What Would Jane Austen Do?

Thanks, sharebros! [That word must officially be retired now.]

Wanna know what heinous behavioral infractions Becca committed today? Mind you, they were enough to merit having a note sent home. 1. She stuck her tongue out at a kid. 2. She left tissue hanging out of her nose. I think maybe her teacher needs to spend a semester in a slightly rougher school, no? I never thought I would be one of those parents who takes her kid's side against the rest of the world, but Mrs. Cook needs to give me SOMETHING to work with.

In Texas, you cannot buy distilled spirits on Sunday, even if you have a note from your doctor saying that Ina Garten's Beef Burgundy recipe is exactly what you need on a chilly March night and the cognac in it is absolutely essential to your wellbeing. So FUCK YOU, Texas Blue Laws. This afternoon I'm going straight to the liquor store and chugging an entire bottle of Courvoisier. I'LL SHOW YOU.

Went to the MFAH for family craft time. This is Emmet's rendering of the Chicago river on St. Patrick's day. Chicago River on St. Patrick's Day , 2010, oil pastel and watercolor on paper. Courtesy of the artist. Not bad, eh? photo via Wikipedia This was so cool: an interactive map outside the Prendergast in Italy exhibition. The screen showed a Google map of Venice; sites of landscape paintings were clickable and zoomable. The program didn't work perfectly, probably because some shithead kids kept tapping the screen over and over instead of simply double clicking. I don't know who those children would be. Anyway, it has a lot of potential. This is always their favorite thing at the museum -- the James Turrell light tunnel . Rebecca also loves the creepy Damien Hirst skeletons in a case at the other end of the tunnel. She's an odd one.

On Saturday we went to the open houses at Rienzi and Bayou Bend. There were lots of flowers, some crafts and a petting zoo. That little guy on the right is a Highland bull. He kept trying to get busy with that (male) llama. We had lots of fun with the animal kingdom last weekend. I think I saw at least 15 kinds of scat. This is Emmet feeling uncharacteristically brave. He wanted to go off the trail and into the gulley. I could hardly say no, right? Today it was raining, so we went to Chick-fil-A and then to the library. E&B love curling up in these egg chairs and reading. Emmet is working his way through the Captain Underpants series. As you can see, Becca has a crack problem. But when your hiney is that cute, why hide the whole thing in your pants?

So what did you today? I bet you didn't go to any pig races. I had to chaperone Emmet's field trip to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo today. It was not a roaring success -- too crowded, for one thing. But hey, pig races. I could have watched these chicks all day. I saw one chick pop its way out of the shell. There were several others lying on the table, and I thought they weren't going to make it, but when we walked by later they were all moving. Inside AGventure, there were tons of FFA kids hanging out with their livestock and running booths for the cattle industry, the dairy industry, etc. This is a great display about the products made from cows. Look kids, Bessie will make so many useful things -- like herbicide! Emmet's favorite part of the entire rodeo was riding the tram back and forth to the parking lot. We spent about an hour and a half doing that a few times. He knows how to show a lady a good time.

Reading Not bad for a business book. Watching Hysterical.

I really love Harvey Faircloth , and I would totally buy all of their clothes if I were a size 2, 4, 6, or 8 (WTF ladies?). Also if I were rich. Somebody needs to start a Harvey Faircloth for fat, poor people. Anyway. This little number here caught my eye. Unfortunately, I gave up spending money for Lent. I mean, spending money on non-essentials, that is. Whatever. It leaves me only to marvel at their profit model. The ring is $35. P.S. -- During Lent it is not wrong for other people to buy things for me. Just sayin'.

The March issue of Everyday Food has a list of "20 Foods To Try Right Now." Their mention inspired me to try Twining's Lady Grey Tea . It's definitely my new favorite. Like Earl Grey it has bergamot, but it is more citrus-y and less perfume-y than the Earl. And I can report that it makes the most delicious Arnold Palmer you will EVER have. For what it's worth, here is the full list from Everyday Food : Turbinado sugar Sriracha hot sauce Israeli couscous Pomegranate juice Salted caramel ( Definitely. ) Lady Grey tea Capers Jules Destrooper butter crisp cookies Anise seed Tofu ( Considering that their other recommendations were much, much better, I have to think that "tofu" is the result of making this list by committee. ) Dark chocolate Sea salt Anchovies ( I keep a tube of anchovy paste in the spice cabinet .) Grits ( Are there people who still haven't tried grits? Pity. ) Mirin Quinoa ( Tofu lady strikes again. ) Frozen fruit Broccolini Dulce