We Made It!

It took 2 days, but we made the 1200-mile journey to Iowa and have arrived to SNOW galore! We were happy to find that we just missed the storm system that dropped more than 10" of snow on NYC. The mountains of Pennsylvania were a bit snowy at times, but the wide-open, flat roads of Ohio were a welcome relief on Saturday afternoon.

We spent the night at Breighan's house in South Bend, Indiana, on Saturday night. It was so good to see her and her new apartment is fabulous! Together, we enjoyed a delicious Italian meal at a restaurant around the corner and shared a couple beers before bedtime.

On Sunday morning we hit the road for Jefferson! Blowing snow kept us below 50 mph in eastern Iowa, but we still managed to make it to Jess's parents by 3:00pm.

And now here we sit . . . by the fireplace, drinking coffee, reading the paper that is delivered to the front door(!) . . . and most importantly, basking in the warmth and love of Jimbo and Lindy. Merry Christmas to all!

50° is Freezing!

In the words of Papa Mo . . . Brian's dad . . . "Brrrr! I am Southern to the bone!"

And in the words of Mama Nellie . . . Brian's mom . . . "Will, pass me another blanket!"

Post-Holiday Sleep

Well, another Thanksgiving has passed. We had a terrific time with Brian's parents in town visiting, but naturally the boys now feel exhausted. Brian, Oliver, and Gus settled down for a nice, long holiday nap. (We're only sharing these pictures because Oliver, as usual, is terribly cute.)

Nighty, night.

Puppy Parka

The weather has turned cold across the northeast. But I hope my midwestern family is enjoying their 70+ temps in November! Grrrr.

Little Ollie needed a coat for the season! It matches the color of his eyes, don't you think?

And it's reversible! Perfect for his construction job on the weekends.

Doesn't he look adorable, albeit a little bit scary with his glow-in-the-dark-I-know-you're-making-fun-of-me-in-this-outfit LASER EYES... (click to enlarge picture)

A Southern Husband

When you marry a southern boy, you take a vow to love him in good times and in bad, to cherish and honor him . . . and to cook him lots and lots of fatty, cheesy, buttery, salty food!

So, I take my cue from Brian's favorite restaurant, and once a month, we indulge in "Cracker Barrel Dinner." (And then we go shopping for bigger pants!)

The swiss steak with onions and mushrooms slow cooks in the crockpot, and the smell wafts through the apartment for hours. The green beans with lemon pepper are cooked until all nutritional value is lost, making the perfect side dish. But the real Cracker Barrel showcase is the cheesy hashbrown casserole. Drool . . .

Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole à la Cracker Barrel

2 lbs frozen hashbrowns, thawed

2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

1 medium onion, chopped

1/2 cup butter (1 stick), melted

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, combine melted butter, cream of chicken soup, onion, salt and pepper.

2. Add thawed hashbrowns and cheese, stir until combined.

3. Spread the mixture in a 9x13 dish and bake for 40–60 minutes, or until done to your crispy or gooey likeness!

Enjoy, y'all . . .

When in Canada . . .

As the saying goes: "When in Canada, EAT like you're Canadian!"

Seriously! How are Canadians not dropping dead at every corner restaurant?! A dietary staple? Smoked meat with a side a poutine (which is the suspicious looking dish below with a fork in it). Yum, yum! Be sure to wash it down with a refreshing, room-temperature Coke!

For those of you unfamiliar with poutine, you should read all about it here.

It's basically French fries, topped with cheese curds and brown gravy. Canadians actually eat this s*%t for breakfast! Gross, right?! Lord help healthcare reform if poutine catches on in the States.

This is picture of our Florida State/Furman/Texas/Memphis (but not in that order) friend, Sean Atkinson. (Some of you may recognize him from the wedding groomsmen lineup.) Despite the risk of cholesterol overdose and cardiac arrest, Sean decided a meal-sized portion of poutine was a good idea.

Think again, Sean! Have fun at the three-hour afternoon session of scholarly discourse on "Schemata and Topoi." (We won't be sitting next to you . . . yikes!)

Bonjour, Montreal!

Last week we journeyed to the annual conference for the Society for Music Theory (SMT) in Montreal, Quebec. This conference is always a big deal! It's a time to see friends from across the country, rub shoulders with the bigwigs in our field, and engage in deep, meaningful conservations about music that don't involve how to teach undergraduate ear training!

