A Creative Space

So we are finally done with the office! This room was really important to us. Both of us being artists means we really needed a calm and creative space to get work done. For the last umpteen years we have been forced to share our "creative space" with a bedroom, guest room, cat room... But now we have a space that's just for us and all that goodness that will come out of us! uuuhhh... ew? Its a smaller room that eventually will be "hypothetical baby's" room so I wanted to paint it with warm soothing blues and greens. I didn't want to have to paint again! The slant on the ceiling made it hard to see where the wall stopped and the ceiling began so I made a creative decision to paint the slant blue! That was a bitch, eyeing it with tape! ugh! But I think it worked out. The room gets a ton of sun through the skylight and it's so cozy!! We repainted an old bookshelf and shelf papered the shelves and now it holds my vast collection of children's books. I know, I'm nuts but I can't get enough of them! Plus it's research because Eventually I will be writing my own in this very room! Our old Pic Nic dining room table is now our kick ass desk. Just because it's a desk, doesn't mean it needs to be metal or a traditional computer desk. Its the perfect size to hold Pete's mammoth computer fixin's and also have room to write or scrap book!!

Speaking of scrapbooking, I have to get back on that! My old bureau which we tried to get rid of for years is now my scrapbooking center! Seriously, this was like the little bureau that could! We tried to sell it on craigslist and people kept saying they wanted it and never came to get it. We tried to give it to Big Brothers Big Sisters but we forgot to put it out on the right day. We tried to give it to Goodwill and then they forgot to come get it and eventually we had to move so it lived in our shed! But a tiny $2.00 jar of latex paint and some water turned this drab dresser into a shabby chic Armoire! I had some terrifying yet awesome hermit crab knobs that were From Anthropologie, marked down from $12.99 to $1.99 each, so I had to jump on them! I also had been hoarding some turquoise ceramic knobs from Homegoods. It took about 2 hours and VERY minimals tools (I'm still learning not to be afraid of them) And it really came out great! I wanted something that looked a little older but still could add some colour and this definitely did the trick!

Unfortunately even though I painstakingly painted the perfect colors and got everything the way I wanted, Pete has to put up sound foam all around the room in order to work from home! I was not a happy camper, even wanted to spend a few hundred dollars on foam that would match better! But at the end of the day, this foam was free and if it means my Boots can now work from home I'll take it!!

Thirties Shmirties

I have been meaning to get this post up for some time now, about 10 months to be exact. Maybe I was too busy crossing things off my list! You see, when I turned thirty I didn't feel the Grim Reaper on my shoulder or a pain in my chest caused by all the things I have yet to achieve. Instead I felt hope and excitement for what is to come.
I loved my twenties! I graduated college, fell in love, moved out on my own, starred in numerous plays and movies, traveled the world, found my soul mate, got married, adopted a dog... But most of my twenties were about reclaiming my youth. They were about pure gluttony and partying until 3am and getting up at 8:00am for work 6 days a week. They were about squeaking by in every sense of the word and burning the candle at every end possible. I wasn't really concerned with things like settling down, having a career or starting a family. But towards the end of the decade those things started to become more clear, as the image I had of myself became more clear. Dreams and desires became more defined and I had a better image of what kind of life I wanted to live.
I turned thirty on a cruise with my husband and some great friends. Instead of wanting to throw myself off the boat for feeling "old" I went zip lining and promised to embrace as much of my thirties in a positive way as possible. Now that the gluttony was out of my system, I vowed to take everything I learned in the last thirty years and apply it to a new life!
My best friend and her husband decided to make "40 before 40" lists when they turned 30. I love this idea, it shows that they are embracing their thirties and want to make sure they are really living life. Well I love lists, sometimes I make lists of lists I have to make! It's so satisfying to cross of each item!  I figure by making it public, it will make it harder to ignore. It's not all about doing huge, world changing things like curing AIDS, it's about doing things that you have never done before. It's about living the way you always dreamed you could. Each item you cross off your list, is confirmation that you are living the life you want and it's a great reminder to live life to the fullest.
So here is my list, though I have had to tweak it a million times, the first three lists looked like a travel channel line up. I had to really search for things that involved more than traveling - that's a list of its own! But the good news is, that I have already started to cross things off. My plan as the days, months and years tick by is that I complete AT LEAST 32 of these items before I'm 40. It's a good number. And who knows, the list may change and I'm sure I'll add more but for now I like the looks of it. The travel list may take a bit longer, but that's okay.

