A Winter Day at the Beach

So far, December has been mild and the lake has been peaceful and calm.

Cubby dog came to the beach with me on a temperate day to get a closer look. 

Here is a big brush pile, waiting to be burned. 

Right now the water is teal and cloudy. So is the sky.

And so many smooth stones have washed up onto shore.

Cub perched on the big rocks and ran around the edge of the water until we had to go home.

I know it will get colder, but in the meantime I'm enjoying how easy it is to be outside.

Lagunitas in Chicago

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, I met some friends at the Lagunitas Brewing Company taproom in North Lawndale. The facility is huge, and so impressive!

The entrance to the taproom is trippy, with Willy Wonka music playing:

This wall art was made of bottle caps.

We tasted some beer:

(OK, a lot of beer.)

And enjoyed the view over the floor.

My favorite was the Brown Shugga. We bought a growler of it to take home. We had a great time, and it was really fun to catch up with friends over the holidays. 

Wicker Park Thanksgiving 2014

In our family, there is a rule that you host Thanksgiving the year that you get married. 

This year was my sister's turn!

Noelle and Sam hosted all of us in their apartment in Wicker Park.

Here is their first turkey.

And here is Sam fearlessly carving.

The decoration theme was "pinecones."

And the table setting was lovely.

We played Cards Against Humanity.

And these turkeys won! What twisted minds.

It was a great Thanksgiving, and so fun to be together.

(studs)

Lake Bluff Garden Club 2014 Greening

Every year in Lake Bluff, the Lake Bluff Garden Club decorates the town green for the holidays.

Red bows and evergreens take over the village.

Geoff and I are always happy to help the garden club, and proud to see Lake Bluff look so lovely for the holidays.

Here are some more pictures from the 2014 greening.

Split Pea Soup

This is my recipe for split pea soup. 

For the ham, my little trick is to go to the deli counter where they sell lunch meat. I ask for a pound of ham sliced VERY thickly, about 1/2 - 3/4 inch. That way I have exactly the amount I need for this recipe, and I can just cut the slices into cubes at home.

Reading List: The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons

Positives:

This book shows a bit of WWII from the Soviet perspective, and that is very is interesting. 

This book also has a lot of teenage obsessive romantic mush. Total mush. The 16 year old girl in me loved it.

Negatives:

30 year old me was thinking, "Was I that psychotic as a teenager?" And I think the answer is yes. Sorry mom and dad.

Suggested Reading Environment:

Somewhere chilly with a small glass of vodka, comrade. 

The Amazon description:

The golden skies, the translucent twilight, the white nights, all hold the promise of youth, of love, of eternal renewal. The war has not yet touched this city of fallen grandeur, or the lives of two sisters, Tatiana and Dasha Metanova, who share a single room in a cramped apartment with their brother and parents. Their world is turned upside down when Hitler's armies attack Russia and begin their unstoppable blitz to Leningrad.
Yet there is light in the darkness. Tatiana meets Alexander, a brave young officer in the Red Army. Strong and self-confident, yet guarding a mysterious and troubled past, he is drawn to Tatiana—and she to him. Starvation, desperation, and fear soon grip their city during the terrible winter of the merciless German siege. Tatiana and Alexander's impossible love threatens to tear the Metanova family apart and expose the dangerous secret Alexander so carefully protects—a secret as devastating as the war itself—as the lovers are swept up in the brutal tides that will change the world and their lives forever.