One Month Later

We visited with Sara + Marcel again yesterday, and we got to see Audrey exactly one month after we first met her (I wrote about it here and here).

This time I held her for a long time, and she's just so cute!

She slept most of the time we were there, but Eric held her while she was wide awake.

Look! Isn't that just the sweetest? They're a real little family, and they're all getting comfortable with each other. 

Unfortunately I didn't get a good one of Sara holding her, but she was happiest in her mama's arms.

We're thinking we should have a standing date on the 29th of every month. :)

Halloween 2010: Woodland Creatures

Happy Halloween! Eric and I went to a costume party last night. Eric resurrected his David the Gnome costume, and re-purposed a dress from high school and dressed as a fairy princess.

The party was at a restaurant, and dinner was served. It's pretty interesting eating with wings on. And Eric had to take his beard off. Ha! It was great fun. :)

Second Blog Birthday

Happy birthday to us! We started this blog TWO years ago! I made a little video of some of my favorite photos and memories that we've blogged since last August.

Thank you all for keeping us company here on Objects of Communication! You're the best! :)

[Related: First Blog Birthday]

I Hear You're Jealous

It worked out that our visit to San Francisco and Drew's visit back home were only few weeks apart. Drew arrived in Boston at 6:30 AM on August 1, and he left this morning on the 6 AM flight back. He loves the Vineyard, so we spent Monday - Thursday there with the whole family.

A number of people told me last week that they were jealous of the time I was spending on the Vineyard and at the beach. I admit it, I've been living the high life recently. But I'm ready to get back to regular life, because right now regular life seems like it'll be a break. I had a grand time traipsing from state to state and town to town, but now I'm sleepy and happy to be using my own bed, pillows, shower, and couch!

P.S. I upgraded to a Flirckr Pro account, so I'll probably be adding more photos there than I have in the past. Click here to see my Flickr.

P.P.S. Today on the Everything Little Miss blog I've posted photos of some new customized stationery.

[The top photo is Eric's - that's me you see there, playing in the surf at sunset. The bottom photo is of Eric with his parents and brothers. Back: Drew, Jeff; Front: Eric, Kim, Will.]

First Blog Birthday

We started Objects of Communication one year ago today! Here's a little slide show of some of my favorite photos we've featued this year.

We've truly appreciated your encouragement and sweet comments. Thank you so much for following along!

Seven Years

Seven years ago today Eric and I started dating. Is it still called dating after years have passed?

We met freshman year; we lived next door to each other. We became friends early on, and I never imagined that we'd date. As the year progressed we became closer, and we visited each other over the summer and talked on a daily basis. A few weeks before we returned to school (August 5, 2002) we decided to give the whole boyfriend/girlfriend thing a try.

Since then, we've studied abroad together (2003), graduated with honors (2005), travelled across the country and back in 1990 Toyota Camry (2005), moved in together (2007), and grown together (2002 - 2009).

Eric has helped me through hard times and challenging situations. He makes me laugh and feel beautiful. He encourages me to be myself and follow my heart. He proof-reads my blog posts. I've helped him find his style and assert himself. I edited his business school application essays and I help him fight his road rage. I make him laugh all of the time, and I'm proud of him always. There's more, but that's enough for now.

At the beginning we were both worried about ruining an amazing friendship. We're still best friends. ♥

To Eric: thank you.

[I think Eric took the top photo. The bottom photo was taken by Kristen.]

Do Two Negatives Equal A Positive?

Today is April 15th, known as tax day here in the U.S.  I've had my taxes done for a while, in order to apply for FAFSA loans for business school.  Most people know that April 15th is tax day, because, well, most people wait until the last minute to do their taxes.  What many people don't know is that April 15th is also the day Lincoln died.  Not exactly an uplifting piece of trivia, but might as well get all the bad feelings out of the way today and start fresh tomorrow.

In Case You Didn't Know

This sign is from the subway system, or Tube, in London.  I assume the purpose is to allow people a chance to think twice before attempting to walk up the stairs.  We don't actually remember who took this photo, but I'm taking credit via this post.  I think it'd be nice if everything was labeled in this manner.

Think We Can Swim Across?

Today I decided to play around with Aperture Priority mode on my camera. After explaining how to adjust the aperture to little miss spy's Dad, I thought that I should experiment with it myself. Little miss spy's Mom gave me these knights in shining armor, because I worked with arms and armor at The Wallace Collection during my semester abroad. Using my extensive knowledge of staging (I got an "A" in Theater 100 at UMass), I've created a dynamic scene of two soldiers arguing, while their comrades look on. By changing the aperture, I threw the background out of focus, isolated the arguing pair, and thus heightened the already immense tension of the scene.

The soldiers, of course, would be a lot more intimidating if they were bigger than a bottle cap.

Two Gifts: One Picture

For my birthday little miss spy gave me this nice reading lamp.  I didn't have one before, but from now on I will be able to read with an appropriate level of light.  I'm currently reading Lincoln On Leadership, which is a quick read and a Christmas present from my mom.

Taking a Minute

Veterans Day falls on the day that World War I ended 90 years ago. It is one of the only holidays officially recognized on the actual day, November 11th, rather than the nearest Monday. There are only ten verified living veterans of WWI, and only two of those are from the U.S. To the 40,722,128 veterans of all American wars since the revolution, today we take a minute to remember and thank you.

Contain Yourself

Here little miss spy is taking the slogan of the Container Store literally.  I'm sure the store didn't intend its bags to actually contain people, but it turns out the bag does a pretty good job of that.

An Apple Story

On October 5, The Schwarz and I picked two full bags of apples in Harvard, MA. I love picking apples; it's so much fun! Plus, I just love applesauce! 

This year I wanted to try something a little different, so I got my Gramma's favorite apple pie recipe and tried it out. It was my very first pie ever, and I think it was quite the success. It looked fairly professional and tasted delicious. 

I only needed 6 apples for the pie, so I had to get busy making applesauce. I used one full bag of apples and stirred two pots at the same time. I had to use a stool because my arm was starting to hurt -- I hate that picture of me (taken by The Schwarz), but I'm including it for my Gramma. I'd estimate that 40 - 50 apples went in to that first batch and we finished it in less than a week (I ate most of it)!  

How to make my favorite applesauce:

• Peel and cut a bunch of apples (7 -15, depending how much you want).
  
• Put them in a pot with a little bit of water - at least enough to cover the bottom - I usually put about an inch of water. 
• Bring water to a boil, stirring occasionally. 
• As the apples get softer, stir and mash like crazy. You're done when it's the consistency you prefer. 
• Stir in a little bit of brown sugar (1 TB) and cinnamon. Add more to taste, as desired. 
• Let cool and eat! 

I know those directions are pretty vague, but that's what I do. 

Courageous

"Courageous" is the boat that won the America's Cup twice, but the name also appropriately describes the crew of the boat as it competes in a regatta in Nantucket Sound.

Eiffel Tower

Landmarks like the Eiffel tower immediately communicate a specific location, and the culture, attitudes, and emotions associated with that location.

Kids

These two kids are from Drumlin Farm in Lincoln, MA. I imagine the one on the left is saying, "this guy with the camera is freaking me out," and the one on the right has a look that says, "tell me about it."

Birthday Cards

This is my grandmother on her 90th birthday. The picture on the card is my grandmother roughly 50 years ago. Birthday cards can be humorous, serious, thoughtful, and sentimental, but this card, to me, conveys a sense of simple reflection.

"The years teach much which the days never knew."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson