Nothing to report.

Finally found the perfect house, which we will make an offer on, as soon as Matt signs a contract. It even has a room for a dedicated library, something I've wanted since I was a kid. Visited Paddy and her critters (2 and 4 legged) again. Magic and I bonded some more. I'm down a belt hole. :)

Silly me!

Forgot a fun pic Matt took at Paddy's farm... This is Magic. She's a mini-Rex. Instead of being sleek and shiny like Blackberry, her coat has a velvet texture. Crazy soft! Also, she liked me, and stayed in my arms for 20 minutes or so. When I put her down she turned around for more love (unlike Matt's bun, which flicked him off).

Farm day!

Paddy (holding lionhead rabbit) and Tom are our new friends with a farm. Horses, bunnies, and chickens, oh my! They have 3 creative and fun kids (that's Bridget painting with her friend Indigo) in the same range as ours, so we're going to get them together soon. We went to a competition in Salem with them, where we watched Bridget cattle cutting (pick out the three cows with the right number stuck to them, and get them - only them - into a pen on the other side of the arena, under a time limit) and other horsey fun.

Track Meet

I didn't get any pics of Maddy's choir concert (WOW - there were some state champs there - one girl did a Mozart piece that made me cry), but just trust me and imagine Joan Jett turned elegant in a sweeping aubergine strapless gown, on stage with 25 or so of her peers. The girls looked (and sounded) tremendous, but I have to say that's a pretty awkward age for boys. *laugh* The hair alone was cracking me up. Huge fluffy white-boy Fro's, long stringy mops, BeeGee cuts, it was all there.

Man, did we get lucky with these brilliant, interesting, gorgeous girls. Madness writes some killer fanfic, and Gillie is a social butterfly. We've taken them out for dinners and such, and the next big event was Gillian's track meet. She ran, leapt, and threw the hurdles, high jump, and javelin. Waiting for her turn next to Dad she was giggling like, well, a schoolgirl, but when she stepped up to the line she turned all business!

Soundtrack for this post: Danielle de Niese, the Mozart album

Happy, happy girl!

Life is superbly, extraordinarily, exceptionally good.

I love being back home in Portland. It's so beautiful here, and we're getting lots of good friend time, and the kids are truly awesome, and we're house hunting!

I'm drawn to cozy nests with verdant views, while Matt prefers large spaces for entertaining. Our search has led us to quite a few amazing places, but none have been "just right," as the 3 bears say (within our price range). We have only started, though, and we go back out Thursday to look at another batch. We have an incredible realtor, Norm Rice, who I recommend highly. I'm sure we'll find the perfect abode. In the meantime, check out these pics of a house apparently built for dwarves like me. That doored hole in the staircase is the coat closet! No trench coats allowed.

PS - I cheated a little. The mini clawfoot is from a different house.

*This post created while listening to Schlesische Weihnachtslieder, Transeamus, thanks to Patrick. :)

Shop til you drop?

Matt and I went out to the Saturday Market today. It was amazing, as always, but chilly and rainy. I wound up acquiring a new hat to stay toasty. :) We also spotted some fantastic chain maille bracelets and necklaces. These were different in that they were made with finer wire (20 gauge) so they were more ornamental than industrial. Eventually Matt's hands were turning blue, so we headed for more hospitable lands: Pioneer Place Mall.

We discovered that the economy is so bad, even the mannequins are resorting to desperate measures to grab your attention. The seated one has her head thrown back, her toes splayed in ecstacy, she's about to drop her teacup... and she's bare below the waist. I love how the other two are looking at her. *grin*

Home, Home, from the Range

Made it! Wensleydale developed a little glow plug problem, which meant she didn't want to start for the past three mornings. Today she absolutely refused to budge until I recruited some old truckers to help me with a starter fluid trick. Will order new plugs tomorrow. :)

Other news... Matt had a very promising interview today. We discovered that Round Table Pizza delivers to the apartment. And the boys are glad I'm home. Matt's lying across me, Figgy and Tube are within reach, and Peachy is gazing at me lovingly from the cat tree. His throat is puffed up with that abcess again, so he kind of looks like a pelican. A tabby pelican.

The writing is coming along surprisingly well (meaning I'm having fun doing it, not necessarily that it's good prose) given that I haven't written any fiction in nearly a decade. :)