Dad by Dawn

2011 in review

2012-01-23T12:12:00.001-06:00

So, 2011, huh? That definitely happened. The end of last year/beginning of this one have blurred past as we continue adjusting to life with two children. Paisley got her first tooth, Natalie had a magical Christmas, and I got a vasectomy. What else happened in 2011?

I took up running and trained regularly for about eight months, the longest time I have ever stuck with an exercise regimen, by far. I also completed four races.
Paisley was born and we had a wee one in the house again. She was baptized with water from the Jordan River. I love her.
Natalie turned three. She started preschool in the fall and is taking a ballet/tap dance class. She knocked out a tooth. She is smart and funny and sweet. I love her.
It was the sixth year for Craftstravaganza and the second Minneapolis Indie Xpo. I wasn't involved much with MIX this time around but still moderated two artist panels and had a great time at the show.
Creative projects for the year:

Lots of homemade ice cream
I printed Bob the Golfer comics and sold them at SpringCon
I also created a culture book for my company
Nobody wanted this painting at the $100 sale
"Creating An Event" panelist at The Creative Connection

Some chickens lived, some chickens died, some chicks grew up to be hens; the circle of life goes on.
We are still married! Honestly, every year has been better than the one before. Raising kids can be a challenge but I think that has brought us even closer together. Our love will last forever and ever.

Did I keep my New Year's Resolution? No. Do I have goals for 2012? Of course! First, spend less money than last year because for serious, we need to do that. Dress better at work (but without, you know, spending any money). Plant a Paisley tree. Make [SECRET CRAFT PROJECT]. Keep on being awesome.

Happy New Year!

2012-01-23T08:23:00.001-06:00

I am king nerd!

2011-12-16T13:19:00.005-06:00

There's an excellent graphic novel called Americus, which you should read. I followed the story while it was being serialized online and the print version was published this year by First Second Books. But the most important thing to know is that the creators ran a contest and I won!

All I had to do was create a Skyrim character based on Americus heroine Apathea Ravenchilde. I already play Skyrim every night, so that was no problem. And after re-reading the book I had a clear idea for how Apathea would look and act in the game.

Here's my contest entry. I fully expected that someone with more time on his hands would put together a better effort, but artist Jonathan Hill quickly wrote back and enthusiastically proclaimed me the winner. He's sending me books and a bunch of original art, and I am thrilled to wear the crown of High Arch-nerd.

Jay Oh Bee

2011-12-14T11:28:00.011-06:00

I designed a book to celebrate our company's unique culture. It includes submissions from all employees, a bunch of photos, and some infographics I created. We just got the physical copies last week and I'm proud with how they turned out.

Promoting a positive work environment is a passion of mine. It's especially crucial because we are growing so fast: from a five-person start-up in 2007 to a company employing more than 40 people around the world.

We've gotten so big that we had to move our holiday party from Lord Fletcher's to the Van Dusen Mansion. 2011 was an especially good year for our company and so, Oprah-style, everybody got an iPad. I was thrilled. Jenna was crushed.

Turns out she'd been saving and secretly planning all year to give me one for Christmas. Total buzz-kill for her. (It's so amazing, though; have you seen Sword & Sworcery?!)

Stolen thunder notwithstanding, it was great to escape the house together and spend time socializing with adults. Several people had read the Culture Book and wanted to talk about it. Our CEO even called me out for special recognition during the iPad-awarding ceremony. I was honored and humbled that what started as my little pet project has been received so well and is starting to develop a life of its own.

Let's get sick and injured

2011-12-13T21:30:00.007-06:00

Poor Paisley has a red lump on her right eyelid. It's been there for a few weeks and doesn't seem to bother her. We finally got to see an Optometrist and it turns out to be something called a "hemangioma" (picture not related).

The doctor said it will most likely go away on its own. Natalie was completely unfazed by her tooth trauma but was struck with a bout of nighttime vomiting after a visit to grandma's house. Fortunately that seems to be a one-time thing also, and nobody's feeling sick. I don't fancy another attack of stomach flu.

Oh, and that trip to grandma's I mentioned was special because my brother was in town. Sadly, he's here to support his fiance who is at Mayo for major surgery. The good news is that Paisley got to meet her uncle Jim for the first time, and Natalie got a reminder that he exists!

I'm still here

2011-12-09T11:19:00.005-06:00

MIX was amazing. I had a great time moderating the panels and meeting all the artists who came out for the show. Really a fantastic event, no thanks to me! Strange encounters: last year my friend Becky from Alaska just happened to show up at MIX and this year I was recognized by the little sister of my best friend from elementary school!

Natalie crashed into another little girl when all the kids were scurrying around at the end of music class, fell face-first on the floor, and knocked one of her front teeth clean out. She screamed bloody murder while it was gushing blood but then she was a real trooper. On the other hand, Paisley is smiling now, so it all evens out.

I bought an Xbox exclusively for the purpose of playing Skyrim. Let me just say: money well spent.

MIX 2011

2011-11-03T10:35:00.003-05:00

Hey everyone! This weekend is the Minneapolis Indie Xpo comic book festival. It is the second one and also the last one we are ever going to do, probably. If you snooze you lose! Come experience the majesty of MIX.

It's a two-day, three-party show, but seeing as I have other obligations I will only be attending on Saturday. You can watch me moderate two panel discussions in the afternoon (It Came From the Internets and Rural Life in Comics). I am very excited to talk with these artists. Hopefully I can draw on my recent experience as a panelist to be a good moderator.

We are getting all the press this year so we are primed to go out with a bang. Join us and help make this year's MIX the best ever, of all time.

Trick or Treat!

2011-10-31T13:04:00.003-05:00

We put the baby we made into the pumpkin we grew.

Monster Dash 1/2 Marathon

2011-10-31T08:46:00.002-05:00

I almost didn't show up for the Monster Dash. My knees were injured earlier in the week during an ill-advised cram session of exercise, I knew for sure I couldn't run the whole distance, and I didn't fancy a 13-mile walk. But Jenna convinced me to go for it.

This was the biggest and best-organized race I've seen so far. The start was bananas. I completely failed to meet up with my coworkers due to the huge crowd of costumed runners. With over 4,000 participants it took me over 8 minutes just to reach the starting line after the gun went off! It was below freezing at the start, but I warmed up and stopped shivering after the first mile.

I started off jogging slow and easy. Hundreds of people passed me but I figured I was doing okay... until I saw a pacer with the sign reading, "3 hour goal." Time to commit! I picked up my pace and determined not to let that guy out of my sight. And I didn't, until around mile 7 when I passed him for good.

I chomped down on some Advil to help manage the pain in my knees. It was never unbearable. Whenever they started throbbing I would walk for a little bit, and by alternating running and walking I got through to the end. In fact, by around mile 10 I was feeling better than I had at that point in the Trail Loppet. I finished in well under three hours, a new personal record!

The race was a major production. There were several live bands along the route that helped me keep going. My favorite had to be the guys singing a cover of "the Doug Song" from The Hangover. And my pick for most interesting costume had to be the dude in the gold Speedo with the box on his head (don't watch this video, mom).

Even though I wasn't where I wanted to be physically and I could barely walk the next day, I accomplished my goals and had a great time. My parents even showed up to cheer me on. I would love to do it again next year!

Engage

2011-10-25T09:15:00.002-05:00

My brothers both got engaged!

Running out of time

2011-10-18T06:28:00.000-05:00

It won't surprise anyone with kids that I didn't exercise much in the week after Paisley was born. Or the week after that. But I am registered for a half-marathon at the end of the month, so I'm trying to get back into the groove.

Last week I tried out the elliptical machine a few times, which got me sweating at least, but it didn't scratch that itch (or work the right muscles). On Sunday I was excited to hit the trails. It was so much fun that I think I overexerted myself. I ran 70 minutes and now everything hurts!

Looking back at my log now the numbers seem insane. I was running four hours a week and over 10 miles every Friday. That's followed by four weeks with totals of zero hours, zero hours, 20 minutes, and finally 72 minutes split into three elliptical sessions. Yeah, 70 minutes of running all at once might have been pushing it.

Shorn

2011-10-17T22:13:00.003-05:00

I grew a beard to celebrate the birth of my second daughter. It was a fine beard. But Jenna's greatest birthday wish was for me to cut it off after three glorious weeks (I also got her one of these). Now it is gone. Goodbye, beard.

Instant Dance Party

2011-10-11T20:13:00.003-05:00

Natalie cannot get enough of Nyan Cat.

Daddy-Daughter Time

2011-10-06T07:21:00.005-05:00

I was at home all week after Paisley was born, and I tried to spend as much of that time as possible playing with Natalie so that she would not feel neglected or jealous of her new baby sister. We read hundreds of books. I spent hours in conversation with stuffed animals. She helped me bake cookies and prepare ice cream (the classic Apple Pie and a new "Pretzels 'n' Twix" flavor).

Natalie is currently enrolled in her third Kindermusik class at the Community Center. We arranged it so I can take her to this session of "music school" on Wednesday nights. I really enjoy it and so does she. Plus, she is enamored with the tweenage girls taking dance lessons in the auditorium at the same time. We always stick around to watch them awhile after class is over.

On Saturday we capped off the week with a visit to Deardorff Orchards. The fall weather has been gorgeous. This Sunday I sat Natalie down and explained that I had to go back to work again so Jenna would be the only one at home with her and Paisley. Natalie told me earnestly, "mama will have her work, takin' care of those two girls."

