Ready for a Spring Vacation

So last Friday I had written that Tomkin and I would be going out later that night with his friend Mark. Well, unfortunately, Tomkin had a wedding and ended up getting a flat tire. He was in good spirits about the whole thing, but he didn't get home until 10:00, and by then he was exhausted, so we just ended up staying in.
On Saturday, I went to my friend Jill's baby shower. It was one of the classiest showers I've ever been to. It was held in the back room of the Grand Cafe in Minneapolis, and we got to select food and drinks from a lovely brunch menu. People flew in from all over the country for this event, and Jill got lots of nice gifts. I enjoyed chatting with Cheryl and Erin (and drinking a bellini and a mimosa). It was also nice to see Jill again and meet her mom, sister, and friends. It was a pretty nice day out, so Tomkin planted some raspberry bushes in our backyard.He picked his mom up from the airport (she'd been in Chicago with a friend for a few days), then officiated a wedding. We both took Chloe for a walk, and then we exercised to "Rescue Me." Then we curled up on the couch and watched "The Office" and "30 Rock." Tomkin read, and I played on the computer. Kind of a nice mellow evening.
Sunday morning we woke up to snow. Sure, it was pretty, but I think we're all a little over the white stuff by this point. Thankfully, it all melted by the end of the day. I did some organizing in the basement, and Tomkin ran a few errands. I spent much of the day reading Temple Grandin's new book, "Animals Make Us Human," about animals' emotional lives. There are chapters about dogs, cats, horses, cows, pigs, poultry, wildlife, and zoo animals, and how to enrich their lives. A fascinating book--I highly recommend it. Tomkin and I took a long nap, and then he was feeling a little stir-crazy, and Chloe was, too. So we all went outside and had Chloe run up and down the block a few times. Our neighbor across the street, Sheila, came over with two of her kids. They had fun playing with Chloe, and we enjoyed a nice, long visit. Sheila ran home and got me a slice of a clementine-almond cake she had just baked. Delicious! (I enjoyed it with a glass of Bailey's.) After being outdoors for a while and talking with a cool neighbor, neither Tomkin nor I had cabin fever anymore. We finished off the day by exercising to "Rescue Me." Such a good show!
Monday morning I had a premarital counseling session, and Tomkin went to Juut Salon/Spa on Grand Ave. to get a massage with the gift card that JimDog had given him for his birthday. Not a bad way to start the week! He went into the office, and I caught up on my e-mails, then went shopping at Target. We both took Chloe for a walk, and then we met Becca and Omar for dinner at Salsa a la Salsa. They had a babysitter for the evening and were ready to kick back and relax. We split two pitchers of margaritas and had lots of delicious food. It was SO much fun to see them and catch up. Time just flies when we hang out with them. After we parted ways, Tomkin and I stopped by the Spyhouse coffeeshop and got a cup of coffee. We hadn't been there before--cool place.
On Tuesday, Tomkin headed into the office, and I did some cleaning and organizing at home. (I have two big projects coming up, but there was no work to be done on either of them this week, so I took advantage of the opportunity to get some other stuff done.) Tomkin and I walked Chloe down to Frattallone's Ace Hardware on Grand Ave. The people who work there are really friendly, and they're always happy to let dogs in the store. We love that! That evening Tomkin met with a couple, and I talked to Mom and then caught up on "Dancing with the Stars."
Today (Wednesday) Tomkin spray-painted the white metalwork outside our front door (covered up the rusty areas) and did some touch-ups on the stairs and trim. I love that we're constantly making small improvements to the house. It looks better and better all the time! I did some cleaning and ran a couple errands. Tomkin had lunch with his folks and then headed into the office. I took my Mac (and my old PC) to the Apple store at the Rosedale Mall so I could finally get all my iTunes music transferred. Tomkin and I walked Chloe, and this evening he played poker, and I had a premarital counseling session. It ended about 8:40, and I RACED to get back to the Apple store by 9:00. Just barely made it! The guy who checked me out was SO nice. I can't say enough good things about Macs, and my experience with the Apple store made me love them even more! Once I got back, I was pretty tired. I should probably pack for our weekend trip to Northfield, but I guess I'll do that in the morning (especially since I still want to watch "American Idol"--go Adam!). Tomkin and I are going to stay at the Archer House the next couple nights and have a nice little vacation in the town where we met, in honor of our first anniversary, which is on Sunday. In some ways it's hard to believe it's already been a year...and in other ways it's hard to believe it's ONLY been a year. Either way, it's been an amazing year!

