The Love Affair continues...

The clouds parted.
The sun shined down on the deprived people of Clinton.
(uh, that would be Betty and the professor)
For unto us a store has opened.


I took a little field trip on my day off from saving postal souls. I traveled the 40 minutes up 385 to reunite with my long lost love, Trader Joe.
And he did not disappoint.

Upon entering the store I was met by these lovely specimens.



And the eye candy (and tummy candy) went on and on. I wandered the aisles fondly remembering why I missed him so much. Oh, Trader Joe I'm so glad you are back in my life...never go away again or I might have to boil a bunny.



And now for your viewing pleasure, a music video about my impressive boyfriend.

Inaugural Halloween Party

The weather was perfect.
The company was entertaining.
The costumes were fabulous.
How could we not have a great time?

The kids' excitement and energy were contagious. Although there were eyeballs (doughnut holes dipped in white chocolate), jello brain, gummy teeth,mummy cupcakes and yummy dogs & chips, they barely ate a thing. The little hooligans were content to climb the magnolia, chase each other around the yard and toss the football. I don't know how we managed to herd them all to get a picture but I'm so glad they complied.



All too soon we were off to trick and treat. Tinker Bell had enough glitter spray on her to keep Peter Pan in Never,never Land for eternity. Harry Potter decided he didn't want to wear his glasses...but his mother insisted on them for the pictures.



We returned home where the adults enjoyed some wine and leftover eyeballs while the kids surveyed their booty. As the evening came to a close, I found myself thinking about next Halloween and how to add to the fun we had this year. And, if you know me well, you could guess I was also wondering where to go for the best Halloween clearance.

Boo to you!

Hello Miren...Goodbye Matthew

We had an unexpected trip back home last month. Less than a week after welcoming Miren Elizabeth to the family, Matt got his orders that he was being deployed to Afghanistan within the week. So we hightailed it up north to say our "farewells" and "be safes" to Matt and we got to say our "hellos" and "welcome to the worlds" to Miren as a bonus. So without further adieu, here are some pictures commemorating our hellos and goodbyes.


New parents...welcome to the club.


There's more hair on that baby girl than both my kid's had at their first haircuts! Parents, Aunts and Uncles, Grandparents and cousins are all smitten with the silken haired babe.


The best. cousin. picture. ever.


The bond between these two boys makes my heart swell.


This is the look of nine year old boy contentment.


Who can resist a sweet baby foot?


The Kiley Family 2010

Be safe Matt. We love you and your cynical self. I bet we'll still have the same old computer when you get back. I hope you can stand it.
Welcome to the family, Miren. Fasten your buckle, girl. We may be crazy but we're nothing if we're not entertaining.

Long Live Harold Lee Miller Photography!

When I was pregnant with Anna over five year ago now, I wanted a professional picture of me and my pregnant belly. And lucky me, I was (and still am) friends with a commercial photographer who was willing to take some photographs. Flash forward, it is now the Summer of 2010 and I want an accompanying photo of the dear girl that once was a baby in that handy dandy uterus of mine. I'd also like to capture the two of our kids together, if that is humanly possible.

Enter Harold Lee Miller. I can't say enough about the man. He is an artist first and foremost. But one word is not enough. He is a story teller, a visionary, an entrepreneur, a fabulous cook, a gentle man, a funny guy, a patient husband, a loving father and an amazing photographer. He's a got a wife, too, who I love to pieces and is one of the few people who I can name as a true friend. She gets me and I'm okay with it. Quite a combo. These two people are a power house of creativity. Sometimes, I just bask in it. Other times, I covet it. But I never get tired of it.

So we're in Indiana for a Summer visit. Now that we officially live nine hours away from my closest and dearest peeps it is impossible to see them all in a five day period. And, I'll tell you what, it makes me grumpy. But that is another post. This is about the photo shoot we squeezed in while partaking in the annual Hoosier-palooza (advance tickets on sale now for next year...get your time with Kelly reserved a year in advance...ugh.).

Harold's studio is in the heart of downtown Indianapolis. You can't help but feel hip or tragically inferior (take your pick) when stepping into his space. He designed the building himself and then set out to become an interior designer as well. The studio has some fabulous mid-century pieces that fit the space perfectly making you feel like you truly are in a place reserved for creative pursuits.

When we arrived the kids immediately went running to Sam to play. Meanwhile Grace assisted Harold with getting the lighting set up. And then the photo shoot began. I have to say, I'm biased, I think Anna is beautiful. But, Harold can make a fence post look beautiful. So I'm calling this Anna's first photo shoot.

Here's collage of a few of the shots Harold captured of Anna Mae.


And somehow,Harold, managed to get our two kids to stand next to each other and look like they might actually like each other, just a little bit, for a minute.


If you want to see some of these photos individually check out my Flickr account. And while you're at it head over to Facebook and become a fan of Harold Lee Miller Photography. Thank you Harold for capturing the essence of our kids so beautifully!

