Dallas, ALA Midwinter 2012

I visited Dallas in January for the American Library Association's Midwinter meeting. The weather was really lovely, and there were a few fun things to do in addition to committee meetings and library exhibits.

The Dallas Art Museum had an exhibit of Gaultier designs that was just amazing. My favorite part was the collection of Madonna costumes from her "Blonde Ambition" tour.

There were lots of parties and meals sponsored by library vendors, but Elsevier really pulled out all the stops: cowboy hats, longhorn cattle, and a mechanical bull!

The farmer's market was lovely (but deserted) and was the site of my first experience with breakfast tacos! (Yummy.)

Here's La Marketa Cafe

Dallas is the city where John F. Kennedy died, and the 6th Floor Museum traces his presidency, death, and legacy. I was surprised at how moving the museum was for me, and highly recommend it if you're ever visiting Dallas. The above photo is the JFK memorial.

Year in Review: 2011

Today Mike and I discussed the highlights of the year that just passed and we agreed that the biggest change for us was buying and moving into our house back in June.

We love our house so much, and look forward to making additional improvements and changes in 2012. Owning a home is pretty fun.

Some other highlights:

Two more nephews! Isaac (born in February) and Seth (born in August).

Trips to Chicago, Vancouver and Philadelphia (for Melissa), Albuquerque and Cache Valley.

Terry family photo from the Albuquerque trip

We enjoyed visits from Mom and Dad, Sheri, and Grandma Hansen. We loved hosting Thanksgiving dinner at our house!

Here's to the new year! We're excited to see what 2012 brings.

Christmas 2011

This year, Mike and I had our first Christmas tree. We loved it, and so did Simone.

This is my beautiful Christmas present -- a used piano, picked up in Utah and delivered by my parents a week before Christmas. I looooove it (and Mike claims to love having music in the house -- I think he'll love it more once the piano has been tuned).

I made several gifts this year, including these six flowered headbands. Cute, huh?

We spent a few days in Idaho with my family. Highlights included:

Getting to know 4-month-old nephew Seth (a truly magical baby)

Snowshoeing in Strawberry Canyon

Bowling at Logan Lanes (Robert is a little bit competitive)

Merry Christmas and a happy new year!

80 Books in 2011

Here's the complete list of the books I read in 2011 (there are two days left, but I don't think I'm going to finish Daniel Deronda or The Remains of the Day in that time). I set two reading goals this year: 1) to read a total of 80 books and 2) to read at least one nonfiction book per month. Mission accomplished! This is a mix of classics, stuff read for work, young adult lit, literary fiction, nonfiction, and a couple of plays. Leave a comment if you want a review or a recommendation.

Note: These are listed in the order in which I read them. Favorites are in bold.

1. Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby
2. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen
3. A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
4. "Antony and Cleopatra" by William Shakespeare
5. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
6. The House at Riverton by Kate Morton
7. Brooklyn by Colm Toibin
8. House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
9. Such a Pretty Face: Being Fat in America by Marcia Millman
10. Great House by Nicole Krauss
11. Intuition by Allegra Goodman
12. Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses by Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa
13. An Object of Beauty by Steve Martin
14. Cheerful Money by Tad Friend
15. I Don't Know How She Does It by Allison Pearson
16. Thanks for the Memories by Cecilia Ahern
17. Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman by Jon Krakauer
18. The Book of Tomorrow by Cecilia Ahern
19. The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown
20. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
21. Good in Bed by Jennifer Weiner
22. Certain Girls by Jennifer Weiner
23. Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger
24. My Life in France by Julia Child
25. Jane by April Lindner
26. The Tiger's Wife by Tea Obreht
27. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
28. Juliet by Anne Fortier
29. Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri
30. The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
31. O, Pioneers by Willa Cather
32. Bossypants by Tina Fey
33. Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the Marriage of the Century by Sam Kashner and Nancy Schoenberger
34. The Fates Will Find Their Way by Hannah Pittard
35. Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff
36. Songs for the Missing by Stewart O’Nan
37. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan C. Bradley
38. Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris
39. A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway
40. Clara and Mr. Tiffany by Susan Vreeland
41. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
42. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
43. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
44. Spoiled by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan
45. Reality is Broken by Jane McGonigal
46. Riding the White Horse Home by Teresa Jordan
47. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
48. What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen
49. The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag by Alan Bradley
50. Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen
51. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
52. Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon
53. The Cookbook Collector by Allegra Goodman
54. “Clouds” by Aristophanes
55. The Lais of Marie de France translated by Burgess & Busby
56. “Germania” by Tacitus
57. The Exile by Diana Gabaldon
58. Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
59. Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
60. State of Wonder by Ann Patchett
61. Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon
62. The Wilder Life by Wendy McClure
63. Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart
64. Bonk by Mary Roach
65. The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon
66. Confessions of a Prairie Bitch by Alison Arngrim
67. Three Cups of Deceit: How Greg Mortenson, Humanitarian Hero, Lost His Way by Jon Krakauer
68. The Devil’s Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea
69. What Would Buffy Do: The Vampire Slayer as Spiritual Guide by Jana Riess
70. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
71. The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides
72. A Red Herring Without Mustard by Alan C. Bradley
73. The Uncoupling by Meg Wolitzer
74. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling
75. The Magician King by Lev Grossman
76. The Descendants by Kaui Hart Hemmings

