Me: When was the last time we did something crazy, anyway?
Steven: I don't know. We need crazy back.
Enter Justin Timberlake music: I'm bringin' crazy back. bumb bumb, bumb, bumb, bumb, You other families don't know how to act.
Steven: Please don't ever infer that what I say should be referenced to a 'Boy Band' song.
*Note: That above part is all Steven. All I had written was the top line and then left the computer to put Alaska to bed.
Seriously though. We need to do something karazy. More crazy then spelling crazy in a crazy way. And I thought that by now we would have a good story to tell. But we don't. We're still looking.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Zucchini and I: Best Friends
True Story: I hate zucchini. It is the epitome of gardens gone wrong. It will overtake a garden given one summer. Because of its easiness to grow it's hard to refrain from planting just one due to the accomplished feeling that comes from watching it sprout and grow so quickly. A true plant wrecker's dream, it is an unstoppable plant. All it takes is some water and soil and you've got yourself a monster. Unfortunately one plant can suffice a family of twelve. Two and zucchinis start getting left at houses that are frequented for visiting teaching and babysitting. Three plants and you're hopping fences after doorbell ditching someone with a zucchini taking up their doormat.
Another True Story: My mother-in-law gave us a zucchini the size of a small child. I do not exaggerate. It sat on our kitchen counter for a long while before I got over my prejudices. I vowed to make the best zuccchini muffins the world has ever known. And I did. We couldn't stop eating them! And what's more, they had zucchini in them. So they were healthy. Riiiight. To remedy my problem I cut out some sugar, added some wheat flour and felt better about eating so many. They weren't nearly as good, which meant we didn't eat as many, but they were still the best I have ever had. Even with them being less amazing then the first batch.
I got crafty the way that I do and started adding orange zest and later lemon zest and finally concluded with a peach zucchini muffin that really wasn't that good. Peaches don't cook so well. But that orange zest, that was a keeper.
I was making zucchini muffins every day for a week and we've got loads of them storing in the freezer. Handsome Husband likes taking them to work for lunch. Faster then making a tuna sandwich.
And now I LOVE zucchini. We are the best of best friends. I have dreams of planting a whole gardenfull next summer and how much fun it will be to make muffins all the time and to drop those off instead of zucchinis and have people beg me for the recipe and wonder what in the world my secret ingredient is because they sure don't taste like zucchini muffins.
Well, the secret that I will let out is this. Peel and discard all the green. That's the dead give-away. Without the green the muffins are a nice yellow and look much more appetizing to my eyes. Less like, "try this vegetable in your delicious muffin" and more like, "THIS is the secret ingredient!"
Onward Zucchini ditchers! Leave them here!
Another True Story: My mother-in-law gave us a zucchini the size of a small child. I do not exaggerate. It sat on our kitchen counter for a long while before I got over my prejudices. I vowed to make the best zuccchini muffins the world has ever known. And I did. We couldn't stop eating them! And what's more, they had zucchini in them. So they were healthy. Riiiight. To remedy my problem I cut out some sugar, added some wheat flour and felt better about eating so many. They weren't nearly as good, which meant we didn't eat as many, but they were still the best I have ever had. Even with them being less amazing then the first batch.
I got crafty the way that I do and started adding orange zest and later lemon zest and finally concluded with a peach zucchini muffin that really wasn't that good. Peaches don't cook so well. But that orange zest, that was a keeper.
I was making zucchini muffins every day for a week and we've got loads of them storing in the freezer. Handsome Husband likes taking them to work for lunch. Faster then making a tuna sandwich.
And now I LOVE zucchini. We are the best of best friends. I have dreams of planting a whole gardenfull next summer and how much fun it will be to make muffins all the time and to drop those off instead of zucchinis and have people beg me for the recipe and wonder what in the world my secret ingredient is because they sure don't taste like zucchini muffins.
Well, the secret that I will let out is this. Peel and discard all the green. That's the dead give-away. Without the green the muffins are a nice yellow and look much more appetizing to my eyes. Less like, "try this vegetable in your delicious muffin" and more like, "THIS is the secret ingredient!"
Onward Zucchini ditchers! Leave them here!
Where Have You Been All My Life Butternut?
Butternut would be such a cute nickname! But honestly. Where has that squash been all my life?
