A Tale of Two Events

Saturday morning prelude

Jack and I are standing at the sinks in my bathroom, brushing our teeth. I asked him how old he is and he looks at me solemnly and says "two."

Act one

A late-morning birthday party with five toddlers, one newborn and an assorted group of parents drinking coffee. Jack's sitting seriously by the Old Town School of Folk Music teacher who is trying to engage the children in singing. They are not buying it. Lots of birthday cake ground in the carpet, sippy cups strewn about and one dear little friend shredding birthday tissue paper.

Act two

The sun sets, I'm standing in my lovely new dress and heels on the beach of the Openlands Lakeshore Preserve at a donor event, a kir royale made with Veuve Clicquot in hand. A program on the night sky, so we have telescopes and binoculars. Lake Michigan is still as glass; it's a crisp, cool autumn event and we dine in a heated, clear-topped tent.

Saturday night postlude

I snuggle under the covers; Jeremy is watching ESPN. This was truly the ultimate working mommy day...of course you can guess what my favorite event was.

Speaking of sweet

I love to bake. My mom and sisters love to bake. My sister Laura and I are baking a blueberry crumb cake for Sunday morning breakfast right now as I type this. Rather than disdain bakeries, our baking skills make us appreciate bakeries even more. With Jack’s birthday days away, I thought I would share my favorites (in no particular order):

1. Wild Flour Bakery, Rocky River, Ohio – My mom, sisters and I were first introduced to this bakery for its roasted red pepper dip; we stayed for the baked goods. Jack’s Cleveland birthday cake is from this bakery; visit the decorator’s blog to see a picture of Jack’s musical note/guitar birthday cake (disclaimer: my mom typically makes all birthday cakes for our family’s birthdays; it just happened this week she’s recovering from a cold and I asked her if I could order a cake instead to keep things easy).
2. Sweet Mandy B’s, Chicago – cupcakes….big, sloppy buttercream-slathered cupcakes; need I say more? Jack’s Chicago birthday cake will be coming from here.
3. Lovely, Chicago – Creative pastries with lots of good savory foods for breakfast and lunch. This is my favorite place to sit.
4. Bittersweet, Chicago – A little more reserved but very beautiful desserts.
5. Tag’s Bakery, Evanston, Ill. – I heard a rumor once that Charlie Trotter thought Tag’s cookies were the best in Chicago. Those little buttery treats certainly top my list. And the little old ladies in their aprons who are behind the counter make me happy.
6. Floriole, Chicago – A vendor at Green City Market, they are committed to using only local ingredients. Beautiful creations!

All treats

Halloween was so nice yesterday. It was the first time in awhile we were able to set aside the daily things of life and celebrate and be joyful. The day was the reason you work so hard the rest of the year – to have special days like these. Jeremy and I attended the wedding of my childhood friend Chris and his lovely bride Eileen. They are beautiful people, inside and out, and have loving, strong families. It was a wonderfully warm affair. How special to see those two looking so happy as Eileen walked down the aisle. It makes me teary now to even think about it!

Since the wedding was in Cleveland, my hometown, we’re spending the weekend with my family. Jack had his first honest-to-goodness trick-or-treating experience. I was sad to not be part of it, but the fact that Jack had so much fun with his cousin Andrew and my family far outweighed any sad thoughts. This picture may cause a few cavities; it is just so darn sweet.