Katie's 40 before 40 List

1. Be a mother
2. Own a house - CHECK BITCHES!
3. Bake something from scratch by actually following a recipe to the T
4. Run a 5K (though its awful for my knees)
5. Cut down my own Christmas tree
6. Host a big Thanksgiving meal
7. Have my writing published
8. Own my own successful business
9. Get into a REAL exercise routine. One that becomes a way of life as opposed to doing it when I can.
10. Follow a regimen through, whether it is a bottle of vitamins or a tooth whitening kit, JUST FINISH IT!
11. Take 1-2 classes in interesting things every year i.e. photography, cooking, writing, pottery...
12. Learn another language enough to hold a real conversation.
13. Try snowboarding
14. Meet Tom Hanks, Chris Martin, Ellen Degeneres or Mandy Patinkin, hug them and say Thank You.
15. Learn how to knit or sew
16. Volunteer with endangered animals
17. Learn how to play Black Jack - like for real not just yelling HIT ME and crying when I loose $5.00
18. Get certified in SCUBA
19. Learn to horseback ride
20. Sing at an open mike night
21. Learn how to play the Ukulele
22. See the Aurora Borealis
23. Put together a real family tree for both sides
24.  Blog at least 3 times a week for at least 6 months - What What this is two for the week!
25. Write a Children's Book Series
26. Learn to drive stick - it's important for emergency escapes
27. Take a spontaneous last minute vacation
28. Watch the AFI top 100 Movies

29. Complete all my old scrap books that are lying around and then remain up to date on photo albums.

30. Be on Wheel Of Fortune

31. Enter at least one contest a week. I never win anything, but I never play either.
32. Be more computer Savy
32. Commit and study to be REALLY REALLY good at something not just skate by on being kinda good at a bunch of things

33. Get back into Dancing and explore different kinds beyond Modern and Hip Hop.

34. Plant a real vegetable Garden

35. Learn how to take a compliment

36. Be an extra in a major movie - with actual screen time
37. Order at least one new thing when eating out, instead of going to the old standbys!
38. Be at an ideal weight and stay there

39. Get rid of all the hidden crap in my closets, basement, sheds that we don't use but hold onto.

40. Learn how to rock climb

Katie's Travel/Adventure List

1. Go to our homelands and hunt down old relatives

2. Spend Christmas in Europe

3. Ride a gondola in Venice and be there for Carnival
4. See the Grand Canyon
5. Drive Cross Country

6. Visit AT LEAST 5 more states that I have never been to.

7. Climb The Eiffel Tower and read a book in a café in Paris

8. Revisit the Vatican and see the Sistine Chapel (I purposely didn't go in when I was there to insure that I would return)

9. Go to Churchill and See polar bears in their natural habitat
10. Take a cruise to Alaska and kayak next to a glacier
11. Explore Machu Pichu
12. See the pyramids in Egypt
13. Go on an African Safari
14. Swim with great white sharks in South Africa - or lets be completely honest, maybe be on a boat, safely away from the side, in water that is near where a great white shark might be sleeping…
15. Spin a globe with my eyes close, point and go there.
16. Ride an elephant in Thailand maybe hit a full moon party and see the Grand Palace
17. Scuba the Great barrier Reef
18. Pet some sheep in New Zealand maybe go zorbing and see whales in Kaikoura
19. Go to an Ice Hotel in Sweden
20. Float in the Dead Sea
21. Visit a concentration camp
22. Wear a fuzzy hat in front of the Kremlin.
23. Revisit India and do all the things we were too scared to do and be there for Holi
24. Blow Bubbles on the Brooklyn Bridge
25. Live like a local somewhere for at least a month
26. Trek along the great wall of China
27. Be in Spain for La Tomatina
28. Stay in a hotel room on stilts on the ocean in a place like Bora Bora or Bali
29. Visit Stonehenge
30. Spend the night in a castle in Scotland or Ireland
31. Make a phone call in a London Red Phone Booth
32. Visit the Temples of Angkor in Cambodia
33. Visit Easter Island and see the Moai
34. Go Camping
35. Visit the Croatian coast and Islands
36. Go to Martha’s Vineyard or Nantucket
37. Hit at least 5 American random festivals or large food factories
38. Trek through the Amazon - when all the bugs have been removed
39. Take a super fancy train ride through the Alps
40. Swim with dolphins, whales or manatees

Do you have a list? Cause you should...
Cheers - here's to a life of adventure and living each day to it's fullest!