Be polite

2011-10-05T21:29:00.002-05:00

Time for more funny videos! (bonus: lyrics)

Introducing Paisley

2011-09-30T21:44:00.000-05:00

Paisley Autumn Claire Krueger (not a pseudonym) was born at 4:15 AM on Sunday, September 25. She shares a birthday with her uncle Jim! Here is Jenna's birth story. Everything went very well. Labor was quick and we were out of the hospital the same day.

This baby was a little shrimp! Six pounds and six ounces was her recorded birth weight, but the next day it had supposedly dropped over 10%, although she didn't look any skinnier. Anyway, she's still a tiny peanut, light as a feather and only 18 1/2 inches long.

Baby's first facepalm. Paisley was very alert and grabby right out of the chute. I forgot to take photos until one of the nurses reminded me! And I almost didn't have the camera at all, because I had left it in the car when we first arrived, thinking we had plenty of time.

Natalie has been a great big sister. She loves to hold her "newborn baby" and even asks to help feed her from the bottle for a minute or two. Overall Natalie is handling the transition very well so far. She only asked once about Paisley going back into mama's belly!

I stayed home from work this week to take care of my girls. Sometimes I kind of forget that Jenna needs me, because she was so strong and amazing during the labor and delivery, it seems like she could handle anything on her own. But I still do what I can to help.

Time to make the donuts!

2011-09-20T10:10:00.005-05:00

Cool autumn weather makes me want to fatten up with comfort food and find a cozy den for hibernation. Soups and hot drinks are on the menu. We have baked three batches of mini-donuts so far, and last weekend I made fresh salsa with our bounty of peppers and Waconia-grown tomatoes. Mmmm...spicy!

Our garden is basically done. Jenna ripped out everything except for the pumpkin vines, which are still going strong. We've got one huge orange gourd and one little sphere that may not amount to anything. The chickens are still stubbornly not laying, except for our Old Faithful, Prinny who keeps cranking out an egg almost every day.

My beekeeping coworker brought his harvest of honey in to the office. I grabbed a jar to stash in my adventuring kit. Natalie and I are planning for a few more food-based excursions before the baby arrives and I want to be prepared!

Resume Updated

2011-09-20T08:33:00.003-05:00

Lolamade Monsters
I participated in the "Creating An Event" panel at The Creative Connection conference last weekend, as planned. It seemed to be quite successful! I spoke with several people afterward who thanked me and said that the discussion was valuable.

The format was mostly like this: our moderator asked a question, and then we would go down the line and answer it, if it applied to us. I tried to engage my fellow panelists with my responses, and we did get some good cross-talk going towards the end, especially with Alli. It was a good group! I was the only Minnesotan and the only man, so I represented the minority.

Afterward I walked around the Marketplace to chat with Craftstravaganza artists and sponsors. I promised we'd have applications ready soon, so we ought to get going on that! And look at these adorable monsters I found!

Tom Waits for no man

2011-09-20T07:21:00.002-05:00

Tom Waits • Bad As Me Vidéo funnytoo sélectionnée dans Musique

Have you heard the new Tom Waits single? This is amazing music.

Natalie is 3

2011-09-17T20:25:00.001-05:00

Jenna just posted a set of photos she took for Natalie's third birthday. Go look!

Darkness, My Old Friend

2011-09-15T11:04:00.002-05:00

Winter seemed so far away. The days have been getting shorter and my morning runs are illuminated by nothing but the light of the moon, but we're only halfway through September! Surely we have plenty of time to enjoy beautiful weather this year, right?

With frost on the ground and temperatures in the high 30's this morning, I had to face the facts. Summer in Minnesota is officially over. I started running in January this year and today's run was a flashback to those frigid late-winter workouts. Not a pleasant sensation.

Let's all take a moment to reflect on the joys of autumn.

Full Term

2011-09-14T06:38:00.003-05:00

So Jenna is still carrying a baby inside of her. You may have forgotten since I've written precisely nothing about her pregnancy for the past four months.

That's how we've handled the whole process this time around. We over-prepared for Natalie and her labor had to be induced, so maybe if we ignore this baby she will arrive on her own?

It could be any day now. The due date is October 2. September would be just fine. Any day before October 16 would be an improvement on the last time!

Trail-Loppet Half-Marathon

2011-09-11T07:20:00.003-05:00

Photo ©Ericka Bailie-Byrne showing tornado damage
I completed my first half-marathon on Saturday! And a trail run at that, which proved every bit as challenging as I had been warned. But I did manage to finish and complete all my racing goals. The route was kind of nuts due to damage from the tornado that swept through the area earlier this year. Those were hard-earned miles. But the trail was marked well and I never got lost. The aid stations were great too but if I hadn't brought my own bottle of Gatorade I don't know that I would have made it.

I tripped twice but managed to recover both times. Others were not so lucky and got banged up. At one point there was an ambulance on the trail and paramedics were helping a young lady walk back to it. Around mile 10 I gave up on racing for time and focused on just finishing. I was in good company as several others were walking or painfully limping through the final miles. I watched the clock change to three hours just as I entered the finish chute and the announcer called out my name.

After gulping down water I sat in the shade until I felt well enough to drive home. I was so out of sorts that I even passed up free beer! I was okay again--if a little sore--by the end of the day. After this, the Monster Dash next month should be a cinch!

Race recap (nearly 2,000 ft of collective elevation gain!)

Labor Day Weekend

2011-09-10T21:29:00.002-05:00

Completing two 500-piece jigsaw puzzles was our primary accomplishment over Labor Day Weekend. We drove up to the lake on Friday night. On Saturday morning I took Natalie to my parents' house and we played some board games with Kevin and Anne too. It was a wonderfully low-key vacation.

Jess and Nadia came over and I entertained the girls. Natalie is holding her shoes because Nadia ran outside barefoot and she didn't have time to put them on. Without her big cousin's example, she would never have set foot in the garden without them!

Training with Natalie. She loves to race. I took her to feed the cattle down the street and we had a talk about where meat comes from (dead animals) and how some people don't eat it and some people do. "I want to eat it," she said. After standing quietly by the fence for a while, she asked, "are we waiting for the cows to turn into food?"

Natalie's first representational drawing. She made this while we weren't paying attention. "I have a surprise for you," she told us. "It's water made out of chalk." Later she helped me build a fire and she was very upset that we had no marshmallows for roasting. "But," she said, "what are we going to make with the fire?"

Sunset on Sunday night. The weekend was much cooler than it has been this summer, but warmed up on Monday for a boat ride before heading home. Natalie wanted to stay forever and so did I. I'm thankful that she gets to enjoy our lake home like I did as a kid. Sadly, we probably won't return until next year, so we tried to make the most of this visit!

Around the Farm

2011-09-10T06:28:00.001-05:00

A bee.

We weeded our hill garden.

The pumpkin we grew.

...and you will know us by the trail of feathers

2011-09-09T10:32:00.001-05:00

There was another chicken death in the backyard. This time we caught the dog in the act. It's a bad dog, a very bad dog. We called the sheriff's office this time because, well, three strikes and you're out.

Things we learned:

Where the dog lives.
That we can legally shoot the dog if it's on our property.
They will haul it off to the pound if we can grab it.

I reinforced the fence and clipped the hens' wings again so they can't fly out. I don't really want to shoot somebody's dog. It's not the dog's fault. Anyway I don't have a gun. So we'll continue our strategy of crossing fingers and hoping for the best.

September Banner

2011-09-09T09:45:00.001-05:00

Here is the piece I made for The Soap Factory $99 Sale. Look familiar? I drew the outlines in Sharpie and then painted with watercolors. The stamp is, of course, my hand-carved hanko from Sumi-e class.

Usually I outline my work first in non-photo blue pencil, then do inks, then scan into the computer for coloring. So it was a challenge to free-hand this one instead. I'm happy with how it turned out! Hopefully someone likes it enough to spend $99 tonight (or $66 tomorrow at the leftovers sale).

UPDATE: NOBODY BOUGHT IT :(

So it's not just me

2011-09-01T12:44:00.004-05:00

Natalie gets very concerned when I do this. I'll be reading a story or singing a lullaby, and suddenly start talking gibberish because I am 90% asleep. And sometimes I'm just barely aware that I'm doing it, and I can keep on riffing for several minutes at a time, and that's when it gets weird even for me.

But at those moments I do wish that I had a voice recorder.

Anniversary 2011

2011-08-22T22:03:00.003-05:00

Friday
Our 7th wedding anniversary was a weekend-long affair, with plenty of fun for all three of us (next year it will be four, how crazy)! Natalie spent Friday night with Jenna's mom for her very first away-from-home sleepover. We went out to dinner at our local malt shop, played Skirrid, and watched Juno at home. Wild night for us old folks.

Wait, I should mention the gifts. Last year I made a lot of effort and spent a not-insignificant amount of money on jewelry made with the traditional 6th anniversary element of iron. Then I decided to make that a tradition and then I didn't do that. The wool gifts I found on Etsy were too expensive and I wasn't confident she'd like any of them. I made her a mix tape instead.

But look, I also got her a nice bouquet of flowers in our wedding colors and a card with Ariel (the little mermaid) on it. She got me a very thoughtful gift of a mini-donut maker and a Dilbert book about management (p.s. I'm hiring my first employee soon at my day job).

Saturday
Time to make the donuts! I did cinnamon-maple because it was the only kind in the recipe book that we had ingredients on hand for. Then I picked up Natalie from grandma's house, where she had a great time, and didn't want to leave.

We left her with my mom and drove to Minneapolis for a crazy afternoon of shopping at the Lake Street Savers, just like last year. I purchased another obscure old board game called Twixt, and Lottino for playing with Natalie. Someday I might write a series of posts on the weird games I've found at thrift stores. I love these things.

