Late spring/early summer photo dump

We've been busy, finishing up the school year and kicking off summer. It has all been fun, but I definitely feel like things have been a bit go-go-go. Thankfully today is a day off work and I can catch up on a few things. Now that Molly won't let me post anything on social media, I only have the blog to document the onset of the teen years! So here's a glimpse at our girl in her last few months as an 11-year-old:

Easter weekend in Minnesota - good times with the O'Grady/Kirkendall crew

Post-Seder photo - poor Jon had covid and had to video in

Spring visit with Joe, Marsha, and Steve

New bike

Dad + daughter trip to Universal

Story time with a growing nephew

Feeling tough after her first big lacrosse tournament with a new team - she scored one of the few team goals on day 1!

Father's day photo

Sick for Spring break

No, it wasn't covid! But poor Molly had a terrible cold during our Spring break trip to Fort Lauderdale, and I ended up getting it right when we came back. At first, Jason and I thought Molly was just being a cranky tween on the trip (which may have partially been the case), but she really didn't feel well. So, we had a very low key vacation. Still fun - our dinners were all fantastic and we had a nice time at the beach - but we also slept in late and spent more time than we planned in the hotel watching movies and HGTV.

I also realized during the trip that I need to meet Molly where she is, and not just force her into doing what I want to do. She doesn't enjoy hours of reading by the beach. But she sure loved getting her nails done and browsing around the surf shops by the pier. Here are a few of the highlights:

Water taxi ride - 8 minutes of fun after an hour and a half wait :)

Back at the Yankee Clipper (now the B Ocean Resort), 15 years after our wedding! 

Outdoor dining at Louie Bossi's

Teenager in training - we realized at the airport that just about every girl between the ages of 12 and 18 was wearing some variation of the same outfit :)

Winter weekends in Wisconsin

Our lake house is a true home away from home. Maybe even better than home because we can go up for a weekend and do absolutely nothing. Which is exactly what we did last weekend for Jason's birthday. Molly had a book to finish for school (in between episodes of Malibu Rescue on Netflix). I watched as much Olympics coverage as humanly possible. Jason got in a good nap and flipped through his bday gift: The Flavor Bible. And Riley ran around in the snow and inspected all of the new animal tracks since our last visit. 

Even as cold as it is, I think we'll be up almost every weekend this month! We have plans next weekend to go up and ski with friends (coming back in time for the Superbowl on Sunday of course ... go Bengals!!) and then will have a different set of friends up the following weekend, just to see the place and hang out for a night. Everyone likes a getaway.

Here are a few pics of the inside now that we're all settled in:

First thing we see when we walk in the front door

Favorite room

View into the kitchen

Guest room, Molly's (and Riley's) room, Master views 1 and 2

Bathroom - small but mighty

Nothing beats summer at the lake, but I'm happy we're getting our use out of the place year-round!

Finding the joy in cooking

Jason is definitely the head chef in our family. He knows what he's doing and can just kind of "figure things out" when it's time for dinner. I am a recipe girl. I know how to cook, but I like to have a plan. Specific ingredients to buy. Tips to help me along the way. 

So I'm kind of killing 2 new year's resolutions in 1 with my new cookbook - What's Gaby Cooking? recommended by one of Susie's friends. It's giving me the inspiration I need to cook more and help Jason out ... and it's helping us eat a little healthier with California-style recipes. Nothing in this cookbook has been too difficult to make - the trick seems to be brightening everything up with a yummy sauce at the end.

Here are a few pics of what I've made so far:

Forbidden Rice and Roasted Mushroom Bowl.
In a perfect world, it would have had avocado slices on top, but I didn't hit the timing right on our avocados. Still, this was absolutely delicious, with some kind of lovely herb-y garnish on top and a big hit of lemon with the mushrooms.

Winter Cobb Salad with Pomegranates.
Jason was out of town last week and I probably made this salad 3 of 4 days for lunch until my pomegranate seeds ran out. So good!

Chocolate, Cashew, and Date Smoothie.
What's easier than throwing a bunch of ingredients in a blender?

Tonight's masterpiece - Chicken Enchiladas with Cumin Crema

Not pictured - Chicken Parmesan Pappardelle that Molly claimed was "too cheesy" :)

My other favorite cookbook? The O'Grady Quarantine Cookbook, put together by Jon and Adina to document all the recipes we made over video chat in 2020/2021. Every other Sunday(ish), we would pick a recipe, set up the iPad in the kitchen, and then cook and chat together over video. Molly would usually join for dinner, and then we would typically end up talking after dinner until my iPad battery ran out. I absolutely LOVE having this record of how we made Michelin star memories in the middle of a pandemic.

Last Sunday, we started from the beginning and made Arugula Pesto Pasta together. A lovely evening, as always. Looking forward to cooking with Jon and Adina in person ... hopefully this Spring or Summer!

New knits

Hot off the needles! I just finished my second sweater of the season, the Aran Gallant Sweater by Caidree, knit with Drops Air yarn in pink marble:

Nothing makes me happier than wearing homemade knits on a cold day. And since I haven't posted in a while, I'll also show off my first completed project of the season - the Flax Sweater by Tin Can Knits, made with Knit Picks Swish Worsted in rainforest heather. This is a really popular (and free) beginner-friendly sweater - almost a rite of passage in the knitting community:

Next up is a sweater for Jason - The Hot Toddy by my favorite designer, Knitatude. And then the Good Grandpa Cardigan by Caidree for Molly. I probably won't finish Molly's before the cold weather is over, but hopefully she'll still like the style next year :)

I'm back!