77. This Beautiful Life by Helen Schulman

78. Flunking Sainthood by Jana Riess

79. Mennonite in a Little Black Dress by Rhoda Janzen
80. Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Home Improvements

Part 4 of Summer 2011

Since moving into our new house, we've made a few improvements and some exciting purchases.

Our first big furniture purchase -- a dining room table and chairs! Delivered late, but finally here.

Our finished guest bedroom, with Ikea furniture. We haven't yet decided what to put on the walls. As a reminder, here's what the room looked like when we moved in:

. . . a color we like to call "Cookie Monster Blue." It took three coats of primer plus paint to cover this exuberant decor!

Here's the attic loft, which is not quite assembled. It will be our home office, once it's all done. We have made significant progress. Here's what it looked like when we moved in:

Wood paneling from floor to ceiling! We put three coats of primer plus paint on these walls, and we're really happy with the "Mild Lemon" color you now see throughout the room.

We love our house, and home ownership continues to be an adventure. We have many more plans for small improvements, but now that fall semester is coming on, our pace has slowed considerably. Come visit us some time!

Miscellaneous summer stuff

Part 3 of Summer 2011 Coverage

Early in the summer, Mike and I went to Boulder, Colorado for the day. It's a beautiful place, with the University of Colorado campus, downtown shopping, an amazing independent bookstore, and a great farmer's market. Here are a few pictures:

Tulips downtown

Flowers at the farmer's market

Mike at the Dushanbe Teahouse, where we ate lunch

On a different note altogether, one of my library classrooms got new laptops (yay!) and white boards. I'm very pleased and excited to teach there this fall:

For the first time since moving to Laramie, Mike and I were in town for Independence Day. Laramie has a huge celebration called "Freedom has a Birthday." Here's a picture of the main musical stage:

Freedom has a Birthday was really fun -- there were four stages in Washington Park. Also, free ice cream from the Freemasons and lemonade from the Democrats. (I heard the Republicans were giving away watermelon, but didn't run into their booth.)

Mike's mom visited us this summer, and we had a great time introducing her to Laramie. We went up to Vedauwoo for a walk around and to the Snowy Mountains. It was mid-July, but the Snowies still had tons of snow that shut down our attempts to go on a hike! On our way down from the Snowies we stopped for pizza at the Bear Tree Tavern and noticed this sign for the restrooms. It made us giggle.

Diana Gabaldon, author of the Outlander series of books, visited Laramie for a lecture and a reading. I went with my friend Kennedy and met the author. I'm reading the series now, and it's pretty entertaining. Her books include time travel, romance, and historical fiction, set (at first) in the Scottish Highlands.

Me, Kennedy, and Diana Gabaldon

Finally, a few food highlights from the summer. Mike and I have a share in Community Supported Agriculture, and every week we receive a box of vegetables and fruits from a farm in northern Colorado.

Here's a zucchini quiche, right before I popped it into the oven. It was delicious!

Pad thai, made with lots of the vegetables from our CSA share

This raspberry freezer jam does not represent produce from our CSA, but is actually made from Mink Creek raspberries given to us by my mom. It was my first-ever time making jam, and it's totally delicious.

Our pretty yard

Part 2 of Summer 2011 Update

Mike and I have spent a little bit of time working in our yard this summer. Luckily, it's fairly low-maintenance! We both enjoy having our own little piece of Laramie to take care of.

Here's our front flowerbed

A rosebush -- we just had 3 or 4 roses this year, but hopefully there will be more next year!

This lovely hanging basket was a house-warming gift from a good friend. (Also note the bright blue porch swing.)

I don't know what these purple things are called, but they're pretty, growing next to our garage.

Columbine at the back of the house

Lilac trees on either side of the bay window

Bright pink daisies in the front yard