Dinner was at French Meadow. Jenna had a veggie burger and I tried their Tempeh Reuben with an Alaskan IPA. I have to say, I prefer the less-healthy version of the sandwich at Hard Times, slathered with dressing and sauerkraut. The chocolate torte thing I had for dessert was good though.

Sunday
We skipped church to help move a piano and then we didn't move a piano. Instead, we drove to Goodwill and I loaded up with more children's books. After nap time we drove to Como Park for the rest of the day.

We started with a walk around the zoo; Natalie's first real trip since she was a little bitty baby. Then we rode a train together and she sat on a pony cart ride all by herself, another first! Afterward we spent a couple of hours at the Japanese Lantern Lighting Festival. Most of that time was waiting in line for food.

By chance we ran into the good Doctor and Mrs. Vono. We had to run because the veggie egg rolls sold out before Jenna reached the front of the line, and Natalie was exhausted. Back at home I made two batches of ice cream: Mini M&M for the girls, and Grasshopper for me. Happy Anniversary!

Twins 5, Red Sox 2

2011-08-22T07:16:00.001-05:00

My boss gave away his personal tickets in the Legends Club level to the person who could come up with the best reason for going, which allowed me to take my dad to his first Twins game at Target Field after all!

We started out with beers and the amazing Vincent Burger at the Town Ball Tavern. Then we found our way to the seats, which were great; there was no one behind us except the waitresses(!) who took orders for drinks delivered to our seats. Fancy!

The game was close until we scored three runs a fantastic eighth inning, and then shut the Sox down in the top of the ninth. It was a beautiful night outside with nearly a full moon rising in the sky and we were treated to fireworks when the Twins won. We had fun, the end.

Matsuri Season

2011-08-21T21:35:00.001-05:00

Pic nicked from here
It's late summer and that means time for all our local festivals! We probably won't be attending the State Fair this year but there are plenty of other options. I took Natalie to Chaska's River City Days one morning to kick things off. She got a balloon animal and an armload of used books from the library sale, we snacked on fried foods, and she was spellbound by a Tae Kwon Do demonstration.

This weekend is the Carver County Fair in Waconia. Natalie and I had never been to either of these events, but Jenna used to go to this one with her family when she was a kid. It was pretty impressive as county fairs go! There was a petting zoo of exotic animals, plenty of events, and Natalie's favorite part was riding the carousel.

The highlight for me was the food. And the pièce de résistance, without question, was the poutine. We walked the whole grounds evaluating our options until I saw it: a giant, colorful display, proudly hawking this near-mythical delicacy from Quebec. Natalie loved the fries, and I shoveled the whole mess into my mouth with delight, savoring every bite. Poutine! I miss you already.

Ice Cream Test Kitchen: Baklava Gelato

2011-08-19T10:41:00.000-05:00

I couldn't even find a recipe for baklava ice cream online, so here's a truly original creation! The base is a simple honey gelato and I mixed in almonds, walnuts, and pistachios. It's not bad. Not what I had in mind, but it gives me direction for my second attempt.

My mistake was grinding the nuts like I was prepping actual baklava, which leaves a big pile of sugar, cinnamon and allspice. After mixing, those flavors diluted throughout the mixture and the nuts just taste like raw nuts.

What I should have done is candied the nuts first, encrusting them with sugar and spice, and preserving the pure honey flavor of the gelato itself. That would present a more complex flavor profile and approach the savory/sweet balance I'm aiming for. Lessons learned!

Upcoming public appearance: $99 Sale

2011-08-13T14:36:00.003-05:00

I will have a piece on display at The Soap Factory $99 Sale in September. It's supposed to be a secret who made what, so I guess I can't show it yet. The art is displayed anonymously with artist information available to patrons after they purchase. I'll throw it up here after the show is done.

I will say that I'm excited at the possibility of selling more original art and thus adding further legitimacy to my claim of being a real artist. Participation is by invitation only. Plus, the sale is a fundraiser and all proceeds benefit the gallery, so that should increase the odds someone will buy it!

Race planning

2011-08-10T06:59:00.000-05:00

This January I resolved to run a half-marathon before the end of the year. In exactly one month I will attempt my first half-marathon race. I have three primary racing goals:

Have fun
Don't get hurt
Finish the race

I'm not even sure about the order. I'd get a little bit hurt in order to finish, as long as I'm still having fun, I guess? Don't get seriously injured, maybe that's a better goal.

Training is going well. There's a lot of road work going on around our neighborhood which turned the city into a big hilly gravel playground; perfect for trail training! This Friday I will try to run a half-marathon distance of 13.1 for the first time. At this rate the actual race will be a snap.

Tough tootin' baby

2011-08-03T11:57:00.001-05:00

Ice Cream Test Kitchen: Hugsberry Lime

2011-07-30T22:20:00.002-05:00

The story goes that T-Rex (of Dinosaur Comics fame) mentioned an imaginary flavor of ice cream in a comic strip and then I decided to make it for real. Sound familiar? Oh yeah, that's where the idea for MIX came from! This is what I do now I guess. I started a comics convention because of a fanciful travelogue and now ice cream because of a talking dinosaur.

Anyway, it was fun to start with a name and then create an ice cream to match! A challenge of the imagination. I decided to use a base of lime ice cream and swirl (or "hug") that with a berry sauce. After strenuous research I settled on this custard key lime recipe and strawberry swirl. Here is how to make the hugsberry sauce:

2 cups fresh hugsberries (or frozen hugsberries, thawed)
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Combine ingredients and wait until sugar dissolves and juices form, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate.) After churning the ice cream, layer it with the sauce before freezing.

VERDICT: tasty times!

Daddy Drinks: Ginger

2011-07-29T13:03:00.000-05:00

Your three step plan for weekend success:

Make ginger syrup.
Make ginger candy. Optional but stupidly easy, so why not?
Use the syrup in everything! You are a winner!

Nymph

2011-07-29T10:30:00.005-05:00

This morning after feeding the chickens I saw what looked like a white grasshopper on the ground. Was it an albino? Is there even such a thing as an albino insect? (conclusion: maybe?) Then I saw a second one and decided that they were nymph grasshoppers.

They are white because of a recent molt and "may remain white in color until adulthood," according to BugGuide.net. Neat! I don't usually kill insects unless I'm commanded to, but I wish I would have tried to nab one. Our chickens would have loved it as a crunchy snack!

UPDATE: I did and they did!

Around the Farm

2011-07-28T06:07:00.003-05:00

Hosta are blooming. It was actually these flowers that put me in mind of Hanafuda last weekend. Very simple but very pretty.

We have eggs again! I got out of the habit of checking the nesting box but I peeked in on Sunday and found four pretty brown eggs just waiting to be harvested. What a fun surprise!

I tried to get a non-blurry photo of our pullets but that wasn't happening. They are always on the go! Also they like to travel in a pack.

Peppers are destined for salsa. All eight plants survived and are fruiting; four bell and four chili pepper varieties. The real trick to country gardening is growing things that the wild animals won't eat. They seem to be leaving these well enough alone.

Cucumbers are coming in strong. We are going to pickle them. In the meantime we're putting cukes in everything, or just eating them raw, or infusing vodka with them!

Green tomatoes. One of our three bushes tried to immediately produce fruits and then gave up the ghost. The two remaining bushes are incredibly lush.

Pumpkins are spreading! I think we have had more hits than misses with the garden this year. Still figuring out what works and improving the system. See you next time!

Ice Cream Test Kitchen: Blacknilla Swirl

2011-07-26T06:18:00.001-05:00

This recipe is based on one of my favorite boxed ice creams that we bought one time. It's a blackberry/vanilla swirl with big chocolate chunks. It would be hard to mess up and it turned out pretty delicious.

First I made a blackberry reduction with an entire package of frozen berries. The chunks I strained out and just kept the rich syrup. Then I made a full batch of vanilla ice cream and added the blackberry juice to one half of it. I churned them separately, added two roughly chopped Hershey bars, and folded everything together before freezing.

The big disappointment was my thrift store Gelato maker. I used it once before and while it technically "works" (turns on, spins mixer) it doesn't exactly churn the ice cream. Hoping that was a fluke, I tried again this time with the same results. Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, you're going in the $1 box at our next garage sale.

Ginger (f)ale

2011-07-24T07:55:00.001-05:00

Today started off well. I took Natalie for a ride in the bike trailer, then we visited my parents for play time, with a side trip to their office at the airport. It was after we returned home and Jenna was putting Natalie down for her nap when I realized something horrible. I had forgotten to pick up my free Twins tickets from work for the game that was starting in two hours.

I made some quick calls but it was too late. I screwed up. I was really sad for a while. Then I decided to stop being sad, and start being awesome.

I started by breaking out the ginger syrup I prepared last night and pouring myself a Big Ginger. Properly fueled with awesomesauce, I enlisted Natalie's help mixing batter for chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese fillings. Jenna made pizza from scratch and I topped my half with bell pepper fresh from the garden and mushrooms tossed in olive oil. Day: salvaged!

Sad Dads magazine

2011-07-24T07:53:00.001-05:00

I just renewed my subscription.

Projects I have made: hand-drawn Hanafuda deck

2011-07-23T07:14:00.016-05:00

Five years ago I illustrated a full deck of Japanese Hanafuda playing cards. Here are all 50 of the cards, sorted by suit. There's way more information on my old blog; just start here. Or you can play Koi-Koi online!

