Soup.

It's been forever since we blogged, and we're not in denial about it.We've obviously been eating, since we've had quite a lot to say over at Burp! But, we haven't been writing much about all the other stuff that makes us who we are. Not sure why that is. Maybe that just means we haven't experienced many "bloggable moments".  Or maybe we just haven't felt much like writing lately.

Either way, I'm hoping that 2010 will bring on a little bit more in the way of news from the Peef & Lo blog. The reality is, we're bound to set our sails for new adventures. And it would be a shame if we didn't stop to tell you about it.

In the meantime, we'd like you all to know that we're dredging up one of our old community concepts.  And you're invited.

Remember Soup Nights?
The idea came out of a notion that I'd like to create more community within our families and among our friends & neighbors -- to unify some of the disparate groups that make up our circle of acquaintances. So, we've invited just about everyone we know to come over once a month (January through March) for a "soup night".

2010 SOUP NIGHTS will be held on the last Sunday of the month:

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Sunday, March 28, 2010

The BURP! Kitchen will be open from 4:30pm−7:30pm

The concept is easy. We provide the soup. And maybe a bit of wine.You provide bread, crackers, chips, cheese, dessert, or … even nothing at all. We hang out, chat, meet some new people. And everyone has a good time. Stop by for a bit -- or stay for a while. You decide. You can even bring a friend.



Anyhow -- we'll be having our first soup night on Sunday, January 31, 2010.  We'll be featuring three different soups.  And we'd love it if you'd join us.

The Miracle of a New Year.

So, here we sit, in the last few days of a year that's been fraught with plenty of good -- but enough bad that I can't imagine wanting to hit "replay". And yet, I'm feeling very peaceful.

It's remarkable to think about the hope, the potential, and the joyful mystery of the new year.  I'm certainly not delusional, but I've always somehow believed in the hope that springs new upon the eve of the new year.  And, as I sit here contemplating what's to come -- I feel that hope.

Tomorrow we will wake up early. If we get up early enough, there will be coffee. And a bit of kranzkuchen. Steph will arrive and we'll drive off to gather our wares for another New Year's feast.  This year, we're exploring Asian cuisine.  We'll make up a bit of sushi, maybe some Chinese dumplings, a few eggrolls, some tempura, and whatever else we feel inspired to create. We'll cook all day, and nibble as we go. We'll laugh. Play games. Drink wine. And enjoy one another's company.  At midnight, we'll crack open a bottle of champagne and toast the new year.

And when it's all over, we'll drift off to sleep with smiling faces and full bellies. And we'll wake up to a blank slate. A new calendar. And the hope that, somehow, an exciting stretch of days just waiting to be shaped into something new, lay before us.

Although it's virtually impossible to simply place all of our burdens down at 11:59 p.m. on the eve of the new year, and wake up to an utterly clean slate on the first of the year, it's certainly a contemplation worth having. 

Our hopes and goals for 2010

Stress less, and pray more.

Love freely and deeply. 
Judge less, and be generous with our grace cards. 

Open up, and reach out. 
Stretch our boundaries.
Do more creating, and less tearing down. 
Eat well, and share meals often. 
Explore the boundaries of new cooking worlds. 
Focus on the immense possibility of possibility.

As you reflect on 2009 and step over the threshold of the new year, may only good await. And may your 2010 hold nothing less than miracles.

-- Peef and Lo                       

Beware Present Face

Too Busy to Blog, But These Girls Rock

Halloween Weekend with Peef & Lo

October has been a complete blur.

Birthdays... weddings... Oktoberfest in Dallas, WI... a weekend in Minnesota with Paul's peeps... this was the first weekend we've spent at home in a looooong time.  So, of course we had to rustle up some good old fashioned autumn fun.

First, we played in the leaves...  and then we raked them all up into piles like good little homeowners should.

Then we brewed up a nice batch of creepy crawlie "shrunken head" autumn apple rum punch.

Mighty tasty -- and the shrunken heads (which were made of carved & dried Granny Smith apples -- thanks Martha!), were pretty kewl.  Here are a few of our favorites:

Sneering dude.

Askeered dude.

Vampire dude.

And scary skeleton dude.

Steph came over and enjoyed our punch with us. And we feasted on delicious sweet potato gnocchi with sage browned butter, and bacon-cider mustard greens (sorry, no pix!).

This afternoon, we whipped up a batch of Root Vegetable Stew with Beef... which we enjoyed while watching Nightmare Before Christmas (for the 47bazillionth time... I think it keeps getting better).

Sing along with us, won't you?

Windows 7 now available

And apparently you should throw a party?

For reals?

Wow.
What happened to that cute little girl that was on their commercials? I think she is a better spokesperson than this crazy bunch...

Ode to Mix Tapes -- ah! the memories

RebeccaL sent me something this morning over email that I just had to share.



Ode to Mix Tapes
Srsly. You've got to read this one.


Do you remember the process?

Collecting those emotions.
Listening to the lyrics.
Making sure the mood was perfect.
Saying things we weren't brave enough to say ourselves.
Pausing, rewinding, playing... making sure the transitions "work".
It was all part of the process. And it was fantastic.

Makes me wonder about all the generations that will never experience that sort of "blue collar labor"...

Photo credit: Erica Marshall of muddyboots.org (via flickr)