Tomkin Is Fabulous at Forty!

Last Friday, March 27th, I baked a sugar-free birthday cake with sugar-free frosting. Tomkin spent the day meeting with contractors to get bids for redoing our patio and sidewalk on the side of the house and re-pouring cement for the steps in front of our house. (That's the plan for this year. Next year we're going to replace the timbers that line our yard with pavers, and we're going to have the chimney redone.)

Next year, all the timbers lining our yard will be replaced by pavers.

We'll be replacing these concrete blocks with smooth, curving cement, and we'll also be creating a patio out of brick pavers. (This is a photo from last fall.)

Both of us went to a yoga class at the fabulous Center for Happiness and felt wonderful afterward. Unfortunately that feeling didn't last throughout the evening. We settled in and watched a couple more episodes of Texas Ranch House. It ended up being almost disturbing to watch because of the poor treatment of the ranch hands and all the horrible management decisions. We agreed not to watch any more episodes--it was just too unpleasant!
Saturday, March 28th, was Tomkin's 40th birthday (and my mom's birthday, too!). That morning, I gave Tomkin a book of photos and birthday greetings from some of his friends and family members. He met with one more contractor then headed to the library, and I had a premarital counseling session. I did a little decorating--put up some balloons and a birthday banner. For lunch, I took Tomkin to the Loring Pasta Bar. We both love that place, but we don't go there very often. We got a cozy seat by the window, and enjoyed some fabulous food. Then we went home and took an hour-long nap. Tomkin got lots of cards in the mail, which he thought was really fun. We took Chloe for a walk and took extra notice of people's front steps and sidewalks. I had never noticed how some are so beautiful and others look like crap! I'm really excited to have ours reworked. That evening, Pete, JimDog, and Kris & Dave came over, and we all went to Pizza Luce for Tomkin's birthday dinner. I had asked if he wanted a big party, and he said no, he wanted to keep the festivities small. We all had a great time hanging out, talking, and laughing. And even though it's still Lent, I had some pizza in honor of Tomkin's big day (and, later, some chocolate). After dinner, we all headed back to our house for cake and ice cream. I think Tomkin had a really fun day, and I had a great time celebrating him.
Sunday morning we sat around and talked for a couple hours, about all kinds of stuff. I'm still amazed how quickly time flies when Tomkin and I are together! I caught up on "American Idol" (am love, love, loving Adam!!!), and we took Chloe for a nice walk. We spent the day lounging around, reading, and watching a little TV, and Tomkin talked to his sister, Jenny. We're done with all the old episodes of "Project Runway" (sigh...), so now we're exercising to "Rescue Me." Both of us LOVE that show! Once again, it was a nice, relaxing Sabbath day. I am really enjoying this new tradition. I guard my Sundays fiercely now.
Monday morning Tomkin met with one more contractor. I caught up on my e-mails, did my weekly shopping trip to Target, and we both took Chloe for a walk. That night while Tomkin met with a couple, I had a premarital counseling session. Afterward I had a phone date with my friend Jennifer. It was great to catch up with her. I just wish I got to see her more often!
On Tuesday we took Chloe along for lunch at Tomkin's folks' house. We also brought along the birthday book I had made for him. They gave him a belated gift--a stuffed bunny rabbit (so cute!). Tomkin headed into the office, and I worked on a grant proposal. It was chilly and rainy, so we didn't go for a walk. That evening I had another premarital counseling session; Tomkin and Chloe just hung out in the basement. Then I caught up on watching "Dancing with the Stars." This is kind of a weak season overall, but I'm pretty blown away by Gilles Marini.
A year or so ago, my aunt Carol told me about the Love Languages book. Tomkin and I took the quiz (his love language is "words of affirmation"; mine is "physical touch"). We've given the test to a few other people, but we decided we wanted to give it to as many friends and family members as possible. So Tomkin hired someone to create an online quiz, and then we e-mailed to a bunch of people. It has been so fun getting the results! I really feel like it allows you to learn how to relate to people better. If you'd like to learn your love language, take this quiz, and Tomkin will send you the results.
Wednesday morning Tomkin drove his mom to the airport. She's visiting Chicago with a friend for a few days. I finished editing the grant proposal, and we both took Chloe for a walk. That evening Tomkin had his weekly poker game, and I had another premarital counseling session (we just posted a new sign for my business on the front door, and I am now a proud member of the St. Paul Chamber of Commerce), then talked to my mom. Then I caught up on "American Idol." (Between work and TV, I have not had time to blog!)
Yesterday (Thursday), I did more grant research as well as some other work. Tomkin had lunch with his friend Nikki, then went into the office. We both walked Chloe, and then I had one last premarital counseling session for the week (phew!). Helena came over, and we all headed to the Halftime Rec to see our friend Tom's band, the Durty Nellys. I had never been to that bar before. It's a little neighborhood place, distinctive for having bocci ball courts in the basement. We stayed until the band finished playing at 12:30. We had such a great time! The band was really rocking out. Tomkin eventually couldn't take it anymore--he had to get up out of his seat and dance around. It was such a fun night!
We slept in this morning, and then I ran some errands. It's been gorgeous and sunny out, although not quite warm yet. (So, so close! I have been seeing lots of robins.) We took Chloe for a walk, and checked in on Kris and Dave's cats. Tomkin napped, and I did a little work. Now he's at a wedding rehearsal, and he's got a wedding later tonight. Wedding season is starting up again! Later tonight we're meeting up with our friend Mark at Solera, which should be fun. Have a great weekend, everyone, and thanks for reading my blog!

