Seasons Greetings from Austin

Here are a few pics of our Christmas decorations. Enjoy!

Christmas Pictures: Part I

My Christmas Tree



Claire gave me these last year. So cute!!



It's not the birth of Christ without Snoopy.

Pictures from Thanksgiving: Part III

Dancing in Bryant Park



The Rockettes' 3D Spectacular



Radio City Music Hall at Night

Pictures from Thanksgiving: Part II

Toys R' Us: Lego Empire State Building



Geoffry is a jerk



Katerine's Thanksgiving Dinner

Pictures from Thanksgiving: Part I

Christmas tree at the Museum of Natural History decorated with oragami




The hall of dinosaurs


Capt. Mickey Mouse

Jimmy Fallon

Just a quick word of thanksgiving to Aunt B, Kellie, and Laura (whom I didn't realize was there until I saw a picture via Sandra's phone) for giving John and Katherine such a memorable Thanksgiving. They have not stopped talking about this and that thing that did, saw, or eat.

Thanks for carrying on this family tradition (Elizabeth must surely be pleased) with our kids.

Thanks,

Jim and Sandra

NY NY

Claire gets a best time in 50 free

Claire swim a 27.83 for a new best time in the 50 free.

A Pumpkin in Honor of Our Salem Visit

And here are some of my other Halloween decorations.

Lennie at home

Well, Lennie is feeling right at home. I started puppy classes and he gets to join me on Tuesday. He had his first on camera appearance for Bridget, but was a little out of it. You can see now he is alert and feeling more like himself as he gets acquainted with the family.

Claire's Creation

Claire out did herself on this years jack o lantern.

WSR Update

White Stone REIT trading at $13.15

http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=WSR

Knitting Again

I have taken up knitting again after putting it aside for many months. The first thing I did was to return to a project that I had left off. Here is the belt that I am making. This process is called blocking - you wet the piece with warm water and then pin it to the size you would like it to be.

If anyone wants to make any requests for Christmas gifts, I am in the market for a new project. I make no promises and I don't do sweaters.

Saturday with Laura

Today we woke up and went into Maryland in search of a vineyard. We went to Elk Run for a wine tasting and left with a couple of bottles. Then we went on to Frederick MD for lunch. It was a cute town. Then back to DC to have dinner and drinks with Laura and her roommates on the roof of the Hotel Washington. It was a nice day.

Trip to Salem

So as I mentioned before, we went to Salem on Columbus Day. It is an interesting mix of small port town attractions and witch tourism. We went to one of the many witch museums there. We tried to choose the best, but they were all rather cheesy. It is a bit strange, because they spend a lot of time talking about how the women killed at Salem were wrongfully accused of being witches and then they sell you witch souvenirs.





At the Salem Visitors' Center, we learned about the many industries that have supported Salem, including shipping. They did not mention tourism of course. We ate at a restaurant on the wharf that was recommended by Aurelie. The fish and chips were very tasty. There were also some great antique shops there.




The second big attraction was the mansion that inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne's The House of the Seven Gables. The tour was very well done.

Halloween Preparations in Providence

I went to Providence this past weekend for a visit. The new cat apparently was pregnant which I did not know, but a few days before I arrived, these 3 kittens were born. I have forgotten their names, maybe one of the kids could blog with the kittens' names, or add it as a comment to this post.

In Providence, I did lots of art and some crafts. We did some for John and Katherine's school and some for Halloween. Sandra made these cupcakes and then we decorated them like little monsters.

On Columbus Day, we went to Salem, MA. I will post some of those pictures soon. When I make these cupcakes again in the coming weeks, I will post the recipe and more pictures.

The latest addition to the family, Lenny

Well, the wait is finally over. Today I went and found Lenny. He is an Australian Shepherd and was born August 19th. Like we needed another August birthday. I am taking the fact he was born the day after Bridget's birthday as one of many signs that he is the right dog for me. He is 1 of 7 pups and rivals one of the females for being the prettiest of the litter. His owner is retired military, the second sign that I have chosen the right puppy. He was a little standoffish, but was the first one out of the pen and appeared the most curious of the group. The third and final sign that this may be destiny, is the fact he rolled in poop before I showed up. Obviously he knew he would be completely cute even though he was a mess. I will keep you informed on the status. I pick him up October 25th.

