Mama conversation

Online conversation with my mom:

Mama: I am on the mini laptop and it needs to have a microscope attached

Mama: so up the font

Me: i dunno how

Mama: see a font box

Me: no

Mama: click it

Me: i can't

Me: i have no font box

Mama: listen, if i can do it you can do it

Me: only a happy face box

Me: hahahhahhaha

Mama: I will happy your face in a box

I hope it's not evident to only me why I love her so much.

p.s. I just told her I was blogging about her and the response I got (in huge font) was: Will I become famous? Then get a book deal? Then it will be made into a hit movie?

love. :)

5 things that make me happy today

The work of anja mulder:

fresh caparese with the last of the summer tomatoes:

french pressed coffee:

Since my coffee maker broke back in June I've been using an electric kettle and my trusty french press. The coffee that this little guy makes is amazing. I haven't bought a new coffee maker since.

rediscovering my art journal:

This is a map I drew so I could always find my hubs.

reading Pride and Prejudice on my itouch kindle app:

I've been falling asleep every night reading P&P with my itouch in my hand. I'm pretty sure my husband is thinking that he wishes he got held that close every night.

It seems like it's one or the other

This is an art journal page I made today. It's how I feel. Like I can't stop stuffing my face.

I'm trying to strike some balance in my life. It seems when I do an excellent job of working out I have a hard time controlling what I eat. But if I know I can't workout, then I eat perfectly. I just need these powers combined to form Captain Fitness!

Captain Planet.

Anyone?

Anyone?

Bueller?

I'm having an affair

With my itouch. I spent all morning with him. I plan to spend most of the evening. I downloaded things, uploaded things, surfed things, played blowfish. It's love.

Transumanza

Every year the big festival in my town is based around cows. It's a huge deal, I think the biggest festival in our little area. It celebrates the age old tradition of the cows moving from the top of the mountains for the spring and summer down to the lowlands for the fall and winter. The treck the cow make every year is 80k. And they end right here in my town.

See this cute man driving this cart? This is Manuel. He's my landlord. He only speaks Italian in the Veneto dialect and so I generally can't understand a word he is saying. But he's super nice and kinda reminds me of my dad.

There's a long parade/processional before the cows that I'll show you more of tomorrow. But this truck is announcing the good stuff.

Let's get right to the good stuff.

The cows! Don't you love the Italian cow boys? I love them. They love Toby Keith. As was evidenced by how they over ran the post when Toby came to town. They were decked out in all their Italian cowboy duds. Much different (and considerably brighter) than American cowboy duds.

More on the transumanza tomorrow.

Piove a Milan

Yesterday Inter played Barcelona in a Chapions League match. The crowd made a super cool Italian flag. See that white part in the middle? It's the press stands. The press doesn't have seperate boxes, they are a part of the crowd just like everyone else. I love that they used the press section in part of the flag.

It's been raining here in northern Italy from Sunday to Thursday morning. It's beautiful right now though. I was so excited to break out the fall boots and my new coat.

Here's my hubs doing a little photo shoot. Either he can't get enough camera time or doesn't want his picture taken at all. Yesterday was a "Take another one!" day.

I had to throw this one in. Those blue eyes get me every time. I really hope our future kids get his eyes. The blue eye dark hair contrast is amazing. Isn't he just the handsomest? Don't you wish your boyfriend was hot like he?

Ha! I had to throw that in there. I couldn't resist.

I love taking pictures of up close faces. My husband doesn't care for it though. If you couldn't tell...

Waiting...

I'm waiting for my hubs to get home.

And tomorrow? Inter vs. Barcalona!

The Help

It took me a long time to read this book. It was a weighty, good read for me. I like to roll around in weighty, good reads.

This book is written from three points of view. I love that. I love how all of the character's voices are so distinct. I love that even after I set down the book for a few days to soak it up and started reading again I had no question who was narrating. The premise of this book is the racial misunderstanding in Mississippi during 1960's primarily between maids and their lady bosses. Oh dear it's so fantastic. Stockett does such a great job of showing how many of the white women of the time had no concept of how poorly they were treating the black maids.

She reminds me of how Toni Morrison in The Bluest Eye shows how it is possible for a man to rape his own child but makes sure the reader know how unacceptable it is. She shows how a white child could be raised by a black maid and come to mistreat every other black person without second thought, but at the same times shows the reader how messed up that was.

There is so much more to this novel. Great dramatic things happen. This book was so good. Please read it.

Fun night

This is Brooke. She runs a 7 minute mile. She also makes a mean banana cookies and cream chocolate liquor shake. I should know. I had thirds.

It's sad when the guys are gone to Germany. But it sure is fun hanging out with the girls.

Lust List

Here's a few things I am adding to my wish list for when I haven't just spent over $2000.00 on a new computer and such:

The ice cream maker attachment for the Kitchen Aid mixer. My in-laws were kind enough to buy me a Kitchen Aid mixer for a birthday/Christmas present combo. Ever since I've been mixing up a storm. Don't tell my mama (even though I know she's reading this) but I even mixed up muffins in there. She does NOT like it when muffins are overbeat. She obviously doesn't have my mantra of whip it. Whip it good.

Whenever I get my itouch I want to get the Kindle app for it. I canNOT WAIT for the Kindle app. Yes I just refreshed the tracking number. What's it to ya?

I've been wanting to turn one of our rooms into a "nikki" room. I want these jars from GneissSpice's etsy to put treasures or ribbon or something that is pretty and needs to be displayed in. Clever, no?

Top 5

1. Labor Day.
2. PWOC Kickoff.
3. So much work.
4. Broken dryer.
5. Open garage.

This is me

image from xkcd.com

I placed a big order from apple.com to include a new laptop and an itouch. I cannot wait. It first has to go to my parent's house then they are kindly going to ship it to me. Eeee!

He works all things together for good

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.

Romans 8:26-28, The Message

Top 5

1. Great study this morning.
2. Chinese for lunch.
3. More kids enrolled.
4. New toys.
5. The girls.