Lovely weekend

Sorry the blog has been silent for a while, folks. I was consumed with several projects last week, but now that I've slayed two of them (the last one, a PowerPoint presentation on Tuesday that I'm doing some work on tonight), now I can turn my attention to what has been going on in our lives.

We had another delightful weekend of routine weather (especially notable in the wake of Hurricane Irene. Glad everyone is safe and sound). On Saturday I ran some errands by bike, then met Drew and Rachel later that day at a picnic at Laurelhurst Park given by the Northwestern Alumni Association. I brought chocolate chip cake, almost all of which was immediately gone (same with the peanut butter cookies I made for today's meeting of our chavurah). We met a nice older NU grad named Larry Frank, who was quite taken with Rachel. He complimented us on her blue eyes, predicting that "she'll be a knockout when she gets older!" He also remarked on how secure she seems, and so comfortable with adults -- she just climbed right up on the picnic table bench with the grownups and began eating. I told him we've tried hard not to spoil her and make her the center of our world, and to make sure she's comfortable around grownups -- although she also knows not to talk to strangers, becasue they've taught her at preschool that "strangers are scary!"

Then I biked home, Drew put Rachel down for a nap and I did some work until she woke up. It was beastly hot, and all we were in the mood for was grilled burgers and corn on the cob, and salad. Afterwards we promised Rachel a "special treat" -- Ben & Jerry's ice cream! (the last time we went, she got her ice cream first and then, without a howdy-do, marched over to a table with a free chair, where another family was eating their ice cream. Rachel just sat down companiably and began chatting with them and eating her ice cream, as if we didn't exist. They were charmed!)

After we finished up, Drew pointed out a great Goodwill store on Hawthorne that the salespeople call "the boutique," because it's the best stuff from all the donation centers. We browsed a bit but had to leave, since they close at 9. It'll definitely be a winter destination, perhaps a shopping trip for Rachel and Mommy!

Today I got up early to make peanut butter cookies, and Rachel got to help me roll the dough in sugar before the cookies went into the oven (and when they came out, I presed a dark chocolate Hershey's kiss in the middle. All 36 cookies were gone before we left the chavurah). Then we headed to the chavurah, and had a really good time. The folks sponsoring it have a small house but a big backyard, so we all chatted around a big table while the kids played croquet, and flew paper airplanes. It was gratifying to see Rachel dive right in although the kids are much older than she is -- I believe the youngest is a year or two older. She occasionally sat in our laps for cookies or cuddling but then hopped off, absorbed in playing with her stuffed Curious George. I even got some color on my arms and chest, and fell asleep in the sun after drinking a mimosa or two.

Now I'm finishing up this post while Rachel, with Drew's supervision, sprays vinegar water on some weeds in our driveway so they'll die. I'm about to prepare mustard chicken for the grill. We'll have corn and salad and maybe ice cream again before Rachel goes to sleep, I do more work after dinner and Drew packs up and heads to Seattle tomorrow. Happy weekend, y'all!