more this & that

i haven't quite found a blogging rhythm these days.  i'm still trying to unpack (yes, a little embarrassing) and get organized at the hotel, get more sleep and work on stuff for the new house.  my parents finally returned from their 3-week vaca yesterday and i was looking forward to some free time but alas, my mama caught a cold so no contact with the baby allowed.  bleh.

one of the architectural renderings - hand sketched and colored!

anywho, we had our second meeting with the architect on monday and it was so exciting!  based on our wish list and discussions from our first meeting, they presented us with three different house schemes.  we reviewed each one and chose elements that we liked and made major decisions regarding placement of the cottage for my parents, garage, areas with vaulted ceilings, what sections would be two-story, etc.  we have our third meeting on monday and will be another step closer to the final design of our new home.  this process is soooo exciting and fun!   

left - cooking the arborio rice in the seafood broth/garlic/onion mixture
right - the finished product garnished with fresh parm and parsley

one of my favorite italian dishes is authentic risotto!  tonight, i made seafood risotto and sadly, i was the only one who enjoyed it.  the hubs went to the basketball game and the tiramisu only wanted to eat green apples and oranges.  she's drooling like crazy and my guess is that her last two molars are cutting in.  poor thing but she's such a trooper.  she's always handled teething very well.  we are so lucky!

have a great weekend!