More importantly, this year Brian was a conference presenter! It was a major step in is career, and he looked like a pro doing it! (I hope you'll notice in the pictures that his equally talented wife dressed him to impress . . . lookin' good, Bry! Thanks for the blazer, Mama Lindy.)

As you may have heard, the weekend didn't begin well. We blew a tire just outside of Manhattan, with 320 miles yet to go. Oh yeah, and it was raining. Oh yeah, and it was 8 o'clock at NIGHT! Oh yeah, and it happened along a dangerous curve on the interstate, where there was virtually no shoulder to pull over. But like a teamster from a Nascar pit crew, Brian replaced the tire with the spare in record timing! Whew! And we were off (again) to Montreal . . . going 50mph.

We arrived at our friend, Christa's apartment at 4:30am, but apparently Christa is a bit of an insomniac . . . so, I guess we arrived on time. Luckily we were able to sleep in before Brian's big presentation.

At the conference we met up with our longtime Cincinnati friend, Breighan. Miss Breighan now lives in South Bend, Indiana, so it was a tremendous treat to spend time with her in Montreal.

As to be expected, Breighan brought along her cuddly little stuffed puppy, affectionately known as "Puppy." Too bad we forgot to bring Gus, our equally cute stuffed bear son.

Another treat? Dr. Brett(0) Clement! Another Cincy friend, Bretto recently finished his Ph.D. at UC and is now teaching at Stephen F. Austin in Texas! Yee haw, Brett. (This is a bad picture, but here he is, chilling in the hotel room.)

See more highlights from our trip in the following post.

Any Given Sunday

Just "chillaxing" and watching the football game from my new perch. Can you spot me?

I'm up here!

Puppy Parents

When I'm sad, I look to my mama. She talks me through the tough times.

Mama understands me and we both have a penchant for drama!

Sometimes we just throw our heads back and bat our eyes at the world.

And Papa? Well, he just makes a good footstool when I want to look out the window.

Rearranged

You know that feeling when you need a fresh start? When you're just fed up with the same old routine? We felt it this morning. So, we decided to tweak our feng shui, if you will.

We're going to give this arrangement a try for the next couple of weeks. We're hoping Oliver will take advantage of the view: he likes to sit on the back of the couch. (Don't worry, we can open the windows from the top so he won't fall out!)

Although it's not as cozy as our old setup, it's probably more conducive to entertaining company . . . and keeping an eye on Oliver at ALL TIMES!

Moving the TV also required the husband to finally deal with the fire hazard of tangled cables lurking in the corner. (Hurray!)

Oh, and here are some other recent additions to the apartment:

A new comforter and pillow cases.

A new bedside plant named Tresa. (Not a typo. She's three plants in one, hence "tres" meets Teresa.)

A Day in the Life of Oliver

Hey there, it's Oliver again. Thought I'd let you know what I've been up to lately.

On Tuesdays I usually go to the dog park in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn.

When my papa throws the ball I run like crazy!

When I get home from the dog park, mom insists I take a bath.

In an effort to dry myself off, I like to mess up the sheets real good on my parents bed.

Then my papa cuddles with me 'cuz I'm so damn cute.

Sometimes he hugs me too tight and I growl at him! Geez parents are embarrassing!

I get so tuckered out at the end of the day that sometimes I have to sit sideways. Yeah, life is "ruff."

Happy Fall Y'all

At precisely 5:18 pm EDT today, the fall season will begin! Hurray! Fall is definitely one of the best . . . no wait . . . it's THE best season of all! The leaves, the cool air blowing through an open window, football, pumpkin-flavored everything, the harvest . . . ahhh, fall.

Preparing for fall in our home means dragging out our favorite cookbooks filled with hearty, cold-weather recipes! And tonight we usher in the fall season with stuffed red peppers, sauteed cabbage, and Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale.

Stuffed Red Peppers

1 (3 1/2 ounce) bag boil-in-bag long-gran rice

4 medium red bell peppers

3/4 lb ground sirloin

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 tsp paprika

Salt & pepper to taste

1/8 tsp ground allsprice

1 jar of tomato-and-basil pasta sauce, divided

1/2 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup dry red wine

Cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 450°.

