THURSDAY'S THOUGHTS

YES/NO MORPH I BY TAUBA AUERBACH

THINKING ABOUT: I've got a deadline next Tuesday that's taunting me. I've put a lot of time and thought into the product, but I wouldn't call it finished just yet. Gulp! I've learned there's always a point in the creative process when being "undone" can actually be pretty exhilarating. You've got to be patient and wait for that spark. Over time, I've become more comfortable with this phase but it doesn't come natural to me. I suppose it feels a bit risky for my Type-A personality, and I kind of like it.  

THANKFUL FOR: I always knew there would be a Halloween in which Max would don his very own "Where The Wild Things Are" costume. Duh! That's kind of the whole point in choosing that name. While discussing when this "Maxwell Must" should occur, my mom and I agreed that THIS would probably be the best year. He's old enough to walk, wily as hell, and he's still young enough that we can make his costume decisions for him. Ha! Lucky for us, my grandma is an incredibly talented seamstress, so my mom enlisted her to help create Max's costume when she visited Iowa over the Summer. The two of them picked out materials and discussed the concept, but up until yesterday I had no idea what it actually looked like. Squee! Imagine my surprise when the mailman dropped by, I tore open the package, and laid eyes on the future heirloom. Happy tears immediately began squirting from my eyes. You guys, it's absolute perfection! The costume itself is fabulous, but the idea that my grandma made it takes the cake!

WATCHING: My world came to a screeching halt on Tuesday when I learned the official trailer for Gilmore Girls was released. Unabashedly, I put all mom duties on hold for 2 minutes and 26 seconds so I could get lost in Stars Hollow once more. Entranced in a beautiful world of snarky banter I almost forgot my kid was in the same room chucking Legos until Max snuck up next to me, pointed at Rory, and shouted "That's MAMA!" Shut. The. Front. Door. With 42 seconds left of the trailer to spare, I had no choice but to push pause and smother that kid with a gazillion wet kisses. How did he know that would be the best compliment EVER? I know I've outed him on the blog many times, but I'm going to chalk this coincidence up as a BIG win. From here on out, every time someone asks where Max got his blonde hair, I'm no longer going to question the decision I made 11 years ago to dye my hair dark brown so I could be just like Rory Gilmore. Clearly my child thinks we're the same and that's all that matters. WINNING! 

EATING: One of my sister's classmates brought these Peanut Butter Vegan Black Bean Brownies to class on Tuesday and it was enough for Aubrey to email the recipe to my mom and me. Big deal alert! I've received maybe two emails from my sister over the past five years, so I knew she meant business when I found a message from her in my inbox. Ha Ha! You can bet I'll be whipping up a batch of these this weekend. She said they were quite possibly some of the best brownies she's ever tried. Mind. Blown. 

LISTENING TO: Earlier this week we scrapped our meal plan on Tuesday night and opted for Panda Express instead. I can't remember the last time we ate out on a weeknight, but this felt pretty wild and crazy for our family. The chain restaurant is new to Swell Rio (it opened last Saturday), and we were eager to get our hands on some Chinese food. While I finished working on a project, the boys headed into town to retrieve our dinner. Upon their return, Flyboy explained that while they waited in line, he devised a strategy he thought might render extra generous helpings of orange chicken for the three of us. Unfortunately, his plan to have Max put on a show and say thank you to each server in the sweetest and loudest manner didn't pan out, but it was worth a shot. Hearing my husband explain his takeout and toddler tactics was entertaining enough. Better luck next time, boys!    

READING: The following excerpt is from a speech Bill Murray gave this past weekend when the beloved comedian accepted the 19th Annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at The Kennedy Center. I hope you love his words as much as I do...

"There's this little trampoline that's inside of you that bounces. It's something that makes you care. It makes you care about other people. It makes you care about yourself. It comes to you, it lands in you, and then you bounce it back out to other people. It's always coming to you, and you can just keep bouncing it out. Look at each other. Look at who we are. Look at how we are all together here right now. Alive. That's pretty good, right?"

LOVING: Because of next Tuesday's deadline, I keep searching for snippets of inspiration around each and every corner. I was ecstatic to find a glimmer of genius and originality in the work of artist Tauba Auerbach. If you need a quick visual escape, be sure to take a moment and check out more of Tauba's work here. The gouache piece featured in today's post might be my very favorite.

Enough about me. How are you feeling today? What are you up to? Thanks for stopping by!!