Where The Hell Have I Been???

Wowee! Sorry about that everyone! I literally dropped off the face of the earth when it comes to blogging! I apologize to all 3 of you that have been wondering where my fabulously useless posts have been. Bottom line is, I got Lazy. I am so computer retarded that I would spend hours on making the perfect post. Everything would be lined up and the pictures looked perfect... Then I would post the thing and it comes out all dyslexic, the lists have become paragraphs, the pictures are all over, nothing is bold. It was driving me nuts. I'm sure I could take a class on how to blog or find a computer guru to tell me how to set it all up, but I lost my energy...

Because I started a new business!!

 Yup this post will now be a little plug for my new business Petits Lapins! We are Oooh Lala Clothes at Oooh Low Low prices! Basically what we do is buy and sell upscale, brand name American and European children's clothes.
We take all the hard work out of searching around for good deals in consingment shops and yard sales! No mom has enough time (Or enough purell) to spend HOURS searching through second hand stores in hopes of finding one or two little gems for their goobers!
What we have done is taken aaaaallll those gems and put them all together in an easy and affordable shopping experience. Right now we are on a trial facebook store at Facebook.com/PetitsLapins - go on plug that right into your browser (computer word!) and request us as a friend and let the shopping begin!
But Katie HOW DO I SHOP on Facebook??

I'm glad you asked! Its super easy! First thing you do is friend request us!
Then take a look at all of our photo albums for Boys & Girls sizes New Born to 5/6 or check out the outerware album! If you see something you want to purchase, make a note underneath it in the form of a comment.
When you are done shopping send us a Mesg with your:
Name
Email
Address
Items Wanted
And BAM! I will send you a paypal invoice via email right then and once it's paid your products will be shipped off to you! Couldn't be easier!

Our goal for after the Holidays is to get a "real" online store up and running. Again see my comment about being a technotard, it's not easy for me but it will make life a lot easier!
The real goal is to open an actual brick and mortor store on the sea coast of New Hampshire. I have tons of amazing moms from Etsy who are interested in selling their couture baby products in our store, which would be amazing! Not only would we be helping out small businesses but we would be offering something different to the public. So much of the baby garb out there today is all the same!!
Anyway we are a ways away from a real store with the economy and everything else, but hopefully someday soon that will be a reality!

But Katie I am also a Technotard but I really want to shop!!

No worries! Why don't you book a Petits Lapins home show! Email us to get the ball rolling! But Basically you call all of your mama, grandma, nanny, gay male friends have them over for cocktails and appetizers and shops for amazing baby clothes right in your own home. Picture an old school tupperware party but with wine! A mama's night out for you and your friends and YOU will Receive a % of the party sales in credit to the store! So the more money your party makes the more loot you get to walk away with!! Perfect for Christmas shopping!! Email us to book a party!
So that's where I've been. Where have you been???
I promise to get back on the ol' blogging horse ESPECIALLY because Christmas is coming which means MORE CHRISTMAS MOVIE REVIEWS!!! What what!! Last year we watched over 35 Christmas specials, TV shows and Movies and this year we are hoping for even more! Send me your suggestions as it is right around the corner!!

Ah, feels good to be back.

Check us out!!
facebook.com/petitslapins
PetitsLapinsNH@hotmail.com sign up for coupons, deals and updates or to book a show in the NH/MA area!

