both of my parents were born in the appalachian mountains – my mom in pennsylvania, and my dad in eastern kentucky, which is the focus of the recent 20/20 documentary “children of the mountains.” if you want to get a glimpse of a part of our country that most don’t seem to know exists, go to abc.com, click the “free episodes” link at the top, then make your way to 20/20 and the “children of the mountains” episode. diane sawyer spent two years following families in the mountains and hollers of eastern kentucky, and it will open your eyes a bit. it opened mine.
you are invited! February 13, 2009
sunday night tea is back! if you’re looking for a peaceful, social way to start your week, come on over around seven this sunday evening and most of the ones in future weeks. stay for an hour or a few, have some homemade chai, make some new friends. i sent out a few facebook invites, but just as a base list, so come on over even if you didn’t get one! (you can bring your kids, too!) no need to bring anything, but leave a comment or shoot me an email if you think you might come, just for a general head count. also, let me know if you need to know where we live.
p.s.
we have a dog and a cat. they are very sweet, and child/people friendly, but also hairy, so if you have allergies, take your medicine first.
random links and babbling about books for baby February 11, 2009
reading has been one of my favorite things to do ever since i can remember, and i truly hope that alex loves it at least as much as i do. lately, i’ve been thinking about the best books i’ve been able to read with her, and here are a few of them.
last week, my dear friend angie came over for tea, and brought this book for alex. it very quickly became our favorite – i love it because it really does give a diverse glimpse of babies from around the world, but alex just outrights adores it. every time i open it for her, she starts talking to the baby faces, and it is so darn cute.
this is her other favorite book, except that our copy has a spanish cover, and is bilingual. we like bilingual books here, and this one is by eric carle, and is so pretty!
i picked up a copy of this piece of art several years ago, and can’t wait until alex is ready for it.
how about you? do you have a favorite book for wee ones?
this one is for lara February 9, 2009
a couple of weeks ago, the beautiful lara wrote about baking bread with this recipe, which is appropriately called “fabulous homemade bread.” i never knew it could be so easy to bake bread that is so tasty. now i think it’s fast becoming part of my weekly routine. color me domestic!
big person seat
friday evening, we had our dear friends kevin and sarain over for dinner, with their son mink. alex went to bed at the normal time, but – like her mama – seemed to be afraid that she would miss out on something exciting if she stayed asleep. so after waking from her “nap,” she got to hang out in a big person chair in the kitchen for the first time while i cleaned up. don’t let the look of nonchalance fool you – she was definitely impressed with herself.
a good day for a walk
after being cooped up in the house most of the week, it was time to get out the ergo carrier on saturday and hit the street. alex was intrigued, and blaze was elated.
February 3, 2009
i finally got around to watching slumdog millionaire yesterday and today. i’d only heard great things about the film, and that it is a must-see. i think i was expecting it to be more “uplifting” or “full of hope,” but i have to admit that it was kind of a downer – albeit a downer that is amazingly written and shot and acted. the thing is, though, that life for orphans in mumbai is often depressing and dangerous, so i’m glad that the movie didn’t try to paint it as anything else. there is a lot more that i could say, but i’ll leave it at this – watch it for yourself, but only watch if you’re ready to have your heart break a little bit.
on a related note, i’m so happy and intrigued that indian culture is steadily making its way into western media. bride and prejudice, anyone? also, it’s probably about time for me to finish reading maximum city, since it’s been on my bookshelf for about three years, eh?
two of my favorite things about india were the chai and the hospitality that was so freely offered to anyone by everyone. when i lived in cincinnati, i had chai parties every sunday night – i’d make a big pot of homemade chai and anyone who wanted to would come over and drink it while we watched the simpsons and talked about any/everything…any takers if i brought the chai back?
joyful girl 