Amber Waves of Grain

Kennedy turns two and a HALF today! I absolutely adore Kennedy ( is it OK to say that? ). She's funny, entertaining, and makes me laugh. As long as she's not hungry or tired.... she's a joy to be around. She loves to play with cars now (the Matchbox kind) and will play cars much of the day. She also loves to chase the cat, play with balloons, pop bubbles, and she's currently obsessed with Diego ("Gauko") and Toy Story movies. Here are some photos to enjoy! Happy half birthday, Kennedy!

The state fair picks a theme each year. For example, last year was the year of the pig which meant lots of new, yummy pork dishes. Thumbs up to year of the pig. We are pretty saddened by this year's theme. Are you ready for this? It's year of the..... SOYBEANS . Think soy sauce, tofu, and soybean oil. Boo . Well, it's time to vote for this year's soybean-related SIGNATURE FOOD ( link for voting ). Each new food will be at the fair, but the food with the most votes gets the best booth and extra marketing, etc. Here are the foods and their descriptions, copied straight from Indystar.com. Deep-fried tofu on a stick, $3 Vendor: Urick Concessions Description: Three generous cubes of tofu, rolled in a crisp coating, deep-fried and served on a stick with a spicy dipping sauce. Where's the soy? Tofu (soybean curd) with a soymeal coating fried in soybean oil. Soy-marinated beef on a stick with sesame-ginger soy-infused sauce, $2 each Vendor: Barto's Cate...

I love it when I find a new treasure. I found this vintage stool at a garage sale last weekend for $5. These stools were made in the 1940's-50's by Cosco. I love that the steps come out so that it becomes a step stool (or for the kids to climb to sit down). Plus, it's really sturdy. Right now it's LIME GREEN . Ultimately I'd like to fix it up and paint it to match my kitchen (teal or yellow). But, with 3 small children we'll see if that project ever really happens! I found ones just like mine online ranging from $50-75 (and many of them were not in good shape!) so I'd say this is a SCORE !

Nathan is a great dad and husband. I don't say it enough . He's smart, kind, compassionate, wise, loving, generous, and fun to be with. In honor of Father's Day weekend, I thought I'd interview Keegan for his thoughts on Nathan. Here it is, word for word. Amber : How old is Daddy? Keegan : Um, 20 A : What does Daddy do for work? K : Get money for us A : What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy? K : Play Wii and suff. A : What's Daddy look like? K : A daddy. He has black hair. A : How tall is Daddy? K : 7 feet tall. A : Why is your Daddy the best Daddy in the world? K : Because he's so nice A : If you could buy him anything, what would you like to get him for Father's Day? K : A new flavor of coffee.... like muffin flavor. A : Should Daddy have more kids? K : No, because then you'd have FOUR.... and 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, TEN kids! A : Do you want to be like Daddy when you grow up? K : Yes, because I love Daddy. Happy Father's D...

For Father's Day, Walgreens is offering a FREE 8x10 collage print now through Saturday. You simply go to Walgreens.com (you'll need an account), click on PHOTOS, upload up to 20 photos ( the less photos you choose, the bigger they'll be ), and select 8x10 collage. The website will make the collage for you. You can choose the border color and thickness, shuffle the photos so they are in different positions, and even add a caption (like " We love you! "). At checkout, you can select a Walgreens location near you so that you can pick up your photo right at the store (ready within the hour....). The coupon code is 1FREEBIE. Valid through Saturday. I love free stuff!

Nathan & I ventured out to a restaurant called Barcelona Tapas ( link ) last night.... without kids. That's right; it was a real, actual DATE NIGHT ( thanks to my in-laws for babysitting )! I should mention that I saw a man on the street who nodded hello to me downtown and he looked JUST like Mr. Bean. I missed getting his picture for you to prove it . The food at the spanish restaurant was great. You can order several small dishes (as opposed to one big meal) and then share them. They also bring each dish out as it is ready, instead of bringing everything out at once. Everything was so good that we ate the food too quickly to remember pictures. Which is why some of these photos are of HALF EATEN food. First, we got roasted cauliflower with saffron, raisins, and pinenuts. It was so good I totally forgot to take a picture of it. Just use your imagination . Then, Nathan's shrimp arrived. It was garlic shrimp with chili oil and fresh lemon. And, of course... som...

We just got back from a 4-day vacation in Gatlinburg, TN . We took our very brave friend, Michele , to help with the kids. She was perfect company, helpful, and a great sport. We loved having her along. And, because she sat in the front seat and played the role of navigator for Nathan, she may have saved my marriage for that trip . Michele and I also enjoyed having a captive audience in the car for our many musical numbers. We went to the aquarium. We drove through Smoky Mountain Nat'l Park. We used the hotel pool. We ate. And ate. And ate. And, we monkeyed around. Several suitcases & loads of laundry later...... we are home! Happy travels!