A Week's Worth Of Awesome

Well, the working week anyway. Now that I am jobless I have decided there is absolutely NO REASON for us to be picking around the kitchen desperate to find something for dinner. I can spend my days cleaning, writing & researching, doing errands AND make sure we have a healthy kick ass meal on the table! Don't get me wrong sometimes your body NEEDS to have sandwiches with chips and a pickle for dinner and when it's 99 degrees with 100% humidity my butt will not be standing over a stove! But this week I made some amazing dishes, packed with goodness and with minimal stove usage! Please note that I never follow recipes, I pour and shake until I think it's enough so if you ever want to try one of these recipes take it with a grain of salt, literally and adjust to taste! We traveled from Greece to Italy and back again to have some cozy, yummy and summer friendly meals! Monday Chicken Souvlaki, Dill Cucumber Yogurt Sauce & Mint, Lemon & Pea Cous Cous

I wanted a healthy delicious dinner that would also be refreshing! The Greek know how to do it right, and in fact the Mediterranean diet is huge right now. Because of the power packed antioxidant rich foods like Oregano and Olive oil, this isn't just good tasting its good FOR you! And it allowed me to use FIVE different fresh herbs from our garden! This is a super easy, super fast meal that is great for a hot summer night. Chicken breast Pita bread Plain Greek Yogurt Cucumber Red onion Kalamata Olives Feta Cheese Tomato Cous Cous Peas Lemon Dill, Oregano, Mint, Thyme, Lemon Balm, Pepper Olive Oil, Lemon Juice, Red Wine Vinegar First mix Olive oil, Lemon juice, red wine Vinegar with Crushed pepper, thyme and oregano and set aside. Cut tomato and red onion into thin wedges and halve olives. Add in crumbled feta and pour half of the above mixture over it and set aside. Wash chicken breast and soak in remaining mixture of oil and vinegar. Bake at 375 until done, set aside to cool. Peel and chop cucumber and add to yogurt along with fresh chopped dill, put in refrigerator to chill. Make cous cous according to package, add half a bag of frozen peas, lemon zest and chopped up mint and lemon balm. Warm the pita bread and then fill with yogurt mixture, chicken and veggies and serve cous cous on the side. Tuesday Chilled Cantaloupe Soup With Prosciutto, Tomato Mozzarella Sammies This is hands down one of my most favorite things to make and eat! And its so fast you can whip it up in less than ten minutes. AND NO OVEN OR STOVE! It was crazy hot today and I actually worked, so I was out of the house from 5:30am-7:30pm. I needed something crazy fast with minimal effort. This is based on Italian cuisine and the key here is to use FRESH ingredients. Make sure your melon is ripe and cold, and make sure your basil and tomato are at peak freshness! I promise this will change your life. You're Welcome. Ripe cantaloupe Mint, Salt Baguette or bread of choice Prosciutto Mozzarella Tomato Basil Olive Oil, Pepper Cut melon in half, scoop out the slimy seeds and take off rind. In a blender add all of the melon meat, fresh mint leaves and a few cranks of sea salt, puree until smooth and put in fridge. Cut Baguette in half and cut into sandwich size portions. Drizzle a little olive oil on bread and crank some pepper on them. Slice mozzarella and tomato and layer on bread. Add a slice of prosciutto and fresh basil. Dunk Sammies into Cantaloupe soup, eat and thank me later. Wednesday Campanelle with Lentils, Sausage and Arugula Miss Martha Stewart made with recipe without sausage and with Orecchiette pasta (the ones that look like little bowls) But I thought Campanelle are more fun and we had a ton of left over sausage in the freezer from a BBQ so I decided to add a lil' goodness to this. It's such a healthy meal, what's a little sausage? If you've never played with lentils, now is your chance they need to be your best friend. They are filling and delicious and packed with fiber and nutrients from B vitamins to Proteins. At only 230 calories for a whole cup have at them!! And a fun twist is adding Arugula to a pasta dish. Most of the time you see this peppery devil in a salad but when cooked up it is a peppery, lovely filler to any dish! It cooks down allot so be generous! It's also considered a "super food" and an aphrodisiac so you can feel good about what you're eating and maybe feel good later.... Capanelle Pasta White onion Olive oil, salt, pepper, red pepper, garlic Tomato Arugula Lentils Italian Sausage Parmesan Cheese Water or chicken stock

Cook Pasta until al dente and Lentils until tender In a pan add oil and cook chopped onions with a pinch of salt until brown. Add 1/4 cup of water or chicken stock and stir to loosen brown bits from the pan. Stir in chopped tomatoes and spices to onion mixture and remove from heat. Cook sausage and either slice or crumble, drain and set aside. In deep pan add lentils, onion/tomato mixture, pasta, sausage, chopped arugula and 1/2 cup of water or chicken stock, mix and serve with grated Parmesan cheese on top!

