The Fabulous B@ker Blog

I love fall. I love fall, a lot, except for that nagging voice in the back of my mind that keep saying, "You can enjoy fall all you want, but just remember what's coming after fall..." There is so much to enjoy with the colors, the warm, yet cool days, the smells, and THE FOOD. This is not a picture of my veggie medley, but you get the idea. One of the things I like best about fall food is the root vegetables available at the farmer's market. They are so much reasonably priced there than at, say, Wegmans, and you can get a ton of delicious stuff at a very reasonable price. Tonight I made a roasted root vegetable medley with carrots, beets, sweet potatoes, squash, and potatoes (are potatoes and squash root vegetables?). I wish I had also thought to buy turnip and rutabaga; that would have made it really yummy. I've been missing the scent of "fally" smelling Yankee Candles (such as "Cinnamon Spice," "Pumpkin Spice," or ...

As you may recall we had a  full summer of travel, with many campus visits behind us.  BUT, as of tonight's college night at Eastview Mall there are a couple more prospects to add to the list. So, next up: Mercyhurst University (formerly "College" - they because a University in January 2012) on October 13 and now, Castleton State College in Vermont in Mid-November. (YAY!! I FINALLY CONVINCED HER TO LOOK  AT A COLLEGE IN VERMONT!!) All this college stuff hasn't been without its stress (mostly for her) in the last month. Between an extremely challenging AP Bio class and her first round of standardized tests (she took the ACT in early September [got a 21, which was not too bad], is taking the SAT on October 6, and is retaking the ACT on October 27 (her score of 21 was so close, but we think she can boost her score a point or two...) she's just about had it with college prep. EXCEPT, that she loves to look at colleges, so off we go to two more... I'm j...

The Young Bride Looks like we made it (says Barry Manilow)! September 19, 1987 was a rainy Saturday, but the dark skies were brightened by the presence of our family gathered to send us off on our marriage journey (What schmaltz, eh?), complete with the '80s wedding fashions (peach balloon-hemmed bridesmaids dresses), a buffet dinner and the Chicken Dance. The Handsome Groom But seriously...today marks our 25th Anniversary. I can't believe the time has passed so quickly. The years have been marked by many milestones: the birth of our two wonderful children, three houses, two cats, two dogs, many cars, job changes, and the loss of so many we loved. It's a bittersweet day. There have been ups and downs (marked by many high "ups" and many low "downs"), and even now we have rough days, but we have persevered and I think we can take real pride in that. We are certainly not the naive kids we were at 23 and 25 (the average age to marry at that time...

It's pouring rain. It's Friday night. I'm exhausted from a week of travel to the North Country, sitting in the chair with my laptop and the TV all to myself - so: happiness! Annalisse is off to her first sleepover of the year with the returning and new Downstage kids, and Mark is in his "cave." Ahhhh, serenity!!!! The trip to the North Country grad fairs is always like a trip down memory lane. (Do I live too much in the past? Nah! The present has it's great moments, too!) I headed up to Potsdam on Tuesday afternoon and checked into the Clarkson Inn for the night to rest up for Wednesday's and Thursday's full day of grad fairs. On Wednesday morning I rose bright and early to head to SUNY Plattsburgh, which was about two hours away.  Sadly, Burlington, VT was calling me from across the Champlain...will I ever get there again (in the near future?). Major bummer. Anyway, after the Plattsburgh fair I headed back to Potsdam for the SUNY Potsdam fair. Af...

Last night we returned from a whirlwind trip up to Massena to see our Aunt Jeannine from Edmonton, Alberta, who was in town for a visit. It's been hard for her to be so far away from her sisters as both Aunt Jackie's and my mother's health has been in steady decline. The trip was super quick because we weren't able to leave town until around 1pm on Saturday since Annalisse had to take the ACT (college entrance exam). She finished a little early and we were on our way, flying down the NYS Thruway. When we arrived we met the family at a restaurant and spent some fun time catching up with everyone. Aunt Jeannie, as always, looked great and was buoyant and funny. We so enjoy spending time with her and wish she didn't live so far away. She's so awesome!! On Sunday morning before we picked another aunt up for a quick breakfast, we took a ride up to the St. Lawrence Seaway and Barnhart Island, which seems to be our routine nowadays. It's so ironic (or maybe ju...

Today was a gift of a day off that I had not expected. It started at 8:30am with a planned staff meeting "on the porch," a yearly occurrence where my coworkers and I start the morning with a pot-luck breakfast and progress into either planning or a team building activity, or both. After eating a delicious breakfast, we headed out to the porch for our "meeting" on a warm late summer's day. It was so beautiful out! We were lulled into not wanting to go back to work...and I decided not to go. Encouraged by my great group, I stayed behind and spent a Friday at home alone with just me and my pup. We got a nap in, as well as a quick walk, and I write this from the front porch in late afternoon. What a lovely gift they gave me!

Today is YET ANOTHER milestone: Annalisse first day of her senior year. You've heard me lament enough on the blog about how fast time passes, but seriously? The Last First Day of School? Unbelievable. She wouldn't even let me walk her to the bus this morning! ; ) The year promises to hold a lot of fun for her between her Downstage shows, the Senior Trip to Boston in November, various dances (I sure wish she would reuse dresses), and graduation-type milestones like the 100 days 'til graduation celebration breakfast and "Decision Day" (when all the kids wear t-shirts from the college they have chosen). In the next several weeks, though, we need to concentrate on getting through the ACT and SAT tests, which are a little worrisome - I'm not sure how that is all going to turn out. Luckily, most of the schools she's applying to, with the exception of her top choice, Allegheny, are "SAT optional" so we'll have to see how that all plays out. So m...