Plum

Eulalia (Pampas Grass)

Clover

Iris

Pine

Peony

Wisteria

Paulownia

Willow

Maple

Cherry

Chrysanthemum

Blank, Tengu, Napoleon (card back)

Bug Life

2011-07-21T13:51:00.004-05:00

I found a striking caterpillar outside our office during my lunch break and decided to share. This is Orgyia leucostigma, the White-marked Tussock Moth caterpillar. The weeds and grasses are crawling with bugs in this heat! An exciting time for a bug maniac like myself.

Beastie Street: Sure Shot

2011-07-20T09:27:00.001-05:00

Sesame Street breaks it down from Wonderful Creative on Vimeo.

Twins 4, Royals 3

2011-07-18T11:20:00.005-05:00

Jenna and I went out for a date on Saturday. We had dinner at Loring Pasta Bar and then watched the Twins play an evening game at Target Field. It was a hot day but our seats in the shade were perfect and we only had to go after the seventh inning to relieve the babysitters (my parents).

I was Mr. Fix-It this weekend. I set up our new bike trailer and took Natalie for a morning ride before it got too hot on Saturday. After church on Sunday I extended the chicken run fence two feet upward with some extra hardware cloth I acquired. Then I repaired a LeapPad that we bought at a garage sale for $5.

Natalie loves the hot weather we've been having (temps in the 90's, heat index in the 100's) because it means both her parents will play in the wading pool with her to cool off. I'm also using it as an excuse to eat lots of ice cream. Not that I need one. I made a Nutella ice cream just for her and I'm full of ideas for new flavors!

Peanut Butter Jelly Ice Cream

2011-07-11T09:43:00.002-05:00

Friends, I have a major ice cream announcement. I was proud of my vegan cake Earth Crisis creation, the Apple Pie was divine, and it was a revelation that I could put liquor in everything (plus, the alcohol helps keep the mixture from crystallizing). But today I'm introducing my most inspired recipe yet.

Peanut Butter Jelly ice cream had the potential to be either the most disgusting or the most amazing combination of all time. Actually, it was... somewhere in the middle. Not something you'd want to eat every day. But tasty! I unveiled it while my family was visiting, including my brother Jim and his girlfriend Kelsie, and it seemed to be well received.

What I did basically was make two separate recipes from vegan cookbook À La Mode, but using actual dairy milk and cream, and then mix them together. For the jam I used a three-berry preserve and strained out the big chunks of seeds. Stir them both together, et voilà!

Backpacker Dad

2011-07-09T21:46:00.002-05:00

Natalie loves to go for hikes in our new backpack! "Hike" is perhaps too strong a word for our little trips. Although our first walk was in the woods, every other time I have just brought her to the local playground. Nevertheless, she likes it better than any of her strollers, and we always have a fun time.

Garage Sale Report

2011-07-09T13:30:00.002-05:00

We had another pretty good garage sale haul today. Classic books (Berenstain Bears, Beatrix Potter, Ed Emberley, Go Dog Go, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel). Games (Jenga, Uno Stacko, Candy Land), a play double stroller (didn't know they made those), and a pile of baby clothes (but who cares about that, amirite?).

4th of July Weekend

2011-07-09T08:30:00.000-05:00

We spent another weekend at the lake with my family, and except for one teeny incident on the way up, it was all good times. We got caught in a storm and hail destroyed our windshield and we were almost run over by an insane truck driver but other than that. Aces!

Feeding the cows was one of the things Natalie remembered from our previous trip and desperately wanted to do again. Unfortunately, during this visit they were kept fenced away from the road and we couldn't reach them. Natalie was devastated for about 20 seconds. I think it's a sign of good parenting that instead of comforting her, I whipped out the camera and took a photo of her moping.

In fact, sulking is Natalie's new hobby. Honestly she's already doing some things that I didn't think I would have to deal with until she was a teenager. Mini golf with her cousin Nadia was fun for about three holes. Then she stomped away and resolutely faced away from the rest of us. "Leave me alone!" A few minutes later it's all smiles and, "I'm happy now!" Also, she loved the go carts.

Uncle Kevin was showing off his slacklining so Natalie decided to demonstrate her own "trick" of running around the yard with her sunglasses on her belly. She took it very seriously. You can see the determination in her eyes. She also invented a new game: punching her uncle Kevin in the butt.

We could hear loons loudly protesting the traffic on their lake all weekend and during one boat ride, we got close to a family of two adults and one baby (loonling?). We did go swimming once. I was very brave. The pictures of fireworks didn't turn out (do they ever?) but Natalie loved throwing poppers and stomping on them. It was our best Independence Day yet!

VolumeOne cover

2011-07-09T07:12:00.004-05:00

My little brother got one of his illustrations on the cover of VolumeOne, Eau Claire's only arts magazine. They even posted a big image on their website along with an Artist's Statement. Very fancy! Nice work Kevin!

The color of

2011-07-06T09:55:00.002-05:00

Dude Craft tipped me off to this nifty site that makes a composite of 80 Flickr photos to show you the color of any search term you enter. They usually turn out better than this.

Channeling Seth Godin

2011-06-30T09:45:00.000-05:00

I always read about people "hoping for the best and preparing for the worst." Lately it's the government shutdown that has folks worried, but next week will bring some new disaster to plan for. It got me thinking: how much time do we spend preparing for the best? If you're focused on planning for the worst case scenario, when does your best work happen?

Garage Sale Report

2011-06-26T20:15:00.000-05:00

Good pickings at the St. Louis Park neighborhood sales yesterday. We got all but three of these books from one family. Average cost: fifteen cents. (Lately I've become kind of obsessed with the idea of covering one of our bedroom walls with bookshelves. Floor to ceiling, complete with a rolling ladder. Like living in a library! Now it's my goal to acquire enough books to make this a necessity.)

Quercetti Rami the binary teacher. That's right fellow nerds, I got a toy that teaches the binary system, and it only cost me fifty cents. What I love best is that it's all levers and pushbuttons, totally mechanical, except for the analog three-minute timer. This is a gem of a find.

Yakima Grasshopper child carrier, barely used. Riding along on hikes is Natalie's new favorite activity. We went once Saturday, again on Sunday morning by request, and by afternoon she was ready for more. During our first hike in the woods we had so much fun that she told me, "I never want to go home, daddy."

Swimming Lessons

2011-06-25T05:10:00.001-05:00

"I did it!!!"

Three magical words coming from a three-year-old girl. One thing I never understood about parenthood was how people get so wrapped up in their childrens' accomplishments. Now I get it. The vicarious thrill of watching my progeny, wide-eyed and ecstatic, as she masters a new skill. There's nothing in the world quite like it.

Natalie began swimming lessons at the Community Center last week. After two classes, she is beginning to feel comfortable in the water. Walking in up to her neck, floating with her head on my shoulder and "swimming" while I carry her in a football hold, jumping into the pool, blowing bubbles underwater. Yelling with pure amazement after each fresh accomplishment.

I'm proud of her. Not only because learning to enjoy playing in the water and being splashed and even getting dunked now and then is a good thing for Natalie; but also because I hate doing all of those things. It is especially satisfying to watch her overcome one of my personal weaknesses. I am even making some progress in this department myself.

Next step: teaching myself to swim at the lake over 4th of July weekend. If only someone could tuck me in a football hold while I learn the strokes! But the next best thing would be having Natalie nearby to cheer me on. I know she can fully appreciate when I smile and say, "I did it!"

Around the Farm

2011-06-23T06:14:00.002-05:00

Natalie doing a magic show for the chickens. The young birds are very playful with each other and easily eat out of my hand, but they did not appreciate how she was swinging her wand. After the first swat, they all hid under the coop.

Peppers. I picked out a mixture of differently-colored bell peppers and chili peppers. Gonna make some salsa! If the tomato plants survive!

I am pretty sure that these must be cucumber plants. They're growing nicely. It's been hit-and-miss with the other plants. Next year these beds should do better; now they're mostly black dirt.

Natalie's cherry tree is fruiting! I did not know if this would happen in the first year or with no tree nearby to cross-pollinate. This reminds me it is time to pick out another tree for our second child.

I've eaten three homegrown strawberries so far and each one is a little flavor grenade. Soooo delicious. The trick is to get them before the local wildlife does!

Animal crossing

2011-06-23T05:46:00.002-05:00

We've gone from spring, with its evidence of animals passing--deer tracks in mud, rabbit trails, trees felled by beavers--to a summer surrounded by actual wildlife. We've always heard turkeys in the woods and suddenly one flew across the road right overhead! Last year our garden was nibbled by unseen deer but this year I'm actually encountering them on my morning runs! And my mother-in-law had an even closer encounter with her car yesterday :(

The captive caterpillars in our garage have begun to spin cocoons (two so far). Our backyard is full of fireflies at night and the forest margin twinkles like a Christmas light display. The wasps were successfully exterminated back in April, in case you were wondering, and now we're just dealing with the usual ants... and this little tree frog who somehow got into our bedroom!

I try to share everything with Natalie and pass along our excitement with animal sightings. "Look, a bunny," I'll point out, or pick up toads and bugs for her to pet and examine. On our walk the other day we found two frogs so tiny--about a centimeter long--that I thought they were bugs at first. Or I overturn a rock in our garden and we watch the ant colony beneath as they scramble to relocate their exposed eggs. "Int'resting," Natalie concludes as she walks away.

Turning three

2011-06-20T06:04:00.003-05:00

We have been preparing Natalie for several weeks for the idea that three-year-olds do not use pacifiers (or "fuddits," as she calls them). After everyone had gone home we packed them all in a box, put the box in the stroller she was pushing, and formed a procession down the driveway. She put the box in the mailbox for "all the kids." So, we will see how that goes.

Like the seasons in Minnesota, developments with Natalie are less often gradual transitions, and usually dramatic overnight changes. The day after her party I asked if she wanted to go up by herself for the children's message at church. She has always insisted that I accompany her, with tears if necessary. But this time she just traipsed up by herself like it was no big deal.

