If that title doesn't turn people away from reading this post I don't know what will.
We have sickness here. Too much of it.
It started out Thursday evening when #5, our youngest wasn't feeling well. He threw up three times that day and seemed better in the morning. However, late in the afternoon on Friday he wasn't feeling well and refused a cookie (a sure sign something is wrong). He threw up a couple more times that day, and today he was still laying around on the couch for most of the morning. He perked up later in the day and seemed okay. We ran some errands, got some things done and then in the evening #2 started feeling sick. We set him up with the bucket and pretty soon he was using it. #3 said he didn't feel like throwing up but his stomach hurt. We made him lay down in the living room as well. Pretty soon he joined in the fray, and #4 wasn't far behind.
At one point #3 was throwing up into a bucket in the living room while #4 was in the kitchen throwing up in the garbage can. Then #5 started to look green around the gills. He ran for the bucket which was unfortunately occupied by #3 and ended up throwing up on the floor and into the bucket. D took the bucket and went to empty it out, and at that point #2 woke up and said, "OH NO!" I ran over with a (luckily lined) trash can, and he threw up in it. Its one of the most disgusting things I have ever witnessed, and yet we were laughing about the horror of it.
I went to the garage and got a tarp. Are we cold hearted or what? We spread it out on the living room floor and made sick boys lay down on it with their pillows and blankets. We got them each their own bucket or container to puke in and they have spent the evening throwing up, sometimes at the same time, and sometimes one after the other. All of them refused to use Sally (for those of you not in the know, Sally is the barf bowl I have been using during pregnancy, she is a high class Tupperware bowl that will never EVER be used to store food again.) I have to say that I am kind of glad none of them wanted to use her since I still need her on a regular basis and I don't want their sick germs contaminating her.
If you have read this far without getting sick, I applaud your stomach of steel, and I beg for your prayers. If any of us are throwing up (other than morning sickness, I hope I can tell the difference) on Monday we will have to miss out on our family Christmas Eve celebration and that would break many of our hearts. My family used to get together monthly, then it became quarterly, but it has dwindled a bit to just a few times a year and our next get together with everyone at once is not until summer. Please pray for us to be healthy by Monday morning. And if we can't have that, then Tuesday. We are scheduled to fly to California and spend a few days in Disneyland the day after Christmas and our flight leaves early Wednesday. I don't know how we can take pukey kids on a plane, and they certainly wouldn't be able to enjoy Disneyland once we get there if they are sick. Not to mention that there will be cousins there as well and we don't want any of them getting sick.
#1 has been crying out of fear that we will miss Christmas with family. He is the only one of the boys that has not gotten sick yet, and D and I are dreading and waiting, and hoping against hope not to get sick. We know it will take a miracle considering the amount of puke we have been cleaning up. The boys have thrown up several times each this evening.
I hope your prospects for a Merry Christmas are looking better than ours are! I wish you all safe travels, and a puke free Christmas!
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Monday, December 17, 2007
One Week...
...to get all your presents wrapped, all your ribbons tied, all your treats made, and all your preparations finished...I am so far behind.
In years past I have been known to make up to 17 different kinds of treats and goodies, but this year so far I have made NOTHING. I just haven't been up to it. I have even bagged out on making my Christmas morning cinnamon rolls this year. I just have nothing in me right now as far as cooking goes. I delegated the fudge to my sister, and I plan to make truffles because I fear for my life if I don't.
My shopping however, is pretty much done, although not wrapped up yet ;o) Every day I think to myself...I should wrap some gifts and get a head start...and yet...still I sit. I love Christmas... but I am not in the spirit this year. I don't think its only the nausea, there are other stresses I am thinking about.
So tell me...how do you get in the Christmas Spirit? We have decorated, we have made ornaments, we have watched Christmas movies, but I am just tired, and stressed, and I want to make the last few days before Christmas fun for the boys...so hit me with your best ideas!
In years past I have been known to make up to 17 different kinds of treats and goodies, but this year so far I have made NOTHING. I just haven't been up to it. I have even bagged out on making my Christmas morning cinnamon rolls this year. I just have nothing in me right now as far as cooking goes. I delegated the fudge to my sister, and I plan to make truffles because I fear for my life if I don't.
My shopping however, is pretty much done, although not wrapped up yet ;o) Every day I think to myself...I should wrap some gifts and get a head start...and yet...still I sit. I love Christmas... but I am not in the spirit this year. I don't think its only the nausea, there are other stresses I am thinking about.
So tell me...how do you get in the Christmas Spirit? We have decorated, we have made ornaments, we have watched Christmas movies, but I am just tired, and stressed, and I want to make the last few days before Christmas fun for the boys...so hit me with your best ideas!
Saturday, December 08, 2007
It could have been so much worse...
After weathering the recent storm and miraculously coming through it unscathed...my mind turns to how much worse it could have been.
Today I got an email from Kathryn aka The Daring One over at Daring Young Mom. If you want to see how much worse things went for a lot of people, please check out her post here, and see if there is any way you can help.
Christmas is rapidly approaching, and there are families without homes, and who have lost everything, including their livelihoods. I can only imagine how horrible and helpless they must feel. Please, if you have the means to help...do what you can. Thanks!
Today I got an email from Kathryn aka The Daring One over at Daring Young Mom. If you want to see how much worse things went for a lot of people, please check out her post here, and see if there is any way you can help.
Christmas is rapidly approaching, and there are families without homes, and who have lost everything, including their livelihoods. I can only imagine how horrible and helpless they must feel. Please, if you have the means to help...do what you can. Thanks!
Friday, December 07, 2007
The Perfect Storm
There will be no Fiction Friday Post this week. I apologize. It has been a stressful and busy week here, and I just don't have it in me today.
The majority of people won't know since news coverage has been sparse, but here on the Oregon coast we were hit with two huge storms Sunday and Monday. The winds were up to 120 miles an hour, and most of the coast lost power and many lost phone service. Our power was out for 75 hours, and the phones were out for about three days as well (including our cell service). All the roads leading inland were also closed due to the storm because of flooding, or downed trees, so we had no way out either. We finally have power here at our house, but many people in nearby neighborhoods still are without power. Many people suffered a large amount of property damage, and it has just been a surreal experience in many ways.
We were very blessed at our house that the only damage was some downed trees that did not hit our house, and several shingles blowing off of our roof. Sunday night we didn't get much sleep with the wind, and I feel like it was pretty miraculous that there was not more damage to our home. I was awake most of the night listening to the wind, and it was blowing so hard that it literally felt like an earthquake, our whole house shook. The boys spent four nights sleeping in the living room where it is a little warmer than upstairs and we used up our supply of glow sticks so that the boys could have a little light in the room they were sleeping in, and to light the bathroom at night.
We were fairly prepared as far as things go. Not perfectly prepared...for all the flashlights we have, the boys manage to lose them pretty often, and we couldn't find any of them. We have oil lamps, candles, a battery operated radio as well as a wind up radio with a lantern, a batter operated lantern, a push light, and a butane stove burner like they use in catering. Sunday morning we knew there would probably be a power outage, so we filled up our cooler with ice and essentials from the fridge so that we wouldn't have to open the fridge when the power went out. We played games such as Spongebob Monopoly, Life and etc. and we did some Christmas art projects together during the day. It was actually kind of sad when the power went back on (although we were happy to save the food that was thawing in our freezer). We had some great quality family time together for those three days the power was out, and got along better than usual.
It was hard not having phone service to let family know we were okay, and we realized that we needed to be more prepared. Although we were more prepared than many people, there is still a lot we could have done (always have extra TP...ALWAYS...luckily that was just a close call and not a nightmare experience) such as making sure we were caught up on laundry and have adequate gas in the car. After a few days with no gas pumps going you get desperate for fuel. We are going to implement the half tank rule that D's Grandpa always followed rather than letting the car get down to empty before filling up.
Anyhow...I am sure most of you were thinking I was sick and just not posting, but in fact, I had no power, no phone and no Internet...I will try to get back to a regular posting schedule next week, although there is a chance we will lose power again before everything is back to normal.
The majority of people won't know since news coverage has been sparse, but here on the Oregon coast we were hit with two huge storms Sunday and Monday. The winds were up to 120 miles an hour, and most of the coast lost power and many lost phone service. Our power was out for 75 hours, and the phones were out for about three days as well (including our cell service). All the roads leading inland were also closed due to the storm because of flooding, or downed trees, so we had no way out either. We finally have power here at our house, but many people in nearby neighborhoods still are without power. Many people suffered a large amount of property damage, and it has just been a surreal experience in many ways.
We were very blessed at our house that the only damage was some downed trees that did not hit our house, and several shingles blowing off of our roof. Sunday night we didn't get much sleep with the wind, and I feel like it was pretty miraculous that there was not more damage to our home. I was awake most of the night listening to the wind, and it was blowing so hard that it literally felt like an earthquake, our whole house shook. The boys spent four nights sleeping in the living room where it is a little warmer than upstairs and we used up our supply of glow sticks so that the boys could have a little light in the room they were sleeping in, and to light the bathroom at night.
We were fairly prepared as far as things go. Not perfectly prepared...for all the flashlights we have, the boys manage to lose them pretty often, and we couldn't find any of them. We have oil lamps, candles, a battery operated radio as well as a wind up radio with a lantern, a batter operated lantern, a push light, and a butane stove burner like they use in catering. Sunday morning we knew there would probably be a power outage, so we filled up our cooler with ice and essentials from the fridge so that we wouldn't have to open the fridge when the power went out. We played games such as Spongebob Monopoly, Life and etc. and we did some Christmas art projects together during the day. It was actually kind of sad when the power went back on (although we were happy to save the food that was thawing in our freezer). We had some great quality family time together for those three days the power was out, and got along better than usual.
It was hard not having phone service to let family know we were okay, and we realized that we needed to be more prepared. Although we were more prepared than many people, there is still a lot we could have done (always have extra TP...ALWAYS...luckily that was just a close call and not a nightmare experience) such as making sure we were caught up on laundry and have adequate gas in the car. After a few days with no gas pumps going you get desperate for fuel. We are going to implement the half tank rule that D's Grandpa always followed rather than letting the car get down to empty before filling up.
Anyhow...I am sure most of you were thinking I was sick and just not posting, but in fact, I had no power, no phone and no Internet...I will try to get back to a regular posting schedule next week, although there is a chance we will lose power again before everything is back to normal.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Family Countdown to Christmas
This post is an entry for Scribbit's Winter Bazaar.
You know those advent calendars that come with a tiny piece of chocolate about the size of your fingernail? Well...we came up with a better idea for this year.
In years past we have seen advent calendars, the kids make a paper chain at school and each day of December we take one chain off until we get to the top and then its magically Christmas! When I was a youth we made an advent candle that came with a list of scriptures and each day of December you burned the candle down a little bit and read a scripture that had to do with Christmas. Those are all great ideas. I am not discounting any of them in any way. This year I thought up a way to have some family togetherness in addition to the excitement of counting down.
You can certainly make a calendar for this activity if that's the way you want to go, but my idea involves using a jar, a bowl, or any container you can fit 24 small pieces of paper in.
First of all, I would recommend looking ahead in your calendar for the month of December. Are there school concerts to attend? Other family obligations? Sporting events? Make a list of things you are already committed to doing for the month.
Next you need to come up with 24 activities to use for the countdown. The beauty of this is that you can tailor fit it to the amount of time you have to spend on a given evening. If you will be busy all evening and only have half an hour or even just 15 minutes to devote to an activity, that is just fine. All you need to know is about how much time you will have each evening or day to devote to a family activity, and then choose short ones or long ones according to your needs. Write the activities on a piece of paper. I recommend color coding. For instance, red paper could mean the activity is in the 15 minute to 30 minute range. Green paper could mean that you have more than an hour to devote to the activity. You can use as many colors as you want to, just make sure you write a key on the lid of your jar that says how long a time is represented by each color of paper, and make sure you put the appropriate amount of each color to fit your schedule.
Some ideas for shorter activities...
Reading a Christmas story at bedtime. Check your local Library and see what they have available. I have heard of people reading a different Christmas storybook for each day of the countdown. Its quick, its relaxing, and its good family time. You can also include reading scriptures about Christmas as part of this.
Watch a Holiday special. We don't get TV reception where we live, but we do have some Christmas and Holiday versions of TV shows on DVD. Garfield, Charlie Brown, Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph and etc. Many of these are between 20 minutes to a half an hour, and you can rent some of them from the video store if you don't own any yourselves. For us it has been fun to watch shows we loved as children with our own kids.
Share some Christmas Memories. You can look at Christmas photos from years past, and talk about how Christmas was when you were younger. You can also find out your children's favorite Christmas memories and record them in a family journal.
Have hot cocoa with whipped cream and other fun ingredients and listen to Christmas music.
Take fun family photos with a Holiday Theme.
Have a gift wrapping relay race.
Color Christmas coloring pages. There are always coloring pages to be found on the web that you can print out.
String popcorn, cranberries, or make a paper chain...decorate the house a little bit at a time!
Longer Length activities...(an hour or more)
Make Christmas candy. You can get candy molds at your local craft store as well as chocolate melts to use for candy making. Our kids always enjoy making candy as a family.
Decorate goodies. Christmas cookies, gingerbread houses, cupcakes, whatever floats your boat!
Make Christmas Ornaments. Family Fun's Christmas Site is a great resource for finding kid friendly Holiday crafts, decorations and recipes. I will be posting a fun family craft next week. I can hardly wait!
Deliver Christmas treats to friends and family.
Do a family service project. Before we were married and had young children we loved to go and put shopping carts away at Christmas. In the rush of Holiday shopping many people would leave their carts all over the parking lot, and its cold! So we would deliver the carts back to their little stalls in the parking lot so the cart jockeys would have an easier time of it. I don't recommend it for families with young kids because of traffic. There are tons of other family service projects you can do though.
Make Christmas cards. Homemade cards are fun to make, and kids love the opportunity to be creative!
Go caroling! If you are too embarrassed to carol in public, just spend an evening at home singing Christmas songs together.
Watch a Christmas movie. Its a Wonderful Life, White Christmas, Home Alone...take your pick! This one is a great weekend activity.
Have a family gift wrapping party.
Make a snowman (if you live where there is snow). If you don't live where there is snow you can print out a paper snowman here or here. Or you can draw your own.
These are just a few ideas to get you started. There are tons of crafts, recipes and other fun things out there that you could use as a fun activity. I would love to hear ideas you have to add!
