Updates since March 30th

Enough of this silliness about not listing what we eat all the time. Regular transmission is being resumes with a full list of the culinary exploits of the McLean boys.

Weekend before last Mary Ann and I were in London on business. Flew Friday night and arrived (after typical flying delays) about midday on Saturday. I promptly found some rugby on the TV in our hotel room and fell asleep (not sure if it was because I was exhausted or the dire boredom of watching English county rugby).

Saturday night we met up with Russ and Catronia in Maide Vale. We got there early and went for a nice long walk along the canal. Had a great dinner and a couple of drinks and back to hotel for a good nights sleep.

Sunday we met Russ at church and both experienced for the first time a full sung Latin Mass which was pretty cool (apart from all the incense which made us both nauseous). After that we wandering around a museum that was just over the road from the Church for an hour and then back to Russ for Sunday lunch. Don't know what happened but we ended up at pub at 9.30pm and never made it back to hotel until after 11, so a very long day.

Monday it was off to work and meeting up with Andrew Garard and his better half Jane for dinner on Monday night. Good time was had by all.

Wednesday we ended up in Brick Lane for dinner (big Indian area) and had a really good meal there.

Got home Thursday night and both worked from home on Friday. Sneaked in 9 holes of golf late Friday afternoon as it was a beautiful spring day. Saturday Mary Ann flew down to Atlanta for her friend Sue's 40th birthday. That meant it was a boy's weekend in Pennington. I may as well disclose now the boys had pasta for dinner both nights, one night with shrimp, the other with chicken. They seemed pretty happy about that.

A pretty quiet weekend, just mooched around. Friday night went to Washington Crossing State Park where Princeton Amateur Astronomy group meets and looked through telescopes at a whole lot of amazing objects in the sky (including Saturn).

Sunday Mary Ann was planning to pick her Mum up from her way home from Phillie airport but her flight was delayed, so after dropping off the boys I went and picked up her Mum. Worked out well as with flight delay we got home at exactly same time as MA.

Blog reborn - with a new author

San Francisco 2

I know our faithful blog readers have been clambering for news of the McLean family adventures (and meals). Sorry for the break but it has definitely not been due to lack of activity on our part. Between work, wedding planning, various travels and activities with the boys our weekends and weeknights have been jam packed.

The boys are returning to school tomorrow after two weeks of Spring Break. The first week of their break they went with their mother to Paris - their first trip over the pond. They came back full of commentary about French food, fashion, art and rap music. They had a really good time and once we get some pictures we will post them here.

Andrew and I took the opportunity of the boys trip (and tickets redeemed with miles)to return to the Bay Area where we were engaged last year. Catherine was in Hong Kong visiting brother Greg so we stayed at her place. When our flight was delayed getting into SF (we arrived about 4:30 am NY time) we both were seriously considering whether or not the trip was a good idea. But after a few hours sleep and a lovely first day in town we decided the trip was a fantastic idea.

On our first day (Friday) we grabbed some breakfast at Catherine's local spot, Eats, and then took a long walk through Golden Gate Park and visited the DeYoung museum and the Japanese Tea Garden. The cherry blossoms were just coming into bloom and the weather was lovely so it was a perfect time to visit. After that we went to the Legion of Honor where they were having an Annie Liebowitz photography exhibit. The exhibit featured both her work of famous celebrities as well as documentary work on place like Jordan, Iraq and Rwanda. It was a great, and very crowded, exhibit. After our culture for the day we walked along Land's End along the bay. There were lots of sailboats and shipping boats out on the beautiful day. For dinner we went back to my favorite restaurant in SF Pane e Vino in North Beach. We had a great meal and found our favorite wine on the menu. After dinner Andrew wanted to relive some of his old life from when he lived in SF for a short while and we went to Tommie's Joint which is apparently a famous watering hole (or at least it was famous in Andrew's mind). Unfortunately, I think Andrew was disappointed to find the place much better in the past when he was younger (and probably drunker). In fact, I found out later in the trip that Andrew is remembered for dancing on tables at this joint and leading the crowd in song. That definitely did not happen on this trip!

Saturday we headed up to Healdsburg to meet cousins Kathy and Chris & John and kids Liam, Hunter and Jacob. We had a very nice lunch and filled a butcher paper covered table with mazes and games of tic tac toe. Andrew was in his element with the kids and pulled out all the old favorites; hongis, egg cracked on the head, lifting by the ears and skipping. Healdsburg is a beautiful little town with orange trees growing in the square. We did some window shopping and gelato eating before heading back to SF. On the way back to town we stopped in Sausalito and sat and watched the activity in the bay. This is one of my favorite spots for watching ocean going ships but I was disappointed this time to only see one ship heading out to sea.