Thursday Taco Lasagna

I love anything with Mexican flavors! A little cumin and cilantro and I'm a happy gal! I love making burritos and enchiladas but this is also a fun twist. I used the no boil noodles to eliminate that step which is great because the wet noodles are harder to work with! I like my food spicy so I add tons of red pepper and hot sauce. And my new favorite discovery (well not so new) is using Greek plain yogurt instead of sour cream. I would bathe in sour cream if I could but it's so fatty. The low fat versions don't taste very good so I have replaced ALL my needs for sour cream with Greek Yogurt! It's more creamy and has ZERO FAT! Don't know how those Greeks do it but I applaud them! Another way I cut fat but add protein is by Using Morning star meal crumblers. Some people might find this scary but I'm telling you they are amazing! They have a great consistency and they take on whatever flavor you want! I also use them in chili and half the time Pete has no idea! This is also a meal I put in the "end of the world" category because if you don't have fresh ingredients you can almost always find 90% of them in your cupboard! You can also skip the Ricotta part and use any other type of noodles to make a cheesy taco noodle bake! No boil Lasagna noodles Morning Star Meal Starter Crumbles Tomato Onion Corn Black beans Cilantro, Cumin, Red Pepper, Paprika, Garlic Low fat Cheddar Cheese Olives Jalapenos Can of Tomato soup Salsa, hot sauce Low Fat Ricotta cheese one egg Greek Yogurt Brown "meat" and add onions and spices. Mix in tomatoes, beans, corn, olives, jalapenos and stir. Mix in tomato soup, salsa and a handful of cheese into mixture and set aside. Mix fresh cilantro and as much hot sauce as you want into ricotta cheese and add one beaten egg. Set aside. In lasagna pan add a heaping ladle full of meat/tomato mixture and spread evenly. Layer lasagna noodles on top, no need to overlap, they will expand. Spread Ricotta mixture over noodles and more meat sauce on top and repeat! Cover top with a healthy layer of cheese! Cook Covered at 375 for about 40 minutes and take cover off the last 5 to brown cheese. Serve with a heaping dollop of Greek yogurt

Friday California B.L.T. Salads

This is pretty self explanatory but OH SO GOOD! I could eat BLTs for every meal, and in fact there have been days in my life where I did! The bacon makes it breakfasty! But to cut out all the bread and add a little more substance I love turning them into salads! You can add whatever you want to this salad but I like keeping it simple to really let the BLT flavor shine. I'm using turkey bacon to make it a little heart healthy but that's getting thrown out the window because I am also frying up the left over Prosciutto from Tuesday to make it crispy and crumbling it on top! I can't waste that goodness and it will be perfect on the salad! And if you've never had a "California" BLT (Avocado, Lime, Black Pepper) you are in for a summery treat!

Arugula, lettuce, or spinach Tomatoes Turkey Bacon Sliced avocado Lime Juice Mayo Black Pepper Put a large heap full of washed greens into bowl. Cook bacon until crisp and them crumble into large pieces. Slice tomatoes and avocado. Toss everything together with a spoon full of mayo, just enough to lightly coat. I find it easiest to cover the bowl and shake the crap out of it to evenly cover everything. Sprinkle salad with lime juice and fresh cracked pepper

It has been a week of good eating!! But not the kind that makes you want to kill yourself! We have covered all food groups and gotten tons of lean proteins and nutrients! Hopefully you guys will try some of these recipes or have them inspire you to try something new! I'd love to hear about it if you do!! There are no real mistakes in the kitchen, it's all about experimenting! And again, not the kind that makes you want to kill yourself, like playing Beirut with white wine! Never. Again.

Bon Apetit!

Loads of Fun!!