Once you have your jar filled, just pick the appropriate color of paper for the day you are choosing for. You could even draw them out one day ahead to make sure you have time to prepare, or if you would rather plan ahead, you can simply make up your own advent calendar and list the activity for each day and your kids can still be surprised when its time to reveal the next activity. I hope you have fun with this if you decide to use it!
You know those advent calendars that come with a tiny piece of chocolate about the size of your fingernail? Well...we came up with a better idea for this year.
In years past we have seen advent calendars, the kids make a paper chain at school and each day of December we take one chain off until we get to the top and then its magically Christmas! When I was a youth we made an advent candle that came with a list of scriptures and each day of December you burned the candle down a little bit and read a scripture that had to do with Christmas. Those are all great ideas. I am not discounting any of them in any way. This year I thought up a way to have some family togetherness in addition to the excitement of counting down.
You can certainly make a calendar for this activity if that's the way you want to go, but my idea involves using a jar, a bowl, or any container you can fit 24 small pieces of paper in.
First of all, I would recommend looking ahead in your calendar for the month of December. Are there school concerts to attend? Other family obligations? Sporting events? Make a list of things you are already committed to doing for the month.
Next you need to come up with 24 activities to use for the countdown. The beauty of this is that you can tailor fit it to the amount of time you have to spend on a given evening. If you will be busy all evening and only have half an hour or even just 15 minutes to devote to an activity, that is just fine. All you need to know is about how much time you will have each evening or day to devote to a family activity, and then choose short ones or long ones according to your needs. Write the activities on a piece of paper. I recommend color coding. For instance, red paper could mean the activity is in the 15 minute to 30 minute range. Green paper could mean that you have more than an hour to devote to the activity. You can use as many colors as you want to, just make sure you write a key on the lid of your jar that says how long a time is represented by each color of paper, and make sure you put the appropriate amount of each color to fit your schedule.
Some ideas for shorter activities...
Reading a Christmas story at bedtime. Check your local Library and see what they have available. I have heard of people reading a different Christmas storybook for each day of the countdown. Its quick, its relaxing, and its good family time. You can also include reading scriptures about Christmas as part of this.
Watch a Holiday special. We don't get TV reception where we live, but we do have some Christmas and Holiday versions of TV shows on DVD. Garfield, Charlie Brown, Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph and etc. Many of these are between 20 minutes to a half an hour, and you can rent some of them from the video store if you don't own any yourselves. For us it has been fun to watch shows we loved as children with our own kids.
Share some Christmas Memories. You can look at Christmas photos from years past, and talk about how Christmas was when you were younger. You can also find out your children's favorite Christmas memories and record them in a family journal.
Have hot cocoa with whipped cream and other fun ingredients and listen to Christmas music.
Take fun family photos with a Holiday Theme.
Have a gift wrapping relay race.
Color Christmas coloring pages. There are always coloring pages to be found on the web that you can print out.
String popcorn, cranberries, or make a paper chain...decorate the house a little bit at a time!
Longer Length activities...(an hour or more)
Make Christmas candy. You can get candy molds at your local craft store as well as chocolate melts to use for candy making. Our kids always enjoy making candy as a family.
Decorate goodies. Christmas cookies, gingerbread houses, cupcakes, whatever floats your boat!
Make Christmas Ornaments. Family Fun's Christmas Site is a great resource for finding kid friendly Holiday crafts, decorations and recipes. I will be posting a fun family craft next week. I can hardly wait!
Deliver Christmas treats to friends and family.
Do a family service project. Before we were married and had young children we loved to go and put shopping carts away at Christmas. In the rush of Holiday shopping many people would leave their carts all over the parking lot, and its cold! So we would deliver the carts back to their little stalls in the parking lot so the cart jockeys would have an easier time of it. I don't recommend it for families with young kids because of traffic. There are tons of other family service projects you can do though.
Make Christmas cards. Homemade cards are fun to make, and kids love the opportunity to be creative!
Go caroling! If you are too embarrassed to carol in public, just spend an evening at home singing Christmas songs together.
Watch a Christmas movie. Its a Wonderful Life, White Christmas, Home Alone...take your pick! This one is a great weekend activity.
Have a family gift wrapping party.
Make a snowman (if you live where there is snow). If you don't live where there is snow you can print out a paper snowman here or here. Or you can draw your own.
These are just a few ideas to get you started. There are tons of crafts, recipes and other fun things out there that you could use as a fun activity. I would love to hear ideas you have to add!
Once you have your jar filled, just pick the appropriate color of paper for the day you are choosing for. You could even draw them out one day ahead to make sure you have time to prepare, or if you would rather plan ahead, you can simply make up your own advent calendar and list the activity for each day and your kids can still be surprised when its time to reveal the next activity. I hope you have fun with this if you decide to use it!
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Christmas is coming...
| Your Christmas is Most Like: The Muppet Christmas Carol |
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Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Six weeks and counting down!
If you are anything like me, December gets to be a very busy and overwhelming month. I try to keep things as stress free as possible by planning ahead. This year has been hard because of being sick and all, but I can still do some things ahead of time so I don't have to stress about them later.
One thing I like to do is to make and freeze cookie dough. This way when you need to bring treats to something, or have a last minute need to fill, you can just take the dough out of the freezer, bake it up, and voila! Fresh cookies with less mess because you made the mess and cleaned it up ahead of time.
What are you doing to get ready for the Holidays?
One thing I like to do is to make and freeze cookie dough. This way when you need to bring treats to something, or have a last minute need to fill, you can just take the dough out of the freezer, bake it up, and voila! Fresh cookies with less mess because you made the mess and cleaned it up ahead of time.
What are you doing to get ready for the Holidays?
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Pumpkin Bread
This post is for Scribbit's Winter Bazaar...even though today is Halloween I opted to do a more Autumn themed recipe. Pumpkin Bread is a great dessert bread, and would be a great thing to bring to a Halloween get together...
Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Bread
Yield: 3 loaves
3 c Sugar
3 1/2 c Flour
1/2 t Salt
2 t Baking soda
1 t Cinnamon
1 t Nutmeg
4 lg Eggs
1 c Vegetable oil
2 c Pumpkin (cooked)
2/3 c Water
1 1/2 c Walnuts, chopped (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter your containers well. Sift the dry ingredients together into a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and add the eggs, oil, pumpkin and water. Beat thoroughly. It's easier to get all the lumps out if you use an electric mixer. Stir in the walnuts with a wooden spoon if you decide you want nuts in the bread. Pour the batter into the containers, filling each only half to two-thirds full. Bake for 60 minutes, for regular loaves, or 15 to 20 if you are making muffins. I usually make two loaves and a dozen or so muffins with this recipe. The bread is done when a toothpick in the middle comes out clean. Cool about ten minutes, then loosen the edges of the bread with a knife, and turn out of the pans to cool the rest of the way on a rack.
Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Bread
Yield: 3 loaves
3 c Sugar
3 1/2 c Flour
1/2 t Salt
2 t Baking soda
1 t Cinnamon
1 t Nutmeg
4 lg Eggs
1 c Vegetable oil
2 c Pumpkin (cooked)
2/3 c Water
1 1/2 c Walnuts, chopped (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter your containers well. Sift the dry ingredients together into a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and add the eggs, oil, pumpkin and water. Beat thoroughly. It's easier to get all the lumps out if you use an electric mixer. Stir in the walnuts with a wooden spoon if you decide you want nuts in the bread. Pour the batter into the containers, filling each only half to two-thirds full. Bake for 60 minutes, for regular loaves, or 15 to 20 if you are making muffins. I usually make two loaves and a dozen or so muffins with this recipe. The bread is done when a toothpick in the middle comes out clean. Cool about ten minutes, then loosen the edges of the bread with a knife, and turn out of the pans to cool the rest of the way on a rack.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
If you came looking for Halloween tips, I am sorry...
I would love to do a post for Scribbit's Winter Bazaar, but I am sick. I have been puking my guts out for three days, and I barely had the energy to do a Wordless Wedneday post (please see it below). I didn't want anyone to think I died...but I feel like I would like to. Until I am better I may only post a couple of times a week. I am not sure about Fiction Friday...we'll see how I am feeling by then.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Happy Birthday Carrot...
A Birthday Wish for Carrot. May you be protected from furry blue monsters, and from Magicians who want to make you "disappear". I hope you have a great birthday!
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Happy 200th to me!
My 200th Post has crept up on me. It just doesn't seem like that long ago that I wrote my 100th. It has, in fact, only been a little over four and a half months since I wrote my 100th post which was actually a Wordless Wednesday, but oh well...it was still #100.
I briefly thought about trying to think of something special to do for my 200th post, but that would mean that I would have to take some extra time to really think of something good, and since I feel like writing a post right now, I am going to forgo the fanfare and just keep the celebrating to a minimum. Maybe in a few months I will hit 300 and then do something really special. Until then, thanks for reading, for commenting and for being all the wonderful people you are!
Now, on to my previously scheduled post...
Tonight we are waiting on a storm. Living at the Oregon coast means that we enjoy some rain of course, but it also means that we get quite a few wind storms every year, and several power outages. For the most part the power outages are short. Last year we had one that lasted a couple of days, but it wasn't so bad once it was over. Although we aren't living high on the hog when we have a power outage, we have hot water (because our water heater runs on natural gas), a way to heat food without electricity, a stove top popcorn popper, oil lamps, and a kerosene heater.
When we heard that there was going to be a storm coming, we decided to make sure we had a few more essentials. While I don't necessarily cook everything from scratch, I don't generally keep a lot of meals in a box or can around the house. Mac and cheese is the one exception to that, but generally I make that from scratch too. So to prepare for the storm I sent D out to Costco and had him buy a case of chili. Yes, I know its not really conducive to family togetherness because of some unfortunate side effects, but it will give the boys something to laugh about because nothing is funnier to boys than those kinds of bodily functions. We also got an extra case of water even though we already have a couple of them in the van, some glow sticks (they are comforting to scared children), some bread, crackers, and most importantly a case of Ding Dongs. Usually we like to eat our Ding Dongs frozen, but in the case of a power outage we are willing to make an exception. Even though the whining is almost unbearable, the house gets colder than we like it, and everything is dim, I find that I enjoy the occasional power outage. The boys are quieter, we read together, we all stay in the same room instead of spreading out around the house, and I just enjoy being together.
Don't get me wrong, after a day of it I am always ready for a return to my email and my blogs, but a little power outage doesn't hurt. If we didn't get them so regularly in the winter time, I would be scheduling our own family power outages from time to time myself.
So if you don't hear anything from me for a couple of days, we might just be right here, huddled around the table with the glow of an oil lamp and some candles, eating popcorn and drinking cocoa. Try not to be jealous...
I briefly thought about trying to think of something special to do for my 200th post, but that would mean that I would have to take some extra time to really think of something good, and since I feel like writing a post right now, I am going to forgo the fanfare and just keep the celebrating to a minimum. Maybe in a few months I will hit 300 and then do something really special. Until then, thanks for reading, for commenting and for being all the wonderful people you are!
Now, on to my previously scheduled post...
Tonight we are waiting on a storm. Living at the Oregon coast means that we enjoy some rain of course, but it also means that we get quite a few wind storms every year, and several power outages. For the most part the power outages are short. Last year we had one that lasted a couple of days, but it wasn't so bad once it was over. Although we aren't living high on the hog when we have a power outage, we have hot water (because our water heater runs on natural gas), a way to heat food without electricity, a stove top popcorn popper, oil lamps, and a kerosene heater.
When we heard that there was going to be a storm coming, we decided to make sure we had a few more essentials. While I don't necessarily cook everything from scratch, I don't generally keep a lot of meals in a box or can around the house. Mac and cheese is the one exception to that, but generally I make that from scratch too. So to prepare for the storm I sent D out to Costco and had him buy a case of chili. Yes, I know its not really conducive to family togetherness because of some unfortunate side effects, but it will give the boys something to laugh about because nothing is funnier to boys than those kinds of bodily functions. We also got an extra case of water even though we already have a couple of them in the van, some glow sticks (they are comforting to scared children), some bread, crackers, and most importantly a case of Ding Dongs. Usually we like to eat our Ding Dongs frozen, but in the case of a power outage we are willing to make an exception. Even though the whining is almost unbearable, the house gets colder than we like it, and everything is dim, I find that I enjoy the occasional power outage. The boys are quieter, we read together, we all stay in the same room instead of spreading out around the house, and I just enjoy being together.
Don't get me wrong, after a day of it I am always ready for a return to my email and my blogs, but a little power outage doesn't hurt. If we didn't get them so regularly in the winter time, I would be scheduling our own family power outages from time to time myself.
So if you don't hear anything from me for a couple of days, we might just be right here, huddled around the table with the glow of an oil lamp and some candles, eating popcorn and drinking cocoa. Try not to be jealous...
Monday, October 15, 2007
Busy Week...
This week is very busy for me. I have all kinds of things going on. Last night I put together a quick slideshow for the funeral of a complete stranger, and today I have to make sure that it gets to its destination on time. There are Doctor's appointments, and a mole removal surgery for #4 going on this week, making cookies for a blood drive on Thursday, and getting ready for our church's big Super Saturday activity that I am in charge of on Saturday.
Super Saturday is a women's group activity and we are doing crafts in preparation for Christmas. I am in charge of three out of six of the crafts...I think I have a delegating problem. One of the crafts is the placemat purse I talked about making back in August. They are the perfect size for carrying your scriptures, and I got so many raves about my cute scripture tote, that I knew it would be a perfect project. I am also in charge of the embossed advent candle project, and the picture frame mat that we are decorating with pictures from Christ's life. Once I get one of those done I will try to post a picture. On top of all that I also am making soup as part of lunch for Super (I should have called it Souper) Saturday. Lots to do, and lots to think about. So if I post less often this week, that is why. (I imagine I will post the same amount though).
How busy is your week?
Super Saturday is a women's group activity and we are doing crafts in preparation for Christmas. I am in charge of three out of six of the crafts...I think I have a delegating problem. One of the crafts is the placemat purse I talked about making back in August. They are the perfect size for carrying your scriptures, and I got so many raves about my cute scripture tote, that I knew it would be a perfect project. I am also in charge of the embossed advent candle project, and the picture frame mat that we are decorating with pictures from Christ's life. Once I get one of those done I will try to post a picture. On top of all that I also am making soup as part of lunch for Super (I should have called it Souper) Saturday. Lots to do, and lots to think about. So if I post less often this week, that is why. (I imagine I will post the same amount though).
