I Heart Being Lazy

Ugh, do I wait until the last minute, or do I wait until the last minute?  I know, I totally wait.  If I ever got into a race with a hare, we'd both be napping on the side of the road forever, while we watched tortoise after tortoise race by. 

All that said, I did do it.  I completed a pin!  Kale chips by Smitten Kitchen (a blog I love and adore and read with anticipation.)  As you know, I used to be a vegetable hater.  I wouldn't eat vegetables other than potatoes for any reason.  I'd push onions, celery, and carrots in my soups to the side.  I'd wrinkle my nose at cauliflower.  Now?  I'd probably push someone down the stairs for a bowl of roasted Brussels sprouts.  (No one I live with, so don't worry for them.  N wouldn't even eat my bowl of Brussels sprouts if someone threatened to push ME down the stairs!)

Having said that, while I'm over my fear of a lot of vegetables and I only occasionally push onions off my plate, I just hate the idea of leafy greens.  Spinach, lettuce, and cabbage are things to be eaten because I must, not because I like to.  This does officially make me the worst Korean you've ever met.  Kale, in particular, seemed hideous.  It's a punishment food, right? 

Then Helen made me some and I was worried I was going to have to fake enthusiasm. Her own husband made faces at the chips as they were pulled out of the oven.  Having said that, I really liked them.  They were crunchy but super light and full of flavor.  I immediately decided I was going to try making them again and I pinned the recipe from Smitten Kitchen within the last few months when I remembered seeing it.

After getting a ton of kale at a local farmer's market, I just dug through the kitchen for the ingredients and whipped this together.  It was quick and tasty and no one in the house besides me will eat them so it's a treat I alone get.  

I will give you a bit of a warning.  Be careful with the salt.  It's really easy to over-season quickly!

I'm already photographing October's outing, and I hope to hear from some of you who said you would try this Pinterest thing.  TRY THIS.  Also, is it cheating to pin something because you want to do it, but you thought of the project before pinning it?  (For instance, can I pin an apple pie recipe even though I already know I want to do apple pie?  Is that a cheat?  I made this up and I don't even know!)

Friday Links #2

Listen, folks, this is a paltry and sad links day, though everyone I link to has made me happy.  I know I've not been blogging, but, and this is a huge but, I'm catching up mightily on my photo processing.  I want to be more current with my photos so I can use more on my blog.  I'm finally within a month now and I expect I can be closer.  Also, I'm knitting up a storm (for me) and meeting up with moms and knitters and seamstresses up here in New Hampshire.

Anyway, Vahnee of Crunchy Parenting answered my questions.  None of the rest of you did.  They were easy questions.  Where are you faltering?  Were you afraid of giving a lame favorite superhero so that you left it unanswered because you thought I'd think that you were kind of dorky for naming Aquaman.  Let me assure you, I love Aquaman.  He is the best part of Batman: Brave and the Bold. 

 "Never trust an amphibian: land or water, choose a side!"

So, no fears, okay?  Do you not want to disappoint me with the Pinterest thing?  I'll forgive you if you answer me with "It's a lame idea, Kitten.  LAME."  

Anyway, I have two entries in the Pinterest thing!   Ms. Knitpicky, a favorite of mine for her video blog entries, her fabulous sense of color, and her love of Hedgehogs and My Little Pony, entered into it with some gluten free snickerdoodles.  I am not gluten-free so I won't be trying these, but if you are, go to it.  She recommends!

Marlie enters with a Lemon Ricotta Pasta with Scallops.   She also gave a thumbs up.  Doesn't that recipe just sound good?  It's like when you go to a restaurant and they have a "white wine, garlic, lemon, butter sauce" over some pasta or seafood.  Lemon, ricotta, pasta, and scallops are all bell ringers for me, so I want to do this.  Perhaps I will when N likes lemon or ricotta or pasta or scallops.  Sigh.  

Listen, there is still time for you to enter.  I plan on doing a food themed giveaway this month because people did enter.  I also plan on putting up my own Pinterest post when I get my photos finished.  (Ironically, I've baked like mad this month, but almost none of it counts because I didn't pin the recipes beforehand.  Oh, why you gotta go and do me like that, internet?  Don't you want to hear about my peach crisp success or my raspberry and chocolate chip muffins failure?!)

In other news, I've sewn and made a reusable cloth sandwich bag.  Only, N doesn't need them because he doesn't eat lunch at school.  Does anyone use them and have a need for one?  