It's finished!! Our Laundry room is finished and I couldn't be happier! Having the laundry in our actual house as opposed to the basement makes all the difference in the world! I don't have to trudge down to a damp, dark smelly basement with spiders and God knows what else AND our living room smells of fresh laundry! All it really took was a little help from our friend Bill Clifford who helped move the monster to the other side and a $282 check to our local electrician who spent a hot five minutes changing the plug for our dryer and moving it over! Worth every penny though. We now have an amazing laundry room and more storage! Stacking the washer and dryer was definitely the way to go, not only did we gain some room but you only have to bend over once which definitely makes a difference! And oh the music it plays! I swear the dryer goes on for like 4 minutes with a little jingle, gently letting me know it's done instead of scaring the crap out of me with a siren like beep! And they have Wrinkle prevent! Best invention EVER! Instead of having the clothes just sit there when I forget or don't feel like folding them right away, the dryer goes on for a minute or two every five minutes and it prvents wrinkles! Amazeballs! It feels so good to finally have a room officially done with brand new appliances. Lots of rooms are coming along but won't be "officially" done until we get some brand spanking newness up in them i.e. new fridge, new tub, new bed... Even though its the smallest room in the house, it gets used every day and it prevents us from being nakie so I say that's pretty important!

Un jardin de notre propre!

Want to know one of the BEST things about owning your home? GARDENING! For years Pete and I spent HUNDREDS of dollars on flowers, mulch, seeds, you name it. And it was all for some ungrateful landlords. All of our money, sweat and tears were really only building equity for some ass hats. But we love to do it and always wanted to be proud of where we lived so we sucked it up. But now... It's all ours!!! A Garden of our own! We can do whatever we want and know that not only are we building ourselves equity, we get to enjoy it for years to come!! However my problem is wanting it all to be done NOW! But plants grow (did you know that?) so you have to plant and wait and then see what needs to be done. Our front gardens had a few surprises that popped up in the mulch, We still aren't sure what everything is. My Mother In Law gave us some great advice, saying we shouldn't pull anything up for at least a year because who knows what it will turn out to be! So for now we are keeping what is there but have added some of my favorites! Lambs ear which is so darn soft and blooms a really unique flower, and also lots of Lupins and Lavender!! Love those "L" plants! We have Lilac trees and Lily of the Valley on the side of our wall. If I had my way our whole front yard would be a sea of Lillies, Lavender and Lupin! But Like I said for now, we have to wait and let nature do it's thang! However that didn't stop me from putting in a few kitchy garden accents like my turquoise mushrooms and a few signs! Gotta give love to the Fairies! And it's so fun to get creative! You really can let your imagination fly when it comes to gardening. I found this old wagon at an antique shop for $5! We drilled a few holes for drainage and added a few rocks and filled with soil and some fresh flowers from the flea market! For about $12 we have a really cute, interesting plnater for our front yard! We finally found a spot for our Llama. This Llama was purchased by Pete about ten years ago at a heroine yard sale, yup. It has been in our bedroom, dining room and living room. I swore he wasn't making this last move but SOMEHOW he ended up in the moving van (Even though I offered the men mucho dinero to "accidentally" drop it out on the highway) But I will say that I think she has finally found her home in our raised garden bed. A few wooden pots of different sizes and colors and some rocks and mulch makes the perfect hiding spaces for the top of our septic system, which was not going to grow grass! Though we can't really agree if she is a llama, an Ibex or a deer, we definitely agree that she has never been happier in a spot! We are still working on the "Water feature" though. I spent about an hour in my Wellies and rubber gloves, knee deep in rank water, snakes and dead leaves. While it was nice of the previous owners to set up the foundation for a water feature they obviously never took care of it! We finally got it cleaned out and filled the bottom with river stones and added a zen bell fence. The only problem is we have had the hardest time with the fountain part of it! We need to keep the water moving to keep the mosquitoes from laying eggs. We wanted to go solar so we wouldn't have to worry about plugging it in and hiding the wire but after MUCH research the solar fountain I got barely produces a light trickle and the second a cloud covers the sun it stops! Ah well for now it will do. I want Koi but Pete says we have enough pets! We also finally got our herb garden in! There was already a square bed with ant eaten rail ties so we cleared it out completely and filled it in with Maine mulch! What is Maine mulch you ask? Blueberries and lobster shells - and it is THE BEST! The goobers I nannied for gave us money to plant something to remember them by. And they always helped me cook and Gabriel loved to garden and Ben loved when things were "free" meaning you could pick and eat them, so an herb garden was the perfect choice! We have the most amazing array of really healthy herbs and we can step right out of the kitchen and pick them! Next year we will put new rail ties in and maybe some rocks, but for now it has been such a joy having fresh herbs. You CAN NOT beat Fresh herbs in cooking! Tonight I am making Chicken Souvlaki (Fresh Thyme and Oregano) with A Cucumber Yogurt Sauce (Fresh Dill) And Lemon, Pea Cous Cous (Fresh Mint And Lemon Balm) You cannot beat that! And may I just add, while I was outside taking all these pictures I left a plate of cooked chicken on the edge of the counter and Hurley Van Lou inside. I came in to him sitting on the floor and looking longingly but he DIDN'T TOUCH IT! He had about ten minutes to swipe it! What a good boy. And speaking of dogs, if you rub your dog's in mint and lavender its supposed to keep those nasty ticks away! Our deck is finally starting to feel like home! The Double Papasan got a new coat of weather resistant paint and some outdoor cushions. Our table set (Craigslist for $100) just needs a coat of rust free black paint and the outdoor cushions and umbrella make it the best place to enjoy a cocktail or some BBQ. There is something about an outdoor rug that really ties it all together and gives you that indoor/outdoor feeling. We love having morning coffee (which I am starting to get into) and after work cocktails our here. We have twinkling lights at night and some solar lanterns for extra color!