How busy is your week?
Thursday, October 11, 2007
More Christmas Music...
Those of you who know me well know that I love Christmas music, that I sometimes start listening to it as early as August, and that I have quite a collection. I try to limit my Holiday music purchases to only one or two per year. This year I have started out with a newly released Christmas CD...It came out on Tuesday and I picked up my copy on Wednesday.
Its Noel, by Josh Groban...and yes...its good. Off to listen to it again now.
Its Noel, by Josh Groban...and yes...its good. Off to listen to it again now.
A Literary Meme...
Novembrance has tagged me for a Meme of Literary Crushes. The exact quote was actually…
Ten Literary Characters I Would Totally Make Out With If I Were Single and They Were Real But I’m Not, Single I Mean, I Am Real, But I’m Also Happily Married and Want to Stay That Way So Maybe We Should Forget This
I have to say that I never really contemplated making out with any literary characters, but there were some that I had crushes on, and that is close enough, right? I was actually afraid that I wouldn’t be able to come up with a list of ten because although I read a lot, many of the books I read feature young characters, and I just can’t see myself having a crush on these young teenage boys. This is where I also have to admit, much to my own shame that I have not read very many classics. I have always been a fantasy fiction reader, and have only read a few classics. As much as I love all versions of Pride and Prejudice in movie form, I have never actually read a Jane Austen book (ducking and running…its on my list of things to get to, really).
So, in no particular order, here is a list of ten literary characters I have had a crush on.
Theodore "Laurie" Laurence of Little Women. I recently read Little Women as a part of my goal to start reading more classics. To my surprise I found that it wasn’t just in the movie version that I wished Jo had chosen to stay with Laurie.
King Corlath from The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley. The Blue Sword is one of my all time favorite books. King Corlath is handsome, mysterious, and has cool powers. Not only that, he is polite and a gentleman, even when he kidnaps the heroine of the story.
Gwydion of the Prydain books by Lloyd Alexander. My fourth grade teacher read The Book of Three out loud to our class, and my love of fantasy fiction was born. Before that I had been all about The Black Stallion books. Taran the Assistant Pig Keeper was a great central character, but he had all those flaws to work through to become a real hero, whereas Prince Gwydion was noble and pretty much flawless from the start. I always had a little bit of a crush on him as a child.
Nat from the Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare. I loved The Witch of Blackbird Pond as a child, and picked up a copy for my library once I was a grown up. In fact, I love it so much that I have two copies…I can’t pass up a good deal, and our local Library had a copy in good condition for ten cents! Nat is the son of a ship’s Captain who befriends Kit and helps out Hannah Tupper who the local townspeople think is a witch because of her Quaker ways. I distinctly remember the description of Nat’s sun browned, strong hands. He was definitely crush worthy.
John Carter of Mars Edgar Rice Burroughs. My Dad had the entire Martian Chronicles by Edgar Rice Burroughs (yes, the guy that created Tarzan). I read them all as a child, and as a grown up, when my Dad decided to sell them at a garage sale, I bought them all. John Carter is tall, dark and handsome, and apparently immortal. He doesn’t age, and he is a heroic fighting man through all his years. Finding himself transported to Mars he has many adventures and becomes a hero, finding love with a Martian Princess. Burroughs published the first book in the series in 1912.
Major Joe Mack from Last of the Breed by Louis L’Amour. My Dad got me to read this book when I was a teenager. Although L’Amour is well known for writing westerns he has written some great adventure books. The Last of the Breed details the adventures of a Native American Air Force Pilot named Joe Mack who is shot down over Soviet Air space. He is pursued across frigid Siberia and must use the skills handed down by his people to survive and make his escape.
Perrin from The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. I started reading the Wheel of Time series when the first two books were out thinking it was going to be a typical trilogy. Much to my horror, the series turned into a monster, with eleven books published so far, and the Author passed away last month before he could complete the final book. The Series also went downhill as far as morality goes, which is one reason that I stopped reading a majority of Fantasy fiction and turned to Children’s Fantasy instead. Of the three main characters, I always found Perrin appealing. He was not a womanizer, he could talk to Wolves, and he found one woman to commit to…which is always attractive in a man.
Gilbert Blythe from the Anne of Green Gables series. Do I really need to explain that one?
Legolas from Lord of the Rings. I first attempted to read Lord of the Rings in the 4th grade. That is a big attempt for a ten year old. My crush on Legolas has nothing to do with Orlando Bloom but started way back in the 4th grade. I had a thing for Legolas from the very start.
Emilie Loring leading men. I don’t go for the descriptiveness of current Romance novels. They disgust me in fact. As a girl, I would read Emilie Loring Romances that were in my Mom’s collection. Most were written between 1914 and 1951, and typically followed a certain formula with the main characters either hating each other, being supicious of each other, and of course, eventually falling in love. The stories are almost all adventure stories with spies, political intrigue and etc. The characters dressed for dinner, went to formal parties and the last page was the crowning achievement…the kiss. Even though most of the books are a rehash of similar storylines, there is still something I enjoy about reading them. I couldn’t pick just one leading man, since in essence they are usually the same basic character redone.
Now, who to tag with this...I am not sure who reads and who doesn't...so feel free to take this meme if you want to, and let me know so I can read your answers.
Ten Literary Characters I Would Totally Make Out With If I Were Single and They Were Real But I’m Not, Single I Mean, I Am Real, But I’m Also Happily Married and Want to Stay That Way So Maybe We Should Forget This
I have to say that I never really contemplated making out with any literary characters, but there were some that I had crushes on, and that is close enough, right? I was actually afraid that I wouldn’t be able to come up with a list of ten because although I read a lot, many of the books I read feature young characters, and I just can’t see myself having a crush on these young teenage boys. This is where I also have to admit, much to my own shame that I have not read very many classics. I have always been a fantasy fiction reader, and have only read a few classics. As much as I love all versions of Pride and Prejudice in movie form, I have never actually read a Jane Austen book (ducking and running…its on my list of things to get to, really).
So, in no particular order, here is a list of ten literary characters I have had a crush on.
Theodore "Laurie" Laurence of Little Women. I recently read Little Women as a part of my goal to start reading more classics. To my surprise I found that it wasn’t just in the movie version that I wished Jo had chosen to stay with Laurie.
King Corlath from The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley. The Blue Sword is one of my all time favorite books. King Corlath is handsome, mysterious, and has cool powers. Not only that, he is polite and a gentleman, even when he kidnaps the heroine of the story.
Gwydion of the Prydain books by Lloyd Alexander. My fourth grade teacher read The Book of Three out loud to our class, and my love of fantasy fiction was born. Before that I had been all about The Black Stallion books. Taran the Assistant Pig Keeper was a great central character, but he had all those flaws to work through to become a real hero, whereas Prince Gwydion was noble and pretty much flawless from the start. I always had a little bit of a crush on him as a child.
Nat from the Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare. I loved The Witch of Blackbird Pond as a child, and picked up a copy for my library once I was a grown up. In fact, I love it so much that I have two copies…I can’t pass up a good deal, and our local Library had a copy in good condition for ten cents! Nat is the son of a ship’s Captain who befriends Kit and helps out Hannah Tupper who the local townspeople think is a witch because of her Quaker ways. I distinctly remember the description of Nat’s sun browned, strong hands. He was definitely crush worthy.
John Carter of Mars Edgar Rice Burroughs. My Dad had the entire Martian Chronicles by Edgar Rice Burroughs (yes, the guy that created Tarzan). I read them all as a child, and as a grown up, when my Dad decided to sell them at a garage sale, I bought them all. John Carter is tall, dark and handsome, and apparently immortal. He doesn’t age, and he is a heroic fighting man through all his years. Finding himself transported to Mars he has many adventures and becomes a hero, finding love with a Martian Princess. Burroughs published the first book in the series in 1912.
Major Joe Mack from Last of the Breed by Louis L’Amour. My Dad got me to read this book when I was a teenager. Although L’Amour is well known for writing westerns he has written some great adventure books. The Last of the Breed details the adventures of a Native American Air Force Pilot named Joe Mack who is shot down over Soviet Air space. He is pursued across frigid Siberia and must use the skills handed down by his people to survive and make his escape.
Perrin from The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. I started reading the Wheel of Time series when the first two books were out thinking it was going to be a typical trilogy. Much to my horror, the series turned into a monster, with eleven books published so far, and the Author passed away last month before he could complete the final book. The Series also went downhill as far as morality goes, which is one reason that I stopped reading a majority of Fantasy fiction and turned to Children’s Fantasy instead. Of the three main characters, I always found Perrin appealing. He was not a womanizer, he could talk to Wolves, and he found one woman to commit to…which is always attractive in a man.
Gilbert Blythe from the Anne of Green Gables series. Do I really need to explain that one?
Legolas from Lord of the Rings. I first attempted to read Lord of the Rings in the 4th grade. That is a big attempt for a ten year old. My crush on Legolas has nothing to do with Orlando Bloom but started way back in the 4th grade. I had a thing for Legolas from the very start.
Emilie Loring leading men. I don’t go for the descriptiveness of current Romance novels. They disgust me in fact. As a girl, I would read Emilie Loring Romances that were in my Mom’s collection. Most were written between 1914 and 1951, and typically followed a certain formula with the main characters either hating each other, being supicious of each other, and of course, eventually falling in love. The stories are almost all adventure stories with spies, political intrigue and etc. The characters dressed for dinner, went to formal parties and the last page was the crowning achievement…the kiss. Even though most of the books are a rehash of similar storylines, there is still something I enjoy about reading them. I couldn’t pick just one leading man, since in essence they are usually the same basic character redone.
Now, who to tag with this...I am not sure who reads and who doesn't...so feel free to take this meme if you want to, and let me know so I can read your answers.
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Why do you blog?
Most of the people that read this blog are bloggers themselves. I have been thinking lately about why people blog, and more specifically about why I blog.
When I started out blogging, I did it just for the fun of it. Writing has always been a great outlet for me, and I hadn't had any way to really express myself for a while. Blogging seemed like a perfect solution. Of course I had a couple of friends who were bloggers and I started out reading their blogs. Reading blogs led to following links to other blogs, and a monster of sorts was born. I suddenly found myself with a long list of favorites and every day seemed to bring more and more of them for me to read.
I had made a personal goal to write in my blog three times a week at least. It wasn't a goal for anyone but myself, since I didn't really have many readers at the beginning of my blogging career. At some point I noticed that other bloggers who hadn't been around much longer than I had were getting tons more comments. For a while I had the whole wishful thinking for 20 comments a day...heck, even getting ten comments when it happens can be a heady rush. All of a sudden I felt this pressure to write material that would be more for my readers than for me. I lost sight of why I started blogging in the first place. A couple of times I even contemplated quitting the whole thing.
I have noticed that burnout is common among bloggers. Many of the blogs I read have gone through times when the blogger was sorely tempted to quit and leave the whole thing behind. At other times people just have other things on their mind and don't have the time, the energy, or the emotional capacity to pour everything they have into blogging.
Sometimes blog readers are less than supportive when people experience a drop in their blog writing, and even worse, some bloggers only appear to be there for reciprocal purposes. They get upset if people whose blogs they read don't come and read their blog in return. I had a recent conversation with a blogger about that very thing, and how overwhelming it can feel to have so many people expect so much of you. Suddenly I felt like being somewhat below the radar in the blogging world is a good thing for me. I am already overwhelmed at my list of favorites and will pare it down every so often, just to end up reacquiring many of the blogs I tried to give up, and sometimes adding even more of them. I would hate to feel like I was only blogging for my readers, and I would hate even more to feel like it wasn't worth blogging if I had only one reader or if no one ever commented.
I will admit that it is sometimes motivating to me to sit down and write a blog post because I have gone several days without doing so, and there is that possibility that someone might be hoping for a post. It is also true that comments can be a great ego boost...I can see why some people get addicted to having a lot of comments. Generally, however, I am blogging for me. This also includes reading blogs. I read what I enjoy reading, and I try not to feel pressured to read blogs that are not my thing. There are certainly hundreds of great bloggers out there that I would probably connect with, but my family needs me and I don't have time for hundreds of blogs. So, while I read what I enjoy, I also limit the number of blogs on my list.
I blog because it makes me happy to do so. Its the best journal keeping I have ever done, and as far as posterity goes I think it shows a better view of the real me than my stale journal entries from my younger days. I hope that I can find joy in blogging for a long time to come.
So what keeps you blogging? Is it for the joy of it? Is it to please your fan club? To network with other people? To examine yourself? Or some combination of any of these reasons? Do you blog for your own unique reasons? I would love to hear about it, but don't worry, I am not going to quit if I don't get any comments on this post!
When I started out blogging, I did it just for the fun of it. Writing has always been a great outlet for me, and I hadn't had any way to really express myself for a while. Blogging seemed like a perfect solution. Of course I had a couple of friends who were bloggers and I started out reading their blogs. Reading blogs led to following links to other blogs, and a monster of sorts was born. I suddenly found myself with a long list of favorites and every day seemed to bring more and more of them for me to read.
I had made a personal goal to write in my blog three times a week at least. It wasn't a goal for anyone but myself, since I didn't really have many readers at the beginning of my blogging career. At some point I noticed that other bloggers who hadn't been around much longer than I had were getting tons more comments. For a while I had the whole wishful thinking for 20 comments a day...heck, even getting ten comments when it happens can be a heady rush. All of a sudden I felt this pressure to write material that would be more for my readers than for me. I lost sight of why I started blogging in the first place. A couple of times I even contemplated quitting the whole thing.
I have noticed that burnout is common among bloggers. Many of the blogs I read have gone through times when the blogger was sorely tempted to quit and leave the whole thing behind. At other times people just have other things on their mind and don't have the time, the energy, or the emotional capacity to pour everything they have into blogging.
Sometimes blog readers are less than supportive when people experience a drop in their blog writing, and even worse, some bloggers only appear to be there for reciprocal purposes. They get upset if people whose blogs they read don't come and read their blog in return. I had a recent conversation with a blogger about that very thing, and how overwhelming it can feel to have so many people expect so much of you. Suddenly I felt like being somewhat below the radar in the blogging world is a good thing for me. I am already overwhelmed at my list of favorites and will pare it down every so often, just to end up reacquiring many of the blogs I tried to give up, and sometimes adding even more of them. I would hate to feel like I was only blogging for my readers, and I would hate even more to feel like it wasn't worth blogging if I had only one reader or if no one ever commented.
