwilling to lend hers to me (because she needed it--safety first). She did suggest that perhaps I borrow one of her hats. So, my head safely ensconced in a Pooh hat, I took my first bike riding lesson from a 3 year old (oops 3 and a half).










After a fantastically informative demonstration from Serena it was my turn.




I was a little big for the bike, but I don't think it is noticeable. Do you?

I will also say now, that Adam was too chicken to take a bike riding lesson from Serena. You big Weenie!

We sure did work up an appetite riding that bike, so we hopped in the car and headed over to Panera.

Sadly after lunch we had to head back to Philly. But we had a great weekend, and now it is their turn to visit us!

Trip to DC (part one)

This past weekend Adam and I took our first trip to DC, well Silver Springs, MD actually. Our good friends Deb, Louie, Serena, and Black Kitty moved there about a year ago. I'm ashamed to say it took us that long to visit. But it did. We hadn't seen them since our wedding and we had missed all of their birthdays and Christmas. So we loaded the Santa Fe with gifts and headed down.

We didn't make it there before Serena went to bed, so it was a nice surprise for her to wake up and find company. We spent our morning drinking coffee and watching Serena dance to her Disney CD player. After Breakfast and Dora the Explorer we had our birthdays and Christmas. The adult portion was pretty typical (although still very fun), so we only took pictures of Serena opening her presents. For her Birthday Serena got a 25 Cloth Shirt. We didn't get a pic of that just yet.

I'm gonna stop for a moment and make a shameless plug. 25 Cloth is a company started by my cousin Brad Webb. Every time you buy a t-shirt you not only get a pretty sweet piece of fashion, but you also change a life. The t-shirt Serena got also gave a family in India a chicken which gave them a source of food and income in eggs. Check them out www.25cloth.com.

For Christmas we got Serena a V-Tech digital camera for kids. It is a pretty awesome piece of technology.
This is Serena helping Dad open the camera. He wasn't getting it out of the package fast enough, so he clearly needed help. As you can see, Serena is VERY helpful.

I also had a lot of fun playing the take a picture of Serena taking a picture of me game. Serena thought that was pretty fun too.

Once we sort of collected ourselves we decided to head for the zoo. The National Zoo in Washington is super cool. I went there when I was in 8th grade, and Adam had never been. Serena, however, is a pro at the zoo, she knows exactly where she wants to go and in what order. And that order does not at all follow any logical walking path. On Saturday it was Pandas, Elephants, Monkeys and Frogs. Although we didn't make it to the Frogs as they were in mud for the winter.

Armed with her new camera (she didn't actually go anywhere without it-seriously. I had to confiscate it in the bathroom so she wouldn't take photos of me on a toilet) Serena shot away at everything. The panda eating, the monkey in the corner, the elephant drinking, some white shirts on the ground, the railing around the goat pen, everything. I don't have any photos that were actually taken by her (Louie said there were 5 good ones in the first batch of 200-she's learning still). Adam manned the camera on our end and we got some good shots.

These are a few of my favorites. Serena and I watching the elephants, Miss Thing large and in charge with her new camera. (She wanted to walk everywhere even though we had a stroller). And Serena and I in front of the pandas. PS--Mom, check out my kicky new haircut.


After the zoo we came back home and had some yummy dinner and Deb made us a chocolate souffle treat, and of course, Serena helped. Then Serena and I declared a Pajama Party, so we got in our pjs and played until it was time for stories.

All in all a really great day I would say.

I'll post more on our Sunday later.

OMG!

On Monday I went to see The Dark Knight on the IMAX screen at the Franklin Institute with 3 friends from work. And it was FREAKIN AWESOME!!! Because it was a Monday right after work there was almost no one there, in fact, the Institute was closed except for the IMAX. I think there might have been a dozen in a theatre that seats way more than 100.

The IMAX screen is 4 stories tall, now I don't know how tall a regular movie screen is, but I know it isn't 4 stories that's for sure.

We sat down and I immediately psyched myself out. I convinced myself before the lights even went down that I was gonna get motion sick and hurl everywhere. And then they have this announcement that mentions that some people get motion sick and pointed to the exits, which freaked me out even more. But, I persevered.

There were 6 sequences filmed using the IMAX format, including the first 6 minutes of the movie. As soon as it started I felt my tummy tickle a little. Turns out it was just excitement. At first you notice the switch from IMAX format to regular format, but pretty soon you're so sucked in that the transition is no longer obvious. Watching that movie all huge and being able to feel the action sequences was amazing.

I had not seen the movie, but heard all the hype. It was definitely as good as everyone said it was. And I am really glad that I got to see it on a super large screen.

I am also glad that I did not puke.

Anyway I highly recommend going to see this movie on the IMAX. Kolby, I know you have probably seen it a million times (and own it), but if you have a chance to see it on IMAX--DO IT!

Moose Farts

So, there is this kid's book called Walter the Farting Dog. Actually there are several books. They follow the well meaning Walter around on all his misadventures. They are pretty cute. But I have to say that Walter has NOTHING on Molly. She is by far the grossest, stinkiest, most flatulent dog I have ever met.

She also happens to be the greatest dog in the world. She is smart (Adam is currently teaching her left and right) and sweet and patient and everything you could ever ask for in a dog. Except when she farts. She can make the paint peel it smells so awful. And you can't get away from it, it's like it sticks to you. Eww.

Yesterday I was working in the kitchen on some school stuff (getting ready for my midterm mostly) and she laid next to me the whole time and pooted away. If I moved, she followed me (being loyal and all). Sometimes (mostly as she is napping) they surprise her, and she jumps up and looks at her butt all confused like "hey, what just happened?"

Anyway, it made me think that perhaps I should write books about her. I mean if those guys who wrote the books about Walter can do it, why not? Maybe I am on to something here.

So, as of now I am taking ideas for stories. I reckon they don't all have to surround Molly's gas problem (if they did those guys who wrote the Walter books would probably sue me).

I'm sure Adam will be down to write a book with me (like how I volunteer him for stuff), and I bet I can convince him to illustrate it too. Being that he is an artist and all.

Let me know if there are any adventures you'd like to see Molly go on. I bet there is even an adventure her pal Riley can join in on as well. He is not nearly as stinky as she is, but his bark can be heard for miles around . . .so I'm sure there could be something there.