Spring Has Sprung

Well, spring is officially here, although I'm not sure you'd know it from the last couple days. Ah, well.... Last Thursday (March 19th) I started out the day by getting a spray tan and running errands. Then I went to Estetica and got a haircut. And I think I've finally found a stylist I like! That has not been an easy task. Tomkin and I walked Chloe and got ready for our Third Thursdays party. This month we served Irish whiskey drinks in honor of St. Patrick's Day. (We also had Irish cream as a back-up.) We had a great turnout, including many of the neighbors and newlyweds Heidi and Chris. By the end, it was me, Tomkin, Helena, Charles, and Luke sitting around laughing and talking. It was a really fun night.
Friday we cleaned up from the party, and then Tomkin met with a couple and went into the office. I got stuff done at home. It was raining, so we didn't go for a walk. That evening we exercised to "Project Runway" and finally watched the finale of "Superstars of Dance." (It was a little anticlimactic, I have to say.)
Saturday was the first day of spring! And it was really a beautiful day. Tomkin and I finally made it to Helena's kundalina yoga class at the Center for Happiness. It was 90 minutes long, but it flew by! This was unlike any yoga I've taken before. I used to take "power yoga" at my gym in Chicago, but this was more spiritual and less physical. (Though I was surprisingly sore the next day!) Tomkin and I both felt relaxed and refreshed when the class was over, like we had awakened from a nice long nap. I felt both centered and energized. It was wonderful! Helena encouraged everyone in the class to write down three things they would like to see happen in their lives over the next six months and then put that paper away somewhere. It's like you're sending those desires out into the universe, and you don't have to think about them any more. So Tomkin and I both did that. I met up with Heidi at Nina's Coffee Cafe, and we talked about plans for our upcoming mini high school reunion. It's just a couple months away now! We found out that our friend Sarah is definitely coming, which is really cool. I probably haven't seen her in 20 years! I'm hoping I can talk my friend Kristen into coming, too. I know for sure that Lana is coming, which is awesome. We've invited about 20 people all together. Tomkin spent the afternoon scraping and then repainting the trim of our front door. I hadn't realized how chipped it was. It looks much nicer now. We took Chloe for a walk--it was gorgeous out! And that night Helena came over, and we all walked over to Pizza Luce. It has been so wonderful to reconnect with her. We all sat and talked for hours and had a great time.
On Sunday we tried an experiment--letting Chloe up on the bed! It's something I've wanted to do for ages (and used to do in Chicago), but Tomkin has been hesitant. So far, so good, although Chloe actually seemed a little confused by the whole thing. But I think she just likes being with the pack, and if that means sleeping on the bed, then that makes her happy! The first night she was a little too twitchy to stay up there the whole time, but she's gotten better throughout the week.Tomkin and I took Chloe to the dog park, although she was having one of her "shy" days and stuck pretty close. She was happy to run into the water, though, and up the hill that we refer to as "Scout's Ridge." Everything looks so brown right now. It'll be nice when things start blooming again!When we got home, I read with Chloe on the bed, and Tomkin scraped and then repainted our front steps. They look so much better now! He also bought a new sign for our front door. I had put up a "No Solicitors" sign, but he replaced it with one that says, "Before Your Wedding Day Premarital Counseling" and then (in small letters) "No Solicitors." It looks much more friendly and welcoming. Except to solicitors, I hope. That evening we exercised to the finale of "Project Runway." (We're all done with the series now--next we'll finish watching the "Rescue Me" DVDs.) Then I watched "Amazing Race," and Tomkin read. It was a nice, relaxing Sabbath.