I will admit that it is sometimes motivating to me to sit down and write a blog post because I have gone several days without doing so, and there is that possibility that someone might be hoping for a post. It is also true that comments can be a great ego boost...I can see why some people get addicted to having a lot of comments. Generally, however, I am blogging for me. This also includes reading blogs. I read what I enjoy reading, and I try not to feel pressured to read blogs that are not my thing. There are certainly hundreds of great bloggers out there that I would probably connect with, but my family needs me and I don't have time for hundreds of blogs. So, while I read what I enjoy, I also limit the number of blogs on my list.
I blog because it makes me happy to do so. Its the best journal keeping I have ever done, and as far as posterity goes I think it shows a better view of the real me than my stale journal entries from my younger days. I hope that I can find joy in blogging for a long time to come.
So what keeps you blogging? Is it for the joy of it? Is it to please your fan club? To network with other people? To examine yourself? Or some combination of any of these reasons? Do you blog for your own unique reasons? I would love to hear about it, but don't worry, I am not going to quit if I don't get any comments on this post!
Monday, October 08, 2007
HAPPY COLUMBUS DAY!!!
What? You didn't know that it was Columbus Day on October the 8th? You didn't CELEBRATE?!?!
Okay...I didn't celebrate either, but I remembered! And I wished people Happy Columbus Day! Isn't that enough?
Okay...I didn't celebrate either, but I remembered! And I wished people Happy Columbus Day! Isn't that enough?
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Fall is in the air...
I have been thinking about writing a post about fall for a while now. I started thinking about it when the air in the evenings started to get crisper, and visions of hot apple cider started haunting me.
The heat came on this morning, almost an entire month earlier than it did last year. I find this disturbing because it means that I will be having to pay those high heating bills for an extra month this year. I am hoping this isn't foreshadowing for a really cold winter.
Fall is one of my favorite seasons. I love the colors, I love the air, I love the cocoa. Nothing says Fall like a nice fluffy sweatshirt and a polar fleece vest.
Unfortunately my favorite parts of fall are short lived here. The leaves are great, but the rain has started and soggy leaves don't crunch, they squish. This is the beginning of wet shoe season. Our boys walk to school, and this means slogging through grass and mud, and usually their shoes don't dry overnight. Even when I drive them to school they manage to get their shoes wet somehow in between the back door and the driveway, or at recess. Eventually I will give up and make them all wear boots to school, but for now its too early for that.
Fall is like the entrance to a magical time of year. Its colorful, it brings people closer together, if only to stay warm, and it just makes me feel like baking. Once the weather is cooler baking can serve a dual purpose because residual heat from the oven takes some of the edge off of the chill. This week things like stew, cheeseburger soup and clam chowder have made their way onto the dinner menu. My mind is already turning beyond Halloween and thinking thoughts of Thanksgiving Turkeys and of family visiting. Fall is the beginning of the pathway to the Holidays.
There are times that I think I hate Fall. I would much rather it stay light outside. The darkness Fall brings has always been something I struggle with. Once it gets cold enough to leave a constant edge of chill in the house, I start to yearn towards Springtime. But in between Fall and the new birth of Spring, there are so many things to look forward to. The stress of the Holidays is there, but always there is the magic with it. After missing two Holiday seasons in a row when I was a working Mom, I cherish the opportunities to just think about my little family during this time of the year.
What are your favorite things about Fall?
The heat came on this morning, almost an entire month earlier than it did last year. I find this disturbing because it means that I will be having to pay those high heating bills for an extra month this year. I am hoping this isn't foreshadowing for a really cold winter.
Fall is one of my favorite seasons. I love the colors, I love the air, I love the cocoa. Nothing says Fall like a nice fluffy sweatshirt and a polar fleece vest.
Unfortunately my favorite parts of fall are short lived here. The leaves are great, but the rain has started and soggy leaves don't crunch, they squish. This is the beginning of wet shoe season. Our boys walk to school, and this means slogging through grass and mud, and usually their shoes don't dry overnight. Even when I drive them to school they manage to get their shoes wet somehow in between the back door and the driveway, or at recess. Eventually I will give up and make them all wear boots to school, but for now its too early for that.
Fall is like the entrance to a magical time of year. Its colorful, it brings people closer together, if only to stay warm, and it just makes me feel like baking. Once the weather is cooler baking can serve a dual purpose because residual heat from the oven takes some of the edge off of the chill. This week things like stew, cheeseburger soup and clam chowder have made their way onto the dinner menu. My mind is already turning beyond Halloween and thinking thoughts of Thanksgiving Turkeys and of family visiting. Fall is the beginning of the pathway to the Holidays.
There are times that I think I hate Fall. I would much rather it stay light outside. The darkness Fall brings has always been something I struggle with. Once it gets cold enough to leave a constant edge of chill in the house, I start to yearn towards Springtime. But in between Fall and the new birth of Spring, there are so many things to look forward to. The stress of the Holidays is there, but always there is the magic with it. After missing two Holiday seasons in a row when I was a working Mom, I cherish the opportunities to just think about my little family during this time of the year.
What are your favorite things about Fall?
Monday, September 24, 2007
One Bathroom Woes
We only have one bathroom. In fact, thinking back we have only had one bathroom in each place we have lived since we got married. You would think I would be used to it by now.
In the beginning it wasn't so bad. Just me and D, sharing everything including our one bathroom. Then along came #1. He was four before he was potty trained, so it still wasn't too bad. By the time D and I had been married for seven years and a couple of months, we had five children. As they have each gotten potty trained, our little bathroom has seemed to get smaller and smaller.
Now we have seven bathroom using people at our house, and still only one toilet to go around. Oh how I dream of having a master bedroom suite with a bathroom of its own. Then it would be back to D and me, sharing one bathroom, and the boys could fight it out over the other one.
Some of the woes associated with sharing my bathroom with 6 males...
1. Drippage aka over spray: D either has pretty good aim, or knows how to clean up after himself. The other boys, however, have a tendency to overshoot, ricochet, or just drip and the end result is pee on the toilet seat (even though they put the seat up to pee). One nice note is that they always put the seat down. The only time I have to worry about the seat being left up is when males from the extended family visit.
A wet toilet seat is the bane of my bathroom activities. Sometimes...you just really have to go, and having to pause to make sure the seat is dry is always a hassle. Thank goodness for disinfecting wipes!
2. Toothpaste trauma: There is a tendency by the boys to either get too much toothpaste on their toothbrush, or to just be unable to resist the urge to squirt toothpaste on the counter. I am not sure which, but I am very tired of cleaning up the globs of toothpaste all over the sink, and the toothpaste spray on the mirror.
3. Hang it up already!: Unfortunately the boys are too short to reach the towel rack. We really need to get another one. Our shower curtain rod has a towel rod attached to it. It works fine for me and for D to hang our towels on, but there is not a towel rod for the boys. Their wet towels end up on the floor after they shower. I think we need to remedy this problem, but even so, there is not going to be room in our bathroom for five towels worth of rods.
4. A basketball team, we are not: We frequently get comments from people that with our five boys we have enough to make our own basketball team. While that is true, none of our boys has really mastered the art of making it into the basket. The laundry basket. There is a laundry basket right there in the bathroom, yet they still can't seem to get their dirty clothes into it. I regularly find their little underwear and other clothes strewn about the place. This is one that just takes the proper training...so I will work on them.
5. strangled soap: I like my shower, and I like it to look nice. D already knows to extract any chest hairs from the soap before exiting the shower. I like the soap to look nice even if I am the only one that will see it. Today I went to take my shower and the soap looked like it had been chewed up by a dog. I already knew that at least a couple of the big boys had taken showers that morning. They can't help but squeeze the soap, or poke holes in it...its funner than playdoh! If I had my own bathroom...I could have nice pristine soap in it. Such a nice dream to have.
6. Get in line: Of course there is the usual problem of seven people using one bathroom. People often hear nature calling at the same time. I could normally get over this quickly, but one of my boys is notorious for taking an extra long time because he wants to make sure his bum is extra clean. I suppose I shouldn't complain. Cleanliness is next to...oh...you know what I mean. Then there is #5 who has recently become pretty serious about his potty training. He gets nervous that he will have an accident though, so he will sit in the bathroom waiting to go for 45 minutes at a time...sometimes even longer. While I am thrilled that he hasn't had any accidents for a long time...45 minutes of waiting is putting a damper on my day.
7. Interruptions: This goes along with #6. The thing is, I can't even take a shower without someone needing to use the bathroom. The shower curtain is my friend, but there its not much fun to be taking a shower and find the sudden urge to get out early because the bouquet of the room has suddenly changed. Sometimes the hot water will also run out before the interrupter is done doing their business, and I end up shivering in the shower, with a towel wrapped around me, waiting for them to get out so I can come out of the shower.
All in all, even though I am complaining...I am very grateful for the bathroom I have. I can always take comfort in the memory of those weeks and months when we were remodeling the bathroom, and had to use a portable toilet off and on, and had to use a hose in the laundry room sink for bathing. My bathroom seems like heaven in comparison.
In the beginning it wasn't so bad. Just me and D, sharing everything including our one bathroom. Then along came #1. He was four before he was potty trained, so it still wasn't too bad. By the time D and I had been married for seven years and a couple of months, we had five children. As they have each gotten potty trained, our little bathroom has seemed to get smaller and smaller.
Now we have seven bathroom using people at our house, and still only one toilet to go around. Oh how I dream of having a master bedroom suite with a bathroom of its own. Then it would be back to D and me, sharing one bathroom, and the boys could fight it out over the other one.
Some of the woes associated with sharing my bathroom with 6 males...
1. Drippage aka over spray: D either has pretty good aim, or knows how to clean up after himself. The other boys, however, have a tendency to overshoot, ricochet, or just drip and the end result is pee on the toilet seat (even though they put the seat up to pee). One nice note is that they always put the seat down. The only time I have to worry about the seat being left up is when males from the extended family visit.
A wet toilet seat is the bane of my bathroom activities. Sometimes...you just really have to go, and having to pause to make sure the seat is dry is always a hassle. Thank goodness for disinfecting wipes!
2. Toothpaste trauma: There is a tendency by the boys to either get too much toothpaste on their toothbrush, or to just be unable to resist the urge to squirt toothpaste on the counter. I am not sure which, but I am very tired of cleaning up the globs of toothpaste all over the sink, and the toothpaste spray on the mirror.
3. Hang it up already!: Unfortunately the boys are too short to reach the towel rack. We really need to get another one. Our shower curtain rod has a towel rod attached to it. It works fine for me and for D to hang our towels on, but there is not a towel rod for the boys. Their wet towels end up on the floor after they shower. I think we need to remedy this problem, but even so, there is not going to be room in our bathroom for five towels worth of rods.
4. A basketball team, we are not: We frequently get comments from people that with our five boys we have enough to make our own basketball team. While that is true, none of our boys has really mastered the art of making it into the basket. The laundry basket. There is a laundry basket right there in the bathroom, yet they still can't seem to get their dirty clothes into it. I regularly find their little underwear and other clothes strewn about the place. This is one that just takes the proper training...so I will work on them.
5. strangled soap: I like my shower, and I like it to look nice. D already knows to extract any chest hairs from the soap before exiting the shower. I like the soap to look nice even if I am the only one that will see it. Today I went to take my shower and the soap looked like it had been chewed up by a dog. I already knew that at least a couple of the big boys had taken showers that morning. They can't help but squeeze the soap, or poke holes in it...its funner than playdoh! If I had my own bathroom...I could have nice pristine soap in it. Such a nice dream to have.
6. Get in line: Of course there is the usual problem of seven people using one bathroom. People often hear nature calling at the same time. I could normally get over this quickly, but one of my boys is notorious for taking an extra long time because he wants to make sure his bum is extra clean. I suppose I shouldn't complain. Cleanliness is next to...oh...you know what I mean. Then there is #5 who has recently become pretty serious about his potty training. He gets nervous that he will have an accident though, so he will sit in the bathroom waiting to go for 45 minutes at a time...sometimes even longer. While I am thrilled that he hasn't had any accidents for a long time...45 minutes of waiting is putting a damper on my day.
7. Interruptions: This goes along with #6. The thing is, I can't even take a shower without someone needing to use the bathroom. The shower curtain is my friend, but there its not much fun to be taking a shower and find the sudden urge to get out early because the bouquet of the room has suddenly changed. Sometimes the hot water will also run out before the interrupter is done doing their business, and I end up shivering in the shower, with a towel wrapped around me, waiting for them to get out so I can come out of the shower.
All in all, even though I am complaining...I am very grateful for the bathroom I have. I can always take comfort in the memory of those weeks and months when we were remodeling the bathroom, and had to use a portable toilet off and on, and had to use a hose in the laundry room sink for bathing. My bathroom seems like heaven in comparison.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Does your deodorant say anything about you?
I am just curious as to how many people are devoted to a certain brand of deodorant/ antipersperant. I have been a secret user for years...and YEARS. My sister always liked using Old Spice for deodorant when we were teens, but I found it to be too slimy.
I have noticed that there are many newer scents of Secret out on the market lately. I am personally still pretty devoted to the Spring Breeze and Shower Fresh scents. I decided to compile a list of available scents just out of curiosity.
Powder Fresh
Sheer Clean
Shower Fresh
Spring Breeze
Unscented
Glacier Mist
Mystic Rain (okay, now who comes up with these names?)
Ocean Breeze
Arctic Apple
Brazillian Cherry
Eastern Lily
English Bloom
French Lavender
Southern Peach
Vanilla Chai
Tropical Tango
Jasmine Orient
KuKu Cocoa Butter
Spanish Rose
Passion Flower
Botanical Silk
Tropical Satin
Velvet Powder
Afrikan Violet (their spelling, not mine)
Asian Pear
Why so many choices I wonder! What if I switch scents and then they discontinue it? A while back I bought some secret that was on clearance...it was called Optimism...now doesn't that make you want to buy it? Actually I might be more inclined to buy one called Pessimism because that is more my personality
Monday, September 17, 2007
That time of the year again...
I love Christmas music. Most people who know me well also know that I am prone to pulling out the Christmas music at a time some people might call insanely early in the year. Typically that would be in August. We have over 20 Christmas Albums...most on CD, but quite a few on cassette as well. I didn't want to take the time to count every single Album, but I would say we have close to 30 of them, and I am always in the market for more.
This year, I waited until September 15th to listen to some Christmas music...that means I am a whole month behind in my listening! No wonder I have been feeling so crabby...
