when they first bought the place. andrew has invited me over a few times over the course of last year but our schedules never seemed to mesh. the last time i saw andrew was last april, when we went to a red sox game. i don't see him for a year, he has a new baby! besides seeing isabel, he also wanted to get my opinion on some backyard gardening projects. since todd chopped down a few trees, the backyard seems to be getting a lot more sun than i remembered. besides a small inclined lawn, andrew also wanted to get some wildflowers growing further up the hill. he'd worked on a triangular piece of land by the side of the house for some garlic, but turns out the spot is too shady, and now he might decide to grow some raspberries there instead (based on the theory that garden plants should earn their keep).
andrew and i left for the watertown home depot just as soon as maura's friend katie arrived with katie's mother 
(they were there to try on some bridesmaid dresses for katie's june nuptial). the place was crowded with people getting their gardening supplies now that the weather is starting to warm up. andrew bought a few bags of manure and a dozen strawberries for the sunny plot of land in front of his house. back in newton, i had a chance to hold isabel for a little bit (9 lbs.) before returning to belmont.
we had some more goat noodle soup for dinner. instead of the usual goat meat i get from the haymarket butcher shop, which is most bones with a bit of meat - tonight's goat meat had a lot of meat and skin and some bones. the difference? extremely strong goat flavor. so strong as a matter of fact that it gave me pause, and after i left, my clothes still smelled of goat. i like the goat meat but even this may be a little bit too much goat flavor for my preference.
the temperature today was only in the 50's but felt warmer because the sun was out. on the motorcycle i could feel the difference because my neck would be cold. by the time i made it back to cambridge, the temperature had dipped into the 40's. it's something i should get used to because it'll be just as cold tomorrow morning when i return to newton to watch the boston marathon.