It's just the start but I think we are in great shape. It feels so good to be doing all this work FOR US. We have 30 more years to perfect it all. Some day the hot tub will be in, the fire pit will be dug and the vegetable garden and bocce ball court will be in. But for now, it's home.

"Gardening is a way of showing the World that you believe in Tomorrow."

Ode to Ryan WINN Kapitz

Tomorrow evening one of my dearest friends will be tying the knot. To anyone that has had the pleasure of meeting Ryan Winn ("as in my parents knew I would be a winner but just left off the "er") Kapitz, this may come to you as a shock. A few years back he met a great girl who totally "got" him, Don't know if she's Czech though... They fell in love, bought a condo in an old folks home and adopted a furry rat named Iggy. Life is good. Kapitz and I met freshman year in college and bonded immediately over our love for Bob Saget (please see above picture) and due to our heritage. However that part came crashing down when my father told him that the Czechs were the rich businessmen (Kapitz) and the Slovaks were the poor farmers (Graycar). This lead to years of dry humping and demands for various pies baked at three in the morning. Alas, we were two Muppet loving peas in a Czechoslovakian pod. After two years of being joined at the hip our parents allowed us to move in together off campus. Probably because his parents knew I would keep him on top of his laundry and well, my dad thought Kapitz was sent from heaven. So Kapitz and I lived together our junior year in college in "The Barn." We shared our living space with our friend Will, He Who Shall Not Be Named, and a stray cat that we named Bonzo Lionel Apple Laptop Or BLAH. I dare you to say "Apple laptop" three times fast and NOT have a better day because of it. Though we had ZERO heat and something died in the basement that released enough flies to think it was a sign of the Apocalypse, we made it work. Cheeseburgers for breakfast, mountain dew for lunch and whatever we could rummage at the Beaver Market with the money Will gave us for dinner and post racing game snacks. Life was simple and we were happy. Even when Kapitz got bit by that dog on the way home and had to go to the hospital, we were smiles. Even when Kapitz got so drunk that the next door neighbors thought he was my mentally retarded brother, there was joy. Kapitz and I spent the next few years being Non-Romantic Life partners. We were each others dates at endless weddings and family events. We spent all of our vacations together, and most weekends taking random road trips. Like that time we ended up in Manchester for no reason, or when we went to the Castle In the Clouds to celebrate your half birthday. Ill never forget out 4 state road trip with Rita to go Visit our friend Josh in NY. We started the night drinking in Westy B, made our way up to Keene for a night of complete debauchery, stopped in CT to say hi to BoobNuts and finally made it to Long Island to have one of the craziest nights on record. How many Polish kids can you shove in the back of a mini van? Why were Rita and I the only girls? Why did that guy flip backwards on the beer pong table for NO REASON? Why did Rita have to give us a $20 to get back to Boston? Why were people always giving us money? These questions may never be answered. But Kapitz and I were adventure bound and couldn't be stopped. We lived together after college as well. Once we bled our parents dry we settled into a tiny apartment with my cat Motoko on Comm Ave. In Allston. Most of that is a blur so this paragraph will be short. The point is, life would not have been the same without Kapitz. The good times would not have been as good and the hard times would have been downright impossible with him. When my father started seriously dating for the first time since my mother passed away, he brought a new girlfriend (now my step mother) up to Keene to meet me. I was a wreck and nervous and not sure how to feel. But when my Dad introduced Bernadette to Kapitz he looked her up and down and said "Daaaaaaamn. Good Job Papa G!" Couldn't have done it without him. I could go on for hours about all of our jokes, antics, adventures and stories but eventually I will have to leave for the wedding, where I'm sure we will all be reliving them throughout the night. I will leave you with this... A few years back I made myself take a writing course in Cambridge. The assignment was a comical piece that told the story of a real character. I could not and still to this day cannot think of a better character that Ryan Winn Kapitz. My story was voted #1 in class and I think every person left that room a little better knowing someone like Kapitz was in the world. Now some of it was fudged for creative/writing purposes, but ironically not any of the parts you may assume. Those are real. It's always been real and I can't thank you enough for all the laughter you have brought into my life. I love you Kapass and I am SO INCREDIBLY HAPPY for both of you! Czech Bump!

