A Curry of a Life

 I turned thirty this week! My parents took me up to the Smokies in the morning to ride bikes around Cades Cove. It was a wonderful way to start this new decade. I am pretty happy to close my chapter in my 20s. I did a lot. I graduated from college, got married, move 19 times, had three babies, made many wonderful friends, dealt with a lot of health issues, developed several hobbies that have enriched my life, ran a half marathon (!!), and learned a lot. A lot. That is something that will continue through every phase of life, unfortunately  or fortunately? Not sure which, haha. I am embracing getting older. I have always been one of the younger ones in my friend group, thus I have been surrounded by “older” women. These women have shared their wisdom from life experiences with me. God has used them as a way to communicate with me with suggestions and ideas that were answers to my prayers. They are my friends and I have so much love and respect for them. Plus, they are all so bea

It’s birthday week at our house! It’s the most wonderful time of the year, because I get to celebrate my babies, their growth, and reminisce their birth’s. Their birth dates are hands down the best days of my life. We celebrated Cosette with a dinosaur lemon cake inspired by Momofoku Milkbar’s Birthday Cake . This girl loves lemon. My mother has taught me all sorts of tips for cake baking a frosting. Her lemon frosting is to die for. Thanks to all her knowledge, Cosette's cake was delicioso.   Cosette is into dinosaurs right now. Her favorite is a Microraptor. I found a Microraptor figurine, and got it for the cake topper. She was so happy. Later she said to herself out loud, "best birthday ever". Mama win for me! We kept it small with a set of our close friends and cousins. So it turned out to be a big group of people. Big family problems, haha. She was spoiled with gifts and love by everyone who was there. Everyone's favorite gift is the giant dinosaur h

Leslie and Baby Ruby came to visit us at the end of June! It is the first time in what six years Leslie has come to visit us in NYC. We had a much better visit than the first time (I got the flu and Lyndon had finals). She brought Baby Ruby, aka the Rubster (nickname given by Henry). The kids enjoyed having their baby cousin around. We have not gotten to spend that much time with Ruby, and we loved getting to know our Rubster better.  We did combo of the usual and unusual sights. Plus, ate our way through a few of our favorite NYC food places, mostly deserts. We spent tons of time at the our after school playground, Brooklyn bridge, Waitress on Broadway, and yoga in Times Square for the summer solstice, NY Botanic Gardens, etc. I loved spending time with my sister.  She loved Cosette. Leslie did an internship in NYC while were in Paris (so bummed we weren't here). She wanted to show us where she lived and worked. This was her apartment building.  Ruby'

Last week we went to the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga. It is a drive to get down there, so we do not go very often. The last time I went I was nine months pregnant with Cosette, and now she is six!   I love this aquarium. it's huge! There are so many interesting exhibits that feature a lot of the wildlife in Tennessee. It is really cool to see everything that is living in your backyard and more. My favorite exhibit is Nickajack lake. The exhibit makes it look just like a real lake. There are tree roots coming down in the water, a boat above, and all the fish swimming around. The Paddlefish are especially interesting. I also love seeing the otters, alligators, there dark room with huge tanks with giant fish. Rivers of the World exhibit is really interesting too. Just spend as much time there as you can. All of it is amazing! It seems like only a few years ago, but it's probably been a decade, they added a ocean building. (Yes, they river and ocean exhibits are in

Schools out for forever! Not, but we like that song in our house. The end of the school year is bitter sweet for me. I like the kids classes, the friends they’ve made, and I’m not ready to move on. It’s another mark on their growing up map. I’m glad to see how much intellectually they are progressing, but the days keep going faster and faster. I will blink my eyes and it will be the end of the school next year. Time slow down! Let me have this period in my kids lives go slow. That is what summer is for. Playing hard, living it up in the sun, and making memories together. The last day of school was a half day. We picked up the big kids said our goodbyes to their teachers and friends, wishing everyone a good summer. That afternoon we went to see Incredibles 2 with some friends. I recently discovered the movie theatre by our place has $5 movies on Tuesdays! It is also the theatre with reclining seats! Double bonus. We packed popcorn and m&ms, our go to movie snack. I had all