Of course Sunday was also Father's Day so I was reflecting on my three years of fatherhood. Natalie is the star of my life. This is the year we double down and add a co-star to the cast of our family and won't that be a trip. All I know is if I can come home from work in a few years and have two little girls shouting "daddy!" and running into my arms... I will be a very happy man.

Natalie's 3rd Birthday Party

2011-06-19T08:32:00.004-05:00

Natalie turned three years old this weekend! All her cousins came over! She flipped out! It was a very exciting time for all the kids. I inflated maybe two dozen balloons and she helped me "throw" them up to the ceiling. Jenna went all out on decorations for the party. The theme was Fairy Garden.

"What was your favorite thing today?" I asked Natalie when it was all over. "CAKE!" she said. Her auntie Holly made this incredible cake with a Rice Crispy Treat base layer and fondant toppings. There was far too much food for everyone! This morning I am taking about 85% of this cake into work with me and I will be eating leftovers all week.

Rare photo of dancing in a magickal faerie ring.

All the girls got nets and played butterfly-catching game. Uncle Kevin and I tossed paper cutouts from the second story bedroom windows and the fluttered down to earth. I was impressed that Natalie was coordinated enough to nab several of these. This is when the kids started breaking down. It was time for everyone to take a nap (I slept for two and a half hours).

Upcoming public appearance: Creative Connection

2011-06-17T06:06:00.000-05:00

I will be a panelist at The Creative Connection conference, speaking about "Creating an Event." A weekend pass to this event costs $531, so I had better bring my A game! You can read my bio for free.

Around the Farm

2011-06-16T06:28:00.000-05:00

Work in the garden continues. We discovered a nursery down the road that was closing for the season in a week so everything was half off. Jenna ripped out our dead plants and put in peppers, beans, pumpkin... um, I don't remember what else. We got a Hydrangea too. I shoveled out a trailer-load of mulch around our bushes and perennials.

The most exciting thing about this week: Caterpillar House! One of our trees is infested with Eastern Tent Caterpillars. I thought I had burned all the nests earlier in the season but a few more popped up. Rather than exterminate them all I put some dirt in a 20-gallon aquarium, cut the inhabited branches, and stuck them right in there.

So now we've got about half a dozen pets plus one Forest Tent Caterpillar we found at my in-laws' house. That one got an oak branch to munch on. Natalie was moderately interested by the gathering and she likes to check on them every day. I hope we'll get to watch them spin cocoons and turn into moths (or as Natalie says, "a beautiful butterfly")!

Around the Farm

2011-06-09T06:35:00.001-05:00

Saturday was my cousin's wedding, so half the weekend was shot, from a gardening perspective. Sunday was a beautiful sunny day to work on my blisters. I hauled dirt up hill all morning to fill the raised beds we built earlier. Jenna mixed in fertilizer and manure and we planted a bunch of new vegetables plus the shoots from our strawberry and raspberry garden. Then we had two days of record heat that scorched everything to a crisp.

Jenna planted a garden near our front door with donations from her mom's yard. Big improvement over the dirt and weeds we used to have there. Those are just weeds in the path in the foreground; need more mulch.

Wedding Candles bearded iris. These flowers were a wedding gift to us from my mom, and we transplanted them when we moved. So happy to see them blooming again in the new location!

I put up a trellis for our raspberry plants and thinned out the strawberries. We're breaking up this garden to become the playground area, but not until we harvest all the fruit!

Chicken Run

2011-06-04T06:55:00.000-05:00

Our chicks are now five weeks old. Last week they outgrew the bigger box that I moved them into after they outgrew their first box. One day while I was at work they all escaped and pooped all over our garage. That night I gathered them up (not too difficult since they were perched directly underneath the table) and Jenna held them while I clipped their flight feathers.

I was nervous about moving them into our newly-fenced chicken run because I was not sure how Prinny, the last surviving hen, would react to them. Ever since her friends were killed she has been mopey and broody and never leaves her nesting box. She pecked at the chicks for a bit but after a weekend together they are BFFs. Prinny even returned to her roost for the first time since the murders. I am hopeful she will start laying again.

I'm glad I built a fence though. Sure enough that bad dog was standing outside today, staring in at my tasty birds and licking its chops. We think we found where it lives and we are trying to decide an appropriate response. I am advocating the Old Yeller solution but Jenna is opposed for some reason. Go figure.

Ride the barrel and get pitted

2011-06-03T10:43:00.005-05:00

Last summer was all about the double rainbow song. In 2011, we got the best barrels ever, dude. WAPAHH!

Memorial Day Weekend 2011

2011-06-01T12:54:00.004-05:00

We spent Memorial Day weekend at my parents' lake home in Alexandria, according to tradition. Natalie was so excited and so good in the car all the way there (she was a holy terror on the way back, but let's focus on the positive). It was rainy on Friday when we drove up and there was a minor fiasco with the keys but eventually we did get inside and dried off and straight to bed.

Saturday was our big day. I started out by sleeping in and watching a loon go fishing just off the dock in the morning. The city's big Awake the Lakes festival was duly disappointing when Natalie refused to go in the bouncy house and paid $1 for a sad face painting. However, she did enjoy seeing ponies and the animals in the petting cage. Jenna and I spent the afternoon garage sailing and hit the jackpot of baby girl clothes.

The highlight of our day was inheriting my parents' riding mower. Jerry drove up just to load it into his van and bring it home for us. I took him and my dad out to lunch at a truly depressing new "brewery" restaurant. They can't brew on the premises for a year, so in the meantime they serve a dismal five tap beers, and the most outré offering is Stella Artois. I weep. Anyway that evening we went out for ice cream at a place where you can mix your own soft serve flavors and that was awesome.

On Sunday I went for a run. Natalie dropped a golf ball in the lake and I went in after it, which made me the biggest hero of all time to her little two-year-old eyes. Also the cows ate grass out of her hands and she loved that. After a drizzly boat ride and fire-roasting marshmallows and working in the garden we retired for the day, and drove home on Monday afternoon. Then we cleaned our garage all evening. THE END

Sunday morning run

2011-06-01T06:11:00.002-05:00

Gravel road at the lake. Full trip report coming soon!

Around the Farm

2011-05-26T09:40:00.002-05:00

Orchid Lights Azalea in bloom. The cherry blossoms have already fallen--that early harbinger of spring--but everything else is now budding and flowering. The mystery (crabapple?) trees in the front yard are in full color. The branch tips on our evergreens are speckled with tiny cones. The Earth is fertile and vibrant.

Wild Columbine transplanted into our garden. We have discovered several of these around the yard: by the chicken coop, around the outskirts of the forest. Jenna is making some major landscaping efforts but most of the plants come from her mother's extensive gardens. This one came with the house.

Wild Iris by the barn. Our neighbors (who owned our house a few decades ago) used to have a garden back here before it got covered in weeds and fallen trees. I was surprised to see these beauties poking up amongst the dandelions!

We hauled some yard garbage down to the curb for our annual Carver Pickup Day. It barely made a dent in the giant piles of junk at the top of the hill. Baby steps! This area actually looks much better already.

I built these raised boxes (from a kit) for transplanting our berries and flowers. We are going to clear out the current vegetable garden area and move the playground over there to open up more space. Our yard is starting to look like people actually care about it again!

SpringCon 2011

2011-05-25T12:06:00.006-05:00

I manned a booth at SpringCon this weekend and got to play professional comic artist for a day. I was sandwiched between two creators whom I respect and admire, and worried that I would stand out as a fraud, but everyone was awesome and quite a lot of artists actually knew me already from organizing MIX. I even sold a few books (total weekend earnings: $23)! Overall fun times and check another line off my bucket list.

It was educational to experience a show from the other side of the table and get the artist perspective. Much more relaxing. A few people described it as "boring," by comparison. I think it will make me a better organizer. Ironically, I picked this time to tell Sarah that I am quitting MIX. With a baby on the way, etc., I don't want to commit unless I can follow through.

Conversely, trawling my Bob the Golfer back catalog and compiling strips into books and drawing fresh cover art has reignited my nascent interest in making comics. I made an issue of little funny last year and I'm considering doing more submissions in the future. Maybe I'll become a real artist after all!

Fear of Failure

2011-05-25T08:59:00.000-05:00

One thing in common with the job I have now and the one I was hired for is that I wasn't sure if I could do either one. Each position I'd held before that was a pretty safe bet. These were scary.

As it turns out, though, jobs I don't know how to do are my specialty. It's satisfying to start a project I feel absolutely unqualified for and then become an expert. That's what I've done with the Craftstravaganza and MIX--read that link; it's an interview, and I wish I could find an online copy of our feature article where I talk about this exact thing w/r/t crafts (i.e. learning is exciting, mastery is boring)--and my absolute favorite part was figuring things out from scratch. Once that's done I get a bit bored and start to think of other projects that want doing.

Milton Glaser – on the fear of failure. from Berghs' Exhibition '11 on Vimeo.

I love my job because I'm too busy failing to get complacent. Here is a great video about pushing yourself to experiment and learning from failure. This quote resonates with me: "whenever Picasso learned how to do something, he abandoned it." Good advice for creativity and careers.

For the birds

2011-05-17T08:32:00.001-05:00

Brown-Headed Cowbird, originally uploaded by renejo1951

I really am so happy that the birds are back; they make it so much more enjoyable to be outside, or even just to look out the window. When I go running in the morning I can often hear wild turkeys gobbling somewhere in the mist, or the lonely hoo-hoo of a barred owl. On my way home the belted kingfishers are sitting on the telephone wires, diving in the stream for their breakfast. I scare a great blue heron up out of the water and its giant wings beat heavy as it flies away.

