Valentines Day's not a big deal in Eisenbergia, but we do have some fun plans this weekend:

Tacos tonight at the Mexican Inn
Playing in the snow with the pups
Some serious video game playing
A visit from Josh's aunt
Sleeping in (which, with a puppy... I'm hoping for 7)
Battlestar Galactica Season 2
And finally some charcoal and yarn with my name on it

I survived my first earthquake. It sounds much less dramatic if I go ahead and admit that I slept right through it. I did have a dream that I was reading a news alert in my Google reader about a 4.5 earthquake that hit Chicago. So, I guess my subconscious noticed it.

I want to write something lovely and insightful for this here blog, but all I've been doing lately is tending to the dog stuff. All I have to talk about are my dogs. All I have pictures of are my dogs. That's it. My friend Jill calls and asks what's up and I've talked about the dogs for ten minutes before I realize that can't be interesting for her.

So. As to not bore you with more updates on the dogs, I'll share this story from NPR about Skeleton racer Zach Lund.

This poor guy got suspended for taking a hair growth drug that was banned and then subsequently taken off he banned drug list because it never should have been on it in the first place. I know one event I'll be following at the Winter Olympics.

The name of the game this weekend was anxiety!

Poor Murphy had to have a "mass" removed so we dropped him off at the vet Sunday morning. They removed the mass and we picked him up Sunday night, I am so happy to report that all went well, and the worst part of it for him seems to be... the cone of shame. He's got some pretty good pain killers, so I don't think he hurts, but he keeps bumping into things and getting stuck. He normally waits until we're asleep and jumps up on the bed to sleep with us, last night I waited up until he tried to sneak in, and gave him a hand. I couldn't bear denying him that comfort- even if he did leak gross dog pus on our duvet... laundry!

Look at how big this thing is!

So, one anxious day, one removed mass, a dental deep cleaning and a whole lot of greenbacks later, murph is home... but he's mad at me for leaving him there alone. Strangely, he doesn't seem to be mad at Josh. I guess I'm just the fall guy.

The one funny thing about Murph being gone for a day, was the way the other pets reacted to his absence. Normally they don't interact that much, but Kitty yelled at us and looked and looked around the house for him (she always does this when he's gone), and Tiber whined and moped. Apparently Murph is the guy keeping it together on the furry front. Who knew?

(Speaking of Ty, how cute is this picture of his nose sticking out of his kennel?)

I did a little take-your-mind-off-it baking this weekend; click through to see my Challah bread.

I haven't updated my wish list since November. I'm making some serious progress these days.

7. Tap Class at the South Shore Cultural Center

They cancelled the tap classes, but I decided to step even farther outside my comfort zone and take a painting class instead. You can check out my progress on my Dwell page, and see last night's first attempt at oil painting here.

34.Learn a Jewish Tradition

This year, better knowing what to expect I threw myself into Hanukah celebrations. I made latkes and sufganiyot and learned the blessing that Josh sings over the candles before lighting the menorah so he wouldn't have to sing alone. To his credit Josh learned some of my favorite Christmas traditions and surprised me too.

35. Meet a blogger

In December Josh and I headed up to the north side to meet Amy while she was in town and in November (I think) we met Miss Ris and her dude in Hyde Park for dinner. Both outings were really fun, and made me wonder why we don't leave the house more often. Strike that, I know why we don't leave the house more often, his name it Tiberius, and he's a mischievous puppy.

48. South Shore branch CPL

This has become my go-to library. It's close, parking sucks but there's usually one spot available, and there are normally only a few books on reserve, so it takes only a minute to get in, find my books and get out.

50. Avalon branch CPL

The Avalon branch is close too, but not as close, not as convenient. But they do always have museum passes in stock, now if we could just make time to take advantage of those free passes...

It's about time for another frivolous post.

A few things that are keeping me sane and entertained; this month presented alphabetically!

Altoids- we're talking addiction level consumption here. I am an Altoid freak these days, the magic formula is to alternate cinnamon and peppermint.

Admission to the Art Institute is free this month! Modern wing here I come!

I have been burning through books from the Chicago Public Library lately. I love the Library's website, very interactive and extremely user friendly; and I don't have to dig through the stacks for what I want, just log on, order your book and they email you when it's time to pick it up.

Josh calls it the DS trance- I'll be into a game, and when I look up an hour has passed, Josh walked the dogs and got ready for bed without my even noticing. He's also taken to mocking me in a high pitched voice "Just five more minutes, I'm fighting the boss!"

Wow. This stuff rocks my world. I usually only shampoo my hair twice a week, but blast some of this dry shampoo on the roots when it starts to get oily, and it looks like I just blew my hair out.

Hello, sanity saver! Murph is a working dog, and he's happiest when he has something to do. Enter the Kong. Stuff it with a biscuit and some sugar free natural peanut butter- and Murph's entertained for hours.

Notice that when talking about the Kong I said Murph is entertained for hours. Tiber has no interest. In PEANUT BUTTER! What kind of a dog isn't interested in peanut butter? Well, when he needs something to do we can bust out these frozen bones, the dogs LOVE them. They stink to high heaven, but they get the dogs to sit down and focus on something other than mischief for a while.