On Monday, Tomkin went into the office, and I went shopping at Target, then did some work at home. We both walked Chloe--it was gray and drizzly out. That evening I had a premarital counseling session, and Tomkin met with a couple. Then we and Chloe curled up on the couch and watched the first episode of "Texas Ranch House." (I can tell it's going to be good!)
It was too rainy for a walk on Tuesday. Tomkin worked at the office. I went shopping at Cub and Borders, then got stuff done at home. That evening we went to Kris and Dave's house for dinner. Dave's daughter Emily was there, too. (And we brought Chloe along to play with George.) We had an amazing meal (Gambian stew and homemade bread), some fabulous martinis, and a wonderful, relaxing evening with good friends.
Tomkin had lunch with his folks on Wednesday, but I was so swamped that I didn't go along. As a birthday gift, Tomkin's mom put together a book with 40 photos of Tomkin wearing 40 different hats. It's so cool! I love seeing Tomkin at all ages--from babyhood to his teen years to the present day--wearing so many different hats. Apparently he's been a hat guy all his life. And now we've got the photos to prove it! That was such a fun, sweet gift. I'm working on a grant-writing project now, so I spent my afternoon doing that. Tomkin got my newest website up, for my burgeoning wedding photography business. Multiple income streams! We took Chloe for a short walk (it was pretty chilly out), and then Tomkin headed to his weekly poker game, and I had a premarital counseling session, then talked to my mom. Her birthday is on Saturday--same day as Tomkin's!
Today (Thursday), Tomkin went into the office, and I stayed home and baked cookies. Wow, that sounds very 1950s, doesn't it?! As an early birthday treat, I made some sugar-free cookies that both Tomkin and Chloe really like. We took Chloe for a walk this afternoon (through the lightly falling snow), and now we're in for the evening. Happy early birthday to my mom and Tomkin and also to my grandma (her birthday's on Monday)! And best wishes to all my friends and family in the Red River Valley, who are preparing for a potential flood. We're sending good thoughts your way!

Good-Bye to One of the Good Guys

I was truly shocked this week to hear that one of my high school classmates, Mike Nisbet, had died. I didn't know Mike real well, but he used to work with my friend Brenda, and we had recently reconnected on Facebook. He was a genuinely kind, loving, thoughtful person. He worked hard at his job, took pride in his white truck, went to the gym, hung out with his friends, shoveled the walk for his neighbors, went to hockey games, and loved spending time with his parents and sister. He was someone who just radiated positivity.

Recently, Mike had been mentioning on Facebook that he was having trouble breathing. He even went to the hospital to get it checked out. Then on Thursday he collapsed at work and died at the hospital. It's still unclear exactly what was wrong. Word about his death spread quickly, and those of us who knew him were all deeply saddened and very shocked. My heart goes out to his family and friends, who must be struggling to comprehend Mike's sudden departure from their lives.

Mike, we thank you for the kindness and joy you brought to this world. As your friend Joe put it, you were one of the good guys.

Mike's obituary appears in today's Grand Forks Herald.