Staycation Update

I've received many emails asking for an update on our staycation. I haven't mailed the postcards yet, but suffice it to say....we are having a fabulous time. I must confess, I haven't attempted many of the things I blogged about in my March 12th post, but we're going with the flow and everybody seems happy, so why would I offer up room service and trolley rides when they are clearly not needed?

We haven't rented a single movie, but, we have completed season one of the Gilmore Girls (Santa brought all 8 seasons). Next year, assuming my husband is gainfully employed, we hope to spend our spring break in Stars Hollow, home of the Gilmore Girls. I know, I know, it's a fictional town in Connecticut, but I am convinced that we can find it. That might mean heading to the Warner Brothers studio back lot instead of New England, but we will find our Shangri-la if it kills me. (Maybe it's time to put away the Gilmore Girls DVDs and rent The Wizard of Oz....)

One of the highlights of this week has been the latest addition to our family. No, we have not caved and gotten that puppy that the kids keep asking for....but we did get the next best thing...an ant farm. The farmers arrived in a test tube via USPS (one was DOA) and settled nicely into their new digs. In a matter of hours they had successfully built several tunnels. They are the best pets EVER: no feeding, no watering, and no cleaning is required AND no noise, no mess, and no aggravation is generated. Good, clean fun; those ants have provided us with hours and hours of pure joy.

I'll admit, at first I was a bit skeeved when my husband placed the "farm" on the kitchen counter next to the big bowl that I use to store our bread. But I've gotten use to the picnic ants hanging out next to the english muffins. Every time I enter the kitchen, one of the Reids is leaning on the counter checking out the ants' progress. And if I've sang "The ants go marching one by one..." once, I swear I've sang it a thousand times. The other day while spying on the ants, I heard my son whisper...."I think the ants are getting chubby." Hmm. Maybe we'll buy some ant treadmills for the farm.

Speaking of getting chubby...we've made cookies and pizza and orange-creme smoothies (darn, I forgot the umbrellas!), but nothing from the Barefoot Contessa's collection. Tonight we are having my BFF over for her birthday dinner; maybe we'll pull out one of Ina's recipe's...but probably not. Today we're heading to Costco in search of the perfect slab of meat in honor of her 44th meat eating year. We hope to arrive around noon so that our shopping excursion coincides with peak sample time. Love those samples (if it's free, it's for me) at Costco! Our goal is to sample enough goodies so that we do not have to purchase lunch. But, if we have to break down and pay $1.99 for a slice of pizza, then so be it. (Costco's version of a slice easily feeds a family of 10 as everything at Costco is ginormous.)

We have a few more things planned for the week...but you'll have to check back for an update...