Day 361: The new kids come for dinner

As it's the start of a new academic year, the new post-docs and fellows have arrived and are settling in. This is the position S was in just a year ago. How far he's come since then! Remembering the confusion and chaos of that time, we invited Vani and Tariq over for a homecooked Indian meal. It was also Ganesh Chaturthi, so we thought it would be good to celebrate a bit. I think everyone would agree the night was very successful.

Day 311: Happy Fourth of July

How better to celebrate the Fourth than with a glass of Pimm's and lemonade and a hat from Canada Day?

Day 231: Easter candy

I think I went a little overboard buying Easter candy. That's what 40 days of no sugar does to a person.

Day 229: Happy Easter

We finished the egg dying tonight. S's were the nicest - purple and blue. I did a nice yellow one using turmeric! Next year I might try to do mostly natural dyes.

Day 220: Champagne

Our belated anniversary dinner at Tre Scalini.

Day 219: Anniversary flowers

Happy anniversary to us!

Day 199: Would you like...

...some green bagels? I mean, come on. I'm all for the Shamrock Shake (which, by the way, I can't have since I gave up sugar for Lent!), the green beer, and corned beef and cabbage (not me personally, as I'm vegetarian, but for the meat eaters, sure). But this is out of control. I should have bought some and left them as a gift for the neighbors (see previous post).

Day 198: Neighbors and their holidays

One house on our street is always decorated for whatever holiday is coming up. Last it was Valentine's Day. Walking home today, we saw that they've got all the gear out for St. Patrick's Day. It's hard to tell in the photo but they've got a flag, shamrock garlands, and big shamrocks in the windows. I'm really hoping they have little kids because it's a bit out of control.

Day 152: Burns Supper

Today was the 250th anniversary of Robert Burns' birthday, and although I'm no longer in Scotland, I wanted to mark the day with Burns Supper. Last year, we were always able to get Macsween's lovely vegetarian haggis, but sadly they are not sold here. So I had to make my own. And it was a success! Although there wasn't any whiskey, I felt happy to be keeping a little bit of my Scotland experience alive here in New Haven.

Day 137: Another present from my sis

I told my family I wanted a crockpot (slow cooker) for Christmas and my sister got me one, but I couldn't carry it back with me on the plane home. So I returned it in Chicago and bought another one here online which we just received yesterday. Here it is! I'm really looking forward to using it soon. Thanks, sister!

Day 128: The Obamas' future home

Following the blizzard we left behind in Connecticut, it was a crisp and sunny day today in DC. We took a short walk round the back of the White House just to check it out. It's really nice to realise that some fellow Chicagoans will be moving in shortly!

Day 127: New Year's Eve at the Kennedy Center

Thanks to my cluelessness, we drove over 300 miles to Washington DC for New Year's Eve. (I bought tickets to a jazz concert for New Year's Eve that I thought was being held in New York City...no, actually, did you know the Kennedy Center is in Washington DC?) This would have been a fun road trip if it hadn't been snowing for hours when we left Connecticut, and if yours truly also hadn't caused us to get lost in New York somewhere around Queens. Anyway, we eventually made it and had a lovely time. Happy New Year!

Day 126: Homesick already

Today we left Chicago for New Haven. It was a great two weeks...hanging out with my parents, sister, nieces and nephew. I miss you guys already!

Day 123: Breakfast at Cracker Barrel

My three little ones pose for a family photo. I converted my family to the wonders of Cracker Barrel's breakfast! The little guy really isn't sad...he's just hamming it up for the camera.

Day 121: Merry Christmas!

My favourite new toy!

Day 120: If it's Christmas, we must be...

...making pierogi! My mother did 99% of the work (as she usually does) but I think I might have filled a couple of them in between taking photos. We try to make pierogi at least once during the year, either at Christmas or Easter. Pierogi are filled dumplings (for lack of a better word). We usually fill them with sauerkraut, farmer's cheese, and mashed potatoes. Once they're filled, we boil them and then fry them in butter and chopped onions. A Polish tradition in our home.

Day 119: Snow, snow, and more snow

My parents have this light-up snowman that they put in front of the house every year. For the past few years it has seemed sort of out of place as we haven't had much snow recently. This year, he fits right in. It seems like it's been snowing for almost 24 hours straight now. White Christmas almost doesn't quite cover it!

Day 114: Second in a series

Last night we played a deluxe version of Scrabble that must have been bought in the 80s, and it seemed pretty high-tech twenty years ago. When I said this morning that I wanted a new deluxe version, my mom quickly pointed out that I already HAD one, which I bought myself for Christmas last year, and it was in the basement. I didn't believe her at first, but then she brought it out and I was thrilled. I adore this set! It's a Michael Graves limited edition from Target, and it's just beautiful. It even has a special scoring system (see those silver pegs?). There will be a rematch tonight!

Day 112: A sign I was really pleased to see

Setting out for Chicago at 10:00 AM, everything seemed like it was going perfectly. The shuttle pick up was perfectly on time; the ride to Bradley International Airport was traffic-free. The airport was very empty; I suppose it's still a bit early for the holiday madness. But then. Our plane had a 'pressure problem'. We left almost two hours later than the scheduled departure time. And then seeing as we were flying un-pressurized, our non-stop flight had to make a STOP! In Pittsburgh! To get fuel! And when we reached Pittsburgh, we were told that Chicago had put a stop on all traffic going in, due to weather, and thus we weren't able to leave straightaway. So I nearly wept with joy when we finally reached O'Hare, only five hours later than scheduled.

Day 58: Farewell dinner at Lahore Kebab House

We held the third annual Diwali dinner at Lahore Kebab House off Commercial Road. As I am leaving in a few weeks' time, it was also my farewell dinner, and I was honored to have my aunt and uncle, my niece, my friend from Chicago, and our global director of consulting attend. It was good fun and I have posted the best photos on Facebook. This is one of the handsome men who turned out to send me off!