Catching Up

Have I mentioned that I'm busy? I like using this as a forum to complain about how much I work in December.

Anyway, I have so much to blog about but no time to write anything properly, let alone upload my awful pictures and try to make them less awful. But here's a glimpse of posts that I promise I will, at some point, write:

1. The week before Thanksgiving, we had our annual Mock Thanksgiving party. This one was big, kid-free, and totally fun. It was cold out but we bought a couple big outdoor propane heaters, which kept the patio warmish (along with a fire and a grill, where Cooper grilled oysters). It was super fun. An actual post on the food and drinks will be forthcoming.

2. Just before that,  Bill and I had a chili-off on a random Sunday. He won...with everyone but Cooper, Dixon and me. Really, though, we were all winners. I mean, everyone does win when there's a chili cookoff.

3. Speaking of Bill, he hosted the Carol & Crawl (now in its seventh year) last weekend. We haven't actually caroled or crawled since year three but it remains a great Christmas party. Bill stuck with his wheelhouse...and quesadillas are quite festive.

4. Also last weekend, Cooper shot his first sika deer, the small Japanese elk-like deer that live on the Eastern shore of Maryland. We had a surprise snow day guest - Sarah G. - so on Sunday, we had sika for dinner and found that it was surprisingly steak-like. I just seasoned it with salt and pepper and cooked it in a hot pan over medium-high heat. Didn't need anything else.

5.This past Wednesday, Cooper and I went to the Fry My Chicken event at Pabu. Five chefs, five buckets of fried chicken. It was glorious. More to follow on that one, too.

This is weak, I know, but really, there will be longer posts one day. Every year, I think I'm going to take it easy in December...then I remember it's the craziest month for research analysis that exists. I'm barely even writing this month! I don't have time!