Awarded: Me!

I got chain awarded. It's one of those awards that just spreads like a weird virus among all the bloggers you know. I wouldn't participate, but... I've never gotten one before. That's why when the zombies come to kill us all, I'll fight to protect April. I take this blog award seriously. (No, really, why haven't I ever gotten one before? I've been blogging or journaling most of my life, right?!)

Anyway. It's the Liebster Award! As stated, April of First Time Mom and Dad gave it to me. I wasn't some thrown on blogger, either. I was like in the top five of those she awarded.

What is the Liebster you ask? The Liebster award is given to up and coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers. Liebster is a German word meaning: sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing, and welcome.

For those of you who read in code, this award was probably created by the big bloggers who got tired of receiving these chain awards.

• Each person must post 11 things about themselves.
• Answer the 11 questions the person giving the award has set for you.
• Create 11 questions for the people you will be giving the award to.
• Choose 11 people to award and send them a link to your post. Go to their page and tell them.
• No tag backs.

Let's be serious. I'm not going to tag people. I don't even personally know 11 bloggers who blog consistently enough to handle this. But, on to the show.  

11 Facts About Me 

1. I am weirdly flexible for a person who never stretches. 
2. I sing made up songs. All the time. Now N does this too. I sing in the shower, I sing in the car, I sing while cooking. I sing real songs too. 
3. I often walk around a store like Target or Babies'r'Us piling things into my cart only to go back around the store and put every single thing besides a hair clip or some crayons back. 
4. I have over three thousand emails in my inbox right now. Inbox zero is my dream. 
5. Sometimes, I get so afraid of hoarding that I'll stand up and start to randomly throw things around me away. No, for reals. Ask P. He's become defensive of his things. 
6. I love wrapping paper so so so much. If I had a craft room, I'd want it to have a wall solely for all my wrapping paper and notions. I really want a craft room. 
7. My favorite suit of cards is spades. 
8. I can wear children's sized shoes. 
9. Sometimes, I read weight loss success stories just to be happy for those people who managed to lose crazy amounts of weight. I also read stories from people who manage to unclutter/clean their house. 
10. I'm so indecisive about things I don't care about that I can spend over an hour or two trying to decide on a restaurant. 
11. I'm afraid of talking to people I don't know and even those I do know. The only way I've come across of getting better about this is just to do it over and over and over again. The problem I have in trying to overcome my natural state is that I tend to over talk. 

1. When did you start Blogging and why? 

I started " online journaling" when I was in college, so, maybe 14 years ago? I started journaling or blogging because I thought I was interesting. Lesson not learned fourteen years later.

2. Do you eat breakfast? 

HA! No. I hate breakfast. Unless I'm in France. And then, I wake P up so we can eat breakfast and then go back to bed.

3. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? 

London, maybe? Nice, France? I also like the northeast of the States.

4. Mini Van or SUV? 

 Minivan, though sometimes I think a smaller SUV wouldn't make me angry. But I will punch you in the nose if you drive a Yukon and you don't actually need a Yukon. Sorry.

5. Flats or heels? 

Flats, preferably ballet. But, I like to imagine a world where I can where heels without falling or walking like I'm clomping.

6. Ocean view or Mountain view? 

OCEAN! About the only natural outdoor setting I like is the beach.

7. Dream profession? 

Fashion designer, maybe? I have so many. I also want to be a television actress, popular blogger, and artist. Also, I'd like to be CEO of Amazon.

8. If you had 1 million you had to spend or giveaway what would you do with it? 

 Really? I'd likely invest in a house I really want to have for the rest of my life, private education for my children in their early years, and some clothing for them and me.

9. Biggest Pet Peeve? 

I don't know. Clutter and dirt in my own household.

10. Worst habit?

 Procrastination. By far.

11. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Hopefully I'll be a successful fashion designer or the CEO of Amazon. Barring that, I really don't know. Back to work full time, I suppose?

11 Questions For My Readers, Who Are All Award Winners

Do you ever find yourself feeling good about yourself and then you trip and fall?  (Or is that only me?)
Dessert or dinner?  
Favorite superhero -- good, evil, or neutral, all answers are acceptable -- character?
What was your first favorite band?
Are you going to complete a pin for my "I heart Pinterest" along or what?!
Favorite shade of toenail polish?
Why don't you want to have a sewing or knitting night with me, friend?
If Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's Day, and Easter were anthropomorphized and got into a fight, who would win?
Do you fall victim to scrapbooking paper even though you don't scrapbook, too? 
Your favorite M&M color?
If you could wake up tomorrow and be magically proficient in one skill such as drawing, sewing, a musical instrument, surfing, etc, what would it be?