Popping around pinterest and walking around the neighborhood I have seen butternut recipes and butternut squash all over the place. And I thought to myself, "Self, try a little experiment, would ya?" See, this week is healthy week. Couldn't loose my required weight eating cinnamon rolls, peach cobbler and apple crisp so I am going to have to go about it another way. Eating way too many fruits and vegetables. I was on the hunt for some new recipes.
My mind was a little skeptical when Handsome Husband came home with a squash that would before have found a place on my doorstep as a halloween gord with the pumpkins. But I had my recipes and I was bound and determined to learn what to do with this thing. And with three different recipes calling for 3-4 cups each I was pretty sure I could finish that sucker up. Whether it actually got eaten or not, that would be another party of the story.
I even looked up on line how to cut and prepare it for cooking titled, "Peel and Cut with Confidence". Intriguing name for a book for surgeons. Step 4 was to scoop out the seeds and membranes. Membranes! Good thing I was cooking this up into a stew, otherwise it may come and get me in the night with a handsaw!
Following the directions directly is always my idealistic way of following a recipe but there's always something in the way. Like the fact that I thought I had more paprika left than I actually do or that I had ground coriander at all. So my recipe got varied a little. But it was so yummy! My kitchen smelled like an expensive thai restaurant for the rest of the evening.
The most impressive part though was how the butternut squash tasted. Amazing! Buttery and nutty. No joke. It's like whoever named it had tasted it first.
We've got a winner on our hands! And a winner of a nickname, though we'll have to wait for a girl since Butternut provokes thoughts of soft yellow and toasted almonds. Any boy of mine needs something with a little more oomph. You know, like Orson Porson. To match our Alaska Paska. We're still brainstorming, obviously. Orson Porson is not very threatening. At all. Really.
Popping around pinterest and walking around the neighborhood I have seen butternut recipes and butternut squash all over the place. And I thought to myself, "Self, try a little experiment, would ya?" See, this week is healthy week. Couldn't loose my required weight eating cinnamon rolls, peach cobbler and apple crisp so I am going to have to go about it another way. Eating way too many fruits and vegetables. I was on the hunt for some new recipes.
My mind was a little skeptical when Handsome Husband came home with a squash that would before have found a place on my doorstep as a halloween gord with the pumpkins. But I had my recipes and I was bound and determined to learn what to do with this thing. And with three different recipes calling for 3-4 cups each I was pretty sure I could finish that sucker up. Whether it actually got eaten or not, that would be another party of the story.
I even looked up on line how to cut and prepare it for cooking titled, "Peel and Cut with Confidence". Intriguing name for a book for surgeons. Step 4 was to scoop out the seeds and membranes. Membranes! Good thing I was cooking this up into a stew, otherwise it may come and get me in the night with a handsaw!
Following the directions directly is always my idealistic way of following a recipe but there's always something in the way. Like the fact that I thought I had more paprika left than I actually do or that I had ground coriander at all. So my recipe got varied a little. But it was so yummy! My kitchen smelled like an expensive thai restaurant for the rest of the evening.
The most impressive part though was how the butternut squash tasted. Amazing! Buttery and nutty. No joke. It's like whoever named it had tasted it first.
We've got a winner on our hands! And a winner of a nickname, though we'll have to wait for a girl since Butternut provokes thoughts of soft yellow and toasted almonds. Any boy of mine needs something with a little more oomph. You know, like Orson Porson. To match our Alaska Paska. We're still brainstorming, obviously. Orson Porson is not very threatening. At all. Really.
Saturday, September 29, 2012
The Momma I Want to Be part 1
Remember my woes of being a stay-at-home momma? How it was getting a little dry around here and my self-worth was depreciating like ants on a sugar stick?
Well, she-bam, she's back! Well, almost back. I still need to do a few personal things. New wardrobe. New hair. New system of getting out of bed. New bit of craftiness. But things have been looking up, my friends.
I offered to switch babysitting hours with a couple of mommas and now have 4 hours a week that are JUST MINE. And I am looking for one more to split time with. This means Alaska has a play-date every single day, which is fabulous for her since she loves them so much!
My most favorite, though, is getting to watch my cousin's little boy three days a week. Believe me when I say that watching two kiddos is much more fun and fulfilling then watching just one. Which is a big step for me since I was almost convinced that Alaska would be any only child. Pregnancy is no good. No good at all. But babies, babies are ok. The best? Toddlers. Yes, the best.
He is such a sweet-heart with more energy than could be corralled in a house of monkeys. But more about that later, this post is supposed to be about me and how I am trying to get awesome back.
