More fun and games

I stole this Q&A from my friend Katie, and if I could figure out how to link to her blog, I would.
But because I’m lame, here’s the address: www.willikat.blogspot.com.


What is your current obsession?
Healthy baby!

What are you wearing today?
Grey pants, blue and grey striped shirt, black boots, black fleece (it’s cold in the office!)

What’s for dinner?
I’m thinking Arby’s.

What would you eat for your last meal?
Rotisserie chicken, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, corn on the cob, tiramisu. (I’m such a simpleton.)

What’s the last thing you bought?
The last “fun” things I purchased were at a holiday fair. I bought a vanilla-scented soy candle, a Nub onesie for my friend Amy’s baby (made by my friend Kirsten), and some thank-you cards (created by my friend Christy). I am very proud of my creative friends!

What are you listening to right now?
Kelly, the web editor, talking to another coworker about online ads.

If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be?
Minnesota

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
Only for an hour? I don’t know … Alaska? Jamaica? Ireland? Australia? Brazil?

Which language do you want to learn?
I would love to learn sign language.

What is your favorite color?
Any and all earth tones

What’s your favorite piece of clothing?
I love my orange fall coat and my black winter coat … I love my gold heels … I love my grey cable-knit turtleneck from Aaron

What is your dream job?
Writer

What’s your favorite magazine?
Minnesota Monthly! (duh)

If you had $100 now, what would you spend it on?
Insulated winter boots so that my toes don’t go numb while waiting for the bus.

Describe your personal style?
Practical, comfortable, more classic than trendy. I love wide-legged pants, turtlenecks, long-sleeved Ts, hoodies. I wear minimal makeup—unless I’m going out— then it’s all about the liquid eyeliner and lipstick!

What are you going to do after this?
Take the bus to Maplewood, get my little guy from daycare, figure out dinner, maybe go to the mall to get my niece’s birthday gift.

What are your favorite films?
Amelie, E.T. (phone home!!), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Wizard of Oz, The Breakfast Club, Beaches, Dirty Dancing (oh, the memories!), Shawshank Redemption

What’s your favorite fruit?
Bananas, grapes, pineapple, Honeycrisp apples, raspberries, oranges

What inspires you?
People who overcome the odds.

Do you collect anything?
Shot glasses

Your favorite books?
Charlotte’s Web is my all-time favorite book. Others I really liked: Under the Banner of Heaven, City of Thieves, 1984, The Giver, The Handmaid’s Tale, Memoirs of a Geisha, The Lovely Bones, The Bell Jar, Water for Elephants, so many others I’m forgetting (Amanda, I need to borrow more of your books! You always have such great suggestions!)

What are you currently reading?
The Secret Life of Bees (thanks to my good buddy Karla)

By what criteria do you judge a person?
Teeth and shoes. (HA! Joking!) How do people judge other people? Are they GENUINE? Kind? Friendly? Polite? Funny? Thoughtful? Interesting? Respectful? Do they constantly tell me I’m smart? Pretty? Funny?

What skill would you like to acquire immediately?
Immediately? I don’t know … balancing the millions in my checkbook?

What would you tell yourself 10 years ago? 10 years from now?
Ten years ago, I was 24, working at the newspaper, and dating JJ. Wow. That seems a lifetime ago. I would tell myself to hang in there -- I will make more than $9.35/hour writing some day, babies aren’t as scary as they seem (really, they aren’t!), and I’d say, “Chrissy -- wear some less modest clothes and show off your nice stomach!!!!”

10 years from now: I will be in my mid-40s (!), my family will be complete, and I will feel just as blessed and lucky as I do today. I would probably tell myself to enjoy my kid(s) when they’re babies, because they’ll grow up way too fast.

Trick or treat!

This year was Adam's first year trick-or-treating, and I think he did pretty good considering the fact that he's a little bit of a scaredy cat right now (jack-o-lanterns? scary. ghosts? scary. masks? REALLY scary) and it was COLD outside—so cold he wore layers under his already insulated costume—and, well, you just never know how a 2-year-old will react to any new experience. We took him trick-or-treating in my parents' neighborhood of Forest Lake, and he said "trick-or-treat" at all ten houses (in a very quiet voice), and I am proud to note that he also said "thank you" after each neighbor dumped a treat (or treats) into his pumpkin bag. He's very good with his "thank you's." (Not always so good with the "please's," but we're working on it. Sometimes he can be kind of bossy.) When he put on the dalmatian costume, generously lent to us by our daycare provider Mary, he pulled on his ears (what are these things?) and complained that he couldn't see his tail. It was pretty cute. When we were done hitting up the neighbors, he helped my mom pass out candy to the older kids. And on Sunday morning, he proved that he takes after his Dear Old Mom when he made a beeline for his candy bag and ripped into a piece of chocolate even before we had breakfast. But really, isn't that part of the magical charm of Halloween? At least when you're a kid?
I love Halloween. I love it for the theatrical aspect of dressing up more than the macabre aspect of celebrating the spooky. I love carving pumpkins (I don't even mind digging out the slimy guts), I love Halloween parties and seeing how creative people can be this time of year, I love seeing photos of my nieces & nephews & friends' kids dressed as: a pumpkin (Greta), bear (Aliza), frog (Sadie), bumblebee (Morgan), gangster (Kayla), "something scary" (Lane), what was Logan??, Luke and Anakin Skywalker (Leo & Lou), a vampiress (Eva), and a whole assortment of superheroes, witches, angels, kitties, monsters, lambs, bunnies, lions, and monkeys.
Aaron and I went to our good friend Remme & Jim's Halloween party in Canada (aka Ramsey, Minn.) and had a BLAST. We have hosted the party in our East Side garage for a number of years, and it was nice to pass the torch to someone else. Jim has a huge, gorgeous home - perfect for entertaining - and both Rem and Jim were such gracious hosts (Lurch and Morticia Adams). Our group is very creative - something I absolutely love about my friends. Megan was a Renaissance-era lady in waiting, Brian was a very believable Indiana Jones, Shawn and Trish were pirates, Amy and Andy were white trash, Jodi and Walter were zombies, Russ and Katie were Fire and Ice, Luke was a beer bottle, Jeremy was an early 90s rapper. Rounding out the group were SNL cheerleaders, a sexy cop, a convict, and a drunk guy with a wig. I had fun playing The Grinch. Everyone but Adam liked my costume. He watched me get ready over at Grandma Patti's and kept saying, "Mommy is green - like a bunny!" My sister-in-law Trish theorized that he compared me to a bunny in order to get to his "happy place." Or maybe he thought I looked like a rabbit with my black nose and whiskers? He also told me a few times that he did NOT want to "hold me." (Usually he begs to be held.) The green face paint worked well, but I realized about an hour into it (like I do every year that I paint my face) that it's ITCHY when it dries! And it's messy when it starts flaking off! Aaron was Richie Tenenbaum from the Royal Tenenbaums, although guesses ranged from a caveman to the unibomber when he asked our friends if they knew who he was supposed to be. Good times!!!