not much to mention these days. last weekend was busy... friday we just stayed home & watched "munich." not my favorite flick. i guess it was well done, but watching a movie about blowing people up just isn't enjoyable. on saturday, we had two social engagements. one was an open house in the afternoon for a family who will be moving back to the east coast, and the other was a 40th birthday party. that was fun - it was mexican fiesta style, with sand, mariachi music, and a pinata. even though it was cold & rainy outside, people were still living it up around the fire!
on sunday, we woke up really early & went skiing at skibowl. i forget how much it had snowed overnight, but it was around 2 feet, and was still snowing. most runs weren't really groomed, and a lot of the time i couldn't see my skis. i had never skied in so much powder before. it was pretty heavy, as it wasn't that far below freezing, so we all tired out really quickly. "dad" m was driving us all up in his suv, which had a dvd player in the back seat, so j & i watched "marie antoinette" on the drive home. the trip up was pretty rocky - despite the traction tires, m put on chains. going home was much smoother.

anyway, i've been spending my free time getting tax stuff together. j is going skiing tomorrow again - he also went on tuesday evening (when is MY playtime????) - and then we have dinner with friends at 6:30. sunday will bring some relaxation & football. no big parties this year, which is fine. perhaps i'll get caught up on some reading. i haven't touched any new yorkers or other magazines since we returned from new zealand.

moveon.org just conducted a poll with its members, regarding which democrat they should endorse. i voted for hillary, but barack won. it's slightly disappointing, as i would really really like to see a woman president, but barack is a fine candidate too. i worry that hillary wouldn't be electable because she's a "clinton," but i also worry about barack & his lack of experience with washington politics (although, perhaps it's a good thing). they're both pretty much equally qualified. i just ultimately care about getting the republicans out of control of our country.

:(

i'm so so so grumpy.  and i don't know why.  it could be a lot of things.  simply a yucky weekend.  didn't like it one bit.  hmmmpphhh!

flu season.

my little soldiers.

the hubby has the flu. he came home sick from work on thursday and hasn't felt good since. i've been trying my best to both help him out and not catch the flu from him. been employing the works - oscillococcinum, usnea, vitamin c... not to mention my normal vitamins, fish oil, and good ol' washing of the hands. get better soon, hubby!!!

happy birthday!

last sunday, we took my mom out for brunch to celebrate her birthday, along with my dad & j's family (minus a few). thanks for coming out, everyone!

my mom is the proud owner of two of the new special riedel oregon pinot noir glasses. they're absolutely amazing with oregon pinots!

good dinner

last friday, j went to the grocery store while i was teaching, and brought home the makings of this wonderful dinner. ravioli, foccacia, roasted red peppers, lemeleson wine (actually, we already had that in our cellar).... very good, & artfully prepared! thanks hubby!!!

bowling for a birthday

oh dear, this isn't very ladylike.
tonight i went bowling. it was c's birthday (4th from the left), and she chose the activity.
i'm the BOWLER FROM HELL.
really.
i totally suck at bowling.
in fact, i suck at pretty much all sports. bowling, curling, golfing, volleyball... really really bad. i'm trying to learn to bask in the glory of my suck-y-ness, as i get older.
it astounds me, however, that i can be SO bad, yet manage to make a living out of playing the violin - something that uses fine motor skills & the coordination of hands & fingers & arms. makes absolutely no sense to me. totally sucky.

sunriver

first meal of the year - babyback ribs - YUM!!! thanks for cooking, p & n!

sunriver

my hubby is such a cutie!

sunriver

this was their fearless guide, a.

sunriver

p & j went out for a backcountry experience on new year's day with their friend a.

sunriver

another sideways picture - the mama-to-be. just a few more weeks!

sunriver

aren't we a lively bunch? y'all gotta calm down a little - you're getting out of control!

sunriver

after gorgefest #2, we watched the movie "reno 911," and then broke out the champagne for a new year's toast. we found a performance of pink martini on OPB - here's robert taylor himself in the middle of a beautiful solo!

sunriver

a picture of the finished product - another great meal at chateau topflight!

sunriver

my signature pose, albeit sideways. methinks i grew up with too many mr. yuck stickers everywhere... or perhaps i was channeling the maori warriors. ?

sunriver

oh hubby, you think you're so smart...
what ev.

sunriver

on new year's eve, we got up to go skiing at mt bachelor, and myself, very reluctantly, as i had endured a second night of insomnia. i was frustrated & hating life because i was so tired, & didn't want to go ski, and guessed it would be better to stay home, but i went anyway because i was afraid i'd miss a good day of skiing. well, i should've stuck with my instincts. there were long lines at bachelor, and lots of the lifts weren't working. it was f-reezing out, and the lifts kept stopping for long periods of time. i decided after the first run that i was done for the day. eventually, j gave me a ride home so i could take a nap. thanks, hubby!!! when everyone got home, we started making ravioli from scratch. here are some pictures.

sunriver

the sunday after xmas, p & n met us from canadia, and we drove to skibowl for an awesome day of skiing. it was dumping snow, and it was cold enough out that the snow was very light and dry - perfect conditions! after a full day of skiing, we drove down to sunriver - a trip that took forever due to all the recent snow. we made a cheese fondue when we finally arrived at our house. it was very stringy. perfect. the beginning of our culinary adventures at the New Years Vacation at Sunriver. we also made a chocolate fondue for dessert, thanks to n magically having a recipe in her purse. i guess everybody carries around random fondue recipes in their purses, eh? hmm... perhaps it's a calgary thing.

x-mas '07

this is the only shot from x-mas '07. we all forgot to take pictures.

taco dinner

unbeknownst to me, until a half hour before we were to leave, the wine tasting day was not over. we were invited over to j's parents' house for a taco dinner, in honor of his brother & his wife, who were in town that evening. a taco dinner means flour tortillas made from scratch, which makes tacos a million times better. unfortunately, i was really full from lunch, so i wasn't able to do my taco justice, but luckily j stepped up & finished mine for me. he even had room for his "butter and sugar" taco (see bottom picture)...something i found really disgusting, but he's loved them since he was a kid.