2. Cook rice according to package directions.

3. While rice cooks, cut tops off bell peppers; reserve tops for garnish (optional). Discard seeds. Place peppers, cut sides downs, in an 8" square baking dish; cover with plastic wrap and microwave at hight for 2 minutes, or until peppers are crisp-tender. Cool.

4. Brown beef and onion in a nonstick skillet. Add parsley, paprika, salt, pepper, and allspice, and saute until fragrant.

5. To the cooked beef mixture, add rice, half the pasta sauce, and cheese. Stir until combined.

6. In a small saucepan, combine the remaining pasta sauce and wine. Bring just to a boil.

7. Spoon the beef mixture evenly into each pepper. Place peppers back in 8" square baking dish, coated with cooking spray. Drizzle wine mixture over peppers. Cover with foil.

8. Back at 450° for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake an addition 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Garnish with reserved pepper tops (optional).

Sauteed Cabbage

1 small cabbage head

1 or 2 strips bacon, chopped

chopped onion

olive oil

chicken broth

fresh thyme and/or parsley

nutmeg

salt & pepper to taste

1. Heat about a 1 Tbsp olive oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add some chopped onion (I use what I have left over from the stuffed pepper recipe) and some chopped bacon. Cook until tender and bacon begins to crisp, about 6 minutes.

2. Cut cabbage into strips about a 1/2" wide. Add to pan with onion and saute. You may wish to add a bit more olive oil, or butter for flavor.

3. As the cabbage begins to wilt, add some chicken broth for flavor. If you like your cabbage crisp, don't add too much!

4. Add some fresh thyme (or parsley) and a pinch of nutmeg, cook until fragrant. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.

Fruit Still Life

There's a special place in this world for Melon and her fruit cronies. So take a load off, Melon, and enjoy the view!

Oliver's First Love

Oliver is growing up so fast, and we knew if would only be a matter of time before he showed an interest in . . . GIRLS! Our friend Ann came to visit in August and Ollie got a little . . . um . . . fresh . . .

Ollie: "Ann, I love the way you pet me. You're so pretty. Will you be my girlfriend? I love you."

Ann: "Woah there little guy! Are you serious? I mean you're cute, but I live in Cincinnati and you live in New York . . . "

Ollie: "Oh, Ann, I would follow you anywhere."

Ann: "That's all I needed to hear!"

Ollie: "Take a picture, Mom. We're in love."

Top Dog

"I feel the need . . . the need for speed!"

Olliecare

Unless you've been living in a cave for the last 9 months, you've certainly been hearing lots about the many health care proposals circulating in our nation's capital. (The recent debates have made me think about moving to a cave.) Jess and I've been discussing the issues a great deal.

We consider ourselves lucky. Not only are we relatively healthy (though if we keep eating this, we won't be for long), my employer (CUNY) provides us relatively affordable health care, a luxury we wouldn't be able to afford if we were forced to buy health care on our own. Jess and I both feel that anything that might improve our country's 37th place World Health Organization ranking would be a good thing. Sure, if reform passes, things will be different. But isn't that good?

Recently, however, our dinner-time, health care discussions have gotten rather raucous. Not on account of Jess and I, however:

That's right, Oliver has injected himself into the health care debate. No. . . he's not on the side of those that call Obama and his posse Death Eaters, nor does he think the plans floating around Congress amount to "socialized" medicine. [By the way, Oliver thinks that many political pundits use words like "socialist," "fascist," "Hitler," etc. without really knowing what they mean in an attempt to scare American citizens. He knows what they mean. He's not scared.]

No, Oliver isn't afraid that the so-called "Obamacare" does too much: He thinks it does too little. Oliver's upset that none of the proposals currently circulating the offices of Capital Hill contain any insurance guarantees for animals. He thinks that calling these plans "universal health care" is a misnomer. These plans are not truly universal because none of them cover any of our four-legged friends.

His life is at least as dangerous as those of us with opposable thumbs and the ability to speak. On a daily basis, he chews on and consumes all sorts of potentially dangerous items, walks over broken glass on the streets outside, and he often has to avoid the footsteps of careless Brooklyn citizens.

Oliver's proposal would offer guaranteed, affordable health care for all US citizens, including our pets. Not only would his proposal provide preventative care and allow all animals to choose from whichever veterinarian he or she likes, but it would provide end of life counseling that would help these animals create living wills.