We have a colorful bunch of new visitors at the feeders this year. In addition to the usual suspects--robins, mourning doves, blue jays and cardinals, house finches and house sparrows and chickadees--we now have goldfinches, indigo buntings, brown-headed cowbirds, and red-winged blackbirds.

As I was hanging one feeder this evening, a female downy woodpecker landed on the arch above my head to say hello. The other day I thought I saw a female oriole. I can't always identify everything but I'm getting better at recognizing colors and calls (I got two new used field guides and this is the best free online resource). Natalie is learning too. She saw a bald eagle riding the thermals high above our house: "look daddy," she said, "it's a airplane!"

Collaborations: My Little Pony (part 2)

2011-05-16T05:26:00.000-05:00

(Part one is here)

Natalie decided to work with a more limited color palette on this round of pony coloring. I tried to convince her to do more, but she was satisfied with the results, and who am I to argue with an artist's judgment? So I give you the final three images in the My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic series.

Rainbow Dash

Applejack

Twilight Sparkle

Blue Jays 9, Twins 3

2011-05-14T21:45:00.003-05:00

Spread Your Wings, originally uploaded by palofmine2

After this morning's 10K, Jenna and I left Natalie at home with grandma and drove to Minneapolis for our first Twins game of the year. The weather had taken a turn for the wet but the rain temporarily let up when we arrived. Alas, it was not to last.

The first inning was merely cold but then the rain started and we were both wet and chilly. I had a good time anyway while we were there; our seat neighbor shared his cover for our legs, and I tracked down a cup of coffee. There was some exciting baseball in the first couple of innings. Both teams scored points and the Blue Jays immediately started trying--and sometimes succeeding--to steal bases, as I had learned to expect. After six innings, Jenna had enough, and we left with the Twins leading 3-2 (a lead that would crumble catastrophically in the 11th inning).

We drove to Panera for their awesome broccoli cheddar soup and a cup of hot chocolate. Just the thing to warm us up again. Then across the street to Surdyk's for free samples and to replenish my beer and gin supply. Then home again, home again, jiggity jig.

Chaska 10K

2011-05-14T13:22:00.002-05:00

Bike Ride and Nature Walk 279, originally uploaded by JMelquist

I had a better start for today's race than for my 5K four weeks ago. I slept in till six and fueled up with breakfast: 2 slices of buttered cinnamon toast, cottage cheese, yogurt, and a glass of milk. It was 43 degrees and cloudy at 8:00. After a singing of the national anthem, we gathered on the road and the pack was off, leaving me in literally the last place!

No matter. My goal today was to start slow, pace myself, and not walk. Soon we came to a long downhill section where I flew past a good chunk of people that I never saw again. We turned onto a dirt trail and it wasn't long before we came to a short, steep climb. I wasn't about to wear myself out so early on the race so I power-walked up to the top of this section and took off at the top. I never walked again for the rest of the race.

I had worn a light jacket to keep off the rain, but the sprinkles were holding off, and I was getting hot. I took it off and tied it around my waist. The trails were nice. I'd never been in this area before and might have gotten distracted by the scenery. At mile two I passed a few people, then after mile three I started getting passed again :)

After the mile four marker, I started consistently gaining ground on runners who were out of steam, especially on the uphills. In the final mile I went by a pair of old ladies who were walking and sharing tuna casserole recipes. I was glad to have passed them, but humbled that they had led the way until then! I was feeling great, though, thanking volunteers and high-fiving the kids who were cheering on the side of the course.

I powered up the final hill and was excited to see my wife and daughter watching for me at the finish line! At the end I finished in 1:03:59, which is about what I expected from my 6 mile training run last Saturday. I was impressed by the organization at this race; everything went smoothly, and the event shirts were quite good. Overall, it was another fun run, and I have a new personal record to beat next time!

Upcoming public appearance: SpringCon

2011-05-13T06:12:00.003-05:00

DSC_0154, originally uploaded by craftstravaganza

I'm delighted to announce that I will be attending next weekend's SpringCon Comics Convention as a guest artist, with a table and everything. This is a dream come true for me, since I wanted to be a cartoonist from a young age. And now I can sort of pretend like I really am one!

I will be sharing a table with Sarah Morean, which means that our table will become the temporary MIX-planning headquarters for two days. I printed Bob the Golfer comics to sell or trade or give away, depending on how things go. Come visit if you like comics! It's the best Twin Cities comics event besides the Minneapolis Indie Xpo ;)

Potty mouth

2011-05-12T06:21:00.001-05:00

WARNING: This post is about matters of toilet. If you're not in the mood for stories about potty training a toddler, go here instead. Actually, do that in any case, you'll thank me. Seriously, this gets a little gross.

It's potty training time with Natalie! The process has not been as traumatic as I feared. In fact the only remarkable thing about it has been how quickly Natalie took to using the toilet and ditching diapers. Fortunately, although it hasn't been difficult, it has been funny.

We started Natalie on the little plastic potty chair, but she was eager to graduate to the big toilet and now that is her preference. She was not even fazed by the time that she fell in. We just dried her off and tried again. The books also say that kids can be traumatized by flushing things that came out of their own bodies, but nope, she loves to pull the trigger. "Bye bye poops!"

Natalie coined some new vocabulary words too. "Butterfly poops" are the little ones that follow the initial payload. And if we use the toilet while she is on the potty chair, that's a "teamwork pee" (thanks Wonder Pets). Feel free to use that next time you have a neighbor at the urinals.

Fitter, happier, more productive

2011-05-11T07:04:00.001-05:00

Last week I completed the 13-week training plan in The Beginning Runner's Handbook. Following this plan helped me to avoid injury, boredom, and burnout. Success! The schedule goes like this. I follow this routine three times a week:

5-10 minutes warmup walk
Run/walk intervals
5 minutes cool-down walk
Stretching

The plan started with sets of 30 seconds of running and 4 1/2 minutes of walking. This was challenging enough at first! Then the time spent running gradually increased. For my final workout last week I was able to run 10 kilometers (63 minutes) nonstop.

I'm happy about the results and, more importantly, I'm having a lot of fun! I am well on track to complete a half-marathon at the end of the year and excited to keep running harder and faster and longer. After Saturday's 10K I'll begin the advanced training program, and we'll see what new adventures present themselves.

Hanami

2011-05-11T05:03:00.000-05:00

The first blossoms on Natalie's cherry tree

It's a girl!

2011-05-09T22:24:00.004-05:00

Jenna had an ultrasound today and confirmed that she is pregnant with a healthy baby girl! That's great news for us because two daughters have been scientifically proven* to be the best possible combination of children. I love having a daughter so two must be twice as great, right? Double the fun? As long as we quit while we're ahead, we have it made.

Natalie was excited to be there until she realized that she wasn't going to see an actual baby, only vague shapes and outlines. At the end she asked when we were going to "take the baby out." I had tried to downplay the ultrasound so she wouldn't be disappointed but Jenna and I were both really into it and Natalie could sense the anticipation. So, I can certainly understand why she decided it would be more fun to repeatedly wash her hands than to stay in the room.

Ultrasound images are pretty weird, after all. I could interpret the images a lot better the second time around and we noticed the girl parts before the tech confirmed them. But when you see them for the first time, if you see anything resembling a human, you see a skull. Which makes you think maybe you will have a terrifying skeleton baby. Which seems kind of awesome, but probably would not be so awesome for the skeleton child as it grew up.

Anyway, a girl, hooray! And the tech said that she does have skin and organs and stuff, so that's comforting.

*by "a study," don't ask questions

Father's Day gift ideas

2011-05-09T18:20:00.022-05:00

p.s. For Mother's Day, Natalie and I gave Jenna a nice card from one of our Craftstravaganza vendors, which Natalie decorated. Also a gift card for her favorite restaurant in the whole world (Subway). I cooked her breakfast in bed (homemade Boca sausage McMuffins) and took care of Natalie while she slept all day. Happy Mother's Day, honey!

Business book club

2011-05-06T08:59:00.001-05:00

I met with Sarah today and she noticed a book in my car, the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. "Is that any good?" she asked. I told her no, it's a long, boring-ass book, and I will probably never finish it (which is the truth). Then we started talking about something else. But when I got home I started thinking that although this particular book is a turd, I have read a lot of excellent business books lately that I can recommend. In fact I've been meaning to for a while. So here's a list of some resources that I have found useful.

How to Win Friends and Influence People
I picked this up with low expectations during a particularly long print job at Kinko's and read it halfway through. When I got back to the office I immediately ordered a new copy from Amazon. Stunningly practical advice written in a concise, and down-to-earth style. Not bad for a book first published in 1937. This is the foundation. Everyone should read this book.

Art of the Start
Guy Kawasaki also writes (and speaks) with an immediate and concrete delivery. I blazed through this book and practically never set it down. I work at a start-up company, and while I was reading I suddenly understood a lot of things that we had done. I wish I would have read this book four years earlier.

Delivering Happiness
Perhaps I was particularly fond of this one because it's focused around customer service, which I do. But really, whatever you do, you should understand customer service if you want to do it well. I actually took notes while reading this book, which is unusual for me, but there were just so many great ideas to capture!

Good to Great
I am just finishing the audio version of this one now, and it's, well... pretty great! What I like about this is that it's not just a bunch of opinions or even personal anecdotes. No, they took a ton of raw data and did science to it. The result is reality-tested case studies on building an enduring organization.

