Morning Window

Every morning I have a brief window right before my day truly begins. Between 6:00 and 6:30am there is a small moment for me to sit and drink espresso and it is almost like I have the world all to myself. Behind the door in the picture, all of my girls sleep tight, kind enough to grant me a little peace before they awake and the wheels really have to start moving. Right before breakfast cooking, lunch packing, laundering, cleaning, dressing and taxiing I can just sit and enjoy a little silence. It is a welcome contrast to the other twenty three and a half hours of every day.

Gift Trifecta

Sometimes things just come together. Sometimes separate items work almost too well as a unit... and it is awesome when they do. We received all of these gifts on different occasions but this is really the first time we've made the most of all three of them. It is great when you can enjoy something as simple as a cup of espresso and know it was all because people can be so thoughtful and giving.

Thanks to Miss Janet, Josh and Kellet and Sutton. Also big thanks to everyone else who does the little and big things for us that enrich our lives in so many ways. We appreciate you and your gifts, material and otherwise.

Anniversary Continued

So my mother-in-law took the girls Wednesday to Sunday leaving olivia and I alone to have some anniversary celebration time. We watched DVD's, drank beer, consumed countless coffees, ate quality food, bowled badly, caught up on sleep, read and in general just enjoyed the time together.

Thanks for all the Anniversary wishes, we had a great one.

Thank you

Today's Regularly Scheduled Photodump will be preempted by the following Thank You.

My wife came home this weekend from Church with a little something extra. A friend and reader who had an espresso machine sitting around decided to donate it to the cause of keeping our family caffeinated.

 This baby was put into immediate service Monday morning and it is awesome!

She was even so thoughtful as to include some dark blended coffee and it is excellent and perfect for this use.
Thank you Kellet for thinking of us, this is a fantastic gift.

Dark Black Gold

Coffee: I'm an addict and I am not ashamed.
Black, loaded, decaf, flavored, strong, weak...I dig it. Some days I drink a whole pot of the caffeinated goodness before I make myself switch to unleaded for the second pot. My default cheap coffee go-to was Maxwell House Master Blend but the marketing genius of Black Silk intrigued me and did not fail to deliver. I'd walk around with an iv drip of the stuff if I could. I used to take it with cream and sweetener. Since switching to black I seem to be drinking a lot more.

The coffee maker in the picture is the bane of my existence. I HATE it. It brews ok but can't pour to save it's pathetic plastic life. For every mug I pour, another half mug ends up on the counter. Serves me right for buying a coffee maker made by the same company that makes power tools. We used to have an awesome Mr. Coffee maker that we loved but it bit the dust a couple Christmases ago (the one when it snowed). We buried him in the back yard. I broke the cold ground with a shovel as an icy tear ran down my cheek. Sometimes I take a mug out in the back yard and stare at his final resting place. I always pour a little out and remember the good times.

I've had two Bodum glass French presses. I love them but I am not easy on them. The carafes are prone to breaking, hence they sell replacement glass. Wish I had known this before I threw out two perfectly good presses that just needed new glass. We've toyed with the idea of getting a maker with an espresso machine. I know, I know. I am not so blind that I cannot see that this would be like introducing a pot smoker to mainlining heroin...but I want it. When this coffee maker bites it, I might just invite a Starbucks franchise to set up next to our refrigerator.