I am not saying I am ready for stores to be displaying their Christmas wares. I was pleasantly surprised that Costco only just started putting out their decorative items for sale. They are behind schedule too! Last year they had Holiday merchandise out in August.
So, now that I am in the Christmas spirit (at least musically) I am wondering, what is your favorite Christmas album? Song? Version of a song? When do you start listening to Christmas music? I would love to hear about it, even if it seems early in the year for it. (My take on that is that Christmas music is good for all year round, its about the Savior's birth! Why should I only think about that once a year?) You can keep your Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree to yourself...as well as your Jingle Bell Rock. I don't mind most of the secular Holiday music, but those two in particular drive me CRAZY!
This year, I waited until September 15th to listen to some Christmas music...that means I am a whole month behind in my listening! No wonder I have been feeling so crabby...
I am not saying I am ready for stores to be displaying their Christmas wares. I was pleasantly surprised that Costco only just started putting out their decorative items for sale. They are behind schedule too! Last year they had Holiday merchandise out in August.
So, now that I am in the Christmas spirit (at least musically) I am wondering, what is your favorite Christmas album? Song? Version of a song? When do you start listening to Christmas music? I would love to hear about it, even if it seems early in the year for it. (My take on that is that Christmas music is good for all year round, its about the Savior's birth! Why should I only think about that once a year?) You can keep your Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree to yourself...as well as your Jingle Bell Rock. I don't mind most of the secular Holiday music, but those two in particular drive me CRAZY!
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
9/11 remembered...
I wrote this "poem" if you will (its not a rhyming poem, so I sometimes wonder if I should call it that) a year after 9/11. I thought I would post it here today in remembrance of that time.
Revisited version II
In Memory of 9-11-2001
In Memory of 9-11-2001
I try not to think about it-At least not in depth
Waking up that morning like it was a normal day
Browsing through my email news... And there it was...
I was in shock-And so I sat all day watching
As my children played on the floor around me-oblivious.
I watched the explosion as the second plane hit
I watched the bodies of the people who jumped-Falling... falling...
I watched the people fleeing as the first tower collapsed
And I sat and watched that collapse-a silent witness to untold deaths
My mind tried to grasp what it meant and would mean
Tried to understand what people who were there must have felt
And then I stopped thinking about it... put it away
It was always there of course-every day
And now a year has passed. I have not watched TV today
Afraid I will see the replay of all of the deaths that still haunt me
And I realize that I did lose something that day
I lost brothers and sisters I had never even met
Potential friends who might have enriched my life
And the feeling that I could keep my family safe in this world
A world on the brink of explosion
Saturday, September 01, 2007
Is exercise the bane of your existence?
I was fairly athletic as a youth. Not a star athlete, but in shape. I enjoyed participating in Softball, Volleyball, Basketball and track over the years and I also enjoyed outdoor activities such as hiking. I went running after school on a regular basis, and enjoyed pushing myself to do better.
Then I grew up, and got married. Up until marriage I still played sports occasionally. I even played in a basketball game for my singles ward at church...during my honeymoon (our honeymoon was spent in our hometown area because we were moving away from family and friends the next week. It was more of a saying goodbye to friends and family although we did go on some day trips by ourselves that week. I still regret not going away for our honeymoon. Someday when all the kids are older I will make up for it and D and I will take off on our own someplace.) I loved basketball, but I think that was the last game I ever played.
Shortly after getting married, I got pregnant with our first child. 9 months after he was born, I got pregnant with our second child, and so on until I had five. By this time I was rarely exercising, and the pounds piled on. I kept saying I was going to get into shape after each baby, and I fully intended to, but life has a way of overwhelming people sometimes, and exercise took a backseat to everything else that was going on.
D being the sensitive man that he is gained weight right along with me. I think he blames my good cooking for that, but I like to think he didn't want me to get fat alone.
So for the last several years I have been thinking about exercising. Thinking and doing are two very different things. I won't tell you how many pounds I have gained since marriage, but I will tell you that I have a long way to go to be even close to getting in shape.
I recently got a treadmill. This treadmill isn't my first piece of exercise equipment. At one time we had an exercise bike we had bought at a garage sale, but the seat post was bent, and it could not be adjusted and it was VERY uncomfortable. We also had a mini trampoline that the kids got more use out of than I ever did. I have been wanting a treadmill for a while, because my youngest kids are too big for a stroller, and too small to keep up with me walking, and I wanted to start walking. We could not afford a treadmill so I picked one up at a second hand store. (It might have worked better if it came out of a dumpster.) Then my big opportunity came. A friend asked me to do a slide show for her son's Eagle court of honor and she wanted to pay me for my time. I asked her if I could borrow her treadmill (one with an actual motor!) for a couple of months, and instead, she gave it to me because she didn't like it.
We got it set up, and I tried it. I thought I was going to DIE. I was seriously out of shape (still am as a matter of fact). I barely made it for ten minutes. I tried one other time and then the treadmill sat for a few weeks.
I have recently been reading a blogger's story of her own weight loss here. Reading Calamity Jane's blog got me to thinking about my own weight loss struggles. I have also noticed that I am not that fun of a Mom right now, because I can't keep up with my children. So Wednesday of this week I put on the sneakers I had gotten for walking in...I got on the treadmill...and I walked. I put on my headphones, pressed play on the MP3 player and walked. The second song that came on had these lyrics...(Its by the Wilkinsons)
Then I grew up, and got married. Up until marriage I still played sports occasionally. I even played in a basketball game for my singles ward at church...during my honeymoon (our honeymoon was spent in our hometown area because we were moving away from family and friends the next week. It was more of a saying goodbye to friends and family although we did go on some day trips by ourselves that week. I still regret not going away for our honeymoon. Someday when all the kids are older I will make up for it and D and I will take off on our own someplace.) I loved basketball, but I think that was the last game I ever played.
Shortly after getting married, I got pregnant with our first child. 9 months after he was born, I got pregnant with our second child, and so on until I had five. By this time I was rarely exercising, and the pounds piled on. I kept saying I was going to get into shape after each baby, and I fully intended to, but life has a way of overwhelming people sometimes, and exercise took a backseat to everything else that was going on.
D being the sensitive man that he is gained weight right along with me. I think he blames my good cooking for that, but I like to think he didn't want me to get fat alone.
So for the last several years I have been thinking about exercising. Thinking and doing are two very different things. I won't tell you how many pounds I have gained since marriage, but I will tell you that I have a long way to go to be even close to getting in shape.
I recently got a treadmill. This treadmill isn't my first piece of exercise equipment. At one time we had an exercise bike we had bought at a garage sale, but the seat post was bent, and it could not be adjusted and it was VERY uncomfortable. We also had a mini trampoline that the kids got more use out of than I ever did. I have been wanting a treadmill for a while, because my youngest kids are too big for a stroller, and too small to keep up with me walking, and I wanted to start walking. We could not afford a treadmill so I picked one up at a second hand store. (It might have worked better if it came out of a dumpster.) Then my big opportunity came. A friend asked me to do a slide show for her son's Eagle court of honor and she wanted to pay me for my time. I asked her if I could borrow her treadmill (one with an actual motor!) for a couple of months, and instead, she gave it to me because she didn't like it.
We got it set up, and I tried it. I thought I was going to DIE. I was seriously out of shape (still am as a matter of fact). I barely made it for ten minutes. I tried one other time and then the treadmill sat for a few weeks.
I have recently been reading a blogger's story of her own weight loss here. Reading Calamity Jane's blog got me to thinking about my own weight loss struggles. I have also noticed that I am not that fun of a Mom right now, because I can't keep up with my children. So Wednesday of this week I put on the sneakers I had gotten for walking in...I got on the treadmill...and I walked. I put on my headphones, pressed play on the MP3 player and walked. The second song that came on had these lyrics...(Its by the Wilkinsons)
I've been lyin' in the shadows
In the corner of my room
Turned off the lights Gave up the fight
There was nothing I could do
Then I just woke up one morning
And I put on my walkin' shoes,
and I'm back on my feet again
Had all the heartache one woman can stand
Got through the night Took back my life
I'm back on my feet again
I wasn't sure if I could make it
Had to crawl across the floor
Through the broken glass Of my shattered past
Pushed myself on through the door
I took a step out of the darkness
I don't need it anymore,
no I just woke up one morning
And I put on my walkin' shoes,
now I'm back on my feet again
Had all the heartache one woman can stand
Got through the night Took back my life
I'm back on my feet again
Had all the heartache one woman can stand
Got through the night Took back my life
I'm back on my feet again
Of course this is a country song and I doubt it was meant to be about my struggle with getting in shape, but it made me smile. In fact, it made me feel great, and I walked right along. A couple songs later Josh Groban came along to tell me...
Don't give up
It's just the weight of the world
When your heart's heavy
I...I will lift it for you
Did you know that Josh Groban cares that I am trying to get in shape and lose weight? (At least the Josh Groban in my MP3 player does) and he also told me that I am loved! It felt great, so great in fact that after I walked my mile and a half (I know its not much, but better than I thought I could do) on Wednesday, I decided to walk another mile and a half on Thursday, and Friday I did two miles...plus a walk to the school to play with the boys.
Tomorrow I will tell you about my great idea to keep track of my miles.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
'Tis the season...
The season for shopping for back to school. I don't know what is wrong with me this year. Usually I love shopping for school supplies. I have a confirmed obsession with buying office supplies and saving them for a rainy day. Most years I am giddy over all of the good deals I can get on crayons, paper, pens and glue. I always make sure to buy extras of the really cool stuff so I can use it for stuffing stockings when the time comes (my Mom, one of my sisters and I stuff each other's stockings at Christmas every year. Its great fun to actually be surprised by what I get instead of just stuffing the leftovers in my own stocking). Its also nice to know that if I need a box of 24 crayons I don't have to run out and spend $1.20 or more on it (Small town living) because I have already stocked up on an assortment of crayons ranging from 12 to 20 cents a box. Last year I think I must have bought 20+ boxes, and I thought I would use them all, but somehow we didn't and when I counted what I had left over from last year and added them to what I bought yesterday, I somehow came up with 34 boxes of 24 crayons. This is AFTER I took out the crayons the boys have to have for school. I guess I don't need to be so stingy with my crayons this year. We will certainly have plenty of crayons for making our own crayons when we feel like it.
Thinking back over the last few weeks, I have been excited to go shopping for school. I think it must have been something to do with taking five boys with us to WalMart (it is over an hour away to get to the nearest one) on a quest for cheap jeans and cheaper school supplies. The three younger boys have gotten to the stage where they want to pick everything out themselves. Surprisingly enough the older two don't care so much if they have their favorite cartoon character on their rear end and they are also perfectly willing to let me pick out the least expensive sneakers I can find. The other three however, were pickier about their shoe choices, and didn't want to wait and shop somewhere else for less expensive shoes. (Okay...I didn't spend more than $16 a pair for shoes, but I am usually a deal shopper and try not to pay more than $10-so it seems like a big difference to me.)
This year we will have four of the boys in school. This means that there are more school supplies to get, and unfortunately the WalMart we went to was less than well stocked. I did manage to find some crayola crayons in their regular home since the ones in the school supply section were gone, but some of the other good deals were empty, and there was only one pair of jeans in #2's size that I was looking for. They were out of quite a few things we were wanting to get, and when you have to travel more than fifty miles you don't really want to try to come back later. I should have listened to Carrot when she said WalMart is bad. We should have driven the extra 15 minutes to Target...but we were lured in by the cheap underwear, socks, jeans and school supplies.
It wasn't only WalMart's lack of friendly staff (there were not nearly enough registers open for the amount of people in line) and understocked shelves that got me down. It was having the boys there. Don't get me wrong, they were actually pretty well behaved, but there were a few moments where I just wanted to cry. They were trying to be helpful, bringing me things they thought they needed for school (which they did, but I needed to see the prices). It is very distracting to have up to five little boys showing you different things all at once. I won't even go into details about the near fist fight in the snack foods section of the store, except to say that two of my boys in particular don't get along very well with each other, and shopping with both of them is nearly always a disaster. Considering the amount of time they went before they started arguing, I thought they did pretty well.
Maybe next year I will take a day to shop on my own. I hate giving up a Saturday of family time though. Saturday is our day to get things done, and to spend time together, and a shopping trip to Longview always ends up taking most of the day because not only is there evil WalMart, but there is also Winco, land of affordable groceries. By the end of the day I was tired, and I wished for peace and quiet, but I am still glad we chose to spend the day as a family. It was worth it.
Thinking back over the last few weeks, I have been excited to go shopping for school. I think it must have been something to do with taking five boys with us to WalMart (it is over an hour away to get to the nearest one) on a quest for cheap jeans and cheaper school supplies. The three younger boys have gotten to the stage where they want to pick everything out themselves. Surprisingly enough the older two don't care so much if they have their favorite cartoon character on their rear end and they are also perfectly willing to let me pick out the least expensive sneakers I can find. The other three however, were pickier about their shoe choices, and didn't want to wait and shop somewhere else for less expensive shoes. (Okay...I didn't spend more than $16 a pair for shoes, but I am usually a deal shopper and try not to pay more than $10-so it seems like a big difference to me.)
This year we will have four of the boys in school. This means that there are more school supplies to get, and unfortunately the WalMart we went to was less than well stocked. I did manage to find some crayola crayons in their regular home since the ones in the school supply section were gone, but some of the other good deals were empty, and there was only one pair of jeans in #2's size that I was looking for. They were out of quite a few things we were wanting to get, and when you have to travel more than fifty miles you don't really want to try to come back later. I should have listened to Carrot when she said WalMart is bad. We should have driven the extra 15 minutes to Target...but we were lured in by the cheap underwear, socks, jeans and school supplies.
It wasn't only WalMart's lack of friendly staff (there were not nearly enough registers open for the amount of people in line) and understocked shelves that got me down. It was having the boys there. Don't get me wrong, they were actually pretty well behaved, but there were a few moments where I just wanted to cry. They were trying to be helpful, bringing me things they thought they needed for school (which they did, but I needed to see the prices). It is very distracting to have up to five little boys showing you different things all at once. I won't even go into details about the near fist fight in the snack foods section of the store, except to say that two of my boys in particular don't get along very well with each other, and shopping with both of them is nearly always a disaster. Considering the amount of time they went before they started arguing, I thought they did pretty well.
Maybe next year I will take a day to shop on my own. I hate giving up a Saturday of family time though. Saturday is our day to get things done, and to spend time together, and a shopping trip to Longview always ends up taking most of the day because not only is there evil WalMart, but there is also Winco, land of affordable groceries. By the end of the day I was tired, and I wished for peace and quiet, but I am still glad we chose to spend the day as a family. It was worth it.