Oliver doesn't have the means to canvass for support anywhere but in this apartment. He asks that if you'd like to support his call for justice, post a comment in the box below. His parents will forward the comments to Pres. Obama.

The Atkins Anniversary Dinner

For our anniversary, Brian's parents treated us to a fancy meal in Manhattan. We ultimately decided that the one thing we would never splurge on ourselves—and, therefore, should treat ourselves to—would be a steak dinner. We opted for something casual, but refined, and moderately priced, so we could toast with a fews drinks too.

Welcome to the Brasserie Les Halles, where American beef is cooked in a French style!

We started the evening with some French beer, why not?! Ummm . . . I'll tell you why not: Kronenbourg 1664 = La francaise Bud Light.

But dinner? Dinner was mouth watering, jaw dropping, heart stopping . . . SO GOOD! We're not kidding about the heart stopping though: it was an all-meat feast! We ordered the Planche de grillades for 2, which is an assortment of grilled meat served on a plank.

Besides the mound of French fries it came with, our dinner included: 2 lamb chops, 2 hanger steaks, 2 links of merquez, 2 sirloins, 2 strips of thick cut bacon, Provençal dressing . . . and oh yeah, can't forget the vegetables . . . 2 slices of grilled tomato!

Goodbye Slimfast diet, hello Atkins diet.

Turkey Pot Hold-the-Pie

Oliver has been such a good dog lately. He's been well-behaved, patient, and loyal, while Brian has been preparing for his doctoral exams over the last 3 weeks. And because the little guy has asked for nothing in return, we decided to surprise him with a tasty, pet-friendly recipe, courtesy of Rachel Ray Magazine. Perhaps you'll want to share it with your puppy, too!

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon flour

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

1/4 pound deli-sliced turkey, chopped

1 cup frozen peas and carrots, thawed

2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

1. In a small skillet, heat the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour for 1 minute, then whisk in the chicken broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat and simmer until thickened, 2–3 minutes.

2. Stir in the turkey, veggies, and parsley. Cook until heated through, 2–3 minutes. Let cool to almost room temperature before serving. (Makes 4 servings)

Clearly Oliver loved it . . . even though we only had peas, no carrots. He even preferred the leftovers served cold for breakfast!

Cherry Clafouti

If you're not French already, you will be after you eat this!

*** Please take note that making and eating our recipe for Clafouti is not optional: you must make this right now!!! ***

It is best served warm, so bake it just before you serve dinner (or breakfast, yum!), and serve with a spoonful of crème fraîche.

Unsalted butter, for dish

2 large eggs

1 large egg yolk

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup crème fraîche, plus more for serving

3/4 cup whole milk

1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus more for dish

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

12 ounces cherries, halved and pitted

Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

1. Preheat your oven to 375°

2. Butter a 9'' (1.25" deep) baking dish and sprinkle granulated sugar over butter.

3. Whisk together eggs, yolk, and flour. Then whisk in crème fraîche, milk, granulated sugar, vanilla, and salt.

4. Arrange cherries in prepared dish and strain batter over cherries.

5. Bake until browned around edges and set in the center, 30–35 minutes.

6. Let cool only slightly, dust with confectioners' sugar,

and serve warm with crème fraîche!

It's Getting Hot in Herre

Please tell me someone knows the Nelly (ca. 2001) single, "It's Getting Hot in Herre" . . . because I just witnessed it in my apartment. In an attempt to cool off the Yorkie—because the poor guy looked plain miserable—Brian held Oliver in front of the fan for 10 minutes . . .

To hell with that plan . . . Nelly says "take off all your clothes" . . . which didn't really do much for Oliver. In his last attempt to beat the heat, Brian thought he would try panting, and Oliver showed him how . . .

We'll be at the park . . .

"Good luck, Brian! I hope your extremely important doctoral test at the Grad Center goes well? At least you look prepared! Call if you need us, we'll be at the park."

"Well, hello there Oliver! Would you like to go to the park, while Daddy takes a 6-hour exam? Okay! Let's head for Brooklyn's Prospect Park with a very big blanket . . . "

"Well, hello there park! And hello commemorative Vanity Fair with Michael Jackson on the cover! (Rest in peace, my MJ. I love you.) And HELLO a cool piece of shade on a hot summer day . . . "

[By the way, yes, Jess knows that she has to take this exam herself in the fall. Boo hoo.]