kelly's hOMMMe

sisters

I think we're trying to play "how many times can you make it to Sao Paulo for happy hour in one week??" Aly and Amanda are shoulders above the competition.

posted by Kelly @ 11:42 PM 0 comments

boys will be boys

Eric and some of our surrogate brothers...

posted by Kelly @ 11:41 PM 0 comments

with mama

Merry Christmas Natalita

posted by Kelly @ 3:27 PM 0 comments

Teresa makes a trip to Austin

Teresa's back from the Peace Corps and working in D.C. I was so glad we got a chance to see her when she came to Austin for new years and to visit her favorite partner in crime and my favorite cousin.

posted by Kelly @ 3:21 PM 0 comments

Sao Paulo

Met up with a great Austin friend- AJ (aka Ajee). He just made it through his first semester of law school in New Hampshire- my favorite Buenos Aires roommate's home state.

posted by Kelly @ 3:21 PM 0 comments

deep in discussion

Manda and Aly joined me for the reunion with AJ

posted by Kelly @ 3:17 PM 0 comments

Feliz Navidad

It's Christmas!!! We have been having a lot of good ole' family fun. Last night at grandma Pat's we fleshed out the details of the "official" Stolpman White Elephant gift exchange...I think next year we're definitely amending those rules :)

This morning we woke up and had our standard mimosas, bagels with salmon and lox, and I got a little bit ridiculous by making my fam read christmas quotes that I had disguised as place settings.

Opening of the gifts proved to be a riot. My dad was pysched by his box of raisin bran and my brother was a bit confused when he unwrapped a used shoe (a proxy for the actual shoes that he will receive during post-Christmas shopping frenzy). My mom's gift to us was a definite highlight- a hodge podge of funky items like an anxiety inhaler, "comforting cheer" essential oil, a dry skin brush and "wash away your sins" breath spray- for liars, cheaters and wrong-doers with complete instructions on how to use. (What are you sayin' mom???) The yoga pants were the icing on the cake.

My dad's Christmas treat is the aforementioned Spain trip along with lasik surgery. I'm waiting till after the bar for that one! It doesn't help that Aly slipped up today and told me she could SMELL her eyes burning during her surgery on Friday. ICCCKKKK.

Merry Christmas to all...here's what's on our food map for the rest of the day:

Foie Gras- we've waited long enough to eat this...
smoke sausage

honey baked ham
roasted asparagus
bacon potato frittata
cauliflower mash
broccoli blue cheese gratin
cranberry apple cobbler
homeade rolls

upside down ginger pear cake
fudge (THANK YOU SALLY SHAMP).

posted by Kelly @ 4:03 PM 0 comments

10 reasons to eat organic...

http://www.arcana.ws/eatorganic.htm

posted by Kelly @ 9:59 PM 1 comments

name change

A short entry to address a simple update:

i finally changed the name of my blog so that it would be more fitting. it was an enjoyable monday on the whole. i seriously underestimated the romertopf clay pot that my mom gifted me a few months ago. the lamb was incredible tonight, especially when marinated with Annie's "Goddess Dressing," completed with a touch of tahini. (yes it's been certified, I am a dork).

My brother got accepted to the Navy's flight school so I'm very proud of him!

Happy Birthday Camille Guichard.

In other news: it will be a father/daughter bonding period in Valencia, Spain from around Feb. 28th- March 9th when aly, dad and I go to visit our precious Natalie... FINALLY i will discover Espana!

posted by Kelly @ 12:52 AM 0 comments

I thought being bilingual was a good thing...

KANSAS CITY, Kan., Dec. 8 -- Most of the time, 16-year-old Zach Rubio converses in clear, unaccented American teen-speak, a form of English in which the three most common words are "like," "whatever" and "totally." But Zach is also fluent in his dad's native language, Spanish -- and that's what got him suspended from school.
-See the Washington Post: Friday, December 9, 2005; Page A03

But wait! I'm confused...

An official language is a language that is specifically designated to be so in the constitutions of countries, states, and other territories. Half the countries in the world have official languages.

Some have only one official language, such as Albania, Germany and France (although there are more native languages in France). Some have more than one official language like Belarus, Belgium, Canada, Finland, Afghanistan, Paraguay, Bolivia, India, Switzerland and South Africa. In some countries, such as Iraq, Italy and Spain, there is an official language for the country, but other languages are co-official in some important regions.

Some countries, such as the United States, have no official languages, but there are official languages in some US states: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Wyoming. (California??? Regarding the article above- I don’t see Kansas on this list!!!)

From www.wikipedia.com and http://www.us-english.org/- the action group that declares English to be “the language of opportunity in this country.” (I don't wholeheartedly disagree, but I think many job seekers, at least here in Texas, would beg to differ).

posted by Kelly @ 8:42 AM 0 comments