Josh hates it. It's too dark for my skin tone. But still I persist. I adore the matte red lip pencil from NARS. It stays put and doesn't leave lip prints, and I love to wear it with my wayfarers and some big earrings.

I'm at about the half way mark with my art class, and so far my favorite thing we've worked with is this Willow charcoal. I can already tell I'm going to enjoy painting, but the charcoal is something I can break out at home and practice with.

I suppose I'm rather sensitive. I get sick a lot. I get incredibly sore sleeping in any position slightly different than normal. My allergies are a year round burden. I'm prone to migraines and heartburn like you wouldn't believe.

But my feelings rarely get hurt. I can count the number of people on one hand who can actually hurt my feelings. With respect to the overwhelming majority of the population I have a very ambivalent attitude. I'm occasionally curious, but really I don't care what other people think of me. I try to be good. I try to make the right choices (alas, it wasn't always so...) I try to be kind. But I'm also very flexible. I try to keep in mind that what works for someone else might not work for me. I am fully aware that what I know to be right others might think wrong. I don't always care to keep my voice down, I won't always stifle a laugh, and I can't be trusted not to speak up if I disagree. I just don't care what strangers think of me, my threshold for embarrassment is extremely high.

But like I said, that all only applies to the majority, there's still the minority to contend with.

For the most part, that minority is my mother. I think it's very interesting how our relationship has evolved over the last ten years. Actually I find the whole idea of adult child- parent relationships wildly interesting.

Just this weekend I settled into my chair in the living room in my sweats, coffee in one hand, puzzle in the other and I had one of those overwhelming "I have become my mother" moments. If my mother wasn't a woman who I admire, respect, and adore I might have a problem with that, but let me tell you, there are worse things than becoming a woman like her.

At the same time, nobody is perfect. My mother; a triathlete with multiple degrees is the most capable woman I have ever met. She has never done anything with anything less than absolute zeal. She is 100% committed to everything she has ever tried. But sensitivity, this is not her department. If I'm as tough as nails, she is as tough as high strength low alloy steel. She cares even less for the opinion of strangers than I do.

My mother is the only person who can hurt my feelings. And she's the only person I know who's never tried to do so. It's such a strange paradox. As is the fact that I've never once held this against her, because were she able to refrain from saying whatever it is that stings, she'd do so in a heartbeat. She just... has a hard time recognizing things that might be hurtful- because the same things wouldn't hurt her feelings. I don't want this to sound like some sort of assault on her character. My mother is the most amazing person I've ever met, and she's certainly one of my favorite people anywhere. I wouldn't change a single thing about her.

I think the most interesting thing about the parent- adult child relationship is the enormous opportunity that every generation has to do it just a little bit better than the one before it. I get the benefit of my mother's strength, but also the benefit of her weakness. If I pay attention, I have a chance to decide what kind of woman I want to be. I am doing my best to be strong, independent in both mind and action, informed, educated, and also sensitive and nurturing. Some of these things come more easily to me than others.

In an unmentioned and seemingly unrelated way this topic all stemmed from what I've been working on in art class. To see this week's masterpiece click here. (This week it's in color)

You know we love our furry buddies in Eisenbergia. You may not know that we love our green, oxygen producing buddies too. To date we have twelve plants, all miraculously thriving. We aren't the kind of people who talk to our plants, but we did name them all- it helps keep track of them.

It seems like no matter where you look in our home you see a plant or six. And I like it that way. In fact, Josh has to restrain me, or else I'd probably come home with another plant every time we left the house.

It only makes sense then, that when I wanted to practice sketching with charcoal this weekend I decided to use two of our plants as subjects for a couple of spontaneous still lifes.

First, our huge peace lily, Peggy.

And second our crazy, fern thing Brunhilde.

These are two of my views from my spot on the couch in the living room. Lovely.

A lot of people have been asking how the Murph dog is adjusting to having a new buddy in the house. I'd say he's doing... OK. We haven't had any aggression or behavior issues, but he doesn't seem especially happy about it either. It is a testament to what a good boy he is that his jealousy is manifesting in his being more affectionate and obedient even though he looks at us with a face that plainly says "seriously, why would you do this to me?"

We're being sure to shower Murph with affection, attention and treats, but I think he see's right through our ploy.

He knows what's up, his carefree only-dog days are through.

Check out January's EBcO recipe here.
Check out my recently completed projects here.

For some reason I was thinking about my first date with Josh on my way to work this morning. It made me smile and I got lost in that memory until the person in the car behind me honked their horn and jarred me back to reality.

I've told this story a million times. After three dates we decided to move in together. After three weeks we got engaged. After three months we were married. Reading that now it sounds like a disaster waiting to happen, but it's working out so far.

I think a lot of young girls or young women think that getting married is the end of your love story. I can attest that it's not the case at all- but your love story might look a little different than you think.