My resume of activities:
Mondays: Watch Elijah until 2:30 and then Zumba at 8:45. I know. It's late. Most of the time I am too tired and would much rather go to bed. But I put on my purple kool-aid shoes and strap myself into the car with a water bottle and don't return until said water bottle is empty and I have sweat streaks on my forehead.
Tuesdays: Watch Elijah until 2:30 and this week Chloe is coming over to play while her momma goes to a doctor appointment to check up on Chloe's soon-to-be-born brother.
Wednesdays: Water aerobics at 9am. Alaska will go to Ethan's house and play for a couple of hours.
Thursdays: Watch Elijah until 2:30. Interior Design at the Davis High School at 6:30 pm.
Fridays: Alaska and I have together. We usually spend the day in our PJs and practice eating baby food. Or eating cheerios off the ground. *Note to self: find something more productive to do with this day.
Saturdays: Water aerobics at 8am. Alaska goes to Chloe's house to play for a couple of hours.
Throw in some visiting teaching, a couple hours for me to re-pay Ethan's mom by watching him and I am just about set to be awesome again!
Oh, and I also found that it is helpful to always be reading a book that I can talk about. Interesting things. Like about how the brain works, how the atonement works or something else educational. While Nicholas Sparks is so much fun to read I have got to stop my 'dessert reading' which is what books like that could be called. Not too much to talk about other than a little sugar of something light to read.
Well, she-bam, she's back! Well, almost back. I still need to do a few personal things. New wardrobe. New hair. New system of getting out of bed. New bit of craftiness. But things have been looking up, my friends.
I offered to switch babysitting hours with a couple of mommas and now have 4 hours a week that are JUST MINE. And I am looking for one more to split time with. This means Alaska has a play-date every single day, which is fabulous for her since she loves them so much!
My most favorite, though, is getting to watch my cousin's little boy three days a week. Believe me when I say that watching two kiddos is much more fun and fulfilling then watching just one. Which is a big step for me since I was almost convinced that Alaska would be any only child. Pregnancy is no good. No good at all. But babies, babies are ok. The best? Toddlers. Yes, the best.
He is such a sweet-heart with more energy than could be corralled in a house of monkeys. But more about that later, this post is supposed to be about me and how I am trying to get awesome back.
My resume of activities:
Mondays: Watch Elijah until 2:30 and then Zumba at 8:45. I know. It's late. Most of the time I am too tired and would much rather go to bed. But I put on my purple kool-aid shoes and strap myself into the car with a water bottle and don't return until said water bottle is empty and I have sweat streaks on my forehead.
Tuesdays: Watch Elijah until 2:30 and this week Chloe is coming over to play while her momma goes to a doctor appointment to check up on Chloe's soon-to-be-born brother.
Wednesdays: Water aerobics at 9am. Alaska will go to Ethan's house and play for a couple of hours.
Thursdays: Watch Elijah until 2:30. Interior Design at the Davis High School at 6:30 pm.
Fridays: Alaska and I have together. We usually spend the day in our PJs and practice eating baby food. Or eating cheerios off the ground. *Note to self: find something more productive to do with this day.
Saturdays: Water aerobics at 8am. Alaska goes to Chloe's house to play for a couple of hours.
Throw in some visiting teaching, a couple hours for me to re-pay Ethan's mom by watching him and I am just about set to be awesome again!
Oh, and I also found that it is helpful to always be reading a book that I can talk about. Interesting things. Like about how the brain works, how the atonement works or something else educational. While Nicholas Sparks is so much fun to read I have got to stop my 'dessert reading' which is what books like that could be called. Not too much to talk about other than a little sugar of something light to read.
Monday, September 24, 2012
8 Months with Alaska
Favorite Things: The fridge. You will hear it open from around the corner and put on your turbo-charged crawling pace to get there before it closes.
Special Talents: Cruzing along the couch, the chair, anything that will hold you up. You've started to lift yourself from the ground in a stand and when you are up-right you look a little startled as to how you got there and sit back down carefully.
Remember When: We were so excited the first time you stood up we cheered and clapped and scared you enough to make you plop down and shed a few tears on the floor.
A Month of Firsts: Your two bottom teeth are in and almost lined up. The left is still a little lower because it didn't get the head start. I didn't even know you were teething until I went to reach in for a piece of leaf that you love putting in your mouth when we're outside and felt something hard and nubby on your gums. That doesn't make me a bad mom, that makes you an awesome little girl to not be grumpy when you've got teeth popping in.