Online Resources

I haven't got around to reading any of Seth Godin's books, but his daily blog is a great brain-starter. Read it with your morning coffee.
Set Higher Standards: I used to read this for the business parts and skim the running stuff, but now I can use it all!
I have Penelope Trunk's book, Brazen Careerist, but I prefer her blog where she is able to be more candid. I love this woman.

Craftstravaganza 2011 after-action report

2011-05-04T14:35:00.005-05:00

Put on a bird on it, we're done! The 2011 Craftstravaganza was a success. Despite (or perhaps because of) moderate temperatures and rain throughout most of the day, we welcomed about 3,000 shoppers through the doors. Our vendors had fun and there were very few emergencies.

Media appearances
I appeared on Fox 9 morning news with MA Rosko again. Somehow we have wrangled TV coverage every year so far. You can watch us here.

Swag
We had good giveaways this year. There was a line out the door again this year before we opened. All the swag bags were gone by 9.

Youngest attendee: 5 days old
One of our vendors brought her newborn baby for part of the day. This is almost certainly the youngest person who has ever come to the Craftstravaganza. Our little one went home with auntie for most of the day, which was a big help.

This year's success: new vendors
Nearly half our vendors had never participated in a Craftstravaganza before this year. It was exciting to get an infusion of fresh talent and a variety of different crafts. The energy level was very high both during and leading up to the show. Everyone I spoke with afterward told me they had a great time.

This year's disaster: baby in car
Another reason to be glad of the cooler weather: an infant became trapped in a locked car across the street from our building. State Fair Police arrived at the scene quickly, then an ambulance (just to be safe), then a locksmith who opened the door. We've had medical emergencies in the past, but no deaths yet (knock wood).

Trend: wellies
Colorful rain boots were the hot accessory this year. Probably because it was raining until about 3:30.

Celebrity sighting: Christopher Straub
OK, so he has been one of our vendors for most of the years of the show. But it's still cool that he would show up to support his fellow artists after hitting the big time.

Acquisitions
I didn't buy as much this year as I usually do. I had trouble shifting over from management to shopping mode. But look, I did add some possessions to my treasure horde: an appropriate piece of shower art (above), a Tank Girl poster from Lonny Unitus, a secret Mother's Day card, and some soaps. Jenna got garden art, jewelry, yarn, and a diaper cover.

Destruction
The morning after the show, I backed over my nice hand-lettered sign that I spent so much time on two years ago. Oh well! Sorry about the scattered post. I'm still trying to unscramble my brains. More photos of the show are on Flickr.

Craftstravaganza Time!

2011-04-29T07:43:00.001-05:00

Pickin' up chicks

2011-04-26T06:24:00.005-05:00

We got five Silver-Laced Wyandotte chicks! Natalie named them Nihao, Tolee, Rintoo, and Hoho. The fifth one is Lacey II. Even at one day old, they do have distinctive markings, but I don't know which one is which.

Jenna and Natalie picked up our new baby hens and supplies from the Belle Plaine Country Store at "Chick Day" yesterday. Natalie was so excited to "surprise" me with the chicks that she couldn't hold still. She bounced up and down and ran to the box and started yelling and babbling with joy.

I moved the box into our claw-foot tub in case Lola rediscovers her primal hunting instinct and decides to grab some chicken nuggets. The chicks were all huddled under the heat lamp with one of those energy efficient bulbs, so I switched it out with a 100 watt bulb and they immediately spread out around the box, chirping happily. They survived the first night, so we are off to a good start!

Deviled Cadbury Creme Eggs

2011-04-24T20:02:00.000-05:00

My sister-in-law made me these for Easter. She is my favorite. Crème eggs are cut in half, topped with yellow buttercream frosting, and garnished with red “paprika” sprinkles. Heavenly!

HAPPY EASTER EVERYBODY!

Customer Service WOW

2011-04-18T05:38:00.001-05:00

It's been a year since my promotion to Customer Service Manager at my "actual" job. Even though I was already handling most of our front-line support at that point, I wasn't thrilled about the idea of taking on customer service full time. It conjures up images of call centers staffed by people like Peggy at USA Prime Credit. But far from the soul-numbing chore that I feared, it has been a dream job.

Part of the reason is because our company is awesome, and the other part is because I'm the manager, so I do what I want. Our CEO is a WOW evangelist and I drank the Kool-Aid enthusiastically. From the top of our company on down, we have adopted the philosophy of WOW as outlined by Zappos. This approach has transformed my conception of what customer service could be (i.e., actually serving the customer).

When your organization's top priority is to surprise and delight your customers, every interaction is a fun challenge! Not "how can I spend the least amount of money," or "how quickly can I get this person off the phone," but "how do I get a WOW here?" It's a simple but profound idea that makes all the difference in the world.

The Race For Justice 5K

2011-04-17T13:06:00.006-05:00

I completed my first 5K today! The Race For Justice route starts and ends on Nicollet Island, looping back over the Stone Arch Bridge, with a final stretch along the cobbled streets of St. Anthony Main. It's a fun area, but we were in for a cold run. When the race started, it was 35 degrees outside with 13 mph winds blowing off the Mississippi River.

I arrived early, picked up my race packet, and walked back to my car to wait for the start. Those gusts were brutally cold! I figured out how to attach the timing chip to my shoe and pinned the bib to my jacket. I returned to the island at about a quarter to 9 and soaked in the pre-race energy. I found a spot near the back of the pack when everyone started lining up.

The horn blew and we surged forward, shuffling across the start line. I got comfortable behind someone setting an easy pace and then mostly passed people as the race went on. I was doing great until about the 2.5 mile mark, when I started getting sharp abdominal pains, like I have been doing toward the ends of my runs during the past week. I had to walk for a minute or two with the finish line in sight. Then I caught my breath and sprinted over the bridge, passing a few of the people who breezed past me while I had been struggling and clutching my gut.

This was my first time pushing to run 3 miles flat out. My longest continuous run until now had been 22 minutes. Still, I figured I could probably do three ten-minute miles. My total time was 31:09, a pace of 10:03, which is a little slower than I expected but about par for what I've been doing in training. I placed 257th out of 393 (that's faster than 35% of the finishers--not too shabby for my premiere event).

I didn't stick around long afterward (I had to get home for the Palm Sunday church service) but I did meet the guy who finished fourth. He asked how I did and I told him, "I finished!" Which really was the most important thing next to having a good time. Mission accomplished!

p.s. I totally forgot to write about my lucky door handle. When I was milling around in the park before the start, I found a metal handle in the grass and carried it in my jacket pocket for the entire race. This will not be a tradition.

Spring in Minnesota

2011-04-16T08:23:00.003-05:00

I took all these photos this morning (April 16). It snowed overnight, and this was all gone by 9 AM. Whenever someone complains about winter weather in April, I remember two years ago when we had a blizzard in May during the Craftstravaganza. This is nothing compared to that.

The Murders in the Rue Poule

2011-04-15T08:51:00.007-05:00

One more chicken got killed today. Half our flock was decimated last week, and today's fatality cuts the total in half again. From six chickens down to one in eight months! Jenna found the sole survivor cowering in the corner of the coop, which is where she will stay, safely locked up until I can build a more secure run.

Our number one suspect is the big dog that comes into our yard from time to time. Soon after Jenna found the fresh body, this dog walked around the corner and scared the crap out of her. The chicken had been moved. A coincidence, maybe, but just in case we're instituting a zero-tolerance policy for strange dogs on our property.

I was actually thinking about raising chicks this year anyway, so it's not the end of the world. And again, it's kind of a mercy killing since Lacey (a.k.a. the dead one) had the worst time of it over the winter and was looking awfully pecked-over. I'll try to make things comfortable and safe for Prinny, and then bring home some baby peepers.

R.I.P. Lacey

Meet Andy-bot, my online twin

2011-04-14T14:30:00.003-05:00

I read this article on io9 about chatbots that you can "teach" to act like you, and my first thought was, "what a great idea!" And so without further ado, I give you Andy-bot. Please chat with him. He wants to be your friend.

I do have access to the transcripts, so please use a pseudonym if you want to do something weird with my chatbot, you pervert. Also if anything humorous or amusing comes out of this little experiment, I'm planning to share it here. Have fun!

Bird is the word

2011-04-13T05:34:00.001-05:00

The parade of birds continues. All our familiar friends are back, and then some. Up overhead we have bald eagles, hawks, and geese again. The occasional lonely heron will drift by. On Sunday morning we saw a pair of swans.

All around is a constant chorus of birdsong and spring frogs. It's fun to try to find the source of the noises. On a recent hike we identified Buffleheads, Mallards, and I'm not positive but I think also some Northern Shovelers, all swimming in the marshy lake across the road.

Natalie learnt to use the binoculars. She is becoming quite fond of hikes and nature and wild animals, as I'd hoped. This should be an exciting year of discovery for her.

Steal this idea: Alan Turing 5k

2011-04-11T06:56:00.001-05:00

I just finished reading Logicomix, a good graphic novel about Bertrand Russell (the man who attempted to prove that 1+1=2). It's a bit over 300 pages long but the most interesting part was a note in the index that Alan Turing was "an accomplished long-distance runner." You don't hear very much about this aspect of Turing, and yet to accomplish his world-class Marathon record, he must have spent a significant part of his life running.

This gives me an idea, which I hope someone will develop into a reality: an Alan Turing-themed 5k. There are already events where you race a bear, escape from zombies, and follow clues Amazing Race-style to find your next checkpoint. So why not a run with challenges based on math, logic, and cryptography? I can see the race shirts now: "I passed the Turing Test!" C'mon, somebody, make this happen!