What I was remembering this morning, when I was stopped at that red light, was that giddy butterflies in your stomach feeling. I was thinking about how over the course of the night he went from nervous to charming and back to nervous again- right before he kissed me in the street. I was remembering how awkward and adorable he was when he fumbled through some silly ruse, "I just need to grab something..." to get me up to his apartment. My cheeks get just as hot thinking about it now as they did that night, and I loved it.

But I also love when I open my sock drawer to find my socks matched and folded and then I notice all my laundry has been done. I love when I'm steeling myself to take the dogs out into the cold and learn that Josh got up early and already took them out. I love when I make something for dinner that Josh doesn't like and he tries so hard to pretend that he does. I love when I've had a bad day and I get home to find Josh in the kitchen making dinner waiting for me with a glass of wine.

I think that love and romance doesn't look anything like pop-culture teaches us to expect. And I love that too.

Dudes! I forgot to mention it was Josh and my first anniversary last weekend.

We knew we'd be getting the new pup on Sunday, so we went out to celebrate Saturday night.

We got all dolled up (I forgot how nice I look when I shower and blow out my hair) and headed out to Bon-soiree in Bucktown. Bon-soiree catered our wedding, but they're also an amazing creative restaurant- and BYOB to boot! We stopped at Red and White to pick up three of the best bottles of wine I've ever had the pleasure of drinking.

We ran into the puppet show bicycle guy, I've seen his bike/theater closed up all over town, but Saturday was the first time I've ever seen him (her?) performing. Weird. And Lovely. And everything I am starting to love about living in Chicago.

So. Great food. Three bottles of terrific wine... the thing is, three bottles of terrific wine is still three bottles of wine... and we were sauced. We managed to make it home, I think we watched a SNL rerun, and apparently had an impromptu photo shoot. God, I love the silly things I end up doing when I'm drunk.

Morning came too soon- and with it, Murph's last chance to enjoy the perks of being an only dog.

We had to get up and clean the house because the people from Greyhounds Only, the greyhound rescue organization, were bringing Tiber to live with us.

Their visit lasted three hours. The three longest hours I've ever spent trying to pretend I'm not hung-over. I will say that both and Josh and I gave ovation-worthy performances. I'd like to think we came across as responsible adults who just really, really love Gatorade.

It is remarkable that a four day week could last as long as this one has. Book ended by two awesome weekends (well, expectations for this weekend are high at least) these four days seemed to stretch on into forever.

But. The weekend is so close now it's just teasing us.

We have lovely plans Saturday night, but Sunday we should be getting our new dog, and I am so antsy-in-my-pantsy excited. We've been deliberating for two weeks what we should name him (his racing/kennel name is Rivera, and, just, no) but for the longest time nothing clicked. Every name was, you know, fine, but nothing really felt right. Yesterday I opened the search up and asked my folks if they had any ideas- and my dad, making a joke, sort of blurted out a name that immediately made my mom, Josh and me all exclaim "That's perfect!"

So we have a name. We have a totally huge crate in our living room. We have toys and food and tags and food bowls.

We just need our new little buddy.

P.S. To check out this week's masterpiece from painting class click here.

It is no secret that I love Colorado, and miss it dearly. I miss my friends and family, I miss the mountains, I miss Golden City Brewery, and I miss the burgers at the Cherry Cricket. Specifically a half pound Cricket burger, medium rare with Swiss cheese and chili strips. Drooling. Drooling as I type. Jilly picked me up at the airport Friday night and we went straight to the Cricket for dinner- at 9:30 pm!

It was worth it. Juicy burger + Stone IPA = Heaven

Katie came down and after dinner we headed back to Suz's house where we sipped Limoncello, watched Jersey Shore and chatted until 3:30 in the morning! I don't know the last time I stayed up that late, but we had so much hangin' to do, it didn't even feel that late.

Brunch the next morning was fun- if not a culinary success. Suz says that I curse every restaurant we go to- that a normally great spot will undoubtedly have an off day when I'm among the patronage.

Sunday morning we met for one last meal before I headed over to spend some QT with my folks. I'm sure Ivory would have preferred a child free brunch, but she brought sweet little Emma. The last time I got to spend any time with Emma she was just a little bitty thing, it is amazing watching babies turn into kids.

I love this hazy, out of focus photo. That's exactly how I felt. Hazy and out of focus.

Look at these two- I think they are the most beautiful, photogenic couple on the face of the Earth.

That face! Am I right?

Every year two of my friends, Ivory and Tanya, host a joint birthday party in January. Last year I missed it, but this year I was lucky enough to be in town for the shindig. The party was at a bar in Denver called the Garage; a great place for games, like the ring game and darts- though we only played darts for about five minutes before abandoning the game in favor of the good company.

It was an overwhelming good time- great to see these pretty faces.

This guy's pretty face too! Poor Saquib, I badgered and harassed him into coming out to the bar after a long day of work.

I love how pictures get sillier as people get drunker.

Of course, we can't resist the opportuntiy for a photo shoot.

Aaaannnndddd, it might just kill me to keep my clothes on.

It was so great to get the chance to catch up with so many friends. It made my heart feel so full.