The Great Compromise

Ned will attend a game at Tiger Stadium without complaint. MB can look for reasonably priced tix (by her definition). Mother and child will wear just gold to the game, sans purple, for the sake of family peace. Team allegiance and cheering during the game will be a personal choice, and neither party shall engage in rude or too-smart-for-your-britches trash talk.

Last morning at the beach

We're blogging as we drive along I-10, less than three hours from the beach. We miss it already. MB's already scheming for our next getaway: a trip to see cousins Anne, George, andMadeleine in Baton Rouge. It'll be LSU Vandy weekend. The lobbying begins to get Ned to buy tickets for Tiger Stadium, even if he will be wearing black and gold. Baby M and I will sport the purple and gold, of course.

Waiting for lunch at O'Steen's

Liftoff!

Space shuttle Discovery lit up the night sky, launching on time at 11:59 p.m. EST. For more info, see NASA's site here. That's where we stole the photo.

Headline Sez: Baby M Loves the Beach!

Crescent Beach, FLA--At just 23 weeks, Baby M has nearly doubled in size this week. Mother and baby credit the bright sunshine, fresh beach air, and nap-friendly environment for the growth spurt. Efforts are underway to convince Ned that a permanent move to the coast (this coast, in particular) will be in the best health interests of our family. Petitions in support of the move are offered daily, but seem most effective when presented at the O'Steen's lunch counter, while Ned dines on broiled flounder and hush puppies with pink sauce. The economy's effect on area housing prices also forwards the discussion favorably, but Ned's concern for employment has proven to be a sticking point in the negotiations. Firms in the St. Augustine area needing civil engineers should contact Team Mitchell ASAP with job offers. Ned's agent will consider all reasonable offers, even if they involve a pay cut.

We love vacation!

Life at the beach suits us well.

Then and Now

Team Mitchell at 2 days.
Team Mitchell at 2 years with Baby M at 23 weeks and 2 days (see the shadow bump).

Update: launch scrubbed

Instead, Ned entertains himself photographing a frog on our porch.

Night Launch

We won't be this close, but we do hope to get a glimpse of tonight's shuttle launch over the beach. Since the diss is now officially over, we can talk about things like the shuttle without making Ned cringe. Maybe we'll even get to see the solid rocket booster spark as it's released for splash down. Of note, this mission will carry the COLBERT to the international space station (more info on COLBERT here).

An early happy anniversary!

Ned found this monster-size seashell for me today!

Vacation Ned

Friday night, 10 p.m. before vacation

Both of us are at the table working. Will vacation ever officially
start?!?

Bottling Dissertation Ale

Which floor tiles to choose?

And will Ned notice the difference between the colors and have an
opinion, or just say, "Do they all cost the same?" He's due home from
TX in a few hours. We'll see.

Our moon vine bloomed!

Somewhere over the rainbow

Ned saw the rainbow. Now MB's repeating, "There's no place like home." The Georgia itch returned with a vengeance tonight.

Opposites Attract

We always long to be at home without travel. And this was our second weekend in a row at home. All went well to start the day: we enjoyed a morning with AmeriCorps volunteers at the farmers' market, we took naps, we watched an Office marathon on TV, Mary Beth did a little housecleaning (including mopping all the floors and dusting/rearranging the shelves in the laundry room), and then...it was 2 p.m. And there was nothing else to do. Ned made beer. Mary Beth made a voluntary trip to Wal-Mart to fill the time, then cooked dinner. Ned loved his relaxing Saturday. MB thought the afternoon was boring. Tomorrow, there must be a project.

Bruce. Nashville. Born to Run. Us.

Probably not the smartest round trip we'll make mid-week in late November, but definitely the best one. He's playing Born to Run. The whole album. On days like today, I realize how well I married. I gave the courtesy of asking if it'd be okay before I committed to the ticket purchase. And Ned gave the courtesy of pretending there were real options before he enthusiastically said yes. And everybody in the house is happy.

Lasseter Christmas Excitement

Christmas may bring more joy than the Lasseters know how to handle this year. Three words: Dylan Christmas Album. Just in time for the first evening at the Advent wreath? See here and here.

Happiness is...

A box of green cookies. Thanks, Austin!

Sunset: A Vicksburg Perk

The newest neighbor to our 'hood

Meet Manu, the new kid up the street. We're excited to have him in the neighborhood, along with his parents, Alex and Sophie.

The weekend at home

We can't remember the last time we had a weekend at home. We're happy about it. (See above.) On the agenda: clean the house, work in the yard, eat and drink with local friends that we haven't seen in ages, and generally goof off. It'll be good to stay close to the home front for a change. In January, when we're grounded here, we may feel differently. But now, this is perfect.

Dissertation Ale is in the making!

Without distraction from the diss, Ned's back to making beer. And he
agreed to pose for a blog photo, too.

Traveling Feet...Again

Why do we do this to ourselves? Oh yeah...because it'll be years before we can enjoy this freedom again. Today's development: a few days after we get back from Chicago, we're headed to London for a week so Ned can go to a conference. We've scheduled it so we'll only miss one football weekend (ND-Michigan, alas), and still catch our visit with Sarah in Vicksburg! And, don't worry, parents...we won't stand on London Bridge if it's falling down.

Post dissertation Ned

Loves tv! He cannot be distracted, even for a photo.

They don't have apostrophes in Oregon

but they do have short rivers!

We HATE air travel...and driving to Jackson

Yesterday, Mary Beth's flight was delayed so some folks on another flight (who were running late) could make the plane. Result? Lots of folks on my flight then missed their own connections though, thanks to a dead run through the airport, I made it. (I'm not in shape for that, by the way.) I got home close to midnight and was at the Vicksburg Farmers' Market at 8 a.m.

Today, weather in Dallas probably means that Ned will have to spend the night there. Best case scenario (now) is getting him to Jackson at 11 p.m. on a late night flight that is already oversold. I'd say that we're cursed, because all our travel gets plagued by weather, but it also seems that we're always traveling. Weather has to happen sometime, I guess. Thank goodness, after Monday-Tuesday when MB returns from Oxford, we'll be at home for awhile, without a dissertation deadline. Is that what normal lives are like, weekends at home with the family? I'd really like one of those normal lives.