Monday, August 06, 2007
Recipe: Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies
When I was a teenager there was this really great cookie place in the mall in Vancouver. It was called The Cookie Cutter. I loved going there to get a cookie dough cone (just like it sounds, raw cookie dough scooped into a sugar cone-mmmm!) My favorite cookie that they sold there was a chocolate marshmallow cookie. It was soft with a thick layer of marshmallow in the middle and chocolate frosting. After a few years the Mall got a remodel and they decided that the only food places they would allow had to be franchises. The cookie cutter was a one owner, one restaurant kind of place, so they were forced to close down and were replaced with Mrs. Fields.Years later I was still thinking about those cookies, and after I married D, I found out that they were also one of his favorites as well. I set out looking for a good recipe for chocolate marshmallow cookies but to no avail. That is when I decided to take matters into my own hands. I had been making cake mix cookies for a while, and if you have ever made them you know that they turn out a soft cookie. I started out with a cake mix cookie as the base of my recipe and went from there. Today I am passing my recipe along to you. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Chocolate Marshmallow cookies
preheat oven to 350
1 chocolate cake mix (we prefer devil's food or triple chocolate chip)
1 cube of butter (or margarine if you prefer it)
2 eggs
1 T vanilla
1 cup chocolate chips (optional but preferred)
18 to 20 large marshmallows
Chocolate Frosting of your choice (I use the Fluffy Chocolate Frosting recipe from The Cake Mix Doctor cookbook, but because of copyright I am not going to publish it here).
In a mixing bowl cream the butter with an electric mixer. Add the cake mix, eggs and vanilla. Mix until well mixed. Stir in the chocolate chips and drop the cookie dough by spoonful onto a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 9 to 10 minutes. While the cookies are baking cut each marshmallow in half with a pair of clean scissors or kitchen shears. Remove the cookies from the oven and press one half of a marshmallow sticky side down (the sticky side will be where you cut through the marshmallow) on each cookie. Place the pan of cookies back in the oven for one minute. Remove the cookies again and use a spoon to flatten and spread the melted marshmallow across each cookie (this works best if you lightly butter the back of the spoon, re-buttering it as needed to prevent sticking). Allow the cookies to cool and frost with the chocolate frosting of your choice.
These cookies have gotten raves anywhere I have ever taken them, and people regularly request them from me. They are actually very easy, and very good. I hope you enjoy them! Let me know how you like them if you try them!
Sunday, August 05, 2007
Bloggy Lunch...
I had a wonderful lunch yesterday with Thoroughly Mormon Millie, Emma Sometimes and my old high school friend and fellow blogger DaPoppins. We enjoyed a lovely meal at the Olive Garden and spent the whole time chatting and laughing. Pictures were taken, but out of respect for Emma and DaPoppins, I am not going to post them. When lunch was over and I was getting dropped off back at my parent's house, I did not want to get out of the car because I was enjoying the company and the conversation so much. Thanks girls for the great afternoon!
Friday, August 03, 2007
Well, I tried...
My efforts to get a post out for Wordless Wednesday were unsuccessful. What I did was to forward my email post to my Mom, and she was going to forward it to the blogger address that I am able to publish my blog to. Unfortunately it would not go through for her so I missed my chance!
I am still not home, although I am back to civilization. I am typing this blog from my little sister's computer. I will make up for the lack of a wordless Wednesday this weekend after I am home. We took a lot of pictures while we were camping and doing things around Mt. St. Helens, so there should hopefully be some decent shots that I can post.
Right now I am at my Mom's house, and I am having some me time. This week has been our first vacation in a long time, and D has been working a lot of hours at work lately. I needed a break from the boys, as much as I love them, so I am staying the night at my parent's house. D and the boys dropped me off this morning and headed for home, and my father in law is kindly going to take me home tomorrow afternoon.
Tonight's plan is a girl's night with my Mom and all four of my sisters. We are going out for Chinese, and we are planning to make placemat purses. I got the instructions for the purses from Scribbit's blog, and thought it would be a perfect girl's night activity. We are also going to wax nostalgic and watch some old TV shows from our childhood (think The Hardy Boys, and LaVerne and Shirley).
Tomorrow I have a lunch date with DaPoppins, and then I will be heading home. I will try to post some vacation pics and updates on Sunday. See you all then!
I am still not home, although I am back to civilization. I am typing this blog from my little sister's computer. I will make up for the lack of a wordless Wednesday this weekend after I am home. We took a lot of pictures while we were camping and doing things around Mt. St. Helens, so there should hopefully be some decent shots that I can post.
Right now I am at my Mom's house, and I am having some me time. This week has been our first vacation in a long time, and D has been working a lot of hours at work lately. I needed a break from the boys, as much as I love them, so I am staying the night at my parent's house. D and the boys dropped me off this morning and headed for home, and my father in law is kindly going to take me home tomorrow afternoon.
Tonight's plan is a girl's night with my Mom and all four of my sisters. We are going out for Chinese, and we are planning to make placemat purses. I got the instructions for the purses from Scribbit's blog, and thought it would be a perfect girl's night activity. We are also going to wax nostalgic and watch some old TV shows from our childhood (think The Hardy Boys, and LaVerne and Shirley).
Tomorrow I have a lunch date with DaPoppins, and then I will be heading home. I will try to post some vacation pics and updates on Sunday. See you all then!
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Boy its been a long time since we went camping.
Today was our pack everything up and get ready to go day. (I forget that I have two blogs...we are going to camp near Mt. St Helens for a few days...well actually we are staying in yurts, but its close enough.) D went to the garage to look for our camping cook set (that used to belong to his Grandpa so it is like a family heirloom! I seriously think its at least 50 years old, but maybe only 40.) Unfortunately he was unable to find it, so I had to brave the potential horrors of our garage (think squirrels, spiders, and the ghosts of food storage past.) Luckily I found the cook set within a few minutes. It was still packed in a box from when we moved here along with other handy camping items like our hatchet, some tarps and etc.
Hmmm...we have lived here for almost four years...so when WAS the last time we went camping? Well, its true there have been a couple of Father/Son campouts, and we have a yearly tradition of doing indoor camping every January where we set up a tent in our living room and convert our house into the great outdoors, but a real camping trip? (I count yurts as camping even if some people don't.) WOW...it has been about 5 years. #4 was just a baby last time we went, so of course he doesn't remember it at all, and #5 has never done anything fun in his life (as far as a vacation). He has never been camping outside of our living room (D missed the last couple of Father/Son campouts and before that he was too young to go) and he has also never stayed in a hotel. This should be an interesting trip for him if he can get over his fear of the lava (see my other blog for more details).
Its not that we haven't had vacation time. D gets a couple of weeks every year, but it seems like we have always had some kind of a project going on (like rewiring the whole house or remodeling the bathroom) or we were visiting family. Once we passed the four kid mark taking a vacation suddenly became much more expensive as well, because we have not found a hotel that would let all of us stay together, and most of the places that have adjoining rooms or family suites are out of our price range. There are other reasons that we have not gone on a vacation. I hadn't really thought about it before, but we haven't gone on a real vacation since Autism became a part of our daily lives (of course it was part of our lives before that, we just didn't know it yet). I am not sure if its because I am often afraid of taking the boys anywhere public, or if I just don't have the energy for the planning and stress of keeping everything together on a vacation. Either way I have managed to avoid it for the last five years.
I had big plans for renting a dumpster and cleaning out the garage on this vacation. But D wanted to do the camping thing. He was nice enough to compromise and let me set us up in yurts rather than a tent. This will be our first real vacation in a long time. I will let you know how it goes if I survive!
PS I think I have figured out how I will post for my Wordless Wednesday from the road. We will just have to see if it works or not...see you all in a few days! Wish me sanity and the ability to keep my boys calm!
Hmmm...we have lived here for almost four years...so when WAS the last time we went camping? Well, its true there have been a couple of Father/Son campouts, and we have a yearly tradition of doing indoor camping every January where we set up a tent in our living room and convert our house into the great outdoors, but a real camping trip? (I count yurts as camping even if some people don't.) WOW...it has been about 5 years. #4 was just a baby last time we went, so of course he doesn't remember it at all, and #5 has never done anything fun in his life (as far as a vacation). He has never been camping outside of our living room (D missed the last couple of Father/Son campouts and before that he was too young to go) and he has also never stayed in a hotel. This should be an interesting trip for him if he can get over his fear of the lava (see my other blog for more details).
Its not that we haven't had vacation time. D gets a couple of weeks every year, but it seems like we have always had some kind of a project going on (like rewiring the whole house or remodeling the bathroom) or we were visiting family. Once we passed the four kid mark taking a vacation suddenly became much more expensive as well, because we have not found a hotel that would let all of us stay together, and most of the places that have adjoining rooms or family suites are out of our price range. There are other reasons that we have not gone on a vacation. I hadn't really thought about it before, but we haven't gone on a real vacation since Autism became a part of our daily lives (of course it was part of our lives before that, we just didn't know it yet). I am not sure if its because I am often afraid of taking the boys anywhere public, or if I just don't have the energy for the planning and stress of keeping everything together on a vacation. Either way I have managed to avoid it for the last five years.
I had big plans for renting a dumpster and cleaning out the garage on this vacation. But D wanted to do the camping thing. He was nice enough to compromise and let me set us up in yurts rather than a tent. This will be our first real vacation in a long time. I will let you know how it goes if I survive!
PS I think I have figured out how I will post for my Wordless Wednesday from the road. We will just have to see if it works or not...see you all in a few days! Wish me sanity and the ability to keep my boys calm!
Monday, July 30, 2007
Heading out tomorrow
We are going to be out of town (camping actually) for most of this week. I am trying to figure out how to post from beyond the great divide (no Internet where we are going.)
I have figured out that I can post using email. But that doesn't really help me as far as the no Internet thing goes.
I wish blogger had an option so that you could do a week's worth of posts and each one would show up on your blog on the day you specify for it. It seems like that wouldn't be so hard to come up with, but its not currently an option.
Of course if that were the case, I could write a week's worth of posts when I was in a creative flurry and then I wouldn't have to stress out trying to think of something to blog about on the days when I am scraping the bottom of the creative barrel so to speak.
I have read other blogs where I have found out a week later that they were out of town the week previous, but I think they accomplished their blogging via laptop or some other Internet connection.
I may have to just post my wordless Wednesday early. If anyone has a solution for me, let me know!
I have figured out that I can post using email. But that doesn't really help me as far as the no Internet thing goes.
I wish blogger had an option so that you could do a week's worth of posts and each one would show up on your blog on the day you specify for it. It seems like that wouldn't be so hard to come up with, but its not currently an option.
Of course if that were the case, I could write a week's worth of posts when I was in a creative flurry and then I wouldn't have to stress out trying to think of something to blog about on the days when I am scraping the bottom of the creative barrel so to speak.
I have read other blogs where I have found out a week later that they were out of town the week previous, but I think they accomplished their blogging via laptop or some other Internet connection.
I may have to just post my wordless Wednesday early. If anyone has a solution for me, let me know!
Friday, July 27, 2007
Today is the day!
I can hardly believe that is has already been a whole year! It seems like only a few months since I started blogging, and here it is already my first blogaversary!
To celebrate I am going to give my brain a rest and repost an old blog that I wrote near the beginning of my blogging career. I hope you enjoy it!
Have you ever noticed that DIE is the key word in Dieting?
Coincidence? I think not.
I have friends and family members that either have been, or are currently, engaged in that epic struggle of man (or woman) vs fat. I myself, as an American consumer have been drafted into this battle or am at least a victim of it due to the sneaky tactics of the fatty enemy (namely Oreos, Ice Cream and other horribly bad for you, yet oh, so delicious, stuff). We are engaged in a war here people! A war to save our very lives, and our quality of living. But here is where the edges of sanity become blurred for me. Which side am I on? I DON"T KNOW! I may be a double agent...or a triple agent! I can't be sure where my loyalties lie. I am NOT to be trusted.
Of course I can see the glorious objective of the dieting and exercising (note the similarity in pronunciation to exorcism-always painful or so I have heard) side of things, the svelte figures, the two, four or six pack abs, the lengthened life spans, the extra energy and vitality that accompanies good health, the reduced medical costs because of reduced illness and disease. These are all wonderful things, and well worth fighting for. But alas, I find myself torn. Why you might ask? Because of missing out on some flavor? Some mood food? Well, yes actually. That IS part of why I am torn. But also, because the very foundation of my entire upbringing, was based on food. Not the whole wheat, low sugar, carob kinds of food (although you might be surprised to find out that I was well exposed to those foods as a child) but rather many of my earliest and best childhood memories revolve around food. Good family times spent gathered around the family hearth (which of course was the Television) with some wonderfully healthy popcorn (slathered in an UNhealthy amount of butter or margarine and generously doused in salt). Oreo cookies, cracker jacks, ice cream, Cheetos, chips or crackers and clam dip, root beer floats, the list goes on and ON! I can tell you that one of my very earliest (and best) memories involved going to the Auto parts store with my Dad when I was about four years old, and on the way back stopping at this bakery for these pastries that were shaped like a figure 8 (I remember thinking they were like a racetrack) with jelly in the middle section of each side. I also remember getting to have Twinkies at the babysitter's house. Its one of the few pleasant memories I have of daycare. Is Thanksgiving about sitting around the table with your family and being so grateful for everything? Of course, but its also about that turkey, fresh out of the oven and and that crispy, fat dripping skin that is just waiting to be eaten. Its about pies, and mashed potatoes whipped with butter, and eating two full meals, and then going back to pick at the leftovers every two hours, and the great conversations you have when you run into other family members who are also raiding the fridge at the same time. Christmas is about candy and cookies, and gingerbread houses, and all the wonderful foods you can think of. Its also about giving, and about love, but a lot of the giving I can remember is taking those cookies, and candies and delivering them to friends and family, and how much it sucks to hear that someone is dieting and won't be able to enjoy the food you brought them. Really, dieting isn't that much different than dying is it? Because when you die you don't get to enjoy the food anymore either.
Its not just about sugary dessert things either...this whole dieting thing. Although I have to admit that I have the hardest time giving up the sugary things. Still...Broccoli to me, was meant to be eaten in a large pool of cheese sauce, or if its raw, dipped in a vat of ranch dressing. Zucchini is meant to be battered, deep fried and dusted with Parmesan cheese, then dipped in the previously mentioned vat of ranch dressing. Mozzarella cheese, although great on its own, is even better when treated like zucchini. Baked potatoes are wonderful when properly dressed, this includes butter, sour cream, bacon, cheese and chili.