Friday Links #1

Like everyone else on Earth, I've decided that putting up a link to some things on the internet on a Friday would be a good idea.  Let's face it, we're all bored Friday afternoon and by Saturday, some of us are angry about the lack of internet posts.  I'm just helping us all to stay internet enthused this weekend.

Remember that daily schedule I posted a while ago?  I thought I was funny.  It turns out, Motherhood, WTF is funnier. 

Here's a toddler's letter to his father about the family bed. 

Okay, let's face it, this is probably too late for you, but Blonde Designs puts out a yearly set of signs that you can use for your child's first day of school photos.

One day, I'm most likely going to have a conversation with Noelle about inequality and unfairness due to her gender and why life for her brother will just be a tiny bit more charmed than hers.   I see that other mothers already have.

I heart... Pinterest

Ah, after a week in Philly, and a week at the shore (only Philly and Jersey people call it the 'shore' instead of the beach, I think), I'm ready for autumn.  New Hampshire is getting crisp and the Pumpkin Spice Lattes are back.  School is around the corner for my older baby.

So, now that we're ready for the school year and new starts, my idea is a go!  Three people agreed to attempt a Pinterest along, which I've titled "I heart... Pinterest".  I know, you're thinking 'why the clever title?'  Well, the font I picked for the button below?  It totally came with the I heart... option and I was too lazy to look for a better font.  That's me, telling you all my secrets!

I know, you might be wondering why I'm doing this with so little interest.  I told you, I think only six people read my blog.  Three of them said yes.  That is a fifty percent sign up rate!

I am only showing the button below.  I will write some code for the button to put it on your own blog, if you wish.  You don't need to use this button.

What are the rules?  Every month, do one pin.  What counts?  Make a meal you pinned.  Do a craft you pinned.  Create a fun activity for your children that you pinned.  Hell, put together with an outfit copying one you pinned.  Use a free font you found!  That's what I did!  I basically completed my first month's challenge just making this blog button!  If you don't know if it counts, just contact me, and I'll consider it.

But, if you can, try to do more.  Blog about it and your perceived success or failure.  Do more than one pin a month.

If it goes well and I actually see some blog entries from my three lovely readers, I will consider doing a giveaway.  I'm pretty excited by this!

 

And, now, I need to go update my blog.  PS.  Anyone out there use Wordpress.org?  I am considering moving to it, but I hate making a change without talking to someone.  Especially an expensive change!

Idea: Pinterest Along

I know other people have done this, but I'm hoping some of my readers might be interested in this idea.  If I see any interest, I'll go through with it.  Do you pin a ton of stuff, but rarely do anything with it?  If so, would you like to join me in working on a pin a month?  It doesn't need to be the same pin, but we'd all make one of our pins (craft, organization, food) per month and just do it.  I rarely find interest in my readers because I have so few (not modesty, just truth), but this is something I'd like to be held accountable for by my little but loyal reading group!

A Different Version Of Myself

Do I know you?  Do we hang?  If so, you're already aware, most likely, that I'm kicking it in NH with my family.  We're only there for several months, but, it's bye-bye Philly suburbs.  The weird, the true, and the good follows:

• At home, popular news items: murder, corruption, death, disease!  Here?  Whale crosses harbor!  People catch burglar!  No one hurt in propane leak!  Olympic champion visits home!  This is a really small town we live in and it seems pretty darned peaceful and it is surrounded by similarly small towns or even smaller towns.
• I'm ten minutes from Maine.
• I'm ten minutes from the Atlantic Ocean.
• I saw a humpback whale.  That was cool.
• I joined a knitting group and I might have inadvertently offended a male knitter by telling him that I was afraid of steeking.
• N took nearly four years to get a birthday invite from a friend in Philly areas.  In NH?  Four days. 
• I'm knitting again and spending more time with P due to the lack of a computer desk.  Thinking maybe I should get rid of the one at home or convert it to homework use for N in the future.
• We have two bathrooms.  Celebrate!
• I got another shout out from a random stranger.  Right Side, Wrong Side, you made my day.
• I'm panicking over rumors that Feedburner might just stop working.  What to do with my RSS feed then?  I should switch over to Twitter anyway.

