New to the Family

Our computer of 2 1/2 years has decided to stop cooperating, and after weeks of being computerless we finally decided to follow our dream of owning a mac.  Thank goodness we had some money stowed away for a rainy day!  We're all getting along so well, and this is looking like the start of a beautiful relationship!

Not Too Shabby.....

I was in the grocery store the other day and saw a girl with these jeans on.  I thought they were so cool!  I asked her about them, and she told me the brand.  I went home and looked them up online and just about choked on my peanut butter sandwich.  They retailed for $200!  What to do, what to do.....  So I went to ebay and found a pair of gently used ones for $42, including shipping.  I absolutely love them.  Not too shabby!   

Eric's New Haircut

Hubba hubba. Need I say more?

Birthday Girl

We tried to make it a really fun day for her. I think she liked it! The day started with a bath (washing of hair not included), ended with German chocolate cupcakes (her daddy's favorite), and had lots of play in between (some with her little buddies Bronwyn and Darian). What more could a girl ask for?

Thank Goodness for Hair

Wooeee I had no idea my baby was so bald last year! Thank goodness for hair, she's looking like a little girl, and no one at the supermarket is saying things like "how old is he?" or better yet is the avoidance of the pronoun altogether: "how old is, um, your baby?"

Thoughts on Thirty

I was talking with a friend last night about aging. She mentioned the amount of people that look back on time past wishing they had done this or that. Since my birthday I've been thinking retrospectively as well, but instead of "I wish"es, I've been thinking about all the things I've been able to accomplish (especially in the last 10 years). I don't regret a thing about my station in life! Sure, I don't own a home, and my husband is still a student, but with those things have come so many fun and exciting experiences. I will never regret that I was older than most of my friends when I married, or that I was older when I had Aspen.
I don't feel older, but I do feel that 50 is looking younger and younger, and realize that boy, life really does fly. One day I really will be old, and when that day comes I want to know that I enjoyed every point in my life, with no regrets. I want the next 10 years to be as exciting as the last (although I wouldn't mind having adventures in my own house)!

Bummed Out

I guess I should be patriotic and therefore excited that it's Presidents Day, but since Eric has class today anyway the only way I'm really affected is that I don't get any mail. Hmph!

Affordable Housing

If my husband had his way, we'd be living in a tent. Probably forever. That's just the kind of life he prefers: the least amount of "stuff" separating you from nature. When we were dating, he would joke with me about living in a yurt one day. At one point I realized, he wasn't joking.
This is a yurt:
It's basically a big tent with a wooden frame. Some have stoves inside, and they aren't very large. Here's the inside of one that I really like:

Ooh, and here's a tree yurt, which is very Swiss Family Robinson. I like that:

This one makes me think of Christmas. So cozy!

Anyway, as I was saying, I realized at one point that Eric really did in fact want to live in a yurt. At first I was pretty disturbed, but after a while I warmed up to the idea. Not of actually living in the yurt, but owning one as type of "cabin-substitute". More comfortable than a tent, with a wood stove, but more exposed than a cabin. I actually really like the idea now.
We've been talking about building our own home one day, one that's more affordable. Sometimes I just feel like I've got too much stuff. I throw out clothes at least 3 or 4 times a year, and I swear when we move I'm throwing out half our stuff. Anyway, have you seen these? Eric and I found out about them a couple years ago and are big fans:
They're called Wee Houses, and talk about simplicity! I wish I could fit all my stuff in one of these! They're not as cheap as we had hoped (unless you want a really tiny place like the one above), but they're affordable...and yes, I do believe that that's an outhouse up there on the right.....

Dreams, dreams!

It's been a long week.....

actually a week and a half, but it sure seemed longer than that! That's how long we've been without our computer, and it's pretty pitiful how much we rely on this piece of technology. I've been wanting to pull my hair out at times, actually.
Soooo here's what we've been up to.


We bought Aspen a booster seat to replace her high chair and it's one of the best purchases we've made! It's so much easier to have her at the table with us, and she enjoys that. I just hated having that huge high chair take up so much space in our kitchen.
I've got scabs on my face because Aspen's in a phase where she grabs your face and squeezes it between her sharp claws. Also, she wants to feed herself now, so instead of mashing up her veggies I just give them to her cooked (at which point she mashes them with her hands while trying to rub them into the table).
This past weekend we went down to Philadelphia to celebrate my birthday. It was great! Eric and I are reading John Adams by David McCullough (a great read) and wanted to see where Adams spent all his time while in Philly.
This is Independence Hall, where the Declaration and Constitution were signed, and below is us outside.

Below is us in front of the Liberty Bell.

This is one of Edgar Allen Poe's homes, and boy was it creepy! We went inside and I'll never be the same again. It was almost as if you could feel in the walls the sadness that Poe felt while he was living there.
Speaking of sadness...I've been 30 for a week! More on this later....