I have yet to find someone who is dieting who is also truly happy about it. Of course they are thrilled or at least satisfied with the results, but I don't hear them looking forward to their next meal. I imagine that family gatherings may be dreaded because either they have to watch everyone else enjoy the food they wish they could be enjoying, or they give in and feel guilt for the next month about it. One of my sisters gave up making berry pies and jam this year for her diet. That's a whole year of berrydom down the drain...a year that can never be recovered. My parents went on this diet a while ago (more than a year I think) but they fell off the wagon, and even though they had been feeling so good about how they felt physically, the food just called them back. My Dad has now given up sugar again, and I know that he has done it for good reasons. I support him in his endeavors, I hope he can win the war. I do think he misses getting to eat chocolate though.
Me, I am overweight. Not monstrous, but bigger than I should be. Yes, I feel low of energy, and I remember the days when I was in shape and how great it was to be in shape. Yes, I long to be in shape again. Yes, I want to live a long and full life, and grow old, and still be dancing at 90. So that should put me squarely in the camp of the dieters shouldn't it? However, I also want to make holiday goodies with my children, and when they want me to try their cookies, or their chocolate truffles or toffee, I don't want to say-"Sorry, Mommy is on a diet." I want to churn out special meals for family gatherings. I want people to look forward to what food I might bring next. I like to cook, and I like to be praised for my skills at it, and I have not found a low fat or low sugar recipe yet that will get me the kind of raves that chocolate marshmallow cookies with chocolate frosting will. I want to enjoy life, but I don't want to always be worrying about if I can have something, or if it will undo all the progress I have made. I don't want to miss a year of berry pies, or buying my favorite flavor of Tillamook ice cream that is only out on limited release and hasn't been sold in stores for two years. (Cookie dough if you were wondering-get it while you can.)
The kicker for me is that once you enlist on the diet and exercise side of the war, you are a lifetime soldier. There is no going back. Of course there are days you are losing the battle, but once you really sign on you have to be prepared to go the distance. You have to be relentless, you have to keep on pushing at it, because if you stop, if you slip, and aren't able to catch yourself then you are suddenly undoing all that you have accomplished. Dieting is an uphill battle. Its so easy to lose your footing and end up back where you started or worse. I am not sure that I can take that kind of pressure. I will have to keep thinking about it for a little while longer. While I am thinking about it, I may as well have something tasty to comfort me. So I will say, pass the ice cream, but I will also add, just a small bowl please.
To celebrate I am going to give my brain a rest and repost an old blog that I wrote near the beginning of my blogging career. I hope you enjoy it!
Have you ever noticed that DIE is the key word in Dieting?
Coincidence? I think not.
I have friends and family members that either have been, or are currently, engaged in that epic struggle of man (or woman) vs fat. I myself, as an American consumer have been drafted into this battle or am at least a victim of it due to the sneaky tactics of the fatty enemy (namely Oreos, Ice Cream and other horribly bad for you, yet oh, so delicious, stuff). We are engaged in a war here people! A war to save our very lives, and our quality of living. But here is where the edges of sanity become blurred for me. Which side am I on? I DON"T KNOW! I may be a double agent...or a triple agent! I can't be sure where my loyalties lie. I am NOT to be trusted.
Of course I can see the glorious objective of the dieting and exercising (note the similarity in pronunciation to exorcism-always painful or so I have heard) side of things, the svelte figures, the two, four or six pack abs, the lengthened life spans, the extra energy and vitality that accompanies good health, the reduced medical costs because of reduced illness and disease. These are all wonderful things, and well worth fighting for. But alas, I find myself torn. Why you might ask? Because of missing out on some flavor? Some mood food? Well, yes actually. That IS part of why I am torn. But also, because the very foundation of my entire upbringing, was based on food. Not the whole wheat, low sugar, carob kinds of food (although you might be surprised to find out that I was well exposed to those foods as a child) but rather many of my earliest and best childhood memories revolve around food. Good family times spent gathered around the family hearth (which of course was the Television) with some wonderfully healthy popcorn (slathered in an UNhealthy amount of butter or margarine and generously doused in salt). Oreo cookies, cracker jacks, ice cream, Cheetos, chips or crackers and clam dip, root beer floats, the list goes on and ON! I can tell you that one of my very earliest (and best) memories involved going to the Auto parts store with my Dad when I was about four years old, and on the way back stopping at this bakery for these pastries that were shaped like a figure 8 (I remember thinking they were like a racetrack) with jelly in the middle section of each side. I also remember getting to have Twinkies at the babysitter's house. Its one of the few pleasant memories I have of daycare. Is Thanksgiving about sitting around the table with your family and being so grateful for everything? Of course, but its also about that turkey, fresh out of the oven and and that crispy, fat dripping skin that is just waiting to be eaten. Its about pies, and mashed potatoes whipped with butter, and eating two full meals, and then going back to pick at the leftovers every two hours, and the great conversations you have when you run into other family members who are also raiding the fridge at the same time. Christmas is about candy and cookies, and gingerbread houses, and all the wonderful foods you can think of. Its also about giving, and about love, but a lot of the giving I can remember is taking those cookies, and candies and delivering them to friends and family, and how much it sucks to hear that someone is dieting and won't be able to enjoy the food you brought them. Really, dieting isn't that much different than dying is it? Because when you die you don't get to enjoy the food anymore either.
Its not just about sugary dessert things either...this whole dieting thing. Although I have to admit that I have the hardest time giving up the sugary things. Still...Broccoli to me, was meant to be eaten in a large pool of cheese sauce, or if its raw, dipped in a vat of ranch dressing. Zucchini is meant to be battered, deep fried and dusted with Parmesan cheese, then dipped in the previously mentioned vat of ranch dressing. Mozzarella cheese, although great on its own, is even better when treated like zucchini. Baked potatoes are wonderful when properly dressed, this includes butter, sour cream, bacon, cheese and chili.
I have yet to find someone who is dieting who is also truly happy about it. Of course they are thrilled or at least satisfied with the results, but I don't hear them looking forward to their next meal. I imagine that family gatherings may be dreaded because either they have to watch everyone else enjoy the food they wish they could be enjoying, or they give in and feel guilt for the next month about it. One of my sisters gave up making berry pies and jam this year for her diet. That's a whole year of berrydom down the drain...a year that can never be recovered. My parents went on this diet a while ago (more than a year I think) but they fell off the wagon, and even though they had been feeling so good about how they felt physically, the food just called them back. My Dad has now given up sugar again, and I know that he has done it for good reasons. I support him in his endeavors, I hope he can win the war. I do think he misses getting to eat chocolate though.
Me, I am overweight. Not monstrous, but bigger than I should be. Yes, I feel low of energy, and I remember the days when I was in shape and how great it was to be in shape. Yes, I long to be in shape again. Yes, I want to live a long and full life, and grow old, and still be dancing at 90. So that should put me squarely in the camp of the dieters shouldn't it? However, I also want to make holiday goodies with my children, and when they want me to try their cookies, or their chocolate truffles or toffee, I don't want to say-"Sorry, Mommy is on a diet." I want to churn out special meals for family gatherings. I want people to look forward to what food I might bring next. I like to cook, and I like to be praised for my skills at it, and I have not found a low fat or low sugar recipe yet that will get me the kind of raves that chocolate marshmallow cookies with chocolate frosting will. I want to enjoy life, but I don't want to always be worrying about if I can have something, or if it will undo all the progress I have made. I don't want to miss a year of berry pies, or buying my favorite flavor of Tillamook ice cream that is only out on limited release and hasn't been sold in stores for two years. (Cookie dough if you were wondering-get it while you can.)
The kicker for me is that once you enlist on the diet and exercise side of the war, you are a lifetime soldier. There is no going back. Of course there are days you are losing the battle, but once you really sign on you have to be prepared to go the distance. You have to be relentless, you have to keep on pushing at it, because if you stop, if you slip, and aren't able to catch yourself then you are suddenly undoing all that you have accomplished. Dieting is an uphill battle. Its so easy to lose your footing and end up back where you started or worse. I am not sure that I can take that kind of pressure. I will have to keep thinking about it for a little while longer. While I am thinking about it, I may as well have something tasty to comfort me. So I will say, pass the ice cream, but I will also add, just a small bowl please.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Something to try...Pizza on the grill!
I have a friend who lives in California and makes pizza on the grill. I will admit that I have not tried it, but its on my list of things to do. She recommends using trader joe's pizza dough as it is relatively inexpensive, and it works well for this. You can use bread dough or your own pizza crust recipe as long as the dough is not too soft (we don't want it falling through the grill). Start out with the dough and no toppings but have the toppings all ready and waiting (make sure any meat for topping is thoroughly cooked to start out with).
Directions:
1. Pre-heat your grill, then clean it well. Oil the grill with Olive oil.
2. If you’re using a gas grill, once it’s hot, turn the flame down to low. With a charcoal grill, spread your charcoal out thinly to cool things down
3. Lightly oil the top side of the dough
4. Place dough, oiled side down, on grill. Cover. Cook until top of dough is raised and puffed and bottom is just crisp, about 3 minutes
5. Lightly oil the top of the dough so it doesn’t stick when you flip it over
6. Using tongs, flip the dough over so the crisped side is up
7. Quickly add your pizza sauce, cheese (not too much or it won’t melt) and toppings
8. Cover
9. Grill until cheese is melted and dough is browned and cooked through, about 3 minutes. Check the underside often to see that it is not burning
10. Remove and serve
You can also cook pizza using a pizza stone on the grill. It takes longer though. You will have to put your stone on the grill to start out with (after the initial fire dies down if you are using charcoal but before the coals are fully ready) so that it can heat up gradually. Once the coals are ready and the stone is hot you can cook your pizza on it as you would in an oven but making sure to rotate the pizza periodically to ensure even cooking. With a stone it takes about 15 to 20 minutes depending on how hot your grill is.
Using your BBQ is a great way to beat the heat. We love to dutch oven cook, which is a great way to cook just about anything you would normally cook in the oven. So try something new today!
Directions:
1. Pre-heat your grill, then clean it well. Oil the grill with Olive oil.
2. If you’re using a gas grill, once it’s hot, turn the flame down to low. With a charcoal grill, spread your charcoal out thinly to cool things down
3. Lightly oil the top side of the dough
4. Place dough, oiled side down, on grill. Cover. Cook until top of dough is raised and puffed and bottom is just crisp, about 3 minutes
5. Lightly oil the top of the dough so it doesn’t stick when you flip it over
6. Using tongs, flip the dough over so the crisped side is up
7. Quickly add your pizza sauce, cheese (not too much or it won’t melt) and toppings
8. Cover
9. Grill until cheese is melted and dough is browned and cooked through, about 3 minutes. Check the underside often to see that it is not burning
10. Remove and serve
You can also cook pizza using a pizza stone on the grill. It takes longer though. You will have to put your stone on the grill to start out with (after the initial fire dies down if you are using charcoal but before the coals are fully ready) so that it can heat up gradually. Once the coals are ready and the stone is hot you can cook your pizza on it as you would in an oven but making sure to rotate the pizza periodically to ensure even cooking. With a stone it takes about 15 to 20 minutes depending on how hot your grill is.
Using your BBQ is a great way to beat the heat. We love to dutch oven cook, which is a great way to cook just about anything you would normally cook in the oven. So try something new today!
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Distractions are okay...
I will admit that I pretty much didn't think about blogging all weekend. I didn't even do much checking of email. I was too busy reading the latest and last Harry Potter book. There were other things to get done to be sure. I bought the book yesterday morning at Costco, and only got to read a few chapters because there was family time and other things going on. I continued reading after dinner, and ended up staying until 3 in the morning. That got me to page 519 or chapter 26. I wanted to keep reading, but knew I would not be able to drag myself out of bed for church if I didn't go to bed. After we finally got home from church and other meetings this afternoon I picked up where I left off and finished the book an hour or two ago. Don't worry, I am not going to spoil anything. Like that part where Harry screams "You killed my Father!" and Voldemort says "I AM your Father!" then proceeding to cut off Harry's hand and send it and the wand it was clutching into oblivion...oh...wait...that was a different saga. No worries...I am not going to spoil anything here.
I am not even sure I should say whether I liked the book or not, since that in itself might be taken for some kind of spoiler...but I did read all 759 pages in less than 31 hours from the time of purchase...so that must be saying something.
Anyhow, those of you that have read it or are reading it, let me know if you like it, but please refrain from spoilers in the comments, just in case!
I am not even sure I should say whether I liked the book or not, since that in itself might be taken for some kind of spoiler...but I did read all 759 pages in less than 31 hours from the time of purchase...so that must be saying something.
Anyhow, those of you that have read it or are reading it, let me know if you like it, but please refrain from spoilers in the comments, just in case!
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Do you remember high school?
Ah, high school and the incredible caste system that took place in the cafeteria every day at lunch. Somehow during high school I managed to avoid most of that confusion. I was by no means popular, but I had some popular friends. I also had some unpopular friends, and I sat with whichever friends I felt like sitting with on a given day. The rat race just wasn't for me.
I am however, realizing with growing discomfort that in some ways the blogosphere reminds me of a high school cafeteria. There are advantages of course, because with the blogosphere I can figuratively sit with all of my friends on any given day by leaving a comment on their blog. Sometimes my presence is even acknowledged and that always feels good. However, as fun as it is to sit with my friends during lunch, I am trying hard not to notice that not very many people are choosing to sit by me. Were they offended at that time I brought egg salad for lunch? I just don't know. I don't like it though. I am not talking so much about not liking the lack of comments as I am talking about not liking that I care about the lack of comments. I never really cared about the whole popularity race in high school, so why should I care here? And yet, I read posts with tips about how to increase your blog readership, I read posts asking people to delurk, and I see the oohs and aaaahs in the comments sections when people get to some milestone in the number of comments reached. Is that what is really important?