Okay, I'm out.  I just wanted to remind you all that I'm alive and kicking.  Also, my children?  Still adorable.  N2 is trying her best to scoot but failing and her table of solid food per day is making her stink.  Wow.  So much stinking.  

People Who Give Shout Outs, Get Shout Outs

So, two different bloggers have mentioned me in the last month and I'm so honored!  Honestly, I make so little effort online to keep up my blog, I'm always shocked when someone finds and follows me and I build an online relationship with them.

First is Trying To Be Normal Since Last Tuesday.  She told people I give good book recommendations.  If she had flat out told me she loved me, she could not have been kinder.  (The day I suspected I would be good friends with Helen is the day we were discussing book and based on her interests I told her to read Tam Lin by Pamela Dean and she told me that she had an autographed version already.  A person who has your same reading history and interests is a good person to cultivate as a friend.)  To be fair, I first started following her blog because I realized we were some how making the same sewing projects.  But to then also discover that she shares my love of good books and my hate of germs and dirt?  Fantastic.

Second is First Time Mom.  I found her at her previous blog.  How?  I googled "tired of being pregnant" and there it was.  I had found my soul mate -- someone who hated pregnancy as much as I did.  Ugh, I still hate pregnancy no matter how much I adore my babies.  She is now blogging about being a mom with devotion and energy, but she's not telling me about her kale smoothies, her love of doing yoga with her baby, or how she spent five hours creating a whole black/white/red environment to best accommodate her babies sense of sight.  Because that's normally who I read and they send me into shame spirals.  When I read April's blog, I come away thinking, "Hee, yeah, I do that."

So, thanks for the shout out, ladies.

An Open Letter To My Firstborn

I wrote this letter a tiny bit prior to having N2.  I assure you all that I love N2 as I love N, and I would say as much, but that would indicate that I love them in the same way.  My love for them is most likely equal but it is different.

Dear N,

You are very clingy nowadays, but, to tell the truth, I don't mind so much since I'm sort of clinging to you too. We both can sense change coming and it is scaring the bejeezus out of us. When I first started this pregnancy and started my daily habit of napping with you for hours each day, it seemed like I had all the time in the world to spend solely with you. Often, as soon as you fell into your nap, I'd turn over to get comfortable so your knees would only hit me in the back instead of stomach.

Now, when we nap, I let you fall asleep and I stroke your cheek or face for twenty minutes or so before I also fall asleep. At the doctor today, when my blood pressure was elevating due to my fear of surgery, she asked me to think of something calming, and I pictured your face as you slept next to me. I think you might be the thing to get me through this surgery as I remind myself that you were the prize at the end of my first C-section. If N2 can be half as cute or loving as you, I will have it made.

Sometimes, sweetie, I'm afraid that I won't love N2 as much as I love you. It's funny. My mother-in-law mentioned this fear, and I dismissed it at first, but now I wonder. How can I love anyone like I love you? When I was growing up, my mom used to tell me that if anyone ever hurt me, she'd kill them. Full stop. I wondered why. Then, I had you and the second you were born, I understood what she was saying. My love for you felt like a force of nature. Can I possibly love my daughter this much?

I'm half worried I resent her, honestly. Will she take away from our time together? Will you love me less because I have her? I know the reality is that I'll most likely love her just as much as I love you, but it's scary, isn't it? This is why you hold me and tell me you miss me and love me nowadays and I hug you back and tell you that you are my angel.

I just want you to know that I love so much and even when I'm holding N2 at the hospital after the surgery, I'll be counting the moments until you can join me at the hospital too. When you were born, I couldn't wait to take pictures of you. Now that she is being born, I can't wait to take pictures of BOTH of you together. I wish I could tell you this all now so you understand, but I have to be satisfied with this letter.

Love, your mommy.

Gonna Be Doing Some Long Drives Over the Next Couple Months

So...  If you could, please tell me about podcasts or songs or albums you enjoy.  I'll need something to distract me from my overwhelming need to use the bathroom as I'm on hour six of a trip with two sleeping children in the backseat who are preventing me from ever leaving the car again.  I like podcasts about knitting, sewing, crafts, Dungeons and Dragons, superheroes, video games, young adult novels, fantasy novels, and television shows I like.  Some of my favorite artists are Lily Allen, Kate Nash, OK Go, Kimya Dawson, Postal Service, Jonathan Coulton, Cake, Presidents of the United States of America, Ben Folds Five, The Shins, Eels, Weezer, Stars, Owl City, and Stephen Malkmus.  Recommend away.