Busybusybusy

It's been a mad week here at Chez Ferry. So mad that 6:30 a.m. on a Sunday is the first time I've had to post in a week. (May and Christopher are asleep in the other room.)

Let's see.... Last Saturday, Sept. 30, the Hobermans had a pie party. Many people came and brought, well, pie! Chicken pot pie (mine), Shepherd's pie (Rick and Georgy), quiche (Josette and Mike and Sebastian), and sweet pies like apple clouftie (Julia), and David and Jen bought a cranberry and walnut from Petsi's. If you'd like, you can see photos of this fun party here. But here are some May hightlights:




Then on Sunday, the LeBlancs came to visit. They were in town to watch the Sox lose (sigh) on Saturday and then hit the MFA on Sunday. We met them for brunch halfway between their hotel and our apartment at the Park St. station. Since Park St. has very few kid-friendly brunchy places, we decided to have dim sum in Chinatown. Chrisotpher and I have always wanted to try dim sum but never quite managed it before.

Being very much ourselves, Christopher and I did a massive pile of research the night before, including finding a blog on this very service that did detailed reviews of all the places in Boston to eat dim sum! We decided Hei La Moon was the best bet.

(Dim Sum, for those who don't know, is a Chinese traditional Sunday brunchy thing. You are seated at a table and women pushing steam carts roll by every few minutes. This woman has dumplings and that one has custards and there the lady with the barbequed ribs, oh thank goodness. Since they don't speak English and you don't speak Mandarin, there's a lot fo sign langrage and eventually she'll put a small dish of whatever on your table, mark your bill with a chop and move on. The dishes are like tapas -- small bites, maybe four dumplings the size of a golf ball or two lotus leaves packed with chicken and rice. Eventually you accumulate a big pile of empty dishes and a much smaller bill than you'd imagine.)

We all had a great time, though I'm afraid the overwhelming otherness of Chinatown, including the very Asian sense of personal space (or lack there of), may have freaked Nathan out just a tiny bit at the end.

Wednesday we had dinner at Benjapon's with Mary Agner and learned certain words in Hawaiian.

The rest of the week was busy with getting ready for our own party on Saturday -- a picnic in Powderhouse Park. Jen and Nikki both dropped by during the week to hang out with May while I worked on the food. (Potato chowder, beef stew, two kinds of cornbread, squash and beet salad, and apple cupcakes.) The party yesterday was a success --- cool and bright and lots of fun.

In other news, we thought that we would finally get the condo inspected when they told us that the condo was ready on Wednesday. "Just a couple more hours a work," says the man. Friday at 4, we get a call from Annemarie. Not so much. We're a little impatient is all.

Fabulous family news! Allison Morgan Vardi entered the world this week on Wednesday Sept 27 at 9:55 a.m. weighing in at 7 lbs 15 oz and 20.5 inches long. (She is the daughter of my second cousin, Margaret.)

News that's less fabulous. My cousin, Noel, has just lost her father-in-law this weekend. Our thoughts and prayers go out to her and her family. And to Mrs. Lane, Terran's mom, who fell and was hurt earlier in the week, though it seems like she's making a speedy recovery. Still, she has our best wishes.

And finally, big shout out to my parents who will celebrate their 35th wedding anniverdary tomorrow. And the Hobermans who will celebrate their first! And Emily Toplin, who has a birthday!