I Said, Brrrrrr

It's cold in here
There must be some Toros in the atmosphere
O-E-O-E-O
Ice. Ice. Ice.

Break it down now . . .

So autumn---real autumn---finally showed up in the form of a cold front last night. I was all sorts of snuggled under my covers last night and did not want to get out of them this morning. But a certain puppy, who is ab-so-friggin-lutely adorable, was insistent.

Right now is my absolute favorite weather: just cool enough that I need a vest or a light sweater over my t-shirt, but sunny and only a little breezy.

Rowen is also loving the weather; she bounced through her whole walk last night. And she's being extra cuddly at night. Especially when I leave the window open and the wind rattles the blinds or rustles some paper. She gets all worried and presses herself as far up in the bed and as much in my lap as she can, looking at me with those big brown eyes that say, "You'll protect me, right?"

I spent the morning finishing my Christmas shopping. My sister was the last one on the list. She's both the easiest and the hardest person to shop for. She knows exactly what she wants and she makes a list---which includes catalog number, size, and color. So, in theory, all one has to do is pick something off the list and order it. Except . . . sometimes the things on her list go out of stock. And then it is SO stressful to find something because she is so picky. And because if she doesn't like what you got, she will let you know right then and there. So I dread gift shopping for her.

But I was armed with the specifications for two items from the L.L. Bean catalog---one for her birthday, one for Christmas (they are three days apart). The first I got without a problem; the second one was no longer available in the color she had selected. Yikes! I called my mother and we conferenced for about 20 minutes, going through the catalog together to figure out what else K might like. Without the list, we were both paralyzed by fear of picking the wrong thing. I eventually ordered a different sweater, but with a knot in my stomach and the thought that "She can always return it."

Of course, while I was on the L.L. Bean Web site, I had some coupons and a gift certificate to use, so I got myself a pair of black pants, a purple cardigan, and a white long-sleeve t-shirt. I'm eyeing a pair of cute mocs and fleece scuffs. Maybe next month . . . Those scuffs would be very nice to have when I'm taking Rowen out on these cold mornings.

And as the topic of the day seems to be last night's dinner: Orzo with spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, and garlic shrimp, "sprinkled" with parmesan cheese and olive oil. (I don't have a digital cam so you'll have to imagine it.)