Maine, The Way Life Should Be

By Katie Graycar

My best friend Ryan, or Kapitz as he is more affectionately known, has been putting off coming to visit me in my summer house in Maine for over 7 years now. Kapitz is always up for an adventure which is why I can't understand his hesitance. But every time I ask him his response is "The last time I went to Maine I hooked up with a fat chick and fell out of a tree." No further detail. I don't push the story but I do continue to insist that he come!

Finally Kapitz caves and agrees to come for the weekend. I am ecstatic and promise him nothing but a good time! Knowing that he is happy with a cheeseburger and a beer, this shouldn't be a hard promise to keep!

Kapitz finally arrives to the island and before he can even put his backpack in his room, he is off to go cliff jumping with my brother. I have no worries about Kapitz's ability to jump off a 30 foot cliff, but he does have a tendency to be accident prone, so I try not to worry. About an hour later I realize my assumption was right, jumping off was no problem, it was the getting back up the cliff. Coming down the sidewalk are two hobbling bodies leaving a trail of blood. "That freaking cliff ripped off my toe as I was climbing back up!" Kapitz yelled. I knew this was a start to a great weekend...

A few hours later even though Kapitz was down to 9 toes, he agreed to come kayak around the island with us. It's a rough but gorgeous ride and I figured we would have life vests so it would be safe. As we rounded the bend of the island where the cliffs were Kapitz put down his oar to shake an angry fist at the cliff that took his toe and managed to hit the only buoy in sight, knocking him off his kayak and into open ocean. The sounds of swearing and shouting were muffled by the water as Kapitz desperately tried to climb back into the kayak. As it began to fill with water it became obviously that his only option was to swim along side it and pull the kayak back the mile and a half back to shore. When we finally got to the beach Kapitz was breathless. I tried not to laugh but he looked as though he has been attacked by a wild animal, his entire torso was covered in scrapes and bruises and all he can say between breaths is "I.... Hate.... Maine...."

We helped Kapitz back to the house and I am dying to tell the story to someone. I run into the kitchen dragging Kapitz behind me to tell my father what happened and show him Kapitz's wounds. Just as I began my tale, my Grandmother comes in from the porch letting in a stray bee. A bee that flew into the kitchen. Found Ryan Kapitz. And stung him. In the jugular. "Son of a bitch!" Yelled Kapitz as he cupped his throat. The timing of that insect was so precise it was as if God himself sent that bee to punish Kapitz for some unknown sin.

Before I could get the first aid kit Kapitz was upstairs packing his things and heading for the next boat to the harbor. "F' you and this crazy state!" I begged him to stay. I pleaded, offering copious amounts of free beer and women but his mind was made up.

Later that night I received a picture text message from Kapitz that read "Apparently I'm allergic to Bees" And there in the picture was Kapitz holding up his middle finger, which was the only thing on his body not bright red and swollen. He was pointing it at the Maine state Sign that reads "Maine, The Way Life Should Be"