"There aren't enough days in the weekend."
-Rod Schmidt
On Friday we got to eat lunch with one of my favorite little guys--my nephew Chase. He was on his his best behavior as we ate lunch at McDonald's and walked around a car dealership. I think he will be a very good big brother, come December.
Then we headed to Blain and Katie's house to spend the rest of the weekend with some of our favorite friends. A night of test riding bikes, Mexican food, wedding invitation consultation (they picked my favorite design!!!), and an episode of "Top Gear." What a wonderful start to a wonderful weekend! More to come...
"Absorb what is useful, reject what is useless, add what is specifically your own."
-Bruce Lee
[poster from our senior design project]
As Rob and I contemplated (and saved) for our iPhones over the last couple of months, we rationalized the purchase of $200 phones because they can do so much. Our GPS quit working--an iPhone can give us directions. Our mp3 players are losing their edge--an iPhone can be our music player. We can't keep up with small scraps of paper--an iPhone can save our notes electronically.
As I downloaded apps this weekend, I saw my iPhone as the ultimate productivity tool. Technology was going to whip me into shape. And then Sunday evening, as I downloaded an app to manage my grocery lists, I realized...I'm still going to have to make time to input all of that data. Same with all of those devices we designed in school--an iPhone is really only as productive as I am. If I didn't make pantry lists, exercise logs and budget graphs before, I'm probably not going to with an iPhone either.
I'd say I'm still in the honeymoon phase with my new gadget--but a bit of reality is starting to set in, too. Good thing I'm still in love with the idea of carrying the Internet around with me in my purse! That makes it all worth it!
"It takes a long time to grow young."
-Pablo Picasso
FYI... did you know that both Rob's and my birthdays can both fall on Father's Day?!?! I was born on Father's Day, and his birthday is today.
25 may be too old for themed birthday parties. But that doesn't really stop us! (We're young at heart!!) This year to honor Rob's fairly new hobby, almost every gift he received was related to cycling. A pair of gloves, a wallet made of recycled tires, a new jersey, money to buy a hydration backpack...
So while he was at work this afternoon (it sucks to work on your birthday!), I attempted to make him a bicycle cookie cake. Using a Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix (guess I don't love him enough to bake cookies from scratch!) and a page from the Cannondale catalog as a guide, I set about to form the dough into the shape of a bicycle.
I set it in a 375 degree oven as the package suggested and left it for 15 minutes.
Of course, I had forgotten that the dough would expand in the oven, so when I pulled it out I was surprised by a bloated bike. Nervous but determined, I prodded forward, icing the large cookie with white icing. After that cooled and set, I traced the shape of the bike with green icing.
I'm pretty tickled with the way it came out (despite my cookie decorating inadequacies!) and hope that Rob is too, when he gets home.
Saturday was a great day----simply for the fact that we didn't have to wear real clothes----all day long!! We started the day in our athletic gear and a 22-mile bike ride. That's the longest and fastest I've ever gone! And my first time on a real road bike!! No pics from that--I was much too focused on shifting gears and holding on to worry about capturing photographs of my achievement.
We got back to the house, showered, changed into bathing suits, and headed to the beach. We spent the afternoon at Hilton Head, enjoying the heat, relaxing on the beach, and trying to avoid stepping on sand dollars in the ocean. Dinner at Wild Wings completed the evening before we drove back to Georgia to change back into our pajamas and head to bed. Had to get enough rest for the race on Sunday. More to come later...
