Farmer's market basket

I love summer when whole meals come fresh from the garden. This is one haul from the downtown farmer's market when we had Scott's family in town. Good eatin'! (Of course you don't see all the baked goods we devoured on site.)

Happy 50th Anniversary

They don't want to make a big deal about it, but I can't let 50 years of marriage go by without a blog! Jeff, Debbie and Todd came to Madison, along with Linda and Ervin, to celebrate. (We missed Julia ...) Happy Anniversary!

American Girl crazy

Around these parts it's AG, but to most it's American Girl. Yes, it's now a big, evil corporation no longer owned by Pleasant Rowling, rather Mattel. But it all started right here in Middleton, Wisc., where each year they have a huge warehouse sale to benefit the Madison Children's Museum. Nana started collecting AG before she knew she'd have granddaughters. So her basement could be an AG museum. Welcome to the land of AG ...

At the Kit Kittredge movie with Nana and friends in Cincinnati.

MJ and her beat-up Bitty Baby.

At the AG store in Chicago with Nana and Papa.

Chicago AG store window.

Anna's smile was a mile wide when I took her to the AG benefit sale to spend her $21. And she bought ... Gwen (below) and some other little things. I went the day before with Nana and did some Christmas shopping. People come from all across the country to wait in line for a shot at $15 Bitty Babies and AG dolls for $30. Crazy American consumers!

Nana and Papa's, II

Nana and Papa's house is a little girl's fantasy land featuring rooms of dress-up clothes, books, dolls, dollhouses, paperdolls, doll furniture, frilly bedspreads and fancy vanity dressers. The house is complemented by a 2-story playhouse in the back yard and a tree swing (both made by Papa) in the front. The kids go there and just live in their imaginations for a whole week. Oh, and they also eat Graeter's ice cream every night!

On the porch of the playhouse with Papa looking in on the tea party.

This picture makes me smile because when I was Anna's age, I spent a week each summer with my Aunt Mae in Cleveland. She had a dressing table like this for me in her spare room. :)

Nana and Papa's House

Scott's parents gave our whole family a big gift this summer -- Anna and MJ both spent a long week in Cincinnati while Mom and Dad spent a relaxing week in Madison without sibling rivalry, bedtime drama and picky eating. We did miss the young 'uns, but Scott and I basked in our childless moments and took advantage of each spare minute ... went out for drinks, dinner, drinks again, to a concert, more drinks, out with friends, did I mention drinks? (I just love mojitos in the summer!) Anna and MJ basked in the glow of grandparents' love. They came back tired, tanned and carrying some extra American Girl doll accessories. Linda and Ervin, thanks for giving us a break and giving the kids a bunch of happy memories.

Now, first, a tour of some of Nana's gardens with MJ ...

Oxford, Ohio

Miami U, we heart you. Although it's changed (I sound like a curmudgeon, but, c'mon, why did they have to take down the water tower?), Miami still holds the same charm for us that it did years ago.

Where it all began -- at least the engagement part of our going-on-15-year fling.

The kids freaked out about stepping on the seal. "You'll get an F on all your homework!!" Great, they'll probably have their mother's grade anxiety.

You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.

At the Manor, which I am sure does NOT have an appropriate bathroom cleaning schedule.

And, Hugh. We met with Dr. Morgan who told us about his adventures with the Miami tribe, his latest novel and snapped about 100 pictures of us.

Maria

More than 30 years ago, a boy from Cincinnati (Jeff Bauer) befriended a boy from El Salvador. The pen pals exchanged letters and visited each other's homes far away. In the 1980s, war broke out in El Salvador. Letters were lost and friends disconnected. Fast forward to this spring when the El Salvadoran boy's sister, Maria, googled 2098 Danville Drive, the address of Linda and Erivn Bauer, where she and her brother spent happy summer months in the 70s, and found the Bauer's phone number. After several decades, Maria returned to Cincinnati while on a business trip to the States. We (Scott, the girls and I) had the pleasure of spending a weekend with Maria. She is a warm, kind-hearted soul with a soft voice, beautiful eyes and sense of humor that defies language barriers. Anna and MJ fell in love with her, and Anna will now be a pen pal with Maria's daughter, Daniela. (Maria has 4 kids!) So the tradition passes on down the line. And, Maria, we are planning our trip to El Salvador. And I have Coffee Break Spanish on my iPod!

Would anyone else but Linda keep paper pinatas in her basement for 30 years? Maria was surprised to see these historical El Salvadoran gems unearthed.

Maria at Hickory Hill, the day camp where she spent summers in Cincinnati years back.

And, below, more El Salvadoran relics from the Bauer basement.

Happy 4th! II

Smack it, Anna!

Lifelong friends, Linda and Jill Evans.

The gang (minus Jeff, Debbie and Julia and plus Maria!)

Happy 4th!

Tradition dictates that we spend the 4th of July at the bucolic Evans' farm in Hamilton, Ohio. John and Jill are best of friends with the Bauer family. Linda and Jill roomed together (a few years ago) at Miami. The Evans throw a jolly bash with hayrides, fireworks, a pinata and scrumptious food, including John's homemade ice cream. Thanks, John and Jill. We also saw kick-butt fireworks in Cincinnati, and Nanna treated us to lots of treats for the 4th. God Bless America!

I ask you: Do I really look like this when I laugh? What a fool I am!!
(But I'll still continue to laugh so look away if you must.)

That's the spirit!

Alli's visit

Times changes, wrinkles appear (I'm speaking for myself, Alli), but some friendships remain forever. Alli reminded me that it's almost been 20 years since we met at Miami in Scott Hall! Scott and I were so happy to spend time with Alli in Madison. The first night we went to Concert on the Square -- the Wisconsin Orchestra plays right on the steps of the Capitol -- and brought a picnic complete with vino. The next day, she and I took a killer bike ride to the UW Union Terrace where we rewarded our physical exertion with lunch and ice cream (and lots of chatting) on the shore of Lake Monona. We did a little shopping, went out for wood-fired oven pizza and joined my book club group for drinks later. Alli is what my mom would call a "good soul," and I love her. I'm so happy we're only a few hours away now. I need to make more trips to Chicago!

The following are pictures from the concert. We had Scott take a zillion so we could find one we were both happy with. Alli, sorry, but I couldn't resist sharing a few outtakes:

Nothing like the Capitol Square on a warm summer evening.

Scotty was there, too!

P.S. I should probably mention that this visit was a part of our week sans children, thanks to the generosity of Scott's parents who kept BOTH kids in Cincinnati after our visit there. What a great respite, and what great grandparents! (More on that later ...)