It's time to restart the blog. After spending a week with my nephew John in Florida, I was wondering what Molly was like at that age. All I had to do was look up March/April posts from 2012 and there she was. Molly at 21 months. We were prepping to sell our condo and move at that point in time, so many of the posts were house-focused. But a glimpse of Molly, dressed for St. Patrick's Day with wild hair, shoes on the wrong feet, and a sassy look on her face and I was instantly transported. I have to keep this going. 

So what has happened in the last 9 months? 

I'll start with the main character. 

Molly wrapped up 5th grade at Orrington with little fanfare. Hybrid schedule - home on Mondays, half days in person with half the class. No playground time. It felt like we didn't really get to say a proper "goodbye" to elementary school, but that's just how 2021 went.

Pic from Molly's 5th grade graduation celebration

Summer was a bit more normal. Definitely more social. Camps with friends, birthday parties at the beach, a couple of sleepovers in Wisconsin. 

Then it was time for middle school. The phase of life all parents dread. And it has been ... pretty great. Masks are on, but it is full-day, in-person, and Molly is loving it (though if you ask her, she may shrug and say it's just "okay"). She has a locker and a gym uniform and a full schedule of ~10 different classes a day. There's all kinds of middle school drama and action and she just seems to be taking it all in. She walks every day with her friend Ryan and has the freedom to hang out after school with friends or occasionally hit up Starbucks. With a phone and a debit card, it's a whole new world.

Beyond the social aspect (which has kind of been our main focus after the year of semi-isolation) she seems to be doing well in her classes. I think they lowered the bar to get kids back in the swing of things. There's almost no homework and they are allowed to go back and "make corrections" on tests. But 6th grade is probably a good year for that kind of transition anyway. The first report card is in and Molly has all A's, other than a high B in science, and good feedback from the teachers ("positive attitude" comments across the board), so we're proud.

Now for Jason. He decided to resign his last job - it just wasn't quite the job he thought it was going to be. But he took the summer off, took a couple of road trips with Molly, did some screen printing, had his most successful art fair ever at Renegade in Bucktown, and then started a new job in October. This one may be it. Best company culture he's encountered to date and he was able to hit the ground running. I'm happy for him. It makes a huge difference when you feel good about what you're doing. 

I am trying to get back to that feeling :) 2021 was a rough work year for me. Maybe that's why I stopped blogging? My pre-pandemic work life was 35 hours a week with Fridays mostly off ... my mid-pandemic (is that the right term for 2021?) work life was 50-60 hours a week with all kinds of high pressure/high stress projects happening at the same time.

I have earned a promotion for my pain. And I have begged for reinforcements. So hopefully 2022 will be a more manageable year! If not, I just need to reframe work as a means to an end, with the end being the kind of retirement that we just enjoyed over Christmas in Florida. Tennis or pickleball every day with a little pool time or golf thrown in for fun. Dolphin sightings and beach walks. Yes, please! I've gone full millennial, researching ways to retire early. We all need goals, right?

Beach life

Beyond work, because yes, there is still a beyond, I've been pedaling away on the Peloton, fully addicted to the Power Zone Pack team challenges (go Honey Badgers!), knitting at night while watching TV (some of our favorite shows: Turn, Get Back, Succession, Ted Lasso, Only Murders in the Building), listening to podcasts (Crime Junkie, Once Upon a Time ... at Bennington College), and reading (current books - I'm loving all 3: M Train, The Night Watchman, and Slouching Towards Bethlehem).

Now, I can't forget our furry friend. Riley turned 3 in June. She's still a sweet little dog, and our constant companion, though she whines for food nonstop, which drives us all up the wall :) Lately, she has been a little hit or miss around other dogs, especially bigger dogs, but thankfully she likes her new cousin Holmes, the cutest little cavapoo you ever did see.

Riley and Holmes in Wisconsin

So what's next for us in 2022? Look for more blog posts to come. I promise!

It's been a little while

It's been a little while, but I feel like things are starting to look up! Molly is back in school (half days, 4 days a week) and so happy to see people again. My parents are fully vaccinated. And it sounds like they'll start opening up appointments to any adult in May(ish). So summer might not be so much of a bummer this year. Spring is still kind of on hold (we had to cancel our Florida plans now that Molly is back in school), but I'm used to travel plans falling through at this point. And we have plenty to look forward to.

In other news, Molly will (hopefully) "graduate" from her walnut allergy on Thursday. Fingers crossed she passes the challenge of drinking 480 mL of walnut milk. I am a little worried that the volume will be hard for her to get through, but we'll try to take it slow. She really does not like the taste of walnuts, so Jason and I have been planking every morning while she drinks it for a show of solidarity. After that, we'll start ramping up hazelnuts and she can hopefully graduate from that allergy in a few months. And maybe Jason and I will end up with perfect abs? 

While things are still on the slow side, we're continuing to spend a decent amount of time on the couch :) Jason and I are obsessed with the heartwarming + hilarious show The Durrells in Corfu (PBS or Hulu) and I've been sucked into a dark comedy called Search Party (HBO Max). I've been enjoying the podcast Don't Ask Tig, and also flew through Chameleon: The Hollywood Con Queen (so good). Although my reading time has definitely taken a hit (especially with all the knitting), I am slowly working my way through Pachinko by Min Jin Lee. All of that will go on hold in a few days of course when we dedicate our lives to college basketball and cheering for the Illini to Win. It. All. Yes, I've hopped on the fan bandwagon of Jason's team, but poor Cincinnati couldn't pull it together this year. They turned their season around, that's for sure, but no March Madness for the Bearcats. 

So, you know, we're definitely not there yet, but things are starting to look up. I'll leave you with the adorable faces of three happy children:

Cousin crew playing a round of Star Wars Monopoly