First Day of School 2010

What's a mother to do?
I mean, really, she isn't supposed to be this old yet.
I took the day off just so I could freely think about her all day and, per chance, forget something that she absolutely needed to get through the day so I would have to go back to school to drop it off. Really, it happened.
Okay, so here they are in all their first day glory.


My heart aches when I look at this picture. She's growing up too quick.


And this guy...well, I'll tell you a secret, shhhh...he still likes to snuggle. I haven't lost him yet.

So here's the photo documentary of us surrendering our children to the public school system once again.


Daddy walking Anna to her classroom. Ten bucks to the best "thought bubble" for Anna.


Anna waiting in the hallway outside her classroom.


Here's our big 4th grader doing his best to ignore us...I guess we'll get used to it eventually, right?


Okay, just one last peek before we leave!

When Gavin and Anna got home from school, I excitedly asked Anna what her favorite thing about kindergarten was. Answer: "Napping". Now this is a girl who has her priorities straight!

So tell me, how's the beginning of the school year for you?

The House on Maple - Before...

I wanted to get all fancy and do a "before" video. Let's suffice it to say the learning curve for me and my perfectionism were getting in the way of getting any thing posted before we actually moved into Maple Street. So I'm giving you a pictorial account of the house before renovations and what not begin. So let's start shall we?


This is the old Magnolia tree in our front yard. Magnolia trees are great for climbing!


This is the living room


Me and the professor in front of the fireplace in the Living Room on the day we closed.


View of the Living room from the mudroom/laundry room


Dining Room


moving into the butler's pantry


The kitchen circa 1932


The original sink...should it stay or go?


Jenn Air Stove...circa 1974...ugh.


LSD trip or 1974 linoleum kitchen floor...you decide.


Master Bedroom "suite" (aka den and sun room combined with 2 bathrooms -one a handicapped accessible one and the other bathroom...untouchable)


Fireplace in Master bedroom


Sunroom half of master "suite"



The "untouchable" bathroom...none will enter until it's sparkling new.


All it needs is a little "bon ami" am I right?


Oooh, I feel the need to take a shower just lookin' at the picture!


Let's move onto the handicap bathroom...it's usable.


Shower big enough for a family of four...


Are you jealous of our corner toilet?


Scary long dark hallway...


Anna's room after the professor painted it a blissful white


The entire room used to be this color, pepto pink from the 1930's. Gotta love that lead paint!


Jack and Jill bathroom between Anna and Gavin's room. How to tone down the pink for a boy? Any suggestions?


Isn't she lovely? Isn't she wonderful?


Gavin in Gavin's room - painted blissfully white by the professor. Before it was a mustard yellow floor to ceiling...yeah.


The porch is all repaired and repainted...the overgrown bushes gone.
Come say, "Hello" to the House on Maple.

More to come...of course.

God help us.

The House on Maple

Well, hold onto your pants.
As I mentioned in the last post, we are homeowners once again...finally...and in the deep South. And I have to say if we have learned anything in this whole process it is patience.

Most people go about buying a house the traditional way. They find themselves a great Realtor like Sherry Soforic and go house hunting. It's a very different animal here in small town Clinton, population 8,000 give or take a few. Here if a house is actually listed, it's usually overpriced and on the market for...well let's just say we've been here almost two years and many of them are still for sale.

The start of this transaction began in November last year with an e-mail and ends with the most unusual closing I've been party to on June 28, 2010. No joke, we signed our names on one piece of paper in an attorney's office in Clinton and then he shooed us out of there saying the office was too hot and we could just pick up a copy tomorrow. We then went directly over to the Presbyterian Home where the owners live. You see, the attorney's office isn't handicap accessible and Mrs. Skinner is in a wheel chair. Instead of having two elderly people wait out in the car in the attorney's parking lot on the hottest day of the year (record breaker I might add) as was suggested by the attorney's secretary, we all trekked over to Presbyterian Home's assisted living. After signing their name in the comfort of air conditioning, we were handed a whole bunch of keys by both Dr. Skinner and Mrs. Skinner. We were handed hope. Hope that one of those keys might actually work because right now we only had one key to one door.

Oh, did I fail to mention we had a key? Why yes, doesn't everyone get a key to the house they are buying several months before they are actually the owner? No? Uh, well this is awkward. Yep, the house on Maple was fair game for several months prior to signing that one signature on the dotted line. So much time for dreaming and lamenting and dreaming and lamenting. Did I mention dreaming and lamenting?

So we're the third owners of this Southern brick bungalow built in 1937. The Little's of Clinton built it. I tried to convince Anna that Stuart Little and his family lived here. But she wasn't having any of it. Then in 1965 the Skinner family bought it. They were a young couple with a new baby. Dr. Skinner taught English at Presbyterian College and Ramona dabbled in art and raised little Jimmy. They wanted to see that the house was passed onto another professor thus here we are...dreaming and lamenting.


We'll keep you posted.

The House on Maple: The Beginning

house2, originally uploaded by missmonkeymae.

We are officially home owners in our little town. The house on Maple is a 1937 painted white brick bungalow that needs a lot of love and attention. And we are just the family to give it to her.

More to come....