Sunday morning we headed out early on our journey down the coast. I've never been to Big Sur and now after having done the trip I can't wait to go back again. We took the scenic route and spent several hours looking at beautiful vistas and checking out the sea lions, seals and other sea life. We visited Carmel by the Sea and did the 17 mile drive. Andrew almost put a downpayment down on the 2 acre plot (no house) on the ocean but I told him that I wouldn't take it for a cent over 17 million (it was listed at almost 20). We continued on down to Big Sur which I didn't know was a 7 mile valley wedged between two mountain ranges running parallel to the coast. We stayed in a little cabin in the woods in amongst the redwoods. It was a great spot and after enjoying a glass of wine in the setting sun we went across the street for dinner at the only place to eat for miles. The food was amazing and so fresh. Back at the cabin after dinner we sat up for hours talking and looking at the sky - there was so little light pollution that the millions of stars were unbelievable and almost impossible to stop watching.

Monday was the last day of our trip so we got up pretty early and headed up to Lobos Point where we did a couple of hikes by the ocean. It was typically foggy Bay Area day and quite cold by the water but the hikes were well worth doing. Next time we go back we'll come better prepared and with more time. We headed back to San Francisco to prepare for our redeye flight back to New York. I think our most enduring memory of the trip came when we stopped at a mall to get something to eat and were stunned to see a young attractive women sitting with her family at the table next to us flossing her teeth. As if this wasn't bad enough we were sickened to see her drop the used floss on the floor by her table and go on her way. We caught the redeye and fortunately both slept almost the entire way back so we were not too devastated at work the next day. We had a great trip - not long enough of course but we love San Francisco and even thought about retiring out there sometime in the (sadly) distant future.

Other than that trip not much else has been going on. We are, of course, gearing up the wedding. Most of the big pieces of planning are done and now the devil is in the details. I manage not to be too stressed. Yet!

The boys are doing well and Andrew met with Nicholas' teacher recently. Nicholas is doing very well and got a great review from her. The class was studying China last term which Nicholas seemed to really enjoy. Kieran got his report card over the break and got straight A and A+ in all his classes. His teachers comments were universally positive and Andrew is extremely proud of his work.

We hope you all are well and would love to hear from your whenever possible.

December 31, 2007

Time for one last posting in 2007. Been a hectic month with Christmas and a lot of work related parties.

MA and I worked Christmas Eve and then drove out to Long Island for a Christmas Eve party at the place of a friend of mine from Reuters. Had a great time, and got home pretty late on Christmas morning.

Christmas Day picked up the boys around midday and came to open presents. The boys did very well, a telescope to look at the night sky, the mandatory PSP game, some clothes and lots of books.

Dropped the boys back at Anita's later that day. MA and I had a pretty quiet Christmas dinner at home.

Boxing Day we got up early and drove down to Philadelphia. We were booked in for a guided tour of a Renoir landscape exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (made famous by the Rocky Movies where he is running up the stairs).

It was really interesting and a great way to see the exhibit as by the time we came out there was a big queue to get in.

Spent the rest of the day mooching around Phillie and stayed the night in a hotel by the river.

Next day we went to the National Constitution Center to see an Exhibit about the First Ladies which again was really interesting.

Friday was a jobs day. Picked the boys up in the evening.

Have had a pretty quiet weekend so far. Not doing much tonight. Cooking a tasty feast and the boys are pretty adamant they will be up at midnight, I am really certain I won't be.

Some photos of Christmas attached.

We wish all and sundry a Happy and Prosperous New Year. I am sure you will all be waiting with baited breath for new postings in the New Year!!!!

Christmas 2007

Weekend of December 8-9th

Picked up the boys Friday night and it was straight home to cook them dinner as according to them they were both starving (even though they both said they had eaten about an hour earlier).

I now know a little of what Mum must have gone through with 4 teenage sons as my two (but Kieran in particular) seems to be a bottomless pit that needs to be incessantly filled with food.

