Paper or Clocks

Although the traditional first anniversary gift is paper, I see that the "modern" gift is clocks. What do you suppose the symbol is of each gift? With paper, you can either write love notes to your betrothed...or perhaps to-do lists? And are clocks to remind you to treasure your time together? Or of how little time you have to accomplish all those tasks on your list?
Anyway, Tomkin and I just celebrated our first wedding anniversary, and I feel more blessed than ever to have such an amazing, wonderful husband. Last Thursday, April 9th, we drove down to Northfield, where we met back in 1989 (!!!) at Carleton and fatefully reconnected in June 2007 (and honeymooned last year). We headed straight to the Ole Store (now known as the Ole Cafe--hmph) for lunch and walked around the neighborhood while our food was being prepared. It was such a gorgeous spring day! We checked into the Archer House, unpacked, and took a nap. Then we headed down to Division Street and did some shopping. We were sad that the waffle place had closed--thankfully, though, most of the other places seem to be hanging on, at least for now. I found some great used books and some new sandals, and Tomkin got a couple cool shirts. For dinner we walked down to Basil's and got a delicious gyros pizza. (Why more places don't serve that is beyond me!) We stopped by the Goodbye Blue Monday coffee shop--they have a public computer, which allowed me to check in on Facebook (phew!). We headed back to our room and were going to lounge in the whirlpool, but it didn't seem to be working. First the receptionist came up. Yes, she agreed that it wasn't working. So she sent up the maintenance guy. He tried to fix it but couldn't. Meanwhile, Tomkin and I played a couple games of Bananagrams. They never could get the whirlpool fixed--ah, well.
Friday morning we slept until 10:15 (no dog to wake us up...), then had a breakfast picnic in our room. We headed to the Carleton campus and then to the Arb. We just wandered around, looking at trees and birds, enjoying the gorgeous day. Back on campus, I went to the bookstore, and Tomkin hung out with a group of students who were soliticiting donations for Rotblatt. I talked with them for a while, too. It was accepted students weekend on campus, so I kept wondering if anyone thought we were parents of an incoming frosh.... Tomkin and I walked over to Dacie Moses House and discovered a bench in the backyard. We hung out there and had a picnic lunch. Then we went inside and discovered a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies, so I had one for dessert. We headed back downtown and got coffee at Bittersweet, then did a little jewelry shopping at A Bag Lady. We picked up some groceries at Econo Foods, then went back to the room to read and nap for a while. That evening we got dinner at Chapati, and we reflected on our first year of married life. (It just keeps getting better!) Then we got some coffee at Blue Monday and called it a night.
Saturday we got breakfast at the Tavern, courtesy of the Archer House (they also knocked some money off the cost of our room because of the whirlpool). We did a little more shopping--had to go to Present Perfect, a cute little gifty shop. The woman who owns it is now the mayor of Northfield! (We had talked with her during our last visit, when she was running.) We had a nice chat with her and bought a whole bunch of stuff. After that, we headed home--it was so nice to see Chloe again! Our friend Ben had stayed at our house while we were away, which was great. Tomkin ran a couple errands, and I unpacked, then we both took a nap. We got a new rug that we had ordered, so we got that set up in the living room. I got caught up on my e-mails, and then we took Chloe to a nearby park and let her run around. She needed to burn off some steam! That evening, our friends Liz & Fletch (in town from California), Mark (in town from NYC), and Pete joined us for dinner at Pizza Luce. Then we came back to our place, where we hung out and talked until 12:30. I've only met Liz & Fletch a couple times, but it looks like they're going to be moving here, which would be awesome. It would be cool to hang out with them a lot more.
Sunday the 12th was our first anniversary. We exchanged gifts and cards (I put Tomkin's in an Easter basket since it was Easter). He gave me jewelry. I gave him a few things, including a scrapbook of us from the last year or so and a book about Minnesota birds, which he's been wanting forever. I set up a chair on the front porch so that Chloe could look out at the birds and squirrels. Wow, did she like that! We took her for a walk, and Tomkin brought along our camera with a serious zoom lens so he could take pictures of birds. Then he went through his bird book and checked off the ones we had seen. Almost a dozen--certainly more than I would have expected, especially for this time of year! Tomkin did some work, and I curled up on the couch with Chloe and finished reading "Julie & Julia," then took a nap. (I am definitely napping more now than I used to.) To cap off our anniversary celebration, Tomkin and I had dinner at W.A. Frost and both got the six-course tasting menu. I ended up getting the vegetarian option, just because the foods sounded better to me. Of course everything was gorgeous and too delicious for words. (Seeing as how this is already a long post and I want to watch "DWTS" and "American Idol" tonight, I won't go through all twelve of our foods. I'll just post a few shots, and you'll get the idea.) The servers (we seemed to have a whole gaggle of them) sensed what we needed before we did and were lovely and friendly and wonderful. We were there for about 2-1/2 hours--oh, we ended up being seated at the very table at which Tomkin proposed on January 11, 2008! It was a delightful, amazing, romantic evening--and lots of fun, too! When we got home, we were both pretty stuffed, so we curled up on the couch with Chloe and watched "The Office," "30 Rock," and "Amazing Race." Tomkin's getting me to nap, and I'm getting him to watch TV....
Monday, we were back to work. I caught up on e-mails, did laundry, went to Target, raked some leaves, and started preparing for my friend Heidi's arrival on Wednesday. Tomkin went to the library and the office. I had a premarital counseling session in the evening, then talked to Mom and watched "Dancing with the Stars." I had been too full on Sunday to have any wedding cake, but I dove into it last night. We had frozen a pretty big hunk, and thank goodness! It's still surprisingly delicious.
Today (Tuesday), Tomkin headed into the office, and I did some editing work on the front porch. It truly felt like a summer day--absolutely gorgeous! We walked Chloe down to the vet for a weigh-in (after gaining eight pounds last year, the doc said she needed to lose a few). She'd lost more than a pound in the last month! So we're on the right track. Tonight I had a premarital counseling session, and now I'm essentially on vacation again. Heidi arrives tomorrow (hooray!) and will be here through Saturday. Next week is going to be insanely busy with both counseling and editing. But I won't think about that just yet.... I've got a full itinerary of fun stuff planned for the weekend, including our monthly cocktail party on Thursday. Cheers!

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!