Favorite Pastime: Climbing stairs. You love it. And you're good at it.
Nickname: Alaska Paska most times, Punky others.
Sleep: To bed at 7:30, up at 7:30. You are ready for a nap at 10 and again at 1.
Crying: When you are hungry. I've gotten kind of busy and you usually need to remind me to feed you. You love kisses and don't cry too long when you bump a head or smash a finger.
Dislikes: Baby food. We're still mostly struggling with that. You will sit on my lap and eat two or three spoonfulls and refuse any more. In the high chair you are only interested in one or two spoonfulls. If we do that 5 times a day we can get through half a bottle of baby food.
Likes: Play dates. You have gotten so lucky! I am watching my cousin's little boy three times a week and you LOVE following him around. I have also started water aerobics and trade babysitting hours with a mommy in the ward. You love going over there to play.
My favorite part: I am your favorite person right now.
Rookie Mistakes
It's been a month for rookie mistakes. Of the dating sort. If I were still writing chapters in the 'looking for Mr. Right' book of my life I would definitely have lost a few dates.
Rookie Mistake #1: Hairy legs. We're talking HAIRY legs. Not just a little stubble, but the kind that you can see from 5 ft away. When I am in the shower I am washing my hair as fast as I can, grabbing a towel, and jumping out before Alaska even knew that I was gone while she was doing her exploratory rounds of the house in the morning. You know, to make sure no one came in and stole her toys right from under her and that they are still laying by the kitchen sink, smooshed up against the fridge, scattered through the hall and sprinkled in the living room. And then there I am, not even a second thought to those prickly legs, as I tear through my dresser drawers looking for something that isn't in the wash. Because, let's face it, wash is hard to get around to when you have to haul not only the laundry, but a 17 lb baby up and down the stairs.
Rookie Mistkake #2: The bun. Known on pinterest as the top knot. I think it's cute. It's easy. Can be paired with a skirt as easily as it can be paired with sweat pants. Apparently it's not attractive. Says Handsome Husband. And well, if I caught him once, I should be able to catch him twice. But he says no way. It's the scary monster in his nightmares.
Rookie Mistake #3: My brain reflexes have been slowed down, immensely. It used to be if there were a schedule conflict I could sort things out super quick and find un-used time or a second solution in seconds. Now, if my plans are thwarted, I cannot for the life of me think of another solution. I had a friend with me that I had begged to come with the pool with me. We got to the front desk and the water aerobics was canceled because they were putting the bubble on to make the out-door pool indoor. We turned around and drove home, I dropped her off, and as she got out of the car she said something about if it were closed next week we should go for a walk. Duh! Why didn't I think of that first? And suggest it for this week since I still had a hour that I could leave Alaska at the babysitters? Thinking on your feet is essential in the dating game. If you want to stay a-top the jungle you have got to have solutions all over the place for dates gone wrong. Had that of been a date it would have ended early due to my inability to think of a second idea.
And then there's Handsome Husband's rookie mistake. He buzzed his hair. It got too long, he hates getting it cut because no one can ever 'do it right' and he was in a 'I can do it myself' kind of mood. The shears were opened, plugged in and his hair was gone. And it looked bad. BunX3 bad. He's promised never to do it again. And I've tried hard to find other quick-fix options for wet hair than the bun.
Rookie Mistake #1: Hairy legs. We're talking HAIRY legs. Not just a little stubble, but the kind that you can see from 5 ft away. When I am in the shower I am washing my hair as fast as I can, grabbing a towel, and jumping out before Alaska even knew that I was gone while she was doing her exploratory rounds of the house in the morning. You know, to make sure no one came in and stole her toys right from under her and that they are still laying by the kitchen sink, smooshed up against the fridge, scattered through the hall and sprinkled in the living room. And then there I am, not even a second thought to those prickly legs, as I tear through my dresser drawers looking for something that isn't in the wash. Because, let's face it, wash is hard to get around to when you have to haul not only the laundry, but a 17 lb baby up and down the stairs.
Rookie Mistkake #2: The bun. Known on pinterest as the top knot. I think it's cute. It's easy. Can be paired with a skirt as easily as it can be paired with sweat pants. Apparently it's not attractive. Says Handsome Husband. And well, if I caught him once, I should be able to catch him twice. But he says no way. It's the scary monster in his nightmares.
