A Lecture: Whale Poop and the Meaning of Life

I am not joking. About the title I mean.
I frequent the lectures at the New England Aquarium and coming from a science nerd they are pretty great.  For the past year I have been involved with the North Atlantic right whale research going on at the New England Aquarium and well whale poop is all the rave.

But for those of you who know me, I talk about poop (whale poop, green sea turtle poop, fish poop, cat poop, dog poop, my own poop....you know how it goes) and the meaning of life a lot.
So I felt compelled to share.
This lecture is 2 days before my wedding but I am seriously thinking about driving from Maine to Boston to attend.
Totally not joking.

Anyway go here to check out the lectures at the New England Aquarium.

Thursday, December 8

Whale Poop and the Meaning of Life
Dr. Kathleen Hunt, research scientist, New England Aquarium

How can you study an animal that you can't catch? For decades our understanding of large whales has been stymied by the fact that there is no way to get a blood samples from a free-swimming whale. The discovery that mammalian fecal samples contain enormous quantities of hormones, along with DNA, parasites, and dietary information, is revolutionizing our understanding of these elusive and mysterious animals. Dr. Kathleen Hunt has pioneered the use of fecal analyses in elephants, grizzly bears, baboons, spotted owls, and other terrestrial animals, and is now adapting fecal analysis techniques to studying stress and reproduction in North Atlantic right whales, sperm whales, and Blainville's beaked whales. Join Dr. Hunt as she introduces you to the oddly fascinating world of cutting-edge poop research.

Momma Kearney

Dear friends of ours are going to be parents.

Very very soon.

I had mentioned their wonderful news in this post.  Read it you know you want to.

Well a few weeks ago I had the pleasure of taking photos of Kendra, Andy, and their soon to be sweet baby boy Jaxon.

Kendra has become a very dear friend of mine.  And thank God for her (and of course Andy!).  It is the most amazing thing to see people you love start a family.  

It is beyond wonderful, actually.

I am almost speechless over it.

Which never happens.....

I can't even come close to writing how happy I am for these two.  

And I can't wait to see them raise this sweet bundle of joy.

But truthfully I am most excited about being able to babysit so Dan can learn a few things before we decide to have a family of our own.
He thinks a baby only uses ONE, I repeat ONE diaper a day.

Autumn Treats

Life is moving a little more slowly since Dan has been home....kind of like the calm before the storm.  We have both been WAY to busy, so it is nice to stop and mull the cider.
And I am serious, we have been mulling a lot of cider.

My favorite mulling spices are from Williams-Sonoma.  Try them...you'll love them.

And while I was mulling cider I baked a few things.  Especially now that I have someone to eat the things I bake.  First we have the all time favorite, funfetti.The wonderful thing about funfetti is that they make one for every season and it is so easy and it tastes wonderful.

 

Second we have an old favorite of mine, banana bread. 
Which was a hit and if I can say so myself unbelievably tasty. 

Banana Bread
(from The Fearless Baker)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a loaf pan. 
In a medium bowl mix together 1 cup of light brown sugar and 12 tablespoons of softened unsalted butter. 
Once smooth mix in 3 large eggs one at a time.
Next stir in 2 large very ripe bananas, 1 3/4 cups of unbleached all -purpose flour, 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoons salt. 
Once everything is mixed pour batter into the loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes.

Enjoy!

A Meltdown and A Wedding Song

Today I had a meltdown....it was about time.  And it was a meltdown beyond meltdowns.  Like the kind where you can't talk and you have snot all over your face because you're crying so much.  

It wasn't pretty.  

There is a lot going on but the best part about it is that Dan is here and really can put things into perspective.  But perspective usually makes me cry more and sometimes, just sometimes, makes me feel like a horrible person. 

Get over it Rach (I just have to keep telling myself that).

And the other great thing that happened today beside the epic meltdown. 
My mom wrote me a song. 
Yes a song.

21 days before the wedding the parents went shop-ping.
They bought 207 votives, 4 purple candles, 5 pearly buttons, 2 navy pumps that the bride will think are frumpy!

21 days before the wedding the parents went shop-ping
They bought 4 pocket silks, 2 shirts with tight necks, a suit for the brother, a 3 piece suit the father asks to be buried in!
(yes, he did!)

21 days before the wedding the parents went shop-ping
They bought white hooks and eyes, cards and wrapping paper, 2 lovely silk ties,1 wedding present, 2 sparkly earrings the bride will approve of!

21 days before the wedding the parents went shop-ping
They stopped at the store for father's medication and a turkey that was on sale!
(They came home without the turkey- father was too overwhelmed, maybe he felt too much like a turkey?)

LOVE YOU!

And then she called me and sang it over the phone.  

Isn't it funny how moms know when your having a bad day even though they don't actually know that you are having a bad day?

Growth Spurt???

I am actually marrying a fifteen year old boy going through a growth spurt.

Okay, not really...that would be weird and illegal.

BUT

Dan eats like a fifteen year old boy going through a growth spurt.  I think he eats more food in one day than I eat in a month.

To give you an idea check out what the grocery cart looks like...

 

That is $360 worth of food and it lasted about a week.  I did put some of the meat in the freezer. Seriously folks Dan eats 1/2 pound of turkey in one sandwich.

I don't even know how to feed him....wish me luck.

Beauty Regime Mishap

On Friday I had a waxing appointment.  I bet you can tell where this is going.  I know that is not the professional name but it is what I call her.  My waxer.  

Since the wedding is coming up I have been going all out with waxing; I wax my arms, my eyebrows, my upper lip (and lets just call this what it really is...my mustache), and of course my bikini line.  This has been going on for a few months now and all and all it has been pleasant.  

Well on this particular visit we were chatting away about Kim Kardashian's divorce, where the best place to get your nails done and mid conversation the pain caught me off guard.  I didn't have time to think...I swear. 

I can't beleive I am going to say this out loud but I kicked my waxer in the face.  Yup that is right folks, I kicked her right in the side of the head. 

She said it happens all the time but I somehow don't believe her. 

Needless to say I left her a big tip.