Collaborations: My Little Pony (part 1)

2011-04-08T05:48:00.002-05:00

Everyone who is cool watches My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. Natalie caught Pony fever when I exposed her to the show last week (she makes me sing the theme song as a lullaby, for crying out loud). For our latest artistic collaboration, I drew the Ponies with Sharpie and she colored them with markers.

This is Rarity, my favorite pony. I mean, wait, no! Shut up!

I made Pinkie Pie's head too big, but Natalie didn't care. The big splotch of orange on her face is from an abortive first attempt, after which she took a break, and started over with vigor. Her coloring effort on this one was more all-over-ish. Although, she did pay special attention to the tip of her tail.

Natalie made three serious attempts to color Fluttershy's hair blue. She gripped the marker and bent her head down close to the table to concentrate. Most of the marks look random (and more of them truly are) but sometimes she's really thinking about what she's doing.

I've got three more ponies on deck, so part two will be posted after our next coloring session (update: see part two here).

The junkyard, a.k.a. future site of the new barn and goat pasture

2011-04-07T06:19:00.001-05:00

So, those photos I posted before we moved into our house were pretty idyllic, eh? I only took you on a tour as far as the dilapidated (but cute) barn. Everything looked pretty nice up to that point! What's beyond there, you ask? Well, a whole lotta garbage, that's what.

There's a decent chunk of land out back there and someday I hope to do something with it. First, though, we have to clear out several dumpsters'-worth of junk. I will be stockpiling these bricks for some future project. There are some plastic buckets and cinder blocks that we might be able to use. Almost everything else is a write-off.

It's hard to fully convey how much of a garbage dump is in our back yard. See that flattish structure to the right? That's a roof. It's big; at least ten feet to a side. The pile in the background to the left is about the same size. Add to that trees all fallen on top of each other and we've got a big mess on our hands. Or, as I like to call it, a big opportunity for improvement!

A murder mystery

2011-04-05T18:15:00.009-05:00

Natalie in happier times

A tragedy struck our little acre on Monday, April 4 2011, the date that will go down in infamy as marking our first farm death. I let the hens out in the morning like usual so they could roam around the yard. In the evening, after Natalie was asleep, I went back out to close the ramp to their coop. But instead of all four birds roosting in a line, there were only two.

My first thought, I have to admit, was, "at least they got the freeloaders." The two remaining hens are the ones that actually lay eggs so in a way it was the best case scenario as far as predator attacks go. But Natalie loves playing with them all and so for her sake, I hoped that the other two had merely found alternative accommodations, and would return the next day.

Sure enough, we found Starbuck in the yard on Tuesday... or most of her, at least. All the meat had been ripped from her little body, leaving behind just her feather-covered skin, a sack of organs, two rigid legs, and a barely-attached head. The grass was covered in downy fluff. I buried her remains in the garden.

Other than a few brown feathers we couldn't find Cadbury. All the evidence points to a double homicide. The culprit is unknown but it could have been any of half a dozen of the usual suspects (dog, raccoon, fox, coyote, hawk, eagle). I spent the rest of Tuesday evening re-erecting the deer netting fence that had torn and collapsed over winter. On Wednesday morning I was serenaded with a chorus of Spring Peepers when I stepped outside at 5:00. And so the circle of life continues, etc.

RESQUISCAT IN PACEM

Starbuck: KIA

Cadbury: MIA (presumed dead)

Dad Life

2011-04-05T08:00:00.003-05:00

We have a planter with two puppies on it from Jenna’s grandma, so I can relate to the ornamental turtle. I would love to have a JD with a 60” cut and zero turn radius. Or the... big screen TV... aw man! I'm actually jealous of the dads in this video.

Carver's Wild Kingdom

2011-04-04T07:02:00.001-05:00

Wasps, originally uploaded by علي الحسين

The parade of nature continues at our new house as we begin our first spring. The geese are returning, along with a bunch of weird migrating birds that I don't recognize. I repaired our bird feeders (birds/squirrels somehow destroyed all three last year) to attract more visitors. One evening a pretty male pheasant stopped by.

All the mud and snow in our yard has been collecting animal tracks, which Natalie enjoys ("follow tracks, follow tracks, what we see?" she sings). Mostly we see the prints of deer, rabbits, dogs, and the unmistakable hand-prints of raccoons (their tiny, creepy hands). A chipmunk is nesting under our porch and digging holes in the front garden. And there's a big fat cat living in our barn.

Speaking of unwelcome guests, our house is full of wasps. At first it was one or two here and there and we figured they were stumbling out of dormancy and then dying; no big deal. We had it admit it was a problem when I killed 42 in a single day. I figured out where they were coming from and bombed a room with pesticide, netting me 45 more corpses. I hope that takes care of them!

Fetus Princess*

2011-03-31T05:36:00.005-05:00

It's baby time! Jenna's got another bun in the oven and Natalie is excited to become a big sister sometime around October 2. The three (four?) of us went in for a checkup a couple of weeks ago and listened to the heartbeat together. It was a magical family moment.

Natalie's 4-year-old cousin is staying with us for a week while her parents vacation in Mexico. It's like a preview of our life 3 years from now. Most of the time the girls are so sweet with each other and it is very nice. Sometimes they are not.

My wife is used to juggling three children when she does daycare for her other sister's kids, but for me, adjusting to double daughters is an eye-opening experience. It takes both of us to manage bedtimes and anything else that requires splitting them up, but on the other hand, Natalie needs us less when they play together. And she's having so much fun... at least for now! On balance, I'm totes stoked to add another baby (and another tree) to our home.

*We don't know yet if the fetus is a boy or girl, but we will find out if we get a chance. I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to use a picture of Adventure Time's "embryo princess" (although he or she is technically a fetus now)

The comics show I didn't do

2011-03-28T13:10:00.001-05:00

The Big Room, originally uploaded by Mr Kevino

Everyone knows that I started planning a comics show in 2009 which eventually became the first annual Minneapolis Indie Xpo. What you may not know is that this almost didn't happen. When I was still in the early planning stages, I spoke with a gentleman who tried to convince me to do something else entirely.

When I asked artists at FallCon 2009 how they felt about a new local show, the same name came up a few times of a guy who supposedly was doing something similar (name removed to protect the innocent). When I reached out to him, he responded that he had formed a planning committee for his own show, which was scheduled around the same time we wanted to do ours. I didn't want to step on any toes or duplicate work that had already been done so I decided to sit down with him and see if it made sense to join forces.

I met with him in a coffee shop where he laid out his plans for this grand event, listing all the famous artists who were definitely going to be there, and claiming that the heavy lifting was already done. Partly this made me wonder what he needed me for. But also I realized that he had outlined a philosophically opposite approach than I was taking. The plan for their show (compared to MIX) was:

Three days (vs. one)
Three tracks of programming (vs. workshops and one room for discussions)
About $40 for shoppers to attend the full weekend (vs. free)
Suburban hotel conference room space (vs. downtown art gallery)
Paying to bring in national talent (vs. growing organically)
Focus on webcomics and podcasts (vs. local and print artists)

Ultimately, I decided that the events were so different that they wouldn't conflict. More importantly, although I would gladly attend an event like he described, I was in love with our ideas and committed to bringing them to life. I wished him the best of luck with his event, and then... nothing. He never responded, and the show never happened.

I had to chuckle a bit as this "sure thing" apparently fell through and taking a chance on building something new paid off. Then again, that's the story of my life. By the way, the show where I got this guy's name was the same place I met Sarah, who was the key to the success of MIX. And considering such a diametrically opposed approach helped to emphasize the validity and necessity of doing something different. Everything happens for a reason!

It's mud season

2011-03-21T13:01:00.001-05:00

It came down from the sky..., originally uploaded by Dani℮l

Now that the temperature is up and some snow has melted, Natalie delights in playing outside again. For the past week, our usual routine after I get home is to run around and watch the chickens and swing until Jenna rings the dinner bell. The only problem is that our yard is a boggy mess and the gravel driveway has turned into a mud pit.

We went to the big Home & Garden show to shop for a new driveway and promptly ran into my CEO. We also watched our celebrity pal Christopher Straub doing a fashion thing with Allison Kaplan, who has given us good press for the Craftstravaganza. So it was nice to talk with all of them. Natalie's favorite part was riding up and down the Convention Center's long elevators. She also enjoyed playing in the Rainbow playgrounds, until a mean boy shut a door in her face. Anyway it got us thinking about landscaping and sheds and summer projects.

While visiting my parents in Alexandria, we shopped for riding mowers and bought seeds. Natalie helped Jenna plant them in a windowsill starter when we got home. I filled our bird feeders, picked up thawed dog poop, and cut up branches. It's beginning to feel a lot like spring (forecast for this week: 4-8 inches of snow).

Ice cream party

2011-03-17T15:23:00.005-05:00

Last Wednesday it was snowing, and cold, and dark. It was the perfect day to defy winter by bringing frozen treats to work and having an ice cream party. I had churned up four flavors for just this occasion:

Coffee Gelato,
Burnt Caramel Gelato,
Chocolate Pretzel Ice Cream, and for the bold,
Balsamic Vinegar & Black Pepper Ice Cream.

Chocolate Pretzel was the most popular. It's a great salty-sweet combination. Quite a few folks tried the balsamic and pepper, and nobody quite liked it (I can't say I care for it either). My recipe book recommends serving it with some fresh fruit. I'll have to try that combination.

I calculated ingredient costs for some basic flavors and came out to around $3.50 a pint. Cheaper than buying some fancy-pants gourmet brand, but I'm not going to make a business from selling small batches of this stuff. Anyway, it's still a lot of fun to make and share, and Natalie loves it. Ice cream for everybody!