Saturday morning MA and I got up and went to the gym. On the way home we picked up bagels and coffee. Got home and the boys got stuck into those. We then went and looked at an old farm house in Newtown PA as we are starting to think about possible places to buy after the wedding. It is a great buyers market here in US at the moment. This was an old/new house as it was about 150 years old but had been completely renovated. It was a really nice place, 5 fireplaces throughout.

Then went grocery shopping while the boys went to Best Buy to play on the video games (or so I thought, but Nicholas was later complaining all Kieran wanted to do was look at cell phones. Obviously we have moved on from video games to the cell phone phase!!!).

Quiet Saturday night at home, watched a "little bit of TV" and then we used the cooking utensils and cook book Nicholas' got for his birthday to make a cheesecake for dessert for Sunday. It was a lot of fun.

Sunday it was off the the gym again for MA and I for our training session where we got our butts right royally booted.

Then it was home for lots of cooking. I made breakfast burritos for everyone for breakfast and also cooked a loin of pork on the BBQ for Sunday afternoon lunch. MA was busy cooking meals for the week. It felt like the kitchen at the Savoy. The big recipients of all of this were the boys who happily ate anything that came out of the kitchen.

In the afternoon the boys and I went out and picked up one of Kieran's friends and went to a movie (The Golden Compass). After the movie we went home to try Nicholas' cheesecake which had turned out very well.

While we were out Mary Ann finished off the sweater I had been knitting for Nicholas (photo above). A very long project, so long unfortunately that Nicholas has almost grown out of it already. He will probably get a winter out of it and that will be it.

Dropped the boys and their mate off and then it was home for an early crash out (for me anyway) about 7.30.

Weekend of December 1-2

I worked from home on Friday and went to Nicholas' class to give them a talk about New Zealand and read them the Maori legend about "How the Kiwi lost it Wings". Great fun and nicholas and I gave a demo on giving a Maori hongi.

How the Kiwi Lost it Wings

The boys had to go to Bar Mitzvah so didn't pick them up Friday night.

Saturday morning Mary Ann and I went to the gym. Then it was a day of jobs for the rest of Saturday. Visited a couple of real estate agents to start thinking about property. Very quiet Saturday night, dinner at home and then a DVD.

Sunday it was gym again then picked the boys up. It was a pretty miserable day. Nicholas opened the rest of his birthday presents that arrived from Auntie Catherine which was all very exciting.

Sunday lunch at the local Indian restaurant and then the boys and I went to see a movie Sunday afternoon. Again quiet night at home on Sunday night.

Thanksgiving Weekend

Last Thursday was Thanksgiving here in the States and perhaps more importantly Wednesday was Nicholas' 8th birthday.

Mary Ann's Mum was staying for the week and we both worked until Wednesday

I picked the boys up around midday on Thursday and bought them home for a very tasty feast that Mary Ann prepared. Traditional Thanksgiving food, turkey, sweet potato, pumpkin pie, etc. Mary Ann's brother John and his wife Jessica came for Thanksgiving dinner. We ate about 5pm and were absolutely stuffed by 6. It was a very pleasant evening and we had a lot of fun.

Friday we acted like it as Nicholas' birthday and opened his presents. He got a globe of the world, a pirate board game and a game called Jenga from Mary Ann's Mum. All very exciting.

Even though we had lots of left-overs Nicholas decided we wanted fish for his birthday dinner so off it was to the grocery again to buy salmon, swordfish and shrimp which I cooked on the BBQ.

On Friday Mary Ann and her Mum disappeared to the wool shop and then for a fitting of her wedding dress. While they were doing that the boys and I went to shot some hoops and went blowing.

Friday night I wasn't feeling very well so went to bed early and didn't get up until 10.30 on Saturday morning by which time Mary Ann had been to the gym and back.

We messed around the rest of Saturday and Saturday night went to Longwood Gardens and met up there with John and Jessica. Very pretty with all the trees lit up. Photos attached (and also some of the wedding we went to up in Corning a month or so ago)

Toni's Wddding and Thanksgiving 2007

Mary Ann's Mum went back with John and Jessica and we got home about 10.30.

Sunday morning it was training at the gym. Somehow Mary Ann's dress fitting turned into my back getting pummelled with a whole lot of exercises on Sunday morning - go figure.

When we got home it was such a beautiful day we loaded the bikes on the back on the car and went to Mercer Park for a bike ride. Nicholas was very excited.

Dropped the boys off Sunday night and MA and I went to see a movie (No Country for Old Men). Pretty weird, but pretty enjoyable.