A Case of the Mondays

I should have known it was going to be a rough day when I turned on the television this morning and saw that it was 0 degrees outside...are you kidding me??? I thought we were done with the sub-zero temperatures. The morning continued to get worse when Art discovered that he could not locate his keys. After a good 45 minutes of looking with no keys in sight he took my car, leaving me housebound for the day. I was only planning to go to Target, but was so looking forward to it. To top things off, Claire is a major grump today. I thought we were getting somewhere with putting her down for naps. It had gotten to the point where we could put her down and she would go to sleep in a matter of minutes. Sometimes she would resist, but we would still only have to endure a maximum of 5 minutes of crying. Not today...I spent a good 50 minutes trying to get her down this afternoon. It's like she knows it's a Monday, and hates it as much as I do.

So today, the only things getting me by are:

DIET COKE BRAND NEW RUNNING SHOES (I'm up to 4 miles!)

MY BEAUTIFUL CLAIRE

(even when she is a grump, she manages to brighten my day)

.

I am so thankful that tomorrow is Tuesday.

All in the Family

We had a weekend filled with lots of family time.

Saturday night G & G Busse came over for pizza and to play with Claire.

Claire sports hair bow for first time

Cuddle-time with Grandma Sunday afternoon we headed up to G & G Boylan's for lunch. Katie, Steve & Sam were there, as well as Kristine & Meghan.

Claire & Sam (friends already) 3 weeks makes a big difference Sam - look at those eyes! Big Cousin Meghan

bet you can't fit your fist in your mouth...

Reality

I made several realizations yesterday...

The first, and most depressing, is that I have to go back to work in 3 weeks. I met my boss for coffee yesterday morning and that made it seem so real all of a sudden. Don't get me wrong, the increased adult interaction will be a welcome change (and I only have to go back 4 days/week), but I will miss little Claire so much. Maternity leave really is a cruel thing. Just as your child is getting more antimated and fun, you get to spend less time with them. Maternity leave in the winter is particularly cruel as I will be going back to work just as sub-zero temperatures disappear and the amount of daylight increases. I mean, really, would you want to leave this little face every day?!?!

The second realization I had is that there is no way that I am going to learn all the ins and outs of the digital SLR without taking a class. So, I will be signing up for a few classes within the next few weeks. At least it is a start...

The third realization I had is that I have not started and finished reading a good book for a LONG time. Today I am going to work on the starting part of that.

Finally, the last realization that I had yesterday is that I am truly lucky to have such a supportive husband. He came home from work last night with Broder's take-out and flowers in hand and we had a wonderful evening at home.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Love, Art, Angie & Claire

Morning Exercise

Comfort Food

After several days of chilly temperatures, last night called for some good old comfort food.

Sam Adams Beef Stew

2 lbs boneless beef stew meat, cut into 1.5 inch cubes

1/2 cup flour, divided

2 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

3 tablespoons butter, divided

1 1/2 cups chopped onions

1 1/2 cups cubed carrots

1 tablespoon snipped fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

2 1/2 teaspoons chopped garlic

3 cups beef stock

1 (12 oz) bottle of Sam Adams beer

2 cups cubed red potatoes

1/4 cup water

In a large storage bag, shake beef with 1/4 cup flour, 1 1/2 teaspoon salt and the pepper. Melt butter in large Dutch oven over medium heat. Brown beef; remove. Stir in onion, carrots, thyme, bay leaves and garlic; saute 4 minutes. Stir in beef stock and beer. Reduce heat; simmer, covered until beef is tender (approx. 3 1/2 hours). Add potatoes; simmer, covered, until tender (about 20 minutes). Combine remaining 1/4 cup flour and water until smooth; slowly pour into stew, stirring constantly. Cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil; boil 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove bay leaves. Stir in remaining 1 teaspoon of salt if needed. Enjoy!