Happy Valentines Day, I guess

Yeah, so we're killjoys. Valentine's day doesn't really have a whole lot of meaning to us. We do exchange cards-- we made them the first year we were married and we write something new every year. We also make stirfry together and watch movies. But no huge bouquets or boxes of chocolate or anything. Sorry, Hallmark. We do celebrate meaningful holidays, like our birthdays, anniversary, Christmas, Easter. Thanksgiving is probably my favorite, actually, as there are no presents to buy and all the preparation involves cooking. :) But I equate Valentine's Day with Flag Day, which is special I suppose to some.

We spent last evening watching disc 1 of season 2 of Arrested Development. The poor Bluth family and their hijinx keep us entertained and, glory be-- no commercials! Thank you God, for inspiring someone to invent Netflix.

I'm feeling better after another bout with this damn cold. I've been sick since November and I can't say I like it. Sick two or three weeks, well a few days, sick two or three weeks... par for the course, I guess. Brad's family was sick a lot when they first moved down here. The mold and junk in the air never gets killed off like it does up north, and the bacteria is all different. I got some antibioticsfrom Mom on Saturday and I think I'm winning for good this time.

Speaking of Mom, I had a lovely weekend in frosty Chicago...

...with Mom and Steph. Can't say we did a heck of a lot, but it was nice. Friday I arrived at the tundra and we went out for dinner at Cheesecake Factory - yum. Hadn't been in ages. And, funny thing, I didn't really want dessert! That is really weird for me and my insatiable sweet tooth. Lately I've been craving salty snacks, namely soft pretzels and "cheese" from Rita's Italian Ice. Which is weird compounded as I don't normally favor fake cheese products. Whatever.

So after Cheesecake we vegged at Mom's place and just relaxed. Saturday I got a manicure in the morning--

--so fun as no one in the world compares to Linda the Nail Tech. She puts every other
manicurist to shame. That was really nice and pampering. Then Steph had a massage. When we all got back to Mom's we were treated to homemade chicken soup-- delish. Mom puts brown rice in it and lets it sit a while, and the rice cooks and turns inside out so it looks a little like rice popcorn and tastes fantastic. Excellent low broth to other-stuff ratio. Saturday afternoon we took naps, and then Mom had show and tell with some fun old dolls she found while unpacking. My old Mandy dolls with assorted outfits and even patterns to make your
own doll clothes! My Strawberry Shortcake dolls, Steph's My Little Ponies, and much more. It was nice to look through them and reminisce.

By Saturday night the cold I had started on Thursday was in full swing and I felt horrid. Mom found a Z-pack she had brought to Africa just in case her cold turned into worse and let me take it, saving me $80 to see the doc and pay the prescription co-pay. THANK YOU! And to
all you kids out there, don't try this at home. I just happen to know how my body responds to z-packs. And the answer is: favorably. That night we rented a movie and stopped by Max and Erma's for a take out of their pretzel stick and "cheese". Those haven't been on the menu
for a blue moon, and I'm thrilled they're back. We watched a movie-- Relative Strangers-- and we all gave it two thumbs sideways. Great cast, lame plot. But it was fun. Oh, and we had a lovely dinner of mom's pot roast, using a recipe I learned Grandmother made up. I am
just loving these hand-me-down recipes and the sense of heritage I feel when I make them in my own kitchen. Yum.

Sunday we slept in a bit, had breakfast, painted Steph's toenails

and I rescheduled my flight for an earlier one. Mom left to teach sunday school and Steph took me to the airport, where I got on an earlier flight. Unfortunately, when one flies standby one usually gets a middle seat... next to a very large man. And not being of the petite persuasion myself, this makes for a sardine-like situation, and I tend to get a bit claustrophobic and nervous. So after a few attempts to sleep and some yoga deep breathing, I got home in one piece and crashed. It was a great weekend, very relaxing, though I think next time I'll take my sister up on her suggestions to play games. I think I would have preferred to connect a bit more instead of watching a movie. Steph and I are notoriously bad at picking out movies anyhow.

And the cold weather was wonderful! It was painful, of course, but it was so nice to have a change from hot, hot, hot! Granted, February and March are the best months of the year here, so I can't complain about my 75 degree sunny weather. But I miss the seasons, and it was
refreshing to see my breath and snow and even salt.

That's all for now, I think. I owe you pictures and am so terribly sorry for being tardy with those. What time I don't spend packing onThursday night will go to blogging.