Two of the things I enjoy most about New York: you can walk everywhere and there’s always something to see. This cathedral was along the walk to MoMA this morning.  MoMA. I finally made it. Reservation in hand, I was the first person to check my coat at the museum this morning and the first…

I think I’ve crammed more in two days than I possibly could’ve imagined. Yesterday was the Alice in Wonderland debut in Times Square, followed by Mary Poppins on Broadway. I’d bought the Alice ticket ahead of time, but Mary Poppins was unexpected. She was on the same block, so I went for it.   Notice…

Meet Bender. He’s the therapy dog of a colleague that I’m writing a story about. He is SUCH a ham.  I spent a couple hours of this afternoon getting quality puppy time.  It’s not often that someone turns the camera on me. I’m usually behind the viewfinder, not in front of it. Sleepy boy was…

(clockwise, from the top left) one of three bouquets of tulips, one of the kitties who joined us for lunch at my boss Suzy’s house; angel from Suzy’s sunroom; more tulips; a children’s book that is clearly meant for me; lovely arrangement in the sunroom; sleepy kitty; crown made for me by a sweet friend…

Beauty outside my office…. …beauty inside my office. Flowers from a dear friend at work. So sweet. 

Leave it to my Mom to find me a Pepe LePew for my birthday. He is so cute, picking his little flower petals. Press his foot and he talks. “I love you” was his first comment to me. Yay! I love you, too, Pepe…and my Mom. Although the voice box really freaks the cats out….

Short walking break from a weekend-long work project turned into a somewhat-long walking break. In the wrong shoes.  The heavy *clink* of the aluminum bat at the high school baseball field, crazy guy down the street pelting countless sweet gum balls into his neighbor’s yard with his golf club (he does this often), little kids…

From a bouquet at work belonging to my friend, Lorraine. Celebrating her last tuition payment on her daughter’s college education — three months before graduation. So awesome!!!  

So I went online to figure out dates for a trip to Cincinnati for the US Open Series this summer. We weren’t able to go last year because it started at the same time as the kids’ school year. When I went to check out the school schedule for conflicts with this year’s event, I…

The sweetest spring bulbs from a lunchtime trip to Trader Joe’s.  One of countless whimsical clocks at the hospital where we went tonight for another MRI. This appointment was the better part of four hours, so I wandered around, got a soda in the cafe, sat in the chapel. An older woman was working the…

(can you see our house?) (More pretty out of focus than in.)

I swear, these are the most resilient flower bulbs. For two years in a row, I’ve tried to dig them up and throw them out. Yet here they are again, popping up through snow and frozen ground on Friday.  Then yesterday, one of the boys had “company” over to watch a movie, so I excused…

“Well girl, if you won’t love me, then I know your sister will.” Above quote is now the status on one of my kid’s facebook pages as a result of last night’s Buddy Guy and B.B. King concert. “Buddy Guy is the King of the Blues” is another status. Yes, it’s official: my kids have…

Whoa, Country Bear Jamboree sculpture has traded his big red Valentine’s Day bow for a shamrock boa.  (You know their neighbors have got to be cringing.) 

I think I like colorful crosses better than the smudgy kind that’s on my forehead right now. I feel like I’m wearing my Lenten Lutheran guilt. But I guess that’s just what you do on Ash Wednesday. The good news is that I didn’t have an empty pew this time, unlike with Advent. The bad…

from Spot’s flickr photostream Westminster Dog Show coverage and this ridiculously cute photo on today’s flickr’s blog post are NOT helping me curb my desire to own a dog. *sigh*

My neighbor’s azalea bushes looked more like cotton plants with yesterday’s snow — perfect little puffballs.  

…a Happy Valentine’s Day*, Chinese New Year (hey, Tiger) or (what my son has dubbed) Single Awareness Day.Whatever you are celebrating, may it be wonderful. *made-from-scratch Valentine cupcakes for my favorite boys!  

Ahhh, I think I’ve found the source of the recent pitter patters on my roof and gutter. The snow is mostly gone, but he’s probably wanting to get away from stuff like this….

Another trip to the hospital today, this time for an MRI and a CT. Two down, one to go in two weeks. This was one of the lengthier appointments, so I had time to wander around the hospital and gift shop. One of the great things about a pediatric hospital is the use of color….

Today brought a road trip to one of our hospitals in Illinois. As I headed into town, I noted a “Historical Marker” sign on the side of the highway. So on the way back, I took the little side road to see if I could find it. It’s safe to say that the less treated…

You just gotta know where to shop. Or have friends who tell you where to shop. Happiness arrived on my doorstep in the form of a tiny cardboard box today. Actually, happiness took the form of panda bear ear buds that my friend Amy found online and told me about. Thank you, Amy! I am…

Every now and then, a table in our lunchroom contains a few platters of leftover food from a lunch meeting, cake from an office celebration, or even leftover Halloween candy to help someone remove the temptation from their home. It’s sort of an unspoken tradition of sharing: whatever it is, if it’s on the table,…

Picked up a book after checking out a review in the New York Times, as well as an impulse purchase from the children’s section. We had “Where the Wild Things Are” at some point, but it’s disappeared over the years. I so cannot figure out how they managed to make a full length motion picture…

(Photo by Konstantin Zavrazhin/Getty Images) (Getty Images) More than 100 snowmen from Slava Polunin’s Snow Show. Evidently they do this every year in a different part of Moscow (after a heavy snowfall) to promote the performances of some famous Russian clowns. I don’t care for clowns, but these snowmen are so much fun.