Rookie Mistake #3: My brain reflexes have been slowed down, immensely. It used to be if there were a schedule conflict I could sort things out super quick and find un-used time or a second solution in seconds. Now, if my plans are thwarted, I cannot for the life of me think of another solution. I had a friend with me that I had begged to come with the pool with me. We got to the front desk and the water aerobics was canceled because they were putting the bubble on to make the out-door pool indoor. We turned around and drove home, I dropped her off, and as she got out of the car she said something about if it were closed next week we should go for a walk. Duh! Why didn't I think of that first? And suggest it for this week since I still had a hour that I could leave Alaska at the babysitters? Thinking on your feet is essential in the dating game. If you want to stay a-top the jungle you have got to have solutions all over the place for dates gone wrong. Had that of been a date it would have ended early due to my inability to think of a second idea.
And then there's Handsome Husband's rookie mistake. He buzzed his hair. It got too long, he hates getting it cut because no one can ever 'do it right' and he was in a 'I can do it myself' kind of mood. The shears were opened, plugged in and his hair was gone. And it looked bad. BunX3 bad. He's promised never to do it again. And I've tried hard to find other quick-fix options for wet hair than the bun.
Friday, August 17, 2012
Am I Ready For This?
For the most part I think of myself as a very relaxed momma. A person could easily go crazy thinking of 'what ifs' and 'what thens' when it comes to children. Especially raising children right to be outstanding citizens. Children that know they came from a loving family in heaven, have a purpose on this earth, and a place to go when they leave their mortal body.
It's too scary. So I don't think about it and know that everything will fall in to place as it should. And if nothing else, I pray that none of my children need to go to jail to get their lives sorted out for themselves.
But I do get scared. I get so scared that I start to hyperventilate about the future. About Alaska going to school her first day. About her going over to a friend's house. Her first birthday party even. And by first I mean the one that is going to be here in 5 months. I know, it shouldn't be scary, but anything in the future is scary. Anything that I don't know about right now is scary. Anything where Alaska has to make a decision and I hope that I have taught her well enough to make the right decision hounds on me and takes my breath away.
I remember when I used to be so scared for her to sit up. When I was holding that little baby that just wanted to sleep all day and snuggle I got nervous about her walking.
Silly, right?
Yes, totally ridiculous. After having watched her roll over and sit up and now crawl I have realized that everything comes naturally and at it's own pace. I think perhaps babies learn things in steps not for them, but for their parents. Us. Wouldn't it be a heart stopper to have your 3 month-old tell you, "Momma, stop kissing my cheeks. You're making me claustrophobic" Yes. It would.
When Alaska's first day of school comes around, even though I am not ready for it now, I am sure by the time it is here we're going to be waiting for the bus half a hour early because we're both so excited. Or, let's be realistic, we're going to be yelling and crying as I try to get her pigtails just so on her head as she squirms in excitement and I am going to pull too hard and she's going to cry and I am going to say something about how if she would just sit still... And then the bus will come and the bus will go and she'll be driving in the car to her first day of kindergarten.
It's too scary. So I don't think about it and know that everything will fall in to place as it should. And if nothing else, I pray that none of my children need to go to jail to get their lives sorted out for themselves.
But I do get scared. I get so scared that I start to hyperventilate about the future. About Alaska going to school her first day. About her going over to a friend's house. Her first birthday party even. And by first I mean the one that is going to be here in 5 months. I know, it shouldn't be scary, but anything in the future is scary. Anything that I don't know about right now is scary. Anything where Alaska has to make a decision and I hope that I have taught her well enough to make the right decision hounds on me and takes my breath away.
I remember when I used to be so scared for her to sit up. When I was holding that little baby that just wanted to sleep all day and snuggle I got nervous about her walking.
Silly, right?
Yes, totally ridiculous. After having watched her roll over and sit up and now crawl I have realized that everything comes naturally and at it's own pace. I think perhaps babies learn things in steps not for them, but for their parents. Us. Wouldn't it be a heart stopper to have your 3 month-old tell you, "Momma, stop kissing my cheeks. You're making me claustrophobic" Yes. It would.
When Alaska's first day of school comes around, even though I am not ready for it now, I am sure by the time it is here we're going to be waiting for the bus half a hour early because we're both so excited. Or, let's be realistic, we're going to be yelling and crying as I try to get her pigtails just so on her head as she squirms in excitement and I am going to pull too hard and she's going to cry and I am going to say something about how if she would just sit still... And then the bus will come and the bus will go and she'll be driving in the car to her first day of kindergarten.
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