Sharon visits Texas

We had a nice time with Sharon visiting. We spent a weekend in San Antonio and then she came to Austin. We also had a chance to spend some time with Frank who was in town on his fall break. I have included a couple of pictures from San Antonio and a photo of hand made paper art that Sharon and I found at a store on South Congress.

Claire Swimming

Claire's first swim meet of the school year. Here she is winning the heat in the 50 Free. Aunt Sharon was in town to watch her swim.

I still have not quite figured out how to post pictures, but some should be coming from John's and Katherine's soccer triumphs. As some know, I went to Levenworth for the funeral of Mary Jo Steiger, one half a couple that was very hospitable to Sandra and me. Mary Jo and George introduced us to the ministry in the prison and we spent many a happy and restful hour at their house. Father Ed Hayes (he's quite famous, and is the painter of the glorious picture of St. Nicolas that we hang over our fireplace every yuletide). He gave a very wonderous eulogy that spoke movingly about their fifty plus marriage and her unflinching faith in the adversity's face. Despite the hassles involved in flying to Leavenworth, renting a car, and the rest of it, I am grateful that I made (and was convinced by Sandra to make) the decision to go.

August in Washington, D.C.

Here are a few pictures from my visit to Laura during my break. We had a nice time. Laura got us tickets to a free performance of Twelfth Night. The production value was very high and the acting was thoroughly funny. We also went to Arlington Cemetery on a very hot day ...

... and to visit Ford's Theater.

Happy Birthday, Sandra!

I wouldn't really suggest letting the hamsters have cake. It may make them a little crazy.

Shells Stuffed with Spinach, Mushroom, and Ground Pork

Here are some pasta shells that I made a few weeks ago. I froze some of them and just enjoyed them again this week. I used several recipes from the Joy of Cooking to make them. Below is approximately what I did. What I have written below is about half of the original stuffing recipe modified. This made enough stuffing for a whole box of shells which filled one 9x13 baking dish and one 9x9 baking dish. I think I was more generous with the tomato sauce and cheese than the recipe calls for.



Stuffing

Heat in a very large skillet over medium-high heat until the foam subsides:
3 tbsp butter

Add and cook, stirring, until wilted:
1/2 lb. mushrooms, finely chopped

Squeeze almost dry:
One 10-oz package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed
Stir into the vegetable mixture and cook until all the liquid is evaporated and the pan looks dry.

Turn the mixture into a large bowl and stir in:
3/4 pound ground pork, cooked
1 c. fine bread crumbs
1/2 c. finely chopped parsley
3/4 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese


Jumbo Shells

Have ready:
3 c. Tomato Sauce
Stuffing Filling

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a baking dish. Cook in a large pot of boiling salted water until barely tender:
8-10 oz. of jumbo shells

Drain. Using a small spoon, fill the pasta with the filling. Arrange the pieces side by side in the baking dish. (At this point, the dish can be covered and refridgerated for up to 24 hours.) Spoon the tomato sauce over the pasta and sprinkle with:
1 c. shredded mozzarella
6 tbsp grated Parmesan

Cover with aluminum foil and bake until heated through, about 40 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

The Living Room is done

Well,it is complete and I am enjoying the comfyness of the new furniture and rug. I have had two breaking ins of the room. This weekend the boys will come and camp out over night. We'll see how it holds up to 3 boys.

Italianamerican

I had a good time visiting Laura and I will try to post some pictures of that soon. Laura reminded me of a documentary that I have told many of you about, and we found it on YouTube. It is of Martin Scorsese's parents in 1974. You will all really enjoy it.

It is 49 minutes long and the first part is embedded below. There are links below to the next 4 parts, but you will probably just be able to find part 2 along the bottom of the video when the first part ends.



Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzVGuCUj4yY

Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gonQKFbtec&feature=related

Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlBVeHIFsbE&feature=related

Part 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JZX71w2DOA&feature=related

Claire in her letter jacket

Claire came home with her jacket today so I took some pics so you could all see. Sounds like the kids trip to Boston was fun. Laura the Panama pics are very nice. Tonight we are going to celebrate Marie's 9th birthday!