So I am taking a little step back to examine myself and my reasoning. Why did I start blogging? It was to write, to have a place to express my ideas, my thoughts, and my sometimes quirky opinions. When I started to blog I didn't have it set as a public blog on blogger. I was not driven by comments, because only family members and a few close friends even had access to read my blog. Over time though, I began reading more and more blogs, and I enjoyed reading the many diverse comments. I let go of some of my paranoia and put my blog up as a public blog, and I also began leaving some comments here and there very cautiously. Occasionally I am left a token comment from bloggers that I read and comment on. I know that this is a courtesy on their part, and I appreciate it. I also have some friends and a few family members who will comment more often. I know that people are reading or at least loading my blog because of my handy dandy stat counter. Why does it matter to me that I regularly get 0 comments? I think it must go back to that whole high school thing. Sitting next to a popular person didn't mean you were popular, but if they actually talked to you or said hi, then you had suddenly risen above the level of a speck of dust and you were a real person. (Yes, I know its flawed, but that is how it always felt to people). If it didn't bother me then to not be among the popular elite, then why should it bother me now?
I am a little tempted to disable comments, but I do enjoy the ones I occasionally get. I think the problem is not going to be whether or not people choose to comment, but in my own personal mindset. Who am I really writing for? It used to be for myself, but somewhere along the line I think I started to WANT that acceptance and I let it matter too much. I started trying to force the writing and I started to try to write more often to make sure that people who were reading had something new to read. And I was making that effort with little reward. Writing on a regular basis didn't increase my comment level, and if my stat levels go down, does it really make that much of a difference? High school was 16 years ago after all, and I think its too late to go back. I think I need to go back to writing for me and not for that faceless and voiceless audience I have been trying to please.
I am however, realizing with growing discomfort that in some ways the blogosphere reminds me of a high school cafeteria. There are advantages of course, because with the blogosphere I can figuratively sit with all of my friends on any given day by leaving a comment on their blog. Sometimes my presence is even acknowledged and that always feels good. However, as fun as it is to sit with my friends during lunch, I am trying hard not to notice that not very many people are choosing to sit by me. Were they offended at that time I brought egg salad for lunch? I just don't know. I don't like it though. I am not talking so much about not liking the lack of comments as I am talking about not liking that I care about the lack of comments. I never really cared about the whole popularity race in high school, so why should I care here? And yet, I read posts with tips about how to increase your blog readership, I read posts asking people to delurk, and I see the oohs and aaaahs in the comments sections when people get to some milestone in the number of comments reached. Is that what is really important?
So I am taking a little step back to examine myself and my reasoning. Why did I start blogging? It was to write, to have a place to express my ideas, my thoughts, and my sometimes quirky opinions. When I started to blog I didn't have it set as a public blog on blogger. I was not driven by comments, because only family members and a few close friends even had access to read my blog. Over time though, I began reading more and more blogs, and I enjoyed reading the many diverse comments. I let go of some of my paranoia and put my blog up as a public blog, and I also began leaving some comments here and there very cautiously. Occasionally I am left a token comment from bloggers that I read and comment on. I know that this is a courtesy on their part, and I appreciate it. I also have some friends and a few family members who will comment more often. I know that people are reading or at least loading my blog because of my handy dandy stat counter. Why does it matter to me that I regularly get 0 comments? I think it must go back to that whole high school thing. Sitting next to a popular person didn't mean you were popular, but if they actually talked to you or said hi, then you had suddenly risen above the level of a speck of dust and you were a real person. (Yes, I know its flawed, but that is how it always felt to people). If it didn't bother me then to not be among the popular elite, then why should it bother me now?
I am a little tempted to disable comments, but I do enjoy the ones I occasionally get. I think the problem is not going to be whether or not people choose to comment, but in my own personal mindset. Who am I really writing for? It used to be for myself, but somewhere along the line I think I started to WANT that acceptance and I let it matter too much. I started trying to force the writing and I started to try to write more often to make sure that people who were reading had something new to read. And I was making that effort with little reward. Writing on a regular basis didn't increase my comment level, and if my stat levels go down, does it really make that much of a difference? High school was 16 years ago after all, and I think its too late to go back. I think I need to go back to writing for me and not for that faceless and voiceless audience I have been trying to please.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Here is a boredom buster for you!
Okay, I am sure you are all wondering how my day off went. I know that you want to hear that I enjoyed my day with the boys so much that I have broken my computer addiction, that I hardly noticed that I was away from the computer and that I had to practically force myself to check the email this morning. Sorry to disappoint you!
Even though I chose to have a non computer day for me, it was #2's day to play. Each of the boys get one computer day a week as far as game play goes, and they earn the time they get, up to an hour and a half. So in the morning while #2 was playing his game all of the other boys wanted to watch him play. I know them well enough to know they would have gotten mad at me for trying to get them to do something else, so I hung out in my room and read until his computer time was over.
We didn't make it to the beach. D took them on a walk to the beach Sunday evening and they spent two hours exploring tide pools and etc, so they weren't in a beachy mood yesterday. They did some work in the new workbooks I bought for them to keep them up on the things they learned in school, there was the playing of board games (a ninja turtles game) and we did a fun project together which I will now share with you.
We made crayons. Okay, we didn't manufacture them from scratch, but we did make crayons. Back in February there was an article in Family Fun that gave the idea of using heart shaped cupcake pans to melt down crayons and make new heart shaped crayons to give as Valentines. I thought it was a cute idea, but didn't feel like paying $10 for a pan to melt crayons in. I have begun a small collection of silicone things, including some heart shaped and star shaped ice cube trays which I have used in the past to make kool aid ice cubes, chocolates (silicone molds work great for making chocolates) and now the crayons. We just used the star shaped ones. I wanted to make smaller crayons that they could hold in their hands easily, but I think that a larger star shaped mold would work well also. Unfortunately the crayons left quite a residue in my star molds, and even though crayons are non toxic, I may just designate this mold as my crayon mold. I did find that I could get the mold clean again with a lot of hot water, dish soap and a lot of scrubbing with a brush. If you are going to try this at home I recommend using a non silicone mold, or using one that you don't mind designating as a craft mold. They do also sell small disposable foil pans in heart and star shapes in the baking aisle at our grocery store, and I think they would work too although your crayons might have some lines from the pans.
First you need to make sure your molds are clean and dry. Next you need crayons. If you really want to you can open a new box, but I find this to be a great way to use all those little stubs of crayons that the kids have broken. Make sure all the paper is off of the crayons, arrange them in the molds as desired (they can go a little over the top as they will melt down into the cracks, but if they are too far over the top they will run over the edges. I put my silicone pan on a cookie sheet just in case the crayons ran off the edge. Bake the pan in a 225 degree oven for about ten minutes. Check to see how the melting is going and bake for a little longer if you need to. Once the crayon is all melted remove the pan from the oven. The crayons will set faster if you put the silicone pan in the fridge. After the crayons are set you can remove them and see what you came up with. The picture above is the result of our first set. We each made two crayons. Our were done using broken crayons. I later tried using a crayon sharpener and putting the shavings in, but the colors in that case ran together more and were not as defined in their differences. I recommend using one kind of crayon if you can. Some of ours were RoseArt and Crayola mixed, and one or the other of the brands tended to float to the top when they were melting so instead of that color being where we put it, the color was all on the bottom of the crayon. Also, I can't in good conscience recommend Prang crayons for this. I tried some using them and they were very brittle and the crayons crumbled and broke coming out of the molds. All in all, it was fun, and the boys enjoyed making their rainbow crayons. We will be doing more projects like this one. We would have done more crafts if not for an appointment in the middle of the day. We also watched the first Harry Potter movie as a family last night and we plan on watching the rest of them in order over the next few weeks.
I didn't accomplish as much as I wanted to yesterday, but I did spend a lot of time just being with the boys, and I noticed that their behavior was much better than usual. I think I will be spending less time on the computer and more time with them on a daily basis.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Taking a break...
I spend a lot of time on the computer. Too much time some people might say. I started out the summer with all of these big plans of things to do with the boys, and I have not followed through with very many of them. So tomorrow I am taking a day off. A day off from blogging, not only writing blogs, but from reading them too. A day off from email and everything else on the computer. I honestly think that it will be a very hard thing for me to do. I also think that my boys deserve to have my complete attention for a day, so I am going to give it to them.
I hope all of you have a grand Monday and enjoy yourselves and I will catch up with everyone on Tuesday.
I hope all of you have a grand Monday and enjoy yourselves and I will catch up with everyone on Tuesday.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
This is a repost in honor of No Cool Story
No Cool Story is about to embark on an epic trek which includes those most portable of porta potties, a shovel and some TP. (Be glad they aren't making you use leaves!) In honor of her bravery I am reposting my most commented on blog (yet it still didn't break double digits) in the history of this blog...the whizzy blog...I apologize to those three of you who have read my blog from the start and have already seen this post.
Equality...Closer than you think!
I am sure you are wondering, "Just what kind of equality is she talking about?" Well, I will tell you. I am talking about the right to pee standing up!What? Do you think I am kidding? I assure you that I am not! What woman on a camping trip hasn't wished that she could pee standing up instead of having to squat behind a bush and hope that she didn't drip anywhere important? How many women have envied this ability of men at least once in their lives? I would guess that many have. I would never want to trade places with a man. I like being a woman. I like it in spite of having to pee sitting down. However, now if I don't want to pee sitting down, I don't have to.Okay...so I am feeling a bit sarcastic. I thought that products that help women to pee standing up were a little bit on the silly side. However, in my research I have decided that they can be useful. I even tried one out.The first of this kind of product that I heard about is called Whizzy. My sister,(I keep saying just my sister, but I actually have four very cool sisters who are all quite different from one another) my oldest sister...told me about Whizzy a while ago. She had also bought some at one point, and this past weekend (as we were all at another of my sister's house for our annual pumpkin party) she handed me a package containing some Whizzy products. I was amused, and figured that I would try one out eventually.That time came sooner than I thought it would. Even though we live in a fairly moderate area as far as temperature goes, it has gotten colder here, and in an effort to save money on heating our home, we usually keep the thermometer set fairly low. Yesterday evening it was pretty cold (for here) and I had to use the bathroom. The thought of sitting down on that freezing cold toilet seat was disturbing to me though, and the package of Whizzy(s) that I had set on the bathroom shelf caught my eye. 'What the heck' I thought to myself, and followed the simple directions. What do you know! It worked! I can pee standing up! And no cold toilet seat!Am I going to make a habit of it? Probably not. At a cost of around $1.00 per Whizzy I am not likely to use them often. They say that you can reuse each Whizzy one time, if you have a place to put it to dry out (ewwww). Still, its somewhat liberating to think that I can pee standing up if I want to!Before sitting down (no pun intended) to write this blog, I did a little Internet research and was surprised at the number of products like Whizzy out there. However, since Whizzy is the only one I have tried, it is also the only one I can recommend with confidence. Need the perfect gift for that hard to shop for woman? Whizzy is for you! Mother in law, feminist, friend, or just that gift for the woman who has everything...give it a try! If nothing else, it will make a good conversation starter!In all seriousness, Whizzy and similar products can be useful! Especially for women who have trouble sitting down, or getting up from a sitting position. Camping? Hiking? You won't ever have to worry about sitting in poison oak or ivy when you pee! Car broke down? Stranded? Whizzy is your friend! Icky public restrooms, or worse, porta potties? You won't even have to touch that toilet seat! Whizzy is for you! Big family with only one bathroom? Now you can ALL pee standing up! Do you work construction on a high rise building? Now you too can pee from the roof like the guys do! Want to write your name in the snow? According to their website, with Whizzy, now you can! Before Whizzy and products like it, there was NO urinal for women, and now, THE WORLD IS YOUR URINAL!For more information on Whizzy you can check out their website at http://www.whizzy4you.com/. Or feel free to do a search for other products that help women pee standing up.
Equality...Closer than you think!
I am sure you are wondering, "Just what kind of equality is she talking about?" Well, I will tell you. I am talking about the right to pee standing up!What? Do you think I am kidding? I assure you that I am not! What woman on a camping trip hasn't wished that she could pee standing up instead of having to squat behind a bush and hope that she didn't drip anywhere important? How many women have envied this ability of men at least once in their lives? I would guess that many have. I would never want to trade places with a man. I like being a woman. I like it in spite of having to pee sitting down. However, now if I don't want to pee sitting down, I don't have to.Okay...so I am feeling a bit sarcastic. I thought that products that help women to pee standing up were a little bit on the silly side. However, in my research I have decided that they can be useful. I even tried one out.The first of this kind of product that I heard about is called Whizzy. My sister,(I keep saying just my sister, but I actually have four very cool sisters who are all quite different from one another) my oldest sister...told me about Whizzy a while ago. She had also bought some at one point, and this past weekend (as we were all at another of my sister's house for our annual pumpkin party) she handed me a package containing some Whizzy products. I was amused, and figured that I would try one out eventually.That time came sooner than I thought it would. Even though we live in a fairly moderate area as far as temperature goes, it has gotten colder here, and in an effort to save money on heating our home, we usually keep the thermometer set fairly low. Yesterday evening it was pretty cold (for here) and I had to use the bathroom. The thought of sitting down on that freezing cold toilet seat was disturbing to me though, and the package of Whizzy(s) that I had set on the bathroom shelf caught my eye. 'What the heck' I thought to myself, and followed the simple directions. What do you know! It worked! I can pee standing up! And no cold toilet seat!Am I going to make a habit of it? Probably not. At a cost of around $1.00 per Whizzy I am not likely to use them often. They say that you can reuse each Whizzy one time, if you have a place to put it to dry out (ewwww). Still, its somewhat liberating to think that I can pee standing up if I want to!Before sitting down (no pun intended) to write this blog, I did a little Internet research and was surprised at the number of products like Whizzy out there. However, since Whizzy is the only one I have tried, it is also the only one I can recommend with confidence. Need the perfect gift for that hard to shop for woman? Whizzy is for you! Mother in law, feminist, friend, or just that gift for the woman who has everything...give it a try! If nothing else, it will make a good conversation starter!In all seriousness, Whizzy and similar products can be useful! Especially for women who have trouble sitting down, or getting up from a sitting position. Camping? Hiking? You won't ever have to worry about sitting in poison oak or ivy when you pee! Car broke down? Stranded? Whizzy is your friend! Icky public restrooms, or worse, porta potties? You won't even have to touch that toilet seat! Whizzy is for you! Big family with only one bathroom? Now you can ALL pee standing up! Do you work construction on a high rise building? Now you too can pee from the roof like the guys do! Want to write your name in the snow? According to their website, with Whizzy, now you can! Before Whizzy and products like it, there was NO urinal for women, and now, THE WORLD IS YOUR URINAL!For more information on Whizzy you can check out their website at http://www.whizzy4you.com/. Or feel free to do a search for other products that help women pee standing up.
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